Did she think Sophia was running late? Should Vic offer to escort her? No, that would give too much away. She needed to appear calm and casual, almost indifferent, but not to the point of being rude. If she overplayed her hand, her mother would pick up on that immediately. She needed to behave exactly how she would if any other house guest had been invited to a family evening. Only that didn’t happen. Not unless they’d known the family for ages. For her mother to extend such an invitation to Sophia was such an utter breach of protocol, it meant there was no established way for Vic to respond. She suspected that was the point, to keep her off balance. Either that, or her mother was making a point about how Vic had already blurred those public and private spaces.

If only she could’ve warned Sophia. She’d tried, through a series of furtive glances and subtle head nods, but she’d had few opportunities to actually speak with her, and none of them offered any chance to be alone. The conversation she desperately wanted to have could no longer happen around any member of the film crew or the house staff, and perhaps they never should have. She strongly suspected that’s what landed them in this situation to begin with. She’d trusted too much in her own authority and the privacy of her own home, something she’d been kicking herself over all afternoon.

The last few weeks had been too beautiful, too perfect, too easy to be her real life. She should have checked every lock, every window, and every passageway. She should have looked over her shoulder more often. She’d been so certain none of the staff would talk to the press that she completely failed to consider the possibility that one of them might alert her parents. Not just any one of them, either. Clearly James led the betrayal.

There was no other real suspect. He’d probably had his suspicions since the day he found her and Sophia together, sword out and eyes blazing. Then when Sophia moved into the castle, he’d likely been lying in wait. Old James never missed anything, but last night she’d given him more than the evidence he’d needed to fire the shot he’d dreamed of for years.

She blew out a frustrated breath. Part of her wanted to rage and scream, but she had only herself to blame. She’d told Sophia point blank that James didn’t work for her. She’d always known where his loyalties lay, but instead of bracing for impact, she’d laughed and let down her guard even further. She’d allowed herself to grow content and comfortable with a woman who was undoubtedly about to be eviscerated for it.