The Kingdom's Crown (Inheritance of Hunger #3) - Kathryn Moon Page 0,28
were all related to council members, and ones whose alliances I knew went to Thomlinson and Roderick.
Did they really think I was so gullible or so accommodating that I would let their daughters and nieces into my court to spy on me and my Chosen or worse?
"Miss Nora McCallum,” Amelia said, about to move on quickly, even as I perked up. Here was an ally.
"You met my brother, I think, Your Highness," Nora said, jumping in before Amelia could introduce the next girl.
Nora looked very young, as if she'd been yanked out of finishing school abruptly or had only just graduated. Her skin was pale, as a lady's ought to have been, but I liked the bright freckles dusting her cheeks and the wrinkles on her skirt where her hands had been clutching the fabric nervously.
"I did, yes, although we didn't get to speak as long as I might've hoped," I said. I'd met her brother, the viscount, at the council meeting. He was familiar with Griffin, and Owen had pointed him out to me as two-natured. I wondered if this young woman was as well.
Nora beamed, her smile a little crooked and her shoulders easing. She was younger even than Camellia, I suspected, and I wasn't sure what kind of help she could be in planning dinners and correspondence. She looked as though she would rather be running through a field or still playing with her school friends. And it somehow reassured me. She was an ally, yes. She might be a friend too.
"I never get to speak with Jack as long as I hope to," she said. "He is always running about somewhere on business."
"As gentlemen are wont to do," another girl murmured with a roll of her eyes, a trio of friends around her snickering as if they had been cued for the sound.
"What was your favorite subject in school?" I asked, ignoring the other women.
"Not quite a subject, but I preferred music, Your Highness."
"You play?"
"I do, and compose a little," Nora answered, and new huffs of irritation rose up from the other girls.
"How fascinating! You will have to tell me more and play me a few of your own pieces," I said, and then I turned and held Amelia's sharp gaze before nodding my head for her to continue.
Nora's cheeks were pink, her lips pressed firmly together, hiding a triumphant smile as all the other young women glared at her from beneath their lashes. Well, I had found one lady at least, even if she was still a girl.
Amelia had barely begun to introduce Katherine Oberlin of Packsen when the door to the room opened and a young woman tripped over the threshold and into the heart of the room. Her dark brown hair was a mess of untamed curls, which obscured her features as she stumbled onto the carpet, tracking mud into the room. Her hem was dirty, and when she swept her hair out of her face, there was another spot of mud on her cheek.
"So sorry—"
"Oh, honestly, go and change," Amelia snapped. "Your Majesty, I apologize for—"
"Morgan Weston, Your Majesty," the young woman said, blushing, but sinking into a low wobbling curtsey before me and my mother. "I apologize for arriving so late, but the invitation barely made it to the estate."
Amelia winced, and I wondered if the letter was meant to arrive at all.
"Sir Weston's daughter?" I asked.
"Yes, Your Highness," Morgan said, rising a little and winking at me.
My mother laughed and waved Amelia away. "It's fine really. I like your eagerness, Miss Weston. Please, have a seat. You look out of breath."
Morgan rose, still a little unsteady in her curtsey, and spun. She scanned the room quickly, and I caught the wolfish grin as she went and squeezed herself between two of the girls who'd been laughing at Nora. Morgan leaned in close to one who stiffened, color rising high on her neck and cheeks.
"Hello, Gretch," Morgan murmured, smirking at the girl, and then relented, pulling away and helping herself to coffee and cake.
I didn't know if she'd been flirting with the other young woman or antagonizing, but either way, I had made my decisions on who my ladies-in-waiting would be.
I looked up, a genuine and wicked smile spreading across my lips, and the bitter stony look on Amelia's face was as defeated as I was victorious.
"What are you going to do with ladies-in-waiting?" Cresswell asked as he escorted me back to the suite.