Likotsi sucked her teeth. “Trying to act like you don’t ask me which shoes to wear every morning isn’t becoming, sire.”

Thabiso feigned shock. “That’s not true. I haven’t asked your opinion in days. Maybe even a week. Ignore her, Naledi.”

Ledi smiled, even though the interaction made her chest hurt. This was the man she had known in Manhattan: playful, open, eager to make her laugh. She didn’t know how she was supposed to react, couldn’t even suss out how she actually felt, really.

Why was it so natural to sit and chat with Thabiso and Likotsi? Why was she eager to see her cousin Nya, and hear how the rest of her night had gone? Was she supposed to care about Annie and Makelele, people she didn’t know at all but who were responsible in part for her existence? Would it make her a terrible human if she met them and she didn’t feel anything at all?

She glanced up to find Thabiso staring at her feet as she slid on her socks.

She wiggled her toes, showing the pink polish. “It matches my cape,” she said. “Do you give all the girls venereal diseases?”

“Your Highness!” Likotsi narrowed her eyes at Thabiso, who was attempting to keep a straight face.

“Only the ones I really like,” he said. “It fits you well.”

She finished zipping up the boots and sighed, spitting out the question that she really needed to ask. “Annie and Makalele. Are they going to die?”

“We don’t know,” Thabiso said, his expression solemn. “Dr. Bata, the woman you’ll be working with, is out collecting data. You can speak to her more about the symptoms and the potential outcomes when she returns.”

Naledi nodded. “I think I need some coffee before we head there.”

“Your coffee awaits. Along with your chariot.” Likotsi swung the door open to reveal three Segways parked outside her door. One had a cup holder already stocked with a travel coffee mug with a beautiful watercolor floral design.

Ledi was sure this was some kind of practical joke. She grabbed the coffee and took a sip, noting how expensive it tasted, then eyed the Segway with trepidation. “Are you serious with this?”

“The palace grounds are quite large, my lady.” Likotsi stepped onto her Segway and turned it on. “In older times, royalty was conveyed about on rickshaw-type means of transportation. We upgraded to these babies from golf carts a few years ago. Much more fun, if I do say so.”

“I don’t know how to use it,” Ledi said, stepping on. She put her coffee cup in the cup holder and pressed the on button, as she’d seen Likotsi do. “How do I make it move?”

“It’s simple.” Thabiso’s familiar bulk stepped behind her, and his arms reached around her. “Just lean, like this. It moves in the direction you push it toward.” He moved so that his whole body was pressed against hers and even through the thick cape she could feel the outlines of his muscles, the flex of them.

“That sounds too easy,” she said, hating the tremor she heard in her voice.

Thabiso’s voice dropped, husky and low. “It is simple, Ledi. It will do what you tell it to do. You decide what path to follow. You are in control.”

Fuck. She wondered if Likotsi had provided Thabiso with a docket on her, or if he innately knew the right thing to say to make her want to turn around and wrap her legs around him.

“Ahem. Forward, my lady. You are currently leaning back.” Likotsi didn’t bother to hide the amusement in her tone.

“Oh! Right.” Ledi leaned forward and felt the wheels kick into action, moving her away from Thabiso’s heat. “This isn’t so bad.”

She got the Segway moving at a steady pace through the hall, fast enough that her hair fluttered around her face and she felt a burst of excitement at the sensation of freedom. She was driving! Kind of! She glanced back triumphantly, just in time to see Thabiso’s smile turn to a frown and Likotsi reach a hand out. Then there was the thump of her vehicle coming to an abrupt stop that flopped her back onto her ass. The sound of two sets of footsteps running toward her echoed in the vast hallway.

“My lady. You have to lean forward, and look forward, too.” Likotsi wiped at the indentation in the giant wooden carving—the very well-endowed wooden carving—that Ledi had crashed into.

Thabiso took her by the hand and helped her up. “Perhaps we should walk?”

“So much for creating my own path,” Ledi said.

His hand flexed around hers. “Choosing a path straight through a likeness of the god of lust was an interesting choice. I like where you go when you decide to take control.”

“Can you not?” She pulled her hand away and retrieved her coffee. The cup was warm against her skin, too, but it didn’t make her body tighten like Thabiso’s touch had.

It took them about fifteen minutes to get to the hospital. On the way, Ledi lost track of the priceless artwork, random wild animals, friendly palace staff, and the running commentary Likotsi gave about all of them. Her head buzzed and she started to lose the thread of the conversation as more and more information was thrown at her. She’d been training to be an information processing machine for the last five years, so it felt strange not to be able to keep up with simple conversation.

It’s the jet lag.

She took one of the pills Nya had given her, downed it with the last of her coffee, and handed off her empty cup to a passing staffer who stopped and asked if she’d finished.