“I hope you aren’t planning to open those lines of communication yourself.”

I gripped the arm of my chair. “Of course not. That’s for the king to do.”

Georgina smiled for the first time. “That’s right. So your part would be to reach out to the women of the other families.”

“Exactly, and maybe get the kids together. If they grow up friendly…”

“I like it.” Helen spoke for the first time in a while. “It fits you, and I know you’ll do a fantastic job with it.”

“We’ll see.” Georgina leaned back in her chair.

“Have the major families always fought?” The more I thought about it, the more obvious the root of the problem seemed.

When Georgina didn’t respond, Helen did. “No. We used to get along fine. Things fell apart about twenty years ago.”

“Oh…that recently?”

Georgina abruptly changed the subject. “Helen, have you organized the trip yet?”

“The trip?” I asked, not sure I wanted to hear the answer.

“To Paris. You need clothing that suits your position.”

“What’s wrong with my clothes?” I looked down at my jeans and sweater. And even so, why go to Paris?

She ignored my question. “You also need to see the family estate while you’re in France. You need to see our history.” She turned to Helen. “On second thought, don’t worry about planning the trip. I’ll take her myself.”

My stomach dropped. A trip to Europe with this woman sounded horrible.

Helen shifted in her seat. “Either way, it will have to wait until after the ball.”

“Of course. I assume you’ve had her dress started?”

“It’s almost done.” Helen smiled.

“You aren’t doing it yourself.” It wasn’t a question.

“I am.” She held up her chin. I could tell it took some effort for Helen to stand up to Georgina. I understood completely. Georgina was intense.

“Playing around is fine, but not when it comes to her dress for this occasion. You can save that one for another time. I’ll have my seamstress measure her this afternoon.”

“No.” I refused to hold my tongue this time. “I love the dress Helen made me. It’s perfect, and Levi’s going to love me in it.”

I thought Georgina was going to snap at me, but I could have sworn I saw a look of actual respect cross her face. “If you’re sure it will please him.”

“It will.”

“I’m glad to see you understand the importance of his opinion.”

I nodded.

“As lovely as this chat has been, I’m going to lie down before dinner. Allie, why don’t you have Levi show you the grounds? I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.”

Without any other warning, she got up and left. I turned to Helen. “Wow.”

“Wow is right.”

Chapter Ten

“How’d it go?” Levi waited for me with arms wide open as I stumbled out of the sunroom. I say stumbled because I was still somewhat shocked by the whole experience.

“Hold me.”

He laughed. “Yeah, I had a hunch that might be your response. Do you want to be held here…or?”

“Georgina told me to have you show me the grounds.”

He got a funny look on his face. “Yeah, let’s do that.”

“This isn’t a trap, right?”

“A trap? Would I ever trap you?” He grinned. “Don’t answer that.”

I laughed. It was a testament to how much had changed that I was able to laugh at that statement. “Give me two minutes.”

He must have caught me glancing around and figured out what I was looking for. “The bathroom is the third door down that hallway.”

“Thanks.”

I used the bathroom but lingered a moment longer to look at my reflection in the mirror. I looked different. Maybe it had been awhile since I’d really looked at myself, but I appeared older, more worn. I wondered if Levi noticed the difference. I definitely felt different—especially with how tired I’d been. Add in the headaches, and it had been a rough few weeks physically.

Levi was waiting for me outside the door. “It’s going to get colder when the sun goes down.” He held out my black pea coat for me.

“Thanks.” I let him help me into it. I wasn’t surprised that he didn’t bother with his own coat. He never got cold.

“I was about to ask you if we’d be able to find our way back in the dark…stupid question.”

“Not stupid, just unnecessary.” He took my hand and led me down the back porch stairs.

It was twilight and there was something almost eerie about walking around the empty fields. It was a clear night, with a star filled sky that I never would have seen in the city.

Levi was right about the temperature dropping. I was grateful for my coat. I had it buttoned all the way up.

I hesitated for a moment as we neared the woods. “Is there a particular reason you’re leading me into a dark forest?”

“I never took you as being afraid of the dark.”

“You can’t blame me for being scared of things.”

His face darkened. “I’m sorry.”

I hadn’t meant to hurt him with my words, but the truth was, I’d had too many close calls over the past few months not to worry. “It’s okay. I know I’m safe with you.”

He took my hand. “There’s something I want to show you.”

“And it’s in the woods…right. Why doesn’t this surprise me?”

He laughed. “Come on.”

I let him lead me deeper into the forest. I gripped his hand tightly. He might have been able to see in the dark, but I definitely couldn’t. The woods were dense, with a thick cover of trees blocking out most of the light the moon and stars could have provided us. “Can’t you just fly us there?”

“You want me to?”

“Yes, please.” Chances were if we kept walking much longer, I’d end up with a turned ankle. No matter how coordinated you are, there’s no way to avoid tripping over tree roots you can’t see.

After removing his sweater and t-shirt, he wrapped his arms around me, and I enjoyed the usual feeling. The only problem was the small pellets of rain stinging my face. It hadn’t been raining on the ground.

He landed, and it took me a moment to regain my balance. “Lovely weather for a walk in the woods.”