by Ann Omasta
It wasn’t until her face slammed down into her dinner plate, and she bolted upright with mashed potatoes on her nose, that she was fully awake.
Each person around the table gawked at her. Tess looked horrified and like she would gladly swap places with her friend if she could. The queen’s face resumed its pinched, sour lemon expression. Only Pierce and Sebastian looked amused.
It was Pierce who broke the silence with a loud guffaw of laughter. Tears immediately sprang to Mo’s humiliated face. Tess wanted to kick the prince for laughing at her friend at such a time, but the table was too massive for her foot to have any hope of reaching him.
Quickly picking up on the fact that Mo was mortified, the prince got his laughter under control, stood, and crossed to stand beside Mo’s chair. Looking down at her, he said, “Only you could make a face-full of mashed potatoes and gravy look adorable.” With that, he swiped the spuds from her nose before licking his finger clean.
Tess couldn’t believe her eyes. They had spent the entire day learning how to be proper, pretty princesses, and now the prince himself was eating mashed potatoes from Mo’s nose?!?
The audacious move effectively erased the tension from the room. Mo immediately relaxed and gazed up at her hero. Tess and Sebastian grinned at each other from across the table. Even the queen cracked a smile, which made Tess wonder if the woman’s face might actually break from its new, unstrained expression.
Obviously feeling much better, Mo turned to the waiter standing behind her chair and said, “I believe I’m finished with my meal.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he responded without cracking a smile at the idea that she might have continued eating after face-planting directly into her plate. Tess wondered if part of their training included never showing emotions in front of the royals. If so, the staff probably really cut loose when they were off-duty.
The queen waved her gloved hand to indicate that the main course was finished, and their plates were efficiently swept away. Tess would have preferred to finish the delicious garlic lemon chicken on her plate, but it would have been rude to continue eating after Mo’s disaster.
With a flourish, the queen said, “In honor of our American guests, the pastry chef has prepared warm apple pie à la mode for dessert.”
Tess and Mo both were flattered at the acknowledgement and honest attempt at friendliness from the royal matriarch. It was the first time she had been anything but disdainful to the two of them, and they appreciated the gesture.
When the dessert plates were presented to the entire table in unison, the queen said, “Now, let’s use our utensils rather our faces to eat our pie, shall we?”
Both ladies looked at the woman’s face to determine if she was being mean or teasing. When her thin lips turned up into the slightest bit of a smile, they all burst out with relieved laughter.
For the first time, Tess began to feel hope that the queen might eventually be able to accept Mo and her relationship with the prince. Their relaxed moment of camaraderie was crushed when the king barged into the dining hall.
“What’s for dinner?” he bellowed in a booming voice. It wouldn’t have been that outlandish of an entrance, if he had been wearing any pants.
17
“Oh, darling! What are you doing?” The queen asked the rotund, obviously tipsy king.
“I’m having a meal in my dining room,” he answered, ruffling his white, unruly eyebrows together as if the question was completely uncalled for.
Realizing that she needed to clarify, the queen said, “Why aren’t you dressed for dinner? We have guests.” She lifted a gloved palm to indicate Tess and Mo.
“Oh right, where are my manners?” the king asked as he sauntered over to where the women were sitting. When he presented the back of his hand to Mo, she bugged her eyes out at Pierce, wondering what the man expected her to do.
“Kiss it,” Tess whispered near her ear, trying to save the awkward moment.
The prince jumped in to formally introduce the women to his father. Once they had both kissed his presented hand, he took his place at the head of the table, which had sat empty since the women had arrived.
Since the table was so long and the monarchs were at opposite ends, the queen practically had to shout for him to hear her. “I was referring to your lack of pants, darling.”
The man looked down at his lap and seemed stunned to see his bright red and white striped silk boxers. “Oh, Heavens to Betsy, you’re right. I seem to have forgotten my trousers.” His already red face turned a shade just shy of purple.
He spent a moment twisting the ends of his bushy white moustache before lifting his shoulders as if it was out of his control. Turning to the wide-eyed women he said, “If you sit at this table, you’re family.” As if the matter were settled, he turned his attention to the salad plate that had been presented to him.
The pinched, unhappy expression had returned to the queen’s face. She obviously didn’t approve of her husband’s decision to ignore the fact that he hadn’t worn pants to dinner, but she chose not to challenge him in front of their guests.
“So, is this the one you’re going to marry?” The king pointed to Tess as he asked the question of his son. He didn’t seem to realize that his voice was way too loud, or that he had just asked an incredibly awkward question.
“Actually, Maureen is the woman of my dreams.” The prince indicated Mo and smoothly shifted the king’s attention to the correct woman without directly addressing the marriage part of the question. Although he and Mo were gaga for each other, it felt too soon to be discussing anything of that magnitude.
The king lifted his head from shoveling salad into his mouth. Peering through his thick glasses that made his eyes appear to be enormous, he asked, “The ginger?”
Mo lifted a nervous hand to brush a stray piece of her thick, red locks behind her ear. Her hair formed a gorgeous halo around her head, but Tess knew that she hated being referred to by that somewhat disparaging word.
It was Pierce that jumped in to stick up for her. “Father, that’s not a nice way to refer to someone with red hair,” he lightly chastised the king.
Looking up again as if he were confused by the problem with it, he said, “Well, she is a ginger, isn’t she?” He turned back to Mo as if trying to confirm that her hair was indeed red.
Evidently trying to dig himself out of the awkward hole he had dug, the king sized up Mo and said, “Nice, sturdy-looking woman. She has the kind of hips that are perfect for childbearing.”
Pierce shook his head and covered his hands with his face, obviously distraught by his father’s feeble attempt at being complimentary.
Choosing to take the high road, Mo said, “Thank you, Your Highness.”
At that, Pierce lowered his hands and darted his gaze in her direction. “Just because he’s the monarch, doesn’t mean you have to accept that kind of treatment from him.”
Turning to his father, he said, “Sturdy isn’t a nice adjective for a lady, Father. You owe Maureen an apology.”
The king looked completely taken aback that his son had dared to stand up to him like this. He blinked and made scoffing noises in his throat as he tried to process what had just happened. Evidently deciding not to make a scene, the king turned to Mo and said, “My apologies, young lady, if anything I said was offensive in any way. I can assure you that was not my intent.”
“It’s okay,” Mo said, trying not to stare at the orange salad dressing in the king’s moustache.
“No, it isn’t.” Pierce slammed his fist on the table. Everyone jumped at his uncharacteristic outburst. Ignoring their startled looks, he went on, “Mo is a beautiful, smart, funny, kind, loving, and wonderful woman, and she deserves to be treated as such by all of us.” He gave his father a pointed stare before turning his head to the opposite end of the long table and giving his mother the same look.
Both of his parents bugged their eyes out at Pierce as if truly seeing him for the first time. “Now, if you’ll excu
se us, the four of us need some fresh air.”
His mother had endured all she could take. “Young man,” she chastised Pierce when he scooted his chair back from the table and stood to leave. “Your father isn’t finished eating.”
She obviously expected him to sit back down, like an obedient little boy. Instead, Pierce said, “If he would like the respect owed to a monarch, then he needs to start acting like one.”
With that, he turned to leave, calling out for Sebastian, Mo, and Tess to follow his lead. Sebastian was the first to stand to follow the prince. The ladies stared at each other as they tried to figure out what to do.
It only took them a moment to stand and follow Pierce out of the room. Even though they knew that he was right for standing up to his drunkard father, they both fervently hoped that they hadn’t just made vicious enemies out of the kingdom’s rulers.
18
When the foursome was safely outside on the sprawling patio, Mo turned on Pierce. “How could you make us choose like that? Now, your parents will hate me even more.”
“They won’t,” he tried to assure her, but she didn’t look convinced.
Surprisingly, it was Sebastian that jumped in with an explanation. “The king needs to be told when he is acting childish, and it is high time that someone stood up to him. He can’t behave like that and expect to be treated with the respect of a true monarch.”
Tess was shocked that Sebastian seemed so certain about their decision to walk out on the royal couple. After all, his job must be on the line.
“They won’t be able to help but love you, once they get to know you.” Pierce promised Mo. When she shook her head, he added, “Especially once they see how much I have grown to love you in such a short amount of time.”
Mo sucked in a breath and raised her hand to her chest as if she was trying to keep her heart from bursting out. Tess knew that this was the first time a man had proclaimed his love for her best friend. Both women had tears pooling in their eyes. “You do?” Mo asked him, seeking confirmation.
“I do love you,” Pierce told her, his gaze unwavering. When he moved directly in front of her and angled his head down to kiss her lips, everything else disappeared, and they were the only two people in the world.
Feeling completely extraneous, Tess said to Sebastian, “Maybe we should go for a walk.”
Obviously picking up on the fact that Mo and the prince needed some privacy, Sebastian nodded his head and led Tess onto the cobblestone path and away from the other couple’s intimate moment.
The silvery moonlight bathed the sea in a wash of glimmering sparkles. Tess realized it would be the perfect night for romance, if Sebastian weren’t being forced to be here for his job. Deciding to let him off the hook, she said, “You don’t have to escort me. I like spending time alone.”
Frowning in confusion, Sebastian said, “It’s not safe for a woman to be out walking the grounds alone at night. I’ll stay with you as long as you are up.”
Tess deflated at the confirmation that he was with her out of a sense of duty. He had already put in a long day at work, and she didn’t want to add to his nighttime duties. “I’m feeling rather tired. I think I’ll go up to my room,” she said abruptly.
“Are you sure? It’s a lovely evening,” Sebastian tried to sound disappointed, but she suspected that he was relieved to be getting some free time.
Without another word, he escorted her to the door of her room. Before she went inside, Tess could have sworn there was a moment when Sebastian might lean in for a kiss. The feeling passed as quickly as it had arrived, and Tess was left to wonder who he would kiss, if he didn’t have to work all the time.
Slipping inside her room, she leaned back against the door and imagined Sebastian knocking on it to tell her he was off-duty, but still wanted to spend time with her. When that didn’t happen, she huffed out a breath and went outside on her balcony to daydream about someday meeting a real prince of her own.
19
Even though Tess had proclaimed to be tired, she was wide awake. She knew from their time already spent here that Mo and Pierce wouldn’t be calling it a night anytime soon, so her normal stress reliever of chatting with Mo when she was fired up would have to wait until later.
Filled with nervous energy, she decided that a soak in the hot springs Mo had raved about was exactly what she needed to decompress. After donning her bathing suit and a flowing light linen cover-up, she grabbed an enormous, fluffy towel from her bathroom and emerged into the hallway.
She was startled to see Sebastian pacing outside of her room. He looked just as surprised to see her.
“What are you doing here?” she asked him at the same time as he said, “Where are you going?”
She was a little miffed that she wasn’t even allowed to emerge from her room without explaining herself, but she knew from her earlier training that the over-protectiveness was for her own safety.
Lifting her chin and ready to be a bit defiant, if necessary, she said, “I’m going down to the hot spring for a relaxing bath.”
His eyes darkened and traversed the length of her, taking in her flimsy cover-up and pausing on her curves. When they made their way back up to her eyes, he swallowed audibly. “I’ll go with you,” he offered, his voice sounded a bit huskier than normal. When she remained silent, he justified inviting himself by reminding her again, “It’s not safe for you to be out on the grounds alone at night.”
“I was planning to take one of the guards with me. That’s what they’re paid for, right?” At his nod of agreement, she told him, “Go out and have fun. You don’t have to watch over me all the time.”
“What if I want to spend time with you?” He asked her, making her mouth fall slightly open. Raising his dark, slashing brows and gracing her with a dazzling, flirtatious expression, he asked, “What if there’s no place else I’d rather be than by your side?”
Her tummy went warm at his insinuations. He hadn’t exactly said that he wanted to spend time with her, but he had definitely hinted that she was more than just a job duty. She liked how their flirtatious banter made her heart flutter with excitement, so she put on her best seductive purr and said, “I suppose I won’t stop you.”
She hoped that it sounded sexy and inviting, but she feared that her attempt at flirting had fallen flat when he said, “Very well, then,” and formally presented his elbow to escort her downstairs.
As they walked along the perfectly manicured, well-lit path, curiosity got the better of her. “Why were you standing outside my room?” It might have been considered crass to ask, but she was desperate to know.
“It seemed like you were upset about something earlier, so I was coming to see if you wanted to sneak down to the kitchen for a sweet treat.”
She was surprised by his high degrees of intuition and thoughtfulness. Even though she was still rather full from dinner, she decided that she liked his idea. “Let’s plan on doing that after our dip in the hot spring,” she suggested.
“It’s a date,” he agreed, grinning down at her.
She still wasn’t entirely sure if he was intentionally flirting with her, or if he was simply being a friendly distraction so the prince could be alone with Mo. In either case, she was glad he was here.
“The slate path circling the spring is already wet, so it might be slippery. You’ll need to hold on tightly to my arm,” Sebastian warned her as they approached the churning water.
Tess’s hackles were immediately raised. “I’m not some helpless female, and I don’t require a keeper,” she informed him crisply.
“I was hoping you would keep me from falling,” Sebastian quirked a brow at her. His dimple was peeking out, which immediately dissolved her irritation.
They held hands and helped each other climb down the rock steps that led to the natural spring. The path was bordered by lush vegetation that gave off an earthy and fresh aroma.
As soon as she caught sight of the natural wonder, Tess gasped with delight.
“Oh my, it’s absolutely breathtaking!” She leaned down to dip her fingers into the bubbling aquamarine water. “And so warm!”
The large and deep natural pool featured man-made handrails and stone steps to make climbing into the swirling liquid easier. Tess whipped her cover-up over her head, tossed it into a chair, and hurried to the water’s edge. She was pleased to see that Sebastian was openly perusing her demure, black one-piece suit. By the sparkling look in his eyes, it was obvious that he liked what he saw.
Smiling to herself, she stepped down into the water. The delightfully warm, soothing bath swirled around her as she eased her way in. Sebastian stood at the edge and pointed out to her where the seats were located. She swam over to one and relaxed back into it.
“Oh my,” she groaned. “I would come down here every night, if I lived here.”
“It’s tempting,” Sebastian smiled down at her. “The water is very pure because it bubbles up from deep within the earth. Many locals believe that the high concentration of salt and other natural minerals gives the water healing properties.”
Tess’s head was leaned back when she murmured, “Mm-hmm.” She relaxed and let the spa’s water cleanse and massage her.
Unable to resist, Sebastian went on. “Of course, some people won’t come near the water because ancient island legends proclaim it to be fiery liquid lava from the volcano that sits directly opposite us.”
Tess smiled as the water beat at her lower back. “Lava or not, it’s marvelous,” she weighed in.
When Sebastian scooted a wicker chair near the edge of the spring, Tess opened one eye. “Aren’t you getting in?” she asked him.
“I don’t want to crowd you.” His chocolate brown eyes lit with mischief as he gazed down at her.
Lifting her head, she looked around the area. There was room for at least twenty people in the massive bubbling crevice. “Umm, I think there’s room for both of us.” She lifted a hand out of the water to indicate the large space. Teasing him, she added, “Unless you’re scared the lava will get you.”