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Her eyes watched me, anxious and round. “Come with me? I’m painfully shy.”
“Fine,” I agreed, mostly because the cold had crept up my pant leg. I put the flag in her hand, and we rose to our feet. We walked back to Fitz, arriving about the same time as the others who’d been called back in. As she stopped in front of Fitz, she took a moment to curtsy and extend the flag to him like a gift.
His eyebrows came up, obviously impressed that she apparently knew what to do. Fitz played his part and called her by name. “Lady Sadira, have you braved the forest, outsmarted the snoods, and conquered your foe?”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. It took some doing, but I got her where she needed to be in the end. A good pageant coach never gave up hope, even when her girl was out there hiding behind stage equipment. Really, it all came down to expertise and—
“But, milord.” Sadie’s head popped up, “I couldn’t have done it without Lady Michaela. Her courage and quick wit saved our kingdom.”
Take the win, Sadie. This wasn’t a time to be gracious. This was a time to mack on the prince. Was I the only one who could see it?
Fitz cocked his head to the side, perplexed by her actions. “How irregular. Seems we have two victors.” His palm covered his mouth as he considered it. “I suppose that means I have two kisses to bestow.”
Wait. What?
He took Sadie’s hand and pulled her back to standing. “Lady Sadira, in recognition of your bravery and valor…”
I tuned out the rest. Focusing became impossible. The world spun. I felt faint.
Kiss Fitz?
Hadn’t he learned his lesson with Gwen? He had the power to overrule Sadie’s confession. Why choose to kiss us both? It made no sense.
A voice in the back of my mind had an opinion it refused to keep to itself.
Because he wants to kiss you.
I was just about to tell that voice where she could shove her crazy thoughts when Fitz stepped into my personal bubble and took my hands in his. All eyes were on me, plus two incredibly expensive high-definition cameras that wouldn’t leave me alone. They’d never put mic packs on us, so I wasn’t sure how much they would hear of our conversation, but I was dying to ask him what he was thinking.
“I wager,” Fitz barely whispered, “you are the true victor, aren’t you?”
I gave a quick shake of my head. “Fitz, I can’t be the winner if I’m not playing.”
A flicker of concern crossed his face. “Who said you’re not playing?”
This was the place I was supposed to put words, but nothing would come. I meant I wasn’t in the competition for his heart, but was that what he was referring to? Familiar voices spoke in hushed tones. The Crown Prince was about to kiss the ineligible American. My lips tried to form words, but his fingertips shifted to graze my jaw, silencing me with a rush of butterflies big enough to block out the sun. Plagues of Egypt sized butterflies because this whole thing had to be apocalyptic. That’s what happened when you kissed your best friend, right? The world came off its axis, air sucked out like a vacuum, and hearts everywhere stopped beating.
“Lady Michaela,” his volume stayed low, “in honor of your courage, your ingenuity,” a flicker of a grin danced at the corners of his mouth, “and your indomitable spirit, please accept my token of honor in a kiss.”
This was going to happen.
We were really going to kiss.
I braced myself for the end of all humanity, eyes closed, body tense, but in all honesty, not hating the way his palm cupped my jaw and drew me closer. In fact, as apocalyptic events went, this one was five-star, highly recommended. His other arm slipped around my waist, palm firm against my back, nerves springing to life as if they never could have expected this glorious feeling of—
SPLAT!
Frigid flakes of icy snow snuck down the neckline of my sweater, releasing an unladylike shriek as the snowball slid from my cheek to my chest.
Within seconds, pandemonium broke loose.
Another snowball hit my jacket, then Fitz’s jacket. Happy screams of excitement burst like fireworks as an all-out snowball fight took over. Laughter rose with every strike. Gwen took one from two separate directions at once. Minny’s infectious giggle preceded every snowball she threw. I didn’t know who’d started the war, but it had been years since I’d been able to be a part of one. Not since I was little and Dad used to drive us up to the snow. With determination, he would build a fort on each side of our beloved hill. Meanwhile, Mom and I would gather our weapons, ready for an epic showdown.
Every day was laughter with him. He’d taught me what it was to be treated like a princess. Even though I wasn’t anyone special to anyone else, Dad made me feel like I was the best in the world.
A blur of white brought me out of my thoughts as the attack came from all angles. My stomach hurt from laughing, and poor Corbin had to take cover.
