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She wasn’t wrong. Strapless, fitted, flared at the waist where it spread into cascading folds of sparkling teal fabric. It wasn’t warm. But it was gorgeous.
If Fitz was sending me home, I was gonna look good leaving.
Fitz
“Thank you, Carlisle. That’ll be all.” I excused my valet after he selected my suit and tie. I wasn’t in the mood to feel like a show pony getting groomed. I’d gotten lost all day in my thoughts, nearly mentally absent during my date with Minny. We’d gone on a sleigh ride through the country. Hot cocoa, a fuzzy blanket over our laps, the horses pulling us through the winter landscape. It should have been incredibly romantic, and yet, I couldn’t find it in me. Minny’s bubbly nature only highlighted my brooding, and the date had ended earlier than expected.
For as much as Tom gushed about the footage with Michaela, I knew a lecture waited for me over my performance with Minny. I couldn’t help it. The choosing ceremony weighed on me all day long. How was I supposed to decide about Michaela?
I buttoned the last button on my shirt and started to work on my tie. Could I really keep her around for the ratings? More importantly, could I see her every day and not shatter each time I looked at her?
“Blimey, putting on the ritz, aren’t you?”
I whirled around, shocked that Bishop had the audacity to enter without permission. “What are you doing here?”
“Don’t get your knickers in a twist, Cousin. I came in as Carlisle left. And he held the door for me.“ He put his hands up to signal innocence. “But I’m not looking for a fight. I have other reasons for being here.”
I turned back to face the mirror. “You know, that’s what I’ve been asking since you arrived.” I stared at him through the mirror. “Why are you here?”
He wouldn’t look at me for a moment, secrets too much to share. “I’m here for the crown. Nothing more.”
It was a standard line for the family. Everything we did was for the crown, but I had sincere doubts when it came to Bishop.
“And how exactly does seducing Michaela serve that purpose?”
His stare came back full force, seemingly angry that I’d brought her into this. “I thought you were friends. That’s what you told me. And yet here you are, positively blind with jealousy.”
“It’s complicated.” My answer felt like the shortsighted whining of a pouting child. “And now it’s worse because of you.” I went back to wrapping my tie, frustrated that I’d sent Carlisle away too soon.
“I don’t understand. If nothing has ever happened between you, and nothing ever can because she’s American, why are you—“ Bishop crossed his arms over his chest, mouth parting with realization as he stared at me. “Oh, I see. That’s not exactly true, is it? Been snogging long?”
I slipped the tie through the final loop and tightened it on my neck, but it was his unspoken accusation that left me feeling like I was wearing a noose. “It was a kiss, that’s all.”
Bishop’s mouth moved like he meant to make words, but nothing came out, too caught in disbelief to voice any of it. His left hand came up to rake his nails over his head. “That explains a lot.”
“Hardly.” I left the mirror and crossed the room to retrieve my vest from the bed. I was needed downstairs within ten minutes. Going the rounds with Bishop wasn’t a part of that timeline. “Because she left me to meet you—“
“It wasn’t a date,” Bishop interrupted me. “We overheard plotting in the halls and your Coco wanted to be sure no one was going to hurt you or your father. The delivery was set for midnight, so I helped her get there. That’s all.”
I held my vest in my grip for a moment as I tried to process the implications. “What kind of plotting? Who was it?”
Bishop shifted uncomfortably. I wagered he wanted to keep it to himself. “Your mother. It sounded as if she was poisoning your father.” He stretched his jaw. “I thought she was the one making him sick.”
My heart sank at the thought. Was that why she’d shown so much ambition recently?
“Before you jump off that cliff,” Bishop pressed on, “it was nothing. She secured a Craboon Blackwing somehow. You know how she is about lore.” Bishop shrugged. “Turns out, she wants to save him, not hurt him.”
I struggled to keep up, not just mentally, but emotionally. “And the rest of it?” I was, of course, talking about the way he was holding her when I found them.
Bishop’s discomfort only grew. “I was doing what I always do, but she wasn’t having it.”
I turned around, curious about what he meant. “Explain.”
“I mean,” he sighed, “it isn’t me she wants, Leo.”
That wasn’t enough. Just because she was smart enough not to fall for his lines didn’t mean…
“Believe what you want.” He waved me off, sensing my doubt. “But don’t discard her because of me. If you’re certain you can’t marry her, send her off. But if there’s a chance that she could… If you could be happy with her, you can’t let her go.”
