“You know Gabrielle has to make your wedding dress, right?”
Oh… I might not survive this, after all.
41
Instinct
Evelyn took another bath to clean the memory of Haydn off her skin.
I only feel guilty about Haydn because of my engagement to Leo. I don’t regret sleeping with Haydn. But I also wish it had never happened, if only to relieve the knots of shame in my gut.
What the hell did I get myself into? I shouldn’t have made the Bargain with Haydn. But he was going to tell Leo everything! He looked so… angry. I thought he looked scary, but he was just mad. He’s headed back to Lochmatten now and he will calm down.
He didn’t scare me. He was upset. He wasn’t scary.
But those eyes…
Evelyn forced herself to snap out of the downward spiral. She had been up for hours and was starving. It was too late for breakfast and too early for lunch, but maybe the kitchen staff would take pity on the future queen.
I’m going to be a queen! I’ve barely figured out how to be a princess, as Damien keeps reminding me. Umm… that’sa problem for Future Me to figure out. I have two days to get better at being a princess, which starts right now and not earlier when Haydn was inside me, physically and magically. Shit.
Evelyn entered the dining room, where a large bear that smelled vaguely of wine tackled her.
“Lord Robert!” she gasped.
The Lord of the Taste Court held Evelyn in such a forceful embrace that her feet lifted off the floor.
“My queen!” Lord Robert’s booming voice reverberated off the marble walls.
“If you don’t put her down,” Lord Grégory warned, “she won’t live long enough to become a queen!”
Lord Robert set Evelyn down but kept hold of her shoulders. “No offense to your sister, Princess,” he said in the loudest possible whisper, “but I was hoping it would be you!”
Evelyn laughed uncomfortably. “Thank you?”
“Congratulations, Your Highness,” Lord Grégory said with a smile and a short bow. “We are all very excited for you.”
“I appreciate that.”
I don’t have anything against Lord Grégory necessarily. But he didn’t seem to care about who Leo married, so long as he proposed to a princess.
“Yes.” Lord Stuart stepped forward. “What abeautifulbride you will be.”
She recoiled at his words, which wouldn’t have been creepy coming from any of the other lords.
Lord Nicolas came to Evelyn’s rescue, gently pulling her toward the dining table. “Come join us if you aren’t too excited to eat.”
The lords had been snacking on fruit, pastries, tea, and coffee.
None of that explains Lord Robert. Does he just perpetually smell like wine?
Nicolas chuckled when her stomach growled. Evelyn sat between him and Lord Robert, and they each piled food onto her plate.
“As happy as we all are,” Lord Grégory continued from across the table, “we may have also been abitsurprised by the news.”
“I was expecting an announcement for you and Councilor Ritter,” Lord Stuart said.
You and me both, asshole.
