Page 42 of The Wicked Prince

Two down.

One left before the day of Robin’s birthday and the ball that night.

While John had been doing everything not to raise Robin’s suspicions, with three major secrets, it wasn’t surprising she was suspicious of at least one of them.

“There’s been a lot of people arriving at the castle this week. Nobles, right? I confess, I don’t remember much about the other noble families.”

“They get bored during winter. Come here to pester me. For the last few years it was about how I was doing nothing about the notorious Robin Hood stealing all across their lands. This year they get their revenge; they get to drive you as crazy as you drove them.”

Robin had groaned and thrown herself back into her paperwork. Not five minutes later, John left her in the study, summoned by the Sheriff. When John saw what the Sheriff had for him, he started grinning and he couldn’t stop.

A man that looked like a bear had been caught. He hadn’t even gotten anywhere close to the castle. He’d been spotted in the marketplace. A man his size couldn’t really hide or sneak.

John only remembered this one’s name because its spelling was a mockery of his own.

Little Jon.

Like there was anything little about him.

They were taken and released well outside the city the morning of the ball and Robin’s birthday. Every road back into Lathe was closed. The castle gates were closed after they left and weren’t going to open until the next morning.

John could not focus on a single piece of paper in front of him, even though he was assured there would be no attempts to steal his wife from him. Now that hewasso assured, he was left to fear said wife’s reaction to the ball he was throwing.

She hadn’t made any mention of her birthday, nor had she acted any differently that day than any other. He could only assume that she believed he didn’t know her birthday. Honestly, he would have thought she’d go through life assuming he knew whatever there was to know about her, given how many times it had been her downfall.

But it was a mistake he was glad she was prone to making because it meant she was absolutely bewildered when her handmaids collected her from the study in the early afternoon and made off with her. Those girls worked very hard to make her look like a royal despite Robin’s best efforts otherwise.

When John abandoned the work he wasn’t getting done to begin his own preparations, the second he shut his door behind him, he heard,“John!”

There was a rustling sound coming from Robin’s room and the far softer sound of one of her handmaids saying something John couldn’t make out.

John called out with a smirk, “Yes, Little Birdie?”

“I’m going to kill you!”

He laughed. “No, you’re not!”

Once he was dressed, he waited for her outside her door, heart pounding in his chest. He didn’t think she would actually kill him, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to give him an earful about it.

When her door opened, she stormed out of it, mouth open, looking like she was ready to tear into him when she froze. John went completely still as well at the sight of her. Her ballgown was a deep forest green with gold brocade and detailing over the fitted bodice that hugged her figure. It had short, off-the-shoulder sleeves that nestled perfectly in the curve of her bicep, showing off her archer’s arms that he rarely got to see now that he’d had her training clothes replaced for winter. Her old outfit that had showed her arms had more than once been distraction enough for her to take his feet right out from under him. Her hair was pulled up and back with the green jeweled pins complementing her dark blonde hair perfectly, and her tiara—that he knew she hadn’t worn since their marriage—was set securely on her head.

It was better than he had imagined.

“You’re wearing green,” Robin finally said, and he realized she’d been gawking at him as much as he had her.

He was. He’d had their outfits designed to match. It was their first official function since their marriage. There’d been functions, but none since he and Robin had started working together since she was so against them. And he hadn’t been stupid enough to try to convince her to attend any before then. He only attended for his reputation’s sake.

“Is that a problem?”

“You don’t wear green.” Robin stepped out of her room farther, her skirts rustling as she did so. “You wear purple and gold. Sometimes silver. Occasionally red or dark blue. But you don’t wear green.”

“Clearly I do because I am.”

How strange though… that she’d been paying that close attention to him.

“You wearpurple,” Robin said it like the emphasis on it alone would magically change the color of his clothes. He heard what she didn’t say, though. Green was her color.

He held his arm out to her and said, “Tonight I’m wearing green. Now, shall we get on with it so I can explain myself and avoid being brutally murdered by you in my sleep tonight?”

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