The Princess and the Guard (Book 1)

Thirty-Four

"You must have, but it's fine."

"Well now that you're here, I need to ask your opinion on something." With an excited grin, Juliette darted into her room and grabbed her data tablet. "I have a list of dress options I wanted to show you and see what you think. I keep changing my mind on which one is my favorite, so I need a second opinion."

"Jules?"

"Hm?"

When Noah hesitated, Juliette looked up from her tablet. "You're not dressed yet," he said.

Glancing down at her hoodie and night dress that hit mid-thigh, Juliette frowned. "You've seen me in my nightgown before."

"Not that one. And not in public," he replied softly.

Juliette scowled, confused at how the hallway outside her bedroom was considered public. With a shrug, she walked back into her room and yanked her sweatshirt over her head, flinging it on her bed.

Stepping into her closet, Juliette tugged on her favorite dress—a soft, gauzy, pale pink one that was worn to the perfect softness and seemed to float through the air if she moved fast enough. The bottom of the sleeves were starting to fray, but she didn't mind.

Starting back out into the corridor and standing in front of Noah, Juliette opened her first option—a yellow dress with a sweetheart neckline, strapless, floor length, and a sheer, glitter overlay.

"Okay, what do you think?" Holding up her screen, she started to add something, but Noah was already shaking his head.

"No."

"Really? Why?"

Noah looked at the dress, then at Juliette, as if visualizing it on her. "I don't think yellow would be a good color for you."

"Okay, that makes sense." Juliette nodded, flipping to the next one. And the next one, and the next one. The fifth one, her personal favorite, was made of a pale pink material and had a wide skirt that looked like it would swish beautifully around her feet. The waist was a snug, corset-style bodice, and thin, diamond-studded straps went across the shoulders and crossed in the back. It was only a sketch so she could probably request some minor changes to it if she wanted to.

Noah barely smiled. "I like that one."

Juliette pressed her lips together. "It's my favorite. I'll show it to Madame Miller when she's finished with Odette, but it should be simple enough." She shrugged to herself. "Especially compared to Odette's. I have some jewels from Luxe—I think I told you about that, right?—so I thought I could wear some of the jewelry I've been making." She sighed, feeling once again like someone was squeezing her heart, making it hard to breathe.

"Breakfast is ready, if you're hungry."

Juliette nodded. "Starving." She filled her lungs with air, chucking her data tablet back into her room and then starting down the corridor again.

After a quick breakfast, during which Odette said nothing, Juliette headed to her private study where she could be confident no one would catch her by surprise. She pulled up some information on Noah's type of ship, familiarizing herself with how the tracking equipment worked.

When Madam Miller arrived at the palace, Juliette reluctantly joined Odette in her sitting room. She hoped to have her fitting done without Odette there, but she shouldn't have expected it.

Standing in a forest of fabric draping's, lace samples, and strings of glittering beads and gems all sent from House Luxe, Juliette sank to the ground at the edge of the room where she would be out of the way. She tried not to look at Odette when she could avoid it, her mind once again roving back to the problem of getting the ship's tracking equipment disabled.

"This is the silk I specified?" Odette asked, turning on the pedestal to study herself from a different angle. "It feels different than I was expecting."

"Yes, Your Majesty, it's the same. Lady Luxe had it imported from France. If you like, I can have some other samples brought in for you to inspect?"

Odette shook her head. "As long as this is the one I specified, it's fine. You like it?" she asked, catching Juliette's eyes in the mirror. She spread her arms out, turning in a circle. "You're such an expert seamstress, let's hear your input."

Juliette cleared her throat, picking up on the hint of mockery in Odette's tone but determined to ignore it. Studying her sister's dress, made of champagne silk and rose diamonds that glittered across her entire bodice and accentuated her full bust, a small smile tickled her lips. "I'm sure it will be beautiful."

Odette's smile faltered. Her eyes narrowed. "I wondered, since Madame Miller has so many commissions for the ball, if you would be able to finish my dress?"

Juliette blinked. Madame Miller's eyes widened in surprise, and she looked from Odette to Juliette with a look of confusion.

Odette barked out a laugh. "Oh, I could barely get through that with a straight face. As if I would ever ask you to finish my dress."

Despite the harshness of her words, Juliette relaxed. There was no way she would ever voluntarily make Odette a dress.

Straightening, Odette turned back to the mirror and studied herself once again. "I'm afraid I will be needing Madame Miller for much longer than I expected, so it looks like you will have to find something presentable on your own as far as a gown is concerned."

Juliette blinked. Frowned. Opened her mouth to ask what that meant when it clicked. No new, custom-made dress. She shouldn't have been surprised. "Yes, of course. I'm sure I can find a dress already made." Thankfully she had plenty of time, though she wasn't sure it mattered. All the time in the world would be useless if she didn't have the resources to find a dress. She chewed her lip, choosing her words carefully. "I wonder if I might have some credit with the shops in Demetria—"

"Absolutely not! You think I would trust you to handle credit? You can barely handle getting dressed in the morning." Odette lifted the top layer of her dress with a pleased smile. Her eyes snapped to meet Juliette's again, and this time they were filled with venom. "Perhaps if you were wiser with your time and didn't waste the house gifts on those useless projects of yours, you would have enough material to have a dress made."

Juliette clenched her jaw.

Odette smirked. "You think I didn't know you'd been saving all the things I've been throwing away? You will have to figure something out as far as a dress is concerned without my help. But you will not be permitted to come dressed in an old gown or one that falls short of my expectations."

Juliette nodded once. "Fine. I didn't want to go to the ball anyway."

Odette waved a hand in the air, unbothered.

Juliette slipped back out into the corridor. She was silent as she and Noah walked toward her study, telling herself she wasn't that disappointed. Sure, she'd been looking forward to having a new dress and getting to go to a fancy dinner, but in reality, no one would ask her to dance, and it would be an anxiety-filled night knowing Odette would be watching her.

Watching the ball from the balconies would be just as much fun, she thought. She could pretend she was wearing the most beautiful gown in the world and imagine dancing with Noah.

Gathering up the pieces of her partially finished earrings, Juliette let the light catch the glittering facets.

"Have I mentioned before how much I loathe your sister?" Noah asked as he fell into step behind Juliette.

"You may have, a time or two." Juliette pressed her lips together in a smile.