“Ugh.” She groans, tossing a tulle dress at my head. “We don’t have time for this. We need to turn you into a bride.” When I push the fabric aside and glance at her, she’s smothering another smile as she turns away.
CHAPTER38
HOURS UNTIL THE CORONATION:TWELVE
I’m going to marry Theodore Geoffrey Edward George, again (forrealthis time), in a floral-embroidered tulle gown. The pink, purple, and orange flowers remind me of a certain Greek sunset from several months ago, and if I thought my life felt surrealthen,nothing could have prepared me for the moment my apocalypse dog dragged me through the starry gardens at Buckingham Palace, on my way to marry a king.
Last time, I told myself that it didn’t matter, that it wasn’t real because it wasn’t legal, but I couldn’t shake the inescapable feeling that marrying Theo on that beach meantsomething.This time, marrying Theo is probably the most life-altering decision I’ll ever make, but it feels more like crossing the t’s and dotting the i’s on the paperwork for a choice we already made.
“Did you know that Theo left me at the altar the first time we tried to do this?” I whisper to Victoria as we sneak through the darkened gardens. The palace was buzzing all day in anticipation of the coronation, and it took until hours past sunset for the halls to quiet down enough for us to sneak out. There willbe a lot of angry people in Buckingham Palace tomorrow, but that’s a problem for daylight. Tonight is for making our own destiny.
“He’s not skiving off this time.” Victoria points toward the rose garden, where three figures wait in the dark.
My pulse thrums in anticipation.
Henry meets us on the path to the rose garden with a handpicked bunch of roses held loosely in his fist. “Heard you’re the reason I’ve been kicked off the throne.” His voice cracks with suppressed emotion, and my stomach pitches in guilt.
I’ve been so focused on how this news affected Theo and me, but Henry’s the one whose entire life was blown up. “I’m so sorry.”
“It’s fine. I’m fine. It’s completely fine.” He says the least believable thing in the history of man and forces a fake smile.
“Do you want to leave?”
He slants me a pained look. “And go where? Inside, to confront the father who’s been lying to me for my entire bloody life? I can’t emphasize enough how much I don’t want to do that, so even though I feel like I’m dying inside, I’m here to support my brother. And you, because you’re going to be my sister.” He must see the guilt on my face, because when I open my mouth to apologize again, he holds up his hands. “I’m serious. I’ll deal with my looming existential dread in the morning.”
“Theo’s lucky to have you,” I tell him.
“Damn right. And I’m about to steal his title as the saddest, moodiest, most miserable bastard in the palace.”
I can’t help but laugh. “Does everything have to be a competition?”
“Yes,” he says seriously as he offers me the roses. “Careful where you hold them. I’m bleeding in three places.”
I cautiously pinch the flowers between my fingertips and tell myself that it’s not at all a bad sign that my bouquet can double as a weapon.
“Did you see anyone on your way here?” Henry asks Victoria.
“No. Why? Did you?”
His eyes scan the palace grounds, lit only by stars and moonlight. “No… I don’t think so, anyway.” He looks around a final time.
A shiver runs up my spine and I clutch the flowers on instinct. “Ow!” I draw in a breath as blood drips onto my ivory gown. “Crap!”
Victoria quickly unties a ribbon from her hair and wraps my palm. “You didn’t let Comet have the ring, did you?”
“No. Why?” I touch the chain around my neck for reassurance and take a deep breath.
“Just making sure nothing else can go wrong.”
“Don’t take too long. Theo’s losing his mind waiting for you, and the archbishop just wants to go to bed.” Henry salutes as he jogs backward away from us.
Victoria straightens the back of my gown, and I start to walk toward Theo, but stop after a few steps. I turn to her. “Should there be music?”
“How would I know?”
It’s weirdly quiet out here, now that I think about it. There’s a reason that brides don’t walk down the aisle in silence; the eye-contact situation would be awkward for everyone. “I think there should be music.”
Victoria raises her eyebrows. “I didn’t bring my phone. Did you?”
