“I’m inclined to agree with you.”
That’s what she continued to think until she couldn’t get the water to heat up for a shower the next morning. Tepid, yes. Lukewarm, even. Hot, no.
She didn’t even feel clean.
Kirsten and Marian, Jacqueline Grace’s stylist, helped her get ready, though both also complained about the lack of hot water as well. With her hair plastered into a French twist, it wasn’t going to go anywhere. She wore wide-leg pants with an emerald green silk wrap-around blouse and a black blazer. It was a shame the blouse would be covered up most of the day, but at least if she decided to take the blazer off, she’d still look the part.
She slipped on the matching emerald heels and went down for breakfast. The girls already sat at the table with Dave.
“Where ya going, Jacquie?” Kiara knelt on her seat to get close enough to eat her food without making a mess.
“I have meetings for the next three days, remember? You’re going to stay here with Mr. Dave and Mary. Maybe go do some fun things without me.”
“Mr. Dave can sen’ pictures if we do fun stuff.” Kiara nodded quite seriously.
Jacqueline Grace smiled at her. “I know he will. You can tell me all about it tonight. I should be back before dinner, but I can’t answer my phone, so you won’t be able to call me.”
“‘Kay.”
She managed to choke down a few bites of breakfast. Mrs. Rappellino should come give this cook some lessons, but the bland food was probably better for her churning stomach.
The car to pick her up was on time, though she suspected Tim had more to do with that than her hosts. Her suspicion was confirmed when she spent half an hour in an office waiting room before anyone besides an assistant greeted her. She suspected it wasn’t even the Trade Minister’s assistant, but rather a general assistant from the pool.
She was moved to the Trade Minister’s outer office where the Minister’s actual assistant, or one of them anyway, greeted her. Ninety minutes after the meeting was to have begun, Jacqueline Grace was finally ushered into the conference room.
Once there her worst fears were realized. Every one of the others in the room were men, most old enough to be her father. Some old enough to be her grandfather.
All grumpy looking.
“Now that the princess is here, can we begin?” The man at the head of the table motioned to the only empty chair, situated halfway down. In his tone was the implication that they’d been waiting on her to start the meeting. He also didn’t offer to introduce anyone.
She set her satchel on the table, took her seat and pulled out her notes.
Every one of them stared at her as she did.
Feeling in way over her head and with tears beginning to form at the back of her eyes, she nodded. “Shall we begin, gentlemen?”
Dave knew Jacqueline Grace would want to see the girls, but he suspected she’d be too knackered for a full dinner or the outing the girls wanted to plan. Even when negotiations like this went well, they could be draining, and he suspected these weren’t going to go easily.
“Kirsten?” He poked his head into the study where she was working.
“Yes, sir?”
He rolled his eyes. “You don’t need to ‘sir’ me. You outrank me in the palace, I’m sure.”
She smiled but shook her head. “You’re on the king’s personal staff. That makes you more senior than most, even though you’re new.”
Good to know, he supposed. “What can we do to make sure Jacqueline Grace can relax when she gets here? Make sure she’s well-rested for tomorrow?”
Kirsten frowned. “I’m not certain. My first suggestion would be a hot bath, but that seems to be out.”
“So I didn’t just get the tail end of the water heater this morning?” He’d wondered how many people had showered before him.
“No, sir.” She glanced around. “In places like this, there’s always a chance there are extra ears.” Bugs, she meant. People from the host country listening in. “But I don’t particularly care. I’ve stayed in residences for foreign dignitaries for years. Some are nicer than others, that’s true, but this place tells me one of two things. Either the government in Athmetis is broke and can’t even keep up appearances for someone from another royal family.” She stopped.
“Or...?” he prompted.
“Or they don’t think she’s far enough up the totem pole to matter.”
A third possibility entered his head. “Or they want to see if she stands up for herself and her entourage. A test of sorts.”
Kirsten nodded. “I hadn’t thought of that, but I suppose it’s possible. Likely, even. San Majoria’s relationship with Athmetis isn’t particularly strained, but it’s not overly friendly either. They could see sending the third child as an insult.”
“One of those insulting without meaning to be things.”
“Exactly.”
He had a feeling she would report everything to her superior in San Majoria. What he didn’t want was King Edward swooping in to fix it all, and he told her as much. “I think the princess needs to find her own footing.”
“I’m inclined to agree with you, sir, but I do have to make the report. I will include the recommendation that the king keep his nose out of it.” She grinned. “I’ll be more diplomatic though.”
Dave grinned. “I’m sure you will. Any thoughts on helping the princess relax?”
She shook her head. “I’m afraid not.”
He straightened and took a step backward. “I’ll see what I can come up with then.” Maybe a neck and shoulder massage would help. He could do that, right? Would she let him?
The girls had already eaten dinner when her car pulled up in front of the building. There was only a small courtyard and mere feet separating it from the houses next to it. Were they also owned by the government or, more likely, the Crown? If they weren’t, it seemed a likely spot for enemies to try to station themselves.
He needed to keep a close eye on their neighbors.
After all, one of his jobs was undercover bodyguard.
Kirsten and Miriam had already bathed the girls, so they were in their jammies and ready for bed when Jacqueline Grace made it inside.
She sank onto the couch in the living area and let the girls crawl up next to her. The girls tried to take turns telling her about their day but ended up talking over each other more than anything else. He doubted she absorbed much of it, but she let them jabber on until he interrupted.
“All right, girls. I think Jacqueline Grace has heard what she needs to. Why don’t you both give her a kiss and go on upstairs?” They’d talked about it several times during the day. Jacqueline Grace would be worn out and could probably only talk to them for a few minutes before they’d need to go to let her rest.
The girls gave her hugs and kisses then scampered upstairs. Miriam would put them to bed.
Dave stood behind the couch where she sat and reached down, resting his hands on her shoulders. “How did it go?”
“Better than if Esther had gone. Not nearly as well as if my father had.”
“Because you’re young? Not the heir? A woman?”
“Yes. No. I have no idea. Maybe they’re just annoying to everyone.”
He pressed his thumbs into the muscles in her shoulders. “Why don’t you go change? I’ll bring up something for you to eat.” His fingers moved gently against the tension she carried in her neck and shoulders. She had to have a headache.
“That sounds nice.” It seemed to take more effort than it should for her to stand up.
Her shoes had come off at some point, and she padded barefoot up the stairs.
Dave went into the kitchen and found the plate waiting for her in the refrigerator. Another odd thing. He’d have thought a visiting princess would warrant a hot meal not a warmed-over plate.
He carried it upstairs along with a cold bottle of water. When she said he could come in, he did and found her in drawstring pajama pants and a t-shirt that look
ed extra soft.
A small table was situated on one side, and that’s where he put her meal. He held the chair. “Milady, your dinner.”
She gave him a weary smile. “Thank you, kind sir.”
Once she was seated, he took the other chair. He told her a little bit about their day as she ate. When she set her fork down, he broached the subject. “Want to suss it out?”
Jacqueline Grace hesitated, and he realized she was trying to figure out what he meant. Before he could explain that he meant ‘figure it out’, she replied.
“Not really. I’m still processing. I don’t know what to think about all of it.”
“Were you able to get any concessions?”
“Nothing we really wanted. Nothing they weren’t already planning to give.”
“Maybe that’s just the way day one of negotiations goes?”
“Perhaps, but I already made more than one concession my father approved but didn’t prefer.”
Dave stood and moved behind her, this time giving her a full neck and shoulder rub.
“That feels like heaven,” she murmured as her head dropped forward. “Thank you.”
When he sensed she was as relaxed as she was going to get, he stopped. Taking her dishes with him, he left and hoped she’d get some rest.
The next morning was a repeat of the first. Her hair essentially hadn’t moved, but Miriam washed it and started over.
Her slacks were dark gray this time, though the blazer was still black. The blouse was cobalt blue. The shoes were shiny black.
The sapphires in her earrings matched the blouse. Her favorite color. The color of the ocean at times.
Of Dave’s eyes.
Well, his eyes were the color of the ocean, but not sapphire.
The neck massage the night before had been just what she needed. He hadn’t pressed her for details, just talked about his day with the girls as she ate, then took care of her.
As his hands loosened the knots in her muscles her mind began to work out other knots. She knew what she needed to do. Before going to bed, she’d texted anyone relevant that she wanted to leave an hour earlier than previously planned. They couldn’t accuse her of being late.
No one else was in the kitchen when she came down for breakfast, not even the housekeeper/cook who was supposed to take care of their meals.
She ate something light, taking time to read her Bible as she did. Though the parallels didn’t exist anywhere but in her own mind, Jacqueline Grace read part of Esther.
For such a time as this.
Saving a nation wasn’t exactly on her to-do list, but she had a role to perform, and God wouldn’t send her in unequipped. Neither would her father.
Tim and the driver were both ready before she was. The staff at the Trade Ministry had clearly been warned she would be arriving early, but Jacqueline Grace was ushered to the same place she was before.
No one offered her a bottle of water or a cup of tea. Just let her sit and ignored her.
This time they made her wait just over two hours or an hour after she was originally supposed to be there. Even before she left the house, Jacqueline Grace had already made up her mind to handle things differently. Her time being snubbed only strengthened her resolve.
Forty-five minutes after her scheduled arrival, she was taken to the Trade Minister’s office. After another twenty minutes, she was finally taken to the conference room.
“Ah, the princess is here!” The Trade Minister didn’t even stand. He waved toward a different empty seat, but still not the one she should have.
She stood behind the chair and stared him down. “Before we start, I have something to say.”
He waved a dismissive hand.
“I am Her Royal Highness Jacqueline Grace Victoria Eliana here on behalf of His Majesty King Edward of San Majoria. I am quite certain my father would not be pleased with the treatment I and my entourage have been subjected to since we arrived. Our accommodations are substandard, including, but not limited to, a lack of hot water. Beyond that I have been kept waiting for a total of nearly four hours between yesterday and already today.”
“You were early today,” he snapped.
“Then it was five hours. Our meeting was to have started over an hour ago,” she snapped back.
He clamped his mouth shut.
She took a deep breath. “Here is what’s going to happen, gentlemen. My party will have new quarters by noon today. If you don’t have another, more suitable, residence, then you will find us a hotel commensurate with my status as an envoy of the Crown of San Majoria. You will not bill San Majoria for any associated expenses.”
The Trade Minister opened his mouth, but she held up a hand.
“Next, we are going to restart these negotiations from scratch. I am going to sit there.” She pointed to the other end of the table from him. “Our meetings will start when they are scheduled to start, or you will be billed for my time. I assure you, my time is not inexpensive. I’d hate to see what the people of Athmetis think of that line item in the budget.”
She looked at each man at the table, several of whom look properly chastised. The Trade Minister wasn’t one of them, but she stared him down. “Do we have an agreement?”
He gave a single nod of acquiescence. The men shuffled themselves around as she took her spot at the end of the table. With a pad and pen sitting out, she looked at the Trade Minister.
“Minister, if you would be so kind as to introduce those with whom we are working, I would appreciate it. I’m certain they would as well. I would hate to call one of them by the wrong name.” If he didn’t do as she asked, she’d purposely butcher his name.
But she didn’t have to. He introduced each one of them along with their role.
Jacqueline Grace gave them her best sweet smile. “It’s lovely to meet all of you. Now, if I could get a show of hands, how many of you wouldn’t be here if you weren’t trying to intimidate me?”
Several stared at their notepads. Several others stared somewhere over her head. Finally, a few raised their hands.
“Very well. Anyone else?”
Several more hands went up. Over half total.
“Thank you for your honesty, gentlemen. While I am certain you are all excellent at your jobs, those jobs do not necessitate you being here for these meetings. Perhaps your time would be better spent elsewhere, doing things that actually need doing. I’m certain the people of Athmetis would prefer it.”
The Trade Minister’s face had turned beet red. He hadn’t expected her to call his bluff, which was exactly why she’d done it.
When everyone else had cleared out, she was left in a room with five men at the table and one male assistant off to the side taking notes. They had rearranged themselves, so they sat two on either side of the Trade Minister.
“I expect a copy of the notes before I leave this evening. In the morning, I will let you know if I find anything inaccurate or untoward. I’m certain you have your best man on the job, but I’m equally certain you understand why I will review them.”
With another one of her best smiles, she straightened the papers in front of her - copies of where the negotiations had started. “Shall we begin?”
15
Whatever Jacqueline Grace had said and whoever she had said it to, things had changed.
Dave and the girls were at a local seaside museum, but when they left to go back to the residence for lunch, they were taken somewhere else.
This house had a courtyard big enough to drive into and, he checked as soon as he had a chance, hot water.
In the back was a small pool which the girls were quite excited about. He promised to take them swimming after nap time.
“Any idea what happened?” he asked Kirsten.
She shrugged. “About three hours ago, a member of the staff at the house said we were being moved. Several people showed up to help pack everything and within an hour we were on our way here.
Everything in the building spoke of qualit
y. While the other house wasn’t dilapidated, it certainly wasn’t anything like this.
While the girls slept, Dave took a long shower and didn’t seem to come close to running out of hot water. He’d need another one after swimming, but at least he felt clean now.
He used his tablet to log into his email from home. There he found several things he couldn’t ignore. He checked his home voice mail and found another message from his father. Another from Gideon said he’d had a lovely time with Jacqueline Grace, and he hoped Dave would tell her the truth soon. He reiterated his promise not to tell their father anything.
None of his other brothers ever left a message, though he suspected they called from time to time. His sister left messages about once a week. When he called back, he tried to call at a time when he knew she’d be unavailable to talk so he could leave her a message. He hated not talking to her, but he couldn’t when he didn’t know when he’d be home.
Another check of trending social media told him the photos of Jacqueline Grace with an unidentified man had blown over. They’d moved onto something else. Speculation that the Duchess of Cambridge was pregnant with their fourth child seemed to be a favorite, as was speculation that her husband’s sister-in-law, the Duchess of Sussex, had been pregnant before her wedding to Prince Harry - though she would have to be showing by now if so. Even Dave knew that.
After swimming and dinner, Dave had Miriam get the girls ready for bed again. It wasn’t technically in her job description, but she was happy to do it.
Jacqueline Grace looked different when she walked in.
“Jacquie!” Both girls ran to her.
She knelt down on the floor and hugged them to her.
“We have a pool, Jacquie!” Kiara jumped up and down. “Mr. Dave too’ us swimmin’!”
“It’s a lovely new house for us to stay at.” Jacqueline Grace stood and the three of them went into the sitting room. This time when the girls tried to tell her about their day, the conversation went much differently than it had the day before.
Her Undercover Prince Page 11