His lips brushed mine, and in a heartbeat, the rest of the world fell away. All my fears about the lich tsar, all my worries about medical school. I let go of his hand and put my arms around his neck. I knew the others weren’t far ahead of us and would probably turn around if they noticed us missing. But I didn’t care about anything at that moment. Nothing but being in that beautiful boy’s arms. My beautiful boy.
The last time we’d kissed, my powers had been dangerously out of control. He’d almost been killed. I couldn’t let myself lose control again.
And yet, I was so close. I could feel the tingling rising up from deep inside me as his kisses trailed across my cheek and his hands curled around my waist. My powers were beginning to uncoil as I felt his warm lips on my skin.
I heard a twig snap behind me and pushed away from him instantly. My sleeves and the front of my dress were damp from being pressed up against him and his wet clothes. My heart was pounding and my breath ragged.
It was his sister, Grand Duchess Xenia. But she just winked at us and shouted, “I don’t see them anywhere!” before turning and skipping back toward the rest of the group.
George was breathing hard too, and he sighed as he let go of me. “I’m never going to hear the end of this from her.”
“Will she tell the empress?” I asked. My cheeks felt hot with shame. What would I do the next time I saw Her Imperial Majesty? Could I hide from her forever?
“My sister won’t say a word if she thinks I would get in trouble.” He smiled, adding, “Xenia is a silly romantic.” He gently lifted my chin, lightly touching my bottom lip with his thumb. When he looked at me with his ocean-blue eyes, the silver flash was gone, but I could still sense the fae power in his gaze. Everything inside me began to melt. Slowly. “I won’t ever let my mother come between us, Katiya,” he said. “I promise you.”
“But—”
He placed a finger on my mouth to quiet my fears. My lips tingled from his touch. “You promised to give me a year, Katiya. One year to convince my parents that you and I belong together.”
I remembered making that promise. I’d walked away from him that day at Peterhof, after my powers had risen up and almost suffocated him. Mon Dieu, what would have happened this time if the grand duchess hadn’t found us?
I pulled away from him and reached for the picnic basket. Praying that no one would ask me how my dress got damp, I self-consciously tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear.
With a friendly growl, George took the picnic basket away from me. I couldn’t help smiling. I tried to hurry us along. I knew that we needed to catch up with the others before they reached the entrance to the caves, but George deliberately slowed his walking. Proper etiquette dictated that I slow down as well and walk just slightly behind the tsar’s son.
“A grand duke never skips,” he said, a small smile at the corners of his lips.
CHAPTER FOUR
The caves at Massandra were part of the larger cave system reaching across the Crimean Peninsula. Monks had created monasteries in the caves, and Tatars had built medieval cities inside of them. And we, a few silly Russian women, were going to have a picnic there.
These local caves would one day be used as a wine cellar for the palace. The land here was very fertile and there were already vineyards that had been producing fruit since the early eighteen hundreds.
The entrance was partially hidden under a thick canopy of trees. We would have had difficulty finding it without George and his siblings’ help.
Aunt Zina and Maman thanked the tsarevitch for his escort. George handed me my picnic basket silently. I tried to look cheerful, and failed miserably. “Will we see you at the dance next week?” I asked.
He did not smile either. “I’m afraid I must leave for Paris before then.”
I nodded, realizing I might not see him anytime soon. A lump welled up in my throat.
He leaned closer. “We’ll be together again before long, Katiya. I won’t leave without saying goodbye.” Once more, he was reading my thoughts. No one noticed when he gave my hand the briefest squeeze. No one noticed my blush, or the way he made my fingers tremble.
I bowed to his brother and sister, then hurried into the cave after Maman before I could tear up. Dariya looked at me curiously, but said nothing.
Neither Maman nor Aunt Zina noticed my mood. They were fussing over the ribbons on the dress Xenia Alexandrovna had been wearing. “What on earth will her mother say when she comes home dripping wet like that?” Maman was asking.
“You would think they’d have more than just the grand duchess’s governess out here to look after them,” Aunt Zina said.
I was surprised to discover that the caves were several degrees cooler than the air outside. My sleeves had dried already, but the damp front of my dress made me shiver. We set the picnic baskets down in an alcove near the entrance and picked up the oil lanterns to light the darkness. Aunt Zina’s oohs and aahs echoed against the smooth cold walls of the caves. Dariya and I raced on past our mothers into the shadows.
“Don’t run too far ahead, girls,” Maman said.
But we ignored her. There was so much to see. The caves had obviously been occupied by humans before, but we did not know how long ago. We wandered from room to room, entering deeper and deeper into the belly of the cave.
“Are you going to tell me what happened out there?” Dariya asked quietly as we slid our hands over an old fresco painted on the stone wall. I raised my lantern higher to examine the figures. And so my cousin could not see me blushing. The fresco looked incredibly old. I took my hand away as some of the paint flaked off. I did not want to damage such priceless art.
I sighed finally. “There is nothing to tell. George Alexandrovich belongs to the Light Court, and I belong to the Dark. He is going to Paris and I am going to Zurich.”
Dariya looked at me in shock. And then grinned. “Katiya! You are in love! I never would have guessed it! You with your cold medical journals and dull Latin textbooks!”
“And I don’t suppose you’ve ever been in love, then?” I scowled at her.
“Oh, lots of times. But you!” She nearly knocked me over with one of her enthusiastic embraces. “Oh, I’m so happy for you, Cousin!” She pulled back to grin at me. “He’s a much better choice than Danilo of Montenegro.”
I snorted. “A toad would be a better choice than Crown Prince Danilo.” I had to hold the lantern out so Dariya wouldn’t knock it out of my hand or catch her hair on fire. “There will be no engagement,” I added. “George Alexandrovich is the tsar’s son.”
“And you are a tsar’s great-granddaughter.”
I shook my head. “His mother would never approve. There is no hope for it.”
“That’s the best kind of love. Hopeless love.” She shrugged as she let go of me. “Don’t worry. You’ll pine away and he’ll pine away, and then you’ll get over it and so will he.”
I rolled my eyes. I was not in the mood for her teasing.
She turned around. “I’m famished. Do you think we could sneak some of those meat pies before our mothers notice?”
“You go ahead,” I said. “I want to see the next room.” I did not feel like eating. I just wanted to sulk.
“Are you sure?” my cousin asked.
“Go on. You won’t tell anyone about the grand duke, will you?”
For a moment, Dariya looked as if she was going to tease me again, but something in my voice must have made her change her mind. She shook her head. “Katiya, a marriage could be secret, you know. Grand-mère married her second husband and kept it hidden from her father.”