It didn’t matter now. King Andreas had been dead for over a year. And today she was returning on her own terms—to surprise her sister.
Jade was the ruler of Monrova now. Jade with her serene sweetness and her full open heart. Jade who loved her enough not to see Juno’s many faults.
Juno huffed out a laugh as she took the final bend in the path and spotted the wrought-iron gate she had been looking for.
Bingo.
She was coming home for Christmas and nothing—not memories of Leo’s brutal rejection or her father’s final punishment or even her own impressive ability to screw up on a regular basis—could stop her.
All she had to do now was get to her sister’s suite of rooms in the palace’s West Wing—where she knew Jade would be chillaxing before tonight’s Winter Ball—without being spotted by the royal staff.
And for that, she had a cunning plan.
Twenty minutes later Juno approached her sister’s suite, astonished her plan—to pretend to be the Queen—had actually worked.
Decorated in garlands of fir and holly and red and gold satin ribbons and sprinkled with fairy lights, the ornate salons and sitting rooms she passed looked magical and mysterious dressed in their Christmas finery, the way she remembered them as a child.
The scents familiar from her last Christmas at the palace as an eight-year-old—fresh pine sap, wax polish and cinnamon—seared her lungs, but she refused to let the wave of nostalgia derail her.
Reaching the suite she had once shared with her sister, she opened the door.
Every one of her fondest memories slammed into her as she spied her sister, sitting on an antique Chesterfield sofa in front of a roaring fire reading a novel. Jade’s vibrant hair, so like Juno’s own, haloed around her head, the cascade of chestnut curls lit by the lights from the expertly decorated tree in the corner of the room.
‘Jade,’ she said, her voice a rasp of emotion.
Her sister’s head lifted. ‘Juno?’ she whispered. ‘You’re... You’re here?’
The hope and longing in Jade’s tone wrapped around Juno’s heart. And joy blindsided her.
‘Yes, but keep your voice down, I’m here incognito.’
A bright smile ripped across Jade’s face as Juno’s demure sister dumped the book on the floor and leapt out of her chair.
Juno’s heart pounded so hard and fast it hurt, as her sister flung her arms around her. She absorbed the comforting scent of vanilla, for the first time in what felt like for ever. Tears stung her eyes and she hugged her twin back, as tight as she could.
Their shared laughter echoed off the luxury furnishings and seemed to make the fire in the hearth and the sprinkle of lights on the tree burn brighter.
I’m really home, at last.
‘It’s so, so good to have you here. Finally.’ Jade laughed and tucked her feet under her butt as they settled together on the sofa.
Her sister seemed ridiculously pleased to see her, but Juno noticed Jade was thinner than she remembered her, and even more serene. Perhaps too serene, her calm reserve more ingrained—almost like a shield.
‘It’s good to be here,’ Juno said, and meant it.
‘How long can you stay? Please say you can attend the Winter Ball tonight? I’m sure we can find you a gown. It’ll be so much more fun with you there. Do you need food? Tea? Wine? Champagne?’ Jade asked, her excitement as infectious as her grin as she reached for the smart device used to summon the palace staff.
‘No!’ Juno lurched forward to stop her sister. ‘Let’s wait to tell them I’m here. That’s why I sneaked in. I wanted to surprise you, but I thought we could spend some alone time before everything goes nuts.’
‘Wait a minute... Do you mean no one knows you’re here?’ Jade put down the keypad. ‘How did you manage that? Perhaps I should have a word with my Chief of Security.’
‘Simple.’ Juno wiggled her eyebrows. ‘I snuck in via our secret entrance, then I just pretended to be you.’
‘You’re joking?’ Jade pressed her fingers to her lips.
‘Not joking, it worked like a charm too.’
‘Juno you are unbelievable,’ her sister said, astonishment turning to admiration. ‘And you haven’t changed a bit.’