Chapter 13
CHAPTER 13
ELENA
E lena tightened her grip on her purse strap as she wove through the busy city sidewalk. With the invitation to dinner and the girl time that would precede it, she needed a gift that could express her gratitude for the invitation.
Caroline hurried behind her. “Your Highness, is there a reason you are running?”
“Please stop calling me that in public, Caroline. You’ll blow my cover.” She forced her steps to slow, trying to channel her nervous energy.
“I am sorry, but old habits die hard. And it is still appropriate. You have not abdicated. At least not the last time I checked.”
Elena pressed her lips together, shooting her ladies’ maid a warning glance. “Bite your tongue. No one is stepping down from the throne.”
“Well, I am pleased. And not just because one day I will be ladies’ maid to a queen, but because I think you will make a perfect monarch.”
Elena sucked in a breath as she stared into a shop before she shook her head.
“But you haven’t given up on your young man.”
“No, and I have more hope than ever that it can work out now.”
“Because of his admission. I still don’t understand how you took it so in stride,” Caroline said as they perused a shop.
“Caroline, you can’t be serious. I am doing the same.”
“Yet you did not tell him.”
Elena shook her head. “I was about to, but then the ride stopped. When we got off, his family was there. I had no chance, and by the time we were alone, the moment had passed.”
Caroline arched an eyebrow.
“Do not look at me like that. I…am still uncertain.”
“Of him?”
Elena shrugged a shoulder as she set a bottle of wine on the shelf. “Yes. On many fronts.”
“But he claims his feelings are genuine.”
“Not so much his feelings, but how he may view me. How his parents may view me.”
“Surely, they would not object to a princess.”
Elena pushed into the warm late morning air. “You don’t know that. You yourself mentioned the pressures of royal life. Plus, perhaps they do not wish their son to move to another country. He is a Vice-President at GenoTech. It could leave a gaping hole they prefer not to fill.”
“Wouldn’t they consider his feelings?”
“Yes, of course, Caroline, but…what if they advise him against the move? Do you not think he would li sten to them?”
Caroline eyed her sideways as they continued past another shop. “If he is anything like you, no.”
“When did you turn into a comedian, my dear Caroline?”
Caroline offered her a teasing grin. “You have doubts, but you believe this has a better chance of working out now.”
“Yes, I do. Nathan is lovely no matter how much money is in his account, but the fact is…with his status, he should be quite used to events and public life. Much more used to it than someone who has never experienced these things. So, it should not be too much culture shock.”
“Very true. Then you will tell him.”
“Yes,” Elena said. “Eventually.”
“Your Highness!” Caroline breathed, exasperation tinging her voice.
“The fact remains, I have not told him. And I do not plan to just yet. Not until after the dinner at least. I…it needs to be done in person and carefully.”
“I agree with that. I merely do not wish to see you on edge like this. It weighs on you.”
Elena flung her arms in the air. “What weighs on me is finding a gift appropriate for Mrs. Kingsley and Maddie. They have invited me to spend time with them, and I will have nothing to give them to show my gratitude. Why is this so much easier when I am in Eldoria?”
“Because you had a staff of people to make suggestions and retrieve the gifts for you?”
Elena shot her an unimpressed glance. “Are you saying I am too dimwitted to do it myself?”
“Certainly not, only that you are allowing yourself to become overwhelmed. In Eldoria, you have help for these things.”
“I must need it,” Elena sank onto a bench with a sigh. “Perhaps I should go back. My parents were right.”
At the slightest task that required effort, she was falling to pieces. She’d never felt this way in her life. Why was this task so difficult?
Caroline slid a lock of Elena’s hair over her shoulder. “Perhaps you ought to slow down and have an early lunch. You are driving yourself crazy, and it has little to do with your inability to handle this.”
“Oh? What has it to do with?”
“The fact that you are so determined to be accepted by these people that you are overthinking things.”
Elena pinched her eyebrows together as she stared down at her clasped hands. Caroline had a point. She’d never sought approval so strongly before in her life.
And for the first time, she worried she wouldn’t receive it. In Eldoria, it came almost freely. Many people disagreed with her, of course, but acceptance was nearly guaranteed when you’d rule the country one day.
“You’re right,” Elena answered, her shoulders slumping. “And I am terrified I will not have it. This gift must be perfect.”
“No, it must be heartfelt. That is all. And if they do not accept it, then they are not worth your time, quite simply put, Your High–”
“Ah,” she said with a wag of her finger.
Caroline pressed her lips together with a grin. “Now, where shall we lunch? I, personally, am starving.”
“Oh, I see. The early lunch has little to do with my mindset and more to do with your stomach, is it?”
“Both,” Caroline said as she climbed to her feet.
They settled on a French cafe, enjoying the sweet crepes as they discussed options for the gift.
Elena poked a fork at her ladies’ maid after she scooped whipped cream off her plate and slid it into her mouth. “A charm bracelet for Maddie. With a charm of a teacup to symbolize our ride at the fair.”
“Oh, that’s quite a lovely idea. You see, the food helped.”
“I will admit, it did. And I hope I will be able to add to those charms with her.”
Caroline dabbed at the corners of her lips before she lifted her glass. “They would be fools if they did not accept you, darling.”
Elena raised her glass toward her ladies’ maid. “Then we shall hope they are not fools.”
“Now, what have you decided on for Mrs. Kingsley? Surely, not a charm bracelet.”
“Oh, no,” Elena answered with a shake of her head, “but I thought perhaps some teas. There are some lovely blends, and I could include a handwritten note about each.”
Caroline smiled at her. “That’s a lovely idea. I saw a teashop around the corner.”
“Yes, I saw it, too. I hope they’ll have some lovely choices there.”
“Well, if Mrs. Kingsley and Maddie do not love your gifts, they are mad,” Caroline said. “You’ve chosen quite well.”
Elena grinned at her. “Let’s go pick them out.”
They spent the rest of the afternoon completing their shopping. They carried their packages back to the apartment in a cloud of laughter. It came to a screeching halt as they rounded the corner to approach the apartment building’s entrance.
Leaning against the bricks near the door, stood her cousin Julian.
Elena’s posture stiffened as she tightened her grip on her packages, her jaw flexing.
“Oh, dear,” Caroline murmured.
He peeled himself from the bricks as they approached. “Well, if it isn’t my dear cousin Elena and her trusted ladies’ maid, Carolyn. ”
“Caroline,” Elena corrected, her eyes narrowed. “What do you want?”
“To visit your…what appears to be very modest living quarters.” He raised his gaze to the windows above them.
“My living quarters are none of your concern, cousin,” she said as she pushed past him toward the door.
“Aren’t they? They may be. I am…so very concerned for you, Elena.”
“I doubt that,” she answered as she whipped around to face him.
He tilted his head. “Not believable enough? I’ll have to work on it for when I confess this to your father. Let me try again.” He sucked in a deep breath and softened his features. “Imagine my shock, Uncle, when I found her living in poverty.”
“It’s not poverty,” she growled. “Don’t make trouble.”
“I’m not making trouble, Elena, darling. Though it is nice to know I can. You wouldn’t be nearly this touchy if Uncle Frederick knew.”
“He does.”
“He doesn’t,” Julian purred. “And I find that deliciously convenient. Right along with those photographs.”
She jabbed a finger at him. “I knew it was you.”
He leapt back, his chest collapsing. “Ouch, cousin, no need to get so bent out of shape. I have no intention on disclosing any of this…if you’ll do me a favor.”
“What is it?” Elena asked.
He puckered his lips. “I’m still working on the details, but I’ll let you know as soon as I need it from you. Until then, happy slumming.” He took a step away before he twisted back toward her.
His smirk held a shadow of something more, a gleam in his eye that Elena knew all too well. “ Oh, and Elena…I do hope you’re enjoying your time with that man you’ve been seeing. Because he’s going to cost you everything.”
Elena’s stomach clenched as she grimaced at his receding form, his words echoing in her mind like a warning bell. “That…viper.”
“He is rather slithery like a reptile,” Caroline agreed. “And I am quite worried about that favor.”
“As am I. Julian is typically never involved in anything that isn’t nefarious.”
“I know. Hence, my concern.”
Elena pushed into the apartment building and stormed up the stairs. “We must do something.”
“What?” Caroline asked.
Elena shook her head as she tried to come up with a solution. “We cannot allow him to continue with this blackmail plan.”
Caroline unlocked the door and followed Elena into the apartment. “Then you must tell your father right away about this relationship.”
Elena collapsed onto the couch with a heavy sigh. “I can’t. Not yet.”
“Then what, Your Highness? What can we do?”
Elena pressed her lips together and narrowed her eyes. She grabbed hold of her purse and leapt from her seat. “We are going to fight back.”
“How?” Caroline questioned.
“Julian is always up to no good. We’ll catch him in the act. A few pictures of his own misdeeds should cancel out the ones he has of me.”
Caroline’s forehead creased as she shook her head. “Your Highness…” Her tone, a clear warning, conveyed more than words could.
“Caroline, we must! We cannot allow Julian to take advantage of us like this. ”
Caroline shook her head. “But, Your Highness, this is very risky. We could become caught up in something we wish to have no parts of.”
“We have no choice.” Elena skirted past Caroline. “I understand, though. If you do not wish to come along, you do not have to. I can manage it alone.”
Caroline twisted to face her and lifted her chin. “Like fun you will, Your Highness. I may not fully agree, but I will not leave you alone in this.”
Elena grinned at her and squeezed her arm. “Thank you, Caroline.”
“Now, how will we find His Highness?”
“I know where he is staying. We shall wait there and hope to spot him. Then we can follow him and hopefully, get some damning evidence that can put him in his place.”
Caroline heaved a shaky sigh. “My fingers are crossed, Your Highness.”
They left the apartment behind, heading into the afternoon sun in search of Julian. Elena led them to the Grand Arms. “We’ll go inside and ring his room to find out if he is in.”
Caroline nodded as they pushed into the lobby. Elena crossed to the front desk and asked the attendant to ring Prince Julian’s room.
The man spoke a few words before he nodded and replaced the receiver on the cradle. “It appears His Highness is unavailable. Would you like to leave a message?”
“No, thank you. I will come back at a more convenient time for him.”
She spun on a heel and returned to Caroline across the lobby. “He’s out. And I’ll bet I know where. Come on.”
Elena grabbed her hand and tugged her ladies’ maid back onto the sidewalk. She hurried through the streets to the museum. Breathless, they climbed the stairs, ducked inside, and paid their fee.
They wound through the halls toward the special exhibit room.
“The Crown Jewels,” Caroline said as they approached.
Elena nodded, stopping short of the room and inching closer before she peered around the corner. “There he is, just as I thought.”
Caroline narrowed her eyes. “Yes, oozing his special brand of charm over anyone who will listen.”
“Thankfully, he wasn’t here when Nathan and I came. I’m certain he would have done something to make it uncomfortable.”
Elena winced, stumbling back a few steps and shoving at Caroline. “Here he comes, go, go!”
They hurried into another gallery to hide as Julian strode from the room, grinning ear to ear as he rambled on about the line to the throne and how close he was to wearing that crown.
“Ugh, he makes me sick with his constant desire to sit on that throne,” Elena grumbled.
Caroline peered around the corner. “He’s heading toward the door. Yes, he does rather drone on about it, doesn’t he?”
“Incessantly.” Elena slipped through the doorway and hurried down the hall with Caroline in tow. They peeked into the next hall.
“He’s leaving.”
Elena bobbed her head as she grabbed Caroline’s hand. “Let’s follow.”
They hurried after the prince, keeping some distance between them until he reached a cafe. After speaking to the host, he was seated at a table on the sidewalk.
He leaned back in his chair after placing an order .
Elena shoved her ladies’ maid behind a set of hedges trimming the patio seating. “What is he doing?”
“It appears he is having a snack,” Caroline answered as they delivered tea and a croissant to the prince.
“Perhaps this will be our moment. Maybe he is meeting someone for nefarious purposes.” Elena readied her phone, zooming in on Julian.
The image blurred and the phone nearly flew out of her hands as a voice spoke her name behind her. Her heart hammered in her chest. She whipped around, eyes wide, to spot Nate.
“Ellie? What are you doing?”
Elena froze, her mind going blank. How was she going to explain this?