The Broken Prince's Love

Cedar was usually proud of his self-control. Today, he didn't seem to have any left though.

He had been very much aware that it was dangerous to stand so close to Lucille when they had such a conversation, and he had also known that stepping away would have made this so much easier. But he hadn't been able to distance himself. Instead, he had gotten closer each second, and now they had a problem.

Lucille had looked up at him with so many conflicting emotions that it had been impossible to hold back. She had met his gaze and hadn't avoided his touch. She had rather waited for it, no, had even pulled him close.

It shouldn't have been surprising. The moment his lips had ended up on hers, Cedar had lost. There was no denying that he had gambled away his heart, if one could even use such a cliche-like phrase. But since he had gained something beautiful in return, he didn't mind that at all. He had never thought that kissing someone could feel so nice.

Lucille's lips were soft against his, much like her hand on his shoulders, and even though this little touch shouldn't have changed much, it felt like his whole world had been shaken.

It was odd that Cedar's heart pounded so strongly. This was more exciting than any duel could be. And it felt so much better than that too. His whole body was warm. He would be a little red after this, but he couldn't bring herself to care. Not when it felt so wonderful that he would have liked to pull Lucille even closer.

But he was already scared of shocking her too much with this. He should probably ignore the tingling sensation in his veins and the burning need to kiss her for much longer to release her. But then again, letting go didn't sound as tempting as continuing like this.

He could feel how Lucille relaxed in his arms, and at some point, he let go of her hand to warp an arm around her back in fear that she would collapse. It felt like she was swaying a bit, but she stood upright and even held onto him in return. She probably did that to keep her balance, but it only made the kiss even more perfect.

Cedar almost felt like he had a heart attack by the time he needed to pull back to allow them both to breathe. He panicked a little and looked down to see her reaction, only to freeze.

Lucille was still digging her fingers into his uniform while panting quietly. Her face was flushed red, and she could only look at him with something wonderful in her eyes. Apparently, this was enough to make some strange jolt run through his veins. That was weird.

Cedar was completely out of breath, even though it had been fine a moment ago. He should be used to knowing that Lucille was pretty by now. Why was one look at her enough to bring him to his knees? This might be her revenge when he was usually the one using all kinds of tricks to impress her.

A minute or so passed in silence, and still, the both of them stood there to regain their composure for a while longer. The fireworks had already stopped, but none of them cared about that.

Cedar was glad that Lucille didn't back away in worry or look at him with anger. He scanned her expression until she breathed normally again and then spoke up despite being much too nervous for his own good. “Are you alright?” Luckily, he was a great actor. Otherwise, he would probably have revealed everything about his feelings to her already.

Lucille weakly nodded and kept her eyes directed right at his. “Yes... I'm...fine...” She seemed like even saying that brought her to her limit. She was too adorable. What would she say if he just gave her another kiss?

He quickly pushed that thought away before he began to seriously consider it. “That's good. Maybe we should go sit down inside for a moment.” He didn't want to drag her down to the guests now while her face was still so red.

Lucille nodded again and didn't seem to be bothered when he slowly pulled her toward the door.

But they didn't get far.

Cedar glanced to the side to look down to the terrace below them, where the guests were standing, and froze upon seeing a familiar face. “Damn it.”

Lucille tensed for a moment before she followed his gaze. Then she breathed out a word in shock as well. “Oh...” To her, this probably seemed even worse than it did to him. Cedar was used to his mother's anger while it was new to her.

Of course, Cedar couldn't have been prepared for that expression though. He had only seen Camille, who had seemingly arrived at the ball without him noticing, like this twice. After his father's death and after he had run away to go to the capital for a day.

The dowager empress often broke down when she felt like something that belonged to her was taken away. Her other kinds of fury were terrifying as well because they ended with her showing her burning rage.

But right now, Camille's anger was icy, and that was much worse. She only stood there and looked up at the balcony with pure resentment in her eyes. Her expression was blank, and the insanity that reflected in her eyes was the only indication that this calm would only lead to a destructive storm.

Cedar's blood ran cold, and he forced himself to forget what had happened the last time he had been faced with that expression. It would be different. Because he wouldn't kneel down and accept everything just to be given some twisted form of affection afterward. He needed to protect someone now. He met his mother's gaze for a few seconds before he turned around and pulled Lucille with him.

His whole body was tense as he mentally went through all of the things Camille could plan to harm Lucille now. He needed to be prepared for every single option and intervene.

Cedar forced himself to relax while he opened the door and entered the building, even though he felt his hands tremble a bit. He closed the door as soon as Lucille was inside. For a few seconds, he stood there and stared at the room before he turned around to her.

Lucille looked like she was both intimidated and worried in general. She had pressed her free hand against her chest while holding his hand tightly with the other. She was too uncertain. That immediately made him want to protect her even more.

Cedar slowly came a bit closer to him and put his hand on the side of her face again. “Everything is fine. I will deal with everything that could happen now. You don't have to be scared.”

Lucille didn't seem to be convinced. “But-”

He cut her off immediately. “I will take care of it. I know that this is a little impractical, but I can deal with it. We are in the royal palace. Everything will be fine. No one here will be able to hurt us. I will protect you. Understood?”

She weakly nodded while letting him hold her cheek. She averted her eyes for a moment before she whispered her response. “And what about the rumors?” That was the one complaint he hadn't expected.

“What kind of rumors?”

“People saw us just now. If they talk about this, it will be problematic for you, won't it? Because of your marriage chances, this could be...bad.” Lucille glanced to the side while trying to do anything but to meet his gaze. Yet, it was obvious that she didn't seem to be focused on what he had been referring to. What she had addressed was their smallest issue as long as Camille was here.

Cedar was quiet for a moment before he let out a low sigh. Then he stroked over Lucille's cheek before slowly withdrawing his hand. “That's not a problem. I can deal with that too.” He would always be seen as a suitable bachelor, just because he was the prince. It was more difficult for Lucille, but he wouldn't scare her by saying that. “We have other things we should think about first though. My mother is the issue. But I promise you that I won't let her do anything.”

For a moment, he had been unsure of whether Lucille just hadn't seen Camille. But then she lowered her gaze and nodded. She had probably seen and had given her best to ignore it. After all, Camille was terrifying and would treat the girl she despised with even less kindness than she treated her son with.

Cedar stayed quiet for a bit to allow Lucille to calm down before he spoke again. “Should we sit here for a bit longer before going down?” It would be better if she calmed herself a bit before they would face the guests again. Especially since they couldn't be certain of how many people had seen their kiss.

But Lucille shook her head. “It's better...if we go now. I'm fine. We need to take care of everything so that His and Her Majesty can leave, right?” So, she was being considerate even now. That was completely unnecessary.

Cedar wouldn't force her to stay here though. If she said that she was more comfortable leaving, he would do her the favor. “Alright. Then let us go.” He pulled her with him and linked their fingers before he opened the door to the hallway. To his surprise, the door was stopped, and he took a step to the side to look out.

Leonard leaned over to show them his face before he moved away to open the door. He grinned, but it looked somewhat forced. “Congratulations.”

Cedar could feel how Lucille next to him slouched her shoulders and turned away in embarrassment. The prince himself could only notice that there was no snaky comment, which meant that something serious would probably follow. “You saw?”

Leonard did his best not to seem grim, but he couldn't hide the underlying hint of urgency in his voice. “Not only I did. Theodore and Blanche will probably congratulate you too. It's not a problem that we saw, but others had their eyes on you as well. It might be a little problematic that she saw you. Hopefully, your mother won't cause a commotion again like last time.”

Cedar forced himself to seem cheerful while voicing his reply. “Hopefully not. I have no desire to let her ruin my mood again.”

But having Camille ruin yet another ball was the smallest of their issues.

Cedar wouldn't admit that he was actually terrified of the prospect of his mother attacking Lucille. At least he wouldn't admit it while Lucille was standing next to him. But he would tell Theodore about this to prepare for what would inevitably follow. He couldn't risk anything.

Leonard seemed to understand that well. He only nodded while glancing at Lucille to signal that they would discuss this later. Then he spoke up again. “Someone else you should worry about saw it too.” By the gods. Why?

“Who is it?” Cedar couldn't think of anyone but his mother, so he didn't look forward to hearing another name.

Leon still said it though. “Lady Peril. She snapped her fan in two. I think you effectively ruined her mood for the next weeks. I know that she isn't likely to commit a murder, but she has her little mind games. Just be careful and remind those around you to be on edge around her.” So, he suspected that there might be a problem once Lady Peril talked to Lucille. That was surprising.

After all, Jenna wasn't the big issue. In the worst case, Cedar could easily get rid of her in secret. If he proved that she had endangered Lucille, Theodore would even help. The only problem was that Lady Peril might be sharing a goal with the dowager empress now. When Jenna worked alone, she never hurt anyone physically and only used strange schemes to bully those she deemed her enemies. But if she worked with Camille, everything could become much more stressful.

Cedar just nodded while scanning the hallway behind them. No strange people were there yet, so he could assume that his mother would make her move in a few days or weeks, like she always did it. Still, it would be better to be careful. “We should return to the ballroom now.” There were so many people there that attacking someone should be impossible.

Leonard seemed to support that idea and accompanied the couple downstairs.

Lucille was visibly uncomfortable returning to the crowd after what had happened, but she tried to hide it. She failed. She didn't have enough self-control to keep herself from cowering behind Cedar, and she also held his hand with much more force than before. As soon as they were back in the illuminated ballroom, she tried to seem normal again, but the fact that she didn't meet anyone's gaze said everything.

Cedar wanted to comfort her, but he was met with a forced smile and a promise that everything was fine. So, he focused on dealing with the dangers first. He looked around for a while and quickly realized that he didn't see his mother.

Camille had left after seeing the kiss. That either meant that it had taken such a toll on her mental health that she needed to run away to recover or that she was already plotting to hurt Lucille. Both options weren't pleasant.

Cedar gritted his teeth as he slowly made his way toward the royal couple. He was much more careful to keep Lucille from bumping into anyone than usual. He didn't need any person here to cause a scene. The couple luckily managed to arrive at their destination soon. But that wasn't as calming as it should have been.

Theodore looked scary at the moment. He had calmed down again, but it was obvious that he had been boiling just a minute ago. No one would have dared to trouble him, so he had probably threatened someone. And only one person could make him so upset on his beloved wife's birthday.

Cedar smiled at him while directly inquiring what he needed to know. “Did you scold Mother?”

Blanche, who held her husband's arm as always, patted his side. “He did. Quite directly and with a lot of emphasis.” That only meant that he had been very upset.

Theodore's icy gaze made that pretty likely. When he replied, even the tone of his voice revealed that the conversation hadn't been very nice. “I should have said much worse. After all, she dared to utter such words in my presence as if I wouldn't hear them.” He looked like he held back when he glanced at Lucille. Apparently, Camille had voiced something unkind about Lucille, most likely a threat. “After that, I merely spoke the truth. She will burn for every person she set on fire. She will receive as many cuts as she ordered assassins to make. She will feel all the pain she gave others. Then she will wait for death and only receive it at the very end. She deserves much worse, but I don't have enough patience to wait more than a year.” If it was anyone but Camille, one would have needed to show some sympathy. The emperor was furious, so the result wouldn't be pretty.

Cedar scanned his brother with conflicting feelings. He should probably try to keep his mother from harm, but he couldn't bring himself to do that. It would be much safer for everyone if Camille wasn't here anymore, so he wouldn't even refute it. He only had one little worry. Theodore was probably the person who hated the dowager empress most, so it might not be good to let him deal with this. “You don't plan on doing anything to her yourself, right?”

Theodore's expression remained completely cold when he replied. “I don't have to. There are enough people who were injured or whose families were hurt. They will be glad to return even a little bit of what she gave them. You will not have to worry about her.”

Cedar doubted that, but he didn't say it. He just put on a little smile. “Thank you. It would be good if this could be resolved.” He hoped that it would rather be over sooner than later. The longer Camille was here and the more of her mind she lost, the worse everything would be. But of course, he didn't begin talking about that during a ball. Instead, he just focused on moving on according to the plan. “You will return to your room now, won't you? You can rest assured that Lucille and I will take care of the ball. I wish you a wonderful evening and that you may enjoy the rest of your birthday properly.”

Blanche smiled at him, but there was something in her eyes that seemed unfitting for the woman who had never been very cruel. “Thank you very much. But don't hesitate to call for us if anything goes wrong. We can come back to scold as many people as needed. You officially have permission to throw anyone who causes trouble out of the palace. Including Lady Peril and the dowager empress, but it's not limited to them.” That was way too trusting.

Cedar could easily ruin the royal family's friendships by causing a scene with some important supporters and throwing them out. But of course, he wouldn't tell anyone to leave unless there was a serious issue. “Of course. I know how balls like this go. There won't be a problem, and I will even deal with all the troublesome guests.” That shouldn't be an issue when everyone was somewhat scared of the prince that was known to be a cold-blooded traitor that had attacked his own brother and was now openly being supported by the emperor. Only few people were stupid enough to try something.

Theodore nodded, but he probably did it more because he was lost in thoughts than because he wanted to reply. “Of course. Feel free to visit the buffet. You can also go talk to the ministers and tell them about the contract. Or you can try to get Duke Duremont to trust you.” None of that would happen.

Cedar didn't trust the food here when his mother had entered the room. “Naturally, I will not approach the ministers. We can discuss the reasons later. Go upstairs with your wife, and celebrate her birthday with her and your daughter. Hurry up. Aurora is probably already waiting for you.”

That was enough to make the young parents want to run upstairs immediately. But one could see that they were conflicted still. Both Theodore and Blanche told the prince that everything was fine about a hundred times before he asked them to move again. Then they finally listened and disappeared but not without reminding him that they would be there to help if something went wrong.

Cedar was almost a bit relieved when they were gone. When he turned around and saw the guests, he quickly revised that statement though. Everyone here watched him and Lucille. He was pretty sure that most hadn't seen anything regarding the kiss, but they had noticed that Cedar was the host now. This proved that Theodore trusted him, and that probably caused irritation among the guests.

Understandably.

Cedar didn't have time to think about that for long. They would have to entertain some guests now. He glanced at Lucille and scanned her once more.

Lucille seemed to have calmed down. She still stuck to his side as if she wanted to be protected, but she had stopped looking around nervously. She was a bit quiet though. That almost made him want to kiss her again so that she would forget her worries.

Cedar turned to her and showed her a bright smile while pushing away those thoughts. It wouldn't be good if he always ended up thinking about how kissing her had felt when he saw her. That would cause some big issues. And he really didn't need more of those. “Then let's enjoy the evening.” And pray that nothing would go wrong. “We should pick out some nice guests to start with, right? Maybe we should go bother my cousin again. You liked Rebecca, so it might be good to go see them.” That would calm down the both of them. They could make the evening a bit more pleasant with that.

Lucille quickly nodded. “It would be nice if we could see your family.” She met his gaze for a few more seconds. Then it seemed like realization flickered in her eyes, and she hurried to avert her gaze. Seconds later, she still looked to the side and did her best to avoid gazing at him. So, she thought about the kiss too. That was relieving.

Cedar almost considered teasing her. That would distract them, but then she might die out of embarrassment. He would have to keep that idea until later. Maybe until he brought her to her room and could playfully ask for another reward for escorting her. For now, it might be better to leave this spot before he was tempted. “Then we will go see my aunt and her children. Let us go.” He squeezed her hand and then turned to begin moving, only to stop the very next second. “Or not. There your father is. He may or may not...” He was a bit worried about Raymond having seen the kiss, but the other man wasn't showing him a murderous expression. So, Cedar could calm down a little. “No, he didn't see it. We are lucky.”

Lucille tensed despite that. “But he looks upset.” Apparently, her father's presence still didn't make her too happy, but at least she didn't cower anymore.

Cedar fought the urge to stroke over her head and smiled at her. “Don't worry. I will deal with it. He probably didn't like us leaving together. We showed everyone that we ran around with only the two of us. You know that the more conservative nobles don't like a man and a woman doing that. They probably also wouldn't like us holding hands.” He received a blush in response. That was probably his compensation for the tiring conversation that would follow afterward.

Viscount Valerian would probably remind Cedar that he needed to stay away in public so that no one spoke about the prince having a relationship with Lucille. Little did he know that it was much too late for such concerns.

Cedar had already understood that these feelings were real. He had become attached. For him, that meant that he would never let go. He only needed to find out how to reveal that to others in a more subtle way.