The King's Unbreakable Wife-Chapter 56: Surprise (2)

Jasmine looked around at the other women who snickered, trying to guess the reason behind why they stared at her as if Hazel had said something amusing. "You fail in trying to insult someone. If not for the queen coming, I would give you a lesson in how to fight with your words. Today we will witness how the queen does it."

Jasmine had no reason to continue to poke around at Hazel with the queen coming and the prince right behind her. There was going to be a good show today. One that she would thoroughly enjoy to the very end.

The women rushed to find their seats, all trying to get close to the head of the table where they believed the prince and queen would sit. Time was ticking and there weren’t many days left to get what they came for. Their competitiveness grew as the days went on.

Tabitha inspected the well-decorated table as she entered the garden. Her seat was empty, but today, she was going to sit elsewhere because her target was at the other end.

Tobias returned to the palace not long ago and avoided his parents until now. Tabitha did not get the chance to explain herself or have a heart-to-heart moment with him before they came here so they would be on the same page.

Hazel felt her heart skip when the queen and prince wouldn’t stop walking and came to the end of the table where she sat. The others were fighting over trying to sit at the other end so there were empty chairs for the queen to use.

Hazel stood up, not to leave the seat she had picked, but to greet the two with a curtsy.

Tabitha’s lips curled into a smile because, unlike the others Hazel had gotten out of her shock to properly greet her. If she could just get a hold of Hazel and remove some of the rebellious side Hazel had like Tobias this could work.

Tabitha couldn’t have Tobias be rebellious and Hazel the same way because she needed one to listen to her when she saw that either their marriage was going wrong or they needed schooling about the kingdom so they would be better rulers.

There was no way Tabitha could control Tobias after they mend their relationship so Hazel was the next best thing. If they give Tobias the woman he wants, he might look to be in the palace more. Hopefully, Tobias would settle down because she worried about his wandering eyes.

Tabitha took a seat at the other head of the table with Tobias’s help. Regardless of how angry she was with him, she could put that aside now that he was helping her. He was still her sweet son.

Tobias took a seat to the right of his mother. He had the perfect view of Hazel from where he sat, but he didn’t try to look her way. He wanted to worry her to see just how much she missed that he was not around last night.

He would have liked for them to go right into picking who would get to walk around with him instead of sitting down. Tobias wanted to know what Hazel thought of the flowers. They had almost cost him a ride with Edgar because he had to rush to pick them out and then find a guard he trusted to deliver them.

"You can sit Hazel and all the others should quickly find a seat," said Tabitha.

Tabitha wanted this over quickly so she could have her talk with Tobias. He would be happy to know that she was going to send the others away so she could talk with Hazel, Helena, and Tobias.

Hazel briefly looked at the other end of the table. Those who assumed they were closest to the queen were now far away. Helena sat near the middle but she was not close to the queen. Hazel would love nothing more than to trade seats with her sister.

"I apologise for last night. The prince took care of his health so he could be here with all of you today. The selection will soon be over though it just began so we can’t waste any more days. Again, two women will be picked to be with me and the prince this morning," Tabitha explained the first event. "This is your time to impress us before we pick."

"There is something that I need all of you to listen closely to. When it comes to the gossip said among you, unless you have the full story, do not come to me with it. I know all of you must be concerned about why Hazel wasn’t around the group. There was a misunderstanding," Tabitha said, prepping her lie to fix what happened.

"At the ball, my son had not only asked Helena for a dance. I’ve learned that he went to Hazel only to be turned down. To avoid stealing her sister’s spotlight and having their relationship ruined by more comparisons, Hazel wanted to wait for another to dance with my son before accepting his offer. I admire that she thought of her sister first. You should be happy to have such a sister, Helena," Tabitha said, looking further down the table at Helena.

Helena was hardly prepared for attention to come to her. Just as she wasn’t prepared for what happened at the ball to be spoken of. Now she was not so special and Hazel was getting all the praise. "I am thankful for an older sister like her," Helena said.

"I must offer my apologies to Hazel for sending her to her room, but it did some good that she didn’t have to listen to stories of what everyone thought happened. She did not think highly of herself and thought a dance with the prince was not worth her time. Please stop those lies," Tabitha said, staring at Jasmine who was the source.

Hazel didn’t feel appreciative of what the queen was doing because it felt like a show was put on to save someone and it wasn’t her the queen wanted to help.

Hazel couldn’t help looking Tobias’s way because it must have something to do with him. She found it strange that he wouldn’t look her way even just for a short glance, but she soon came to regret wanting him to acknowledge her.

Hazel’s hands slipped from her lap to the sides of her chair to grip it because of someone’s foot touching her own. There was no need to take a long guess on who was playing with her foot under the table.

This time, instead of stepping on her shoe, Tobias was more gentle as he moved his shoe along the side of her foot. Luckily, her dress was perfectly placed when she sat down. The thickness of the end of her dress helped her not to feel too much of his shoe, but it still made her feel tingly.

"Are you alright?" Linda whispered to Hazel. She worried Hazel might dislike the conversation about her when she wanted to avoid speaking about the ball.

"I am fine," Hazel replied, slowly moving her feet back to be away from Tobias, but as she saw him move around in his seat, she knew this was not the end.