Sleeping Beauty by Maureen McGowan Page B

thirteen.”
    Tristan looked shocked at that, so she stepped forward and cornered him against the horse. Just a few more inches and their bodies would touch. But he slid to the side and rounded the horse to put the large apparatus between them.“I’m sorry if I did something to give you the wrong idea.”
    Every boy who showed up to her father’s Friday-night galas found her appealing, so why wasn’t Tristan interested?
    Realizing the likely truth, she crossed her arms over her chest and backed up a few steps. Those stupid boys liked her because she was a princess. They were trying to get on the good side of the king. None of them thought she was pretty or really liked her ; they just pretended to. How humiliating. Her eyes narrowed and she squeezed her lips together, wishing she could erase the entire night.
    â€œMy graduation is in a few weeks,” Tristan said. “After that, I’ll be going home to Judra. If you like, I’ll keep training you until I leave, but I understand if you’d rather not.” He looked down.“I’m sure Hans would be happy to continue practicing with you.”

    Her heart pinched, and she turned away to hide the pain she knew was spreading all over her face.
    â€œJust forget it,” she snapped. She stomped to the back door, behind which the groom who’d brought her was waiting.
    At the door, she turned back. “I’ll see you tomorrow night.” As hard as it was to imagine training with Tristan after tonight’s fiasco, it was even harder to imagine never seeing him again.

    â€œWhy so sad?” Her father cupped her face, rubbing her cheek with his thumb like he used to when she was little.
    She couldn’t tell her father the truth—that she was devastated because her secret slayer trainer had rejected her and had moved home to Judra—and she wondered what she could tell him without lying. Even though she’d been deceiving her father, she avoided outright lies whenever possible.
    â€œIs it boy trouble?” he asked.
    Surprised he’d guessed, she nodded as tears filled her eyes. She felt like a total baby, crying in front of her father like this, but ever since Tristan’s rejection three weeks ago she’d felt like crying all the time.
    Her mother, sensing her sadness was related to her trainer’s departure, had offered to find a replacement. Even her mother didn’t get it.
    Too humiliated to tell her the truth, Lucette had turned down her mother’s offer. Her mother was so delicate and pretty, Lucette figured she had probably never been rejected by a boy. How could she have been? She’d met her future husband so young, and gotten married when she was not much older than Lucette was now.

    Her father pulled her into his arms. “I’m so sorry. With all your dates chaperoned, I didn’t think anything bad would happen. Which one of those boys hurt you?”
    She pulled back. “It’s not like that, Dad.”
    â€œThen what?”
    Her lips started to tremble, but she took a deep breath to calm herself. “I like a boy more than he likes me.”
    â€œOh, that’s not possible!”
    â€œNo, Dad, it’s true. And I don’t just like him, I love him, but he doesn’t love me.”
    The look of concern in her father’s eyes turned to warm sympathy. “Oh, Lucette. I’m so sorry. Tell me who he is and I’ll have a word with him.”
    She pulled back. “No!”
    â€œBut if I can help . . .”
    She shook her head.“No, Dad. This is one area of my life where you can’t help. You can’t make a boy love me with a royal decree. Besides, he moved away.”
    Her father embraced her gently. “If he didn’t love you, then he’s a very foolish boy, indeed, and not the one you were meant to love. Don’t despair, I’ll introduce you to more boys at Friday evening’s reception. One of them is