Page 30 of Frost and Death
Maybe I shouldn’t.
“Who is he? What does he look like? Is he a nobleman? From another kingdom?” Her brown eyes glimmer at the prospect of details.
I wave off her questions as I pour a glass of water, eating a snack to help my cramps be more manageable during tonight’s event. I might need to sneak away through the night for another dose of medicine.
“I don’t think I should tell you.”
Her posture stiffens and she braces her hands on her hips. “Why not?”
I finish my snack and rest at my vanity.
There is kohl on the left side, meant for lining the eyes. I can never master it and always need Betina’s assistance, but it doesn’t hurt to practice.Especiallyas I withhold information from my friend.
I reach for the kohl and direct my attention to it rather than my own reflection staring back.
She repeats herself. “Why won’t you tell me?”
Her nose wrinkles near her eyes, her cheeks bunching together in a perfectly annoyed face.
I almost break into a fit of laughter, peering over to meet her doe eyes. “Because I have no doubt you if you saw him, you would chase after him yourself.”
She clicks her tongue. “That’s no fair.”
I snicker, choosing to keep him a secret.
Betina rolls her eyes at my deceit, still approaching to help style my hair. The soft tug on my scalp has kohl dragging across my eye. Now it is her turn to laugh.
“Don’t worry. I’ll fix it later,” she says.
She swivels me around after finishing my hair, fixing my eyes, and adding rouge on my cheeks and lips, matching mygown. When she finishes, she grips my shoulders with a gleam in her eyes.
“Dress next.”
I nod as she helps me change, apprehension looming over me as the gown drapes out across the floor. The thought of keeping up with royal appearances, avoiding Niko, and managing my cycle makes my skin crawl.
How am I going to avoid Niko all night?
Will any of the noblemen slip in maintaining protocol like I often do?
Stepping one foot at a time into the dress, my thoughts drift toward the scarred man and his easy mannerisms. It hints that he could be from a neighboring kingdom, but which one?
I wonder if he will be here again tonight.
I press the bodice of my gown to my chest as Betina fastens the laces into place. When she finishes, she claps with glee.
“You are going to be the center of attention tonight. No one will be able to keep their eyes off you.” Betina twirls me toward the mirror, and I gasp at my outfit for the night.
Stepping closer and inspecting its intricacies, I marvel at how the gown complements my curves and feels lightweight. I run my hands all over the soft fabric and look at my image in the mirror, and a dark thought chimes in my mind.
This dress is going to leave men imagining.
If they even want to fantasize about being married to the Snow Queen.
I flinch at the imaginary ice cracking around me, a rumbling thunder echoing in my heart. My attention remains on the gown, reluctant to face the monster staring back.
The moment Betina places my crown on my head, it pinches above my ears, a figurative transformation taking deep root. Betina regards me carefully and extends her elbow to me.
I tilt my chin and latch on to her in a death grip as we make our way from my chambers and down to the ballroom, relying on her support with each step.
