{"id":2314,"date":"2019-09-09T15:37:35","date_gmt":"2019-09-09T19:37:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/whitefire-publishing.com\/read\/?p=2314"},"modified":"2020-12-14T19:02:11","modified_gmt":"2020-12-15T00:02:11","slug":"heart-of-a-royal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/whitefire-publishing.com\/read\/heart-of-a-royal\/","title":{"rendered":"Heart of a Royal"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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By  Hannah Currie <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Brought to the palace as a newborn, the royal life bestowed upon Mackenna Sparrow was never meant to last forever. With Princess Alina engaged to be married, Mackenna\u2019s presence as companion is no longer required and, like it or not, she must return to the birthright which should have been hers \u2013 that of a commoner. But not everyone at the palace wants her gone. When the truths she\u2019s based her life on start crumbling as fast as her future, will she find the courage to trust, both herself and the prince she\u2019s fallen in love with?
<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t

Chapter 1<\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t

If mortification could kill, I\u2019d be six feet under. And Nurse Kristiann\nover in the corner would probably still be trying to hide her laughter at the\nfuneral. Some help she was. A word, a jerk of the head, even a cough would have\nbeen enough to warn me the three of us were no longer alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWell? What happened next? Did Prince Thoraben find\nanother pair of pants or did he have to stay sitting there until the princess\nleft? What did the king say? Was he mad?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I did my best to ignore Kristiann\u2019s muffled laughter\nand the bemused prince standing in the doorway and focused instead on the wide\ngray eyes of the little girl in the hospital bed. The one intent on getting me\ninto trouble. Even if she had no idea she was doing it. Not that I could really\nblame her. I had been the one to tell the story. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe, uh\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Seventeen years and nine months of living in the\npalace should have taught me better than to share personal information about\nthe royal family<\/a>. I\u2019d never betrayed their confidence before, steering\nwell-clear of anything which would put the family I all but called my own in a\nbad light, but Roni had looked so worried this morning, staring out the window,\nthe bright shirts she favored swapped for a colorless gown as she counted down\nthe hours till her heart surgery. Even her curls were drooping. I would have\ndone anything to make her smile, so when she asked if Thoraben, who she\nidolized along with the rest of Peverell, was as perfect as he seemed, I\u2019d told\nher the first story that came to mind. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWell?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cUh\u2026\u201d My gaze drifted beyond Roni to Ben, still\nstanding in the doorway, all six foot of him. He\u2019d crossed his arms now, a half\nsmile quirking the side of his mouth as he leant against the door, no doubt\nwaiting to see what I\u2019d do next. As if I had any idea.  What had I been thinking? And how had I not\nnoticed him standing there? King Everson aside, Prince Thoraben was the most\npowerful man in Peverell, drawing the public eye wherever he went. Once upon a\ntime, him catching me sharing one of his most embarrassing moments would have\nonly made me embellish it more, teasing out each moment until we laughed so\nhard we couldn\u2019t talk. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once upon a time, we\u2019d been children. \u201cHe\u2026um\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A hand rubbed its way across his smile, doing nothing\nto wipe it away. I don\u2019t know what manner of pleading or apology he saw in my\nexpression, nor how much he\u2019d make me pay for it, but with a shake of his head\nand a few strides forward, he finally spoke.  \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe made up a story about needing to leave, borrowed\nhis little sister\u2019s pink jacket under the very gallant guise of carrying it for\nher, tied it around his waist\u2014desperately hoping it was long enough to cover\nthe split in the back of his pants that lengthened as he stood\u2014and walked back\nto the car. Where he proceeded to sit for the next forty minutes, waiting for\nhis father to finish his meeting, not sure whether he regretted more the fact\nthat he\u2019d tried to impress Princess Taryn with a cartwheel or that his little\nsister and her best friend, Lady Kenna, had witnessed it and were still\ngiggling. Thankfully, his father, the king, never found out.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPrince Thoraben!\u201d Roni straightened in her bed, a thin,\nalmost translucent hand fiddling with the gown she wore, tucking it tighter\nround her shoulders. \u201cYou\u2019re in my room!\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He grinned as he pulled a chair over to her bed and\nsat. \u201cI heard you were having an operation this afternoon and thought I\u2019d come\nand see if you were okay.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I hadn\u2019t thought her eyes could have widened any more,\nnor my respect for this man grow any higher than it already was. Somehow, they\ndid. \u201cYou heard about me?\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSure. Lady Mackenna here talks about you a lot.\u201d He\nwinked. She blushed. \u201cAnd me, it seems.\u201d Heat rushed across my cheeks again as\nhe turned to me, eyebrow raised. I should have been thankful he found the\nsituation so amusing. Perhaps I might have if I hadn\u2019t been so busy berating\nmyself over the fact that, once again, I\u2019d let my heart get in the way of my\nbetter sense. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A princess\nalways considers her words carefully before speaking. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A princess\nmust be respectful at all times. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I wasn\u2019t a princess. Not in blood nor in title, but\nwhile I lived at the palace and acted in their name, the same rules applied. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cShe thinks you\u2019re handsome,\u201d Roni piped up, drawing\nhis attention back to her. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cShe does, does she?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And there went the tips of my ears. Burnt to a crisp.\nAny second now my hair would start smoking and set off every alarm in the\nplace. Roni\u2019s heart might not have worked properly, but her matchmaking mind\ncertainly did. Last time I visited, she\u2019d tried to set me up with Blake, one of\nher nurses. The time before it had been her uncle. Apparently, she\u2019d now\ndecided to skip those options and go for the most eligible man in Peverell. As\nif he even had the option of marrying me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I sent a desperate glare in Kristiann\u2019s direction,\nbegging for intervention. Surely, she could come up with something. Nurses\nalways had something they could do. Take a temperature, check a dressing, chart\nthe level of pain\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYep. And the nicest man she\u2019s ever known. I said she\nshould marry you because she\u2019s a princess and you\u2019re a prince but she said\nshe\u2019s not really a princess so she couldn\u2019t but my mom said she might as well\nbe because she acts like one but when I told Lady Kenna that, she said\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou know, maybe you<\/em> should marry him,\u201d I interrupted,\nnot sure where she was going with this conversation but certain Ben didn\u2019t need\nto hear it. Amused as he currently seemed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Roni sighed. \u201cI can\u2019t. I\u2019m too young. Mom said so. But\nyou\u2019re not, Lady Kenna. You\u2019re exactly the right age, and you did say he was\u2014\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOkay, Roni,\u201d I interrupted, again. Yep, definitely\ngoing to get me in trouble. \u201cI think we\u2019ve told Prince Thoraben enough of our\nsecrets for today. Look, Nurse Kristiann is going to check your blood pressure\nnow\u2014\u201d whether she needed to or not\u2014\u201cAnd then as soon as your mom arrives,\nyou\u2019ll be ready to go.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The loss of her beautiful smile was instant and like a\nhammer to my chest. If mortification wouldn\u2019t kill me, perhaps regret would\nfinish the job. Why couldn\u2019t I keep my mouth shut?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOh, sweetie, I\u2019m sorry\u2026\u201d I reached out to take her\nhand, tucking it between mine. \u201cI know this is scary, but you\u2019ve done it before\nand Nurse Kristiann and her friends will look after you and Doctor Jasen is so\ngood at what he does that you won\u2019t even know\u2014\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat if the Rebels come while I\u2019m asleep?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I started at the change of subject, coldness blanching\nthe heat from my face like an avalanche. Even Kristiann seemed taken back,\npausing halfway between her cart and the bed, cuff dangling forgotten in her\nhand. \u201cIs that what you\u2019re worried about?\u201d I asked, careful to keep the\ntrembling from my voice. Not the seriousness of the operation, not the pain or\nthe recovery, but terrorists attacking while she was under? What had brought\nthis on? I looked at Kristiann, questions in my eyes. All she had to offer was\na shrug. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDid someone say something to you about the Rebels?\u201d I\nasked Roni. She nodded, the action tipping tears from her eyes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe nurses were talking yesterday when they thought I\nwas asleep. They said a Rebel group was suspected of being near the hospital.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOh, honey, that hasn\u2019t been proven. It\u2019s just people\ntalking. You don\u2019t need to worry about that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut if they attack while I\u2019m in surgery, I won\u2019t be\nable to hide.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This time, the hammer to my chest took my breath away.\nI wanted to wrap my arms around the precious little girl and assure her I\u2019d\nalways be there to protect her\u2014but I couldn\u2019t. Even within the walls of the palace,\nwe lived in fear. Especially<\/em> at the palace, because we were the ones the\nRebel group were after.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A glance at the man beside me showed Ben\u2019s smile,\nalso, had given way to stoic sadness. Was he thinking about the last time the\nRebels had attacked? The day he\u2019d lost his mother and the kingdom of Peverell\ntheir beloved queen? There had been minor skirmishes and attempts since, but\nnothing to rival that one. That day had changed us all. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 I squeezed\nRoni\u2019s hand, refusing to let my fear grow hers. The poor girl had enough to\nworry about, and surely even the worst of criminals had enough decency not to\nattack a hospital full of chronically-ill children. I hoped. My smile was\ngenuine, if a little shaky. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou\u2019ll be safe here. I promise.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHow do you know?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How? I didn\u2019t. Not at all. But I couldn\u2019t tell her\nthat. My mind sped through a thousand answers, trying to find one that would\nsatisfy Roni, never quite landing until Ben\u2019s hand reached out to cover both of\nours. Whether he did it to comfort Roni or simply to offer strength, I didn\u2019t\nknow. But in that moment, the words came. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBecause Prince Thoraben will protect us.\u201d I leaned in\ncloser, gesturing with my free hand for her to do the same, a thrill of success\njolting through me when she did. I would fix this. She might still have a\nhundred things playing on her mind today, but Rebels wouldn\u2019t be one of\nthem\u2014even if the thought of them attacking had me jumping at shadows for the\nrest of the day. My voice dropped to just above a whisper. \u201cI don\u2019t know if\nyou\u2019ve seen, but he looks pretty impressive dressed in his uniform. He even has\na sword! The Rebels would take one look at him standing there in all that\nmajesty and run for cover as quickly as their weak little legs could carry\nthem.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her giggle was worth every bit of embarrassment saying\nsuch a thing in front of Ben cost me. I hoped he would believe it to be a silly\nbit of prattle meant to calm the nerves of an anxious child and not the truth\u2026but\nthe ears once again singeing my hair had me doubting it. I tilted my head\nforward just enough to let my long hair cover them, ignoring Ben\u2019s knowing\nsmile as I did. The man saw far too much. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Roni\u2019s mother\u2019s arrival was just the distraction I\nneeded. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOh look, your mom is here. We\u2019ll go now, but I\u2019ll be\nback to see you tomorrow. You be the brave girl I know you are, okay?\u201d I gave\nher thin hand another squeeze before standing to greet the woman who\u2019d entered.\nI couldn\u2019t hear what Ben whispered as he bent down to Roni\u2019s ear, but whatever\nit was, it brought a smile to her face bigger than any I\u2019d seen today. It was\nall that stopped me crying as I blew her a kiss and walked out, Ben closing the\ndoor behind us. Seeing these kids in pain was always difficult. Seeing them\nscared wrenched my heart. But seeing them smile? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThanks.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I didn\u2019t qualify what it was I was thanking Ben for as\nwe walked down the hospital hall together, but the word alone seemed enough. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cKenna?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHm?\u201d Stop\nthinking about the Rebels, Kenna. You\u2019re safe. Truly. They won\u2019t come here.\nThey wouldn\u2019t. Roni is fine. <\/em>The breath I filled my lungs with smelled of\ndisinfectant laced with some type of flowery air-freshener, but it was enough\nto ground me. I glanced at my watch. Who next? Martin in bed eleven would be\ngetting back from his appointment soon. I\u2019d missed him last week. And I\u2019d\npromised Jordana a visit, although with grandparents, two aunts, and several\ncousins currently in with her, that could probably wait till later. There was\nonly so much room in there. Perhaps Millie? Chatting with that precocious\ntwo-year-old always brought a smile to my face. She\u2019d have woken up from her\nmorning nap by now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAbout the Rebels\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDon\u2019t worry, I\u2019m not really counting on you to\nprotect us. I just said that to keep her happy. I know, I should have kept my\nmouth shut.\u201d  Regarding more than just\nthe Rebels. King Everson would be furious if word ever got back to him about\nthe story I told. But I couldn\u2019t change that now, so there was no point in\nruing it. Bed five for Millie. I turned to head back to the other end of the\nward. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNo, wait, that\u2019s not what I\u2014\u201d Ben stopped, frowned,\nthat action in itself enough to give me pause. I hugged my purse against my\nchest and waited, hoping whatever he had to say wouldn\u2019t take too long.\n\u201cThey\u2019re not\u2014\u201d He pursed his lips. Another sentence broken off. Another frown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He looked down the hall, smiled at a passing doctor,\nlooked back at me, considering for a long moment before he quirked his head.\nGrinned. \u201cYou think I\u2019m handsome?\u201d I stopped just short of whacking his arm.\nOne did not hit a prince. Even if the prince was practically one\u2019s brother and\nwell-deserving of it. Especially since, as Mother reminded me almost daily, he wasn\u2019t<\/em> my brother.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat are you doing here anyway?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLooking for a wife. Though apparently, neither you\nnor Roni are takers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cVery funny. What are you really doing here?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cKing Dorien and Prince Marcos are on their way from\nHodenia. They\u2019ll be at the palace in\u2014\u201d He checked his watch. \u201c\u2014approximately\nforty-seven minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My purse dropped several inches before I caught it.\n\u201cAnd you\u2019re only just now telling me? It takes twenty minutes to get back to\nthe palace! And I\u2019m not dressed or\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou look great.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was wearing jeans and tennis shoes. Designer, of\ncourse, stylish, perfect for an afternoon tromping around the hospital, sitting\ncross-legged on beds while chatting with kids. Not so much for greeting\nvisiting royalty. And if I was this nervous\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAlina\u2019s going to be a wreck.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Alina wasn\u2019t a wreck. Livid, but not a wreck. It was\nalmost dizzying watching her stalk her way from one end of the suite to the\nother, her irate chatter stopping only long enough to take the required breath\nevery minute or so. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe sent me away. How could Father send me away from\nhis office? Prince Marcos is in there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey\u2019re having a meeting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYes, regarding me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t know that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDon\u2019t be dense, Kenna. Why else would King Dorien and\nPrince Marcos come all this way\u2014in person<\/em>\u2014to\nmeet with Father if it wasn\u2019t to discuss my engagement?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was little point in attempting to reason with\nher. I\u2019d already tried, pointing out numerous explanations for the unexpected\nvisit which had nothing to do with her. Alina waved them all aside with a swish\nof her manicured hand, certain of her conviction. I gave up trying after the\nfifth attempt and made myself comfortable in her sitting area, content to sit\nand wait. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It wasn\u2019t as if this was the first time Alina had\nswooned over a man. Every couple of months it was someone different, although\nshe always came back to Prince Marcos. Personally, I didn\u2019t know what she saw\nin him. He was handsome, certainly, but in a swarthy way. Like a sea captain of\nold. Tall, dark wind-swept hair, deeply tanned skin, clothing pressed and\npristine. Too perfect almost. Although, perhaps that was part of what attracted\nAlina. She\u2019d always hated mess or anything out of place. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alina walked to the mirror again, checking her\nappearance even though all she\u2019d done since the last time she\u2019d checked it was\na lap of the room. Admittedly, the suite was large, but she hadn\u2019t been walking\nfast. Berating her father\u2019s high-handedness with the occasional gush over Prince\nMarcos and the fact that he was the only man in the whole world she could ever\nmarry but hardly breaking a sweat. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAlina, you look beautiful. Truly. Come and sit.\nThere\u2019s nothing you can do but wait.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI will not sit and wait, Mackenna Sparrow. This is my\nfuture. The rest of my life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mine too, though apparently she\u2019d forgotten that.\n\u201cAlina\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll break in. One of the maids will have keys. They\nhave to clean his office. I\u2019ll tell them it\u2019s an emergency. Who do you think\nwould be most likely to believe me? Perry? Emilia? Risine?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was saved from having to come up with a reply to\nthat ridiculous train of thought by a knock at the door. Alina ran to open it\nso fast she almost tripped over her feet. Almost. Princess Alina of Peverell\nwas far too particular to ever actually<\/em>\nfall. Even in the three-inch heels she favored. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYes?\u201d she asked of the maid standing there. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe king requests your\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alina was gone before the girl could finish, her\nwhite, summery dress flying out like a cape behind her as she ran down the\nmarble staircase. Though I followed, my steps were much slower. Partly to give\nAlina time but, though I hated to admit it even to myself, as much to prolong\nthe inevitable. Whether it happened today or in a few months\u2019 time, Alina would\nget engaged. And then?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can\u2019t\nhold on to what should never have been.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

No, I argued with the voice in my head, but maybe,\njust for today\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alina\u2019s squeal of delight brought a smile to my face\nand an ache to my heart. I walked around the last corner and into view of King\nEverson\u2019s office in time to see her turn from her father to throw both arms\naround Prince Marcos\u2019s shoulders. The indulgent smiles of both kings behind\nthem was proof enough that she\u2019d been right. Alina, princess of Peverell, my\nclosest friend and the sister of my heart, was engaged to Prince Marcos. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the four of them walked back inside the room,\nAlina\u2019s hand clinging to Marcos\u2019s arm like she had no plans of ever letting go,\nI turned and walked away. King Everson would call for me soon enough but, for\nnow, this was Alina\u2019s moment. And for the first time in seventeen years and\nnine months, I wasn\u2019t a part of it. <\/p>\n\n\n