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The thought squeezed Cynthia’s lungs. She wanted to pull the princess out of her chair and run away with her then and there.
But even that was a hollow dream. Run away where? The princess was royally bound to her own homeland—or to the prince she inevitably married. They could no more run off into the sunset together than they could fly to the moon.
“Do you ever dance at these things?” she forced herself to ask.
“When I must,” the princess replied. “If you can keep a secret, I’d rather be in the orchestra than on the dance floor.”
“You play an instrument?” Cynthia asked in surprise.
“Several,” the princess admitted. “Most string instruments. My favorite is the violoncello.”
“I love string instruments,” Cynthia exclaimed with delight. “I used to play the violin, back when I still had tutors. I miss it.”
“If I had known, I would have brought you one in the box with your gown.”
“I already cannot repay you. And yet, if I could ask for anything, it would be to hear you play.”
“Sadly, all of my instruments are at home in our castle. Dare I suppose the promise of a private performance is bait enough to lure you there?” The princess wiggled her brows comically.
Cynthia laughed. “If I had the means to travel, your music room is the first place I’d visit. And since I do not have the means… Pray, pay no attention if one of your valises weighs ten stone more than expected. I’m certain it’s definitely not a fugitive scullion, stowing away in a princess’s traveling trunks.”
“And if it is, I won’t tell a soul,” the princess promised. She rubbed the soft pad of her thumb against the back of Cynthia’s hand, and sighed ruefully. “Madonna mia. My brother is absolutely going to adore you.”
At this pronouncement, Cynthia’s stomach twisted into knots. “W-what?”
Princess Ammalia dropped Cynthia’s hand and rubbed her own temples instead. “You and Zurri have little in common, but he’d be a fool to choose anyone else. And Parmenza could use a kindhearted queen on our court. Father will definitely approve.”
Cynthia’s spirits sank. The princess was sweet and thoughtful and generous. Both women shared unexpected things in common, from standing in their siblings’ shadow to an affinity for making music. They’d be a perfect match…
If Princess Ammalia weren’t determined to match-make Cynthia to the princess’s brother.
Chapter Nine
Ammalia hated the thought of her brother inevitably choosing Cynthia as his bride. Yet she could not block his path. Not because he was her brother, and the heir and future king. But because all the unmarried English women in this ballroom had come to the gala specifically in the hopes of being chosen as Zurri’s future wife.
Whether her brother himself was the attraction, or the allure of becoming royalty, if it was what Cynthia wanted, Ammalia would not stand in her way.
Of course, she also had no wish to stand in the shadows of the happy couple, watching their connubial bliss unfold to the delight of the entire kingdom. Cynthia’s dream of traveling widely was a good one. If the woman Ammalia desired married Zurri, Ammalia would take the first boat out of Parmenza and never return.
The music shifted. The previous set had completed. Whichever sister Zurri had chosen to dance with was now being returned to her mother, and the second sister led to the dance floor in her stead.
Which meant Ammalia had twenty minutes left to enjoy Cynthia’s company before Zurri came to collect her. Thirty, if Ammalia was lucky.
After that… Once all of the other gentlemen present caught sight of the gorgeous woman in Zurri’s arms, Cynthia’s round derrière would not find itself relaxing in a chair the entire rest of the night. There would be no more time for Ammalia at all.
“You look fierce,” said Cynthia. “Is something the matter?”
Not yet. Soon enough.
Ammalia schooled her features into a smile. “Wool-gathering, I’m afraid.”
“What were you thinking about?”
“When you said you’d love to travel. So would I.”
Cynthia looked surprised. “I assumed you were well-traveled.”
“The more one travels, the more one realizes that there are more places to visit than even possible to experience in a single lifetime. I have traveled, but I will never have traveled enough. It is an infinite adventure.”
