or because I still haven’t mastered the art of doing it alone. It feels silly to call for servants these days, especially for something I should be able to do without help. And I must admit, knowing I am able to perform the task myself—it’s a satisfaction I’ve never had before.
I sit in the water long after it’s gone cold and the soapy bubbles have melted away. There’s no reason to rush. Eve will be back soon, trying to hide her regret, already wishing she’d gone with her brother instead of remaining here. I heave a breath, gathering the energy I’ll need to calm her down and soothe her enough to sleep. For someone so accustomed to physical pain, she has absolutely no idea how to grapple with emotional turmoil. No matter how much I tell her to lean on me, she always resists, and it maddens me to no end.
Shifting, I tip my head back, letting my hair splay out in the magnificent bathtub. It’s smooth, rippled with stones like a riverbed, and the water looks dark in the waning light. I doubt we’ll be able to afford something so grand once our time in the palace runs out. I should enjoy it while I can.
But before I can reach for the faucet to pour more scalding water into the cold, I hear movement in my chambers. A door bangs open in the salon, then the bedroom. Evangeline—and a companion.
Annoying.
She’s harder to deal with in front of an audience. Too proud to show her cracks.
The air is colder than the water, and I shiver as I step out onto the tile floor, almost flailing for my robe. I tie the fur-and-silk garment around myself, wondering if Davidson will let me keep it. I have a weakness for fine things, particularly ones in this emerald shade of green.
The voices in our bedchamber are familiar. Eve, obviously, and my own former husband, Ptolemus Samos. His deep timbre is difficult to mistake, and I relax a little. We shared something, he and I. Something neither of us wanted. A marriage of convenience, yes, but a marriage against our hearts as well. We did what we could to make it easy for each other, and for that I’m grateful. My father could have given me to someone so much worse, and I have never forgotten how lucky I was.
Lucky, my mind echoes, a taunting sound. Another might find no luck at all in the life I’ve led, in being forced against my nature, cast out of my family, fleeing to a strange place with nothing but the clothes on my back and a noble name from another country. But I survived it all and, what’s more, so did Evangeline. I’m lucky to have her with me, lucky to have escaped the future we were doomed to.
When I emerge, I brace myself for their bickering. Ptolemus isn’t one to raise his voice, not with his sister, but he might for this. He knows she should be abdicating with him as much as I do.
“Tolly,” I say, greeting him with a wary smile. He nods in return.
Both of them look unkempt, with new bruises blooming over their exposed skin. “Sparring?” I muse, running a finger over the purple spotting at Evangeline’s temple. “Who won?”
“Not important,” Evangeline says too quickly.
I smile in my soft way, squeezing her shoulder. “Congratulations, Tolly.”
Ptolemus doesn’t gloat. “She’s just eager for a rematch.”
“Always,” Evangeline huffs. She takes a seat on the edge of our bed and strips off her boots, leaving them discarded and dirty on the lovely carpet. I bite my tongue and refrain from scolding her about cleanliness again.
“And what exactly did you win?” I ask, looking between the two siblings. Both of them know exactly what I’m asking, no matter how much I dance around it.
Silence settles over us, thick as one of Carmadon’s huckleberry pies.
“Pride,” Ptolemus finally says, as if realizing that Evangeline isn’t going to speak. Or admit what she cannot face. “I should be going. I’m late as it is.” Even he can’t keep his voice from cracking with disappointment. “I’ll need the letter, Eve.”
Still quiet, Evangeline nods her head toward the salon. And the envelope still waiting, a white square on polished wood. I haven’t touched it yet. I don’t think I ever will.
“Right, thanks,” Ptolemus mumbles. I half expect him to mutter his annoyance under his breath as he strides into the next room, wishing Evangeline would follow.