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Melody gasped, and I took in the sight before me. The familiar blues and swatches of fabric were buried under a layer of mud and dirt. My heart sank like a pebble dropping into a bottomless ocean.

I wanted to resist the rising irony, how this probably suited me better. Someone like me shouldn’t be dressed in fashion such as this, for both reasons that I was too lowly to deserve it, and it didn’t feel like the true me.

“Oh, Nora…I’m sure we can try to clean it up before the luncheon,” Melody joined me on the floor, inspecting the damage with a closer eye as if she could salvage it somehow.

“I don’t think there will be time. We still have to get ready, and the carriage will be here in an hour.” I glanced at the grandfather clock in the corner. I may not have chosen a dress like that for myself, but in a way, it was armor. The perfect battle uniform to walk into a space I didn’t belong. Any outfit we could put together now would look pathetic in comparison, and wouldn’t live up to the standard for such an announcement. Stress that I had been ignoring or suppressing suddenly made its debut, and heat pricked the back of my eyes.

“Well, a dirty dress simply won’t do. I know none of mine are of this caliber or quality, but let’s go find you one. You’ll look beautiful in anything, Nora.” She rested a hand on my shoulder. “As queen, you’ll need to problem solve. Consider this your first lesson.” She tried to carve something useful out of this situation as I felt myself start to drowned in inadequacy.

I said nothing in reply, only nodded as I rose to my feet.

Another knock at the door. My anger flared, and I stormed toward it. If Jenta had returned to gloat and see the expression on my face, she’d be leaving this doorstep with a bloody, broken nose.

“Nora, don’t!” Melody called in warning, knowing me all too well.

I swung the heavy door on its hinges, the wood feeling feather light from my rushing adrenaline. Only, I didn’t find Jenta standing there.

“Evenita,” I breathed, almost disoriented.

“I have that gift for you now.” She smiled in that way of hers.

“Oh, Nora. You look…” Melody was lost for words.

This time, when I looked in the mirror, I didn’t see myself in the dress of a queen. I saw me. The shimmering silver fabric twinkled in the same way the sun’s reflection does upon the waves. Instead of layers of bulk at my sides, the dress swept toward the floor, sheer panels embossed with luminous silver thread designs trailing like a waterfall from my hips.

A jewel encrusted oval brooch sat at the height of my navel, securing the panels together before they flowed apart. The tops of my shoulders sat exposed, ruched fabric wrapping from one side to another.

“The kingdom’s official colors are blue and silver. Most people often forget that. Two people do not need to be the same, in order to stand cohesively,” Evenita said.

The sentiment brought tears to my eyes. That other dress had been trying to fit me into a mold, but this one, this one represented me. Wearing silver that matched the steel of my daggers made me feel like the capable weapon. At first, I looked at her through the mirror, but turned to face her instead before saying, “Thank you.”

She leaned in, her soft hands caressing my arm. “You are exactly what this kingdom needs.”

I lunged for the elderly woman, embracing her in a tight hug. She would never know how much I’d needed to hear that—or perhaps she knew exactly that.

She chuckled in my ear, returning gentle pats on my back. Melody dabbed a handkerchief under her eyes. This house hadn’t been so full of love since my father passed.

Through the window of this upper level, I spotted Highcrest Castle in the distance. It had never looked more beautiful, the afternoon sun reflecting off the sturdy stone, knowing who waited for me there.

The carriage pulled up to the castle, all four of our household in attendance. The door opened for us, and the waiting hand extended toward me set my heart on fire. Nicholas stood, handsome as ever, with a lover’s smile plastered on his perfectly tan face.

I nearly leapt from the carriage. When I exited, hand in his, he took a step back. His gaze drank me in from head to toe.

“You look…” The words floated on a stolen breath. His hand rose to his chest—no, his heart.

“You’re not bothered it’s not your matching blue? There was a hiccup with the other gown,” I said, glancing at him from under my lashes, a smile tilted to one side.

He stepped intimately close, his lips grazing my ear. My breathing faltered, feeling the heat from his breath against my skin where my hair had been pinned up on that side.

“I don’t give a fuck what you wear, because you look beautiful in everything. And I’m going to be ripping it off as soon as this is over.”

He receded to a respectable distance, leaving a stain of pink across my cheeks and a pulsing beat between my legs. More servants rushed out, assisting the others from the carriage. Nick extended his arm, and I wrapped my hands around it as he led us inside.

“This is all yours now,” he whispered, gesturing to the high walls and decorated tables.

For a moment, my legs nearly gave out. The immensity of what all this meant still hadn’t fully settled, only blasting me in brief waves of unbelievable realization.

“Ours,” he corrected, sensing the daunting reality that’d come over me.