Saving Her Kingdom

♡ Chapter 22

Chapter 22

When the dance ended, Louis bowed while I curtsied and he said with a charming smile, "It was a pleasure dancing with you, my lady."

"As it was mine," I replied. I turned to look at Michelle, who was already looking at me and smiled at her, inviting her to join me. She and Jacob arrived and I said, "I promised Lord Louis to introduce you to the prince Thomas."

Jacob widened his eyes. "That would be wonderful."

"Please follow me, then," I said with a small smile.

I looked for Thomas in the crowd and saw him uncomfortably surrounded by girls, waiting for him to ask them for a dance. When he saw me with the twins, his eyes lingered for a moment and then he turned back to his conversation like he saw nothing. I walked towards him, and approached him politely, while waiting for him to finish speaking with a lady. It was the first time we would be seen talking publicly. After a moment, he turned around and smiled at me. "Good evening again, Anna."

"Good evening, your Highness," I smiled back at him, curtsied and backed away to make room for Louis, Jacob and Michelle. "I wanted to introduce Lord Louis and Lord Jacob of Rutherford, and Michelle to you."

Thomas looked at them with a friendly expression but guarded eyes.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, your Highness," Louis smiled, and he and Jacob bowed imperceptibly lightly.

Thomas' eyes narrowed for a small moment at the subtle disrespect, and he nodded. "Likewise."

"Lady Anna seems to be a good friend of yours, your Highness. I see you surround yourself with a lovely company," Louis said, lifting his eyebrow a millimeter, and he then smiled at me charmingly. I kept my expression neutral.

Thomas nodded tensely. "Of course. I choose my company carefully," he stated.

"Of course," Jacob said.

"You are coming from the kingdom of Ravenport, aren't you?", Thomas asked.

"Yes, we are," Jacob confirmed.

"How is the news there?", Thomas asked.

"Quite alright," Jacob answered.

"But I believe that's not an interesting topic for our lovely ladies here," Louis interjected, staring at me quite shamelessly.

I smiled at them. "This isn't a problem. We will leave you men to your boring conversation," I joked, earning a chuckle from the three of them. Besides, Thomas would certainly summarize their conversation to me later on. I curtsied before taking Michelle by her hand. "Enjoy your evening!", I said, and they replied simultaneously, "You too."

I dragged Michelle away by the tables, and sighed, relieved. "That was intense," I commented.

"Oh yes, it was," Michelle took us fruit punches from the tables and handed one to me.

"What did you talk about with Jacob?"

"We didn't talk much, but he told me that his sisters and cousins would come next week for the prince's courtship."

"Oh. That's good to know."

"I still can't believe it. I just met my real cousins," Michelle looked at me with wide eyes. "And I'm going to meet my sisters and maybe even my parents," she added quietly.

I smiled at her sadly. "Don't get your hopes up, Michelle. I think they are quite dangerous."

She sighed. "Yes, I know. A girl can dream."

Suddenly, Gaby emerged out of nowhere, soon followed by Fabian. "Hello again, you two," he said, grinning.

I jumped, still unnerved by the meeting with the twins. "Oh God, Gaby. You frightened me."