The Season (Season Series #1)

Chapter 21: Secret Preparations

I spent a week trying to get the prince alone. Now that I was suddenly trying, however, stealing a moment alone with him proved nearly impossible. With the panic among the debutantes that Harriet Smith had left with Martin Pendleton and freed up a new place in the Season, Andrew was monopolized every second of every day. No one knew who would be named in Harriet's place and rumours flew about some cousin of hers being brought in from the other side of the country. Her ladies-in-waiting attended few events and were as tight lipped as ever, a gauntlet of secrecy around whomever they would next attend to. I didn't much care who replaced Harriet, but the frenzy it caused among the debutantes frustrated me to no end.

"I've heard she's spectacularly beautiful and accomplished," Emily said on the morning of the first masquerade as we sat in the queen's salon doing our needlework. Ella was disinterested, but Maisie and Hattie, two of Penelope's ladies-in-waiting, drank up Emily's gossip.

"How can you possibly know that?" I snapped, at my wit's end from listening to the same idle chatter over and over again. The three of them looked over at me in distaste before continuing as if I hadn't spoken at all.

"Well I heard she's coming from Saint Mary's," Maisie said, "She's said to be impeccably mannered. Penelope is fit to be tied,"

"And what of Ella? Is she concerned at all?" Hattie asked. I snorted, but yet again was ignored.

"Ella feels quite secure in her place with the prince," Emily sniffed, enjoying this far too much. I threw down my embroidery and stalked over to the bookshelf if only to get away from their prattling. I read over the book spines without processing them, eventually reaching for one once I'd been standing there for too long. I flipped it open before flipping it hastily closed again. It was a guidebook on how to run a household.

"Perhaps you could try this one," Princess Anne said. Her voice was quiet as she handed me a book on birds. I looked down at it then back up at her. She wasn't smiling, but her eyes were dancing.

"It has the most spectacular illustrations," she said, "I do hope you enjoy it,"

She left my side to return to the queen, whose eyes were on me. I hastily dipped my head respectfully, which seemed to satisfy the queen enough for her to turn away.

It was the first time Anne and I had spoken since we'd returned from the ride with her brothers. I was under the impression that the princess had been told to stay away from me, for whenever we were in the same room, she made a great effort to avoid me. I looked down at the bird watching book, wondering why it was so important that she'd gone ahead and spoken to me in front of her mother to deliver it to me.

I opened it and started thumbing through the pages, appreciating the full-colour illustrations of birds that seemed to leap from the page. As I turned to that of the bluebird, a piece of paper slipped from the book. I slammed the book to my chest to prevent the paper from falling, looking around to see if I was being watched. Satisfied that everyone was too absorbed in gossiping about Harriet's replacement, I reached down and unfolded the note.

I know you've been trying to speak to me and I can only hope it's not so you can refuse. Please, come tonight.

I didn't need a signature to know whose writing it was. I crumpled the note up, my heart thundering in my chest as I shoved it up my sleeve. I was staring down at the illustration of a bluebird while I willed my nerves to calm. As I blinked myself back to reality, it dawned on me that the bird was nearly the same vivid blue as the dress that sat in Audra's workshop.

I hoped Andrew had come up with some way to sneak me out from under Rosanna and Emily's haughty noses. If he hadn't, the blue dress would be doomed to remain unworn in a workshop.