All eyes landed on Maria when she finally arrived, and the first face she saw was Arthur's.
Upon seeing how flustered she looked, he gave her a playful smile paired with raised, questioning eyebrows, while she looked away to avoid her face turning even more red than it was at that moment.
"You finally decided to join us then, my child?" The King said with a laugh. "Everyone, let's sit."
Maria stayed quiet as she made her way to the table with everyone else, and took a seat in her usual spot next to her brother.
One of the suitors had quickly made his way to her side to steal the seat next to her, and fumbled with his chair as she looked up to see who it was.
The Spanish prince, Rafael, sat down and looked over to give her a dashing smile.
"Your Highness," he said, "I am glad we finally get to see you today. You are a difficult woman to track down".
