Ulysses slumped onto the seat next to me. “Horsefeathers,” he said, taking a glass of champagne for himself. “I’m worried His Highness doesn’t like you very much.”
Giselle, Isabelle, Dominic, and now Ulysses. I gave a dry laugh. “Is it that obvious?”
Ulysses shifted and pulled yet another piece of paper from his waistcoat. This time it was a newspaper clipping. I recognized the column:Sister Scarlett’s Scandals. It was the biggest gossip column in the post, started by a former nun. I took the clipping from Ulysses, who downed his champagne in one swig.
Olderea’s Future Queen: A Traitor?
Shock rolled over the kingdom on the twenty-seventh of December when His Majesty King Maximus Median announced the engagement of Crown Prince Bennett and Lady Narcissa Greenwood (formerly known as Lady Narcissa Whittington). The couple is now touring the kingdom in celebration, their first public appearance at Delibera’s Witch Market. As of now, the procession is residing in Coriva at Lord Frederick’s Huntington Abbey.
Though the crown prince and his betrothed make an elegant pair, it becomes increasingly clear that this union is not one of love, but of politics. The increase of riots due to magic-related issues has left Olderea confused and on edge. The crown prince’s marriage may be a means to distract the people from the glaring issues at hand, though a poor one at that. It only raises another question: Why Lady Narcissa?
The events of the last Season are no secret. Duchess Wilhelmina Whittington was imprisoned after being unmasked as a traitor, but her daughter was allowed to roam free despite taking equal part in her treasonous acts. Is it possible Crown Prince Bennett had tender feelings for Lady Narcissa and prevented her from suffering the same fate?
However, one of our anonymous sources (a young lady who claims to be close to the traitor’s daughter) says otherwise.
“His Highness refused to ride in the same carriage with her,” our source says. “He was on horseback from the palace all the way to Huntington Abbey—a five-hour ride in the blistering cold!”
It is fortunate that Crown Prince Bennett possesses a muscular physique, for no ordinary pair of thighs could handle such strain. But what could drive His Highness to endure such icy hardship, if not a burning hatred for his new fiancée?
The words began to blur together. I closed my eyes briefly, having no wish to read further about Crown Prince Bennett’s muscular thighs or all the reasons he hated me.
“I didn’t know you read Sister Scarlett, Ulysses,” I teased, my words slurring.
He frowned. “It’s my job to read everything, milady,” he said, taking the clipping back. “I have the utmost faith in you. That faith has only strengthened when I saw how you handled the produce shop. You are meant to lead.”
I looked away. I had used Mother’s methods. Now Ulysses was giving me Mother’s praise.
“The only thing left is to stop rumors like these,” he said, shaking the clipping before tucking it back into his waistcoat. “His Majesty will not be pleased if they end up on his desk.”
“Are they really rumors, Ulysses? Or are they the truth?”
Rumors were that the crown prince preferred cats. Sister Scarlett was not wrong. I finished the rest of the champagne in my glass, relishing the bite as it ran down my throat. I reached for another, but Ulysses blocked me.
“Rumors,” he said firmly. “Milady, you must try harder. We set off for Vandil tomorrow. It will be a fresh start.”
I hadn’t even won the crown prince’s trust. Now I was supposed to win his heart? Not only that, I would have to convince the entire kingdom of the feat. I squinted at my empty glass. The surface felt like ice.
“There are only two things a woman needs to ensnare a man, Ulysses,” I said, recalling something Mother once told me. “Beauty and wealth. Therefore, I have done all I can. Why don’t you tell His Highness to try harder?”
I got up before he could reply. Lady Huntington was by the exit, saying goodbyes to the departing guests. I slipped past her into the hall and turned the corner, crashing into something solid.
Warm hands steadied me.
Crown Prince Bennett held my shoulders, frowning. No doubt I was flushed from the champagne.
“Lady Narcissa, are you alright?”
I giggled at the irony. Why did he bother asking? He left me to dance with the slimiest man in the room and didn’t come looking for me the entire night.
The crown prince repeated his question.
“Perfectly well,Your Highness,” I said. I pushed his hands off my shoulders, surprised at the cold in their absence.
He stared at me. It felt like an eternity. An errant thought crossed my mind. In the romance book I was reading, the stablehand had fallen in love with the princess by staring at her. Was that all it took? A good, long stare?
“You have, um...” Crown Prince Bennett gestured vaguely to his chin.
I wiped a hand over mine. Berry red rouge stained my fingertips.
