Page 58 of Heavy Crown

I sputter out a laugh. Posey claims she’s cool with how often and long Brent is missing from her day-to-day life, but a few of her comments make me wonder. It must be hard to be with someone who has such a singular focus. One of the things I’ve realized in the last few weeks about my relationship with Derrick is that I never came first. His parents’ wishes and desires came before mine, and often before his own too.

Never again will I have a relationship with someone like that. I want what Nick and Julia have—the can’t-live-without-you, must-have-you-now vibe. Who wouldn’t want an epic love story?

Julia returns, and the three of us chatter away while we put on makeup and get ready for the ball. When we’re almost ready, Julia leaves to meet Nick and the rest of the royal family.

Earlier when I took my dress out of my bag, both Julia and Posey gasped. It’s a floor-length gown in a deep green with a sweetheart neckline and capped sleeves. Tanya showed up at my cottage yesterday with three options. I didn’t get to see any of them in a mirror, but Tanya made me try them all on. She picked the green one, but staring at myself in the mirror, I can’t fault her taste. I look like I stepped out of a Disney movie thanks to Posey’s makeup wizardry, Julia’s skill with a curling iron, and this dress.

After a last swish of mascara, Posey grabs my hand and leads me through the corridors toward a side exit.

“Everyone has to arrive through the main doors and go through the king’s birthday receiving line. It’s tradition. You have to perform a deep curtsey to the king and queen—that’s important. But for Nick, Jules, and Brice, you can just do a quick one. Those are more for show, and since we’re all friends, no one is going to be picky about them.”

I absorb her advice as we join the receiving line. She doesn’t mention Alex, and I’m afraid to ask. Deep curtsey or cursory one?

When we get to the king and queen, Posey does a deep curtsey, and I follow her lead.

“And you are?” the queen says.

When I dare to glance up, she’s focused on me. “Aurora Wilson.”

Her gaze narrows ever so slightly. “I see.” She scans me again. “I should have realized. Enjoy the party. Your cheese bread is the best I’ve ever tasted.”

Warmth rushes across my chest at the compliment. “Thank you, Your Majesty.” Then I chance a glimpse at the king. “Happy Birthday, Your Highness.”

He chuckles. “Thank you, Rory. Don’t let Posey get you into trouble.” There’s a teasing glint in his eyes so similar to Nick’s it’s uncanny.

Next are Julia, Nick, and Brice. Posey banters easily with them, but when we get to Alex, my breath catches in my throat. I’ve seen him in suits before, but tonight he’s in a tux. In all the time we’ve spent together, I’ve never been with him when he’s been at “work,” and there’s a noticeable difference in the air around him. A touch of arrogance, a tightening of his stature as though he could hold up the room by sheer force of will if it were to collapse around us. He’s been my protector, my guardian angel, since he rescued me from the car crash, but tonight he’s very much the heir to a country.

When our gazes connect before I curtsey, a shiver of awareness races down my spine. As I rise, he takes my hand and kisses the back of it, his lips lingering.

“You look exquisite,” he murmurs before releasing me. “Enjoy your evening.”

Posey loops her arm through mine and leans close as we hustle away. “The way he looked at you was…” She inhales a deep, exaggerated breath. “Wow.”

I shake my head. “No, I—”

“Look back. Is he still looking? I bet he’s watching you.”

I steal a glance over my shoulder, and despite the person now in front of him, he is staring after us. His expression is impossible to read, but the air between us, even from this distance, hums. Whenever we’re in the same room together, the whole world is more alive.

How long can this go on?

His attention is drawn away, and the connection wavers.

“Told you,” Posey says, and she leads me to the bar near the back of the ballroom. While we wait for drinks, Posey seems lost in thought, and she keeps glancing at me. “Huh.”

“What’s that mean?” I take the Bellerive Blue, the local alcoholic specialty, from the bartender and raise my eyebrows.

“I always thought Alex was hung up on my sister. But he never looked at her the way he just looked at you.”

Her comment makes my gut twist, but I’m not sure if it’s from jealousy over the Julia comment or nerves at the realization other people can see what I feel around him. There’s something there—something larger than life. Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t control it. A splash of technicolor.

I’m becoming convinced we’ll never act on it. For the rest of my life, I’ll compare every other relationship to this feeling and find the sensation absent.

“Don’t worry,” she says with a laugh. “You say the two of you are just friends.” She holds up her hands, her own drink almost sloshing over the edges. “Maybe you are. I’m not going to pry.” She releases a low whistle. “But that look…” She takes a long drink. “I miss Brent.”

“When do you see him again?”

“A few weeks. He’s here for Nick and Julia’s wedding at least, which is good. It won’t always be like this. He’s married to swimming right now, but someday, he’ll be married to me.”