Chapter 296

I followed Julian back up the beach, but when he returned to the mansion, I veered back to the bonfire. By now, the fire was dying down. Veronica and Jessica were sitting with their backs to it, facing the ocean. They each had a glass of wine and a marshmallow in hand. The opened bag sat between them.

I walked over to them. “Where’s Nicholas?”

“He went inside soon after you left,” Veronica said.

“He didn’t even say goodnight,” Jessica added.

“It’s been a long day today,” Veronica told her.

Jessica shrugged. “True.”

“Why don’t you join us for a while, Piper?” Veronica added.

I looked back at the mansion, where Julian and just disappeared inside. I tried to imagine myself going to my room and trying to sleep. With the thought of that kiss in the front of my mind, sleep didn’t seem likely.

“Okay,” I said, and plopped myself down onto the soft sand on the other side of Veronica. She grabbed the bag of marshmallows and held it out for me. I accepted one and plopped it in my mouth. Ah, sugar! So sweet and delicious.

Jessica sipped at her wine. “What a night. I can’t believe Bridget got so drunk.”

“She’s probably used to being on camera,” I said. “It must have been somewhat freeing for her to not have to worry about that for a change.” Although I wished she had used her new freedom in a way that didn’t involve asking me such probing, unnecessary questions.

“Some people don’t handle freedom well,” Veronica said. “They are so unaccustomed to it, that once they have it, they have no idea what to do with it.”

“I don’t think she behaved all that terribly,” Jessica said. “I mean, sure, she probably should have switched to water for a bit there, but…” Jessica sipped at her own wine. Everyone was a little bit tipsy tonight. Maybe that made her bold. “Bridget was only asking aloud what we were all thinking.”

“I wasn’t thinking it,” Veronica said.

Jessica rolled her eyes dramatically. “Come on, Veronica. You must wonder too.”

“Wonder what?” I asked, unsure. Wait… she didn’t mean…?

“Which of the two princes do you actually love?” Jessica asked.

My body froze, while my heart began to pound wildly in my chest.

“Jessica,” Veronica said in a warning kind of way.

“Well, okay, maybe love is a bit extreme,” Jessica admitted. “That’s probably where Bridget pushed too far. But shouldn’t we know which of the two princes you are pursuing, Piper?”

I didn’t know how to answer that. My tongue felt too big for my mouth every time I tried to reply.

“They both selected you at the elimination ceremony,” Jessica said. With my continued silence, she rambled. “And Bridget wasn’t lying. You say you are dating Julian, but you are wearing Nicholas’s clothes. It just seems unfair to try to corner both at the same time. That’s all I mean…”

“She’s not after Joyce,” Veronica said, like that was all that should have mattered to Jessica. Maybe it was.

Jessica tilted her head. “True.”

Veronica gave me a questioning look. I knew what it meant. She was asking if I needed a rescue. If I needed her to, she’d likely shift the conversation away from this question and to something else that would interest Jessica enough to forget it.

But, as I thought over Jessica’s words, maybe I was being unfair to the other girls. To anyone on the outside, it certainly seemed like I was playing the field, instead of sticking in my own lane. From Jessica’s point of view, she might have right to worry that I would try to steal her prince, too.

Of course, I knew that was nonsense. Joyce was not someone I would ever want to date.

The others though…

The phantom touch of Julian’s kiss still lingered on my lips. Our friendship had seemed to cross over into something complicated, though he had said we’d never speak of it again. He was hurting tonight. Maybe in the morning, he would be back to normal and we could return to the way things were.

My feelings for Nicholas, however, were not likely to change any time soon. If I had free reign here, Nicholas was the one I would pursue. But the fact was, the cards were stacked against me from the start.

I was only in this competition to increase the viewership. I never had a chance of actually winning.

I lower my head. I don’t need Veronica to rescue me, not when the ultimate answer is so innocuous.

“None of it matters,” I said. “You know who I am. Where I come from. What I’m going back to. In the end, neither Nicholas nor Julian are going to pick me for their Luna. I imagine I’ll be going home after the next elimination ceremony.”

I was honestly surprised I had lasted this long. Jessica must have agreed, because she nodded sagely, as if I had imparted some great wisdom. Veronica continued to look at me. Though her face didn’t show it, this time I knew she was offering me pity.

Before I could say anything else, a very drunken Bridget sauntered back toward our dwindling bonfire. She was carrying a near-empty bottle of white wine in her hand. She stopped at my side, looked at the three of us sitting there, and then promptly fell down sideways into the sand.

I rushed to help her, but she pushed off my hand.

“I’m fine,” she grumbled.

“But Bridget,” I started.

“I’m fine,” she said more forcefully. Then her eyes closed, and she began to loudly snore, all while clutching the wine bottle close like a child cuddling a teddy bear in her sleep.

I lifted a brow, and looked at Veronica and Jessica.

Jessica started to laugh. “Should we draw a mustache on her face?”

Veronica and I chuckled, but we decided against it. Bridget would feel bad enough on her own when she woke up with a hangover. She didn’t need us to add to her embarrassment.

We stayed like that for a bit longer. Veronica, Jessica, and I traded marshmallows until the bag was empty. Bridget snored from the sand bed she’d made beside me.

Eventually I made my way inside. Most of the servants must have retired by now. The hallways were barren, except for a few here and there keeping watch.

The guard at my door smiled when I approached him. “Turning in for the night, Miss Piper?”

“Yes, thank you,” I said.

He started to step aside to let me enter, but then held up a gift bag into my path.

I tilted my head. “For me?”

“Yes,” he said. “Prince Nicholas left this for you. He said you would need it for a good night’s sleep.”

Eagerly, I accepted the bag and peeked inside. A change of clothes?

Oh. Pajamas.

How thoughtful.

Nicholas could have just gone to sleep without thinking of me at all. I would have been comfortable enough sleeping in this shirt, even though it had some sand on it now, and was sticky with the salty sea air. But he had thought of me. And now I would sleep comfortably because of it.

“Thank you,” I told the guard, who nodded politely.

I opened the door and entered my room. Elva was already sound asleep, so I slipped as quietly as I could into the bathroom to change.

Nicholas’s pajamas were huge on me. The elastic waistband of the pants was not tight enough to keep them from falling down my hips, so I had to hold on to keep myself covered. But the clothes smelled like Nicholas. Wearing them almost felt like being hugged by him, safe and warm.

Everyone else may wonder, but I knew.

My heart belonged to Nicholas.