A Ruff Royal Christmas

CHAPTER 1

P rincess Ava loved that she had a secret no one knew about.

Impeccable in her classic winter-white pantsuit and designer heels, she held her breath as she stared up at the spectacular twenty-foot Douglas fir Christmas tree that dominated the Grand Hall of Vailgate Castle.

The magnificent centuries-old castle was perched high on a snowy hilltop overlooking the small, enchanting Eastern European sovereign state of Skydovia.

Ava knew this was the moment of truth.

Never taking her eyes off the tree, she pushed a button on the sleek small silver remote she was holding.

Suddenly, like a scene out of an action movie, two men dressed in black dramatically dropped from the ceiling on cables, jerking to a stop in the middle of the Christmas tree.

Ava cringed as the men spun wildly, arms and legs flailing like drunk ballerinas.

Clearly, she still had work to do to perfect her Christmas tree decorating invention—one of her many creations she kept under wraps.

“Are you two okay?” she called out to the dangling decorators.

The men batted branches out of their faces as they desperately tried to grab onto to each other to steady themselves.

“Yes, Your Royal Highness,” they called in unison, still spinning.

Ava frowned. She knew they were only saying that to make her feel better when in reality, they looked nervous and completely out of control.

Trying to figure out where she went wrong, she did some quick mental calculations as she studied the cable system the men were suspended from.

She had envisioned it working like one of the cable and pulley systems you saw in theaters for musicals like Peter Pan and Mary Poppins that had people soaring gracefully through the air.

But right now, there was nothing graceful about her two middle-aged decorators who were crashing into each other.

“Hold on, I’ll bring you down,” she called up to them.

“No. It’s okay. We’re fine,” one of the men insisted, forcing a smile. “We just need to…get the hang of this.”

The men chuckled at their own joke.

Ava did not. She didn’t see the humor in any of this. What she saw was a problem that she didn’t have time for.

There was a reason people called her “Princess Prim and Proper.” At thirty years old, she proudly took after her father as someone who was disciplined and diligent. She took her role as the only child and sole heir in the royal family very seriously.

It was her father, Prince Fredrick, who had asked her to invent something to help decorate all the towering Christmas trees in the castle to replace the ladders and complicated scaffolding the royal decorators usually had to use.

While her father had a knack for dreaming up unique ideas to make life easier, she found ways to bring his ideas to life.

It was something they always did together, their own secret hobby, because few people knew she was a highly skilled mechanical engineer who had graduated at the top of her class.

She smiled, remembering how they’d always made such a great team—until cancer took him away. Now, she was struggling to carry on alone.

As a flood of memories washed over her, Ava fought off tears as she twisted a men’s eighteen-karat gold watch around her wrist. It was way too big for her but just tight enough that it wouldn’t fall off.

She allowed herself only a fleeting moment of grief before shutting it down completely. Burying her feelings was second nature. If she let herself feel too much, the pain might consume her—and she didn’t have time for that. She had a strict “no tears, no self-pity” rule. She had a job to do.

She’d promised her father she would pick up where he’d left off and continue to uphold her royal family’s legacy with dignity and pride.

Right now, top on that list was taking over her father’s job of planning the annual Christmas party that was held on Christmas Eve and benefited local charities.

She was determined to make sure this first holiday party without him was their most successful party ever in honor of his memory.

She also felt added pressure from knowing her mother, Queen Kathleen, was counting on her. While her exuberant, vivacious mother was always the life of the party, when it came to planning one, she knew her mother was royally unprepared.

Ava took a few steps back to admire their towering Douglas fir Christmas tree.

It was a beauty. Her father had always said “the bigger the better,” and this tree fit the bill, soaring toward the vaulted ceiling.

Its fragrant emerald branches were adorned with a lavish mix of hand-carved wooden angels and nutcrackers, gold-dipped stars and snowflakes, and plush velvet hearts.

Rich crimson velvet ribbons with gold filigree were woven throughout the tree.

But the real showstopper was the Christmas tree topper.

It was a giant glittering gold star featuring the family’s royal crest that was covered with rubies and emeralds.

Adding to the magic were hundreds of white twinkle lights.

When Ava looked up and saw the decorators were almost steady, she felt a little more hopeful that her invention was actually going to work.

“If you’re sure you’re okay, I’m going to move you to the top of the tree so you can get started,” Ava said.

“We’re fine,” both decorators called out in unison as they held on to the cables that kept them suspended in the air. “We won’t let you down,” one said with a confident smile.

Ava wished she felt his confidence. To pull this Christmas party off, she had to have every second perfectly planned and accounted for. She couldn’t afford any delays. This Christmas tree needed to be finished today to stay on schedule.

“Okay, hold on. Here we go…” Ava said, biting her lower lip as she pressed the remote button, watching the decorators rise higher up the tree. This time, they barely spun at all—a huge relief. When they reached the top, she flashed them a satisfied smile.

“Very good,” Ava said. “Now you can get started with the lights.” She stepped back to get a better look at the tree.

The designers exchanged confused looks.

“But the lights are already on the tree,” one of them pointed out.

“And they look beautiful,” the other added eagerly.

Ava frowned, shaking her head. “No, the lights are all wrong—” she started, but before she could finish, five more designers entered the hall, each carrying giant Christmas wreaths.

She turned to them. “If you can all just wait over there, I’ll be right with you to inspect the wreaths as soon as I’m done here.”

The five designers lined up, ready to present their wreaths—except one guy who wasn’t holding anything or wearing the all-black uniforms everyone else was.

He was in jeans, a red fleece, and hiking boots, looking confident and laid-back, like the kind of guy who chopped down trees, not decorated them.

He glanced up to the dangling decorators. “Whoa. What’s going on here?” he asked, stepping closer. “This is wild.”

Ava, startled by his approach, took a quick step back and held up her hand. “Stop. Hold it right there. Don’t move.”

He froze, then chuckled. “Why? Is there a problem?” He flashed her a sexy, confident smile.

Ava’s heart skipped a beat. For a moment, she forgot everything else. Focus, she told herself. Ignore how good-looking he is. She crossed her arms in front of her chest and locked eyes with him.

“Yes, you. You’re the problem,” she said firmly. “I told you to line up over there, and I’ll be with you in a minute. To check you out.”

His eyebrow arched.

Ava blushed and rushed on. “I mean, to check out your…”

“Go on,” he grinned. “To check out my…what?”

“Your wreath,” she finally said, annoyed with herself for feeling so flustered.

His piercing blue eyes lit up, amused. Ava pursed her lips and squared her shoulders. She refused to be distracted. “Please go over there and join the rest of the decorators.”

“Oh, but I’m not—” he started, but Ava cut him off.

“I’ll be with you in a minute.” She turned back to the Christmas tree.

Then she heard it. Someone whistling “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.” She spun around just in time to see the handsome stranger stroll right past the decorators and out the door.

“Where is he going?” Ava asked, exasperated.

“How exactly would you like the lights?” one of the dangling Christmas tree decorators asked, forcing her attention back to the tree.

She walked over to a strand of lights on the tree, picked them up, wrinkled her nose in distaste, and let them fall back onto the tree.

“We need all these strands of lights to be five inches apart. Not six inches, not four inches—five inches, just like my father always did. He always believed the more lights the merrier, and that they need to be exactly five inches apart to get the full impact. It’s our tradition.

Do you have the measuring tape I gave you? ”

One of the decorators scrambled to pull a measuring tape out of his pocket. He held it up like it was a winning lottery ticket. “Yes, Princess, it’s right here.”

Ava nodded, pleased. “Wonderful, then you shouldn’t have any problems. Remember, five inches. We have more lights if you need them.”

Both designers bobbed their heads up and down as they got started adjusting the lights.

Ava watched them, eagle-eyed.

When her private secretary, Edgar, entered the Grand Hall, Ava could barely see him because he was struggling to carry a massive display of pink roses.

“Princess, the florist sent these for your approval for the party,” Edgar said, catching his breath.

Ava’s eyes widened when she saw the flowers. “What? No, I specifically told them I wanted red roses. This is a Christmas party, not Barbie’s birthday.”

Edgar swiftly pivoted to leave. “I’ll take care of it.”