As he shows me around the ground floor, he explains every piece of art. Gray eventually becomes annoyed with his knack for details and leads me through the rest of the manor. She’s too excited to show me my guest room. In reality, this guest room is more of its own town with its own zip code. I’m from a wealthy politician family, but this house is something else.
The room she leads me into is vast and wide. A massive poster bed rests in the center, taking up no room at all. It’s themed with ivory and blood-red crimson, each accent teased with gold. The bed could fit five people at least, and it only makes me want to sprawl across it and never leave. It’s beyond breathtaking in here. It’s too elegant and expensive, almost making me want to avoid touching anything in fear of ruining it.
“So you think my dad is hot?” Gray questions, interrupting my incessant gawking.
I stop in my tracks, my face flaming and my stomach churning. “What?” I squeak, my voice too high. She bursts out laughing, her face amused. When she bends, gripping her stomach, my shoulders relax.
“Joking! Everyone has a thing for dear ole Dad. I swear, if he had me earlier on in life, he’d be less burly and more like a soft teddy bear.”
“What do you mean? He can’t be older than forty. That means he had you at least at twenty...” I trail off, wondering how she’s never mentioned him. They seem extremely close. If my relationship with my father reflected theirs by even a little, I’d be at peace.
Her face eventually drops the happiness. She shakes her head lightly, changing the subject. “I just mean, he’s never stressed because I’m awesome. So he looks like a young man instead of the old one he truly is.”
I nod, not wanting to have her shut down on me but also wanting to know her story. We’ve never really done more than mundane chatting. This is... different. We’re friends—close even—just not in the way that mattered.
“Get settled in, and Delia will have dinner prepared.”
“This is so cool.”
“What?”
“You being royalty.”
“How’d you—”
“I wondered. French bodyguards, palace-like mansion, and your dad looks all regal. Makes sense and you just confirmed it.”
“Please don’t treat me any differently,” she implores. “I didn’t even know until I went to France.”
“Don’t worry, you’re still that lame chick who drinks chai tea and calls it an energy boost.”
She scrunches her face as if to say fair enough, making us both laugh before she leaves me to unpack and settle in.
Chapter Six
Two Days Earlier
Joey
Unlike my dad and step-monster, Gray’s dining room is welcoming and not stiff. The table isn’t huge like you’d expect. It’s quaint, enough to fit six people or so. Mine at home could fit twenty people easily. We all crowd at one end, sitting together with idle chatter. Gray’s debating schools, and Francis is trying to convince her to go to Brookewood. His argument is that they have a great teacher program.
Gray wants to teach. She hasn’t decided on the subject, but it’s her dream to guide kids.
“What do you think, Joey?”
I’m in the middle of chewing a bite of salmon when he asks, shocking me. Swallowing down the bite, my throat feels dry. I grab my water glass, thinking over a proper response. My father would never invite me into a conversation like this, so being asked about it has me thrown off.
“It’s not a woman’s job to make decisions, Josephine. That’s why you’ll marry one of the nine families. It’ll keep you in line and our family strong. Don’t you want to make me proud?”
My face scrunches at the memory, and it must make Francis worry with how he reacts. Not even a second later, he’s wiping his mouth to make sure I’m okay. “Is it the salmon? Too hot? Not tangy enough? I can have Delia fix it right—”
“No, no, it’s perfect!” I stop his worry, not wanting him to stress over something like a warmed home-cooked meal. “I’m just shocked that you care about my opinion enough to ask.”
His brows furrow as his lips flatten. He stares at me as if I’ve grown a third nipple, and it’s in the middle of my forehead. “I’m not sure what men you’ve been around, but women’s opinions are just as important to me as anyone else’s. So, tell me, where do you think she should go?”
“Honestly?” I wonder aloud, and he nods encouragingly. “Wherever makes her