My breath caught.
I wasn’t excited for my moon-forsaken wedding, but at least I’d look damn good during it.
A knock came from my door. We both jumped.
Diara stuffed my dress back into the box as I crossed the floor, tossing a gaze behind me to make sure my dress was fully packed away before I opened it.
It was only Selena.
Her eyes widened with surprise to find Diara in my room. “I’ll come back later,” she said, smiling at us. “I only wanted a moment with you. It’s not important. Just—well wishes.”
“You can stay,” I offered, hoping Diara wouldn’t mind. I stole a glance at the young woman, who nodded in agreement.
Selena stepped in, her sharp eyes falling to the box in the middle of the floor. It was at that moment the lid gave a small jerk upright, the organza inside pushing against it. My mentor’s lips twitched. “I see you’ve followed instructions and left your dress alone?”
“Want to see it?” I asked, grinning despite the edge to her tone.
Her eyes sparkled. “Yes.”
She’d designed it with the tailor, of course she wanted to see it. Diara flipped off the lid, digging her hands inside and lifting it out once again to lay across the back of the couch.
We each stared at it, even as my stomach performed small acrobatics against my ribcage.
Selena took my hand. “You’ll be a vision.” Emotions swirled behind her eyes. Nervousness, excitement, pride. I supposed that as much as my marriage inched me toward my freedom from Thaan, it drew Selena closer to her goals as well.
Sensing the need to give us a moment alone, Diara straightened out of her chair. “We need some drinks,” she said, smoothing her dress. “I’ll be right back.”
Selena waited until she disappeared out the door before she squeezed my hand. “Anxious for tonight?”
I swallowed.
Should I tell her? That I didn’t plan tocordaewith Kye?
She knew how I’d met him. She knew he’d betrayed me. She knew I hated him. She even knew he posed a threat to me; she herself had seen my limp after he’d barged into my room and kicked my leg out from under me.
I’d tell you to keep your hands off her, but I can see how little good it would do.
Killing Kye wouldn’t break any part of my contract. I was willing tomarryhim. I just wasn’t willing to die by his hand. Not after he’d given me up to Thaan. After he’d locked me in a cage in a ship and mocked me. After he forced me into slavery—into becoming the murderer I’d spent my life denying I was.
I felt my resolve harden under Selena’s touch. If I told her what my plans were, she’d try to talk me out of it. She’d try to stop me.
Easier to keep it to myself.
I forced a tight smile over my face. “A little.”
“Trust yourself and your instincts. And if you find you don’t like being near him, well... Remember that he’ll be gone tomorrow.”
Selena waited for me to laugh, but the smile I’d plastered on was already hard enough to manage. “I have something for you,” she finally said, peeking out the door and reaching for something she’d left on the hallway floor.
In her arms sat a potted plant. Its trunk was thick and gnarled, and it leaned heavily to one side, its foliage a dense emerald cloud that hovered over the top.
“It’s a miniature juniper,” Selena said, offering the happy little tree for me to take. “They’re wired when they’re young plants to make the base grow twisted, and then you can trim them into different shapes. You’ll need these, too.” She handed me a pair of sharp gold sheers. “They don’t do well indoors. You’ll have to keep it on your balcony and protect it when the frost comes. What do you think?”
“I love it, Selena. Thank you.”
She followed me onto my balcony, where I set the juniper down in a blanket of sunshine. My eyes narrowed in on a long shoot under the leaves, and I couldn’t help myself. I began pruning it. Amused, Selena watched as I set to work, tilting my head side to side as I surveyed which shape I wanted it to take and humming to myself as I went.
“I wonder if Lady Diara got lost down there,” she mused.
