Page 85 of Reign

“But we were in love,” she clarified.I loved youwas what she meant to say.I was ready to spend a lifetime with you.

“We had said I love you.” Teddy’s words were so soft that she almost didn’t hear them, not that it mattered. She already knew the answer.

She knew that he’d loved her then, and loved her still.

They turned slow circles until the colors of the evening began to blur together—the greenhouse flowers on the tables and bar, the deep jewel tones of women’s gowns, and the sleek black of men’s tuxedos.

“I need to tell you something.” Beatrice wasn’t sure why she was doing this, except that it suddenly felt urgent she clear up all secrets between them. “I saw Connor recently. He’s, um…” She started to explain, then halted at the look on Teddy’s face. “You know who Connor is,” she said, realizing.

“I do,” he admitted, eyes glowing an impossibly bright blue. “Is Connor here?”

“I saw him in Texas. He’s working as the Ramirezes’ head of security now.”

“So are you back together?” Teddy’s shoulders were coiled with tension.

“It was good to talk to him.” Immediately Beatrice regretted those words. “I mean, I’m glad I saw him, because it answered some questions for me, but no. We are not together.”

She waited for Teddy to ask what mysterious things herconversation with Connor had helped resolve, but he was silent.

Beatrice was unnervingly aware of everything: her heart beating against her ribs, the tulle gown drifting around her legs, the weight of Teddy’s gaze on hers.

Fine, then. She would be the one to say it. “What I mean is, I’ve changed my mind.”

His brows drew slightly together. “Changed your mind?”

“Remember when I first woke up after my accident, when I said that I just wanted to be friends?” Beatrice was fairly certain that her exact words wereCan you keep pretending to be my fiancé,but that sounded so harsh.

“I remember,” Teddy said cautiously.

“That’s not true anymore. I mean, I’m not remembering anything yet,” she added hastily, “but I want to see you. More than I see you right now. Not just at formal events, as my memory-loss coach.”

What was wrong with her? Why couldn’t she just say it clearly?

Because you hate being vulnerable and talking about your feelings,a voice inside her replied. It sounded eerily like Samantha.

Thankfully, Teddy seemed to understand what she meant, because he smiled.

“Bee. Are you saying that I’m allowed to ask you out?”

“Yes,” she breathed.

Her face was already tipped so close to his. When they kissed, it was featherlight, almost a part of the dance. Beatrice felt herself melting instinctively into it, because this was a kiss they had done before. One that her body knew, even if her mind didn’t remember.

When they pulled apart, a new confidence coursed through her. She could do it, all of it—could explore these new possibilities between her and Teddy, could round up enough votes to defeat Madison and convince America that she should betheir queen. She would survive this threat to her position. Not just survive: she wouldrebuild,would stitch back together the life and memories that had been lost to her in the accident.

Or maybe there were too many pieces lost to rebuild—maybe she wouldn’t get her memories back at all. Suddenly that seemed less important than it used to.

“Are you sure your family doesn’t mind that I’m crashing Christmas?” Sam asked as Liam loaded their overnight bags into the trunk. His parents lived a few hours away, in Delaware, and when Liam realized she was going to be alone for the holidays, he’d insisted that she come.

“My parents are excited. As you can imagine, they’ve never hosted royalty before.” Liam grinned. “I told them you’re shockingly low-maintenance, but I don’t think they’ll believe it until they see you wad up your napkin and throw it into the trash.”

“Hey, I’m getting better at my three-pointers!”

Sam had tucked a few presents into her small duffel: a new notebook and fountain pen for Liam, a scented candle for his parents. Her gifts for her own family were already at the palace; she’d left them with a startled-looking security guard the previous afternoon.

“Thanks again for taking me shopping this week,” she added. Sam had never done her own holiday shopping before. Usually she wrote out her gift ideas and one of the palace assistants handled the actual purchasing. Browsing the various stores at the mall, looking for things that might inspire her, was a lot more fun.

The Washingtons always gave each other gag gifts, because there was no point in buying expensive presents for peoplewho had everything. Sam was especially proud of what she’d gotten Jeff—she’d returned to Costco for the inflatable tennis net—and Beatrice: a coffee mug that readI’m a Royal Pain Without Caffeine.