Her Undercover Prince

by Carol Moncado

  Except maybe Dave.

  Would he be there as her escort or on the outskirts with security?

  She spent the day relaxing with a book and on the beach with all four little girls in her family as well as several members of the Eyjanian family and Esme.

  When they were sort of alone, Jacqueline Grace broached the subject that had been on her mind for a couple of days. “Is there something going on with you and Gabriel?”

  Esme turned to Jacqueline Grace, eyebrows clearly visible over her sunglasses. “What?”

  “I saw a look between you two the other day.”

  The other woman opened her mouth to protest, but Jacqueline Grace waved her off.

  “Not that kind of look. He winked at you. You glared at him.”

  “He’s an arrogant...” Esme bit off whatever else she was going to say. “There was some discussion of a match when we were children, but that was decades ago. You know his reputation. They call him The Playboy Prince for a reason. You really think I’d put up with that? Or that he’d settle for being second fiddle to a queen someday? He’d have to give up his place in Auverignon’s line of succession. You and I both know he’d never do that.”

  Jacqueline Grace sipped on the fruity drink in her hand. “Then what was the look about?”

  Esme shrugged. “Who knows with him?”

  “But the way you glared at him was more than just being annoyed,” she pressed.

  “It’s nothing. You’re seeing something that isn’t there.” Esme turned to stare over the water.

  “But...”

  Esme sat up and grabbed her book and phone. “Leave it alone, Jack.”

  No one called her Jack.

  Esme glared at Jacqueline Grace. “Or should we talk about how a certain unidentified male spent last night alone with you in your quarters?” Esme stood as gracefully as she could from a lounge chair on the beach and stalked off.

  Jacqueline Grace watched her go. No matter what Esme said, something more was going on with Gabriel.

  Dave waited in the sitting area of Jacqueline Grace’s quarters. He wore a tuxedo provided for him by Mr. Ferdinand.

  It didn’t fit right.

  It was fine but not made for him.

  A screen had been set up separating the bedroom area from the living area, allowing him to be present while giving her privacy.

  She emerged wearing a flowing sea foam green dress but didn’t say anything to him. He extended his elbow, and she slid her hand in.

  They made their way to the banquet hall meeting up with several others as they did.

  Before dinner started, formal pictures were taken on one end of the room. Dave wasn’t in those, but every one of the members of the San Majorian and Eyjanian families were, including Queen Mother Grace. He’d discovered the girls called her Gigi, and Mary had been invited to as well. She didn’t understand why she didn’t get to be in the pictures.

  Instead, he sat at one of the tables with Mary on his knee watching as they were all situated just so. Princess Esther and Prince Darius sat in the middle with the babies. The families were about the same size, though the San Majorians had more spouses and grandchildren while the Eyjanians had more siblings. They balanced nicely for the moment.

  After the full family photos were taken, they took ones of smaller subgroups. Once they were done, they all took their seats. Dave sat next to Jacqueline Grace while Mary and the other younger children were seated at a separate table and looked after by the nannies. Their meals would likely be shorter. Children that age often didn’t make it through a full meal without getting antsy. Accommodations would have already been made to get them food and then likely off to bed.

  Jacqueline Grace still didn’t say anything to him, though he doubted anyone would notice. She smiled, talked to others around them, but not to Dave directly.

  Finally, he leaned over and whispered, “Is there a reason you’re ignoring me?”

  She shook her head. “No particular reason.”

  “Last night had nothing to do with it?”

  “What happened last night?” Her innocent tone didn’t fool him.

  “Then is it what happened in Athmetis that we discussed last night?”

  Jacqueline Grace took a sip of her wine. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  She turned back to the conversation on the other side.

  Dave manage to stifle his sigh and went back to his meal and discussing the weather with the prince from Auverignon.

  The girls left with the nannies. The youngest Quatremaines also left, along with Harrison, likely having no interest in dancing.

  Dave didn’t really either but had no choice in the matter. Jacqueline Grace accepted an offer from Gabriel for the first dance. Her siblings danced with their spouses. Dave asked one of the Eyjanian twins, the more outgoing one. Genevieve, he thought.

  “I see the way you look at her,” Genevieve told him about halfway through.

  She caught him off-guard. “Who?” he asked, trying to play it off.

  “Jacqueline Grace. And I see the way she looks at you.”

  “How does she look at me?”

  “Like there’s something between you two.”

  With an ease borne of years of practice, he kept dancing, spinning them around several times.

  Genevieve just smiled at him. “You don’t get out of it that easily. What’s going on with you and Jacqueline Grace?”

  “Nothing worth noting. We’re in two different places in life. She’s a princess. I work for her father. But even if the playing field were a little more level, the timing wouldn’t be right.”

  Something prickled at the back of his neck. He looked over Genevieve’s head and twirled them around again, this time watching the outskirts of the room. Thor, Landon Jones, and the others didn’t seem to be more alert than normal.

  The dance ended, and he traded partners. This time, he ended up with Queen Katrín of Eyjania. “Are you enjoying yourself, Your Majesty?”

  The queen wrinkled her nose. “I have a hard time thinking of myself as your majesty, especially in this crowd. Please, call me Katrín.”

  Dave chuckled, though he kept his attention focused more outward than on the queen. “How are you adjusting to life in the fish bowl?”

  “It’s different, but my in-laws have been most welcoming and have are helping me find my way.”

  “I heard a rumor there might be some more good news coming from you and the king.”

  Katrín’s shoulders slumped for a second, though she recovered quickly. “We won’t be making any announcements this week.”

  The way she said it, Dave was certain she wasn’t expecting her first child, but she didn’t actually say that. Just that there wouldn’t be an announcement in the next few days. That didn’t preclude them from making one in a week or two.

  But her body language told a different story.

  “I won’t be making any announcements at any time,” she muttered.

  Did she feel her voice was being taken away? Since the announcement, when it came, would come from King Benjamin and not Katrín?

  “When the time is right,” Dave said, knowing it to be an empty platitude when someone’s arms were empty instead of filled.

  “When you’ve been married to the king for more than three weeks, you’re expected to make that kind of announcement any day. It’s always on everyone’s minds. I’m surprised no one asked about it at the press conference.”

  “After the question about Jacqueline Grace’s mystery man, I think they knew better than to stray from the topic at hand.”

  “You’re the mystery man, aren’t you?”

  He gave her his best smile. “You caught me.”

  Before she could ask him about his relationship with Jacqueline Grace, the music stopped.

  But the way it stopped caused the hair on the back of his neck to stand up. He pulled the queen closer to him, scanning around.

  A number of men in suits hovered on
the outskirts of the room. Men he didn’t recognize, though he knew he didn’t know all the members of security on the island.

  No.

  Something wasn’t right.

  He started to move toward the closest door, Katrín still in his arms. She looked puzzled but didn’t say anything.

  A burly man about twice Dave’s size blocked the entrance.

  Dave tugged Katrín closer until she was as close to him as she could get.

  “What is it?” she whispered, not questioning the inappropriate way he held her, but knowing he had a reason behind it.

  He caught Benjamin’s eye, and the fury on his face told Dave he noticed how Dave held the queen but had no idea something else might be going on.

  Skirmishes began on the outer walls but ended quickly.

  Dave knew that wasn’t a good sign.

  And when a man stood on a chair at the head table, he knew this was going to be very bad.

  Isaiah was back.

  23

  Jacqueline Grace found herself pinned against the wall with Kensington in front of her. They’d been dancing. The music stopped.

  Everyone looked around.

  Kensington shoved her backward until she was against the wall, blocking her vision as well as whatever might come their way. It wasn’t unlike some of the security trainings she’d been to.

  But what was the threat?

  “Isaiah,” Kensington whispered.

  Her stomach dropped when she heard the name.

  He wasn’t dead.

  “What does he want?” she asked quietly.

  “I don’t know, but he and men working for him have overwhelmed the security forces in here.”

  That didn’t bode well for anything.

  “It looks like at least a few members of security may have been working for him all along.”

  There hadn’t been any gunfire. She was grateful for that, but she doubted that would last. Not if they didn’t cooperate with him until they were able to overpower him and his men, or outside forces arrived to rescue them.

  Biding their time. The best way to avoid getting seriously hurt was to not get taken, no matter how you did it. Once taken, or in a situation like this, you waited until you had the right moment.

  She’d never worried about it too much, though. That’s why they had security teams. Sure, Queen Christiana had been chased by her crazy uncle. And Princess Yvette had been kidnapped along with a friend - by the friend’s crazy father.

  There were no crazy relatives in Jacqueline Grace’s family.

  Therefore, no real threat.

  But her family was spending days in the company of the Quatremaines - who did have a crazy uncle everyone thought might have faked his death, though they weren’t sure how.

  “Everyone with HRH or HM in their title go to the middle of the room.”

  Jacqueline Grace couldn’t see who said it, but when Kensington didn’t move, she didn’t either.

  A woman’s cry caused Kensington to tense even further, but he didn’t move.

  After a thud and another cry, Kensington took half a step forward, clearly torn between protecting her and whoever was being roughed up.

  Was Isaiah - or his men - threatening Anabelle? Who had she been dancing with?

  Jacqueline Grace wanted to believe the men present would do much as her brother was. Whoever she’d been with would be protecting Anabelle like Kensington was protecting Jacqueline Grace.

  “As my former sister-in-law can now attest, resistance will only lead to broken bones, or worse.” The voice had to be Isaiah’s.

  “The queen was by herself. His man pulled her to the center and threw her to the ground. She probably has a broken wrist, or possibly a broken forearm.” Kensington’s quiet words were meant to calm, but instead struck more fear in her heart. “Father is nodding for all of us to move to the center. When we get there, get in the middle. We’ll protect you all.”

  Then who was going to protect them?

  Kensington reached an arm around behind and pressed his palm against her back, keeping her close to him. As they reached the center of the room, so did everyone else, the men situating everyone, so they were the outer ring with the women in the middle.

  Eliana sat in the center, cradling her left wrist in her other hand. Her oldest daughters had already rushed to her side.

  “What about this guy?” one of the bad guys called to Isaiah, his hand around Dave’s upper arm. “He’s Jacqueline Grace’s date, but he’s also been hanging out with Thor and works for Edward.”

  “Put him with the others in here,” Isaiah directed. “If he gets out of line... I’m sure they can all guess what the consequences would be.”

  Dave joined the circle, though on the other side from Jacqueline Grace.

  “Now, who wants to tell me where the children are?” Isaiah walked a circle around the group. “I see my namesake and the younger royals have decided to be elsewhere.” He flicked his wrist and several men left the room. “What about the children? There are little girls and babies. We wouldn’t want them to be separated from their parents for too long.”

  No one answered him.

  Jacqueline Grace looked at the women around her. At least her gown was flowing, and she had enough room to sit fairly comfortably. Not all of them had the same luxury. Several of them wore gowns that were more formfitting. Sitting in chairs would be one thing. The floor was another thing entirely.

  The men were already undoing their ties and the top buttons of their dress shirts, eyes shifting everywhere as they did so.

  Each of the attached men were sticking close to their wives. Jordan stuck to Astrid like glue and looked ready to kill. With his hockey past, he could probably take someone out - maybe a few someones. With his heart transplant, he needed meds regularly. That could be an issue if this went on too long.

  Benjamin looked torn between protecting Katrín and going to his mother. Her father managed to be near both her mother and grandmother. Benjamin’s younger brother - was it Josiah? - was the only unattached male left, besides Dave, and he stationed himself near his mother and two older sisters. Dave had joined him.

  That left Esme and Gabriel.

  Despite what her friend had said earlier in the day, something was there. The look on Gabriel’s face matched the one on every other man’s there. The if-looks-could-kill-they-would-to-protect-the-woman-in-my-life look.

  No one answered Isaiah’s question about the children, but she doubted he expected anyone to.

  Two men carrying rifles walked in and to Isaiah’s side, whispering in his ear.

  His face turned red before he swiped his arm across a table, knocking a glass vase to the floor and shattering it. He turned to the group.

  “Where are they?”

  No one said anything.

  “Where are the girls?” he asked, walking around the group again, this time stopping in front of Kensington, who’d moved closer to Anabelle, leaving Jacqueline Grace feeling more exposed. “Where are they?”

  “What girls?” Kensington asked.

  “The little ones and the babies.” Isaiah crouched down in front of Kensington. “The girl you like to think is yours. Where is she?”

  In a blink, it clicked.

  Isaiah was after Gracie.

  Because he was her father.

  What did Isaiah want with the girls? Were they in danger from him?

  Any more than the rest of them were?

  “What do you want with Gracie?” Anabelle asked. “She’s my sister. We adopted her.”

  Dave knew, from the little Jacqueline Grace had told him, that there was more to the story.

  “Your cousin, you mean.” Isaiah raised an eyebrow at her. “Your grandfather had another child. That woman was Grace’s mother.”

  “My parents adopted her not long after she was born. After they died, I raised her. After I married Kensington, we adopted her.”

  Isaiah pushed Kensington out of the way and grabbed Anabelle’s
upper arm, dragging her forward. “You were supposed to marry Benjamin.”

  Kensington leapt to his feet, getting in Isaiah’s face before being pulled back by one of Isaiah’s men.

  Anabelle drew the attention back to herself. “I never agreed to marry Benjamin.”

  “And I never agreed to marry her,” Benjamin jumped to his feet. “What is it you want, Isaiah?”

  “My rightful place restored. I should have been king, not your father, and definitely not you. When your father died, the crown should have passed to me.”

  “Louise would have been queen before you.”

  Isaiah shook his head. “Male primogeniture was law until you were fifteen. As brother of the king, I should have taken over. Even after it passed, it shouldn’t have been retroactive.”

  Genevieve shifted. “Then why weren’t you Benjamin’s regent? If you were next in line, why was Louise?”

  “Because the law about regents doesn’t specify gender like it should. When I take over, I’ll rectify that.”

  The sinister way he said it caused Jacqueline Grace’s heart to constrict. For Isaiah to take the throne, Benjamin and all of his siblings would have to be out of the equation. So would the babies. And Louise and her children.

  Jacqueline Grace had seen the official succession chart. No matter what Isaiah said, Louise was higher up the list than he was.

  “You’ll never take over, Isaiah.” Eliana’s voice sounded stronger than she looked. “When word gets out that you’ve taken all of us captive, you’ll be executed for treason.”

  She’d never seen an actual sinister smile before, but one crossed Isaiah’s face.

  “We’ll see about that.” He turned back to Anabelle, dragging her to her feet and shoving her into a chair. “Where are the children?”

  Kensington struggled against the men holding him back.

  Anabelle glared at Isaiah.

  Jacqueline Grace tore her eyes off the scene in front of her, finally seeing Thor, Tim, and the rest of security - at least the good guys - being held at gunpoint in a corner. She couldn’t see them very well, but they were seated and seemed to have their hands tied behind their backs. They’d likely been disarmed as well.