dearest friends,” Eliza said, ushering me to a woman dressed in bright red, with red lipstick, short dark-brown hair with bangs, and a birthmark right above her lips. “Lady Katherine Whistzle.”
Oldest and dearest friends? I thought as I took her hand. “Hello, Eliza told me of you.”
“All good things, I know. We have been friends since almost infancy,” she said proudly, taking my hand and nodding.
“Yes, it is hard to have such good and loyal friends,” Eliza said with a forced smile. “Please, let’s sit.”
I wondered how many hellos, thank you for comings, and forced smiles royals had to give in a single day? How many had I given already? It was starting to feel like an out-of-body experience. Like I was watching myself talk, smile, and greet people but wasn’t doing it. Almost like I was a ghost of myself. People asked me questions, and I answered, but what was I saying? I didn’t really know. The longer it went on, the more Lady Katherine Whistzle, Sophia’s, Eliza’s, and even Sabina’s faces all started to blur.
Was this how it was for Gale?
Is that how the six months went by for him? Or was it just me? Was it because I wasn’t used to this world yet, or was it because I was? This lunch-in was supposed to be another step to ease me into the royal life. But as I watched Sophia, as I watched Eliza and Sabina captivate everyone around them with ease, I wondered if maybe, just maybe it was hopeless.
Maybe I...
“His Royal Highness, Prince Galahad.”
My head whipped back to the door as they opened it, and everyone stood. There he was dressed in a casual button-down shirt and no tie, holding three roses—two of them yellow and one red. He stepped into the room, his blue-green eyes locked on mine, and a smile—a very large one—appeared on his face. He didn’t look away from me. He walked directly toward me, and I just stood there paralyzed. This was not part of the schedule or protocol or anything else. But he kept walking to me.
“Hi,” he said when he reached me.
“Hi?” I stated, not sure what was happening. What was he doing?
“Will you go on a date with me tomorrow?” he asked.
“I-I have class.”
He chuckled. “We’re skipping.”
I laughed. “The queen—”
“Has given us the day off tomorrow, and I was so excited that I stole these roses from her garden. Here, Eliza, so you don’t feeling jealous.” He tossed a yellow one at her, and it was only when a few chuckles arose beside me that I remembered we were still around other people. He gently handed the other yellow one to Sophia. Leaving him with just the single red rose. “So, Odette, will you spend your day off with me?”
“If you insist.” I grinned.
Leaning over, he kissed the side of my cheek. “I insist.”
“It’s a date.”
“Good. I look forward to it,” Gale whispered, giving me my rose and taking a step back from me. He glanced around the room. “Forgive me for the intrusion, ladies. Enjoy your lunch.”
With that, he backed out and left just as swiftly and almost magically as he had appeared. Slowly, I sank back into my chair.
“If you smile any harder, your face might crack, Odette,” Eliza teased me.
Let it crack, I thought, lifting the rose to my nose, sitting forward.
Across from me was, of course, Sophia. She smiled, but it wasn’t as fake as it was when she first came in.
And I took small comfort in that.
Chapter 19
The next morning, I was so excited I was scared.
Scared about leaving the palace. Scared that I had chosen the wrong outfit. Scared of what the papers were saying about me this morning. Scared that Gale had changed his mind.
“Miss?” I turned to see Gelula waiting for me at the door. The look on her face did not ease my fears at all.
“What is it?” I asked, rising from the vanity to meet her. “Did he cancel?”
“No, ma’am. It’s just—never mind.”
“Please do not do that, Gelula. It is only going to make me more paranoid. What is going on? Is it the papers? I haven’t looked—”
“No, miss. It’s just the Adelaar, and the queen were heard arguing last night.”
“What?”
She nodded. “Apparently, he did not get her approval for today. And when she tried to talk him out of it, he refused. And said—”
“And said?”
“He said, ‘I do not know if you are trying to help us or destroy us.’”