Page 79 of Mermaid on Heels
Nevertheless, she settled for another secret smile exchange and shoved aside the wild urge.
“Ah, you two! How gracious of you to grace us with your presence.” Cedric recovered from his laugh and greeted them sarcastically. “Care to join us?”
“No,” Princess Aeira refused with a shy smile. “I am afraid I do not know…”
“What?” Luke’s gaze snapped to her. “I don’t believe that. The lastandthe first time I ever saw you fire an arrow, you were brilliant at it.” He turned to his brother. “Don’t you remember, Cedric?”
“Of course…” Cedric said slowly, as though trying to remember that day.
“And when exactly was it?” Princess Aeira asked, looking up at Luke.
Luke furrowed his eyebrows as he thought hard. “It was clearly years ago. I don’t exactly remember when.”
“Well, that’s the point. I haven’t touched it for years. Not after I accidentally hurt my arm firing the arrow one day.” Princess Aeira frowned and released her arm from Luke’s. “Why don’t you go and fire one. I’d love to watch you.”
She shot him the same smile Liriya saw her giving him earlier that day, and she didn’t like it a bit.
“If you insist.” Luke grinned and stepped away from her, turning on his heels and walking towards Liriya.
Liriya’s heart raced as he neared her. He stopped in front of her and inclined his head to her bow with a crooked grin. “Are you going to keep holding it or let me help you?”
Liriya matched his smile, almost, and tilted her head up. “And how did His Majesty figure out that I cannot do archery?”
“Lucky guess, I think.” He winked at her just before his eyes dropped to Sessa next to her. His smile fell. He stepped to Sessa’s side and crouched in front of her, making her look up from the ground where she was staring gloomily at her fallen bow and arrow.
“Oh, don’t you frown, little one.” Luke cooed at her. “I’ll teach you how to shoot if you’ll give me a beautiful smile.”
Usually, it took agreateffort to elicit a smile from Sessa when she was upset, no matter the reason. Therefore, Liriya watched the interaction between her little sister and Luke in astonishment.
Sessa smiled a little, and when Luke said, “That’s my little girl,” her smile stretched wide.
Everyone watched as Luke stood and led Sessa to the shooting line. He picked one of the arrows from the quiver and ran his finger over them as though testing something before handing it to Sessa. Then he drew level with her and began instructing her how to stand, hold the bow, and positioning the arrow in the string.
Liriya’s eyes were filled with admiration for Luke as she watched him interact with her sister, his gentleness, encouragement, and soft words telling Sessa that she could do it. Luke placed his hands over Sessa’s, and at the count of three, they released the arrow together.
The arrow swished through air, flying straight for the target and hitting near the center. Sessa gasped aloud and squealed, bouncing up and down, forgetting her surroundings. She dropped the bow and lunched herself at Luke, wrapping her tiny arms around his neck.
Luke swayed back with the force, taken by surprise, but caught her tiny figure against him and hugged her back with a laugh. “You did it, little one.” He smiled into her hair like a proud brother.
Everyone broke into applause around them. Sessa broke apart from the hug and Luke patted her on the head affectionately before glancing at Liriya over his shoulder with a grin. “You next.”
“Oh, no.” Liriya began shaking her head, but he rose to his feet and dragged her to the shooting line.
Luke took the arrow from her and inspected it like he did with Sessa’s, his fingers expertly checking its… Liriya had no ideawhathe was checking, but she found herself drawn to his hands, strong and steady as they handled the arrow with ease.
“It’s important to choose the right arrow so it won’t twist in the air and miss its target.” Luke looked up from the arrow and met her gaze. Liriya snapped herself out of the daze when he handed it back to her. “I’ll teach you how to tell the difference later. Now, we’re going to fire the arrow.”
He stepped behind her, his presence close but not intrusive, and gently adjusted her stance. “Now, the key to a good shot is to stand properly. Your feet should be shoulder-width apart.”
“Luke, everyone is watching.”
“Then let’s give them a scene worth watching,” he murmured into her hair, the deepness of his low voice making her breath hitch.
Liriya didn’t voice her protest again, but she couldn’t focus on his instructions either. All she knew was the warmth of his body radiating through the fabric of her gown. Her heart quickened in response. She swallowed hard, trying to focus on the lesson.
“Next,” he instructed, “hold the bow with your non-dominant hand, and use your dominant hand to pull the string back.” Luke positioned her fingers on the bow’s grip and helped her draw the string with a smooth, controlled motion.
His proximity was impossible to ignore. Feeling the brush of his chest against her back and the heat of his breath on her neck, her skin tingled with awareness and her cheeks flushed. She tried to concentrate on the task at hand, but the sensation of Luke’s presence was both distracting and electrifying.