He tried to shove the thought away again when he realized his knock was not going to be answered. With a deep sigh, he took hold of the door handle and pushed it open. Knocking had been but a courtesy. As king, he could open any door he wished without question.
When he did so, he found that the sitting room beyond was empty save for inanimate furniture. He was about to ask the guards where his guests had gone when he became aware of voices coming from one of the adjoining bedrooms. They were growing louder as he stood there, and he wondered whether he should allow the mother and daughter to have their argument in peace.
"You have to accept the king's offer!" The words were practically screamed, and Asher realized he couldn't bring himself to turn around and wait out in the hallway.
"I was forced into the ritual. I did as I was told. I picked my stone and won. It isn't my fault that the king rejected me!" The voice clearly belonged to Rayne, and just as it had the first time she’d spoken in the throne room, the sound of it caused Asher's insides to twist with both pain and pleasure. Confusing emotions welled up inside him and his feet itched to get closer. Well aware he would make too much noise on foot, he fluttered his wings until he hovered just above the ground and began to move toward the bedroom doorway that was no more than an archway with drapes for a door.
He stopped and dropped delicately down onto his feet beside it, peering through a crack between the drapes. Rayne was sitting upon the end of the fourposter bed, glaring at her mother, who paced up and down the room.
"You can't possibly think of rejecting his offer!" Her mother paused in her pacing to glare back at her daughter, and Asher struggled not to flinch in sympathy. Even as a king, he was sure he would feel burned by such a glare. If she was, Rayne didn’t show it, and her lack of reaction caused Asher to admire her all the more.
"I have done as you asked up to this point," Rayne pointed out bravely, "but this is my choice. The king said as much."
"The king has given us little choice!" Egwene snapped and began to pace once more. "You can't think that we can return home. Any chance you had of making a half decent marriage to get us out of that hellhole was dashed to the four winds the moment the king rejected you."
Guilt embedded itself in Asher's stomach, and it only grew worse the longer Rayne's mother spoke.
"If the king has rejected you, even with such a tradition as this, you are no good for anyone," Egwene snapped, and this time Rayne did react. She seemed to shrink in on herself, becoming somehow less than herself. It was clear from the look on her face she was used to being talked down to by her mother.
Unable to witness her torture any longer, and unable to bear his own guilt at having put her in such a situation, he cleared his throat and pulled back the drapes to announce his presence.
"Oh, by all the fae gods!" Egwene exclaimed, whipping around to face the king. The moment she realized it was him, she dropped into a low curtsey, the redness of her cheeks suggesting that she feared he’d heard everything. "Your Majesty, I was not aware you were coming."
Clearly, Asher thought, but decided it was best not to say so out loud and make it obvious that he had indeed heard everything. Instead, he turned to Rayne, who’d clambered off the end of the bed and was offering a curtsey of her own.
"Please, rise," he instructed her, going to stand before her. He couldn't bear to watch her curtsey to him just as everyone else in the kingdom did. It often made him feel like the loneliest person in the palace. Nobody ever seemed willing to meet his gaze, nobody save for her. She’d done it in the throne room, and he hoped she would do it now. To even glimpse those eyes for a moment would help to ease his guilt.
"Have you been made comfortable?" he asked through gritted teeth when Rayne rose to her feet but made no attempt to look him in the eye as she had in the throne room. Her beauty was distracting, and so he forced himself to turn his attention to her mother. The woman at least had the good sense now to keep her own eyes averted to the floor. It seemed her argumentative streak had come to an end.
"Yes, thank you, Your Majesty," Egwene responded, dipping her head respectfully.
Asher would only believe it when he’d heard it from her own lips, and so he turned back to Rayne and asked, "Rayne, are you comfortable here?"
Though he did not look away from her this time, he felt her mother glaring at her as if she couldn't possibly allow her daughter to speak for herself. It made Asher's blood boil. A woman so young and beautiful should not be controlled in such a way. And that is exactly why I didn’t accept her as my bride, he thought, trying to remind himself once more that he’d done the right thing. So why didn't it feel right?
"Yes, Your Grace, I am comfortable," Rayne stated, but Asher couldn't help but feel that the words were forced. He had no way of knowing for sure, but only time would tell how she truly felt about remaining in the palace.
"And what of my offer?" he forced himself to ask, but the moment the words had left his lips, he regretted them. What if she rejected his offer just to spite him for rejecting her? His hopes of getting to know her better would be dashed to the wind like so many grains of sand even before he'd had a chance.
He could feel the tension buzzing off Egwene like sparks of energy, but it wasn't her feelings on the matter he cared about. All he cared about in that moment was Rayne. It was his fault she’d been brought before him in the first place. I should’ve been clearer with my subjects.
The room was filled with a silence so heavy, Asher struggled not to let his wings slump. He held his breath, unable to take his eyes off Rayne as he eagerly awaited her answer, not daring to hope she might say yes.
Then, before saying a word, Rayne lifted her face to look at him. Her striking blue eyes met his for just a moment before she glanced at her mother and back again. Then she stated firmly, "King Asher, I accept your offer of employment."
Just like that, the weight of the world was lifted off Asher's shoulders. He forced himself not to think too hard on the harsh undertone of Rayne's voice that told him she wasn't entirely happy about her decision.
Instead, he forced a smile and held out his hand to her. Rayne glanced down at his offered hand with a mixture of intrigue and confusion. Then she lifted her own hand and placed her palm in his, shaking his hand firmly. Realization hit him then, she came here for a wedding ceremony and a kiss and instead got an offer of employment and a handshake.
Once more, Asher found himself questioning whether he’d made the right decision. All this time, he’d been dead set against agreeing to marry a stranger and his stubbornness had kept him from changing his mind upon seeing her, yet standing face to face with her now, feeling the soft flesh of her hand in his, made him realize how much of a fool he’d been not to at least give her a chance.
Chapter 5 - Rayne
The next morning, the newly appointed governess was already ready when the king's own valet arrived to escort her to the nursery. Her mother had practically dragged her out of bed at the crack of dawn, both anxious and excited to get her ready.
Her mother's words still rung in her ears long after, "We must make sure you always look perfect. The king may have rejected you, but we can certainly make him regret his decision."
Rayne shivered just thinking about it as she wandered down the hallway wearing one of the fine silken gowns that had been provided for her in her wardrobes. Her mother had always tried to use her looks and what little sexual appeal she had to get what she wanted. For many women on the Mystic Isle, sex appeal was all they had to keep their children from going hungry. But Rayne had always promised herself she wouldn't be like that. She would be smart and learn some kind of trade to make ends meet. So far, she'd tried her hand at hunting, needlework, and even singing, but one thing she hadn't done was child minding.