“Of course,” Josie said. She finished the tail of my braid and tucked it into the start of it. “Miss,” she hesitated. “If youwereto foster yourfriendship…”
“Absolutely not.”
“But if you were,” she said. “I would very much support you.”
I nodded profusely. “There’s certainly no chance of that, Miss Jocelyn.”
“But if there were. If you were to pursue your own affair, I?—”
I choked, scurrying to cover her words and lower mine.“I suppose I should thank you for your loyalty, but…But I have no desire and no abilityto develop such connections, especially with Mr. Evergreen. Our friendship would immediately affect the lives of all our empire’s citizens’. So. Thank you for the support, truly, but also no thank you. No. Let us change the subject.”
“But if no one knew of it, it could benefit you in such?—”
“Ser Elías would say, only two can keep a secret if one of them is dead,” I explained. “I think it’s bad luck to wish death upon one’s friends, and I certainly don’t wish to die.”
“That’s very grim,” she said.
“Yes. Well. Um… You, however, may feel free to inform Ser Willoughby of my blessing of your union. If that should help you somehow,” I offered.
“That is completely unnecessary, but I… I thank you foryour loyaltyand for saying such a thing to me.”
I nodded. “Now. Pretending we did not speak of fostering friendships…Do you…Do you think I should send for him?” I asked. “He said if I wanted to ride, I should. But is it inappropriate knowing what you know? That I…fancy him some?”
“I don’t know anything,” she said. She handed me my quill.
“I just told you he— Oh,” I paused, seeing her face. “Ah, I follow now.”
“You cannot be convicted for your thoughts,” she said. “And, twice now, you’ve confessed you have no meaningful relationships. Perhaps a friend— an actual friend— is something you need? It doesn’t have to be anything else than what it is.”
I played with the pen’s feather. “What do I even say?” I asked.
Josie smiled. “Less is more.”
Chapter 24
Mr. Evergreen replied promptly to my request. He suggested that we meet at noon on Thursday. However, noon on Thursday did not feel soon enough, and from the moment I sent my confirmation of our plans, I was on edge. It did not matter that he had agreed to see me. It did not matter that he had done so within the hour of my notice, or that his response said that he was looking forward to it. When I closed my eyes to sleep, it felt as if I’d merely blinked, and Josie had to physically rouse me.
Breakfast was a balance of dodging awkward conversation with and around my soon-to-be father-in-law and my fiancé. The two of them transitioned topics from the suspected, nonsensical whispers of the social court to the lack of developments in their horse investigation at rapid fire. They spoke only to each other on the latter, and when I did intrude, I was instructed to be patient. Then, only Sam’s incredible desire to rid me of his presence for the day angered me further, and, by the time I made it to the swordsman at the stables for our adventure, I was furious.
Mr. Evergreen looked up from what he was working on–some filigree clasp on one of the leather straps. He arched his brow.
“I must confess, I was worried you wouldn’t show,” he said. “Your note was vague.”
“I want to ride Isaac,” I told him. “Right now.”
“Good morning, my dear Cyrus,” he replied, calibrating his voice to the role of mine. Then he was himself again. “Itisa good morning, isn’t it, Princess? Thank you for greeting me so kindly. You humble a man like me.”
“It’safternoon,” I declared. My finger jutted toward my mare’s saddle. “Lift me up.”
“Sure,” he replied. “Right ontoTailswith that mood.”
I scoffed. “You cannot guess my mood simply by how I’ve darkened your doorstep!”
His mouth opened, and he chuckled. “Look, I don’t have to guess. You’re the most obvious woman in the world and, apparently, the most inappropriate as well. I am a gentleman, Your Highness. So I ask, do you know what that means?”
“Whatwhatmeans?” I flustered. “Gentleman?”
“Darkening my door,”he said slowly.
