Suddenly Royal (Suddenly #1)(33)
Author: Nichole Chase

“Did you know that Lilaria is considered one of the happiest countries?” Chadwick asked me.

“I didn’t.” I finished my coffee. I hadn’t really thought of the monarchy as offering support and guidance. Then again, as an American I hadn’t really spent a lot of time thinking about what a monarchy did. “It’s almost like you guys are the parents and the country is your child.”

“You’re part of that too.” Alex leaned forward.

“And you know how you can tell if there are good parents?” Chadwick asked.

“Happy children,” Margie said.

“Exactly.” Chadwick smiled.

Alex stood up and put his plate in the sink. I could tell from his face that it was time for him to leave but he didn’t want to. He leaned against the counter and crossed his arms over his chest, watching me as I finished my food.

“Have to go?”

“Unfortunately.” He pushed away from the counter and walked around the island. I stood up, intending to walk him out, but he pulled me into his arms and kissed me right there. It was a tender kiss that left me feeling breathless. So much for keeping things quiet. “I’ll see you soon.”

“Okay.” I looked up at him and couldn’t help the smile pulling at the corners of my mouth. So far I was kicking myself for having not given in sooner.

He pressed a kissed to the charm on my necklace before letting me go, then turned to smile at the cook. “Thank you for breakfast, Margie.”

“My pleasure, sir.”

“Chadwick, always good to see you.” Alex shook his hand.

“Have a safe trip.”

He pulled on his jacket as he left and my knees felt weak as I watched him go. I slid into my seat and sighed.

“You’re welcome.” Chadwick bit off a piece of toast and smiled at me.

“For what?”

“My pep talk. Maybe I should become a life coach.”

“Oh, good idea since you’re about to lose your current job.”

“Apparently your pleasant morning attitude left with Alex.” He shook his head.

“What are we doing today?” I sipped my coffee, ignoring him. “I’d like to see more of the property.”

“I’ve kept the next few days clear so you can take your time learning the area.”

“Great. I want to see the lake.”

After breakfast I headed out with Stanley to see the property. The lake was a short walk from the house, but long enough that I worried my dad might not make it.

“Do we have anything that would be able to carry my father here?” I stared out over the water. It was beautiful.

“Yes, we have a golf cart that can make the drive as long as there hasn’t been any bad weather.” Stanley put his hands on his hips. “We also have furniture that we can put up and leave once spring sets in.”

“That sounds good.” I walked along the edge of the water. The call of a hawk drew my attention up to the sky. The weather had cleared up a great deal and standing there in the sun with the birds flying overhead, I felt like I could finally breathe.

“The lake also runs along the prince’s estate.” Stanley pointed off in the distance. “I’m sure the land was divided in such a way that the original landowners could both have access to the water.”

I nodded my head. That made perfect sense. “What else is out here? Tell me about the land.”

“There are a few hiking trails and a running trail that circle the lake.” Stanley pointed out the entrance. “Jeanette runs in the early mornings and I walk the trails from time to time to make sure there haven’t been any problems.”

“That’s nice. I like to run when it’s not freezing out.” I picked up a small rock and ran my fingers over it.

“We also have horses. Most of the hiking trails are perfect for riding.”

“We have horses?” I looked over at him with a smile. “I haven’t ridden since I was a little girl.”

“Three. Let’s go check out the stables.”

The stables were tidy, and several grooms were tending to the horses. They all stopped what they were doing to bow while Stanley introduced them and I spent some time asking about their jobs. The horses themselves were gorgeous and one of the mares was with foal.

“How many other people work on the estate?” I asked as we walked through one of the gardens.

“We have ten full-time staff and five who work part time. Many of them only work on certain days or on rotation.”

“Wow. That many?” That was intimidating. Fifteen people coming in and out of my property all the time?

“Actually, we run on a very tight ship and those numbers include me and Margie. I was planning on hiring more people now that we have you in residence.” Stanley picked up a rake that had fallen over.

“Why do we need more people?”

“I’m sure you’ll be hosting dinners or fund-raisers.” Stanley stuck his hands in his pockets. “We’ll need more staff to keep up with the influx of people.”

“Dinners? Fund-raisers?” I laughed and rubbed my face.

“Eventually all this will feel normal.” Stanley laughed. “I have to admit, I’m looking forward to what all you do. I think this place is going to be much livelier from now on.”

“I guess we’ll see.”

We spent a lot of time going over the things that were done on a regular basis. It probably felt silly to him, but Stanley answered every question with as much explanation as possible. The more we walked around the property, the more I fell in love with it. There was so much history and one of my favorite parts of the whole place was a little area near a stone wall. The trees overlapped and I could see much of the property. There was a worn stone bench and I imagine it had been used by many over the years.

I checked out the cottage that would be Chadwick’s home and the garage. I took pictures as we walked. I couldn’t wait to send them to my dad and Jess. They were going to love it here. Cathy called to see how I was settling in and said she wanted to come visit next weekend. Once we had it figured out, I spent the rest of the day unpacking the boxes I’d brought with me and trying to make the place feel like home.

I was sitting on the floor in my room and sorting my books when my phone rang. I pulled it out of my pocket and smiled like an idiot when I realized it was Alex.

“Hello?”

“Miss me yet?”

“Nope.” I smiled.

“Liar.” He laughed.

“You should be studied for that giant ego of yours. It’s unhealthy.” I set a couple of books on a shelf I had cleared.

“I think it’s well deserved.”

“You would.” I laughed. “Aren’t you breaking some kind of dating rule? Like wait a full day before calling?”

“What can I say? I’m thinking about that shower and wishing I had stayed.”

My breath caught as an image of him covered in water flashed in my mind. “Well, I did warn you.”

“True.”

“Have you made it to Paris?”

“I’m here, have unveiled a plaque, finished a conference call, and am now back at my apartment.”

“You have an apartment there?” I was wishing I hadn’t wanted to keep our relationship quiet. I’d always wanted to visit Paris.

“I do. It’s in the seventh arrondissement.” I could hear him walking around. “I can see the Eiffel Tower from my bedroom.”

“Wow. I thought you’d have to stay at the Lilarian embassy.” I leaned back against my bed.

“I like having my own place. Then I don’t have to explain to anyone when I get up in the middle of the night for a glass of milk.”

“I have no idea how to respond to that.” My imagination went into overdrive at the thought of him walking around nak*d.

“I do. Come here and keep me warm.” His voice took on a serious tone.

“I just got here, Alex. And your sister is coming in a few days.” I chewed on my thumbnail.

“It’s for the best, I suppose. The press here can be vicious.” He sighed. “Not to mention you’re a blanket hog.”

“I am not!”

“And you make weird noises.”

“You said that was cute!” I laughed.

“And sexy.” He chuckled.

We talked for a while and he explained some of the internal workings of the FBT and I talked to him about the estate. We didn’t run out of things to talk about and it wasn’t until he got another call that we hung up. I couldn’t wait to talk to him again.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Royal Shopping Spree?

—Paris Post

The next day I convinced Chadwick and Margie to run to town with me. Becca came along just in case we needed her, but I felt like it was overkill. The good news was I didn’t have to dress up for something like this and no one was expecting me to show up.

We parked the car in one of the public lots and hit some of the local shops. I wanted to show my support of the family-run businesses, so I avoided the chain stores. When we entered a florist shop the woman inside seemed shocked. Chadwick was laughing to himself while the woman tried to hand me every bouquet I looked at. I ended up buying flowers for my room and a set for Chadwick, but only because I insisted on paying.

“Sheesh. I can’t remember the last time someone didn’t want me to pay for something.” I tucked the flowers under my arm and fiddled with my purse. “When I was eating macaroni and cheese in college, everyone wanted me to pay for things. But now that I have money, I have to force them to take it. I thought I was going to have to pull rank!”

“Don’t worry, there will be lots of people happy to take your cash.” Margie shook her head.

“Too right.” Chadwick shot me a look, obviously thinking about Jeremy from the zoo.

It was actually sort of fun to walk around the town. Some of the people didn’t know what to say and just stared at me while others talked nonstop. I wasn’t sure if that was because they were nervous or because they thought it might be their only chance to talk to me. Margie and Chadwick often stepped in to help me escape when that happened, but for the most part people seemed to understand I had other things to do.

At one point a young mother with a baby in a stroller stopped to welcome me to the town. Just when I was getting ready to go pay for the homemade bubble bath I was holding, she asked me to take a picture with the infant.

“Sure.” I smiled at the little girl and turned to face the mother’s phone for the picture when I felt something warm cover my arm. I didn’t say anything until she had gotten her pictures, but there was no hiding the wet spot on my jacket.

“Oh my Lord! Duchess, I’m so sorry. So sorry. Here, let me buy you a new coat.” The young woman handed me a towel from her diaper bag.

“It’s fine! Really, don’t worry about it.” I couldn’t help that a laugh bubbled up out of my throat. “My first picture with a baby and I get peed on. It’s pretty funny.”

“I’ve never been this embarrassed before in my life.” The young woman looked close to tears.

“Here, hand me the baby and take another one. When she grows up, you can use it as blackmail.”

She chuckled weakly. “Oh, no. I couldn’t do that to you.”

“Just send me an e-mail with the picture. My father will think it’s hilarious.” I held my arms out for the baby and made a silly face while Chadwick laughed. He gave her his e-mail address and she promised to e-mail it that night.

“What if that ends up in the papers?” Margie asked me.

“I don’t care. What’re they going to title that article? ‘Duchess Gets Peed On?’” I laughed. “Maybe it’ll make everyone realize I’m just human.”

“It was really sweet of you to make sure that mother didn’t feel so bad.”

“Meh. It was funny. I mean, who else would get peed on? It would only happen to me.” I shrugged out of my jacket and shirt in the dressing room of a nearby shop. “Or I’d be the mother whose baby peed on someone famous.”

“Still very nice of you.” She passed me a shirt over the door.

“Not really. I could have been upset or laughed it off.” I opened the door and walked out. “There was nothing to do for it at that point.”

The rest of the day went smoothly. We ate in a local pub, which I loved. For the first time since arriving in the country I felt like I was experiencing the real culture. People spoke a mix of English and Lilarian, often in the same sentence. I liked how birds were a common thread. They were painted on signs and featured on wind chimes.

The pub owner came over to introduce himself but didn’t stay. Most people smiled in our direction and apparently the story of the peepee picture was already starting to circulate. One of the waitresses was related to the baby and brought us a basket of chips.

“Sally was so embarrassed, but she couldn’t get over how sweet you were.”

“I didn’t do anything special.” I shook my head.

Most of the people who came in would shoot me a look and then act like I wasn’t there. It was perfect. By the time we headed back to the house, I was tired but happy.

I worked with Stanley through the week to understand more about the running of a manor and found that it was as intimidating as I had thought it would be. Selene made a visit, but since my title hadn’t been officially reinstated, I couldn’t take on any of the local cases to present to parliament. I enjoyed her visit and found myself looking forward to working with her. She was a bright woman who loved her home.

Alex called every night and I found myself looking forward to his voice more each time. Despite the demands on his time, he never seemed frustrated or angry, even though I could hear how tired he was. He asked questions about the manor and how I was adjusting. When I told him about the baby incident he laughed so hard I thought he was going to snort.