I didn’t know what else to say to Julian, and he likely felt the same. So we both continued to watch the dancers. On the other side of the banquet room, Nicholas and the Queen were swimming upwards as they talked. I wasn’t the only one who noticed. Bridget’s attentions seemed fixed on Nicholas now

I ignored Bridget as best as I could. This wasn’t my fault, after all, and I wasn’t about to take responsibility for it, just because Bridget seemed set on blaming me. But I didn’t say anything, so she didn’t either. The conversation between Nicholas and Queen Sonal continued on without notice of

I froze, unsure what to do. “Goodbye Mister Zale,” Elva said. Zale gently patted Elva’s back. “Goodbye, little Elva.” As she began to pull away, he smiled at her. “Such innocence,” Queen Sonal said, her smile soft as well. “The purity and kindness of a child knows no bounds. We could learn muc

With Nathan gone, some of the guilt set upon me. Nathan had been gaslighting me, I knew that. Bridget’s actions were not my responsibility, but his words had given me a measure of discomfort inside of my chest. Even though Bridget’s actions hadn’t been directly caused by me, she was likely acting

Nicholas licked his tongue into my mouth. I moaned as I held onto his shoulders, fingers curling into the tight, slick fabric of his wetsuit. He stepped closer to me, boxing me in against the door. I was pleasantly trapped, with the hard wood at my back, and his firm torso lining my front, pressin

I had been naked for a while, but suddenly, with Bridget here now, seeing us, I felt vulnerable and exposed in a way I had never been with just Nicholas alone. I held up the towel, blocking as much of myself – and Nicholas – as I could. “What the hell, Bridget?” Nicholas snapped. Where my first

Bridget’s words stuck with me more than I wanted them to. As I rested in bed that night, I stared at the ceiling replaying everything that happened – not just last night with Bridget, but every time I had been with Nicholas before. Where had Elva been? Had she noticed any of my behavior? I didn’t

Nicholas and I walked down to the first floor and sought out Selma. We found her in the kitchen, preparing the chefs for the day’s menu. We waited near the door, not wanting to disturb her work. When she was finished, the chefs returned to their duties and we approached her. She was an older woman

Nicholas must have felt the same. He nodded toward the door. I followed him from the kitchen to the sitting room near the front door. We didn’t sit, just stood there, but it was privacy enough to finally speak. “She’s hiding something,” Nicholas said. “She’s never been that cagey before, as long a

Nicholas, Julian, and I walked to the base of the stairs. There, we stood calmly, while peering around, waiting for all the servants in sight to go elsewhere to attend to their duties. Then, with Julian being the boldest and first of us, we sneaked through the servants’ door and into the servants’ q