I did. And I gasped.
Thousands upon thousands of stars splashed across the sky above us, so numerous and densely packed they resembled a painting more than real life.
The Milky Way, right there in all its sprawling, glittering glory.
It hadn’t occurred to me we could see it so clearly here, but it made sense. We were high in the hills, miles away from the nearest big city. There was no one and nothing around except us, the sky, and the night.
“I thought you might like it,” Rhys said. “It’s not something you see in New York or Athenberg.”
“No. It’s not.” Emotion gripped my chest. “And you were right. I love it. Worth staying past my bedtime and getting cranky for.”
His low chuckle settled in my belly and warmed me from the inside out.
We stayed outside for another hour, just staring at the sky and soaking in the beauty.
I liked to think my parents were up there, watching over me.
I wondered if I’d turned out the way they’d hoped, and if they were proud. I wondered what they would say about Nikolai’s abdication, and whether my mother knew I was the one who should’ve died that day in the hospital, not her.
She should’ve been queen, not me.
At least she and my father were together. They were one of the lucky couples who started off in an arranged marriage and ended up falling in love. My father had never been the same after my mom’s death, or so everyone told me. I’d been too young to know the difference.
Sometimes, I wondered if he’d lost control of his car on purpose so he could join her sooner.
I turned my head to look at Rhys. My eyes had adjusted to the dark enough that I could make out the tiny bump in his nose and the firm curve of his lips.
“Have you ever been in love?” I asked, partly because I really wanted to know, and partly because I wanted to pull my thoughts off the morbid path they’d taken.
“Nope.”
“Really? Never?”
“Nope,” Rhys said again. He cocked an eyebrow. “Surprised?”
“A little. You’re old. You should’ve been in love at least three times by now.” He was ten years older than me, which wasn’t that old at all, but I liked teasing him when I could.
A deep, rich sound filled the air, and I realized with shock Rhys was laughing. The deepest, loudest, realest laugh I’d pulled out of him yet.
It was beautiful.
“One love for every decade,” Rhys said when his mirth faded. “By that calculation, you should’ve been in love twice by now.” The intensity of his stare pierced through the darkness. “So tell me, princess. Have you ever been in love?”
“No.” I returned my attention to the stars. “But I hope to be one day.”