Alaric chuckled. “You know I hate it when you call me that. Twenty years you’ve been by my side and still you slip up from time to time.” A small smile formed on his lips. “Especially since I know you say it when you are feeling ill at ease.”
Very little got past the king.
“I know. But I am in a difficult position.”
“How so?”
“She is not what I think you’re expecting. All the same, I don’t want to say too much before you have a chance to meet her.”
“Should I be worried?”
“No. She’s a fine young woman. Just that ‘royalty’ is probably not going to be the first thing you think of when you first lay eyes on her.”
“Then I suppose I ought to get right to meeting the girl.” He sighed, the fire crackling. “To be honest Lucas, you say that I should not be worried but the truth of the matter is that I am.”
“I hope I didn’t scare you with speaking indirectly.”
“No, not that. You could have told me that she is the picture of royal grace, and I would still feel the same way.”
“Then what’s on your mind?”
Alaric looked down for a long moment, trying to find the correct words.
“I am her father. But… I haven’t been there for her. Ava has not been a part of my life for years, decades. And here I am bringing her back to Edoria to thrust her into a world unlike anything she has ever known before. How do I know she is not going to reject all of it, reject me, reject her birthright?”
It was a side of the king that only I saw. Self-doubt wasn’t something a king was allowed to wear on his sleeve.
“She’s Edorian,” I said. “One cannot reject what they are. All of the Seattle coffee in the world cannot change that.”
He chuckled. “I hope that you are right, my friend. And I suppose we will find out.” Another beat of silence passed. “Thank you, Lucas. I know this was no small task to travel to the other side of the world and bring back my little girl. But you managed to do it.”
“It was my pleasure.”
“I know. You have always been by my side, always eager to serve me and your kingdom. I hope you know that it is not something I take for granted.” He drummed his fingers on the claw armrest of his chair. “Now comes the hard part. I need to convince her to stay, to learn, to embrace her rightful succession, to take my place when the day comes that I am no longer fit to rule.”
“I think you will, Alaric. There is plenty of time for her to learn the ropes.”
Still, there was the matter of convincing her to stay. Alaric would do his part, and I would do mine, if necessary.
The future of the kingdom depended upon it.
Chapter 9
Ava
What. The. Hell.
It was all so surreal, standing in the middle of a bedroom,mybedroom, in a royal palace,mypalace supposedly, less than an hour away from meeting my father, the king.
Still in a daze, I stepped toward the window, taking careful steps as if I might break something. Once at the window, I placed my hands on the cool, stone railing, the leafy, green plants on the sill swaying in the gentle, fresh breeze.
The view was stunning. My fourth-floor height allowed me a view of the garden that revealed just how ordered it was, designs of green edged with bushes of gorgeous flowers. A large, stone fountain was in the center, water jetting out from an array of fish statues.
Beyond the garden were more estates, the stone walls of Old Town rising above them. The city of Lausanne was visible, the shops and homes sprawling into the distance, the handful of towers in the financial district giving the city just the right touch of modern.
And it was allmine, well, kind of. I was the princess of this city, this country.
What the hell did that even mean? Everything I knew about royalty came from TV and movies and books. Would I be sitting in a throne room adorned with jewels, an impossibly gorgeous gown and immaculate makeup?