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She looked younger than when he had first seen her yesterday, than she did in any picture he had ever seen.
Her lashes were not so noticeable now, shorter, he thought. Her face looked rounder, her skin softer. Her lips were no longer shiny, but plump and soft looking. Her dark hair fell around her shoulders in riotous waves.
“I don’t have my makeup,” she said.
He couldn’t help it. He laughed. He couldn’t remember the last time he had felt actual humor. Until now. The woman was concerned because she did not have her makeup.
“And that concerns me why?”
“It’s my... It’s my trade. I don’t go out without it. It would be a bad advertisement.”
“Surely you don’t think you need all of that layered onto your face to make you presentable?”
“That’s not the point. It’s not about being presentable, or whatever. It’s just... It’s not who I am.”
“Your makeup is who you are?”
“I built my empire on it. On my look.”
“Well. No one is here to see your look. And we have assignments.”
“Assignments?”
&n
bsp; “Yes. First, time to give you a tour of the palace. Then we are to discuss your... Appearance.”
She waved a hand in front of her face. “I have been discussing my appearance this entire time.”
“Well. I don’t mean that, precisely. Your role as Queen will require a different sort of... A different sort of approach.”
“I’m sorry. I’ve made it very clear that I’m not on board with this whole Queen thing, and you’re talking about how you’re going to change my appearance?”
“I’m only telling you what’s on the list. We also need to go over customs, expectations. Ballroom etiquette.”
“Don’t tell me that I’m going to have to take dancing lessons.”
“Precisely that.”
“This is... Medieval.”
“Tell me what it is you need from home, and I will accommodate you.” Looking at the stubborn set of her face, he realized that he could drag her kicking and screaming into completing these tasks, or he could try to meet her in the middle. Compromise was not exactly second nature to him, but sometimes different tactics were required for dealing with different enemies.
He and his brother had been covert by necessity when dealing with their father. He could certainly manage a bit of finesse with one small makeup mogul.
“I... Well, I need all my beauty supplies. I might be able to come up with a queen-level look using my makeup, but nobody’s doing it but me.”
“We’ll see.”
“I can’t wear someone else’s products.” She was verging on melodrama and he would not indulge it in the least if it weren’t for his brother.
That was all.
“My concern is not centered on your business. And anyway, yours shouldn’t be at this point either.”
“Untrue. My primary concern is my business, because I think it’s what I have to offer here.”
“Why don’t we discuss this over breakfast.”
