Her Undercover Prince

by Carol Moncado

  She would do this if it killed her.

  She’d prove to her family she could do anything her sisters could do. Astrid had been a single mother for several years before meeting Jordan. Esther was mothering twins, though she had Darius to help.

  There was the one regret Jacqueline Grace had about being in the States. She’d been in the same country as her sister and hadn’t seen her or her nieces.

  It didn’t make sense. They were half a continent apart. Nearly 2000 kilometers. She’d see Esther and the babies in a couple weeks.

  Dave took a seat as far away as he could, which wasn’t very far, but he clearly didn’t want to talk to her.

  He hadn’t wanted to talk to her all day. Even when they attended the matinee of Wicked during nap time, he’d spent most of the time next to her but not talking. On the trip to Liberty and Ellis Islands, he’d been distant with the girls. Even Mary had commented on it.

  He’d smiled, a little too brightly, then tried to be more normal. Mary clung more closely to him than usual, letting Jacqueline Grace know the little girl recognized the falsehood in his smile.

  The visit to Times Square had been somewhat better. The girls loved the bustle and the lights and especially the pizza.

  “Want to tell me what’s bothering you?” she asked before she could stop herself.

  Dave glanced up from his tablet. “Who said anything’s bothering me?”

  “Something clearly is.”

  “Nothing I care to discuss.” He went back to his tablet.

  Jacqueline Grace shrugged. “Fine.”

  Rather than spending more time with the Athmetis paperwork, she opened a novel by Jennifer A. Davids and escaped to Victorian England for a little while.

  About a third of the way in, she forced herself to put the ereader down and recline her chair, taking the blanket and pillow Kirsten offered.

  She dozed for most of the rest of the flight, though Dave’s phone conversation with someone named Gid seeped into her restless dreams. She knew something wasn’t going well with his father and whoever Gid was. Even when she woke up, she realized that part had been real.

  The girls ate a little breakfast before the plane landed in Ravenzario. Unfortunately, the closest airport wasn’t all that close to the beach house. Another SUV drove them a little over an hour to a house on a secluded beach near the southern tip of Ravenzario’s southern island.

  The girls weren’t crazy about sitting still for so long, but they were excited to get to the ocean. Mary admitted she wasn’t crazy about the waves.

  “Prince Kensington helped her last summer. Right before her mother left, she went to the surf competition thing where the surfers work with the younger kids.”

  Jacqueline Grace nodded. “I remember him saying there was a special little girl there. How odd that she’d end up friends with his niece.”

  “She’s better than she used to be,” he went on. “But still doesn’t like it when there are waves.”

  She turned until she could see Mary. “Part of our beach is more like a cove. There are very few waves most of the time.”

  A grin crossed Mary’s face. “Yay!”

  Kiara started talking about the sand castle she wanted to build. She wanted it to look just like the one she lived in, but Jacqueline Grace knew none of them were that good.

  About the time they reached the house, the girls were at the end of their patience.

  “I’ll take them down to the beach if you want to get settled inside,” Dave offered.

  Jacqueline Grace shook her head as she reached over to unbuckle the straps on Kiara’s seat. “No. I want to go.” At least they were all dressed semi-appropriately. They wouldn’t be able to get in the water, but she wasn’t wearing heels either.

  Tim and Kirsten would take care of getting their luggage to their rooms and unpacked, along with the staff who lived here year-round.

  “Who does this house belong to?” Dave asked.

  “The Mevendians. It’s another of the houses lent out among royal families.”

  “I’m kind of surprised it’s not owned by Queen Christiana’s family.”

  Jacqueline Grace shook her head as they made their way down the path to the beach. “Generally, we don’t lend out homes in our own countries. They’re a little too much like home, and we tend to travel to them on the spur of the moment a little too often to lend them out.”

  “How many different countries are in this little consortium of yours?”

  She had to think about that. “At least ten. I’m really not sure though.”

  He seemed to tick the countries off in his head. “The Quad Countries and the Belles Montagnes countries. That’s seven right there. Who else?”

  “Athmetis, though they tend to be more reticent from what I understand. New Sargasso, which is in your part of the world, and at least one other one down there as well, but I can’t remember which one off the top of my head.”

  Something she didn’t understand crossed his face as they rounded the last corner and the beach came into full view.

  The girls both pulled away from them and ran toward the water.

  Jacqueline Grace thought about yelling at them to stay back, but instinctively knew it wouldn’t be an issue. They wouldn’t go too far.

  But as they went over the rise and down to where the sand met the sea, they both stopped.

  “Jacquie!” Kiara screamed.

  Dave didn’t even glance back at her but took off with Jacqueline Grace hot on his heels.

  8

  Dave didn’t know what to expect when he reached the girls, but he knew it couldn’t be good.

  He nearly collapsed in relief when he saw what caused them such consternation.

  “What is it?” Jacqueline Grace asked as she stopped beside him.

  A small boat sat there leaning so the bottom faced them. “It’s just a boat. It’s nothing to worry about.”

  The girls still didn’t go any closer. Dave forced himself not to roll his eyes but went around to show them it was safe.

  What he saw there galvanized him into motion. “Call the house, princess. Get security and medical down here. Take the girls.”

  A man lay on his side, but he started to move as Dave knelt next to him.

  “Stay still,” Dave told him. “Where does it hurt?”

  The man sat up and shook his head. “Nowhere. I’m not hurt.”

  “Then what are you doing lying on the sand next to a boat?” He took stock of the boat. There didn’t seem to be anything wrong with it or the oars.

  “Taking a nap. I’m rowing around the islands as part of a fundraiser and awareness event. I was tired. This seemed fairly sheltered and a good place to stop.”

  Dave felt his guard go up even further, though he couldn’t quite explain why. “And the private beach signs didn’t mean anything to you?”

  The guy reached for a bag Dave hadn’t seen. “Nah. Most of those belong to rich folks who only use them once or twice a year. I wouldn’t actually come use the beach or trespass any farther than a few feet past high tide, but I figure the odds are slim of me actually running into anyone.”

  He wasn’t wrong, but that didn’t make him right.

  “Well, this time you’re on an occupied private beach, so you should hightail it out of here.” He should probably hold the man for Tim and his team to interrogate, but Dave just wanted him gone.

  The man nodded. “I’ll do just that.”

  He started to gather his things and right his boat when Tim and several security men Dave didn’t recognize showed up on the beach. Before the man could leave, he’d been taken into custody. Dave followed the knot of men back up to the house.

  He was greeted by a man who introduced himself as Mr. Rappellino. He and his wife were the caretakers of the property year-round.

  Mr. Rappellino showed Dave to his quarters while the security team took the other man somewhere else, likely somewhere a lot more secure.

  Dave changed into bat
hers and flip flops before going to look for the rest of his crew and go swimming. Jacqueline Grace met him in the hallway.

  Her dark brown eyes were clearly worried. “The girls are playing on the balcony. Kirsten is watching them. Is that man all right?”

  “He’d stopped to take a nap while he rowed around the island. He’s fine.”

  She moved closer and rested a hand on his forearm. “He’s not hurt?”

  “No. Just stupid. Stopping on private property is a great way to get arrested or shot depending on whose property it is.”

  “Very good point.” She started for the stairs. “I want to talk to Tim and make sure there’s no danger.”

  “Tim’s busy talking to the drongo now. I’d imagine it’ll be a while before they let him go.”

  She stopped and seemed somehow disappointed.

  It wasn’t any of his business. He pointed toward the door she’d emerged from. “Is this where the girls are staying?”

  “Yes,” Jacqueline Grace called over her shoulder as she walked down the stairs anyway.

  Nothing he could do about that. Dave went into the girls’ room to hear their giggles coming from the balcony. He saw Kirsten before he saw them. She had a smile on her face as she leaned back against the railing.

  The girls were lying face down on the balcony, peering over the edge. Dave laid down next to Mary and looked over. “What are we looking at?” he whispered.

  “The bird,” Mary whispered back.

  A bird hopped around in the dirt near a plant of some kind, pecking at something on the ground.

  Finally, the bird flew off with something wiggling in its beak.

  They went back into the girls’ bedroom. “Is the man okay, Daddy?” Mary asked.

  “Yep. He just needed a nap.” Had there been alcohol on the man’s breath? Dave didn’t think so, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t under the influence of some other substance. “Mr. Tim is talking to him now to make sure there’s nothing else wrong.”

  And Jacqueline Grace had gone to check on him as well.

  Could that be a twinge of jealousy Dave felt? Surely not.

  Kirsten took the girls to walk through the garden while Dave headed for another part of the house, hoping to find the security offices, though he wondered if his rationale wasn’t very different than Jacqueline Grace’s.

  He found Mrs. Rappellini and introduced himself. She sent him to a small building separate from the main house, but before he made it all the way there, Jacqueline Grace appeared.

  Her dark hair was still pulled back into a ponytail, but her sunglasses were now pushed up into her hair and she was laughing. He couldn’t see who she was talking to until he turned a slight corner.

  The guy from the beach.

  His smile seemed a touch too bright. His posture leaning a little too close. His body language a little too... slick.

  The man turned and smiled. “There’s the attempted hero now.”

  Attempted hero?

  Jacqueline Grace turned. “Dave, this is Martin.”

  Dave gave him a tight-lipped grin. “Feeling better after your nap?”

  “Feeling wonderful.” He turned to Jacqueline Grace and winked at her. “Feeling even better now. This lovely lady has agreed to have dinner with me in a couple of days after I finish my rowing. I should be done sometime tomorrow morning. There’s a celebration dinner tomorrow night.” He raised an eyebrow. “Perhaps you’d like to join me for that?”

  Jacqueline Grace shook her head. “I can’t. I have plans with my little girl tomorrow night.”

  That was news to Dave. Maybe she really didn’t want to go out with Martin at all.

  “There’s a carnival in another town that I told her we’d go to.” The note of apology in Jacqueline Grace’s voice grated on Dave’s nerves.

  Heels clicked on the pathway behind him.

  They all looked to see Kirsten walking up, tablet in hand.

  “Your father is waiting for your call, Miss.” She didn’t say princess. Did Martin not know Jacqueline Grace’s identity?

  “What does he want?” Jacqueline Grace asked.

  Kirsten shook her head. “I’m afraid that’s not for me to say.”

  Dave took that to mean that Kirsten knew but wasn’t about to be the bearer of whatever bad news was headed Jacqueline Grace’s way.

  Jacqueline Grace turned to Martin. “I’ll see you in a couple of days?”

  He took her hand and bent low, kissing the back of it. “Of course.”

  Dave followed in the princess’s wake as she walked toward the main house.

  Kirsten fell back to walk beside him. “He wants you there for this, too, Dave.”

  Her tone had changed from when she spoke to Jacqueline Grace.

  Whatever King Edward wanted, it must be serious.

  Jacqueline Grace sat at the desk in the study and waited for the connection to go through.

  Her father’s face filled the computer screen, and he didn’t look happy.

  “Did you have a safe trip?” he asked first.

  “Clearly we did. You would know if we hadn’t.”

  “How was New York?”

  He was beating around the bush. “Fine.” Except for wanting what she couldn’t have and her companion being extra grumpy for part of it. “What is it that’s so urgent?”

  Her father sighed and reached for the tablet sitting on his desk. “You’re going viral.”

  Jacqueline Grace blinked. “Viral? For what?”

  “You and Dave and the girls were in the background of someone’s picture the other day.” He held up the tablet.

  The four of them were in the box at the theater. Dave was whispering something in her ear. If she remembered right it was about the fireworks, but they hadn’t wanted to spoil the surprise for the girls.

  A feeling of dread filled her stomach. “So? It’s not a secret that Kiara’s friend and her friend’s father went with us. It’s not unreasonable that we’d discuss something we didn’t want the girls to hear.”

  “No,” her father admitted. “But since this photo started going viral overnight, you’ve popped up in the background of other pictures. In some you look cozy. In others you look mad at each other. The public and the paparazzi press are trying make sense of it. The current prevailing theory is that you’re together but were fighting part of the time you were in New York.” He shrugged. “It’s not an unreasonable assumption.”

  “You’re going to put out a press release saying we’re just friends, right?” Please say that’s what you’re going to do!

  He shook his head. “We’re going to ignore it for now. Esther and Darius will take you off the front page locally soon enough. Meantime, if you’re in public together, be nice. It might not be a bad idea to at least hint that you’re a happy item. You can officially break up while everyone’s preoccupied with your sister.”

  Jacqueline Grace didn’t look over at Dave. She didn’t want to see what he was thinking.

  “Do they know who I am?” Dave suddenly appeared behind her.

  Her father shook his head. “No. To this point, all of the photos of you are of your back or with a hat on or something else obscuring your face.”

  She thought she heard a whispered thank God, but she couldn’t imagine why.

  “We’ll keep a low profile, sir.” Dave appeared to speak for both of them, but she wasn’t having any of it.

  “No. I have a date in a couple of days. Kiara and I have plans tomorrow.” She glared over her shoulder. “You can keep a low profile if you want.”

  “Jacqueline Grace.” She hadn’t heard that note of warning her father’s voice in a long time, at least not directed at her. “If you’re going out, you need to go together or perhaps with Kiara alone. No dates for the moment.”

  Her shoulders slumped. “Yes, sir.” Just when she’d found a handsome man she wanted to get to know better. One who’d hinted he was a member of Montevarian aristocracy. A thought occurred to her. She scribb
led a note and handed it to Kirsten. “Is there anything else?”

  “Not at the moment.” His glare said he expected her to behave. “I love you.”

  She softened a bit. “I love you, too, Papa.”

  “I’ll see you in Sargasso in a week or so.” He kissed his fingertips and held them out to her as the connection severed.

  Jacqueline Grace slumped back in her seat. “Why do you care if anyone recognized you?” she called to Dave’s back as he walked toward the door.

  “I have my reasons,” he replied but didn’t turn around.

  “You know the pictures taken of us standing in lines and stuff will go out eventually.”

  That made him hesitate, but he opened the door anyway. “I know.”

  Kirsten walked back in as Dave left. “He hadn’t left yet. He’ll meet you here the day after tomorrow.”

  “Thank you, Kirsten. Where are the girls?”

  “With Mrs. Rappellino in the kitchen making scones.”

  She didn’t need to worry about Kiara for a few minutes. Instead of going to the kitchen, she went upstairs to her quarters and out to balcony where she could see the cove where they’d found Martin. She could see him as he started to row away from the beach.

  He possessed a magnetism she couldn’t quite explain. It wasn’t like with Dave. With Dave, she felt like she would never be able to get enough. It scared her to know she’d never have anything but a broken heart. Staying away was far easier.

  Martin had the same easy grace as Dave, but that could easily be attributed to his aristocratic upbringing. What was Dave’s attributed to? Though his clothes screamed money, he’d never even hinted at that kind of upbringing.

  Her father’s security team would have learned if there was something in his background that would make him an acceptable choice for the only princess left to make one. Her father never would have accepted him as an assistant valet if he was a member of the aristocracy somewhere.