“My mom would be dying right now. She has such a sweet tooth!” I said.
Kile was nodding with his eyes wide. He knew how she was about desserts. “This is great, Henri. Nice job to you, too, Erik.”
Erik shook his head. “I barely helped.”
“Was this rigged?” Burke asked, his mouth half full with the pastry.
We all looked at him, confused.
“I mean, I came up with this idea, and then Henri jumped in on it just to show the rest of us up.”
His face was turning red, and that feeling of unease was filling the room again.
Fox put a hand on his shoulder. “Calm down, man. It’s just a cinnamon roll.”
Burke shrugged it off and threw the rest of his dessert across the room. “I would have done way better if you weren’t there screwing me up the whole time!”
Fox made a face. “Hey, you were the one standing there talking about how hot she was when you should have been watch—”
Burke threw a punch that knocked Fox back several steps. I sucked in a breath, frozen. Fox came back at him, and I was pushed to the floor by Burke’s arm pulling back for another punch.
“WHOA!” Kile jumped over me and started pulling at Burke, while Henri was yelling at Fox in Finnish. After everything with Jack, my new instinct was to get back up and throw a punch. No one was going to hurt me and get away with it. And I might have tried if it wasn’t for one thing.
Erik, the quiet observer, had launched himself over the table to pick me up.
“Come,” he said.
I wasn’t particularly a fan of obeying orders. But he said it so urgently, I followed.
CHAPTER 24
ERIK RUSHED ME UP THE stairs and into the dining hall. Everyone else in the palace was in the middle of their dinner, and the room felt too loud.
“Eadlyn?” Daddy called, but Erik kept me moving, somehow knowing that I couldn’t bear to stay there. He only paused when we got to the end of the room, and just long enough to pass along the problem.
“Pardon me, officer, some of the Selected are in a fight in the kitchen. It’s very physical, and it looked to be escalating.”
“Thank you.” The officer motioned to two other guards, and they followed him as he ran toward the fray.
I realized I was hugging myself, both frightened and enraged. Erik gently placed a hand on my back and ushered me away. My parents were calling after me, but I couldn’t deal with that many people right now, surrounding me, asking questions.
He slowed and asked me quietly, “Where do you want to go?”
“My room.”
“Lead the way.”
He didn’t touch me exactly, except for the occasional brush against my back, which made me realize he must have kept his hand there the whole time, inches away from me, just in case. I pushed open my door, and Neena was inside, polishing the table, filling the room with the scent of lemons.
“My lady?”
I held up a hand.
“Maybe go get her some tea?” Erik offered.
She nodded and rushed away.
I walked over to my bed and took a few deep breaths. Erik stood there, calm and silent.
“I’ve never seen anything like that,” I confessed. He got down on a knee so he was level with me. “My father has never so much as swatted my hand, and he’s always taught us to seek peaceful resolutions. Ahren and I gave up trying to fight each other before we could really talk.”
I remembered this all with a laugh.
“When we were down there, all I could think about was how I ran from Jack. Burke knocked me to the ground, and this time I was going to fight back, but I just realized I’d have no idea how to do it.”
Erik smiled. “Henri says, when you’re upset, the look in your eyes is as strong as a punch. You’re not powerless.”
I ducked my head, thinking of how I told myself over and over that no one in the world was as powerful as me. There was truth to it, sure. But if Jack had pinned me to the ground or Burke had turned his fists on me, my crown would have done me no good until after the fact. I could punish, but I couldn’t prevent.
“You know, boy or girl, I think aggression is a sign of weakness. I’m always more impressed when people can end something with words.” His eyes were seeing another place and time when he went on. “Maybe that’s why language became so important to me. My father, he always used to say ‘Eikko, words are weapons. They are all you need.’”
“Ayco?” I asked.
He grinned, a little embarrassed. “E-I-K-K-O. Like I said, Erik is the closest in English.”
“I like it. Really.”
He turned his attention back to me, looking at my arms. “Are you hurt?”
“Oh . . . umm, I don’t think so.” I felt a little sore from hitting the ground, but it was nothing serious. “I just can’t believe how fast it happened.”
“I don’t want to excuse either of them at all—that was unacceptable—but I hear the guys talking, and they’re stressed. They all want to impress you, but they have no idea how to do it, considering who you are. Some talk about trying to undermine others without getting caught. A few are working out at every turn to be physically superior. I understand that it’s a lot of pressure, and that’s probably why Burke snapped. But that will never make it okay.”
“I’m so sorry you have to be around that.”
He shrugged. “It’s fine. Mostly I just stick with Henri and Kile, sometimes Hale, and they’re good company. Not that I’d ever try to choose for you, but the three of them are a pretty safe place to start.”
I smiled. “I think you’re right.” Though I hadn’t spent one-on-one time with everyone yet, I already knew Hale was a good guy. And seeing Henri so excited about his food tonight, about this part of his life, gave me a glimpse of the person behind the barrier. And Kile . . . well,
I didn’t know what to make of Kile, but he was a better companion than I’d given him credit for.
“Would you tell Henri for me how wonderful his food was? I could tell how important it was to him, and I admire his passion.”
“I will. Happily.”
I extended my hand and he gave me his, resting them both on my knee. “Thank you so much for this. You really went above and beyond tonight, and I’m so thankful you were here.”
“It’s the least I could do.”
I tilted my head, really looking at him. It felt like something had just happened, but I didn’t know what it was.
Erik, without knowing me, had done so much right. He pulled me away before I made the situation worse, got me to solitude before I lost control of my emotions, and stayed with me, listening to my worries and making everything better with his words. There were scores of people on call, ready to do whatever I asked.
It was so funny to me that with him I didn’t even have to ask.
“I won’t forget this, Eikko. Not ever.”
There was a tiny lift of a smile at the sound of his given name, and he squeezed my hand ever so slightly.
I remembered the feeling of my first date with Hale, how I felt when I was sure he’d peeled everything back and had seen the real me. This time, I felt like I was on the other side of that, looking past duty and worry and rank, seeing the true heart of a person.
And his was so beautiful.
Neena came back in carrying a tray, and Erik and I ripped our hands apart.
“Are you all right, my lady?”
“Yes, Neena,” I promised her, standing. “There was a fight, but Erik got me away. I’m sure the guards will come with a report soon. In the meantime I just need to calm down.”
“The tea will help. I got some chamomile, and we’ll get you into something comfortable before you need to report anywhere,” Neena said, already making my night easier by planning it.
I turned back to Erik, who was standing by the door. He bowed deeply.
“Goodnight, Your Highness.”
“Goodnight.”
He walked away quickly, and Neena came over, handing me a cup of tea. The strange thing was, my hands were already so warm.