My Sweet Daisy

Chapter 18 - Tour Around the City

Chapter 18

A Tour Around the City

Daisy didn't know what to expect on a city tour with the prince. He hadn't been explicit on their mode of transportation so she settled on a light green day gown with tiny floral designs which wouldn't be a bother if she had to sit on horseback. The material was light enough not to make her too warm in the sun and the sleeves simple and short. She chose to go with a hat with the strings tied under her chin which would be suitable for both horse-riding and a ride in a carriage instead of the white umbrella her aunt was pressing her to take. To compromise, she added the scarf her aunt lent her to complete her attire.

Mulling over his reason for extending an invitation to her when she should be the last person he would want to be with renewed her pacing around the drawing room. One thing she was sure of was that Prince Richard didn't ask her out from the abounding goodness of his heart. She had seen his stunned expression after she, with so many words, described what she thought his feelings towards Andrew were. He hadn't looked pleased. Some punishment of some sort should likely be her expectation . Would he show her to a dungeon and have her flogged? Though he could if he wanted to, she didn't believe he was that vengeful as to subject her to a physical penance that would injure her.

"Daisy, sit down. Your constant movement is making me dizzy," the countess said.

She sighed as she watched her aunt calmly weave white thread across the pattern of an Aquila on one of her uncle's shirts. If she was in any real danger, embroidering wouldn't be what her aunt would be occupying herself with that early in the morning. She tried to stay calm. The only way to find out her fate was to wait until the prince arrived. She had only to wait and see. She stopped pacing and went back to her seat. She picked up the book in it and continued to read by the windowsill.

As soon as Alfred, the old butler who had been serving the family for two generations in that capacity, opened the door, she stood up. Her hands nervously clasped around each other when he darted a slightly sympathetic glance in her direction. Last night, she had met Alfred in the hallway when she sneaked downstairs, because she couldn't catch a wink of sleep, and talked to him about her predicament with the prince. The old man had patted her gently on the back and said, "Consider it a privilege that you caught the young prince's attention at all, my girl." ...a privilege... even if the attention could have a horsewhip descending on her back?

"My Lady, His Royal Highness, Prince Richard, wishes to announce his presence," he croaked.

"Show him inside, Alfred," her aunt replied, putting aside her needlework.

"Uh..." he darted another quick look at Daisy. "He sent his guard to the door, My Lady. He requests to have Miss Daisy escorted by him."

The tiny frown that played on her aunt's face before she nodded did not calm her niece's raging nerves. The countess turned to her. "Go along, Daisy. Mind you, do not talk until you are spoken to and at no time must you say the first thing you think of."

"Yes, Aunt Veronica," Daisy whispered hoarsely. Her instructions could have come in handy if she had repeated them before she met the prince at the ball. She followed Alfred out.

When she stepped out, her eyes popped at the convoy that sat in the manor's driveway. There were three carriages in a row; a very grand one towed by six horses, flanked by two of the troopers used by the army officers, each bearing the royal coat of arms. It was a formal royal fleet!

One of Richard's guards was at the door to escort her. As she drew nearer to the couches, the other opened the door the middle couch and helped her inside. Prince Richard was seated across from her, his right leg draped across his left knee, his head leaning against a soft head pad. A slight grin curved the corners of his lips when she finally took her eyes off the closed door to look at him.

"If I said anything nasty to you last night, please forgive my audacity, Your Highness," she began quickly.

"I don't think you did."

"But I did. I spoke to you about matters that presumed I can read your mind. That isn't a power I possess, and I was presumptuous to think I could accurately voice out what you were feeling inside." She hastily went on, her eyes pleading for his forgiveness.

"You're free to speak your mind, Miss. There's no crime in that."

"I was too impertinent, Your Highness. Please do anything you want with me."

He frowned. "Are you suggesting I punish you?"

She met his gaze. Her face was flushed and there were spots of perspiration on her forehead, but her beautiful green eyes stared back at him boldly. She didn't believe she had said anything out of turn, but she had been told to offer an apology. Lady Perribea probably even prepared her on what to say. The look of defiance in her eyes drew a snort from him.

"Consider the racing match you won as my basis for forgiving you. I won't hand out any punishment," he said drily.

"But my cousin said you let me win that match. I believed I won because you're indeed very lazy and haven't been exercising much, but she said you've even been in the tournament previously and won a couple of times. If I didn't win fairly, then you can't use my 'victory' as a basis for forgiveness."

Richard really didn't know what to say next, and frankly he was starting to get annoyed at her insistence he punish her. He leaned over and flicked her forehead.

"Ouch!" she wailed

"There, this should suffice as punishment." He'd hit her hard so she wouldn't accuse him of being lenient, and also because he wanted her to shut up. Seeing the reddened patch on her forehead and the tears pooled in her eyes though, he felt a little remorse.

She spoke again, seeing he wasn't offering any conversation, "May I ask where we're going, Your Highness?"

"It's going to be a long ride so don't lose your patience just yet. Hopefully, the troopers would make our passage a lot faster," he replied, his smile widening at the stitch of impatience in her tone.

They passed through the town with its busy streets much quicker than she had expected as people got out of the way of the royal convoy with very little or no persuasions at all. Richard pointed out popular landmarks as the carriages drove on. She saw the theatre houses, the House of the Prime Lords, where the lords in court assembled there four times a year in the presence of the king and discussed concerns of Berlin. Soon, they were leaving behind the tall buildings and concrete roads to rows of green-clad hills and farm yards.