To Court a Queen.pdf

that. I’m sure when he does finally leave he’ll forget all about me.”“Why would you say that?” Tenel Ka asked.“Because, he could have his pick of beautiful women, why in the Galaxy would he want to be with me?You’ve seen all of those holo-messages of goodwill that keep arriving to him. One after anothercontains a message from women who are more beautiful than the next. I am plain, even with mymakeover, it takes a lot of work to make me presentable,” Nastya complained, sinking further down inthe chair.Leaning forward, Tenel Ka stared hard at her cousin, she explained, “I think you might be surprised,Nastya. While he and I were going through the motions of that stupid ritual, he explained to me that hewas tired of beautiful women who threw themselves at him, who all wanted nothing more than to beassociated with his riches. In his ramblings about you, he mentioned that he likes your sweetness, andthat you never once ask him about his wealth.”Heart slamming in her chest, Nastya squeaked, “He thinks I’m sweet?”Flashing Nastya a rare grin Tenel Ka admitted, “This is a fact.”Gulping hard, Nastya’s vision slightly swam. “I’m going to be sick, I think.”“You are not getting sick on my wedding day!” Tenel Ka ordered with a smile.“Yes, Queen Mother,” Nastya quipped and launched to her feet. Peering out into the living room, sheadded, “Looks like the makeup and hair artisans are here, we’d better go get ready.”“This is a fact, you need to get beautiful for Brukos,” Tenel Ka teased as she walked towards the door.Sighing deeply, her cousin replied, “I think all eyes will be on you, not me.”Hooking her arm around Nastya’s shoulder, Tenel Ka stated, “Trust me when I say, not all eyes will beon me.”Nastya felt very glad to have her cousin’s arm around her shoulder, for she believed that had Tenel Kanot been supporting her, she might’ve collapsed in sheer terror. She groaned, “Great. Last time Ichecked the bridesmaid wasn’t supposed to be more nervous than the bride.”Tenel Ka then did something entirely out of character, she laughed.****************************************On the other side of the Palace, Anakin nervously paced his quarters. He scolded himself for feeling theslightest bit worried, after all, they both wanted to be married, desperately. Without the added pressureof cameras, Anakin reasoned that he shouldn’t be experiencing any pangs of anxiety. His stomachcontinued to writhe in complete protest to his thoughts.Sighing deeply, Anakin inhaled a deep, calming breath and attempted to connect with the Force tocontrol his nerves. Failing miserably, he jumped as his doors hissed open. Riding a custom made, ultra