Tree Singer by Jacci Turner (best novels for beginners TXT) 📕

the prince to the king’s left. Cather sat next to him, blushing, which likely was the reason for the scowl on Tray’s face.

Two older girls—daughters she hadn’t yet met—sat next to Cather. Was she wearing one of their castoffs?

Everyone looked up with smiles when she entered, the king and the prince rising as though one. Adven and Tray turned as well.

Had the queen arrived then?

Mayten glanced over her shoulder, but no one was there.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Mayten stood at the entrance of the dining room with Count Monroe. The large table was beautifully set with more matching dishes than she had ever seen. The table at home was almost as long but their dishes were a mishmash collected over the years from trading ships.

The four younger children were scrubbed and dressed in crisp white shirts, the boys in short pants and the girls in skirts. The king and three elder children were decked out in rich warm colors with the girls in velvet dresses and the men in matching black vests.

Their team must look bedraggled after such a long trek, a hasty dip in the lake, and wearing hand-me-down clothes.

The smells coming from the kitchen made her stomach growl and she eyed the bowls of bread and plates of cheeses.

“Mayten Singer,” the king’s voice made the room seem small. He gestured at the empty chair beside him. “Please join me.”

Shock made her shiver. Why was she being honored in this way? She glanced at Cather. Her friend lifted her eyebrows and gave a slight shrug.

“Count, would you mind taking the queen’s place?” The king nodded at the chair at the end of the table.

“I’d be happy to.” The count gave a short bow.

“Travelers, if you please,” the king continued. “Find a place to sit, though I must warn you—the younger children may need help cutting their meat.”

Thankfully, the count escorted Mayten to her seat, giving her a deeper bow before excusing himself and taking his own seat.

The four younger children were not seated randomly but spaced so that adults were nearby to help them. She caught Adven patting the hair of the second littlest Thomas, the one who reminded her of Wollemi. Something in the unexpected gesture tightened her throat.

Odd that he could be kind to others, but not to her.

Sir Underbrush skidded into the room, overstuffed and breathless. He’d changed into looser pants and a more casual shirt. “Sorry I’m late, Tom, er . . . Your Majesty.”

He glanced nervously around the table, wincing when he noticed the only seat available was nestled between a pair of talkative girls, the twins.

“Nonsense, Thornton,” the king said. “Have a seat and cut the ‘Majesty’ codswallop, will you?”

Sir Underbrush bobbed his head and took his seat between the girls . . . who immediately started talking over each other, their conversation involving some new kittens that had been born. He looked from one to the other and back again as if trying to keep up with the conversation.

Mayten hid a smile.

She had expected to find a stodgy old man sitting on the throne. This king was neither stodgy nor old. She loved the way he included his children at the evening meal when he could have put them in a separate room to eat. He didn’t act like a king at all—at least not like the kings she’d read about.

And Sir Underbrush played the court jester perfectly, intentional or not.

King Redmond gestured at the oldest girls. “You haven’t met my two eldest gems yet. This is the oldest, Thomasina,” he gestured at the daughter with straight hair the same rust-red color as the king’s beard, the same color as little Blue’s. Thomasina’s features and skin color resembled the king’s, but on her, those features looked feminine and soft. “Everyone here at the castle calls her Cherry.”

Mayten nodded at the girl. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“Cherry has recently accepted the proposal of a lad from your neck of the woods,” the king continued. “He’s from the Ocean Clan; the captain of a ship. They plan to sail the seas and have lots of adventures.”

The king’s eyes glistened, and his daughter beamed back at him. Mayten could see the love in the king’s eyes, and it made her heart ache for her own da.

“I have two sisters that live with the Ocean Clan,” Mayten said. “I’ll tell you their names so you can have someone to welcome you!”

Cherry smiled at her. “Thank you. It will be hard to live so far from home.”

The king cleared his throat. “And this lovely maid is Thomasina Two, also known as Nan.”

Mayten looked at the king’s second oldest daughter, the word ‘homely’ immediately popping into her mind. The girl had large front teeth and a bit of an overbite along with the same long straight nose and thick brows as her brother Thomas. The features were even less becoming on her.

Thomasina Two did not smile at Mayten. In fact, she was the only one of the king’s children not smiling—if Mayten ignored the prince.

“Nan here is studying botany and is the artist responsible for all of the amazing shrubberies you see around the grounds.” The king beamed at his daughter with evident pride.

Nan blushed and dipped her head.

“The bushes are lovely,” Cather said.

Nan gave her a shy smile.

“They are beautiful,” Mayten said, nodding her head in agreement.

Nan’s smile faded. She dipped her head in a tight-lipped nod and turned to her sister.

What on earth had she done now? Mayten had just met the girl, yet somehow, she’d already managed to offend her. She glanced around the table clockwise. She sat next to the king. Then there were Cherry and Nan. Next to them the twins, Lemmy and Limey, with the mystified Sir Underbrush between them.

Near the end of the table sat Blue, the little one who reminded her of Wollemi. Adven sat next to him, seeming to listen to the boy’s every word.

Count Monroe was at the far end, smiling happily at little Raz. Tray was between Raz and Cather. Mayten noticed