The Luna Choosing Game by Jane Above Story

Chapter 43

At first glance, she appeared friendly enough, smiling peacefully. She curtsied to me and introduced herself.

Tm looking forward to serving you,” she said.

But I found it strange. Surely she had passed my other maid being taken away down the hall. What kind of person would be smiling so calmly after having witnessed such a thing?

icholas.

I

I

Today was the day for Nicholas’s solo date, and I was trying my very best not to think about it.

Ever since receiving Joseph’s threatening letter, I’d been hiding out in my room as much as I could to

avoid him and the mean–looking guards.

With the First Ball fast approaching, I used the extra time in my room to help my maids work on me and

Elva’s gowns.

The dress had to be perfect. The order of introductions for the girls at the ball was to be determined by

the princes‘ preferences of the dresses.

Once the gowns were finished, pictures were to be taken of them and given to the princes, who would

then select their favorites. Those favorites would be the first ones introduced at the ball, and therefore

given the most time with the princes.

And with the cameras.

A major component of the Luna Choosing Game, was earning the public’s favor. I had a small advantage

myself. But people like

that even with my slight

didn’t mean

I had split the design for my dress into

Now, we were ready to combine

finished Elva’s matching dress

final work, as she had

dresses photo shoot. Elva’s dress was not to be included in the

was looking at something outside the window, likely the horses

I

about Nicholas’s solo date, but it shouldn’t be enough to bother

were

the room, nervousness and trepidation waging war

to me. “Mommy, come

for the distraction, I

pointed down toward the stables. “It’s

of the stables

hands.

a regal black stallion that greedily accepted a sugar cube

horse chosen for Lilliana was a brown and white mare that seemed

to sidestep whenever

left his own horse to approach Lilliana. He offered her

horse. Lilliana shook her head, refusing to offer the

spoken beyond some mumbled voices, but with the way Lilliana held up her pure white gloves, I assumed she refused to treat the horse

ing dirty.

getting dirty.

she would hold

I

the sugar cube to the horse himself. In his presence, the mare

then, and with Nicholas’s help, lifted herself up into

hands lingered near her waist,

remembered the times we had gone horseback riding together. He had helped me

same way.

remember, I could still feel the phantom

said then. “Tell me when you are okay, and I’ll let

him a playful smile. “What if I want to stay like

I

under the sun. “Then we should give up on horseback riding for today and return to one of our rooms instead. If you want me to hold you, I’d

properly

much the same thing to Lilliana, But, no.

his hands away from her waist quickly and without

distance, these two did not seem to

why Nicholas had chosen her, out of all the candidates, for

mounted his stallion. He waited for Lilliana to bring her mare alongside his horse, and then together they started to

at the window.

she realized,

going to do, she shouted from the window,

She waved both arms.

both immediately looked up. Lilliana glowered, but Nicholas’s stern expression

a hand