Chapter 77: Growing Feelings
Tarah quickly did her best to calm herself, pressing her lips together before responding. "It’s not that, Your Highness," she stated as she seized the chance to voice her thoughts. "It’s just that you seem to be avoiding me lately, so I assumed Cora would accompany me in the carriage instead."
"Hmm... You have a tendency to evade directly answering my questions," he pointed out. "I’m just asking if you would prefer me not to stay with you in this carriage or not."
"It’s fine," Tarah swiftly replied. "You can stay if you want."
"Alright. Let’s go..."
At Ezekiel’s command, the carriage started moving, an awkward silence settling between them as they moved. With nothing better to do, Tarah turned her gaze towards the window, pretending to be engrossed in the passing scenery. Despite this, she couldn’t shake off the feeling that Ezekiel was intensely staring at her.
After some time, Ezekiel broke the silence. "We’ll be spending the night at Cordon Castle and attending my sister Xenia’s coronation tomorrow morning."
Tarah turned to face him. "Would it be alright if I meet with a friend then?" she asked. "It’s been a while since we last saw each other."
"A friend?" Ezekiel further asked. "A female friend?"
Tarah nodded. "I met her during the summer while I was wandering near Ebodia’s borders," she explained, deciding not to detail things about Aurelia further. "She’s a citizen of Cordon."