Chapter 4
Four
The next evening, I receive a call from Amanda. Placing the phone on speaker, I answer, “Hello?”
Instead of hearing Amanda’s voice, the song “The Boys Are Back in Town” and a mean guitar solo blare out. I have to hold my mobile a few inches from my ear.
“Alice! I’ve been waiting all day to call you! I wasn’t able to ask you for the nitty-gritty details of your trip last night with your dad and brother around, but Eddie is finally out of the house. So fill me in!”
I’m confused. I’d thought I’d done a decent job covering most of the details at dinner. “What else do you want to know? More about the museums? The architecture? The shopping?”
“No, silly. There’s no way you can go away for eight months without rubbing elbows with some cute guys. How many dates did you go on?”
“Zero.”
“Ah, come on, Ali, this is me you’re talking to. I promise I won’t say anything to Eddie.”
“It’s true!” I protest. “Remember who you’re dealing with—Ms. Antisocial. I didn’t go out. I stayed in most nights. It was too risky. The goal was to escape the world and find myself, not invite the media back in.”
“Oh, Ali.” Amanda sighs. “I’d hoped you would’ve allowed yourself to have a little fun. It wouldn’t have hurt you to go to a bar or a pub and see if you could score a date with guy. Not every person you meet is out to get you.”
“I had fun. It just didn’t involve anyone outside my protection team.
” I know her heart is in the right place.
It’s just when you’ve had your entire world turned upside down once before, it’s difficult to step outside the protective bubble you’ve built.
“Besides, let’s say I did manage to speak to a guy at a pub.
Odds are, if my security team didn’t scare him, I’d do it the moment I opened my mouth.
You know how I am when I’m nervous. I start rambling about the first architectural feature that the pops into my mind.
It’s one of the reasons I’ll never find a boyfriend. ”
“That’s rubbish. There is someone for everybody out there! Besides, aren’t you the one who’s told me you get on better with guys than girls?”
“Yes, I did,” I admit. She has me there.
“So, what’s the problem?”
“Lads are only interested in how a girl looks. They don’t care two bits about personality.”
“There’s where you’re wrong. I guarantee you that there are guys out there who will like you for your brilliant brain and your personality. Look at your brother and me. We’re total opposites. But we love each other for who we are.”
A smile tugs at my lips. Amanda and my brother are indeed living, breathing proof of that.
“It sounds to me like you just need some practice to boost your confidence. If I have it my way, you’ll have a boyfriend in no time,” she muses. “What are you doing tonight?”
Technically speaking, I’m free. I was going to dive into one of the books I picked up on my trip, but I can’t tell her that. “Laundry,” I fib, knowing she’ll see right through it.
“Pfft. Not anymore, you’re not. The laundry can wait. Tonight, you’re going out with Clara and me.”
Clara is my cousin David’s wife. She’s a prima ballerina with the Westminster Ballet and one of the most genuinely kind people you could meet. She’d give you the pointe shoes and leotard off her body if you asked her for them.
“But Amanda, if the three of us go out, we’ll stand out like a group of people who have decided to wear inflatable flamingo suits to a black-tie dinner.
Every eye and camera will be on us.” I can’t imagine anything worse.
My stomach fills with dread thinking about it.
“Plus, I can guarantee that Eddie, David, or both will find a way to join us. Talk about an instant way to repel any guys.”
“Ali, quit being a party pooper. Live a little. Can’t is not a word that exists in my vocabulary. Trust me, it’ll save us both a lot of time and energy if you just give in to me now.”
“I don’t know.” I rub the back of my neck. Everything in my body is telling me not to engage with Amanda’s plan. I’m mentally fighting with a two-ton rhinoceros, trying to be open-minded.
“If you come out tonight, I can guarantee the boys won’t join us, and we’ll go somewhere we can mix in with the crowd.”
“Where were you thinking of going?” I pinch my nose, chiding myself for asking.
“Three places—the private members’ club, the Keys at the Tower of London, or a mystery location. Each one of those is semi-private. Even our protection officers wouldn’t have any trouble blending in.”
My body feels like I’m playing a game of tug of war.
On one hand, I have absolutely zero desire to go out.
But on the other hand, as my therapist has repeatedly told me, the best cure to a problem is to face it head-on.
Meaning that going out will help me get over my fear of being targeted by the paparazzi.
Compared to where I was before I left on my gap-year travels, I’ve made big strides.
Being able to travel through Europe with near-total anonymity has shown me I can go out in public and have an enjoyable time.
Plus, if I’m with Amanda and Clara, I know I’ll be among family and well protected. I can trust them.
I rub my temples as I turn to another problem—the last date I went on.
It had to have been at least two-and-a-half years ago.
And the time before that? I squeeze my eyes shut and have a think.
I’m fairly certain it was on the night after my fifteenth birthday.
I distinctly remember having dinner with one of the blokes from the all-boys school down the road.
I swallow hard. Two dates. That’s the extent of my romantic life.
Two bloody dates. I can’t start uni without having gone on a proper date.
I’ll be more of a social outcast than I already am.
A surge of adrenaline courses through my body.
Before I’m fully aware of what I’m agreeing to, I exclaim, “I’ll do it! ”
“You’re learning well, my young padawan. Now, pick your poison. Where are we going tonight?”
“The mystery location.”
I hear Amanda clapping. “Awesome sauce. I’ll text you with the details. Wear something that has a skirt you can twirl in.”
“Huh?”
“For the mystery location,” she clarifies. “You’ll need a skirt that gives you some movement. Trust me, it’ll all make sense soon enough.”
What does Amanda have in store for me? She and Eddie have a history of planning elaborate dates and get-togethers. What’s waiting at the mystery location?
“Okay, um . . . I’ll see you soon. I guess.”
I hang up the call. Despite the anxiety and tightness in my chest, I’m going to see this outing through.
Walking over to my closet, I plant my hands on my hips.
There is a large selection of suits, formal gowns, coats, riding clothes, and my more casual everyday clothes, but a flowing skirt?
I don’t know if I own one. I’m a jeans and blouse kind of girl. It looks like I may have to improvise.
Twenty minutes later, my mobile lights up. I’ve been added to a group text message.
Amanda
Who’s excited for a girls’ night out?
Clara
Me!
Alice
Me too.
Amanda
*Grinning emoji*
Clara
It’s been ages since I’ve had a night off. Where are we headed?
Amanda
That’s for me to know and you to find out. I’ve sent the address to your security team. David’s driver is giving us a ride. We’ll pick you up in a half hour.
Clara
A! That’s not enough time to get ready!
Alice
I’m ready.
Amanda
So am I. C, it looks like it’s just you who needs time to get ready.
Clara
*Blushing emoji* What’s the dress code?
Alice
To quote Amanda, wear a dress with a skirt that has movement.
Amanda
What she said. You’d better put those famous quick-change skills to use. You have twenty-nine more minutes.
Alice
You sound like my dad.
Amanda
Who do you think I learned it from?
Alice
*Winking emoji*
Amanda
See you soon!
My mouth drops open. Standing outside my doorway with his arms crossed, scowling, is the last person I expected to find. “Arthur?” I sputter. “What are you doing here?”
“My job,” he huffs.
I resist the urge to face-palm. I wasn’t exactly looking for a literal answer. “I was expecting Bruce, that’s all.”
“He’s unavailable.” Arthur’s tone is curt.
“Oh, okay.” I close the entry door, and we start down the hall to the lift.
His strides are quick. I’m forced to walk faster than normal to keep up with him. He’s dressed in the same black suit, white dress shirt, and blue-and-red-striped tie as yesterday.
“The Duchess of Leeds and Amanda Collins will be joining us. I’m not sure which car their driver will be in, but you may have to ride in one of the trailing cars with their security teams.”
“I’m aware.”
We step into the lift. The whirl of the machinery fills the awkward silence.
“I hadn’t realized you and Angela were starting straightaway.”
“It’s our first day,” he says flatly as he checks his mobile.
“Uh-huh. So, you’ll be rotating with Angela and shadowing Bruce?”
“Yes.”
“Except for tonight?
“Yes.”
Why does he have to make conversations so difficult? It’s so frustrating. Is he not used to speaking with other people? Maybe he thinks I’m just a silly princess. This is going to be a very, very long night. At least I’ll have Clara and Amanda to distract me.
The lift door opens. He shoves the phone into his trouser pocket and power walks ahead of me. I shake my head and follow him to the front drive, where a black Range Rover has just pulled up.
Before the driver can open the back door, it flies open, and Amanda spills out. “Alice! You look smoking hot!” She wolf whistles.