Crowns & Courtships Compilation Volume 1

by Carol Moncado

  “Noted.”

  She looked at her phone. “We have four minutes to get to the garrison.”

  “Then we should go.” He followed a half step behind, still not quite sure how to get to the garrison. He could get to the portico where they were often picked up and dropped off, but he’d only been to the garrison twice. He did know the word garrison, in modern terms, was a fancy name for garage. “Are we driving ourselves today?”

  “We’ll have security vehicles in front and behind, but yes, you’re driving.”

  “I wonder if I should have my car sent down here,” he wondered almost to himself.

  “What kind of car do you have?”

  “I have a truck, because winter, but I also have a 1931 Buick McLaughin Straight 8.”

  “I have no idea what that is.”

  “Well, for starters, it’s a car from 1931.”

  Astrid rolled her eyes. “I figured that much.”

  “Eight-cylinder, starter pedal on the floor near the other pedals, three-speed, no radio, oak wheelhubs, ashtrays on the doors, pockets on the suicide doors in the back. The back seat has a fold-down metal footrest. The interior is dark green Cashmere upholstery and the outside is really dark navy and looks almost black. The seats are super comfortable. It has a really cool Flying 8 radiator cap hood ornament.”

  “Nice.”

  Jordan groaned. “Nice is an understatement, Princess. It’s a very cool car. Trust me.”

  “If you say so. But today, you’ll be driving one of the family cars. I do hope that’s all right.” The very dry sarcasm made Jordan smile.

  “I’m sure I can manage.”

  Someone held the door open for them. A car waited, already running, in the garage.

  Once they were both seated and buckled in, he grinned at her. “One nice thing about a garrison with staff is that the car’s already cooled down when you get in.”

  “Do you even need air conditioning in your cars in Canada?”

  Jordan shifted into gear. “Where I’m from we do. It gets rather warm in the summer. I can just follow this other car, right?”

  “Yes. Do not get separated.”

  He would do his best. He had a feeling the cars in front and behind wouldn’t let him get too far away. It took twenty minutes to get to the park across the street from the hospital. The entire thing was filled with games and rides, and all the things you’d normally see at a carnival, though the children here had a different look about them.

  “So where to first?” Jordan asked as they were ushered toward a back entrance.

  “You’ll see,” she answered mysteriously.

  He took her hand and slid his fingers between hers. It was only for a few minutes until they greeted the organizers of the event, along with a couple members of the children’s medical staff, but he wanted the connection.

  “Are you ready for your turn in the booth, sir?” one of them asked a minute later.

  Jordan glanced at Astrid, who wore a Cheshire cat grin. “Um, sure.”

  “Then right this way.”

  When he realized where they were headed, Jordan glanced at Astrid and shook his head. She just smiled back, though it had become more demure.

  “Really?” he asked.

  “You weren’t aware, sir?” He could hear the beginnings of panic in the man’s voice.

  “It’s fine.” Jordan rushed to reassure the man. “My wife is just having a little fun at my expense.”

  “We were most grateful that you were willing to step in. Prince Andrei manned the booth once, and it was a big hit.”

  “Well it’s my pleasure. I’ve done it before, and it’s not that hard.”

  The man grinned. “Not at all. Just interact with the kids when they come up and try not to get wet.”

  Jordan eyed the big tank in front of him. “Somehow that seems easier said than done.” He let go of Astrid’s hand.

  “Have fun, viejo.”

  He turned to look at her and decided that smirk meant she needed to be kissed, no matter what the royal protocol on PDA was. Just a quick kiss, so he did.

  But how he wished it could be more.

  Another man, this one with a megaphone, walked over as Jordan let a still smirking Astrid go. “Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls! Now’s your chance! Prince Jordan, Duke of Bevingdale, is in the dunk tank!”

  Before he could change his mind, Jordan pulled Astrid close and gave her a kiss. With a wink, he turned and climbed up onto the breakable seat. “Who’s gonna be first?” he called, watching his wife. “Who thinks Princess Astrid should get the first shot?”

  The gathered crowd cheered their approval. The glare she gave him was offset by the twitching corners of her just-kissed lips.

  Oh, he was going down!

  Okay, God. I know this is ridiculous, but if You could help me hit the target, I would really appreciate it. Astrid held the baseball in her right hand. Later, she’d read Jordan the riot act for putting her on the spot.

  “Who thinks she can hit the target?” he called.

  The crowd, growing larger by the second as word of their arrival spread, cheered.

  Really, God. I could use Your help. Here went nothing. At least make it so I don’t throw like a girl.

  The first toss nicked the target, but not strongly enough to knock him in.

  “Strike one!” he yelled, arms raised in the air. “Come on, Princess, you can do better than that!”

  His wink nearly made her knees give out. Why exactly hadn’t she spent more time close to him over the last few weeks? After a deep, steadying breath, she threw the second ball.

  A direct hit!

  Astrid clasped her hands together and laughed as Jordan fell in the water.

  He swam around, making faces at the kids nearby. They loved it. A few seconds later, he’d climbed back up. “Okay, so the princess could do it! Who else wants to try?”

  The kids lined up with calls of me!

  Stepping to the side, Astrid watched as several kids managed to hit the target on the first or second try. Then came a bigger kid, maybe fifteen and bald.

  “Watch out, your Dukeness!” the kid called. There was no malice in his words, just good-natured taunting.

  “You think you can do it?” Jordan hollered back. “Let’s see what you got.”

  The kid threw his hardest, but missed low.

  “Aw! Is that all?” Jordan’s grin made everyone laugh.

  The kid tried again, but this time missed high.

  “You can do it!” someone in the crowd yelled.

  Jordan nodded toward the kid. “You hit the bullseye, and your family’s lunch is on me and my wife.”

  And this time the ball hit the mark.

  The crowd cheered as he went under the water.

  Don, the head of Astrid’s security team, motioned to her. She nodded. She’d need to have a word with Jordan about saying those sorts of things. Sometimes security was okay with them having lunch with random people and sometimes they weren’t. Fortunately, this day it would be fine.

  The head of the carnival asked for a moment of her time. Astrid stood off to the side, discussing another fundraiser in a few months, but watching Jordan while they did.

  “He’s great with the kids,” the administrator told her.

  “Yes, he is. Sofia loves him.” And both of those things bothered her.

  As she observed, he managed to convince a little girl, probably no more than four, that she could throw from about two feet away. Comparisons were inevitable, even in her own mind. Andrei had done this the year they were married, but despite the smile on his face the whole time, he’d abhorred every minute of it. The only reason Sofia even existed was because he knew she had to have an heir - and a spare. He’d barely been okay with having children because she was required to. If she’d been anyone else, there would have been no children. He had that little interest in them.

  Astrid had told Andrei she would have been fine without children, except it was ex
pected of her. Way deep down, in a place she never mentioned even to her first husband, she’d wondered, though.

  Then Sofia was born.

  From the moment she held the little girl, Astrid’s main purpose in life became clear. Not to be queen, though she would do that to the best of her ability, but to be a mother.

  She’d lain in the delivery room at the palace and snuggled her daughter, tears streaming down her face. Jacqueline Grace had been there with her and thought she knew where the tears came from, but she was wrong.

  Astrid mourned the fact that Andrei and Sofia would never know each other. Even more she mourned that Sofia would never be an older sister, that Astrid would never have any more children.

  So she doted on Sofia. Yes, Astrid hired a nanny. Like any mother, she needed help sometimes, and she could afford a live-in nanny.

  Time and time again, she watched Jordan sink under the water. Did any of the kids miss? Every time, he came out of the water with a smile on his face and the right tone for the next kid. Some he taunted. Others he cajoled. Still others he encouraged. Sometimes all three. He had a knack for finding the right thing to say, and Astrid admired him for it.

  After about two hours, he finally climbed out. Astrid walked toward him, but the gleam in his eye gave her pause. Before she could figure it out, he wrapped his arms around her.

  “Ew!” She half-heartedly tried to push him away as they laughed together. “You’re all wet!” This picture was sure to end up online. And the public would love it.

  “And now you are, too. I find it interesting a princess never does the dunk tank.” He let go of her and took the towel someone gave him.

  “Of course not.” She sniffed. “It would ruin our hair and make-up.”

  He leaned in close. “Sometime between now and the next carnival, we’re going to make a bet. You’re going to lose, and next year, you’ll spend some time in the dunk tank, and I’ll be first in line.”

  “Keep dreaming.” The smoldering look in his eyes made her wish they were already home.

  Abruptly, he moved back “I’m hungry. Where’s the kid we’re having lunch with?”

  And the moment was over.

  Don motioned to them. The young man and his family waited off to the side. Towel wrapped around his shoulders, Jordan shook the kid’s hand then talked with both parents and a younger sister.

  Pasting a smile on her face, too confused by the turmoil inside, Astrid joined them as they headed for the food area of the carnival. The day was too beautiful to let confusion reign. She pushed the thoughts to the side and did her best to be present.

  But before she could, she realized something.

  Crown Princess Astrid was falling in love with her husband.

  17

  “Do you think I can do it?” Jordan crouched down next to a girl, maybe four years old.

  She nodded, her lip caught in her teeth.

  “I think I might need some help. Can you help me?”

  Another nod.

  He hooked an arm around her waist and moved her in front of him. “Which fish bowl should we aim for?”

  “The big one,” she whispered.

  That was one option. “Is that the fish you want? They're awfully little. If you could pick any of the fish, which one would it be?” He'd try as many times as it took, but these games were designed for the kids to win. Not too easily, but they weren’t slanted heavily toward the house either.

  The girl pointed at a blue and green betta fish.

  “Well, let’s get you that one.” He handed her the ping pong ball. “Ready?”

  It took three tosses, but they landed the ball in the right bowl.

  The girl jumped up and down, flinging her arms around him. “Thank you, Prince Jordan!”

  He chuckled and hugged her back. “That was all you, sweet girl.”

  After shaking hands with her parents and high-fiving her older brother, Jordan took Astrid’s hand as they walked toward the next booth.

  “That was sweet,” she said quietly.

  “I don’t need to win a fish,” he told her. “But she’ll remember that for a long time. I know I’m not a big deal, but the kids seem to think so.”

  The next booth was basketball and a competition. Of the two people participating, whoever made the most baskets got the prize. The more baskets made, the bigger the prize.

  “Duke’s got next game!” one kid called.

  It took Jordan a second to realize that meant him. It was one of the kids he’d interacted with at the dunk tank. Their good-natured ribbing had made the crowd laugh.

  Someone passed him a basketball. Jordan pointed at the kid with it. “You up for a game?”

  Swagger came natural to the kid. “Let’s do it!”

  Basketball wasn’t really Jordan’s sport, but he had a half-decent jump shot. At the sound of the buzzer, he took a deep breath and then his first shot. It bounced on the rim, but went in. Several balls rattled around in the return area, so he picked up the next one and shot again. It ricocheted off, a bit too short. Laser focused, he took shot after shot, but then the more practical side kicked in. He wanted to ignore the kid next to him, but this wasn’t a game for him to win. If he won, fine, but it wasn’t to feed his competitive streak.

  The counter said the kid had one more basket than Jordan did. Good. But then he missed one allowing Jordan to pull even. “And it’s a whole new ball game,” he said loud enough to be heard.

  Apparently, the kid was good at ignoring him. Jordan kept going, but in the end, lost by two baskets.

  He and the kid shook hands and did the man hug thing. “Good job, kid.”

  They backed off. “Thanks. You’re not too bad yourself.”

  “Next time, we’ll try at the hockey rink. I’d take you there.”

  The kid shrugged. “No shock. I’ve never been ice skating.”

  Jordan clutched his chest. “Say it ain’t so!”

  “Nope. The rink didn’t get built until I was seven, and no kids’ hockey until a few years ago. They started with the younger kids so they could grow up into it.”

  Jordan needed to look into what he could do to help. He’d have Thomas research it - and into getting some time on the ice with this kid. “How about baseball? I can hold my own there, too.”

  “Some other time.” Astrid took his arm. “Unfortunately, we have to take our leave. It was lovely spending time with all of you.”

  After saying their goodbyes, it took far longer to leave the carnival than Jordan expected. Every few feet someone stopped them, just for a minute each. He wondered if Astrid and the others planned for it. They must have because they didn’t seem annoyed by it.

  Eventually, they made it back to the car, and Jordan drove them back to the palace. He tapped a random beat on the steering wheel as they waited for the door to the garrison to open.

  “What are you doing?” Astrid sounded annoyed, though he didn’t know by what.

  “What?”

  “The tapping.”

  Jordan stilled his fingers. “Sorry. I didn’t know it bothered you. I’ll do my best not to do it anymore.”

  “It’s not that.”

  He looked over at her, but she stared at her hands folded neatly in her lap. “Then what is it?”

  The door in front of him opened, and he eased the car through.

  “Nothing. Never mind.”

  A minute later, they were out of the car and went inside. Astrid muttered something about needing to get some work done and headed for her office. Jordan followed her, but went to his own office next door to hers. They had a connecting door, but he hadn’t yet used it.

  Thomas followed him in from the outer office. “How was your outing, sir?”

  “It was good.” Jordan glanced down and realized he’d never changed clothes after the dunk tank. “I do need something from you, though. Can you find out about the kids’ hockey league here in town and see what I might be able to do to help? A scholarship fund maybe or funds for
equipment for kids who can’t afford it or...” He shrugged. “Whatever else there might be that I can help with? Maybe an annual clinic or something.”

  “I’ll see what I can do, sir.”

  “You might look at the TimBits in my hometown. We had an NHL player come out of there in the 90s, and he’s actively involved in doing stuff. Maybe something along those same lines here. I’m not NHL obviously, but it seems I’ve got star power, and I do know what I’m doing on the ice.”

  “Pardon me, sir, but what are TimBits?”

  Jordan chuckled. “The kids’ league in Canada. What Americans would call Little League for baseball.”

  Thomas nodded his understanding. “I will see what I can find.”

  “I think I’m going to take a shower. That’s all from me for the day.” He hadn’t had anything for Thomas to do earlier either. He went upstairs, took a quick shower, but startled when he went into his dressing room wrapped in a towel.

  His wife sat on the edge of the chair, biting her bottom lip.

  “Hey. What are you doing in here?” She’d never ventured in there before.

  Astrid stood and took a few steps toward him, stopping when they were inches apart.

  “This,” she whispered.

  And then she kissed him.

  Astrid curled up in her chair, sipped her coffee, and looked out over the bay. Acting on her attraction to Jordan after seeing him spend the day with all the children had surprised her more than him, though he’d been plenty surprised.

  “Good morning.” His gravelly voice didn’t startle her.

  “Good morning.” She took another sip of her coffee.

  She could hear the rustle of sheets as he climbed out of bed. A minute later, he sat in the other chair. “How are you this morning?”

  Underlying the question was the one he had to be afraid to ask. Do you regret last night? “I’m good. Slept well.”

  She’d stopped in the kitchen and picked up some food on her way to his dressing room then locked out the world. The rest of the evening had been about just the two of them.