Page 113 of American Royals

“You were right; Teddy and I aren’t in love. We shouldn’t make this kind of commitment, not when there are other people out there for us. People we could fall in love with,” she added, with a significant glance toward Sam.

“What about everything you said, about how you need to get married before—” Sam stopped herself from saying before Dad dies, but Beatrice understood.

“I’m going to talk to Dad tonight, as soon as I can get a minute alone with him. I know he won’t be thrilled,” she admitted. “But hopefully he’ll come to understand.”

Sam glanced back toward the ballroom. At all those hundreds of people, who’d come to celebrate the love story of Beatrice and Teddy.

“You’re sure?” she whispered. The wind howled in her ears, drowning out the laughter and gossip of the party. “You’re really going to tell the world that you’ve changed your mind?”

Beatrice shook her head with an irrepressible smile. “Who cares what the world thinks? The only people whose opinions should count right now are our family’s and Teddy’s.”

It was such an un-Beatrice answer that Sam could only blink, speechless.

The wind tugged more insistently at the skirts of their gowns, pulling the pins in their hair. Still neither of them moved.

“I can’t believe you would do this for me,” Sam managed at last.

“I’m doing this for us. There’s so much that you and I can’t control about our lives, being who we are, but there’s no reason we should have to make this kind of sacrifice.”

That was when Samantha knew.

“You’re seeing someone else,” she guessed.

The expression on Beatrice’s face—surprise and nervousness at being caught out, but most of all a bright, beaming excitement—was confirmation enough.

“Promise me you won’t say anything until I’ve talked to Dad.”

Sam wanted to take her sister’s hands and squeal in excitement. To think that careful, duty-bound Beatrice had been carrying on a clandestine love affair. “Who is it? Anyone I know?”

Beatrice’s smile faltered. “You’ve met him, yes,” she said slowly.

“Is he here tonight?”

When Beatrice nodded, Sam glanced breathlessly back toward the party, wondering which of the young men inside was her sister’s secret boyfriend.

“It’s not going to be easy,” Beatrice said hesitantly. “This guy … he isn’t as eminently suitable as Teddy.”

“Few people are.” Sam tried to make a joke of it.

“He’s a commoner.”

Sam blinked in shock. Now she understood why Beatrice had asked all those weird questions about Aunt Margaret. She wanted to know what would happen if she couldn’t stomach marriage to any of the young men on their parents’ list. If she followed her heart instead.

“I know,” Beatrice went on, reading Sam’s expression. “It’s less than ideal. What can I do?”

“You’ll figure it out. Just … one step at a time. Focus on getting out of your engagement with Teddy first, before you try to get into another one.” Sam tried to sound encouraging.

She had no idea how her sister was going to manage something as utterly unprecedented as marrying a commoner.

Beatrice sighed. “I’m not really looking forward to sharing the news with Dad. Or with the media. I wonder what the protocol is, for breaking off a royal engagement. Has that even happened before?”

“Oh, sure!” Sam exclaimed. “In the nineteenth century more weddings were called off than actually took place. It happened all the time when political alliances shifted.”

“Great. I’ll tell Dad we can look back at Edward I’s broken engagement as a precedent.” Beatrice gave a strangled laugh, then fell silent. “The people are going to hate me for a while.”

“Maybe,” Sam conceded. “Or maybe they’ll be proud of you for knowing your own mind, and being brave enough to put a stop to all of this.”

Beatrice nodded, though she didn’t seem convinced.