CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR – HATTIE
“How did that meeting go, by the way? You never said.”
Finn loops his tie around the back of his collar and pauses, looking at me. “I didn’t want to bring it up after everything, and you didn’t ask, so I didn’t think you wanted to know.”
“I do.” I slide out of bed and walk over to the vanity that I’ve slowly taken over in the past few days since our engagement announcement. “I kept meaning to ask, but I always forget.”
“Oh, well, if you’re sure…” He eyes me, almost as if he thinks I’m going to break out into a fit of hyperventilation any moment now.
“Yes, I’m sure. I’m fine now.” I grab the hairbrush as I sit on the stool. “I promise. I’m not going to start having a panic attack just because you mention my stepmother’s name, you know.”
“I know, I just… I don’t want to trigger you, that’s all.”
“Join the club,” I say dryly. “Sometimes, I don’t even know what does. It’s just one of those things.”
“All right.” He finishes securing his tie and perches on the back of the sofa, watching me as I brush my hair.
“It went about as well as I expected. To be honest, I thought they’d be more openly angry than they were.
Even Jasmine didn’t raise holy hell as I’d assumed she would.
They wanted to know how everything had come about and seemed more put out than anything.
Your father asked a lot of questions, and Rosalyn…
” He hesitates. “She questioned your ‘suitability’ to be my wife.”
I snort. Of course she did. “I bet she dressed it up as concern I may bring the royal house into disrepute because of my upbringing, right?”
“That’s almost exactly what she said. How did you guess?”
“One of the things they’ve always drilled into Jasmine is that she must behave herself and mind her manners.
They’ve always said, ‘You’re going to be a royal.
You cannot do anything to cast a shadow on the Royal Family.
’” I set the brush down and switch on my curler.
“I had a feeling that was the first path she’d go down.
It’s an easy target given the past, after all. ”
“Well, your feeling was correct. After that, both Mum and I apologised for not communicating the situation with Jasmine sooner, and I made it very clear that I never have had and never will have any desire to marry her.”
“You said that? To her face?” I spin on the stool, raising my eyebrows. Damn it, why’d I have to miss that? “I bet that went down well.”
“Depends which sofa you were sitting on.” Finn grins, an almost boyish-like glint brightening his eyes. “I had a great time. Jasmine… Not so much.”
I press my lips together to fight back a smile. “Finn.”
“And I said it all right after telling her that I chose you to be my wife, and that I would choose you every time. Boy, did she hate that. Almost as if she thought you’d tricked me into becoming your future husband with your wicked ways until that very moment.”
This time, my smile breaks my containment. “You did not.”
“I did. I thought to myself, ‘What would make my wife smile?’ and it seems like I chose the correct option.”
My wife.
Those words tickle through me, sending a strange warmth blooming in my chest.
“I’m not your wife yet.”
“Semantics.” He waves his hand. “Next time I speak to Jasmine, I might slip up and say that in front of her. Oh, even better—I’m going to get questions during my visit to the cancer centre today. Shall I refer to you as my wife then? Can you imagine the look on her face if I say that in public?”
“You’re pettier than I am.” I sniff, turning back to the mirror, and part my hair so I can fix the loose curls with the curling wand.
He walks over to the vanity and perches on the edge of it. He looks down, his blue gaze never leaving me, and I flicker my attention up to him once I’ve got the first lock of hair secured around the barrel.
“Besides, how many questions are you really going to get? The interview must have been played on television endlessly by this point. Didn’t we cover everything there? And in the statement the palace released?”
“Never underestimate the voraciously bullshit appetite of the media,” he says dryly, reaching over to free a bit of hair caught in my eyelashes.
“Yes, they’ve got all that, but they haven’t heard directly from me.
That’s what they want. So, naturally, I’ll be a good little heir to the throne and tell them exactly what they want to hear. ”
“Which is?”
“That my fiancée is wonderful, and I’m the luckiest man in the world to be marrying the woman I’m utterly obsessed with.”
“You’re laying it on a bit thick, don’t you think?”
He grins again, his eyes doing that stupid little sunshine sparkle thing. “If tonight’s headlines don’t paint the crown prince as the most lovesick bastard in Askurg, I haven’t laid it on thick enough.”
With a sigh, I release the curl I was working on and move to the next one. “You’re really so dramatic. I didn’t know I was proposing to such a diva.”
“Why? Would you have made the mistake of marrying someone else?”
“I might have.” I meet his gaze. “Alec does have that little torture dungeon in his basement, after all. I’m not above a little dirty work.”
Finn’s eyes darken. “Don’t even go there. It still pains me that you had to get answers out of that man by yourself. As for marrying Alec… I’m not even going to justify that with a response.”
I remove the curler from my hair and lean over, propping my chin up on my elbow as I peer up at him. “Is that a little jealousy I sense?”
“Don’t play with me, Hattie.”
“It’s okay. You’ve got nothing to worry about. Sure, Alec might have a torture dungeon, but you’ve got the crown he’s loyal to. This is the best of both worlds.”
“You.” Finn pinches my cheeks together with one hand, making my lips pout. “If I didn’t have to go soon, I’d wipe his name off your lips.”
I blink innocently up at him, unable to speak because of his grip on my face. He quickly leans down and kisses me, then sits right back up, letting me go.
“One thing you do need to be aware of is that your family… they aren’t done, Hattie. They aren’t going to let this go.”
All the good, fuzzy feelings that were just floating happily around my body die. “I thought as much. I fully expect them to attack me, one way or another.”
“They’re planning something. We don’t know what, but Marina took the evening shift the night of the party. She said there’s a lot of anger and secrecy. She’s been keeping an eye on Jasmine and Rosalyn since then, and the fact they aren’t openly discussing you at all is extremely suspicious.”
“It’s fine. I can guess their next move.
” I pick up the curling wand again and return to fixing my hair.
“Jasmine, at the very least, will try to use the press to attack me and my childhood. No doubt there are several someones sniffing around trying to find out where I disappeared to and what happened to me when I was gone, and Jasmine will happily fill in some of those blanks. Truth be damned.”
Finn’s jaw tightens. “When they do, we’ll stop the stories running.”
“No, let them run.” I tilt my head to the side to check the curl at the back of my head.
“I want them to run. Nothing is truly anonymous, not even in journalism. Eventually, all these stories will be traced back to the Sinclair family. If the Palace tries to suppress them, it’ll just make it look like they’re true. ”
“I hate that anyone might think badly of you because of her lies.”
“You said yourself that night at the hotel that someone is always going to dislike me. I’d rather be disliked for something I’ve actually done, but people will feel rather foolish if their only reason for hating me is based on a complete lie.
” I put the wand down and free the rest of my hair. “So, let them.”
“Mm. I suppose.” He pauses. “It depends on the story. Some we’ll hold. There’s no way my mother will allow the press to be flooded with negative stories of you, no matter what your argument is.”
“I know.” I smile, glancing up at him. “Jasmine isn’t that stupid. She knows how to play the media—she’ll release a few unsavoury things about me that are close to the truth, like how I undercut her to become your fiancée. Hold back the things that have truth to them.”
“You didn’t undercut her. I never wanted to marry her, and I already told you that my mother refused to grant permission.”
“Oh, no, I undercut her. Once we made contact, I deliberately went behind their backs and snuck around to achieve my goal. I knew exactly what I was doing. There’s no use sugarcoating it.”
“You—”
“But nobody else knows that your mother refused to grant permission. Besides, it’ll hardly matter when the truth about her parentage comes out.” I pause at that. “By the way, did you ever tell your mother she’s my father’s biological daughter?”
Finn hesitates.
“Finn.”
“I thought she might explode if I told her before the banquet,” he admits. “For what it’s worth, I do think she has her suspicions. Especially after the way he spoke about you during the meeting.”
“Mm. Well, more fool him for that. Shouldn’t you be leaving before Oscar comes and knocks this door down?”
He checks his watch and slides off the vanity. “You’re right. And, you be careful today, all right? You shouldn’t be bothered on a private errand. Security will be—”
“Nearby the whole time, yes, I know.” I fight back a small laugh at his obvious concern. “Sophia went over everything with me yesterday. If anything happens, I’ll leave right away and not kick up a fuss, I promise.”
“Right.” He pauses again. “I don’t know why I’m worrying. You’ll be with Valentina. She’ll stop anything happening to you before security get anywhere near the situation.”
“You say it like she’s a martial arts master.”
“She might well be. I’ve seen her take down a grown man. Between that and your proclivity for hidden knives, you’ll be just fine.”
I laugh, put down the curling wand, and get up. I push him towards the door while saying, “Just go, Finn. I’ll be fine, I promise. If anyone recognises me and I get extra attention then, well, I just have to get used to it.”
I reach around him for the door handle, grab it, and tug it open. The first thing I see is Oscar standing there with his fist raised as if he’s about to knock, and he opens his mouth, staring at us both.
“Oh, good. Excellent timing. Here, it’s your turn now.” I give Finn a light push out of the door, and he looks back at me, eyes wounded as if I’ve just kicked a baby otter in front of him. “Don’t look at me like that. You need to leave, or you’ll be late.”
Oscar clears his throat. “She’s right, you know.”
Finn shoots him a half-hearted glare, then kisses me quickly. “I’ll see you later. If anything—”
“I’ll be fine,” I say at the exact same time Oscar says, “She’ll be fine.”
“See?” I raise my eyebrows. “Even Oscar knows. Now, go. If anything happens, someone will tell you right away anyway.”
Finn hovers for a moment, uncertainly practically dripping from his pores, and Oscar rubs his hand down his face.
“All right. That’s enough. Let the woman go shopping.” He grabs Finn by the shoulders, turns him around, and practically manhandles him down the hallway. “Be careful!” he calls over his shoulder.
I shake my head and close the door, then head back to the vanity to finish getting ready.
Honestly. I’m going shopping. I have a security team.
Absolutely nothing will go wrong.
I grab my phone and open my conversation with Valentina. Finn made sure her number got to me, and we’ve been in contact ever since. Today’s shopping trip is a way to escape the noise surrounding everything and get me out of the palace for a little bit.
More than that, it’s an opportunity to join my darling half-sister in setting a narrative.
ME: Did you do it?
Her response is speedy, as always. I barely have time to curl one lock of my hair before my phone flashes with her reply.
VALENTINA: Yep. Jasmine definitely knows our plans. And Victoria will keep her distance, don’t worry.
ME: Are you sure we can trust her?
VALENTINA: Yes. With my life.
ME: All right. I’ll see you soon.
I put down my phone and meet my gaze in the reflection in the mirror.
Well, when I say nothing will go wrong, I mean nothing I don’t want to go wrong.