“Goodness!” Julia said, as she stepped into one of the elegant living rooms later that morning where Shantra was meeting with some of the palace staff. “What a fine morning for a ride!”
Shantra smiled apologetically at the palace housekeeping director. “Julia, if you could excuse Milly and I, we’re in the middle of a meeting.”
Julia laughed and plunked down on one of the elegant sofas, ignoring the fact that she was covered with dust and her riding boots smelled a bit like horse manure. “Oh, maybe I can help. You’re very new to this role, while Milly and I have been dealing well with each other for several years now. What’s the issue?”
Shantra looked over at the older woman and noticed that her facial features had closed up with Julia’s entrance. There was no love lost between these two people and Shantra could imagine why. “I think I have it handled, but thank you for your offer.”
Once again, Julia ignored Shantra and leaned forward. “Milly, I think you need to change out Shantra’s personal maid.” Turning to look at Shantra, she sighed. “Shantra really should have her hair cut. Her cheeks are…well, they are a bit too round for long hair, don’t you think?”
Shantra’s hand whipped up to her hair. She’d never thought she had chubby cheeks before. “My hair is fine,” she asserted, pulling her hand away and refusing to be self-conscious about herself again this morning. “Please excuse us.”
Julia ignored Shantra and kept talking to the housekeeping director. “Yes, definitely a shorter hair style. And her clothes really should be a bit more elegant, don’t you think? Perhaps a personal shopper could come and discuss something to help with Shantra’s style.”
Shantra was furious! No one dared to question her clothing choices! She was excellent at fashion, and she put her foot down when someone tried to question her sense of style. “That’s enough, Julia! You are not invited to this meeting and are unwelcome. Please excuse yourself.”
Julia pulled back as if she were offended. “Shantra, someone has to tell you these things before the critics outside the palace say something,” she told her.
Shantra breathed in deeply, trying to calm herself down. Turning to the housekeeping director, she smiled as politely as possible under the circumstances. “I apologize for Julia’s inappropriate comments. We’ll continue our discussion at another time.”
With that, she stood up and walked away, ignoring Julia’s abrasive, “You know I’m right,” as she walked out the door.
Shantra once again walked into her design room and slammed the door, furious that she’d let the woman get to her once again. But then she passed a mirror and looked at her cheeks. Were they chubby? Were her hips too…
Her hand froze as it moved down over her hips when she realized what she was doing. Doubting herself? When had she ever doubted her physical appearance? Before she’d met Laithir, she’d rarely given her figure a thought, except to make sure that she worked out each day and ate a healthy diet.
She shook her head and let out a burst of furious air. Darn that woman! She’d done it again! Except when it came to math, Shantra hadn’t ever questioned her abilities or her appearance before now. But lately, she’d been second-guessing herself repeatedly. Linda and Julia had refined their catty comments down to a science. The words were delivered as helpful advice or backhanded compliments, but they were horribly malicious and rudely demeaning!
Why were they even here? Why haven’t they moved on to live their own lives?
Oh yeah. Because Laithir had been madly in love with his previous wife. The two women were protected by that past relationship, and she couldn’t even ask them to go away.
With a sigh, she slumped down onto her chair. Picking up a pencil, she tapped it on the table, her mind spinning with ways to avoid the two women.
She couldn’t go to the main dining room for meals. Not when either of those women were there, or if there was a possibility that they would be eating in the dining room. So what could she do? She didn’t want to eat all of her meals here in the apartment, although that was an alternative. Possibly the best alternative she could think of! She didn’t like it, having grown up sharing her meals with her siblings, which had always been a fun gathering time, but she could have solitary meals, if it meant not dealing with either woman’s horrible comments.
Okay, so she could avoid them during meals, what about the rest of the time? She couldn’t hide in her studio the remaining time. She would love to stay in here and work, but it simply wasn’t appropriate. She had to manage the staff, and interact with the other administrative personnel.