untouchable because of it,” Jeremiah snapped.
“He’s also in line for the throne if, for some reason, Daphne can’t take it,” Theodore informed Matt. “He used to not care, but Agnes—now that woman’s a piece of work. She’s been dying to find a way to weasel her way back into the palace, and she seems to think her son will get her there.”
Matt frowned, sipping his beer and listening as the two men continued to rant about Agnes, but he was more interested in Dion. Yesterday, when he saw how Dion looked at Daphne, he’d thought the look was for something else, but if he sought the throne, he was an instant threat. He would have to find out more about Dion and what harm he could potentially cause Daphne.
“I hear there’s been more troubles at the docks, too,” Jeremiah said. “Anything show up in the paper about it?”
“Nah, they won’t report that. Agnes sees to it.”
“What’s at the docks?” Matt asked. He had nothing else to do for the night and decided he might as well learn what he could.
“Dion’s mother and he are the main exporter and importer of goods to and from the island,” Theodore explained, folding up the paper and setting it aside. “He’s in charge of all the workings down there—controls the trade, so to speak. Agnes’s parents began the business before she married into the royal family.”
“But there are rumors he’s been doing more than that,” Jeremiah chimed in.
“Yeah, much more, but there’s never any proof. And now, he’s suddenly interested in the throne?”
Matt agreed it didn’t look good for Dion. He mulled over what he’d heard others say of Daphne, knowing it wasn’t good but wanted to know what they thought. “Do the people like Princess Daphne?”
Jeremiah shrugged. “They do. She’s always polite, but that’s all they know of her. They believe she’s a shut-in and possibly unfit to rule.”
“How did that rumor start?”
“After her older sister Marietta died in a boating accident, Daphne has not stepped foot from the palace grounds,” Theodore said sadly. “Orders of the king and queen.”
“Not once?”
“Nope,” Jeremiah affirmed. “Since she was six, she has been behind these palace walls, which is why the festivals are held either within the courtyard or just beyond the gate so she can see them.”
“That will change once she’s queen, won’t it?”
“For her sake, I hope so, but that might not be for years,” Theodore said.
He knew she’d been protected all her life, but not to this extreme. He’d seen so much of the world before he left the military, was exposed to different cultures and different people, but Daphne… she only knew the inside of the palace. The fake smiles and laughter, could it stem from that?
He finished his beer and excused himself from the kitchen. His room was in the lower level in a hall with the rest of the bodyguards for the household. It was a simple room, but he didn’t need much space to sleep in and dress. He didn’t have any hobbies, not anymore. Nothing excited him after all he’d seen and done. He glanced at his hands. They were shaking already and he hadn’t even lain down to sleep yet.
After he kicked off his boots and stripped down to his boxers, Matt stalked around his room as was his nightly routine when he was alone. Pacing was one of the only things that steadied his breathing and his mind before he slept, though it never lasted through the night. After laying down, his eyes slid closed, and he waited for the usual images to fill his mind. Instead, Daphne’s face appeared in his mind, and his eyes shot open as he sat up in the bed.
All those nights he spent in the arms of women he didn’t care about, trying to fill the void inside him, had failed, yet simply thinking of Daphne’s sweet face helped him breathe more easily. She was younger than the women he usually involved himself with, but she was different. She sure as hell didn’t act like a
“He’s also in line for the throne if, for some reason, Daphne can’t take it,” Theodore informed Matt. “He used to not care, but Agnes—now that woman’s a piece of work. She’s been dying to find a way to weasel her way back into the palace, and she seems to think her son will get her there.”
Matt frowned, sipping his beer and listening as the two men continued to rant about Agnes, but he was more interested in Dion. Yesterday, when he saw how Dion looked at Daphne, he’d thought the look was for something else, but if he sought the throne, he was an instant threat. He would have to find out more about Dion and what harm he could potentially cause Daphne.
“I hear there’s been more troubles at the docks, too,” Jeremiah said. “Anything show up in the paper about it?”
“Nah, they won’t report that. Agnes sees to it.”
“What’s at the docks?” Matt asked. He had nothing else to do for the night and decided he might as well learn what he could.
“Dion’s mother and he are the main exporter and importer of goods to and from the island,” Theodore explained, folding up the paper and setting it aside. “He’s in charge of all the workings down there—controls the trade, so to speak. Agnes’s parents began the business before she married into the royal family.”
“But there are rumors he’s been doing more than that,” Jeremiah chimed in.
“Yeah, much more, but there’s never any proof. And now, he’s suddenly interested in the throne?”
Matt agreed it didn’t look good for Dion. He mulled over what he’d heard others say of Daphne, knowing it wasn’t good but wanted to know what they thought. “Do the people like Princess Daphne?”
Jeremiah shrugged. “They do. She’s always polite, but that’s all they know of her. They believe she’s a shut-in and possibly unfit to rule.”
“How did that rumor start?”
“After her older sister Marietta died in a boating accident, Daphne has not stepped foot from the palace grounds,” Theodore said sadly. “Orders of the king and queen.”
“Not once?”
“Nope,” Jeremiah affirmed. “Since she was six, she has been behind these palace walls, which is why the festivals are held either within the courtyard or just beyond the gate so she can see them.”
“That will change once she’s queen, won’t it?”
“For her sake, I hope so, but that might not be for years,” Theodore said.
He knew she’d been protected all her life, but not to this extreme. He’d seen so much of the world before he left the military, was exposed to different cultures and different people, but Daphne… she only knew the inside of the palace. The fake smiles and laughter, could it stem from that?
He finished his beer and excused himself from the kitchen. His room was in the lower level in a hall with the rest of the bodyguards for the household. It was a simple room, but he didn’t need much space to sleep in and dress. He didn’t have any hobbies, not anymore. Nothing excited him after all he’d seen and done. He glanced at his hands. They were shaking already and he hadn’t even lain down to sleep yet.
After he kicked off his boots and stripped down to his boxers, Matt stalked around his room as was his nightly routine when he was alone. Pacing was one of the only things that steadied his breathing and his mind before he slept, though it never lasted through the night. After laying down, his eyes slid closed, and he waited for the usual images to fill his mind. Instead, Daphne’s face appeared in his mind, and his eyes shot open as he sat up in the bed.
All those nights he spent in the arms of women he didn’t care about, trying to fill the void inside him, had failed, yet simply thinking of Daphne’s sweet face helped him breathe more easily. She was younger than the women he usually involved himself with, but she was different. She sure as hell didn’t act like a
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