The day of the garden party event, I awoke early, dressed, and hurried down to the kitchens to warm my stuffed mushrooms. Many of the girls were already in there, and I had to wait my turn at the ovens. I didn’t mind waiting this time, since the closer I heated my food to the start of the event, t
I tried to pull my eyes away just to prove him wrong. Too quickly, I was looking again. “She’s the King and Queen’s favorite,” Julian said. “Your brother’s, too.” I tried to keep the distain from my voice, but I was a poor actor. I was certain that it shone on through. “Maybe.” Julian studied
“Forgive me, Your Majesty, but we had given consideration to the spirit of the event,” I said. It wasn’t totally a lie. I had given some thought about how our divided display could still indicate some measure of cooperation, even if Linda hadn’t. “Explain yourself,” the Queen said. I motioned
I wished I could tell him that I understood he meant his words and that I appreciated them, but there was no real opportunity for me to do so. “Everyone needs to know their place, nobility and commoner alike,” Linda said. The King nodded. The Queen decided to change the subject, “I will try th
“Sabotage?” The girls around us burst into loud chatter. “Could it be possible? How would she do it?” “Anything’s possible. She could have done it.” “Someone get the guards! If it’s true, that’s an attempt on the Queen’s life!” At the sound of that accusation, the guards closed in around my
“But in the meantime –” Joseph tried again. Nicholas interrupted him. “I will accept personal responsibility for her. I will keep her by my side and make certain that she does not find herself in any more trouble.” Relief flooded me so quickly, I felt dizzy. I rested one hand on the table in cas
“Love has no place in royalty.” Nicholas tilted his head down and lowered his gaze. “I will be forced to marry the best Luna candidate in the Choosing Game. I can only hope that, at the very least, perhaps a sense of friendship will blossom later.” “And Lilliana is the best?” I asked. He sighed.
“Right.” Nicholas tightened his jaw. “Well, she certainly did in this case,” I said, inserting myself into their conversation. “I would never hurt anyone.” Lilliana looked at me blankly. “I believe that,” Nicholas said. Then Lilliana added, “Yes, me too. Piper would never hurt anyone.” I f