Chapter 61

Olivia’s words struck through me like a fatal blow. I didn’t deserve to be here. I knew that. Everyone knew that.

But it wasn’t because I had loose morals or a child. It was simply because they were nobility, all prim and proper, and I was a shadow of my former self. A wolf-less waitress, just trying to get by.

I had no right to waste the princes’ time.

They didn’t know that I wasn’t here for romance. I had no intention of marrying any prince. I just wanted medical care for Elva, and to find my wolf.

I couldn’t tell them that, though, so I kept it all bundled up inside of me, buried down into the deepest part of myself.

Let them think whatever they wanted. They would anyway, no matter what I said.

Olivia sneered, smug like she’d won a victory here.

Yet before she or I or anyone else could say another word, Nathan tapped onto his microphone and drew all of our gazes up to the lifted platform.

“Congratulations again, on surviving the first round of eliminations,” he said.

Now that the other girls’ attentions had been waylaid, I noticed as I looked around that the room did feel more spacious. Even the girls who had mocked me had been much less than the typical number.

We were only down from 25 to 15, yet the difference felt like more.

“However,” Nathan continued, “The competition must continue, and therefore we will begin preparations for the next challenge you will face. This time you will each be playing hostess to the royal family for a garden party.”

I tried to think what that would entail, but I didn’t participate in any garden parties at the academy. The other girls, however, seemed like they would burst in excitement. They eagerly whispered to each other with wide smiles on their faces.

Nathan cleared his throat to silence them.

“You will each be given your own table to serve a drink and a selection of hors d'oeuvres. You will be judged on your outfit and hosting abilities, as well as the presentation and taste of the food.”

Now, food I could do. With my restaurant experience, I knew a bit about food and how to plate it. I would need to ask Charlotte for her help on the outfit though. As for hosting… maybe Susie could give me some impromptu lessons.

I glanced around for Charlotte, and saw her standing in the back of the room, far away from the others. She really did seem to hate crowds. This whole competition must have been miserable for her.

With her help and Charlotte’s, I felt confident that I could succeed in this challenge. I had to, for Elva’s sake, and for that of my wolf. I didn’t want to win this choosing game, but I wanted to stay in the running for as long as I could.

With a challenge like this, everything should come together.

“Now for the twist,” Nathan said, silencing the room once more.

My stomach sunk down to the ground. Trepidation crept along my spine.

“You are to host together, two to a table. Pairs will be selected at random.”

A simultaneous gasp filled the room, then everyone began chattering at once.

“Ladies! Ladies, please! Your attention.” Once Nathan had it, he continued, “The Luna must always maintain poise and perfection even under such duress as having to cooperate with an adversary.”

That quieted everyone in a hurry, stifling their outrage. If the Luna would handle this with grace, then they had to too, or risk scoring low.

I didn’t particularly care what a Luna would or wouldn’t do. But even I recognized that I would have to emulate her diplomatic nature if I had any hope of continuing to survive here.

“I will now assign the pairs,” Nathan said. A servant handed him a clipboard.

I glanced back at Susie. Looking at me, she crossed her fingers. If we could somehow manage to be together, that would be most ideal.

But no. Too quickly, Susie was called to be paired with someone else.

“Next we have Piper…”

I sucked in a breath. My remaining options weren’t great, but hopefully I wouldn’t be paired with –

“And Linda.”

In the kitchen, Linda and I glared at each other. We were supposed to be going through the offered cookbooks, searching for the finger foods of our choice, but neither of us had touched them yet.

Other girls around us were chattering and laughing, working together as intended.

When I reached for one of the books, Linda scoffed, “You would.”

“What’s your problem?” I snapped, unable to stand the tension anymore.

Linda had all the cards here, since she knew my secrets. I didn’t know why she had to push it further by being such a roadblock in the challenge. Didn’t she understand that if we butted heads here, it would only look bad for us?

Crossing her arms, she didn’t seem to care. “My only problem is that I’m being forced to work alongside you, the absolute embarrassment of the competition.”

“I have always held my own.”

“It makes me wonder now, knowing what I know. I wouldn’t be surprised if he conspired to keep you here.”

By he, she clearly meant Nicholas, though she wasn’t willing to use his name, probably in case someone overheard.

I lowered my head a bit because, well, she wasn’t wrong exactly. Mark had given me the hint to help me win favor with the ambassador, and both Julian and Nicholas had lied about me killing the boar.

Maybe I truly wasn’t here on my own merits. The thought gave me no comfort at all.

“I can tell you are realizing I’m right,” Linda said. “How naïve of you, if you hadn’t realized it before. I don’t know what he wants from you, Piper, though I can guess. But even you can’t be so foolish as to think you’ll actually win this competition.”

I knew what she thought Nicholas really wanted from me. The same thing everyone else thought too. Sex.

What negative opinions they had of their princes to assume they’d only kept me around for carnal pleasures. Didn’t they expect their husbands to be as virtuous as them? Or did they expect any love affairs to stop once the marriage took place?

Or worse, did they simply not care one way or the other?

Some of the girls, many who had survived the elimination had made their previous opinions known. They didn’t care which prince they ended up with, they just wanted to be Luna. If they were so single-minded in that goal, would they be willing to overlook infidelity?

How… sad.

I hoped I was never that desperate for anything, that I would overlook my partner’s betrayal.

What was worse, at least for me, was that Linda had assumed all this of Nicholas, who was easily the kindest, most loyal man I had ever met. Julian, perhaps, I could see bending the rules with a cruel smirk and pretty words, but never Nicholas.

When we had dated, I had trusted him implicitly. It had never even crossed my mind that he would cheat. It was simply impossible. We had been dedicated to each other.

But this idea of him that Linda had, an insatiable man who kept his old fling around just to sleep with her, was so outlandish that it was worthy of pity.

I did pity her. She had so few good qualities of her own that she could only hope to win through blackmail and mockery.

“You don’t know anything,” I said.

Her eyes flashed dangerously.

“I know enough,” she said.

And it was a threat.