“You’re the future king of Doggerland.”
“Petra is going to be queen now. She can be the new star of the gay rights movement.”
“Petra is not gay.”
“What difference does that make?”
“By renouncing the crown, you will be proving them right. You’ll be proving that it is not possible to be an openly gay king.”
“Well, that’s not my problem, Joel.”
“Yes, it is.”
“No, it’s not. I don’t want all this responsibility. I don’t want to change the world. I just want a simple life.”
“Well, you can’t have a simple life, Eric. You are the crown prince. The future king of Doggerland. You were born into that position. You can’t change that now. You’re running away, Eric. And that is always a mistake.”
Eric looked at his watch. “I have to go back. I’ve got another shift at nine.” He stood up. “Did you check into the Hillview?”
“Yes.”
“What room?”
“Two-twelve.”
“I’ll pop by after my shift. We’re not allowed to visit guests’ rooms, but I’ll sneak in. We’ll talk some more then.”
“What about?”
“About us. I still love you, Joel. And I still want to marry you. But I won’t be king. My mind is made up. I’m not a great man, and I never will be. I’m an ordinary guy, and I want an ordinary life. If the press won’t leave me in peace here, then I’ll move to Denmark, or Nova Scotia, or New Zealand, or anywhere. But I won’t be king, so please don’t try to persuade me.”
He didn’t look back once as he climbed the steps to the footpath and walked back to the hotel.
I saw him again that night. He knocked on my door at half past midnight.
“Oh my God! I nearly got caught.” He rushed into the room and quickly shut the door behind him. “The night manager came out of the lift just as I reached your floor. I had to hide behind the laundry trolley.” He sat on the bed and put his hand on his chest. “I’m so nervous, my heart is pounding. If the night manager catches me, I’ll be fired. How am I going to get back down again? That’s the question. I might have to jump out of your window.” He went to the window and looked out. “What do you think? Will I break my leg?”
He turned to look at me. His face was flushed. He was smiling, and there was a twinkle in his eye. I had never seen him like that before. He looked happy and carefree. Like a boy at a holiday camp. It turned me on.
“So…” I tried desperately to suppress the urge to run towards him and fling my arms around him. “You said you wanted to talk.”
“Well… we could talk, or we could…” He flashed me one of his seductive smiles.
“We should talk.” I quickly sat down before my erection became apparent.“I need to know where we stand.”
“You already know where I stand.”
“But you’re not being realistic, Eric.”
His phone rang again. He took it out and checked the display. He frowned. “Fucking Christian! He won’t stop calling!” He switched off his phone.
“Maybe it’s urgent.”
“I don’t want to speak to him. I don’t want to be reminded of Dunefort.” He put his phone back in his pocket and looked at me. “You were saying…”
“I was saying that you’re not being realistic.”
He frowned again.
“I’m sorry, but you’re not. You can’t lead an ordinary life. You’re a crown prince, Eric. Nothing can change that. People will never see you as an ordinary man. You’ll always be seen as the prince who renounced the throne. It’ll mark your life. You’ll come to regret it in due course. It’s inevitable. It happened to Edward VIII when he abdicated to marry Mrs Simpson. That decision hung over the rest of his life like a dark cloud.”
Eric joined me at the table. He was still frowning. “You really know how to put a damper on things, don’t you?” He placed his elbows on the tabletop and rested his head in his hands.
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s too late now anyway. I’ve already sent the fax. Christian will have shown it to my father and to Petra by now. They must be rejoicing and breathing a sigh of relief.”
“Boersma hasn’t shown that fax to anyone.”
“How do you know?”
“Because I told him to rip it up and bin it.”
He looked up at me. “You really want to be prince consort, don’t you?”
I shook my head. “No, Eric. I don’t want that at all. I just want what’s best for you.”
“But this is best for me. This. Living in this hotel and working as a waiter. Can’t you see how happy I am?”
“You’re only happy until the novelty wears off. And it’ll wear off pretty quickly, believe me.”
A phone rang again. Mine this time. I looked at the display. It was Button-eyes.
“Don’t answer it,” Eric said.
“But I think it’s urgent.”
“I don’t care.”
I hesitated. I watched the phone vibrate frantically on the tabletop. It looked panicked.
“I’m sorry. I have to answer it.” I picked up the phone.
“Joel. Is Eric with you?” Button-eyes sounded nervous.
“Yes.”
“Pass me to him.”
I held the phone out to Eric. He took it from me reluctantly.
“What is it?”
The phone wasn’t switched to speaker, but I still heard every word.
“You have to come back to Doggerland,” Button-eyes said. “Your father has had a stroke.”
“What?”
“It’s serious. He’s in a coma. The doctors don’t think he’ll make it.”
I saw Eric turn pale.
“I’m sending the royal jet to Guernsey. It should be there in a couple of hours. Pack your bags and make your way to the airport immediately. It looks like you’re going to be king.”
TO BE CONTINUED
ALSO BY THIS AUTHOR
DS Billings Victorian Mysteries
Death Takes a Lover - a novella
The Ornamental Hermit - book 1
Something Sinister - book 2
The Campbell Curse - book 3
Anarchy - book 4
Gay Noir - Three noir mysteries with a gay twist.
www.olivierbosman.com
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