**THE BRAZEN SERIES is part of the GOLDEN UNIVERSE**
♦YOU MUST HAVE READ BOOK TWO, A BRAZEN DUTY, TO READ THIS SEQUEL!♦
♦♦It is ALSO recommended that you read THE GOLDEN GIRL/DUCHESS/PRINCESS & QUEEN, as events in this novel follow those!♦♦
After t...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
♪ I know that you're tryin' Everything's gonna be okay ♪ {Maren Morris—GIRL}
While Harriet lounged in her bathtub, to scrub off the grime of her running around and her incessant overthinking, Johanna reported on the arrivals as she adjusted her dress for the night. Victoria had offered to help, but Johanna was adamant she finish Harriet's gowns first.
"They were punctual," said Johanna, furiously sewing a white rose to the belt of her gown—a symbol for Harriet, she'd claimed. Her stitch-work was precise, and Harriet recalled that she'd once been trained as a seamstress. "But I did not get a good look at them, as they all hurried to their rooms."
"And Jacob?" Harriet winced as her handmaiden scrubbed a little too hard on an aching spot on her back. She didn't reprimand her, willing herself to control her temper, to relax. "Where was he?"
"Not... there. I suppose because he is a contender himself, he did not want to be part of the welcoming committee." Johanna lifted the gown to inspect her handiwork and smiled. "Your other advisors were there, though, minus Sir Chaucer, of course. And everything went according to plan. The Ballroom will be quite full, what with the other nobles and locals who have agreed to attend and meet your prospects."
Groaning, Harriet motioned at her maid to fetch her bathrobe. "Please, do not remind me. What a spectacle I will have to put on... I am not ready for this."
"Are you nervous?" Johanna turned around to give Harriet a few moments of privacy, and sauntered over to the changing panel to slip into her fixed outfit.
"Nervous is not a strong enough word to define it." Harriet gripped her handmaid's hand and stepped out of the tub, leaving a small puddle of lukewarm water under her feet. She dried off, shook out her unruly curls, and wrapped her robe around herself as she meandered to the window to wait her turn to use the changing shift. "I made so many commitments and promises but now... with all these changes, with Jacob on the verge of dropping out because of Jules barging in... I am so confused."
"You will be fine." Johanna's voice carried out from behind the shift, and when she shimmied out, Harriet's breath caught in her throat. She'd never seen her half-sister looking so exquisite, not even at Queen Marguerite's wedding. Her violet ensemble brought out the gray in her eyes, and her hair was like silk, undone from its usual braid, curled down to below her ribs. She wrinkled her nostrils at the sight of Harriet ogling her. "What? Is it unfitting? Too much? I can change, if you worry it will outshine you—"
"—nonsense." Harriet took a moment to let air lap back into her lungs. "My goodness, you are radiant!" She hastened over to touch the fabric, and struggled to believe the garb was made from a used gown Johanna had repurposed. "You should be holding this season, not me."
Though she beamed and blushed, Johanna shook her head. "Absolutely not! Your outfit is much more elegant, and I cannot wait for you to put it on." She gripped Harriet's arms and switched spots with her. "Go, get behind there, hurry!"
