Beside her, a scrawny youth no more than sixteen executed an awkward bow. Genevieve curtsied. “Lovely to meet you,” she murmured.
At this, Edward blushed a deep red and stuttered a request for a dance. My stepsister threw me an apologetic look. I motioned for her to go.
Lady Thornbush gave a contented sigh as Genevieve and his son made for the dance floor. After a moment of staring, her ladyship walked off, completely ignoring my presence.
Tori gave a low whistle. “Well then. Off to the refreshments table, Amarante?”
“Gladly.”
The other side of the ballroom was filled with platters of sandwiches and cakes, far away from the dais and the dance floor. I was beyond relieved. The last thing I needed was attention on me. Tori grabbed a few cucumber sandwiches and I helped myself to berries and a puff pastry. We devoured our snacks against the wall, observing the chattering groups around us.
My eyes darted around the ballroom for Julianna, but she was nowhere to be found in the midst of opulent gowns and swirling couples. The undercover prince showed no signs of leaving his dais either, his head bowed in conversation with Queen Cordelia.
“How long do you suppose we could go without dance partners?” I said, popping a raspberry into my mouth. I forced my voice to be light, hoping it didn’t betray the churning anxiety in my gut.
“However long it takes us to eat this entire table,” was Tori’s reply. She swallowed her bite of sandwich. “Actually, I ought to find my Pa. He said he would be arriving late.”
“Ah. The roads are crowded with carriages,” I said.
“Oh, no. He’s walking here.”
I raised my brows. “All the way to the palace?”
Tori took another bite of her sandwich. “Our place is a quarter mile from the west wing,” she said. “I would’ve walked here if I didn’t like these shoes so much.” She poked her foot out from her skirts, revealing a dainty high-heeled slipper encrusted with sapphires.
As she bent over, a gold coin tumbled out from her bodice, dangling from a chain around her neck. It bore a stamp of a lion and crossed swords, different from the standard coins of the kingdom.
“This is Captain Greenwood’s insignia,” Tori explained after noticing my interest. “Illustrious families usually have their own coins to reward to people of their choice. To us Strongfoots, it’s a symbol of merit.”
“You must really revere the captain,” I said.
Tori shrugged. “My Pa certainly does, but I haven’t met him.” She straightened. “And speaking of Pa, I think I see him.”
I sagged against the wall, picking at my berries. Was I doomed to spend the rest of the night alone?
Tori looped her arm around mine. “Don’t think I’m leaving you,” she said with a lopsided grin. There was a bit of bread stuck to her teeth, but it didn’t make her smile any less bright. “Pa’s been nagging me to find some proper lady friends. He’ll be over the moon to meet you. That is, unless you want to stay here.”
I spotted Lydia’s head amongst the crowd. She was probably looking for Genevieve, or worse, me. I had no desire to be forced into a dance with one of her friends’ sons.
“Not at all,” I told Tori, abandoning my plate.
Tori led me through the crowd to an open space near the exit. A large man with muscled arms and a protruding gut stood aimlessly about, looking extremely out of place with his grizzly black beard. His gray eyes lit up when we approached.
“There’s my girl!” he bellowed. “What did I miss? Wait, never mind that. How’s the food? Have they got any turkey legs?”
Tori grinned. “No, Pa. But they’ve got a load of candied pineapples.”
“Ah! My favorite. The best thing I ever tasted as a boy,” Lord Strongfoot said wistfully. He noticed me standing to the side. “And who is your pretty friend?”
“This is Amarante. Amarante Flora,” Tori said.
I dipped into a curtsy. “Good to meet you, Lord Strongfoot.”
“Now, none of that,” he said with a jolly laugh, grabbing my hand and shaking it profusely. My shoulder was nearly shaken out of my socket. “Any friend of Tori’s I welcome with open arms and no formalities. Though I do get a kick out of being called ‘lord’.”
“Don’t scare her away, now, Pa,” Tori said, giving my throbbing shoulder a pat.
“Impossible. I know you don’t make friends who scare easy,” Lord Strongfoot said, flashing me a toothy smile. “But what are you girls standing around for? This is a ball!”
