Affairs of State (Daughters of Power: The Capital #6)(21)
Author: Jennifer Lewis

He leaned in and whispered. “Not when you’re a prince.”

She chuckled. “Oh yes, I forgot about that.”

“Welcome to Talesin, Your Highness.” The imperious maître d’ nodded and gestured warmly. “A table for two?”

“Thank you.” Simon shot her an amused smile. “See what I mean?”

She arched a brow. “Don’t get cocky.”

“I’ll do my best.”

The maître d’ led them through the main dining room and out onto a shady patio with a view over the river.

“Ariella.” The now-familiar voice made her turn to find the president standing behind her.

“Oh, hello. How nice to see you.” She felt a surge of panic. “Simon, this is President Morrow, my…my father. And this is Simon Worth.” Should she have used the word prince? She hadn’t researched the correct way to address him. Luckily, being Simon, he wasn’t likely to mind.

Ted Morrow smiled at Simon. “Would you both do me the honor of joining me in my private dining room?”

“I… We…” She glanced at Simon.

“I suspect we’d be delighted.” Simon glanced at her, a question in his eyes.

“Yes. Yes, we would.” She swallowed. Simon and her father, the president? An odd nagging feeling suggested that this was a little too much of a coincidence.

They followed the president back inside the building through a doorway that led into a bright room with tall windows and elegant furnishings that were a mix of eighteenth century and modernist Italian design. The professional side of her brain wondered if it could be rented out for special occasions, while the personal side of her brain wondered what the heck they would talk about.

The restaurant’s most trusted staff waited on them hand and foot, recommending dishes and bringing bottles of wine. She learned that the president had a policy of only drinking American wine, and it made her like him more, considering the other options that must be available in the White House cellars alone. She managed to refuse the wine by saying she didn’t drink during the day, but the moment did serve as a reminder that there was a fourth person in the room—her unborn child. And Simon’s unborn child. Ted Morrow’s grandchild. Her whole life seemed like an elaborate spider web that kept expanding to encompass more of the people around her.

Simon kept the conversation going with easy banter about traveling and the parts of America that he hadn’t seen yet but wanted to. Ariella was constantly amazed by how naturally he could talk to anyone. No doubt it was the chief requirement of his role in the royal family and if she were his boss she’d give him a raise. She’d actually started to relax by the time they finished their delicious appetizers and three gleaming steaks arrived, accompanied by mounds of fresh vegetables. Even her shaky pregnancy appetite felt revived by the sight.

“This is turning out to be the most extraordinary year of my life by quite a long way,” said her father, after a pause while they all chewed their meals. “I thought last year with the run-up to the elections would be hard to beat, but it has been, and hands down. And the best thing of all has been learning that I have a beautiful daughter.”

He gazed at her with such warmth that she felt emotion swell in her chest. “It does seem like a wonderful thing now that the media frenzy is dying down and we can finally get to know each other.”

“And if the press hadn’t found you, I might never have seen Ellie again. I had no idea she’d moved to Ireland, and if it wasn’t for this whole brouhaha, she might never have come back to the States.”

“I think she’s considering moving back here for good.”

He smiled. “I know. And she told me that the two of you are becoming close.”

Ariella blanched. Ellie hadn’t told him the secret of her pregnancy, had she? No. She knew her mother would never do that. She’d kept her own secrets for so long she could be trusted. Suddenly she hated herself for the subterfuge, but she knew it was too soon to tell anyone. At least until she and Simon had a few things figured out. “We are just getting to know each other but already she’s becoming one of my favorite people on earth. I’m trying to convince her to stay in the D.C. area for now, so she we can all try to make up for lost time.”

The president paused and took a sip of his white wine. “Making up for lost time is something that’s been on my mind a lot.” He put down his glass. “I loved your mother with all my heart, Ariella. I would never have let her go. She just didn’t know that at the time. I was being a typical man and bottling up my emotions, trying to act cool.”

Ariella glanced at Simon. He wouldn’t do that. He was the last person to keep anything bottled up. It was one of the things she liked best about him. There were no guessing games with him. “Have you told her how you felt?”

“You’d better believe it.” He smiled wistfully. “It was the first thing I did when we had a few moments alone. I apologized with all my heart for the fact that she felt so alone back then, and was forced into a choice she later regretted.” He frowned and looked down at his glass, then looked up at her again. “I still love her, you know.”

Ariella’s eyes widened. She was mostly astonished that he was saying all this in front of Simon, who—as far as she knew—he’d only just met. “Have you told her that?”

“I most certainly have. I think she was astonished rather than delighted.” He smiled. “We’ve been spending a lot of time together.”

“That’s wonderful.” Her heart filled with gladness at the thought that her mother and father could rekindle their love after all these years. What a shame that they’d had twenty-eight years apart. “Is she the reason you never married?”

He nodded. “I tried to talk myself into loving other women, but when it came to the crunch none of them compared to my Ellie and I could never marry a woman I didn’t feel wholeheartedly committed to.”

“That’s my opinion entirely.” Simon chimed in. “I think that choosing your mate is the most important decision you’ll make in your entire life.”

“Quite right, son. It’s not a decision to be taken lightly.” Her father looked at Ariella with a twinkle of amusement in his eye. “Which is what I told this young man when he demanded an audience with me to request your hand in marriage.”

Ariella’s jaw dropped. So they had met before. And this meeting was preplanned. Simon had been sneaking around behind her back. Indignation snapped inside her and she turned to Simon. “What were you thinking?”

“In our country, it’s traditional to ask the father of an intended bride if he objects to the marriage. Given the sensitive circumstances of your father’s position, I felt I should listen to any objections he might have.”

The president laughed. “And you’d better believe I had them.” He reached out and took Ariella’s hand across the table. “I told him he’d better direct any important questions of that nature to the lady intended, not to me. Since I’ve been in your life for less than two weeks I don’t feel I should have any say whatsoever over who you marry or don’t marry.” He squeezed her hand. “He’s got a lot of chutzpah, I’ll say that for him.”

Simon smiled. “He told me to stop beating about the bush and go ask you. Which I did. So now I’ve asked both of you.”

“Oh.” Ariella’s heart clenched as she realized the president was waiting to hear what answer she’d given Simon.

Ted Morrow looked at Simon. “Could I have a few moments alone with my daughter?”

“Certainly, sir.” Simon rose from the table. He’d already finished his meal while they were talking. He smiled at Ariella. “I’ll be on the balcony.”

The door closed behind him, and Ariella frowned. Should she tell her father she’d said no to him? Should she confess the truth about her pregnancy? It was all too much and her tired and emotional brain couldn’t handle it.

“Well, isn’t that something. I’m a guy from a small town in Montana and I just told a member of the British royal family to leave the room.”

“And I’m a girl from a small town in Montana and I’m having lunch with the president of the United States.”

He nodded and smiled, and his blue eyes sparkled. “I guess it proves we’re all just people once you look past the pomp and circumstance.” His expression grew serious. “Do you love him?”

She twisted her water glass in her hands. “I think I might.”

“You don’t sound too sure.”

“We really…click. I guess that’s the best way to put it. I have so much fun with him and I always feel relaxed in his company, which is really weird under the circumstances.” She did not feel the need to mention the intense sexual attraction. “I like him very, very much. But the fact is, we only met a few weeks ago and they’ve been some of the craziest weeks of my life and I don’t know what to think about anything anymore.”

“Well, I’ll give you a piece of advice that might be worth exactly what it’ll cost you.” He inhaled. “Don’t wait around for the ‘right time’ when everything falls into place and feels perfect.” He fixed his eyes on hers. “In my experience, which is considerable at this point, that time never comes.”

She nodded slowly.

He leaned forward and took her hand again. His hands were big and warm and soft. “If you love this young man—and from what I see in your eyes, I think you do—don’t blow the love of a lifetime because it doesn’t fit your calendar. I went off to college naively assuming that Ellie and the whole life I had planned out with her would still be there when I got back.” He shook his head. “Instead I got back to find that she’d left town and no one knew where she was. My entire future evaporated overnight just like that. Sure, I got the college education I wanted and then started the big career I’d always hoped for, but the soul of my life, the really important part, had got on a train one dark night and skipped town without me.”

His eyes were now soft with tears. “I missed Ellie so much those first few years. Then I suppose I grew numb, or grew used to the dull ache of living without her. When I think of the memories we could have shared it infuriates me that I missed out on all that through my own stupid fault. I should have married her and taken her to college with me instead of stupidly insisting on waiting until the time was right. Yes, times would have been hard and we would have had to scrimp a bit, but we would have had each other, and that’s the important thing. If you love this young man, then don’t miss out on the opportunity of a lifetime.” He squeezed her hand softly. “I don’t want you to live to regret it like I did.”

Ariella’s chest was so tight she could hardly breathe. “I’m having his baby. I just found out this week.” She had no idea how he’d react, but she knew she couldn’t keep it to herself any longer.

His mouth made a funny movement, like he wanted to say something but was too choked up.

“I told Ellie a couple of days ago and she urged me not to hide it from Simon. I took her advice today. It almost feels like history is repeating itself, doesn’t it?”

Her father shook his head. “No, Ariella. History isn’t repeating itself because you and Simon are braver and stronger and maybe a little more bullheaded than Ellie and I were.” He laughed. “Simon’s quite a young man. I don’t think you could go far wrong with him in your life.”

She smiled. “I know. He’s pretty amazing.” Then she swallowed. “But then there’s the rest of his family. And we’d have to live in England.”

He shrugged. “England’s just across the pond. A short plane flight. Simon told me he’d already introduced you to the whole family.”

“Did he also tell you they were all trying to pack my bags and get me on the next flight back to D.C.?”

Ted frowned. “He didn’t mention that part.”

“He glosses over it like it’s no big deal. He thinks they’d all come around. I’m not so sure.”

“Well, I’m inclined to agree with Simon since he knows them better than you. And it probably doesn’t hurt that your father is commander in chief of their largest ally.” He winked.

She smiled, but then her stomach lurched as she remembered his uncle’s cruel threats. “His uncle Derek warned me Simon could lose his estate and his charity if he doesn’t follow the party line.”

Ted laughed. “I wouldn’t worry about that old coot. He has bigger problems to worry about than an American in the family. The CIA chief just informed me that he was involved in brokering an arms deal with a South American dictatorship.”