Royally Schooled

by McKenna James

  “I’m not so sure that’s the best idea,” I told Abigail.

  “What’s not the best idea?” I heard a soft voice say from behind me.

  I turned around to see Maggie standing there, looking at me curiously.

  “I asked Edward if he wanted to come out with us this afternoon!” Abigail gleamed.

  “I was just about to say that I didn’t think I should be interrupting any lessons.” I smiled politely at Maggie.

  The last time I’d seen her, she had been looking thoroughly embarrassed after discovering I was the prince. I wondered if she still felt any humiliation over that moment.

  “You won’t be interrupting,” Abigail said. “Right, Maggie?”

  Maggie forced a smile. “Right, of course not. You’re welcome to join us.”

  I didn’t think this invitation seemed genuine. It felt as though she was only saying so to be polite, knowing that I was essentially now her boss. I doubted she actually wanted me there.

  I couldn’t resist her welcoming me, though. Looking at her again now, it was easy to see why I’d been struggling to get her out of my head. Man, she was gorgeous.

  “Sure, alright. I’ll tag along then.”

  “Yay!” Abigail cheered.

  Maggie looked a tense.

  I understood this. Even if I hadn’t been rejected by her, and even if she hadn’t realized I was the prince, it was hard to do your job with your boss standing over your shoulder.

  I wasn’t her boss, though. If anything, Ms. Mitchell was her boss. I may have hired her, but I had little interest in bossing her around.

  “Well, let’s head out then. I brought us some snacks.” Maggie held up a picnic basket that she had hidden behind her back.

  That was really sweet of her. Initially, I wanted to hire her because I was intrigued by her. I was glad she actually seemed to take a vested interest in this position.

  We went out to the courtyard where Maggie spread out a large red blanket in the grass. She pulled out some simple snacks: crackers, cheese, yogurt, some juices. She moved to hand me a juice box, but I waved her off.

  “I’m fine.”

  She took one for herself, though, which I thought was cute. I watched her sip that juice box and imagined her slurping on something much different…

  No, stop it, Edward. Don’t you dare think about anything gross when you’re out here with your kid siblings and their tutor. I needed to behave as an adult. I was only here to spend time with my siblings.

  “So I brought you guys outside today for two lessons. Let’s do Abigail’s first. Abigail, remind me and Drew of what you’re learning about in science this week.”

  “We’re learning about, uh…” Abigail trailed off with her thought.

  “About the plants, right?” Maggie encouraged.

  “Oh, yeah! About photosynthesis.”

  “Right. So I thought we’d take a walk around the rose gardens and talk about some of the plants that get their food by photosynthesis… instead of yogurt.” She held up her cup.

  Both Abigail and Drew had a chuckle.

  “See all this green grass in front of us? Really pretty color, right, Abby?”

  “Right!” Abigail agreed.

  “What is the reason that it’s all so green?”

  “Chlorophyll!” Abigail said proudly.

  “That’s right. That’s why so much of the beautiful nature we get to enjoy is so lush and green. Without chlorophyll, the world would definitely look like a much drabber place.”

  It was adorable watching her with the kids. I could tell that she actually cared about them. If this was just a job to her, she could be quizzing Abby on words like photosynthesis and chlorophyll indoors. She was actually going out of her way to instill in Abigail a love of learning, a reason to care about the concepts she had been taught about in her science class.

  I sat back quietly as I watched the rest of the lesson. She engaged both Abigail and Drew, and they were so enthralled with her, they hardly noticed my presence. Which was saying something since my siblings usually wanted to spend time with me above all others.

  I couldn’t believe I was actually enjoying watching a child’s tutoring lesson.

  She went on from the photosynthesis, and then she turned her attention to Drew’s work. They talked about the water molecule for a while as I stared into her eyes and thought about how they were the familiar blue of the ocean. Of course, this quickly turned into thoughts of her on the beach in a bikini… I reminded myself again to snap back to reality.

  “I don’t get it,” Drew said suddenly.

  “Don’t get what?” Maggie asked.

  “You said that we had to be outside for both me and Abby’s lessons today. Why did we need to learn about water outside?”

  “Oh, uh, well…” Maggie looked at me hesitantly.

  “What?” I asked. “What is it?”

  “It’s just… I kind of planned something, but I’m not sure it’s appropriate now that you’re here. And, uh, dressed so nicely.”

  I looked down at my clothes. I thought my outfit was fairly simple today, but evidently not.

  “Well, I definitely don’t want to interrupt the lesson. You should continue with whatever you had planned.”

  “Are you sure?” Maggie asked me skeptically.

  “Yeah, I’m positive. Go for it.”

  “Okay…” She still seemed hesitant as she stood and walked away from the blanket.

  Drew looked over at me with curiosity in his eyes. “Where is she going?”

  “I don’t know.” I shrugged.

  She walked over to a nearby shrub, and from behind it, she pulled out a very large bucket that looked like it was full of … balloons?

  No, not just balloons—water balloons.

  She grabbed one and threw it toward Abigail. It landed next to her with a splash, and she burst into laughter as both she and Drew eagerly walked over to the bucket to grab balloons.

  I couldn’t help but grin watching them. It was so simple, so childish, and it made my brother and sister so happy.

  Abigail ran up to me and viciously threw a water balloon right at my chest. It burst on my shirt and soaked through it instantly.

  “Oh, no, no, you do not want me to get into this fight,” I threatened as I hopped to my feet and ran to the bucket.

  I threw one at Abby, and then Maggie hit me in the chest again. I nailed her back, getting her shirt soaking wet.

  The fabric clung to her, and I tried to keep myself from staring at the amazing curves of her body. I did my best to focus on the epic fight instead.

  We were all laughing, soaked, when Drew suggested to Abby that they go try to get the gardeners with the balloons. Abigail naturally loved this idea and off they ran, leaving Maggie and I alone.

  I smiled at her as I began to unbutton my sopping wet shirt.

  “That was really sweet, you know,” I said. “I don’t think they have a lot of fun like that. I can tell they really love spending time with you.”

  This made her smile. “I love spending time with them too. They’re really great kids.”

  As I peeled my shirt away from my skin, I could swear I saw her staring at my abs. Not to be too cocky, but I did spend a fair amount of time working out.

  I stared at her back, letting my eyes actually linger on her torso. She didn’t seem to mind, so I moved closer and turned my gaze directly toward her eyes.

  “You know, I think wet clothes suit you…”

  “Yeah?” she asked expectantly, moving closer to me too.

  I was about to turn my head to kiss her, but before I could, Drew and Abigail came running back.

  “We totally got them!” Drew said excitedly.

  “I think Mr. Hansen was pretty mad, though!” Abigail chuckled.

  I couldn’t focus on their words at all. Instead, I was focused on my raging desire for Maggie.

  I had to have her.

  Whatever it took, I was going to find a way to have Maggie
all to myself one of these evenings.

  Chapter 7

  Maggie

  It had been a few weeks since I started working with Drew and Abigail, and I was loving every second of it. Not only was I less stressed about money and dealing with my father’s hospital bills, but I’d really connected with the kids and was excited to go to work every day.

  In a way, work had actually become my escape. Not that I didn’t love spending time with my dad at home—of course, I did. I treasured every moment we had together. All those moments were certainly a stark reminder that he was ill and that I didn’t know how much time we had left together.

  Being with the kids was just a simple relief. With them, I could forget about the stresses of my father being ill and just enjoy our time together. They had both become so eager to learn. I had expected it from Drew, but even Abigail had a new zest for knowledge.

  The only real downside to this job was Edward.

  Okay, he wasn’t a downside per se. I actually really enjoyed the time I spent with him, but that was kind of part of the problem. I had become enthralled with the man, and the last thing I needed was to become interested in any man. I definitely didn’t want to be interested in my boss, of all people.

  I did everything I could to avoid him, but he stopped in on our tutoring lessons fairly often. Every time he walked into the room; I could feel my heartbeat speed up. I hadn’t felt like that since I had my first major crush in high school. Something about him just sent my head spinning.

  I didn’t know if it was his good looks or his devil-may-care attitude. he intrigued me. I was simultaneously desperate to learn more about him and eager to get as far away from him as I possibly could.

  Which wasn’t far since he lived at the castle as well, or so I assumed.

  He hadn’t asked me out since I rejected him, which was both a relief and a disappointment. As much as I knew rationally to stay away, I wanted him to press my boundaries and push for more. I wanted to explore with him.

  Maybe I’d been too harsh in my initial rejection of him. Perhaps he didn’t want to push boundaries lest it come off as sexual harassment. Or hell, maybe hiss attraction to me had worn off after spending countless hours with me and the children during tutoring.

  I didn’t really think that was the case, though. I could see the way he looked at me. He felt the same way I did—I could sense it.

  Even though it made no damn sense to me at all. I mean, the man was a freaking prince, and who was I? Nobody. Some unknown American girl who struggled to make ends meet and spent her Friday nights taking care of her father. I wasn’t his type. I wasn’t rich, entertaining, and I could never go on crazy, elaborate vacations with him.

  For some reason, that hadn’t changed his mind. He still wanted me. Which I was grateful for.

  And simultaneously worried about.

  I heard a knock on the door and expected it to be Ms. Mitchell.

  “Come in,” I called out.

  It wasn't Ms. Mitchell; instead, it was Edward.

  “Sorry to interrupt,” he said as he stepped through the door.

  “Oh, no, you’re not interrupting at all!” I answered, more eagerly than I intended to.

  “I just wanted to stop by and ask if you’d like me to accompany you to the royal educational dinner tonight.”

  “Uh…” I furrowed my brow. “The … what now?”

  “The royal educational dinner. Didn’t they tell you?”

  “I’m pretty positive they did not. What exactly is that?”

  “It’s an annual dinner we host for all the members of our educational staff. It’s tonight. You should have received your invitation and outfit. Wait, hold on…” He pulled out his phone. “You do live in the Wayfield Flats … number 67?”

  “Uh, no… Number 76.”

  “Ah, well, I guess we figured out the problem. I’ll make sure they deliver a dress to the correct address this time. It should arrive by seven this evening, just in time for you to make the eight o’clock dinner.”

  “I … don’t think that will be necessary,” I told him. “I’m busy tonight. Actually, I’m busy most nights. I have prior responsibilities.”

  Edward tightened his lips. “I’m afraid you don’t really have a choice. It’s a requirement for your position. All our educators must attend.”

  Great. I’d have to ask my dad’s caregiver if she’d be willing to work overtime tonight.

  “Then I suppose I’ll be there,” I said, defeated.

  “Terrific. Then I’ll have you as my date. I will have my driver arrive at your home at 7:30.”

  “Now wait a second…” I began to say.

  I was going to tell him I hadn’t necessarily agreed to be his date, but he had already left the room. He wasn’t going to take no for an answer.

  I sighed and looked over at Abigail and Drew. “Your brother … he’s quite determined, isn’t he?”

  “Mom says Edward always gets what he wants,” Abigail said as if she was telling me a dirty secret.

  “Well, I can certainly believe that.”

  ***

  When I went home that evening, a dress was indeed waiting for me. It was hanging on the inside of my door; my dad’s caregiver must have brought it in. She agreed to work late for me after I explained the obligation. My dad wasn’t even awake for me to tell him of the plan for the night.

  I pulled the dress out of its plastic packaging and was stunned by how beautiful it was. Perhaps I shouldn’t have been … it was for a royal event after all.

  It was a full-length, midnight blue gown that was dusted with gold sparkles. After doing my hair and makeup, I slid into it and was almost unrecognizable from myself. I hadn’t been this dolled up in … well, never. I’d never worn anything quite this fancy.

  It felt silly walking out of my flat in this extravagant gown and high heels. I looked around anxiously, hoping that nobody would catch me on the way to the car.

  Which was impressively nice. I didn’t know much about cars, but the door lifted up instead of out. Edward was standing outside the car to let me in, even though there didn’t appear to be much for him to do.

  “Thank you,” I said politely, and as I slid myself into the back seat, the door slowly slid into place.

  Edward walked around the car and got in next to me. He looked as handsome as ever. I tried not to get too swept up in the magic of the moment. I mean, attending a royal event with the Prince of England was like something out of a romantic comedy.

  I sure didn’t have a romantic comedy kind of life.

  “So what responsibilities would you normally have on a Friday night?” Edward asked, seemingly out of nowhere.

  “Huh?” I said.

  “When I first informed you of the dinner, you said you had other responsibilities to tend to. What were those?”

  “Oh, uh…” For a moment, I considered coming up with a lie because speaking about my father right now felt heavy. For some reason, looking into his eyes, I felt compelled to tell the truth.

  “My father has cancer, and he needs me around. I have a caregiver for when I’m at work, but when she’s not around, I try not to leave him alone for more than an hour or so.”

  He looked stunned by this. “Oh, wow. I had no idea… Maggie, I’m so sorry. Your mother…” he suddenly trailed off, seemingly nervous to finish his inquiry.

  “She died a few years ago of breast cancer. I sort of escaped my life for a while by coming to university here in London, but when my dad fell ill…” I looked away as I tried to control the emotions. I didn’t like to talk about my parents and their illnesses. It was like pouring salt into an open wound—painful, no matter the time that had passed.

  "You’re a very strong young woman to have overcome such tragedies.” He grasped my hand and squeezed, extending his strength to me. I appreciated that.

  I smiled at him. “Don’t be. That’s life, right? Things pop up, you end up taking more responsibility than you wanted to, but you do what yo
u have to do. I love my father, and now that I have a better paying job, I’m less stressed about money. So, it’s all working out.”

  He nodded.

  “I’m sure you have to do a lot of things you never wanted to as prince, right?” I asked, mostly eager to change the subject.

  “Well no, not really. I mean, there are a lot of things I should be doing that I don’t want to do, but I mostly get to shirk my responsibilities at every given opportunity.”

  I laughed. “You know, I’d heard something like that around the palace.”

  “What’s that? That I’m an entirely irresponsible man-child?” He took it in stride.

  “Something like that.”

  He laughed. “I can be, I’ll admit it. I’m only going to be young once. One day I’ll actually be king and have to deal with all the responsibilities that come with that. I need to have fun while I still can.”

  “So, you don’t want to be king?” I asked.

  “Of course not,” he scoffed. “What child grows up wanting to be king?”

  “Um, I think a better question is what child doesn’t grow up wanting to be king?” I laughed.

  He thought on this a moment. “Okay, admittedly, I might have a different perspective growing up as royalty. I never wanted it. In fact, I grew up wishing that I was a normal kid. I wanted to go to school like normal kids and make regular friends and make mistakes and just live my life. I hated that cameras followed us on every vacation and that I could hardly leave the palace. I did everything I could to rebel against it because I didn’t want it. When I was finally shipped off to a boujie boarding school in high school, I was relieved to finally have some freedom. I suppose I really took that freedom and ran it was about the only thing that had ever made me happy in the slightest.”

  I nodded. “I mean, it makes sense. I’d probably be the same way. It’s easy to fantasize about fame before you ever have to actually deal with it.”

  “Right,” he agreed. “As I watch Drew and Abigail grow up, I’m reminded of how messed up it can be. They’re so isolated from the world. I’m glad they at least have you, someone to be normal with them.”