The Betrothed (The Betrothed #1)(59)

I tried to be discreet about rolling my eyes. “After leaving the castle the way I did, I worry white would only invite criticism.”

Scarlet gasped at me. “Hollis! If you want white, you should wear it! Can you please pull this one out more, sir?” she asked, grabbing at a bolt of ivory fabric.

“No, no,” I insisted. “Besides, Silas says I’m his shining sun. I think he’d like the gold.”

“That’s so sweet,” Scarlet commented. “Then I think you’re right. It should be gold.”

My happiness was ever so slightly tainted by the knowledge that my parents were just on the other side of the plain, past the forest, and on lands that we’d held for generations, but that they refused to come see me. Too ashamed to return to the castle, they were staying in the country; they might as well have been on the other side of the continent for how close they felt. Without their approval, this was dangerously close to eloping. I was certain the reason Jameson had a hard time convincing the lords to approve of me was because of how much of the law circled around marriage. In most families, there were written contracts where the parties would make agreements upon goods exchanged to prove the match was being done for the mutual benefit of both groups. If an engagement was officially made, it took another contract to undo it, and if a parent made an agreement on behalf of their child, sometimes that took the work of a holy man to undo, if not the king himself. Eloping and marrying quickly without the express approval of one’s family told the world those laws were insignificant, and it brought on unending judgment.

One look at Delia Grace’s life was enough to prove that.

But where the family I was leaving had nothing to say, the one I was entering did nothing but fawn over me. The proof was in the preparation for my wedding, the fuss they made over gaining another daughter.

“Gold it is,” Lady Eastoffe confirmed. “What do you want for the style? I know the sleeves of Isolten gowns can be heavy, but I thought maybe we could round the neckline. Try to pull the two together?”

I smiled. She had said this about dozens of things. The dress, my hair, the dinner, the music . . . All she wanted to do was build a new life for all of us.

“I think that will look quite lovely.”

The tailor nodded in agreement and took his goods to begin his work. He said his shop could produce a gown in five days, so that would keep us right on schedule. As the tailor left, a maid walked in and whispered in Lady Eastoffe’s ear.

“Absolutely. Show her in at once.”

My heart leaped up into my chest. My mother was here, I just knew it. She was going to give me her blessing and let me wear a family heirloom and everything was going to be all right.

But my mother did not walk through the door. It was an older lady who looked to be a servant. She came over and curtsied before me.

“My Lady Hollis. I’m sure after so many years away, you won’t remember me, but I work in your home, in Varinger Hall.”

I studied the woman’s face, but she was right, I didn’t recognize her. “I’m sorry, I don’t remember you. Is everything well with my parents? Is something wrong with the manor?”

“They are in good health, miss. They do seem quite sad. I think they regret sending you away, but that’s not my place to say. But yesterday, you got a letter. I felt after everything you’d been through, it might do you good to have some comforting words, so I planned to come today. Just before I left, a second letter arrived, so I brought it, too.”

She held out the neat little letters, and I recognized Delia Grace’s handwriting immediately. The other was a mystery.

“Thank you very much . . . I’m sorry, what was your name?”

“Hester, my lady.”

“Hester, I’m indebted to you.”

“It’s no trouble. It’s the simple kindnesses in life, isn’t it?”

I smiled. “Yes, it is. Do you need an escort home? Or a horse?”

Lady Eastoffe turned to summon someone to help, but Hester lifted her hand. “Oh, no. It’s such a pretty day for a walk. But I best be on my way. Many happy wishes for your wedding, my lady.”

She moved slowly, and I wondered how long it had taken her to get here on foot.

“We’ll give you some privacy,” Scarlet offered, pulling her mother from the room. I smiled at her in gratitude and started with perhaps the more frightening update, the one from Delia Grace.

Dear Hollis,

I didn’t miss that she didn’t bother calling me Lady.

You were right. The night you left, His Majesty was in need of a companion, and when I went to him mourning the departure of my closest friend, we related in a way we never had before. This morning I was gifted with a new gown. I think, at last, I am where I always wanted to be.

There is other news. A section of the South Wing caught fire the other day, and it was fortunate it didn’t spread. No one is confessing to setting it, and though the rooms in question were supposedly empty at the time, my guess is it belonged to one of the Isoltens. They’re all kept in that same area. There was a rumor that Jameson started it himself, which is a vicious lie. Keresken Castle is his home.

While His Majesty was out of sorts immediately after you left, he seems to be almost himself again these past few days. He’s yelling less, and I talked him into throwing a tournament for the solstice, and the planning has lifted his spirits. I don’t have the talent for making him laugh as you did, but he smiles for me sometimes. I’m the only person who can manage to get him to do that, so I’d say my place is relatively secure. My guess is, if he does care for me, he will be very cautious before offering his hand again. Honestly, there’s a part of me that thinks he’s waiting for you. Though I’m not sure why, after how you left.