Day 7

扫一扫收听英文朗读

It seemed he had! Whipping Sitron around, Hans searched the crowd for the source of the comments. Suddenly, he caught sight of a red-and-green flash. A moment later, a young woman bounced into view. She was laughing at something an older fruit peddler had said as she paused to inspect the apples on his cart. Nudging Sitron forward, Hans got a little closer and tried to listen in without being seen.

“This is the prettiest, greenest apple I've ever seen, sir! You must bring some up to the castle so Cook can use them in her pies!”

“Oh, Princess!” the old man said, his wrinkled cheeks flushing as though he were a schoolboy. “You are too kind! I'll go straightaway. And here, take this apple ... on me! Enjoy!”

This is Elsa?Hans thought as he watched the girl take a bite and continue making her way through the town. Everywhere she went she was stopped by one person or another, and each time, she greeted them with a warm smile and a bit of conversation. Following her, Hans couldn't help being impressed. True, she seemed almost like a newborn colt, all legs and a little awkward, but she was actually rather, well, pretty. Her reddish-gold hair was pulled back from her face, and he could just make out a few freckles on her pale skin. Her eyes were lively, and when she laughed, it was contagious.

Noticing that the princess was standing precariously close to the side of a boat that was precariously close to the side of the dock, Hans had an idea. He waited for the princess to turn her back to him. Then, nudging Sitron into place right behind the girl, he waited. From what he had seen so far, the princess was rather ... effusive ... in her movements. She was bound to swing around at any moment, and when she did—

As if on cue, the princess whipped around, her mouth open as if she were ready to burst into song. Instead, she burst right into Sitron's chest! Startled, she let out a cry and stepped back. But the boat was in her way and she toppled into it. The weight of the princess was just what the boat, which had already been ready to plummet into the water below, needed. It began to tip—slowly at first, and then faster. Hans heard the princess let out a cry, and then he did exactly what he had planned to do all along. Kicking Sitron forward, he had the horse step right into the front of the boat.

Instantly, the rear of the boat leveled out. Inside, the princess looked up at Hans. Her eyes were wide with amazement, a little bit of shock, and definitely a whole lot of interest.

Hans smiled. That,he thought, could not have gone better.Princess Elsa of Arendelle was practically his!

Anna looked up, ready to give the rider a piece of her mind. But when she saw the person sitting astride the white horse, who wasn't, to be fair, as beastly as she would have first thought, her mind went blank. All she could think was eyes. Beautiful blue eyes that were like deep fjords in the morning sun. Eyes that sparkled. Eyes that mesmerized.

Anna was so caught up in beating herself up that she didn't even notice that the man was still looking at her. And that he looked rather worried. “I'm so sorry,” he said. “Are you hurt?”

Even his voice is wonderful!Anna thought. I bet he would be a great singer.

Realizing he was waiting for an answer, she flushed even redder and stammered, “I—uh, no. No. I'm okay.” If by okay you mean totally mortified,she thought.

“Are you sure?” the rider asked.

“Yeah, I just wasn't looking where I was going,” Anna said, waving her hand in the air as though it were no big deal.

Leaning down, the rider offered his hand. “Oh, thank goodness,” he said. Tentatively, Anna reached up and accepted his hand. He gently pulled her to her feet until they were standing face-to-face.

“Prince Hans of the Southern Isles,” the rider said, introducing himself.

A prince?Anna nearly laughed.

Regaining her composure and remembering her manners, Anna dropped into a curtsy. “Princess Anna of Arendelle,” she replied.

“Princess ...?” Hans repeated, sounding shocked and maybe even a little embarrassed. Instantly, the prince dropped to his knees and bowed his head. “My lady.”

“Well, this is awkward,” Anna said, trying not to breathe right into Hans's face, which, at the moment, was mere inches from her own. “Not you're awkward, but just because we're—I'm awkward. You're gorgeous ...” Anna snapped her mouth shut. Had she just said that out loud? She needed to get it together! She was acting like she had never had a conversation in her entire life.