Theo stood in his grandfather’s quarters, looking around the space. Over the past few weeks, he’d packed up Alistair’s personal effects. A few furniture pieces, items that had been in the family, would be sent to their estate in England. The rest would remain here for the new owners. Easily dealt with, the way Theo preferred it.

Selling the castle would be better for all of them in the long run. He was sure of it. Almost sure of it. He’d been sure of it when he signed the contract. Lately, he didn’t feel sure of anything, and he fucking hated it.

He headed for his office, hands shoved into the pockets of his trousers, lost in thought until he almost slammed headfirst into Colin, who was coming toward him from the direction of the kitchen.

“Sorry, sir,” the butler said, stepping off to the side.

“Colin, do you think my grandfather would have objected to me selling the castle?” He had no idea where the words came from, was just as surprised by them as Colin seemed to be.

“I think he would have supported your decision, whatever it was,” Colin answered carefully.

“He would have,” Theo agreed, “but he also would have made sure I knew about it if he thought I was making a mistake.” Alistair had never kept quiet when he felt strongly about something, one of many things that had set him apart from the rest of the family.

“Sir, may I show you something?” Colin asked, his tone hesitant.

“Of course.”

Colin led him down the hall to the theater. “There was a video created about thirty years ago, on what would have been Master Alistair and Lady Rose’s twentieth anniversary. It was converted to digital format a few years back. I’m sure you’ve seen it.”

“I have.” He remembered it vaguely, a collection of photos and video clips of his grandparents, their wedding, his father’s birth, their vow renewal in the gardens.

“Well, maybe you should see it again. In fact, I thought you might want to show it at the ball next weekend, a bit of history, don’t you think?”

“Perhaps,” Theo agreed.

Colin pulled a DVD from the cabinet along the wall and walked to the projector. A black-and-white movie began to play, and Theo immediately recognized the young faces of Alistair and Rose. His grandmother wore a long, flowing dress, her wavy hair pulled back from her face. She was laughing, holding on to Alistair’s arm as he whispered in her ear. Her laugh was infectious. It brought a smile to Theo’s face as an image of Elle flitted through his mind.

“You told me once that Elle reminded you of my grandmother,” he said.

Colin nodded. “Very much, sir. I see it more and more each day. Not so much in appearance, but in personality. And of course, the piano.”

“Right.” Theo watched the clips on the screen before him. It had been set to music, still frames and moments from their lives. Rose’s energy and enthusiasm were palpable, as was her love for Alistair, and his for her. Theo wasn’t a romantic, but he could see the love in their eyes when they looked at each other, the way their hands lingered together when they walked.

“When I see you and Miss Davenport together, I’m reminded strongly of the way it was between them,” Colin said.

Theo watched as Alistair drew Rose in for a kiss. That was what love looked like. But what did it feel like? Elle had told him she loved him. He was starting to suspect that the restless, panicked feeling that gripped his chest every time he thought about leaving meant he loved her too.

But was there any way for him to reconcile his feelings for Elle with his obligations to his family? He turned away from the screen. “Show this to Elle. I have a feeling she’ll want to find a way to use it at the ball.”

“Just let me see it.” Elle tried to keep the exasperation out of her tone as she tapped her fingers against her thighs, waiting for Ruby to come out of the dressing room.

“It’s too fancy. I just want to get that black dress I tried on first,” Ruby said from behind the curtain, a hint of petulance in her tone.

“Not until you let me see the purple one,” Elle insisted, because Theo had told them to go all out, and her friend deserved a little color in her life. Naturally, Ruby had immediately decided on a simple black dress that looked good on her, but Elle wanted her to have something that looked great, a dress that would knock the knees out from under any single men in attendance on Saturday.

With a huff, Ruby pulled the curtain back, wearing the dress Elle had picked out for her. It was a floor-length rich purple satin gown, fitted through the bust, with a flared skirt, and it was absolutely stunning on her.

“Oh, Ruby.” Elle pressed a hand to her mouth. “It’s gorgeous. It’s perfect. You have to get it.”

“It’s expensive, and it’s just not me,” Ruby said, eyeing herself in the mirror.

“Theo told us to splurge a little, and when else are we going to get the chance to dress up and attend a charity ball in a castle? The dress is gorgeous, and I think it suits you perfectly.”

“Well, maybe.” Ruby twirled the skirt in front of the mirror. “But only if you get something just as fancy…or fancier.”

“I have no problem with fancy,” Elle told her with a sly smile. On the contrary, she was elated at the chance to dress up, even if it meant the end of her time at Rosemont Castle. She was determined to go out in style. Unfortunately, she hadn’t found a dress yet that she loved.

“I don’t know.” Ruby flattened her lips, staring at her reflection.

“How about we keep looking and give you a chance to think about it?” Elle suggested, not wanting to pressure Ruby into buying a dress she wasn’t comfortable with but determined to keep their shopping momentum going.

With a nod, Ruby disappeared into the dressing room. This was the second store they’d visited, and there was one more here in Towering Pines’s downtown area that they wanted to check out before venturing farther from home. Hopefully they wouldn’t have to, because they had plenty to do at the castle this week to get ready for the event.

Theo had left for London this morning, and she already missed him like crazy.

“I wish Megan were here with us,” Ruby said as they entered the next store.

“Me too.” Elle was trying not to dwell on how much she missed Megan’s presence or how much she would have enjoyed this shopping trip and the ball itself. “But she’d want us to have fun and buy extravagant dresses, so we can’t let her down.”

Ruby rolled her eyes theatrically. The bruises and scratches on her face from the airbag had faded to the point where Elle could only see them if she specifically looked. With any luck, by Saturday, they’d be gone completely.

“Maybe we can buy her something today too and mail it to her?” Elle suggested.

Ruby smiled. “I think that’s a great idea.”

They perused the racks of dresses together, assisted by an overly helpful salesgirl who kept bringing them dresses to consider that weren’t really either of their styles.

“Oh, Elle, look at this one,” Ruby said suddenly, spinning with a champagne-colored dress in her arms. “You have to try it on.”

Elle looked at the dress and felt a bit like Ruby had in the last store. Immediately, visions of herself spinning around the ballroom in Theo’s arms started dancing through her head. “It’s gorgeous, but it’s so…formal.”

“Theo told us to splurge,” Ruby parroted her words back at her. “Go on, try it.”

“Okay, fine. But let’s find something for you to try too.”

They settled on a navy blue dress for Ruby that the salesgirl had been lugging around, hoping one of them would be interested in. In the dressing room, Elle stepped into the dress, contorting her arms to get the zipper all the way up her back.

She looked at herself in the mirror, and her heart kicked up a notch. The dress was strapless, form-fitting to mid-thigh in a pale gold material covered with glittering rhinestones before flowing to her ankles in breezy chiffon. And okay, she couldn’t help remembering the cheap theme park costume she’d worn as Princess Ariana, the one she’d been wearing when she got the call that they’d won the Almost Royal contest. It was a far cry from this dress, and maybe the reason she deserved to splurge on it, to wear something this lovely before she left the castle.

She flipped over the price tag and choked. When Theo had said to splurge, surely he hadn’t meant…

“Let me see,” Ruby said from outside the dressing room door.

Elle opened it, spinning for her friend so the rhinestones caught the light and the chiffon skirt swirled around her ankles.

Ruby nodded briskly. “Yep, that’s the one.”

Elle couldn’t argue with her. “And it’s fancier and more extravagant than the purple dress at the last store, so if I buy this one, you have to go back and get that one.”

The navy blue dress she wore now didn’t hold a candle to it, something Ruby seemed to realize because she nodded again. “You’re right.”

An hour later, they were seated at a restaurant in town, dresses and accessories stored in the car—including a beautiful coral necklace and matching pumps for Megan.

“To Megan,” Ruby said, holding up her wineglass.

“To Megan,” Elle repeated. “And a fresh start for all of us.”

“What do you think Theo’s doing in London this week?” Ruby asked.

“I don’t know.” And she’d tried not to let herself obsess about it too much. “Business, I guess. The timing is odd…unfortunate. I’m probably making too big of a deal out of it.”

“You’re not. It is odd. If he’s moving back full time next week, why couldn’t he just wait until then to take care of whatever it is?”

“It feels like he’s avoiding me because I told him I love him,” she said, taking a sip of wine to keep herself in check. “Like maybe he was afraid I was going to get clingy and needy here at the end.”

“Well, you deserve to be a little clingy,” Ruby said, “because this is something you guys have to talk about, and if he’s avoiding that conversation by spending the week in London, he’s more of a coward than I thought.”

“I don’t think he’s a coward,” Elle said. “I think he just…doesn’t know what he wants. Or he does, but he’s found himself in an impossible situation. One or both. I don’t know.”

“Either way, you still have to talk about it.”

“I know. And we will.” Because there was no way she was going to leave without having that conversation, and she truly hoped Theo wasn’t going to make it difficult for her.

When they got back to the castle, Elle couldn’t resist sending Megan a text. Miss you.

She’d tried to avoid dumping too many details on her friend, not wanting her to feel left out, but it just felt wrong not having her here, and she could only imagine how Megan was feeling about the whole thing. She’d been very quiet and subdued since the accident, and it scared Elle a little.

Miss you too, came Megan’s reply. Nothing else. No emojis.

Elle pressed her fingers against her lips. Girls’ night when we get back to Orlando?

Count on it, Megan replied.

Elle sent her a string of emojis before collapsing back on the bed, breathing past the urge to cry. After everything they’d been through at the castle, it was all going wrong here at the end. Nothing was the way it was supposed to be. And Elle had no idea how to fix it.