“He’s my first choice,” Esther chimed in. “If my father won’t approve the second salary, I’ll pay it out of my allowance myself.”
Jonathan nodded. “Then it’s settled. Darius, speak with your mother. If you can ask her without raising suspicions, do. After we get her input, we’ll discuss it with King Edward and go from there.”
With that decided, Darius and Esther left the offices and were driven home. King Edward had told Darius he would issue a driver’s license good most places in the world if he could prove to Jonathan’s satisfaction that he did know how to drive. Jonathan had set up an appointment with one of his men in half an hour. Calling his mother would have to wait.
Esther held the phone between her ear and shoulder as she put her notebook into her backpack. “I liked him, Papa. I believed him.”
“That’s Jonathan’s thought as well.”
“And you trust Jonathan.”
“I don’t know him personally, but he comes highly recommended by Queen Adeline and Princess Anastasia of Montevaro.”
“We met Jonathan and his wife at church on Sunday. That’s how we knew he knew who we were. He listed all these members of the royal families in Belles Montagnes, but by first name. Addie, Ana, Christiana, and a couple others I think.”
“We can trust him. He’s doing a quiet background check on Louis and his sister. Has Darius spoken with his mother yet?”
“I don’t think he’s had a chance. If he has, he hasn’t mentioned it to me.”
“His driver’s license is being overnighted. He’ll be legal to drive tomorrow.”
“And I need to get a permit or something?”
He blew out a breath. “You need to learn. Jonathan can make arrangements for lessons off the actual road, but I think your best bet is going to be to learn here, get your license, then you’ll be legal there.”
At least she didn’t have that hanging over her until they went home for Christmas, maybe even vacation next summer. With any luck, it would actually be when she moved home for good. Plenty of time.
“I’ve got to go, Papa. We need to leave for school in about three minutes. I’ll let you know what I hear from Darius about the conversation with his mother.”
Darius walked in. He waggled his phone at her. “I just spoke with her.”
“What did she say?” Esther turned the speaker phone on.
“That she misses Louis and wished he was still there to work for Benjamin. She doesn’t like his current valet, some guy hired by Isaiah. I didn’t mention meeting him, though.”
“Then I’ll let Jonathan know I approve of hiring both of them. I bought the house next door. It should be finished in a week. I paid them plenty to hurry up since it wasn’t supposed to be done for a month. Louis and Vesta will start as soon as it’s ready. Until then, what have you been eating?”
Esther winced. “Take out and restaurants and frozen food.”
“Not for much longer.”
“I know.” She’d used Google to find a recipe simple enough she thought she could make it. Darius didn’t even know, but she’d be trying it for dinner. Anyone could make spaghetti and garlic bread, right?
Darius had taken to sitting in the back seat with her when they rode in the car. It made them seem more out of place when they pulled up to the building, but she kind of liked it. He would hold her hand, his thumb rubbing random patterns over her skin.
They’d slept in the same bed since Sunday, though he hadn’t touched her, even in sleep as far as she knew.
Esther didn’t know how she felt about that.
Especially if her math was right, though it would be at least another week before she knew for certain if they’d conceived another child.
Once inside the building, they went their separate ways. They didn’t have any classes together on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and only one on Mondays and Wednesdays.
She ended up having lunch with Abi again, as was becoming their weekly tradition.
“How was your weekend?” Abi asked. “I don’t think I’ve seen you all week.”
“We went home for the weekend.” Esther picked up her sandwich. “My sister had a baby.”
“Congratulations! Boy or girl?”
“Boy. Her daughter is thrilled to pieces.”
“That’s wonderful. Was it good to be home? See any friends?”
Esther shook her head. “Just my family. Darius and I went shopping for like an hour. The rest was spent at home. I loved seeing my family. I haven’t seen some of them since February and the rest since March.”
“That’s a long time. Did Darius see any of his family or just yours?”
“Just mine.”
“That’s right.” Abi swallowed a bite. “He’s from a different country. You never did really tell me what your relationship is. He’s not your brother. Your roommate in a foreign land?”
Esther hesitated. “It’s a whole big long story I don’t really want to get into, but we’ve been married since March. Legally. Technically. It’s kind of a thing, but yeah. Details are kind of under wraps.”
Abi made a twisting motion with two fingers in front of her lips. “No one will hear it from me.”
“Thanks.”
Her new friend leaned forward. “I haven’t been married all that long myself. In fact, you’ve got almost six months on me and Travis, but we traveled a very long road to get where we are, so I think I have some life experience.” Abi’s brows raised. “But either you’re married or you’re not. Did you say vows?”
“Yes.”
“Was there a license signed by the officiant?”
Esther picked at the bread of her sandwich. “That’s the part that made it a technicality, a legality, but not really a reality. I can’t explain. Let’s just say my father and Darius’s brother are bigwigs who can pull strings and leave it at that.”
At Abi’s puzzled look, Esther shook her head. “Please don’t ask me to explain further. Maybe someday, but not today.”
Abi nodded. “Okay. Is it a real marriage now?”
“Getting there. We’re making progress. It’s more reality and less just a legality than it was a week ago. We’re working to make it more so.”
“Good.”
Esther looked up to see Darius walking toward them. “Looks like he got done early.” She popped the last bite in her mouth. “I’ll see you next week.” Her mother would be appalled if she knew Esther muttered around a mouthful of food.
Darius held out a hand. “I’m Darius. We have class together, don’t we?”
“Abi. Psychology.” She shook it. “Nice to meet you.”
“The pleasure is mine.” He looked at Esther. “I hate to rush you, but I have a conference call I can’t miss in about an hour and need to be home for it. Fortunately, we got done early today.”
Esther threw her trash away. “Then we better go.”
She knew Abi watched them leave. Watched as Darius carried her backpack. As his hand rested on her lower back. As Esther smiled up at her husband and wished they never had to return to the reality of life as a royal couple.
That they could be Darius and Esther.
The Quatremaines of Serenity Landing.
She thought that would be far preferable to dealing with the political fallout their marriage would cause in two countries.
9
After listening to Isaiah go on and on about some function he wanted Darius to attend, Darius finally interrupted. “I can’t come home. You know that.”
“You will come home. There’s no discussion to be had.”
“You heard King Edward. I’m not allowed to return to Eyjania until he decides it’s okay. He’s given no indication that he’ll let me anytime soon.” And even if King Edward did, Darius wouldn’t ask to go. He was sure a certain duchess would be there.
“You do not answer to Edward.”
Darius held back a chuckle. “But I do. If I don’t abide by his wishes, he goes public with all sorts of dirty laundry you don
’t want him to.” He quickly corrected himself. “Alleged dirty laundry, of course.”
“He can’t use the Treaty of 1702 to take the throne any longer. Not since you’ve taken responsibility for the child.” Isaiah hesitated, and Darius knew he was doing the math. “I saw a photo of Esther the other day. She doesn’t look pregnant.”
With a swipe of his hand, Darius knocked his books to the floor. “Oh no! I’ve got to go, Uncle. I’ll talk to you later.” He disconnected the call and leaned over to pick up the books.
“What happened?” Esther sounded worried.
Darius put the books back on the table. “I knocked the books over. Everything’s fine.” He studied her, debating telling her the whole truth.
“What?”
“I needed an excuse to get off the phone with Isaiah. There’s this duchess.” He sighed. “Patricia, Duchess of Cantor. Her father is somebody important. She’s actually been given a title of her own for some reason I don’t understand. I think Isaiah wanted to get on her father’s good side or something.”
Esther sat down in one of the other chairs and waited for him to go on.
“Patricia is a year or so younger than me. Isaiah was always trying to get me to events where she would be. Isaiah wanted me to...” He hesitated. “...entertain her, perhaps even get caught in a compromising situation with her so Isaiah could get the upper hand with her father.”
Esther didn’t say anything.
“I knew better than to flat out refuse. Instead, I managed to be sick or have a test the next day or invent some other pretext to not attend. The events I did attend, I avoided her like the plague.”
“What does that have to do with today?”
“Isaiah wants me to come home for the weekend to attend some fundraiser. The way he said it, I’m sure he wanted me to... spend some time with her.”
“He wants you to cheat on me?”
“Probably. I’m not a hundred percent sure he knows we actually got married. He wasn’t there, remember?”
“I remember, because I was there.”
Darius slumped in his seat. “Sorry. I hate it when he tries to use us like that.”
“Why does your mother let him?”
That was a very good question. “I don’t think she knows, to be honest. She’s not the one in charge either. Benjamin is.”
“And if she did know, would she allow it to continue?”
“Probably not. She’d probably go to Benjamin and try to get him to kick Isaiah out or at least limit his influence some more, but I don’t know that she’d be able to. Not anymore. Maybe years ago she could have, but Isaiah limits her influence too.”
“Why does he have so much power? He wasn’t even Benjamin’s regent, was he?”
“No, my Aunt Louise was. As soon as Benjamin turned eighteen, she stepped back. Isaiah stepped in even though he wasn’t actually needed. I think Benjamin felt so overwhelmed that he just let him.”
“What does Isaiah hope to gain?”
“Power? I don’t really know. I think he always thought he should have been king. If he’d been Benjamin’s regent, I don’t think he ever would have relinquished control.”
“Isn’t that what happened in Ravenzario? I remember their queen being attacked last spring but not the details.”
“I think that’s essentially correct. Her uncle was her regent from the time she was five. He ran things until he was finally arrested a couple years ago. He was released from prison and tried to kill her. She managed to get away, and her husband fought him in the town square until authorities arrived.”
He hesitated again, not wanting to cause her any more pain. “I think she’s due to have their first child any day now.”
Esther gave him a sad smile. “That’s wonderful news.” She closed her eyes for a few seconds. “Do you think Isaiah would have been the same way if he’d had the chance?”
“I’m almost certain.”
“So why didn’t anyone stop him? Why don’t they stop him now?”
“None of us really have that much power. I’m only twenty-one. My sisters will be twenty-three next month. How much he interferes has only been evident to me now that I’ve been gone for a while. I mean, I knew I didn’t always approve of what he tried to get me to do, but that’s it. The only one who could actually limit Isaiah’s influence is Benjamin, and he just doesn’t see it.”
“Then I’ll be praying something opens his eyes to the reality of Isaiah’s machinations.”
That made Darius chuckle. “Machinations?”
Esther shrugged. “It seemed like a good word to use.”
Another thought occurred to him, and he sobered. “Is next month going to be hard for you?”
“Next month?” She looked puzzled.
“Well, I don’t know exactly when the baby would have been due.”
Realization crossed her face. “Not until early November, most likely. There was no real reason for the doctor to tell me when the due date was given that the baby had already stopped developing when I saw him.” She stared at her hands. “But best guess, based on our time in Sargasso, would be the second week or so of November.”
He needed to remember that. Find a way to keep her mind off of what they’d lost.
Esther had done the research.
And now she knew how to boil water.
Maybe.
She’d never actually tried.
But the time had come to try this for real.
She found a big pot and filled it two-thirds of the way with water, set it on the stove, and turned the burner to high.
Many of the recipes she’d found had given explicit instructions on how to make your own spaghetti sauce, but Esther knew that was far too much for her first attempt at dinner. She’d grabbed a jar of something that sounded good. Basil and garlic were good, right?
The meatballs were frozen. She read the instructions on the bag again.
In a medium saucepan, she dumped all of the meatballs. It seemed like a lot. Using a fork to move them around, she counted fifteen. Maybe not so many? She had no idea how many Darius would eat.
Weren’t leftovers a thing?
Maybe they could eat any that were left later in the week.
She took the jar of sauce and tried to twist the lid, but it didn’t want to come open. No matter how hard she tried, it wouldn’t move.
“Need some help?”
Esther turned to see Darius leaning against the counter with a smirk on his face. She held the jar out. “If you get it, it’s only because I loosened it for you.”
He took it from her. “Of course. But what are you doing?”
“Attempting to make dinner.”
“I was going to order pizza.”
“I know, but I wanted to try this, on my own, before Louis and his sister get here.” And pray she didn’t burn it. “I also have a loaf of bread that I’m going to try to turn into garlic bread.”
The jar opened with a pop. Darius handed it back.
Esther poured the entire contents of the jar over the top of the meatballs. She turned it on high as well. That would heat it up faster.
“I feel like that might be a bad idea.” Darius stood in front of the stove with his arms crossed over his chest. “I’m not really sure why though.”
With a shrug, Esther turned to the island counter top and opened the bag of bread. “At least I know not to put this in the oven in the bag. That’s a start.”
She dug around in another cabinet and pulled out a flat rectangular pan. The bread was already cut in half, so she opened it, grateful she’d found one already buttered and seasoned. The sticker on the bag told her what to set the oven at, and she asked Darius to turn it on.
“I don’t think I’ve ever turned on an oven. I have one in my apartment, but I’ve never used it.”
“It can’t be that hard.” She stood next to him and studied the buttons. Bake. Broil. Start. Cancel. Up and down arrows. This wasn’t baking, but wasn’t that the best op
tion of the ones she was given? She pressed it. The display started blinking 200. Degrees? She pressed the up button until it reached the number she wanted, but it kept blinking.
Now what?
Start did nothing. She hit some more buttons. This time there were noises and more lights and less blinking.
“See? Nothing to it.”
Something popped and hit her on the arm causing her to pull back.
“Ah!” She jumped away as the spaghetti sauce popped and bubbled.
“I knew that was a bad idea,” Darius muttered. He used the handle to move the pan off the burner and it immediately calmed down a little. “Is there a lid for this thing?”
Good idea. Hadn’t some of the videos she’d watched used lids? “Check the drawer under the stove.” She got a cloth and wiped the splattered sauce off the stove top.
Darius set a lid on the pan and moved it back to the burner when she finished. He turned the temperature down. “I don’t think high is a great plan.”
She didn’t admit out loud that he was right, but he had been. What was next?
Waiting for the water to boil.
Esther checked the instructions on her phone. Break the spaghetti in half or thirds over the pot. Small handfuls. Add a dash of salt then a little bit of vegetable oil to make sure it didn’t boil over and to keep the noodles from sticking together later.
She double checked the times on the bag of noodles and the packaging for the bread. If she put the bread in as soon as the noodles were in, they should finish about the same time.
“I’m going to go get some homework done. Then I won’t have to do it this weekend.”
He’d been spending more time at home the last week. At least now she knew he’d usually gone to the library and not to visit some girl.
The water started to bubble. Carefully, she held the noodles over the pot and, staying as far away as she could, snapped them. One handful went in the pot. The other was broken in half again. She repeated the process until the bag was empty. Relief flooded her. She’d done that part. How much was a dash of salt? Esther went with a couple of shakes then added a couple more for good measure. After pouring a little bit of oil in, she used a spoon to stir it all.
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