Prince Robert shifted from foot to foot. He looked at his reflection in the gilt mirror and quickly looked away. The two frightful maidens in black simpered and giggled as they backed him into a corner. Robert held his smile in place and absently picked a piece of lint off his sleeve.

What are they talking about? he wondered. The shrill din of a hundred women’s voices deafened him. He backed up another step and was trapped in an archway.

Suddenly, blessedly, the room grew quiet. A hundred well-dressed heads turned in the same direction, watching a girl walk down the staircase.