“Are you dating Elora?” I asked directly, even though I already knew the answer.
“I definitely wouldn’t call it dating,” he scoffed and took a long drink. “Let me put it this way: I’m about as close to her as anyone can get. Well, at least anyone can get now.”
“‘Now’?” I furrowed my brow. “What do you mean by that?”
“Elora wasn’t always the cool, collected Queen you know and fear.” There was a bitter edge to his words, and I wondered how long he’d been seeing her. Had it been while she was married to my father? Or when she was in love with Finn’s father?
“What made her change?” I asked.
“The same thing that makes everyone change: experience.” He turned his glass in his hands, admiring what little liquor he had left.
“What happened to my father?”
“You’re really digging deep, aren’t you?” Garrett cocked an eyebrow at me. “I do not have enough alcohol for this conversation.” He knocked back the rest in one swallow.
“Why? What happened?” I pressed, leaning forward in my chair.
“It was a very long time ago.” He took a deep breath, still looking down. “And Elora was devastated.”
“She really loved him, then?” I still found it weird to think that she’d ever loved anyone. She didn’t seem capable of any emotion deeper than anger.
“I honestly don’t know. I didn’t know her that well back then.” Garrett abruptly got up from his chair and walked over to the bar. “My wife was still alive, and we only had a casual acquaintance with the Queen.” He poured himself another drink, keeping his back to me. “If you want to know more about all of this, you’ll have to talk to Elora.”
“She won’t tell me anything.” I sighed and leaned back in the chair.
“Some things are better forgotten,” Garrett mused. He took a long drink, still keeping his back to me, and I realized belatedly that I’d upset him.
“Sorry.” I stood up. I didn’t know how to correct the situation, so I thought leaving might be the best way to fix it.
He shook his head. “No need to be sorry.”
“I should get back, anyway.” I edged toward the door. “Finn is probably looking for me by now.”
Garrett nodded. “Probably.” I’d almost made it out the door when he stopped me. “Princess?” He turned his head to the side, so shadows darkened his profile. “Elora’s hard on you because she’s afraid to care about you. But she’ll fight to the death for you.”
“Thanks,” I mumbled.
The light in the hallway felt too bright after the dimness of the den. I didn’t know what I’d said that had upset Garrett so much. Maybe bringing up memories of his dead wife. Or maybe reminding him that while Elora couldn’t openly care for him now, she had cared once, for another man.
I tried to push away the confusion Garrett had made me feel. I wasn’t sure if I could trust the things he’d said about Elora. I didn’t think he was a liar, but he’d wanted to make me feel better. Convincing me that I had a mother who actually loved me probably would help, but I had long since stopped holding out for that dream.
I found Finn in the front hall, directing several of Elora’s aides with the planning for the ball. He had his back to me, so he didn’t notice me right away. I stood there for a moment, just watching him direct and take control. He knew exactly what do with everything, and I couldn’t help but admire him for it.
“Princess.” Finn caught sight of me when he glanced over his shoulder, then he turned fully to me with a smile. An aide asked him something, and he gestured vaguely to the dining hall before walking over to me. “How did this morning go?”
I shrugged. “It could’ve been worse.”
“That doesn’t sound promising.” He raised an eyebrow. “But I suppose you’ve earned a bit of a reprieve.”
“A reprieve?” It was my turn to look skeptical.
“Yeah, I thought we’d do something fun for a while.” Finn smiled.
“Fun?” I remembered yesterday, how he’d tried to convince me his mind-numbing training had been fun. “Do you mean fun fun? Or do you mean looking at pictures for two hours fun? Or Using a Fork 101 fun?”
“Something that at least resembles actual fun,” Finn answered. “Come on.”
SEVENTEEN
jealousy
As Finn led me down a hall to the south wing, I realized that I’d never seen any of this before. When Garrett had teased Elora about this being a palace, he wasn’t kidding. There were so many places I had yet to see. It was astounding.