Chapter 12
I sighed deeply. “I begged the stylist to let me reuse my green dress from the garden party, but apparently it wasn’t, and I quote, ‘befitting of a future queen to reuse a dress.’” I rolled my eyes as I checked my makeup in the powder-room mirror back at the palace.
I wasn’t the future queen. I was still a girl with a budget spreadsheet, and it was hard for me to accept that money—even if it wasn’t my own—had been spent on an outfit I would wear for one day.
But Queen Isobel insisted on this beautiful sapphire blue dress for the ceremony, since I would be changing into an emerald gown later to coordinate with Oliver’s sash for the coronation dinner that evening.
And who was I to argue with her? She was the queen.
Or at least, she had been up until about an hour ago.
“Ugh,” Birdie huffed as she reapplied her lipstick. “At least your hat is cute, and you don’t look like you’re wearing a frisbee.” She pointed to the hat perched on top of her own head.
I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Birdie,” I giggled, “your tea hat looks beautiful with your outfit. Very Royal Family Chic,” I said in my poshest accent.
Birdie laughed. “I don’t know how you people grew up wearing these things. I’ve been worried all morning about it falling off my head or that the wind is going to take it.”
“You’ll get used to it. And if you don’t like it, let your stylists know that you prefer fascinators with headbands.” I gestured at my own headpiece, showing her the headband barely visible under my hair. “They’re typically my go-to.”
“Oh!” She perked up. “That sounds much better. Noted, thank you!”
We exited the bathroom and I moved to peek out of a nearby window, taking in people gathered outside the palace gates, all bundled warmly and waving flags.
The sun had come out during the coronation ceremony and was now shining merrily on the crowd who cheered with joy as they waited for Oliver’s appearance on the front balcony in about thirty minutes.
He would receive a salute from members of the armed forces, followed by a litany of photo ops and, eventually, the coronation dinner.
I was already exhausted simply thinking about it.
As I watched the smiling crowd, I reminded myself that they were the reason I was doing this.
As much as I hated lying—and I knew deep down that Oliver did as well—I loved my country and my fellow Wexstonians.
It did not escape me that they would have stood outside for hours to demonstrate their support and loyalty.
It was what Oliver deserved, to have so many people showing up for him today. Because even with his faults, Oliver was a good man and would be a great leader for this country.
Smiling to myself, I recalled the way his eyes had widened almost imperceptibly just before the high priestess had handed him the jewel-encrusted golden sphere.
I was certain that it would have been missed by anyone who didn’t know him so well, but I could see just how nervous he was.
Despite myself, I had found my eyes welling with pride.
Only someone who cared very much would be anxious in that moment.
To me, it spoke of his lack of hubris and the ways in which he sought to serve his people well.
If I was going to be taking part in this ridiculous ruse, at least it was with a man who I knew, down to the depths of his soul, was good.
“Hey buddy, you’re all right. This is going to be our home for a little while.
Don’t get too used to it though, okay? It’s not permanent,” I cooed as I opened Shadow’s crate.
He glared at me as he skittered into the spacious palace suite and slunk under the enormous four-poster bed covered in a plush cream duvet and an array of overstuffed pillows.
A soft blush-colored throw blanket laid at the foot of the bed, one of the corner tassels hanging down.
Shadow batted at it with his paw from under the end of the bed.
“Well, you seem to be fine.” I laughed.
I took in my surroundings. The bed and two matching nightstands took up one half of the room while an ornately carved desk and two armchairs took up the other.
Across from the bed, one doorway led into a sitting room, while another near the armchairs led into the bathroom.
I had already peeked into the bathroom and nearly fainted at the sight of the massive bathtub.
My lips tipped up in a smile as my eyes landed on the enormous gift basket filled with bubble bath, bath bombs, and a note written in Oliver’s tidy handwriting:
A little something help you feel more at home.
-O
Cream walls held gold-rimmed art, making the space feel elegant without being overzealous or showy, while a fire roaring in the fireplace added a cozy ambiance.
I could easily picture myself curled up in one of the damask armchairs with Shadow in my lap, reading a book and sipping on a cup of tea.
Maybe this place wouldn’t be so bad after all.
My moving into the palace had been a point of contention between Oliver and me over the last couple of days.
I insisted that I was perfectly fine to continue living in my house for the duration of the engagement, but he had countered that it was customary for royal fiancés to move into the palace once the engagement was made public, and it would help security if we were under the same roof.
If we wanted to continue to sell our engagement as genuine, it would start us off on a bad foot for me to bypass living there.
I had finally acquiesced, under the condition that I was able to bring Shadow with me and that we have our own space, unconnected from Oliver’s, under the pretense of propriety.
And so I had packed a couple of suitcases for myself along with Shadow’s food and litter box and had given my house key to Louis, the Master of the Household, so he could organize delivery of the cat and my personal effects to the palace during the coronation dinner.
I perched on the side of the bed and breathed a sigh of relief as I slipped off my heels for the first time in about ten hours. I couldn’t wait to get out of my dress and shapewear, too.
I was working up the energy to get up and wash my face when I heard a soft knock at the sitting room door.
“Come in,” I called, sliding my feet to the floor and padding out of the bedroom.
Please don’t be anyone looking for information out of me tonight, I silently prayed.
I was so tired I could barely remember my own name.
To my relief, Rosie’s sweet face peered around the door. “Hi!” she said with a little wave. “I’m about to go to bed but wanted to let you know that my rooms are just down the corridor.” She smiled a bit sheepishly.
I gave her a wide smile and waved her into the room, settling on a cream settee in front of another ornate fireplace. I patted the space next to me and Rosie hopped up, tucking her feet underneath her.
“Thank you for letting me know you’re nearby,” I said, squeezing her hand. “I feel a bit like a fish out of water right now, and it’s nice to know there’s a friendly face just down the hall,” I added with a wink.
Rosie smiled again, broader this time. “I’m happy to show you the ropes! And the best places to hide when you really don’t want to talk to anyone.” She giggled, blushing a bit. It reminded me of her brother. I was looking forward to getting to know this precocious twelve-year-old better.
“I will definitely take you up on that offer,” I said, joining her in her laughter.
Rosie gasped and her eyes widened with delight as she spotted something just behind me. I turned to find Shadow prowling into the room. “You have a cat?!” she exclaimed, clearly elated at the prospect.
I lowered my hand, rubbing my fingertips together and giving a pspsps to encourage Shadow to come over to me.
When he did, I scooped him up and placed him between us on the settee.
I made a mental note to apologize in advance to the cleaning staff for the copious amounts of black Maine Coon fur they would be vacuuming off the cream furniture on a regular basis.
They surely would be glad when we were gone.
“This is Shadow,” I introduced, scratching the cat behind his ears. “He loves when you scratch him right here.”
Rosie reached a hand out and mimicked my motions, quickly drawing a rumbling purr out of Shadow. Her gaze met mine, her eyes brimming with joy.
“You like animals?” I asked, grinning at her.
She nodded enthusiastically. “I love them! Sometimes Knox lets his dog Eugene sleep with me. Those are the best nights.”
“Well, Shadow clearly likes you, too, and he doesn’t often take this quickly to strangers.
” An idea hit me and I sat up straighter.
“You know what? Your brother and I will be traveling quite a bit over the next few months for the coronation tour. I know there is plenty of staff here to take care of him, but would you like to be in charge of Shadow when I’m gone?
I would feel so much better knowing that he’s being well loved. ”
Rosie leaped off the couch, clearly on cloud nine at the prospect. “Yes! I would love that so much. I promise to take such good care of him and send you pictures every day!” She threw her arms around me in a tight hug.
I squeezed her back, my heart warming. “Thank you, Rosie. I will owe you one.”
Rosie gave me one last squeeze, scratched Shadow behind the ear, kissed him on the head, and practically skipped out of the room. She waved and called goodnight to someone in the corridor as she disappeared.
A moment later, Oliver poked his head in from where she had left the door ajar. “Mind if I come in?” he asked.
I jerked my head in a “yeah, come on” motion and he entered the room, closing the door softly behind him.
“I can’t believe you’re still standing,” I said, huffing a laugh. “I would have thought you’d be dead asleep by now.”
Oliver smiled wryly. “I am beyond exhausted, but I also think I still have too much adrenaline in my system to fall asleep any time soon. I wanted to check in to make sure you were settling in okay before I turned in.”
I nodded. “The staff hung up my clothes for me—which they absolutely did not need to do, I could have managed! So I just have a few more things I need to unpack.”
“Wonderful.” He shuffled a bit, his hands in his pockets.
“Listen, I overheard the tail end of your conversation with Rosie…thank you for that. I think sometimes she struggles with her place in the family. She’s so much younger than us boys and when you’re a royal—well, the world expects so much from you at such a young age, yet you still have so little autonomy.
Giving her something to feel ownership over means more than you can imagine. ”
He met my gaze and my heart—goddamnit—gave a little flip.
“You’re welcome,” I murmured, my cheeks heating. “She’s a great kid. I’m happy I could—oh shit, Shadow! No!” I broke off as I spotted my enormous cat across the room about to scale one of the floor-to-ceiling curtains. “Sir, your ass is far too big for that, don’t you even think about it!”
Before I could reach him, the asshole had pounced, grabbing hold of the undoubtedly expensive drapery and scaling to the top of the curtain like a jungle cat.
I stood at the bottom, giving my unruly son the look that always made my students snap to attention. “Shadow, get down!”
He ignored me.
“Shadow! Oh, damn it all to hell…Azriel! Get down here now!”
At that, he gracefully leaped from the curtain rod onto my shoulder, then to the floor, and sashayed into the bedroom, disappearing under the bed again.
I turned, remembering Oliver was still there. He was watching me, amusement on his face.
“Sorry,” I began apologizing. “There’s a reason I don’t have curtains in my house; he’s a menace. I can—”
Oliver cut me off. “Azriel?” he inquired, tilting his head. “I thought his name was Shadow?”
If I had been blushing before, my face was certainly on fire now. “It is. Azriel is a nickname Dash gave him. He just…prefers it to his actual name.”
Oliver’s eyes narrowed slightly, as though he was trying to remember something. “Azriel…what is that from? Is that from a book?”
“No,” I said quickly, turning away as I pretended to fix the curtain.
It was. When I had told Tadashi that I was naming my newly rescued kitten Shadow, he had responded, “Why not name him for one of your book boyfriends instead? After all, they’re the only boyfriends you ever have!”
Much to my chagrin, the nickname stuck. It was the only name the damn cat would actually respond to.
Oliver cleared his throat and I turned back around, hoping my blushing was under control.
“Well,” he said a bit awkwardly, “I guess I should get to bed. You should, too. We’ve got a few weeks before the first leg of the coronation tour begins, but I know there will be plenty keeping both of us busy before then.
And Mum is lining up meetings with the wedding planners, so…
” His words drifted off as we made eye contact. Right. The wedding.
“Of course,” I replied, moving to walk him to the door. I paused as I reached for the doorknob and turned back to Oliver. “Hey, you did great today. Please don’t forget what I said before: You’re going to be a wonderful king.”
Oliver swallowed thickly, staring at his shoes before looking back up to me. “Thank you, Laidie. It…it means a lot to hear that from you.”
Despite my better judgment, I surged forward, wrapping my arms tightly around his waist and leaning my head against his chest. He just looked so much like a lost boy that I couldn’t stop myself.
A split second passed before Oliver’s strong arms wrapped around my shoulders, his hands coming to rest on my back.
We stayed like that for a few moments as I listened to his heartbeat, feeling truly calm and relaxed for the first time that day.
I finally—reluctantly—pulled away, giving his forearms a squeeze. “Goodnight, King Oliver.”
He chuckled warmly, then leaned forward and placed a kiss on my forehead. “Goodnight, Laidie,” he murmured as he stepped into the corridor and closed the door behind him.