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“You look so beautiful, Maman.” The queen wore a dark blue gown which suited both her figure and stature in life nicely, and her hair and makeup were flawless. The diamond crown she wore was heavy, Nyssa knew from the one time she’d borrowed it, but her mother wore it effortlessly.
“She does, doesn’t she?” This came from Nyssa’s father, who nodded toward his daughter. “Like mother, like daughter.”
The four of them sat at the table and chatted for a little while; they’d had lunch on Friday after Nyssa and John’s arrival in the French capital, so the conversation was appropriately light for the location. Erik soon joined the quartet, and not ten minutes later Arabella and Dante arrived to greet Nyssa’s family. Her parents and sister would make up the ten people needed for the table, and Nyssa was glad she knew everyone she was sitting with.
After a little while, her parents left the table to mingle with other royal guests, leaving the children and their partners alone. The three men conversed about sports while the two women gossiped about the other guests at the ball.
Eventually, everyone was seated as dinner was served, then once the elaborate, seven-course meal had been digested people drifted off to dance, talk, and participate in the various silent auctions situated around the room. Nyssa watched her parents wander around, talking to other monarchs, before accepting John’s offer to take a walk around the room with him. As much as she might’ve liked to, she couldn’t spend the entire evening in her seat. They strolled around the room, stopping to chat with other royals as they went.
Sometime later, she smoothed down the silk of her ankle-length dress as she sat back at the table she’d been assigned to. Reaching up, she touched the tiara which sat in a perfect position on her head, her hair artfully styled around it in a chignon which highlighted her delicate features, to ensure it was still pinned in place.
Erik was on the edge of the dance floor, deep in conversation with John. She was curious to know what her brother and lover were talking about, but not enough to go over and interrupt them. She wanted to catch her breath for a few moments and have a drink.
The two chairs on either side of her were empty. Erik had been seated on her left, John on the right. Bodyguards were usually seated at a separate table nearby, but for this ball she’d listed him as her date, so he’d been seated next to her.
She liked it. She liked having him close to her.
Nyssa had attended so many of these events she’d lost count. Engagements, weddings, anniversaries, christenings. The occasional funeral, obviously more somber affairs. While she always enjoyed seeing her family, especially since her move tothe U.S., and loved catching up with friends like Arabella, she’d grown tired of having to dress up in thousands of dollars’ worth of clothing and jewelry. Tired of having to make small talk with people whose company she didn’t particularly enjoy, such as the prince who always spoke to her breasts, rather than her.
But this ball was for charity, and helping raise money for worthy causes was always something she’d make time for.
She looked over at John, and as though he somehow knew where her gaze was, he turned his head to look at her. When he winked, the corners of her mouth turned up.
“There you are!” Arabella plopped into the empty seat next to her, a champagne flute in each hand. Nyssa accepted the heavy crystal glass with thanks and sipped the cold, expensive liquid inside it.
“Here I am. Are you having a good time?”
Arabella threw back a mouthful of her drink before answering. “Eh. Ran into Prince Caspian a little while back. He’s still a frightful bore.” She imitated being asleep by lolling her head to the side and pretending to snore, which made Nyssa laugh.
“You’re terrible.”
“But truthful.” Arabella was dressed in a gorgeous green gown, the shade matching the color of her eyes and jewels. “Can we leave yet?”
Nyssa let out another laugh, bringing her glass back up to her mouth for a drink. “Not yet, darling.” She couldn’t stop herself from looking over at John and smiling.
“Oh my God!”
Arabella’s exclamation had Nyssa whipping her head back to look at her friend. “What’s wrong, Bella?”
The redhead’s eyes were wide. “You had sex with John.”
The statement made Nyssa choke, and she started to cough violently. Out of the corner of her eye she saw movement, andrealized John had seen her drink go down the wrong way and was starting toward her. She held up a hand and he stopped in place.
Arabella patted her back helpfully. “You okay?”
Nyssa coughed a few more times, then picked up the glass of water in front of her and took a long drink. When she’d calmed, she looked at the woman sitting next to her. “If you’re trying to kill me, I wouldn’t suggest doing so in such a public setting.”
The other princess threw back her head and laughed. “Why would I try to kill you, darling? Who else would I gossip with at these events?” She leaned over and pressed a kiss to Nyssa’s cheek. “Stop deflecting. Tell me. You banged John last night, didn’t you?”
Nyssa’s gaze went straight back to John, and she could see the concern on his face. She gave him a bright smile to let him know she was okay, and he relaxed a little before turning back to her brother, who just seemed amused.
“What sort of question is that to be asking in public?”
“Would you rather we go somewhere private to talk?”
Nyssa looked around. There were very few people at the tables at this time; most were either dancing or standing around in groups conversing. “No, it’s okay. There’s nobody within earshot.”
Arabella raised her perfectly shaped eyebrows. “Don’t want to venture far from your lover?”
