The men were already sitting at the table, in the dining hall, talking merrily. Eve walked in with Naomi and Ellie; they had been discussing William’s actions of the previous night. Ellie thought that it was romantic, and that it was time they got together. Naomi said that she was impressed he got up that much courage, but also that he shouldn’t have just jumped on her like that, so unexpectedly. Eve was inclined to agree with Naomi, and said that she would have thought him drunk at the time, if she had not been with him the entire day, and not seen him drink any ale. Eve strained to hear what Paiden, Jacob, and William were talking about, as she stood with the girls in line for food.

“What did you think you were doing?” Eve heard Paiden ask.

“I don’t know. I am afraid that I scared her. I shall have to clear it all up now,” is what William said in response. Eve couldn’t hear anymore, because a page interrupted her spying by almost running into her with a tray. Eve gathered herself again, and hastily got some food, eager to catch up with Naomi and Ellie, who were already walking over to the table.

As Eve neared the secluded table in the corner of the hall William stood up and walked over to her seat, pulling it out from beneath the table.

“Lady,” William said, sarcastically and exaggerated, “your throne awaits you.”

“Well thank you good sir, ‘twill not excuse the actions of the last night,” exclaimed Eve grinning evilly, taking her seat.

“I am sorry Lady Eve, but I do not control what my brain tells me to do,” William explained, and stood next to Eve’s chair, looking down at her.

“Brain,” she retorted, “What brain?”

“Well, I was going to say sorry again, but I don’t think you deserve anything now,” stated William defiantly.

“I do deserve it, and you should be sorry,” Eve objected.

“Okay, I guess you’re right,” admitted William, “Next time I shall ask before I do something like it again.”

Eve was about to say good, and that he should ask next time, but she didn’t have time. William bent down and gave her a passionate kiss, obliterating her thoughts of saying anything.

“Maybe I won’t ask,” whispered William when he broke the kiss, and he went to sit back in his seat.

Jacob, Naomi, Ellie, and Paiden were hysterical with laughter, though Naomi, being the more proper of the bunch, was trying to restrain herself as much as possible. She was failing horribly. Nobody had even noticed Eve until she got up from the table, walked over to where William was eating, and slapped him unmercifully across his cheek. She walked triumphantly out of the hall, leaving many people watching in awe behind her.

William stood and stocked off after her, mad and confused, wanting desperately to clear things up. He knew very well that he deserved what he had gotten, but he didn’t think she would smack him in front of the occupants of the entire dinning hall. He hurried out the entrance to the hall and looked every direction to see where Eve had gone. William just caught a glimpse of her turning down the right corridor. He followed her unnoticed, keeping his distance, wanting to know where she was headed. Eve turned to a door that lead outside, and William instantly knew where she was going. The gardens, of course, thought William, why didn’t I know that. The gardens were Eve’s favorite place in the whole of the royal palace. They gave her a tranquil place to think. William and Eve had been friends since their families met at court, when they were only little children.

Eve had always gone to the gardens when she was mad and upset. Sometimes she just went there because she liked it, and the only person who knew of her hiding place was William. She hid up in the branches of an ancient oak tree. She was a very good climber. Unfortunately, so was William.

William could barely see through the branches, for she was very good at hiding. Eve was sitting there pretending to examine a leaf, but William could tell that her thoughts were preoccupied with something else. He quickly climbed up the tree, and sat facing Eve, who didn’t look up from her leaf.

“Someday I should find another place to hide,” Eve mumbled to herself.

“No, you shouldn’t. Here I know where to find you,” commented William, putting his hands gently under her chin, and forcing her to look at him, “I really didn’t mean to scare you. I just didn’t know how else to express my feelings.”

“I didn’t know what to think, what was right,” admitted Eve, staring into his eyes, trying to guess his every thought, “At first I thought maybe you were drunk, but I crossed off that idea due to the fact that you hadn’t drunken any liquor that day. Then I thought maybe you didn’t mean anything by it, and it was just because of my birthday. But I doubt that. Then when you did it again this morning, I thought that maybe it was just a joke. I am not to be toyed with Will.”

“I’m neither drunk nor insane. It was not a joke, and I am not toying with you,” explained William.

“Then what is it then, were you dared to do it?” demanded Eve.

“No.”

“Then what?” asked Eve, almost shouting.

“I love you Eve. Or am in love with you. I am not quite sure if there is a difference.”

Eve was stunned by the blow that had just hit her, “You…you’re what?” “I love you,” repeated William, “I always have.” He jumped down from the tree, and walked to his room, leaving Eve there, perplexed in thought. He was embarrassed beyond embarrassment, and couldn’t face her, not right now anyways.

Eve sat in that tree all day. Staring at her leaf.

The supper bell chimed at the same time it always did. Eve had not gone to lunch, and had not taken her bath. She had stayed in the tree. She climbed down from her branch and brushed all of the leaves that had fallen off her. She brushed her hair back with her fingers and left for the dinning hall. Eve was not hungry, so she went to the table where her friends already sat, without getting food. The friends said nothing about what happened that morning, and William still didn’t look at her.

Nobody said anything; they ate their food, and walked silently to the sunroom, to start they night of watching the sunset and playing cards. When the sun had set and the moon was coming up, the friends played cards. Everybody’s mood lightened and they started to talk again. They did not talk about what had happened at breakfast. Even Paiden had a jolly attitude, after he had already lost all of his money, once again.

Eve’s appetite finally fazed her, and she excused herself for a moment to go and get some chocolate she had in her rooms. William, seeing his chance to talk to Eve alone, made the excuse that he was quite parched and needed to venture off for some wine or water. As he left the table and walked off into the shadows, the remaining four at the table all raised eyebrows in surprise and confusion. They knew that William was not leaving for water.

William caught up to Eve, as she was just about to open the door to her suite. She turned to face him when she heard the unmistakable sound of his pocket watch jingling.

“Eve, I need to ta…” he started, but did not finish his sentence. Eve, hands behind her back, stood on her toes so that she was the same height as him, and glared into his eyes. This startled William, but he continued…

“I need to talk to you,” finished William, Eve was so close to him that he could feel the heat of her body near his, and his forehead started to sweat from nervousness.

“Really?” she asked. Just then, the barrier of being friends crumbled down and only love remained. Eve leaned closer to William, and pressed her lips against his.

Passion consumed them and Eve, relying on William for breath, opened her door with the hands that were behind her, and backed into her room, William now clinging to her.

Those two did not return to the sunroom that night.

¤¤¤

The sun rose the next morning, and warming light came shining through the window in Eve's bedchamber. A beam of light pierced through Eve’s closed eyelids, and she awoke. She sat up in her bed and looked around her. William was sitting in a chair beside the window looking out at one of the gardens, he was wearing the clothes he had been the day before. He turned when he heard her move.

“Good morning,” he said with a smile on his face.

“Yes, good morning.”

“I guess I’d better be off and get dressed in some clean clothes.”

“Yes, you better had.” William stood from the chair and walked over to Eve, who was still sitting up in her bed. He bent down and gave her a quick kiss before sneaking off to his own room to change.

Eve took her precious time getting ready that morning, not knowing what she would say to William when she saw him. She put on a white blouse and a blue skirt, which made her wild hair just a tad bit more tame. Eve walked out in the hall, and noticed William, fully dressed, standing and waiting for her.

“Oh how nice…an escort to breakfast,” stated Eve with a grin.

“Of course, milady.”

And with that they walked off to the dining hall for breakfast.

They walked in the door of the dining hall, and over to the table where their friends already sat. Ellie, Jacob, Paiden, and Naomi all looked up at the two new arrivals with raised eyebrows and curiosity in their faces. They stared at Eve and William as if trying to read their minds.

“What?” asked William when he saw their faces.

They replied in unison, “Nothing.”

Breakfast was awkward, to say the least, that morning. Jacob, Ellie, Naomi, and Paiden all wanted to know if what they thought had happened really did happen, though none of them would ask it straight out. William and Eve both knew what they wanted, but thought it was funny, the way the suspecting four were silently suffering.

After breakfast, all six of them went into to town to buy last minute accessories for the ball that was coming that night. Eve still had to pick up the gown that she had waiting for her in a dress shop. William had recently lost a cufflink on his best suit, and needed to have it hastily replaced. Naomi had a custom-made necklace that she needed to pick up. The others were there because they had nothing to do, and wanted to spend the day with their friends. It was a beautiful day, and the shining sun provided subtle warmth.

After a nice lunch in the city, the group went back to the palace to get ready for the ball. The friends all planned to go together and hide Naomi from her scheming mother, who was trying her best to get Naomi married. Naomi wholeheartedly objected to getting married to any of the snobby nobles that her mother tried to pair her with. Somehow, her mother always happened to make her meet and dance with a man who had a personality completely opposite of Naomi’s.

They split up to go to their rooms with about three hours until the ball actually commenced. Eve, after an hour of soaking in her tub, decided upon a striking sapphire blue dress that only emphasized her wild hair, but she didn’t care. She wore the locket that William had given her, around her neck, which she had somehow found time to put a picture in. It was of William. The birthday present that he had given her had now become a love token. Her other jewelry consisted of the bracelet Ellie had given her and the earrings Naomi had given her.

She walked out in the hall to meet her friends all of whom were ready to go. The band of friends made a great procession, and many heads turned to look at them as the waltzed into the ballroom. The music was already playing, though most of the occupants of the room were at tables eating dinner. Jacob however grabbed Ellie’s hand and danced her onto the floor, swiftly moving to beat of the beat of the music. The rest of the group were laughing hysterically at how Ellie was hanging onto Jacob for dear life, trying her hardest not to fall, after being startled out of her wits and dragged into dancing. After watching Ellie and Jacob dance for a little bit the others went and found an abandoned table in the back of the room, and gathered some pages to get them dinner. Jacob and Ellie joined them at the table after three more dances, Ellie tired beyond belief and still not quite coordinated.

After eating his full, William stood from the table and walked over to Eve. “May I have this dance milady?”

“Oh, I suppose so.” And with that, they danced their way onto the floor and disappeared in the mists of all of the other people on the floor.

“By the way, you look just ravishing this evening milady,” William noted after they had both gotten the rhythm and were dancing with ease.

“Well thank you milord.” They danced for two more songs before the ball was interrupted.

Just when the ballroom floor was beginning to be crowded with everybody who was done with their supper and wanted to dance, the door above the stairs, where visiting lords and ladies entered, swung open. The Caller came out and announced the new arrival as Lord Andréus of Ice Mountain. He was handsome to say the least. He had a manly facial structure with short, wavy black hair, and was clean-shaven. His cold gray eyes gave him an essence of power. His body was well built, and had broad shoulders. His height was average to tall, and his weight was neither too little nor too much. His clothes expressed extreme wealth.

As he walked gallantly down the stairway heads turned to look at the new arrival. Nobody had heard of a fief called Ice Mountain, but the king’s facial expression showed that there was a such place. By the time that he had gotten to the bottom of the stairs and walked over to great the king, the music had started again, and William and Eve were back to dancing.

continued