The princess and the knight sat back down in their chairs. Preparing for whatever the 'good' and 'bad' news might be, Ethyn rested his elbow on the table between them.
It groaned under the pressure. Removing his arm, the young knight leaned back quickly while crossing his legs.
He motioned casually toward the princess. "Whenever you are ready…"
"First I want to say I am sorry for not listening to you the night of the ball. What I heard you say made me angry, and that clouded my judgment." Unlike before, Rose looked the man directly in the eye. She meant to own her mistake, not cover it up. "I was wrong."
"What changed your mind?" Ethyn tried to think of what evidence would have been able to complete such a feat.
"Not what, who." Rose raised one eyebrow.
The knight remembered back to that night. The only people who had been there were himself, Nuall, the princess and… "Lady Caitlyn?"
"Indeed. After leaving the washroom, I waited for Cait to find a secluded spot for me to enjoy the evening air. Who knew you would select her favorite hideaway?"
Back in the garden, Rose had said that Caitlyn had rescued Nuall from Ethyn's blade. Yet the lady-in-waiting had not any gratitude from Nuall, refusing even to answer him.
Shortly afterward, the dutiful brunette had then interrupted the princess as she began to berate Ethyn for his folly. The lady had asked Rose to hold off on judgment.
'Caitlyn intervened to protect me, but why would she do that?' Then it clicked.
"Lady Caitlyn was the sound I heard right before Nuall attacked me with the knife!" Ethyn did not think the sound was his imagination, but now he knew the source. It was all starting to make sense.
The princess nodded. "Cait witnessed the whole attack, sending a servant to fetch me as quickly as they could. Unfortunately for you, I only heard your parting words, and after the evening we shared, I came to the wrong conclusion." Rose pursed her lips. "Caitlyn told me everything once you left. I am grateful for your loyalty to the crown."
It was not easy to admit her judgment had been skewed by her own bias. Yet it was quite clear that her opinion of the young knight was not exactly accurate.
"If you know the truth then...then I am not to be stripped of my title?" Ethyn tried not to hope too much.
Rose furrowed her brow, genuinely confused. "By the Fates, of course not! Whatever gave you that idea?"
"Well you said that by morning your father would know everything. Even without the incident with the knife, I have done enough to..."
"I told my father only of the incident with Nuall. Actually, I had Lady Cait relay the information in my presence. The King was most displeased." Rose clicked her tongue at the memory.
"But not with me?" The redhead persisted.
"Not with you, Sir Ethyn. You are safe. Nuall was given a reprimand. He has been put on peacekeeping duty on the border with Marek. A totally lackluster position usually reserved for the aged and washed out. I think my father would have taken Nuall's title, but his sponsor spoke up and said the young man had simply given into the poor judgment of strong drink. Not an excuse if you ask me..." Rose scowled.
Ethyn, on the other hand, was too relieved to care much about whether or not Nuall was cast out or not. The dashing manipulator was far away from the princess, and his treachery had been discovered. That was enough for Ethyn.
"Whew...I've been so worried. I thought..." he paused, but too late. He already had captured the woman's attention.
"What did you think?" Rose cocked her head to one side, a ghost of a smile present on her ruby lips.
"It's nothing…I just thought that the dinner invitation from the king was a trap to arrest me," Ethyn mumbled the last words.
The princess laughed. "Surely, you are teasing me! Father would never play a game like that. He would have just sent people to arrest you. No need for tricks when you have an entire army at your disposal."
"I hadn't thought about it like that." Ethyn rubbed the back of his neck. "Just when that invitation arrived--I know it sounds terrible but-- I felt like there was an ulterior motive."
"Oh my! What you must have thought when the messenger came!" Rose's face was full of sympathy as she considered the discomfort Rhodri's message had brought her companion. "I can say my father certainly has an ulterior motive for inviting you back to the palace, but nothing that involves imprisoning you in the dungeon."
Although he was happy to be free of the worry, Ethyn was now intrigued. "I don't understand. What possible motive could His Majesty have for going to all the trouble of requesting my presence?"
"If I am right, I am afraid he wants to put you in a prison of a different kind." Rose paused, pressing her lips together. "I told you there was bad news, I am afraid I have finally come to it."
Ethyn tensed. The gravity in the princess's voice meant she was not joking. "What prison could be worse than the dungeon of the palace?"
Leveling her gaze at the young man, Rose sighed. "Matrimony."
"Matrimony?"
"To me."
"To you?!" Ethyn's mouth hung so wide that it seemed to reach to the dirt floor.
"You don't need to repeat everything I say, you know." Rose blushed.
"Forgive me. I just cannot fathom why His Majesty would want you to marry me." Ethyn pointed to his whole person, which in his opinion was severely lacking in several areas.
Rose gave a dry laugh. "Do not flatter yourself too much. In truth, I think my father would marry me off to any young man with a title and a beating heart. And since you newly acquired a title, you are now fair game."
"I see. Though it does not exactly seem like the gloom and doom you claimed." Ethyn pulled at his chin, his stubble tickling his fingers.
"You said you had no interest in my hand," the princess reminded him.
"I did say that..." The young man conceded with a nod. "But I meant it more as I do not have ambitions for the throne, not that there is anything wrong with your hand."
Rose's expression lightened. "It is good to know that I am not entirely repulsive to you."
"Only a fool would be repulsed by you." Ethyn caught himself. "And I shall stop my compliments before I get a slap across the face."
"When have I ever slapped you?" The princess narrowed her gaze, but there was a playfulness in her eyes that betrayed her amusement.
"I never said you were the culprit, did I?" Ethyn tapped his nose. "And I notice you didn't say you have never wanted to slap me, so clearly the thought has occurred to you." The green-eyed man wiggled his eyebrows, and the princess laughed.
"A lady should not admit such secrets, but I considered the notion once or twice." The princess was clearly teasing...or was she?
It didn't matter, for the first time, Rose had really seemed to let down her guard in front of him. The sight of Haven without her royal airs was nothing short of stunning. The knight nearly lost his words.
"Astonishing." He muttered.
"What?" Rose cocked her head to one side, unsure of Ethyn's words.
'Did I say that out loud?" The young man scrambled to change the subject.
"Uh, a solution! I have a solution to your problem of marrying me, Your Highness. If you do not wish to wed such a humble and lowly knight, simply tell your father of all of the ways I have embarrassed myself and you. Surely His Majesty would never accept such a ne'er-do-well into his family."
Rose stroked her porcelain cheek as she contemplated. "I do not think we shall have to go to such extreme measures, but I shall keep the tactic in mind just in case. But first, I want you to tell me all of the events of your time in the palace in great detail so that I have the most accurate information possible."
From the outside it might have sounded like a command, but Ethyn realized the woman was giving him a chance to explain. It was the greatest gift she could have given him: a listening ear.
The knight eyed the door. The basket lay waiting, having been carelessly dropped when Silver hoisted Ethyn into his wooden seat. The young man smirked.
"I live to serve, my lady. Though may I make one alteration to this plan? How about we do this over...say...a picnic?"
Taking his outstretched hand, the princess easily agreed. "That sounds lovely."