The moment I entered the courtyard where the fundraiser was taking place, Cordell beelined it to me.
“Your Highness, let me fill you in on what is going on.” The words tumbled from his mouth, panic barely concealed in his eyes.
“I believe I have the gist of what happened. Faxon briefed me.” I surveyed the space, soft music playing in the background as guests mingled in small groups. Some lingered at cocktail tables, sipping on champagne and nibbling on hors d'oeuvres. A handful surveyed the silent auction tables at the far end of the courtyard. I spotted my mother walking away from a young couple near the doors.
“Is that the man that Xavier accosted?” I nodded at the couple.
“Yes, sir.”
“I’ll go speak to them.”
Cordell paused. “Respectfully, sir, I don’t think that would be best.”
I turned back to him, my brow furrowed. “Why not?”
“Your mother immediately approached them to apologize, but the man's wife was very upset and politely asked that they be left alone.”
I sighed. I understood where they were coming from. If I had been on the receiving end of one of Xavier’s publicscenes, I didn’t think I would want any more attention—good or bad—on me, either.
Cordell wrung his hands. “I think it’s best if you leave now with the king and queen. I’m afraid that if anything else happens, reporters will be called. As it is, I saw a few guests sneak photos when Prince Xavier pushed King Leroy, and I’m going to be up all night scouring the internet for anything that gets posted. Best everyone just calls it a night.”
I nodded in agreement, knowing he was right. More than anything, I didn’t want to make a bigger mess of the evening.
I looked around the room for Adelaide, hoping to tell her goodbye and apologize for the turn of events, but she was nowhere in sight.
“This way, Your Highness,” Faxon said as he approached my side to lead me out.
My parents were already in the car when I got in. I could tell Mum had been crying by the glassiness of her eyes. Surprisingly, Dad looked…defeated? I had never seen that expression on his face before.
“Did Knox leave with Xavier?” I asked.
“Yes, he did,” Dad answered hollowly.
“Mum? Are you okay?”
My father tore his gaze from the window to look at my mother. He grabbed her hand and squeezed it.
I had read about other royal families and how often couples grew to hate or resent each other or couldn’t stand the thought of being together, but that was never my parents’ story. Growing up, I always knew that they loved each other wholeheartedly and they routinely put up a unified front. They never raised their voices at each other, and if they disagreed, they talked it out and worked through it. I aspired to have a love like theirs.
Mum cleared her throat. “It’s just been a long evening.” She gave me a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
The next morning, I awoke to a memo that my parents had called an emergency family meeting that would change my life as I knew it.
“The gala starts at six o’clock; I’ll send the car to pick you up at five.”
I tucked my phone between my ear and shoulder as I slid my book bag and lunchbox into one of the cubbies set aside for the student workers in the staff room of the tutoring center. “I don’t get off work until five and I will need to get changed once I get back home. I can be ready by five thirty,” I countered, trying not to let annoyance tinge my voice.
My boyfriend, Theo, sighed loudly on the other end of the line. “Can’t you just dip out early?”
I ground my teeth together as I took a deep breath through my nose, exhaling through my mouth. I usually went along with his plans to keep the peace, but today my stubbornness took over. “No, Theo. We’ve talked about this. I can’t just leave early; that would be unfair to the students on my schedule.”
“It’s just one time, Ads. After all, once we get married you won’t need to work, so who cares if there’s a few marks on yourrecord?”
“Theo, I will be ready at half five. I’ll see you tonight,” I said shortly, hanging up the phone before he could respond.
I had been dating Theo—formally Lord Theodore Wiltz, heir to the Duke of Walden—since we met during our first semester at Royal College of Wexstone here in Cadence, nearly a year and a half ago. Though I entered university with zero interest in dating anyone noble, Theo had been charming and sweet, convincing me to give him a chance.
His charm had worn off in recent months, replaced with not-so-subtle commentary about how I didn’t need to focus so hard on my studies, since my primary purpose once we were married would be to produce an heir and oversee the household like I was some kept woman living in the 1800s.Gag.
