Page 90 of Mermaid on Heels
Princess Lora had a plastered smile on her face, and it was hard to tell how she was taking the elimination. However, Lady Sabrina didn’t hide her disappointment; she thinned her lips and stared at the empty plate in front of her.
Liriya turned to Luke at the dais, his handsome face frowning as he glanced incredulously at the crying noblewoman. He rubbed his temples tiredly, careful not to jostle his circlet, and met Liriya’s eyes. He brought a fisted hand to his mouth, looking as though he was going to clear his throat when his voice reached Liriya’s ears.
“I must admit, I’ve never been this shaken with shock before.”
A hysterical laugh surged up Liriya’s throat and she choked it back.
* * *
Luke resumed his kingly duties the next day. From what he told Liriya, there was a lot he needed to see to. However, Liriya thought she was getting to see him more than she had in the past week. Amid the busyness of getting back to his duties, at the court’s suggestion, Luke spent each meal of each day that followed the elimination, with each elite, to get toknow the ladiesbetter.
Nonetheless, he prioritized his midnight and sunrise dates with Liriya, even though the sun was hidden behind the rain clouds most days.
Ever since they were cut to three, the parlor where the elites gathered seemed strangely deserted every time Liriya strode into the room. She couldn’t say she missed them—oh, she certainly didn’t—but Princess Lora and Lady Serra had been the talkative and enthusiastic ones among them. They had never let the group sit in silence, but ever since they were gone and Liriya joined Lady Riley and Princess Aeira in the parlor with her sisters, the air thickened with awkward silence.
Liriya knew that perhapsshecould do something about it; make conversation and engage them, but she didn’t. The three of them were equally aware of the competition between them as the days drew closer to the announcing of the queen.
Two days before the announcement, Luke took Liriya to his mother’s garden at their usual time. When they reached the entrance of the maze, Liriya’s playful spirit ignited. She tore her hand from Luke’s gentle grasp and offered him a mischievous grin.
“I shall race you to the fountain,” she declared. Without waiting for Luke’s response, she gathered her skirts and darted into one of the maze’s pathways.
Luke chuckled at her challenge and soon his footsteps followed her into the labyrinthine hedges. His amused voice floated to her through the lush greenery.
“Oh, I’ll be right behind you, little mermaid,” he teased, the endearment causing a warm flutter in her chest. “Should I catch you or see who gets to the fountain first?”
“It is a race, no one catches anyone!” Liriya’s laughter rang out like bells in response.
With an exhilarating sense of freedom, she raced onward, her heart pounding in rhythm with her steps. She took turns at the maze’s intersections with an eager determination, the thrill of the chase fueling her every move.
However, as the maze neared its end, a sudden silence fell. Liriya panted, with hands on her knees, and strained her ears for Luke’s footsteps, but heard only her ragged breathing and the pulsing rhythm of her own heart.
Resuming her pace, she jogged towards the maze’s exit to its heart. She grinned wide as she realized that she was winning, Luke hadn’t made it; the joy of the moment elicited laughter from her.
Though just as she approached the exit, a shadow emerged from her left, and two strong arms encircled her. Her laughter turned into a delighted squeal as Luke picked her off the ground and spun around.
“Better think twice when you challenge me to a race next time,” Luke murmured huskily into her ear, his lips brushing against her earlobe.
Liriya couldn’t suppress her smug grin. “Certainly, my king. I shall make sure to challenge you whenever we go to the sea, and you had better think twice before you accept a swimming race with a mermaid.”
Luke’s response was a raspy chuckle, and he turned her to face him. Her blue-green eyes locked onto his, and a charged silence passed between them, filled with unspoken desires.
“Liriya?” Luke’s voice was soft, laced with intensity.
“Hmm?” She hummed, her gaze unwavering as she drowned in his ocean-blue eyes.
“I want to get something off my chest,” Luke confessed, his fingers tracing invisible patterns on her back.
Liriya’s hands, seemingly of their own accord, clenched the collar of his pristine white shirt. She pulled herself off the daze that his presence often enveloped her in and focused on his face with curiosity. “What is it?”
Luke’s eyes darkened. “I’m burning with the desire to kiss you.”
Liriya swallowed, her heart racing as his words hung in the air.
“I’ve wanted to do that since the night of the ball, but I didn’t want to scare you away.” He brought one of his hands from her back to her face, his thumb doing slow strokes on her cheekbone.
Liriya dropped her eyes to his plump, rosy lips, her heart thundering. “Then what is stopping you?”
“Because, the last time I almost did, you distracted me and dragged me away—ironically, it happened right here.”