“When you found out he was doing fine?”
“No. His home life was shit,” says Hanry bluntly. He goes on: “Anyway, Mom first told me about this wedding the day right before we broke up.”
“The trip you took before Sidney’s wedding,” I say.
“Yeah. After you left, there was nothing stopping me from coming home and giving Seb a break.”
My sympathy slams to a halt.
“Okay, fine. I had a role in this too. But that doesn’t absolve you of being weak. You still could’ve told your mom that no one was going to marry anyone.”
Besides, I wonder why he’s so sure Seb would’ve been forced to wed May. Seb has TikTok-ready dolphin skin. He’s shiny-pale and smooth-chinned. All evidence indicates May would sooner marry a gorilla.
Out loud, I say, “I wonder if Seb’s a good dancer.” Exactly as expected, Hanry glowers. I grin up at him, ready to enjoy his jealous display. But my heart, calloused and angry thing that it is, softens a bit.
“I’m just kidding.” Mostly. “See you later, Princeling. Good luck finding yourself.”
“I’ll find you when I’m done,” Hanry says. “I mean it, Sabby. I know it’s unfair to ask you to wait for me—”
“Correct.”
“—but if you do, I’ll make it worth your while.”
That’s a tall order. I rest a hand on the table and turn fully towardHanry. And although I try to find an insult to throw at him—an extra-cutting one, to match the pain I’m still reeling from—instead, my heartbeat skips. I can’t help it. I’m reminded of how Hanry smells, like pine or cedar or some other indefinable spicy, nature-inspired wholesomeness. How I find his strength reassuring. His kindness and decency and desire to help others is flat-out impressive—all the more so when I compare it to his royal fairy upbringing. I’ve longed for weeks to share in his cozy, comfortable world. And now, all our make-out sessions, all the times we lay in each other’s arms on his sofa rush back to the front of my mind. We never promised anything to each other. This would be the first time.
More than anything, I want Hanry to be ready to make good on what he’s offering—not later, but today. If only his inner strength matched his outer strength. If only he had the spine to support the weight of his noble heart.
I wish I could hold that against him. I want to stay angry. But… I can’t. I’ve needed help figuring myself out too. It took extreme measures for me to realize what I wanted. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad if I gave Hanry a chance. After he takes some time to grow. See what happens down the road.
Eyes fastened on his, I take Hanry’s goblet and throw back fairy wine.
“If you find any other fairy princesses to marry, tell them I’ve got dibs. You hear?”
Hanry laughs. The taste of lilac and nettles lingering hot on my tongue, I drop the goblet, curtsy, and leave him for his party.
No—formine.
31ALL’S WELL THAT ENDS WHALE?
NO. WE ARE NOT ADDINGan extra bedroom.”
Bulan, pretending not to hear, bounces around the inside of the cupboard. He’s all head and no self-control, so despite my efforts at shampooing him this morning, he’s progressively taking on lint and dust.
“It’s got a smell back here,” he complains. “Blech.”
“I don’t remember you complaining about the mildew before.”
“I had rhinitis. Don’t you remember my sniffling?”
“Would you at least stop rattling the shelves? Hanry isn’t around to fix them.”
Mandy clasps her hands, perplexed as Bulan and I work to determine the master bedroom closet’s destiny. After visiting multiple apartments with a real estate broker, we agreed that Grandma Rose’s pink house was the clear winner for our shared future abode. It has the most light, lower property taxes than we’d have to pay in rent, and an ambience of familiarity. It will probably require the deepest cleaning, but I’m sure Mandy and I are up to the task. If not, maybe Mandy can convince Rochester to loan us his fairy servant minions. Or maybe she’ll continue wringing her hands until she’s whittled them down to nubs.
“Mandy, stop.”
Embarrassed, Mandy throws her hands behind her back. “Sorry! I just, umm, are yousurethis is okay, Sabby? Us moving in!”
“I’m sure,” I say for at least the tenth time since returning from Fairyland, armored with a fresh plan for business success. “I need my employees to have stable housing. I need to stay in the green myself, and to do that, I’ll need renters. If anyone’s going to be in my space, I want it to be my friends. Why are you acting so nervous?”
