Plagued by never-ending nightmares and cursed with a mysterious ability to sense others' emotions, 19-year-old Diana Massey is no stranger to the peculiar. Bizarre events start piling up when a young man named Casimir comes to live at her family far...
"Careful!" Casimir said, reaching over me to push the branches out of my way. I jumped through, jerking to a stop when I realized my long hair had gotten tangled in the hedge.
"Ouch, hey," I groaned as I attempted to pull my purple locks free from the branches. Casimir slipped through the hole and quickly set out to help me. I watched him work, a rosy blush coming over my face as I realized how close he was to me.
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"Stay still," he ordered and I complied. Casimir ended up snapping the final twig, letting me pull away from the hedge so he could pick out the dirt and branches. He stopped to survey the damage. "You should be good now."
"Thank you," I responded with a smile.
Casimir blushed and glanced down at his feet. "Of course Princess."
"Call me Taya!" I insisted, pouting my lip.
He grimaced, his face turning even redder. "Princess Taya."
"Fine," I grumbled, brushing off the last bits of leaves on my dress. "I should have tied up my hair anyway. I wish I could just cut it all off, I hate it."
Casimir was quiet for a moment before his face lit up and he reached into his pants pocket, pulling out a small leather hair tie. "You may borrow one of mine if you like Princess Taya."
"Thanks!" I cried out, grabbing the tie from him. I pulled forward my long wavy hair, which fell all the way down to my knees tying it into a braid as quickly as possible. I grinned when I was done, pushing the heavy braid back behind me with a flourish. Casimir nodded in response to my gratitude, scratching the back of his head nervously. Overcome with emotion I leaned forward giving him a quick kiss on the cheek. The young boy stiffened his hand rising up to touch where I had just kissed him.
"P-princess," he stammered. I could feel his joy and embarrassment.
I found him so cute that I jumped forward, wrapping my arms around his neck. He froze as I pressed against him, kissing him softly on the lips.
"Call me Taya please," I whispered, my face inches from his. Casimir was at a loss for words but a wave of happiness flowed off of him and filled my heart completely. We kissed a few more times and I could feel his growing desire. I pulled back to smile at him before our faces inched closer once again. Suddenly a voice shouted loudly, and I tensed immediately knowing I had been caught.
"Hey! Get away from her!"
We both turned in surprise and I gasped quietly because I hadn't realized that anyone else was in the garden. I released Casimir, jumping backward. Alpheus stalked up towards us, dressed in a blue satin tunic top, embroidered with golden thread along the edges and cuffs. His dark grey hair was parted in the middle, falling down to his ears before being cut short around his neck. His usual smug expression was now full of rage and the closer he got the more I could feel him. This wasn't surprising seeing as he just caught me kissing a boy, yet I was supposed to be his betrothed.
