Total pages in book: 24
Estimated words: 23382 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 117(@200wpm)___ 94(@250wpm)___ 78(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 23382 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 117(@200wpm)___ 94(@250wpm)___ 78(@300wpm)
If Landon won’t tell Sebastian whatever secret he still keeps, he’s not about to enlighten me.
Chapter Five
“I still want to serve as your lady,” Elise says the next day as she works on my hair, plaiting a basket weave down my back. “For as long as I’m able until the baby is born.”
“You’ll be a wife soon,” I point out, meeting her blue gaze in the vanity mirror. “To a member of the Brotherhood, no less, and from the sounds of it, you’ll be busy as his wife.”
The three of us shared lunch on the main balcony earlier, taking advantage of the warm temperature. I’d like to think the change of weather is a sign the cold and dreary month under Mr. Bordeaux’s rule is behind me, that anxiety won’t plague me at the sight of him during dinner.
“I’m clueless of what it means to be the wife of an ambassador.” A nervous lilt steals Elise’s voice.
She’s been high-strung since Landon told us of the role he serves in the Brotherhood. As the Ambassador of Communications, he’s a busy man, and no doubt his wife will be expected to plan elaborate dinners and galas for visiting dignitaries. She won’t have the time, nor the proper station to serve me in the same capacity we’re both used to. As she works her magic on my long locks, reminding me of how I haven’t been pampered in a month, the thought of her moving on to the next chapter in her life saddens me.
With Faye gone, I’ll miss my friend even more. My reflection hides nothing in the mirror, my expression bleeding distress at the thought of losing Elise.
“I’ll make time for you, Novalee. You need a friend you can trust, especially now that Faye has returned home.” She steps back, finished with my hair, and I turn on the stool and take her hand.
“I accept your friendship, so long as it doesn’t put a strain on your family.” I search her face for signs of trauma or guilt, but since she told me about the rape, she’s been shut down. “Marrying Landon…is that what you really want? Because I’ll talk to your parents and make arrangements for you to return home. You don’t have to go through with this.”
“Can I tell you something?”
“Of course. Come sit with me.” I gesture to the ottoman at the end of the king-sized bed, and we settle onto the cushion, side-by-side.
“I’ve had feelings for Landon from the moment I saw him at that first dinner, but I ignored them because of his title.”
I hear all she doesn’t say.
“And because of your obligation to me.” A hint of hurt darts through me. “I wish you’d told me…or Faye.”
Maybe if she’d gone to Faye, things would have unfolded differently. It’s possible she wouldn’t have given Jerome the time of day if she’d believed Landon was an obtainable prospect.
Because Faye might have said something to me earlier about my relation to the Astors. But would my sense of betrayal be any less if I’d heard it from Faye instead of Landon? That’s a question I might never have an answer to.
“As your lady, it wasn’t my place to tell you.”
“I’m more than just your queen, Elise. I consider you family.”
Her eyes well, and before the first tear spills, I wrap my arms around her.
“I’m sorry,” she mumbles against my shoulder. “I’m going to ruin your dress.”
“Don’t apologize. It’s just a dress. You’re more important.”
“It’s these hormones. I cry over everything now.”
“It’s more than just hormones,” I whisper into her hair. “You’ve been through so much.” What she can’t acknowledge is how she has a reason to shed her pain.
It’s then I realize we both do.
Iron willpower is my only defense against a breakdown. I blink the tears away and pull myself together. “You’ll need to touch up your makeup before dinner,” I say, gently wiping the tears from her cheeks.
She nods, rising in a fluid motion, her tears already drying on her skin. Elise is a pillar of strength in that moment, and if I’m half as strong as she is, I’ll make it through another dinner with the Brotherhood just fine.
An hour later, I arm myself with that thought as I follow Landon into the dining room on the first floor. With Elise an inspiration at my side and Landon as my shield, I smite down any trace of lingering fear.
Until the sight of Mr. Bordeaux elicits an unexpected knee-jerk reaction. The breath stalls in my lungs as I come to an abrupt stop, my knees trembling with the urge to kneel. Noticing my frozen state just inside the open doors, Landon nods in encouragement.
“You’re not in the House of Taurus anymore, my queen. He has no authority over you.” He speaks with reassuring confidence as he glances at the man in question, who’s already seated at the giant round table of zodiac signs.