Chapter 23. Are You Free?

“Well?” Seth asks me. “Are you free?”

“I will have to check my calendar,” I say with a small smile.

He laughs. It’s sad that we both know I have nothing else going on.

“Yes, I’m free. I would be delighted to have dinner with the king,” I tell him, my stomach twisting as a spray of butterflies launches, trying to work their way out through my throat.

“Good,” he says, still smiling. “He will be pleased. Be ready at seven o’clock, please.”

“Yes, sir,” I tell him.

He shakes his head slightly. “There’s no need for you to call me sir, Isla. You’re not a servant here.”

“But aren’t I?” I ask, giving him a pointed look. “I might not be a maid, but I am a servant, I believe.”

Seth takes a moment before he says, “In a way, we are all servants, here to do what our king and the kingdom require. But, no, you should not think of yourself as a servant. You are a guest of the king.”

“Yes, sir… I mean… Beta Seth,” I correct, feeling heat rise in m