"You are so good at equestrian, Lord Knight. Have you aced competitions before?" asked Sir Lucas.
"No. It was only a pastime."
Melrose silently ate as she listened to the men's talk, didn't dare to involve herself as she couldn't find the subject of their discussion relatable to herself.
"You are indeed a talented young man, Lord Knight," from another voice. "I wonder why you are still unmarried when you have everything a lady could ask for?"
"I believe a lady's preference is one thing, but marriage is another. I don't intend to rush anything in my life, especially that part."
"Indeed, my cousin. A good and stable relationship with the lady you are ought to marry is a must. In my case, I've known Lady Lewis for years and I am only waiting until she is ready. See? There is a perfect time for everything."
"I agree, Your Majesty. You and Lady Lewis are a match made from Heaven. I am sure you'd make good offspring!"
Most of them laughed. Melrose was a little embarrassed as she could not see herself bearing a child yet. Even though she was of age, she felt like she was too young to be a mother. And even though she was betrothed to the King for years, he never went beyond the boundaries. He had always been respectful to her.
"We shall see that." The King chuckled.
"His Majesty's wedding is in a few months, Lord Knight. Will you still be around by then?"
Melrose glanced at the lord, curious if his answer this time was different than the last time.
"I'm afraid I will have other matters to attend to, but let's see."
"I will appreciate it if you'd be able to come, Lord Knight," the King said.
"If that's the case, I shall see to it to make time for Your Majesty's important day."
It was quite a long feast. Melrose couldn't say it was fun to be around noisy men talking about men's business but she was entertained by their humors enough to find it tolerable. Besides, if she was to be the Queen, she must have time to socialize with people, stand and sit next to the King if she was needed.
Only one man she had seen smiled for less than five instances. And it was worth noting that those weren't even a short laugh or a full smile. Just a slight curving of his lips.
Lord Knight seemed to be way more reserved than she thought. Or was it because it was his first time speaking with those gentlemen? Melrose couldn't guess. Lord Knight seemed to be not the type who would feel embarrassed for his actions. He didn't like speaking much but his actions said how much confidence he had. Confidence, not arrogance.
"I'd like to take you for a walk but an urgent matter needs to be discussed with the council," the King said after the feast. The gentlemen were already preparing to leave.
"I have no problem with that, Your Majesty. After all, there is always another time."
"Of course."
She was about to ask him to lend his carriage since she went with him on their way to the palace, when he suddenly called Lord Knight.
"Lord Knight, can you do me a favor? I brought Lady Lewis with me so she didn't have her carriage. Perhaps, can you give her a ride?"
Melrose felt like it wasn't a good idea. Neither did Lord Knight seem to like it. She had keen eyes when it came to observing people. And although Lord Knight's face held no expression, the dark glint in his eyes gave him away.
She didn't want to be anyone's burden so she had to step up. "Your Majesty, I can manage. I don't want to trouble Lord Knight as he might have other plans."
Lord Knight leered at her with an intense dark look. Did she offend him? But wasn't it what he wanted? She only made things easier for him as she was sure he would think twice of refusing the King.
"No, I insist, Melrose. It is my peace of mind to know you will be sent home safely. I am sure Lord Knight can give you a safe ride."
Talking about safety, couldn't His Majesty feel Lord Knight's dark air that screamed danger? Or did he have great trust in him because they were cousins?
Melrose sighed gently, accepting her defeat. Not that she was afraid of Lord Knight, but the way he looked at her spoke his defiance against the King's word. Maybe he had other matters to attend to but couldn't refuse the King.
"Shall we go then, Lady Lewis?"
Melrose swallowed. How could someone have such an unearthly voice? He sounded strangely good. Especially when he called her. He had that effect in her and probably in most women.
Was it charm? No. He wasn't charming. In fact, he was anything but that. He lacked smiles. He lacked expression. He lacked words. He was like a breathing stone. Living but barely moving.
Melrose felt the tension in her chest the second both of them went inside the carriage and sat side by side. A space between them remained, which Melrose tried to not cross for the sake of her dignity. Lord Knight must be displeased at being forced to give her a ride and she wasn't shameless to trouble him more.
Silence took over them for moments until Melrose couldn't stand the awkwardness of the situation and spoke in the hopes to make the situation a little better. She felt the need for an apology and wanted to free herself from guilt.
She rolled her tongue against her teeth before she spoke in the calmest manner she could.
"I apologize if I gave you such a burden by giving me a ride, Lord Knight. The King was persistent and I couldn't refuse him."
"Neither could I."
She nodded, leering at him. But he didn't glance at her even once and remained sitting gracefully in an upright position, his elbow against the steel frame of the window, and eyes in front refusing to look anywhere else.
"However, you don't need to apologize if you feel unsafe riding with me," he added, which got her taken aback.
"What do you mean, Lord Knight?"
He didn't say anything.
Melrose recalled what happened. Did he take his reluctance as an offense? Was he even willing to take her with him in the first place? If someone was to be offended, it was her because it was obvious in his subtle hostility how he wanted to refuse the King the moment His Majesty asked him a favor. And yet here he was turning the tables? She couldn't believe this man.
"I assume you misunderstood my reaction earlier, My Lord. I refused the King's offer as I noticed in your reaction that you disliked the idea. I thought you have something else to do on your way home, so I tried to refuse getting you troubled with my affair."
"If you don't want to trouble people, then learn to take care of yourself better, Lady Lewis."
Melrose held her breath for a moment, stopping herself from making such a petty matter a big deal. Lord Knight wasn't someone easy to deal with, she could see that now. He wasn't arrogant but he was rude. She knew she was to blame for being a burden for him but did he need to bluntly say in her face how much of a trouble she was?
Instead of speaking with the lord, she just looked at the things outside through the window.
A breath of fresh air and a beautiful sight could help calm her mind.
However, it was a long ride from the palace to her residence and she calmed down after a while. She thought Lord Knight deserved another chance. After all, they would become a family soon. They better not harbor ill-feelings towards each other. She should at least try to be civil with him.
"I heard you have traveled the world, Lord Knight. What place is the most beautiful?" Melrose asked the thing she was most curious about.
She noticed his dark leer but he never turned to her as he spoke.
"What a random question you have, Lady Lewis."
"Unlike you, I have not seen the world. I've read books but I can only imagine what those places look like. Nothing can beat reality."
"Reality is sometimes worse than what one could imagine. Sometimes it's better to leave things in your imagination." The tinge of bitterness in his voice didn't escape her. It was like he had seen things far worse than she could imagine.
"To see the real thing is better, I believe. How can I decide if I have yet to see the world?"
"Try to get out of this place and see for yourself. Only then you can decide."
"I'd like to. In fact, I have always dreamed of traveling the world..." She trailed off, stopping herself from telling him things more than necessary.
"Why marry the King, then?"
Melrose was stunned by the question. She stared at Lord Knight but he remained facing front as if he wasn't talking to her but to the carriage's wall. But his tone told her he was serious. He really meant what he asked.
"Being married to the King means being married to the palace. He can give you everything except a life far from his throne."
Melrose fell silent. She suddenly felt a hollow in her stomach. She felt cold. But wasn't this what she wanted? To be married to the most powerful man because she felt the need to be protected from something she couldn't fathom? It was her destiny, as her father always said. But then... if she decided to not marry the King after all those years of being betrothed to him, and after he waited, it would only mean one thing for her – being ruined.
Drowned in her thoughts, Melrose didn't notice they had already arrived in Lewis' residence.
The carriage stopped and her gaze fell at Lord Knight. She felt the urge to say something about what he said but moments passed and she couldn't bring the words out of her mouth as if her tongue was stuck. At the end, she could only offer words of gratitude.
"Thank you for the ride, Lord Knight."
She thought he wouldn't say anything in return but as she was about to leave the carriage, he spoke.
"Take care of yourself next time, Lady Lewis."
She held her tongue and just went out. She could say he was being rude but then she also didn't want him to pretend that it was alright when it wasn't. She hated two-faced people the most.
But there was something about what Lord Knight said that shook her. She spent the next hours with her deep thoughts only to get a headache at the end.
"You seemed worked up today, My Lady. Did something happen?" Felicity asked after dinner while she was combing her hair before bed.
"You heard about Lord Knight?"
"The scary lord who is a cousin of His Majesty?"
"Yes. Have you seen him?"
"Saw him once while I was in the market. The lord is indeed good looking like the rumors say, but he is nothing like the King. He looked stern and vicious. He looked like a warrior rather than a prince."
"Lord Knight gave me a ride under His Majesty's word. He has this dark air and doesn't care about what others would say when he speaks, but I guess he's just being true to himself."
"Is he the one bothering you, My Lady? Are you afraid of him?"
"No. I know he is not a good man but I think he is not bad either. I know people who are really dangerous from those who only appeared to be. It's just he's intimidating and he said something that left me confused..."
"You don't easily get affected by what others say, My Lady. What could that be?"
Right. She wasn't someone who got easily shaken by what other people say but Lord Knight just hit something she couldn't ignore. And the way he talked about reality was too bitter and deep for her to understand.
"Just about something..."
As she spoke, Lord Knight's face flashed in her mind. His eyes... how could such beautiful eyes who had seen the world look so dark and empty?