this.”
“I don’t care that it’s short. I’m just glad to know you’re okay.”
She pulled me in for a hug. “Don’t give up yet, all right?”
“I won’t. Maybe you could send me a letter or something sometime?”
“That might work. We’ll see.” She let me go, and we stood together. “If they polled me, I would have voted for you. I’ve always thought it should be you.”
I blushed. “Go on, now. Say hello to your husband for me.”
She smiled. “I will.” Nimbly, she went over to the armoire and found the latch. For some reason, I thought the caning would break her, but she was stronger now. She even carried herself differently.
Marlee turned to blow me a kiss and disappeared.
I quickly exited the room and found that Maxon was waiting in the hallway. At the sound of the door, he looked up from his book, smiling, and I went over to sit by him.
“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”
“I had to make sure they were safe first. My father doesn’t know I did this; and until I knew it wouldn’t endanger them, I had to keep it to myself. I’m hoping to arrange for you to see her more, but that will take time.”
I felt my shoulders lighten, as if the bricks of worry I’d been carrying around were falling off all at once. The happiness at seeing Marlee, the assurance that Maxon was as kind as I thought he was, and the general relief that this meeting wasn’t about him sending me home were overwhelming.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
“Of course.”
I wasn’t sure what else to say. After a moment Maxon cleared his throat.
“I know that you are averse to doing the difficult parts of this job, but there are a lot of opportunities here. I think you could do great things. I can tell you see the prince in me now, but that had to come eventually if you were ever going to truly be mine.”
My eyes held his. “I know.”
“I can’t read you anymore. I used to be able to see it in the beginning when you didn’t really care for me; and when things changed between us, you looked at me differently. Now there are moments when I think it’s there and others when it seems like you’re already gone.”
I nodded.
“I’m not asking you to say you love me. I’m not asking for you to suddenly decide you want to be a princess. I just need to know if you want to be here at all.”
That was the question, wasn’t it? I still didn’t know if I could do the job, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to give up on it. And seeing this kindness in Maxon shifted my heart. There was still so much to consider, but I couldn’t give up. Not now.
Maxon’s hand was resting on his leg, and I slid mine under his. He gave me a welcoming squeeze. “If you’ll still have me, I want to stay.”
Maxon let out a relieved sigh. “I’d like that very much.”
I returned to the Women’s Room after a quick stop in the bathroom. No one said anything until I sat down, and it was Kriss who was bold enough to ask.
“What was that all about?”
I looked not just to her, but to all the watching eyes. “I’d rather not say.”
With my puffy face, a response like that was enough to make it seem like nothing good could have come from the meeting; but if that was what I had to say to protect Marlee, then I was fine with it.
What really stung was Celeste pressing her lips together to hide her smile, Natalie’s raised eyebrows as she pretended to read her borrowed magazine, and the hopeful glance between Kriss and Elise.
The competition was deeper than I had guessed.
CHAPTER 21
WE WERE SPARED THE HUMILIATION of dealing with the aftermath of our receptions on the
“It was a very daunting task we gave you, and it absolutely could have gone horribly wrong. I’m pleased to say, however, that both teams did very well.” Silvia looked at each of us appraisingly.
We all sighed, and I reached for Kriss’s hand as she did the same. As confused as I was about her and Maxon, I knew there was no way I could have made it through that without her.
“If I’m honest, one event was slightly better than the other, but you should all be proud of your accomplishments. We received thank-you letters from our longtime friends in the German Federation for your gracious hosting,” Silvia said, looking at Celeste, Natalie, and Elise. “There were a few minor hiccups, and I don’t think any of us truly enjoy such serious affairs, but they certainly did.
“And as for you two,” Silvia turned toward Kriss and me. “The ladies from Italy enjoyed themselves immensely. They were quite impressed with your style, and the food; and they made a special point to ask for the wine you served, so, bravo! I wouldn’t be surprised if Illea gained a wonderful new ally based on that welcome. You’re to be commended.”
Kriss squeaked, and I let out a nervous laugh, happy enough that it was over, let alone that we’d beat the others.
Silvia went on to talk about how she would be writing up an official report to hand over to the king and Maxon but said that none of us had a thing to worry about. As she spoke, a maid scurried into the room and ran over to the queen, whispering in her ear.
“Absolutely, they may,” the queen said, suddenly standing and walking forward.
The maid rushed back and opened the door for the king and Maxon. I knew men weren’t supposed to come into this room without the queen’s permission, but it was comical to see it in action.
As they entered, we stood to curtsy, but they didn’t seem to care about formalities.
“Dear ladies, we are sorry to intrude, but we have urgent news,” the king informed us.
“I’m afraid we’ve had a development with the war in New Asia,” Maxon said firmly. “The situation is so dire that Father and I are leaving this very moment to see if we can do any good.”
“What’s wrong?” the queen asked, clutching her chest.
“It’s nothing to worry about, my love,” the king said confidently. But that couldn’t be a completely honest statement if they had to rush out of here so suddenly.
Maxon walked over to his mother. They had a brief, whispered conversation before she kissed his forehead. He hugged her and stepped away. The king then began rattling off a list of instructions to the queen while Maxon came to say good-bye to each of us.
His good-bye to Natalie was so short it almost didn’t happen. Natalie didn’t seem too bothered, and I didn’t know what to make of that. Was she actually not worried by Maxon’s lack of affection, or was she so bothered that she was forcing herself to be calm?
Celeste draped herself across Maxon and exploded into the worst display of fake crying that I’d ever seen. It reminded me of May when she was younger, thinking tears would magically bring money for us to have what we wanted. When he went to untangle himself, she planted a kiss on his lips that he promptly—and in as polite a manner as possible—wiped away after his back was turned.
Elise and Kriss were so close that I heard his good-byes to them.
“Call ahead and tell them to go easy on us,” he said to Elise. I’d almost forgotten that the main reason she was still here was that she had family ties to leaders in New Asia. I wondered if this war going downhill would cost her her spot.
Then I suddenly realized that I had no clue what Illea stood to lose if we lost this war.
“If you get me a phone, I will talk to my parents,” she promised.
