Majesty (American Royals, #2)(82)
She bit her lip, suddenly hesitant. “Marshall, are we…”
Afternoon light slanted in through the window, dappling half his face in shadow. “Sam, I’ve liked you for ages now. Probably since the day we met,” he told her.
“Then why did you keep telling me that Kelsey was texting you?”
“I was following your lead!” he exclaimed, exasperated. “After we kissed, you laughed and said that we put on a good show.”
“I only acted like that because you were looking at the crowd!” she protested. “I assumed you’d seen everyone watching, and that the reason you kissed me was because you wanted it to get back to Kelsey!”
Marshall leaned forward, taking her hand in his. Sam wondered if he could feel the leap of her pulse through her skin. “Trust me,” he told her. “I have only ever kissed you because I wanted to.”
“But last weekend in Orange—”
“I tried to avoid Kelsey. When she cornered me, though, I knew I had to dance with her for a song or two. Otherwise she would have made a scene,” he added, sounding darkly amused.
Sam was deaf to the slow rattle of the carriage wheels, the hum of voices outside; all she could hear was the ringing echo of Marshall’s words.
“So—you and I—we’re doing this for real?”
He grinned. “Sorry, did I skip ahead again? I have a tendency to do that. Hi, I’m Marshall Davis; would you like to go out with me? I’d give you my grizzly-bear pin to mark the occasion, but it’s at home.”
Sam laughed from sheer delight. “Yes,” she declared. “I will go out with you.”
And just like generations of her ancestors had probably done, she spent the rest of the drive stealing glances at her boyfriend, wishing this stupid carriage were a little more spacious.
Daphne’s bedroom looked out over the driveway, so she was always the first to know when they had visitors. Each time she heard a car pull up, she would dart a glance outside, hoping it was a paparazzo staking out their house—or, better yet, Jefferson. But when she lifted her curtain and saw the blue sports car, Daphne blinked.
Himari had come to see her.
Ever since the palace had announced the Marikos’ new position, Daphne had been half-hopeful, half-afraid that Himari would reach out. The royal wedding was next week, and everyone knew that Daphne was going as Jefferson’s date—Daphne had leaked it to Natasha herself, as a thank-you for her earlier help.
If Himari wanted to hurt Daphne, she would do it now, while Daphne was on top of the world.
She hurtled down the stairs. Whatever threat Himari had come to deliver, whatever fight she wanted to pick, Daphne couldn’t let her parents find out.
She made it to the front door just as her friend was about to ring the bell.
“Himari. What’s going on?” Daphne slipped outside, quickly pulling the door shut behind her.
Himari lifted an eyebrow. “You aren’t going to invite me in?”
“Not when I have no idea what you’re planning,” she said bluntly.
Himari shrugged and started toward the edge of the driveway. A cherry tree—one of a vast number in Herald Oaks, planted a hundred years ago in a burst of patriotism—spread its branches overhead, casting their faces in shade. A few stray blossoms had fallen onto the pavement around them.
“You might have seen last week’s announcement,” Himari began, alert for Daphne’s reaction. “Her Majesty appointed my parents as the new ambassadors to the Imperial Court at Kyoto.”
“Congratulations. They must be really excited.”
“We’re moving to Japan in two days.”
Himari turned to face her, arms crossed. “My parents are ecstatic, obviously. Everyone thought the appointment would go to Leanna Santos. I don’t know how we managed to get it instead.” She hesitated, her dark eyes locked on Daphne’s. “I keep thinking you had something to do with it, except it makes no sense. Your specialty is hurting me, not fulfilling my parents’ wildest dreams.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Daphne said stiffly. But her heart wasn’t in the lie, and Himari clearly saw through it.
“So it was you. Color me impressed.” Himari lifted her hands and brought them together, once, twice, in a sarcastic mockery of a slow clap. “Well played, Daphne. You must really hate me, to make the queen send me thousands of miles away. How did you convince her?”
“I don’t hate you, okay? I only did it because you kept threatening me! Because you were going to blow my cover and ruin my life!”
A hint of pain, or maybe regret, flickered behind the immutable mask of Himari’s expression. “I threatened you? What are you talking about?”
“That text you sent, that I was going to get what I deserved!” Daphne drew in a shaky breath. “I thought you were planning something awful, some kind of massive revenge scheme that would destroy me forever.”
“Of course you would think that.” Himari rolled her eyes. “I guess I should be grateful that you did something nice this time, instead of pushing me down a staircase!”
“I never pushed you!”
A sharp, uncertain silence succeeded her words. Daphne glanced around the street. She heard the low hum of a lawn mower from a few blocks away, but here everything was still.