CHAPTER 1 #2
“Thank you, Edgar,” Ava said, grateful. She could always count on Edgar.
In his sixties, dignified and unflappable, he always exuded an air of confidence that felt very reassuring to her.
He had loyally worked for her father for twenty years.
When her father had passed away, she’d asked her mother to let him stay on and work for her, and she’d happily agreed.
Edgar had taken on the role of not just her private secretary but her trusted friend and confidant.
Her father had trusted him implicitly, and now so did she.
She knew when Edgar said he’d take care of something, he always did.
“Oh no!” one of the decorators yelled.
Ava gasped when she looked over and saw that the giant Christmas tree was starting to sway back and forth.
“Oh my God, what happened?” Ava cried out. “Be careful!” She ducked as a crystal angel ornament fell off the tree and narrowly missed hitting her. It hit the marble floor and smashed into pieces.
Ava winced when she saw the broken angel wings. “Oh, this can’t be a good sign—” She was cut off when more ornaments started to rain down on her. This time, she was hit by a snowflake that bounced off her before hitting the floor.
The designers held up their hands like they were being arrested.
“We didn’t do it,” one designer cried out in distress.
The other designer nodded his head in frantic agreement.
“I know,” Ava called up at them. “It’s not your fault. I’m more worried about you getting hurt—”
“We’re fine,” they said together.
“Please be careful. When you move the lights, try not to tug or pull on the branches, okay?”
Both designers nodded.
Ava sighed as she picked up what was left of a broken angel off the floor. “Some of these ornaments have been in my family for generations.” She circled the tree, checking for any other ornament casualties. She was relieved to only find a few damaged snowflakes.
Trying to calm her jangled nerves, she shut her eyes and inhaled the signature scent of the Douglas fir.
The fresh blend of evergreens, wood, and a hint of citrus stirred a rush of Christmas memories—of the times she would go with her mother and father to pick out the perfect Christmas trees for the castle.
She remembered how thrilled she’d been the first year her parents had let her go with them to their royal Christmas tree farm. She’d been only five years old, but she could still remember it like it was yesterday. It was one of her favorite Christmases ever.
As she stared up at the Christmas tree now, she hoped her father would approve. When she took a few steps back to take a picture of the tree, she almost tripped over a blur of black-and-white fur zooming by her.
“Whoa! What the—” Ava exclaimed, stunned, as she watched a border collie, with a giant strand of garland in his mouth, race around the Christmas tree like he was having the time of his life.
“Look at him go!” Queen Kathleen exclaimed, laughing with delight as she entered the Grand Hall. An effortless blend of glamour and charm, the fun-loving queen was the polar opposite of her more reserved, rule-following daughter.
Ava gave her mother an incredulous look. “Mother, what is a dog doing in here?!”
Her mother’s joyful smile lit up the room. “That’s Stormy. I got him from the shelter. Isn’t he adorable?! He’s a Christmas present.”
“For whom?” Ava asked, still in shock. Her eyes grew even wider when she saw the sparkling, bejeweled, red Christmas collar around the dog’s neck.
“For us!” her mother answered, bubbling over with enthusiasm.
Stunned and horrified, Ava could only stare at her mother. When she finally found her words, they came fast and furious. “What? No! We can’t have a dog. We have too much going on. The party. My engagement—”
She was cut off when Stormy stopped zooming around and started barking at the dangling decorators. He was wagging his tail, wiggling around, excited, like he wanted to play.
Her mother laughed and happily waved at the decorators. “Hello, up there! Well, aren’t you two brave letting my daughter fly you through the air like holiday superheroes. You’re doing a wonderful job.”
The decorators, delighted, beamed back at the queen. When they tried to bow to her, it was comical, but heartfelt. You could tell they adored her.
As Ava impatiently marched up to her mother, she could hear her father’s voice telling her that after he was gone, it would be her responsibility to rein her mother in.
Even though he’d warned her that trying to control the queen’s exuberant behavior would be like trying to harness a tornado, he’d made her promise she would try, insisting the future of the monarchy depended on it.
No pressure, she thought, as she watched her mother run after Stormy, laughing like a child. Growing up, she’d never minded being an only child, but right now she wished she had a sibling to help handle her mother, because she felt helpless.
The problem was she’d never had a close relationship with her mother. Over the years, instead of getting to know each other better, they’d only grown further apart.
They were like fire and ice.
The queen was the fire. Ava knew her mother could quickly ignite, and things could get out of control really fast. At least, that’s what her father had always told her. So, the princess grew up never getting too close to her mother, so she wouldn’t be burned.
“Mother, are you listening to me?” Ava asked impatiently as her mother continued to chase Stormy around the Christmas tree. “What were you thinking? We can’t have a dog.”
Her mother ran up to her, excited. “Yes, we can, and now we do! With your father gone, I thought Stormy would be good company for both of us.”
Ava watched Stormy sniff and then paw at a box of decorations. The box flipped over, scattering velvet heart ornaments everywhere.
“No! Don’t touch that,” Ava demanded.
Too late.
Stormy was already batting a heart around like it was a soccer ball. He stopped when he discovered another box and started sniffing it.
With a shaking finger, Ava pointed at him, exasperated. “No! Leave that alone. Don’t you touch anything.”
Stormy stopped eyeing the box and glanced over at Ava. He wagged his tail and barked. Clearly, he thought this was some kind of game, because he eagerly flipped over the box and gave Ava an adoring, innocent look as if to ask, Is this what you wanted me to do ?
“No!” Ava gasped. “Stop that!”
When Ava headed for Stormy, her mother stopped her. “Ava, you stop. You’re hurting his feelings. He’s just having fun.”
“ His feelings?” Ava laughed, losing it. “What about my feelings?”
Stormy ran up and barked at Ava before he started running in circles around her. Her mother and the decorators laughed merrily.
“Mother, stop laughing. You are encouraging him. This is not funny.”
Her mother laughed louder. “Oh, but it is. If you could see the horrified look on your face. You’re looking at him like he’s…the devil.”
Ava didn’t blink. Devil dog, yes, that about sums it up , she thought.
“Anyone can see how adorable Stormy is,” her mother continued. “Just look how much he already loves you.”
Ava, stunned, fought to find her words. “ This is your idea of love ? A dog that looks like he’s going to attack me?”
“Attack? He’s a border collie. That’s just what border collies do. They were bred to herd sheep.”
“Are you saying I’m the sheep in this scenario?” Ava sputtered, beside herself.
Her mother nodded, smiling. “Yes, my darling daughter, and a very fine sheep you are.”
Ava’s eyes narrowed. She could see her mother was having a wonderful time with this whole thing, while she, on the other hand, was fighting to not completely lose it.
This was always their dynamic, and frankly, she was getting tired of it.
She took a deep breath, determined to put a stop to this chaos.
“Mother, can you please stop joking around for once? This is serious.” Ava tried to think what her father would do in this situation, but her mother had never brought home a dog before.
This was virgin territory, and she knew it was up to her to handle it before things really spiraled out of control.
“I am being serious,” her mother answered. Her eyes sparkled merrily.
Ava’s frustration grew when she saw her mother was fighting not to laugh. Her mood didn’t improve any when she saw Stormy spinning around, chasing his tail. She had hit a new low. Now the dog was mocking her, too.
Ava looked at Stormy like he was nuts. “What’s wrong with him? What is he doing now? Is he crazy?”
“No crazier than you and me,” her mother said with a confident smile. “He’s just excited to be here.”
“He’s out of control,” Ava insisted. “He can’t stay!”
“Ava, stop being so dramatic. Don’t worry. I have everything under control.”
This made Ava’s anxiety skyrocket even more, because she’d learned at an early age that whenever her mother said “Don’t worry,” it was always followed by some kind of trouble.
Her mother continued, not missing a beat. “I’ve hired a top trainer who does Puppy Bootcamps. He was just here meeting with me and Stormy. We’ve gone over all the details, and everything’s settled. When Justin’s done with Stormy he will be a little angel, won’t you, boy?”
Stormy heard the word angel and ran over to the tree, where he tried pulling a crystal angel ornament off a branch. The tree swayed, smacking the decorators, who started spinning again.
Ava rushed up to Stormy. “No! Leave the tree alone! Don’t you touch that angel or anything else. Go away!”
Stormy ignored her as he ripped the angel ornament off the tree. As soon as he had the angel in his mouth, he ran over and proudly dropped it at Ava’s feet. When the angel hit the floor, its halo broke off.
Her mother clapped with delight. “Look how smart he is. Good boy, Stormy.”
“He’s not a good boy !” Ava snapped. “How can you call him that? He’s a four-legged wrecking ball. No wonder he’s called Stormy. He’s like a perfect storm, destroying everything.”
Ava winced as she picked up the angel’s halo off the floor. She waved it at her mother. “Look what he did. He just broke this angel.”
Her mother shrugged. “Accidents happen. It’s not the end of the world. We have hundreds of angels.”
“That’s not the point,” Ava shot back at her mother.
Her mother’s eyes narrowed as she crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Okay, then please tell me exactly what your point is.”
Silence.
Ava gulped. She knew she’d pushed her mother too far.
“We’re waiting,” her mother said.
Stormy sat down next to her mother and also watched Ava closely.
As Ava looked from her mother, to Stormy, and back to her mother, she resisted the urge to squirm.
Don’t show any fear, or you’re done , she told herself.
She could see her mother was suddenly in a rare serious mood, and a serious queen was even more dangerous than the fun-loving, impulsive, easygoing queen.
She knew her mother was whip-smart. She could outplay anyone, at any game, if she set her mind to it.
She was not one to be underestimated, ever.
Her mother locked eyes with her, waiting for her reply.
Stormy barked and wagged his tail. He, apparently, was waiting, too.
She knew it was ridiculous, but she felt ganged up on.
It was two against one, even if one was a dog.
She took a breath. Stay cool, she told herself.
You’ve got this. Just do what Father would do .
After all, she was the one who was supposed to always be calm, cool, and collected.
But her mother always had a way of pushing her buttons, and this was no exception.
She forced a smile, trying to ease the tension. “My point is, it’s almost Christmas—”
“Our favorite time of year.”
“ Your favorite time of year,” Ava corrected her.
Her mother gave her a blank stare.
“And with everything we have going on right now, with this being my first Christmas charity event to plan, and my upcoming engagement, surely you can understand why we don’t have time to take in an unruly, undisciplined, disruptive dog.” Ava gave Stormy the side-eye.
Her mother nodded. “I agree.”
“You do?” Ava asked, breathing a sigh of relief.
“Absolutely,” her mother said. “Right now, Stormy doesn’t know how to behave—”
“Exactly!”
“—and that’s why I’ve hired Justin,” her mother said with a confident smile. “He’s one of the best dog trainers in the world.”
“What? Wait. No—”
“Yes,” her mother said as she smiled brightly. “Justin will teach Stormy everything he needs to know. You can see how brilliant Stormy already is, so I’m sure he’ll learn fast.”
Stormy tilted his head as he listened to the queen and started wagging his tail.
At this point, Ava knew she only had one more card to play. She walked over, took both of her mother’s hands in hers, and gave her a pleading look. She wasn’t beyond begging.
“Mother, please, I need you to understand—”
Her mother smiled gently back at her. “My darling daughter, I do.”
Ava had hope. “You know there’s no place for a dog in our lives. We’re too busy for a dog. We’ve never had one before—”
“That’s because your father was allergic.”
Ava fought to keep her voice calm as she continued. “We’ve gone this long without a dog. We don’t need one now.” She forced a smile as she hugged her mother. “Thank you for understanding.”
Stormy barked and wagged his tail as the queen hugged her back. When they pulled apart, her mother knelt down and buried her face in Stormy’s soft fur as she hugged him.
Good , Ava thought. She’s saying goodbye to the little troublemaker.
But when her mother looked up, Ava was taken aback by her joyful smile. “Stormy is staying. We do need him, and he’s ours now. Merry Christmas!”