Another chapter for you all! I hope you'll forgive me for how long this is actually taking me to post, but I'm finding some holes in the plot that I want to make sure that I cover, and my school schedule makes it rather difficult to post continuously as I would like. But, it kind of adds to the suspense of things, don't you think? Again, I ask that you review this and let me know how you feel about the whole thing. Fun and dangerous moments will be coming in future chapters, but if I don't know that people are reading it then it makes it hard for me to want to continue! So please review after this chapter and give me your thoughts, even if it's just a simple "I like it, please write some more soon!"

Chapter XIV

"Please meet me in the garden where last we spoke."

She couldn't believe that she had allowed herself to fall asleep like that. Had anyone come walking in to check on him for some unknown reason then she was sure the rumours would have spread about her Uncle and the young woman who lay in his arms. But thankfully she had stirred in the early hours of the morning and managed to quietly sneak from his room without disturbing him, closing the door with the utmost care before she returned to her own room and removed her clothes to slip between the sheets. She hadn't slept well or long, finding that her head ached slightly when she rose again and gave a resigned sigh, hearing the chimes of the clock to tell her just how early it truly was. But when she had brushed her hair and plaited it neatly down her back, the young woman finally took notice of the letter that sat on the window sill before her, having completely looked past it when she had returned to her room a few hours before. The curiosity had been too strong for her to contain and fingers moved swiftly to remove the piece of paper from the sealed envelope. There was no salutation, nor signature, just ten little words that immediately told her who the sender was.

Folding the letter back up, Katherine looked about her for signs of another person who might have concealed themselves within her room, but found no one. Nevertheless, she knew that for someone to see such a note would not look well upon her, the sender being in the clear unless his handwriting was known to those who might look upon it. Standing quickly, Katherine held the letter to her chest and crossed to the hearth, tossing the incriminating piece of paper into the embers and watching as it burned into blackness.

Now what was she to do, she asked herself silently as her blue eyes continued to stare at the now unreadable note. Clearly he would be waiting for her in the gardens, her heart fluttering lightly at the idea of seeing him again so soon. But had she given him just cause to send her such a forward note? Was he even allowed to associate with her? Considering his station in life, it would likely prove rather foolish for him to be seen with the daughter of a priest on his arm, a thought that still brought a small amount of colour to her cheeks as she thought about it further. Oh, how she would love to be paraded about like that, just a little bit so that the world would know of her existence. For so many year she had felt as if she were merely a shadow moving through life, something unseen by those around her. Was it so wrong for her to want to be noticed just this once?

In an instant, Katherine had made up her mind.

She took only a moment to adjust the skirt and blouse that she wore, patting her hair a little to ensure that it would be presentable before she hurried out the door and down the various corridors, following their twists and turns to the gardens that she had been so in awe of when first she saw them. Even now, in the early morning air, the flowers and trees seemed to hold their fragrances without issue, their colours vibrant against the soft orange and pink that the sky had become. Her heart pounded violently in her chest as she looked about her, hands gathering her skirt just a little to avoid some of the dew covered grasses as she stepped slowly into the garden. He was here, waiting, she thought to herself happily. He had written her a note asking to meet her, for reasons she knew not, and he was hidden somewhere among the foliage to greet her.

And here she thought she had made a fool of herself in front of Tolbert…

"You came."

Startled by the voice behind her, Katherine whirled around to face the man who spoke and found to her surprise that it was Philippe who stood before her, not Tolbert. The handsome musketeer had not been the one to write the note after all.

Katherine immediately dropped herself into a curtsey, her side protesting angrily at being bent in such a fashion. "Your Majesty! Forgive me, I didn't realize-"

"No, please," Philippe said, hurrying forward with an outstretched hand to help bring Katherine back to her feet. "Please don't."

She blinked at him as she felt her body lift into a standing position once more. Despite her initial shock at having seen him as the person who had left the note for her, and her angry thoughts toward him after their last meeting, Katherine couldn't help but be rather puzzled by the tone of voice which Philippe used to speak to her. Blue orbs looked up at him with uncertainty as she felt his hand linger around her waist, thus bringing the two of them a little closer together then one might deem appropriate between a commoner and her King. But when she found that his bright eyes were locked upon her face, something within Katherine suddenly found that her chest felt tighter. Her hand began to tremble beneath his fingertips, her heart beating a little faster than it had before. It must be from before though, she thought to herself quickly as she took a small step back from Philippe and felt her hand fall at her side. Yes, the initial shock at having seen him when she expected someone else was what was causing those feelings. It made perfect sense now.

Silence fluttered between the pair as Philippe took note of her retreat from his touch, watching as Katherine slowly turned her back to him and wandered a few more paces ahead as if she were attempting to find a much safer distance between them. For a moment, his confidence seemed to fail him entirely. Perhaps he had read things all wrong, he thought to himself as he watched her, feeling a cold chill creep over his body and clench tightly at his heart. Perhaps those few moment he had felt between them had been nothing more than a figment of his imagination, a longing in his heart to be accepted by someone who knew the truth of the entire plot of which he was the center. No, came the voice of confidence once more in his mind, pushing past his negative thoughts and fears to be heard once again. He knew nothing of why it was that Katherine removed herself from him so. He was simply guessing at the reason.

"Are you alright? You look pale."

"I am perfectly alright, Your Majesty."

An awkward silence fell between them as both turned their eyes to the ground beneath their feet, wondering how best to deal with this situation. Clearly Philippe had meant for her to come, but Katherine had expected another man entirely to be waiting for her there, and now found herself in a position she had hoped to avoid entirely while at the palace.

"Forgive me for luring you out like this."

She turned her head slightly in his direction as he spoke, not enough to make eye contact but enough to tell him that she was listening to his words. "If I had known that Your Majesty wished to see me-"

"Kate."

Her heart fluttered a little as he cut her off with the nickname that she had insisted he use when last they had been together, hands coming together tightly against her chest in her uncertainty as if they alone could still the stirring in her breast. With great hesitation she turned herself around to face him once more, finding that his firm tone did not quite match the look that he wore in his eyes. It was almost as if they were imploring her to listen to him, to be still just long enough that he could speak without interruption or ceremony. And while his country would regard him as a King, standing there in the richness of his robes that would easily betray his identity, Katherine saw only a man; a man who's eyes silently begged for her to let him finish.

"Philippe."

A look of ease overtook his face as he stepped toward her again, taking care to note the gentleness in her tone of voice. "When the rest of the court looks at me, all they see is Louis," he said softly, coming to a halt only a pace or two before her. "I do not think I could bare to have you see me like that."

A slight tilt of her head and the knit expression in her brow was enough to tell him that she was now truly confused by his words. He laughed softly to see her looking so and reached out slowly until he had taken both of her tiny hands in his larger ones, holding them firmly between their bodies. It was then that her expression changed from one of confusion to one of shock, her eyes widening greatly as she felt the warm touch of his hands on her own. Lips parted as if to speak, perhaps in protest to the fact that there was something inappropriate about the way that he had reached out so suddenly to her, but words seemed to fail her entire as she continued to stare up at him. And for Philippe, it was satisfying in a way to know that she had not pulled away from him almost immediately after he had made initial contact, feeling that this had to be some kind of sign from above that he was headed in the right direction.

"I must tell you how I feel," he began softly, brushing his thumbs along the smooth skin on the back of her hand. "I have been in agony for several days now, wanting to tell you. But I was so afraid that you might reject me because all you saw was the crown that I wore."

Katherine blinked up at him, but still no words fell past her lips, and so Philippe pressed forward lest she regain her senses quickly. "I have never met anyone like you, Kate. I have known very few people in my life because of who I am, and now I must become someone else entirely to preserve my life and the lives of those most important to me. But I do not wish to be that person all the time."

One hand slowly pulled away and lifted instead to approach her cheek. She knew it was coming, despite the fact that her own eyes could not pull away from Philippe's at that moment, Kate knew that the gentle touch of his fingers against her cheek was coming and the colour instantly rose in her face as heat radiated from her skin. Her eyes closed slowly at his touch, her face turning ever-so slightly in the direction of this new attention as she found herself rather enjoying the tingling sensation that now coursed up and down her spine. Her breath caught a little in her chest as the concentrated movement of his fingertips moved lightly up and down the surface of her cheek and caused her heart to skip a beat in response. Oh, she had never thought to experience such a feeling at the hand of a man, at the hand of someone whom she barely knew…

"Philippe, please," she murmured quickly, eyes flying open as she took a small step backward to widen the space between them. "I beg you. You are King, a man that the entire country relies upon for their safety and well-being. They will expect you not to love a common girl like myself, but to marry a Princess from another country and create a political alliance to guarantee their future."

"But do you not think that the people of this country would rejoice in happiness to know that the King had married a woman of no stature?" he pressed, moving forward again to lightly place his hands on her upper arms. "Louis would never have allowed himself to do such a thing. He would take them for lovers, but nothing more." The young man paused, licking his lower lip nervously before he looked back at her, blue meeting blue with the same intensity as before. "But I love you," he continued in his soothing tone. "And I want the happiness that my parents never had. Being with you would give me that happiness."

"We hardly know one another," was her weak response, giving her head a little bit of a shake as if to better clear her head of how foggy her thoughts had become.

He nodded slightly. "I know. But I wish to know you better. And hope that, perhaps in time," here he paused, looking into her eyes for a sign to continue. "In time, that you might come to care for me as I care for you."

"And if not?"

For a moment, Philippe was absolutely still. His expression remained frozen in place as if Katherine's words had no effect on him at all, though inside his stomach lurching violently at the idea that perhaps he had misjudged the entire situation before him. And then his smile softened even further, his eyes looking at her with the same adoration that had been there from the moment he had seen her standing in the gardens just as he had asked her.

"If not, then I hope that you and I can at least be friends, for I shall never forget all that you have done for me."

The tension fell from Kate's chest as she exhaled slowly and blinked a few times, looking up with Philippe with a gentle smile to rival his own. "I should go," she whispered, turning her head a little to look toward the door. "There are things that must be done before this evening."

His fingers instantly flew to one of her hands again, his grip far tighter this time then it had previously been. "May I have hope?" he asked, eyes silently begging for a positive response that he could hold onto.

At Katherine's smile, the King leaned forward and pressed the back of her hand to his lips, holding her thin fingers in both of his hands to keep her from pulling away before he was ready. For a long moment they remained that way, until at last with a soft laugh and a furious blush in her cheeks, Katherine pulled back and curtsied low before she hurried away toward the door. That meeting had not at all been what she had first expected it to be, but the result was much more pleasing then one she could have ever imagined before. All that escaped her notice as she made her way back into the palace was the figure that lurked in the shadow on the other side of the corridor, watching with narrowed eyes from a nearby window just how the interaction between King and girl had gone.

His teeth grit together in frustration as he watched her move away, noting the smiles on both of their faces and how the King seemed to stare after her until at last he recovered his senses and disappeared the other way into the garden. No doubt he would hurry off to tell his Mother all about the encounter, he thought bitterly, for the Dowager Queen was sure to have encouraged his clear infatuation with the young woman who had come in the company of four old men. Nevertheless, everything would be carried out according to plan. He had his orders, and he would not fail in bringing them to pass.

After all, it was his job.