“And which of the kingdoms is the most diverse?”
He sighed again. “Celine.”
She put her hands back on her hips. “Well?”
“Lanover.” He drew the word out slowly, clearly cautious of whatever trap his sister was trying to set for him with the obvious questions.
“Exactly!” She threw up her hands. “Unlike the other kingdoms, we have many different sub-cultures here. Tell me Frederic, what are the latest fashions worn on the islands?” She didn’t wait for him to respond, and he showed no desire to do so. “What about in southern Largo? Or among the jungle dwellers? What about the nomadic desert traders?”
When he still said nothing, she gave a decisive nod. “Precisely!”
My eyes lingered on the prince’s handsome face. He looked almost as confused as I felt. If the princess thought she had proved her point, she was sorely mistaken.
Celine turned to me. “Men.”
I had to suppress another smile at her world-weary tone.
“I’m sure, if left to his own devices,” she continued, “my brother would simply pull on the first clothing to come to hand each day. Hardly befitting the crown prince of the most fashionable kingdom in the land! Which is why it’s such a good thing his sisters have always taken responsibility for his wardrobe. Only now that all the rest are married and gone, I’m the only one left. And the high and mighty Frederic doesn’t like to admit that his baby sister knows more about some things than he does.”
“Really, Celine. Please.” Frederic cast an uncomfortable glance in my direction. I tried to maintain the blankest expression possible. Coming between squabbling siblings was always a bad idea, let alone when royalty were involved.
“Oh, don’t mind Evie,” said Celine. “She’s my friend. And if you want this Royal Tour you’ve got planned to be a true success, then we need her. Because you’re not going to remind all our different communities of the might and glory of the crown if we show up looking out of fashion and dowdy. And never mind impressing them enough to put an end to these rumors of a new rebellion.”
“Celine!” Now Frederic sounded both shocked and angry.
His sister remained unaffected. “Oh, come on. You can’t think I don’t know the true purpose of this Tour. I’m not an idiot. And I already told you. We need her. And it’s in our interest for her to understand how important this Tour and her role is. You put me in charge of the royal wardrobes for the Tour, and I’m here to beg her to close up shop for the season and come with us. Because we’re going to need someone who can assess local fashions and ensure we’re the most impressively dressed everywhere we go.” She stared her brother down. “And that’s no easy feat. Do you know any other seamstress up to the task?”
From the hopeless look on Prince Frederic’s face, I doubted he could name any other seamstresses at all. He had probably only given Celine the role of wardrobe mistress to placate her, but despite her earlier accusations, he now looked ready to accede to her points. In fact, he looked quite struck by them.
“So, what do you say, Evie?” Celine turned to me eagerly. “Will you come with us? I know it’s a lot to ask. We leave in only a week.”
A week! I gulped. I had heard some talk in the capital about the crown prince’s Royal Tour of the kingdom, but I hadn’t realized Princess Celine was going too. And I hadn’t expected it to affect me much, other than perhaps creating a quieter season given the absence of some of the royalty and nobility. It was a break I had welcomed after the hectic pace of the last year.
But now the princess was asking me to finish all my current commissions in the space of a single week so that I could then embark on an even bigger challenge. And she was asking me to leave the capital just when I had finally established myself here.
But this could be your chance, whispered an internal voice. Your chance to prove your worth once and for all. If you succeed at this, no one could ever question if you deserve your place again.
I bit my lip as I looked between the two royals. Celine was watching me with hope-filled eyes, Frederic with curiosity. Something about his expression roused a defiant determination in me. I could do this. I would do this.
“I am honored to serve the crown in any way I can.”
The shadow of surprise in the prince’s expression filled me with satisfaction. I would show him what I was capable of—him and everyone else.
“We are the ones who are honored, Mistress Evangeline.” Something about the prince’s grave voice inspired my imp of mischief. No wonder Celine couldn’t resist teasing her oldest brother—his serious demeanor was almost irresistible.
“Oh, come, Your Highness,” I said. “Surely you’re not going to pretend familiarity with my designs. I suspect you didn’t even know my name before your sister used it.”
Frederic froze, and Celine giggled.
“Thank goodness you’re coming, Evie,” she said. “Frederic’s picked all the oldest, most stodgy courtiers to accompany us. Every single one regards me with horrified judgment, I assure you.”
“Celine,” said Frederic stiffly. “You shouldn’t speak of them that way. They are loyal supporters of the crown.”
She sighed. “Of course they are. But they’re also hideously boring.” She shuddered comically, her eyes twinkling. “Which means I would have been entirely stuck with you and Cassian for the whole Tour.”
Dawning horror spread across Frederic’s face, and he gave me a half bow. “On behalf of myself and my brother, I must thank you again Mistress Evangeline. It seems we have many reasons to be grateful to you.”
Celine winked at me behind his back, and I gave a small chuckle, looking up through my lashes at the tall prince. “Please, call me Evie, you might find it easier to remember.”
He looked down at me, an arrested expression on his face. After a pause, he said, “Very well, Mistress Evie. Please report to the palace in six days’ time. We appreciate your assistance.”
He stepped back and grasped his sister’s arm, attempting to drag her from my shop. She caught at the door frame and looked back at me. “I’ll come past tomorrow to talk some more and arrange a time for you to inspect our current wardrobes.”
I nodded, but the prince had tugged her away before I could actually speak.
I sank down into a convenient chair, my knees a little wobbly. Had I really just flirted with the crown prince?
Well, why not? asked that same inner voice. He’s a person, just like anyone else. Only this time my internal dialogue sounded far too mischievous.
I had long ago decided that pain was best pushed from my mind—life was easier if viewed light-heartedly. But that didn’t mean it was a good idea for me to offend the most powerful family in the kingdom.
But the thought of my past pushed a far more gripping concern to the front of my mind. I was about to have a great deal more to worry about than a prince who seemed as serious as he was handsome. More important even than preserving my secret source of extraordinary fabric and ensuring no gown I created contained any poor stitching. Because I had just agreed to a full tour of Lanover.
Which meant the royal family—my most important clients—were about to find out exactly what had driven me to the capital the previous year. How long would it be before even Celine regretted befriending a commoner who she knew almost nothing about?
Chapter 2