He shrugged. “An excellent question, Your Highness.”
She studied the young man, his dark brown hair and aquiline features vaguely familiar. She glanced across the table, where Lord Darius Hughes, the current duke of Devon, was sitting, his deep voice rising over the others as he made wide gestures with his hands. There was no mistaking the resemblance between him and the young man sitting beside her.
“You must be Lord Dayton, Lord Darius' son.”
He bowed his head in acknowledgment. “A pleasure to finally make your acquaintance, Your Highness, although I would have preferred to do so under better circumstances.”
“Your family only arrived yesterday, yes? And there were no signs of an invasion when you departed?”
“Things were fine when we left, although it took us several days to arrive here by carriage. A messenger on horseback could have made the trip much quicker, if he changed mounts along the way. It is possible we just missed it.”
The duke stood up, slamming his fist down on the table. “Enough! I must return to Devon immediately. I cannot leave my people undefended.” He turned beseeching eyes to Josselyn's father. “I would ask Your Majesty to send reinforcements, as well. We have no idea what kind of numbers we'll be facing.”
The room was silent as the king stared back at the duke, his eyes narrowed in contemplation. Finally he nodded, turning to General Weston as he did so.
“Ready your men to head down to Devon with the duke. You'll depart as soon as possible.”
The general stood and excused himself from the table, and the duke dropped to his knee before the king, bowing his head low.
“Thank you, Your Majesty. Devon will forever be in your debt.”
He stood and turned to his son. “Dayton, you should remain here with your mother and sisters. I know they've been looking forward to the princess' ball tonight. Escort them in my place.”
Lord Dayton frowned. “Shouldn't I go with you? If it's true, then our people will need all the assistance they can get.”
“I appreciate your sense of responsibility, but this all may turn out to be nothing. Let us hope it is. I would hate for you to miss out on the opportunity of attending the ball tonight.”
The duke raised a brow, his eyes glancing over at Josselyn, who squirmed in discomfort over the implication. Lord Dayton's face flushed, and he fixed his gaze on the table. “Yes, sir.”
The duke left the room, and soon everyone else was rising, still discussing the situation even as the meeting broke up.
Josselyn's father reached out, covering her hand with his own.
“Happy birthday, daughter.”
She managed a wry smile in return. “Thank you, father. I'm suddenly feeling much older, indeed.”
He chuckled. “We'll sort the rest of this out. You should go rest and prepare for tonight's festivities. We can't let this unpleasantness ruin such an important day.”
“Heaven forbid.”
She pushed back from the table and rose to her feet. Lord Dayton stood, as well, and presented her with his arm. “May I escort you to breakfast, Your Highness?”
Her eyes flickered over to the door, where Alex stood sentry, his eyes fixed forward, expression stoic. Turning her gaze back to Lord Dayton, she smiled. “You may, thank you.”
She slipped her hand into the crook of his arm, and they walked out of the room together. Stealing a glance over her shoulder, she saw Alex heading off in the opposite direction, probably relieved to be momentarily freed from the constant duty of escorting her. Lord Dayton said something, and she forced herself to give him her complete attention.
“I'm sorry, what did you say?”
He laughed. “Apparently nothing of interest.”
Josselyn wrinkled her nose. “Sorry. I guess I'm just a bit distracted by this whole Roshkan invasion. It just seems so... odd, don't you think?”
His expression sobered. “It is a bit suspect, but the message was signed and sealed by my father's man of affairs himself. He's not one to exaggerate the facts.”
“I don't know... the whole thing just doesn't feel right.” She gave her head a little shake and pasted a smile on her face. “But what's done is done. I'm sure you're father and General Weston will sort things out in due time, and until then, I'm afraid we're expected to proceed with things as planned, despite the trouble that seems to be brewing.”
“Personally, I'm looking forward to tonight's ball.” He looked down at her with a wink. “Especially if a certain princess agrees to dance with me. I rather think that should take my mind off my troubles for a bit.”
“Would it now?”
“Most definitely.”
“Well, then, let's hope this princess has a dance to spare.”
He grinned. “Let's.”
Chapter Nine
“Oh, Your Highness, you're an absolute vision.”
Jane stood admiring the new ball gown the king had made for the occasion, and Josselyn did a little twirl, enjoying the way the gown's blue skirts swirled around her ankles like water, the color flowing from dark to light as it moved up her body. Lady Merridale set a simple, gold tiara on top of her intricately styled hair, then stepped back, dabbing at her eyes with a lacy, white handkerchief.
“You look just like your mother when she was your age. Simply lovely, my dear.”
Josselyn placed a hand on her aunt's arm, her heart warming with genuine affection for this woman who drove her crazy but did so with the best of intentions. “Thank you, Aunt Merri.”
The older woman sniffed, smoothing her skirts. “Now, you must remember to be poised and gracious at all times. A little decorum goes a long way.”
“Yes, ma'am.”
“And be sure to pay proper attention to the men I mentioned before. They are all of high standing, each of them fine choices for the position of crown prince.”
“Ah, yes, what girl wouldn't love to choose a husband in the same matter they'd appoint a member of the staff?” Josselyn turned her back to her aunt with a small sigh and walked over to her bedside table. She slid the top drawer open and pulled out her dagger, smoothing her thumb over the cool emerald stones that glittered around the hilt. Without looking at her aunt, she pulled up the skirt of
