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I spend the day with Livvy and Sarah getting beautified, a perk of living at the royal residence where the glamor squad makes palace calls Our hair is washed and blown out, our nails are filed and painted, we’re waxed and plucked within an inch of our lives And then, at seven sharp, we rand palace staircase for pictures

Sarah wears a red strapless ball gown, stunning, with her hair pinned up in countless shiny curls Henry, looking strikingly handsome in a formal tuxedo with tails, can’t take his eyes off her

Olivia, with her big, round, beautiful belly, looks gorgeous in an eown paired with simple--and cushiony--nude flats Nicholas insisted, because he didn’t want her feet to hurt

The palace has corapher, Jillian Sabal, to take posed and candid shots of the royal faoes to voicerows as pictures are taken at the staircase without hi While he wouldn’t have been included in the portrait shots, I thought we’d get to take one or two pictures of just

Where is he?

Then it’s ti without hi in e lately, strained and unhappy There’s a tiny whisper of worry thathappened to him, an accident or an injury--but deep down I know that’s not true

I text hi desperate because this is Logan--we don’t play games At least, I didn’t think we did

I watch the ballroo he’ll appear, because I’, when the white-gloved waiters serve the perfect, elegantly plated dinner, that rates and er

Because Logan isn’t co

When we pull up to the house, it seeh he has electricity now There’s a black SUV in the driveway that belongs to the security guards, and two guys I don’t recognize sit inside the vehicle They nod to James as he closes the car door behind me When he moves to lead me up the path, I stop him, because I don’t want an audience for this

I find hi in the dark, at the table we found at a flea o His shirt is open, unbuttoned, and a black tuxedo tie hangs loose around his neck

And I don’t knohat I feel, because it’s like I feel everything at once For the first tiel has a broken wing And I want to mend him, save him the way he’s always saved me I want to love him until he feels found

But there are other e of huan?"

He doesn’t look at me, but just continues to stare hard at the half-empty bottle of liquor in front of him

"I’h to s around him "That’s not true That could never be true"

He lifts his finger, correcting me "I would’ve felt like a fool if I’d shown up to the fancy ball with you tonight"

"Why?"

He raises his hand toward the door "It’s in all the papers I’ the princess’s sister to becouards aroundmyself Or you"

"I don’t care what they say, and neither should you They lie They lie all the time about Nicholas and Olivia and Henry They’ve lied about me too--you know that"

He shakes his head "It feels different to be the person they’re lying about All I ever wanted was to be a part of so now"

I try not to flinch Because he doesn’t see that he’s a part of ht with it," I remind hined up for when you caht"

I hate how my voice sounds--whiney and immature

"It’s not just about that It’s also about you The Queen was right, Ellie"

"Right about what?"