Stealing His Princess (Kings of Conquest #2) - Adelaide Forrest Page 0,2

sure she's not tucked behind you when you enter. You're too large for your own good. She needs to be the showpiece," my mother said as she strode down the steps and glanced around. Only the staff lingered in the room, their eyes falling on Alina and I as I guided her down. I smiled at them politely, trying to dissuade them from judging us too harshly because of my mother acting like we were her precious babies off to the prom for the first time.

It couldn't be further from the truth.

"Alina, you should always be smiling," she said, turning her attention to her meal ticket. "What if Corbin were to leave the ball and see you? You must always present the best picture in case of an unintentional encounter."

"Yes, Mother," Alina said, stepping down the last step. We made our way to the mezzanine at the top of the stairs that led to the ballroom off the back of the palace. It was a level lower than the rest of the main floor, carved into the hillside to offer the perfect view of the gardens and then the city and ocean in the distance.

Our mother bid us farewell, giving me a meaningful look before she darted off to enter the ballroom in a less dramatic way, and where she could lurk with the rest of the escorts. A guard swung the door open for us, and we walked into the dimly lit room. Guiding Alina to the back corner, I stood by her in mostly silence as we waited for the rest of the lingering royals to be formally introduced and make their way down the grand white marble steps into the ballroom.

"This is ridiculous," Alina muttered under her breath. I huffed a laugh, staring straight ahead as she lurked behind a support pillar to avoid the attention of anyone who might look our way. "I feel like I'm in a spy movie. Sneaking around the palace. Should I steal the jewels while nobody knows I exist?" she asked, wincing when I nudged her knee with my dress shoe.

"Do you want King Reece to throw you in his dungeon?" I asked with a laugh. "I'm fairly certain Mother has warned you all about his cruelty. What do you think he would do with a thief?"

She stuck her tongue out at me before turning her attention back to the line that grew shorter and shorter with every few minutes that passed. She listened to the names, and I knew she tried to remember her training. Mother had drilled what these people looked like into her brain since she’d had no opportunity to see them face to face. "It’ll be alright, you know?"

"I know," she agreed. "It has to be."

I nodded, knowing exactly what she meant. There was no other choice than to be okay with the destiny fate handed us.

The alternative would mean a lifetime of misery.

Acceptance was just... easier.

2

Bristol

The champagne glass felt like ice in my hand. Cold. Brittle. Threatening to shatter at any moment. As fragile as the grasp I had on the emotions that would engulf me.

I smiled insincerely, lost to the sharp sensation, so deceptive in comparison to the storm that raged inside me. I had always existed with a smile on my face, a laugh in my voice. It was easy to be happy and grateful when nothing bad ever happened.

But that former contentment did nothing to ease the warring fury and resignation I felt in those moments. Preparing for a life I did not want would cost me my character. A low-grade headache brewed behind my eyes and callous words clawed at my chest, threatening to spill out of my mouth.

"Are you okay, Bristol?" I turned around to face the woman who addressed me. Her brows knitted together, a tiny frown gracing her mouth as she looked down at my hand. I attempted to unclench my fingers and hold the stem of the glass as I would on any other night.

As a Princess, I could not have a breakdown. I had to act with perfect decorum. Because a Princess was not just a person, but a tangible part of the country she hailed from.

I reached out to give my friend a light touch on the arm. "I'm fine, Piper. Thank you." The lie rumbled in my head even as I struggled to remove the grimace on my face. Trying to shrug away the twisting sensation in my belly, I was desperate to find an