When Naida took an accusative tone with him, Crow blinked confusedly. It took him a moment make the connection that she still thought he had slept with Elizabeth. He wanted to groan in frustration. It was going to take a while to undo all the damage that manipulative witch had done. He just hoped his sister would believe his word over the rumors the other nobles had been spreading about him lately. Regardless of her thoughts about him and Penelope, he wanted her to know he wasn’t that kind of man—not anymore, at least—and he didn’t want to let Liz get away with ruining his reputation among the people whose opinions he actually cared about.

He opened his mouth to respond, intending to set the record straight, but didn’t get the chance before the princess redirected the conversation to the party. Lightly biting the tip of his tongue, the viceroy tapped his index finger on the table as he waited for a chance to insert himself back into the noblewomen’s discussion. He was glad to hear that all the preparation for the party was going so well, but at the moment, he just wanted to get the uncomfortable talk about Liz over with so everyone could move on. He already had enough to worry about after learning about the mad baron from Preston. The last thing he needed was to be turned into Elizabeth’s puppet on top of that.

So, when Naida opened up the opportunity for him to speak with her mention of dance lessons, he jumped right into it. “You think I slept with that woman, don’t you?” he asked bluntly, propping his elbow on the table and pressing his cheek to his palm.

Naida shifted her weight, obviously uncomfortable with the topic but also seeming a little thrown off by his tone. Her eyes darted to Penelope briefly before she shrugged, answering him in a low voice, “Well, the night guard said he saw her leave your bedchamber in nothing but a sheet…”

“Yeah, I’ve heard the rumors from Preston,” Crow rolled his eyes. “They’re not true though. I didn’t even touch her. I’m sure she just tried to make me come off like a miscreant so the other women who’ve been after me would back off, and she would have less competition.”

“Oh,” his sister said thoughtfully. “So… you’re not interested in her?”

“Gods no,” Crow made a sour face. “She’s awful. I’d be happy if I never saw her again.”