“Where are you off to?” he asked.

“Nowhere really. Taking a break from the Women’s Room.”

“Some of the guys are playing baseball outside, if you want to come.”

I went over to the window and, sure enough, maybe eight of the boys were out there tossing a ball.

“Where did they even get that stuff?”

“Osten.”

Of course. Osten had everything. I watched the boys roll up their pant legs and slide off their dress shoes, pushing one another jovially.

“I’ve never played baseball,” I admitted.

“All the more reason to join us.”

“Can you play?”

“I’m more of a pitcher than a hitter, but I do all right. And I’ll teach you.” Hale’s face was so genuine, I really believed he’d take care of me out there.

“Okay. But I’ll probably be rotten.”

“Since when are you rotten at anything?” he said, leading us out the doorway.

Kile was there, as were Apsel, Tavish, and Harrison. Alex was there, too, and I hated to admit that I’d been very tempted to send him back to Calgary ever since Milla blabbed to the papers. I was still considering it.

Henri was stretching next to Linde, so I instinctively looked for Erik. He was there, sitting on one of the stone benches.

“Your Highness!” Edwin called, getting my attention. “Are you here to watch?”

“No, sir. I’m here to play.”

Several of the boys clapped or cheered, though I seriously doubted any of them considered me a positive addition.

“Okay, okay,” I said loudly, raising my arms. “Just keep in mind that I need to be back inside in a few minutes, and I’ve never played before. At all. But I thought I’d give it a quick go before I get to work again.”

“You’ve got this!” Tavish assured me. “Here, give me your shoes. I’ll put them by mine.”

I slipped off my heels and placed them in his hands.

“Ugh, these are heavy. How do you lift your feet?”

“Strong calves?”

He laughed and carried my shoes to the side.

“All right, Eadlyn’s up first then,” Kile insisted.

I had a general understanding of how the game worked. Three outs, four bases. What I was lost on were the mechanics.

Hale was standing out in the middle of the diamond, practicing his pitches with Apsel. Raoul, who was going to be catching, came up behind me.

“Here’s what you need to do,” he said. He had a thick Hispanic accent, but his instructions were nice and clear. “You grab the bat here and here.” He demonstrated, clutching the bat firmly toward the bottom. “Legs apart, and keep your back foot dug into the grass, okay?”

“Okay.”

“Just watch the ball.”

“Watch the ball . . . all right.”

Raoul passed me the bat, which weighed much more than I expected. “Good luck.”

“Thanks.”

I stood at the makeshift base, trying to do everything Raoul had told me to. I supposed if Hale was pitching, then he and I were on different teams. All the same, he was grinning when he saw me in my stance.

“It’ll come in slow, okay?”

I nodded.

He threw the ball, and I swung well above it. The same thing happened the second time. I wasn’t sure what happened with the third, but I ended up spinning around.

Hale laughed and so did Raoul, and while I typically would have felt embarrassed, this didn’t seem too bad.

“Eadlyn! Eadlyn!”

I recognized my mother’s voice instantly, and I faced the open windows of the Women’s Room. Everyone was there, and I waited for her to order me back inside.

“Get them!” she yelled. “Hit it!”

Aunt May raised her arms in the air. “Go, Eady!”

The rest of the girls joined in, shouting and clapping. I laughed and turned back to Hale. He gave me a nod. I returned it, gripping the bat.

I finally connected with the ball, sending it low and to the left. I shrieked, dropped the bat so I could pick up my dress, and bolted to the first base.

“Go, Eady, go!” Kile screamed.

I saw Henri chasing the ball, so I headed to the second base, watching him the whole time. I wasn’t going to make it. Impulsively I lunged, falling into the base.

I beat him!

Everyone erupted. It wasn’t even still my turn, and it wasn’t like I’d won, but it felt huge. Suddenly, Edwin lifted me up off the ground and hugged me, swinging me around.

Moments later, Mom and Josie and all the other ladies were outside, slipping off their shoes and demanding a turn.

Someone alerted Dad and my brothers to the game, and Kaden showed everyone what a superior athlete he was. Mom and Dad stood off to the side, arms around each other. The Selected boys patted one another on the back, and Ahren snuck away with Camille, kissing her every step of the way.

“Go, Henri!” I yelled when he came up to bat. Erik sneaked up beside me and joined in.

We were both a little too dignified to jump around, but we pumped our fists in the air.

“Isn’t this great?” I said. “I love that he can just play without worrying about words.”

“Me, too,” Erik agreed. “And I can’t believe you hit that ball!”

I laughed. “I know! It was completely worth getting my dress dirty for.”

“Agreed. Is there anything you can’t do?” he teased.

“Plenty,” I said, soberly thinking over my many faults.

“Like what?”

“Umm . . . speak Finnish?”

He laughed. “Okay. So one thing. That’s forgivable.”

“What about you?”

Erik looked around. “I couldn’t run a country.”

I waved my hand. “Trust me, if I can learn to do it, anybody could.”

Mom rushed up, embracing me. “This was a great idea.”

“The boys did it,” I explained. “I happened to be in the right place to get an invitation.”

I looked past her, watching Dad walk up to the plate.

“Go, Daddy, go!”

He lifted his arm, pointing into the distance, and Mom shook her head. “Not gonna happen,” she mumbled.

As she guessed, he completely struck out. We clapped for him anyway, celebrating as the game continued on, with no one keeping score.

For just one moment we were happy. My family and friends swarmed around me, laughing and clapping and enjoying the sun. Mom wrapped me up in another hug, kissing my head and telling me how proud she was of my hit—though I didn’t even try again the whole time. Osten ran in circles, disrupting things and making everyone laugh. Josie had stolen one of the boys’ dress shirts and was wearing it open over her dress, looking silly and completely delighted.

It was a bubble of pure joy.

There were no cameras around to capture it, no reporters to tell the world about it. And for some reason, that made it so much better.

CHAPTER 32

I WANTED TO LIVE IN that place, to forget about all the worries hanging over my family, threatening to drop at any moment. But the peace was gone by dinner. Some of the Selected boys who missed out on the game were complaining that they should have been told about it. The ones who were present, they claimed, had gotten an unfair amount of additional face time with me, and they were asking for some sort of group date for them.

They elected Winslow to tell me this, and he stood in front of me with puppy dog eyes relaying the collective dejection of the group. We were outside the dining hall, where he caught me as I was heading back to my room.

“We’re simply asking for another group date to keep things fair.”

I rubbed my temple. “It wasn’t exactly a date. There was no planning involved, and my family was with me for most of it, including my younger brothers.”

“We understand that, and we’re willing to do any planning if you’ll agree to come.”

I sighed, frustrated. “How many people would it be exactly?”

“Only eight. Ean asked not to be included.”

I smirked to myself. Of course Ean wanted nothing to do with a bunch of boys grumbling about more time. It made me wonder if I should go grab him right now for a date simply to make a point. I suspected he’d hoped for just that.