Page 35 of Ira

“You don’t have to,” I replied sharply. “I haven’t slept with anyone since I’ve moved here and no one has suggested that I should.”

“What’s the point of you being here then?”

I felt my eye twitch. “I grow the vegetables.”

Jade nodded, apparently satisfied by that answer. “I guess that’s helpful. I’ll make sure the others are fine with you working in the garden. I’m sure it’ll be fine. And Patrick will probably want to help you—he’s bored and restless.”

“He’s more than welcome to.”

Jade gave me one last lingering look. “The queen keeps visiting us, trying to make friends.”

“Ophelia is very friendly.”

“Tell her we’d rather you come instead.”

And with that, she closed the door in my face.

“Hey,” Ophelia said, touching my arm gently to catch my attention in the dining hall after dinner. “We haven’t had a wine-and-cheese night in a while—we could round up the others and commandeer a sitting room for a bit if you’re free? Tallulah, Verity, and Austin are all here tonight, and that never happens.”

“Sure, I’m free.”

“Perfect! Do you want to grab Iris and Verity and I’ll find the others?”

I agreed, following Ophelia’s instructions and leading the other two—with Tilly accompanying Iris, of course—to one of the sitting rooms on the first floor. By the time we arrived, there were bottles of wine and goblets set out for all of us, as well as a spread of cheese, crackers, and cakes along the center of the coffee table. The perks of being queen, I guess—if you wanted to throw a spontaneous party, you could just make it happen.

“Come in, come in,” Ophelia said, fluttering around the room like a butterfly, shooing her sister out of the way so Iris couldhave the seat with room at her legs for Tilly. “Oh my gosh, it’s so nice to see you all.”

“We didn’t invite Cora?” Tallulah asked tentatively as she sat down next to me, adjusting her position a few times to accommodate her swelling belly.

While Cora had opted to stay in the shadow realm after her brother’s betrayal, she’d withdrawn from public life here almost completely. She was pretty similar in age to Jade, and I wondered if they’d bonded at all since they were both living in Elverston House.

“I tried,” Astrid replied with a shrug. “She didn’t want to come.”

Ophelia narrowed her eyes at her sister. “How did you ask, though? Was it nice?”

“I’m always nice,” Astrid deadpanned, somewhat gently shoving Austin’s leg out of the way so she could sit down.

“You’re in a cheery mood,” he snorted, already a couple of pastries deep.

“I’m cheerier now that you’re not manspreading all over the couch.”

Ophelia massaged her temples, and I poured her a goblet of wine.

“I imagine Cora is struggling a little,” I volunteered, handing Ophelia her drink. “With everything that happened with her brother… Well, that must have been challenging. And the new residents of Elverston House are suspicious as it is, I’m not sure she’d have made any friends there. Cora is also from quite a respectable Hunter family, and they’ve not had good experiences with those…” I trailed off, realizing everyone was staring.

“You know,” Austin began conversationally. “That’s the most words I’ve heard you say in a row ever.”

“It’s hard to get any in edgewise when you’re around,” I replied mildly, slightly miffed that he’d called me out.

Austin laughed, unoffended as always. It took a lot to ruffle him.

“I’d like Cora to move into the palace, but I guess there are some security concerns about that,” Ophelia mused.

“Very reasonable ones,” Astrid added under her breath.

Jade’s words from earlier floated into my mind and I cleared my throat awkwardly. “I went to Elverston House earlier to ask if they were okay with me still working in the garden out front.”

Astrid narrowed her eyes. “They better be.”

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