“That’s no fun.” She looked disappointed and he laughed at her.
“I happen to like you, Your Royal Highness. I don’t want to kill you. I think you’re the craziest damn rider I’ve ever seen, and the bravest girl I’ve ever met. I’d rather not see you dead if you come off again.”
“Thank you,” she said for the compliments and smiled at him. She’d had a hell of a fall, and knew she’d be hurting by the end of the day. She already was but wouldn’t admit it. But she’d won something better than she had the day before when she’d beaten him. They were friends now. And she needed one in her new world. He was different from the men she had known in her previous life. More complicated, more spoiled, and surprisingly more interesting. She liked him better now than she had when they met.
They smiled at each other and walked the horses the rest of the way home, and he saw her wince when he helped her dismount, but she didn’t say a word and marched into the barn and unsaddled the horse herself.
“Good exercise session?” one of the trainers asked them as they put the saddles away.
“Not bad,” Annie answered and smiled at him, and Anthony watched her as she walked out of the barn. She was a devil on horseback, but he liked that about her. He liked her better than any girl he’d met in years. Maybe she would be a jockey one day. She had the guts for it, and the heart. And she was the best damn rider he’d ever seen. His father had thought so too. He had plans for her, but hadn’t told her yet. He wanted to speak to Her Majesty first. And then they would see.
Chapter 13
August flew by as Annie settled into her duties at the queen’s stables. She wasn’t aware of it, but Lord Hatton observed her whenever possible, and frequently asked for reports from his other trainers. All reports confirmed what he’d glimpsed from the first. She had a rare talent and a gift, a passion for horses, and a sixth sense of them that even her ancestors and new relatives didn’t have. And the queen was pleased with what she was told. The new addition, and previously undiscovered princess, was conscientious, hardworking, modest, and well liked by all. She expected no special favors because of who she was, and was tireless in accomplishing the tasks she was assigned.
She seemed to have no special friends among the people she worked with, but was polite and respectful to all, which was how she had been at the Markhams’ too. She kept her distance and was unfailingly dignified and discreet, even more so now. As a royal princess, she felt an even greater obligation to be responsible and private at all times. She felt she owed the queen her good behavior. Her only friend at the queen’s stables was Anthony, and she called Jonathan to say hello several times a week. And from what Lord Hatton had heard, she never went out at night, except once or twice with his son. She appeared not to have a wild side, unlike some of her new relatives, and Lord Hatton knew it wouldn’t go far with Anthony, who was a rake of the first order, occasionally to his father’s chagrin. At thirty he had already been involved in several scandals, and had a penchant for married women who were as outrageous as he was when it suited them. He liked showy women and had little respect for the rules governing polite society, whereas in contrast Princess Anne Louise was fearless with horses, but demure and somewhat shy in the world. She proceeded with caution and a careful step, and was respectful of her new role, however unfamiliar to her.
Annie took criticism well, which no one would have said of Anthony Hatton. If nothing else, his father thought Annie would be good for him, even as a friend, just as his own friendship with the dignified Queen Alexandra had tempered him. They were good contrasts and counterpoints to each other.
The queen was pleased with everything she’d heard, both from her old friend, and others who encountered the princess. It was difficult to believe that she’d grown up as simply as she had, brought up by people who were essentially servants, but her stepfather was known to be of high moral character. The royal family thought less of his late wife after what she’d done. And it amazed everyone in the family that Princess Anne Louise had gone undiscovered for so long.
She was excited and nervous about her upcoming weekend at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, to meet the rest of the family. The queen had purposely moved slowly to include her to give Annie time to adjust to her new life, and not overwhelm her, and she had convinced the Queen Mother to be patient too. And it made sense to her as well. This wasn’t Charlotte returning from the dead. To Annie, everything and everyone around her was brand new.
Balmoral was said to be the most relaxed of the queen’s homes, where she enjoyed a proper vacation every summer, with family picnics and barbecues, and fishing for all, which was why she had chosen it for Annie’s family debut. Annie spoke to Jonathan about it, and was anxious about what it would be like, and how she should behave. It was all new to her, and no matter what her lineage, she was the stranger in their midst. Everyone had been gracious to her so far, particularly the Queen Mother, her grandmother, and the monarch herself, who treated her like any other young girl, with ease, and chatted with her when they met at the stables.
The queen was a frequent visitor at the stables when she had time, in order to discuss recent and future purchases, which of the stallions they were using for stud services, which was a lucrative business for them, and upcoming races. It was a going concern and did well, and a serious business interest of the queen’s, although the rumor was that the prince consort didn’t share her passion, and only came to major races under duress. He was never seen at the stables with her, but he would be at Balmoral when Annie was there. She hadn’t met him yet, or her aunt Victoria, who would be staying there on her way to or from the South of France for more hedonistic pursuits.
Annie gleaned whatever information she could from Anthony about Balmoral, since he and his father were frequent visitors there, but he was much more excited about his own trip to Saint Tropez. He wished Annie luck when she left for Scotland by train. Jonathan’s best advice had been to just be herself, which didn’t give her much help. She wasn’t even sure what kind of clothes to bring, and had no woman to ask. All Anthony said was to bring some nice dresses and you’ll be fine.
“What kind of ‘nice’?” she pressed him over dinner at the local pub a few days before she left. “Fancy nice? Or sundress nice, or shorts and a blouse in the daytime?” She hardly ever shopped, had never gone without Lucy, and until now didn’t need fancy clothes, but she forced herself to visit the shops in the town near the stables and bought herself a few simple things that looked like good basics to her. She showed them to Anthony and he approved.
“Why not wear something sexy?” he suggested. She had a great figure she never took advantage of to show off. “You’re a girl.” He had never known a woman like her, so totally without artifice or vanity.
“Until now I only owned one dress, to wear to church on Christmas. All I need is riding gear, and I can’t wear that to dinner,” she said, still nervous about her wardrobe even with the new additions.
And Lucy had never been helpful in that department either. She was used to wearing her housekeeper’s black dresses, and housedresses and slippers on her days off when she sat in front of the TV watching her favorite shows. Annie still missed her, and her unconditional love, and Jonathan said that he and the boys missed her terribly too. She’d been gone for less than a year, and so much had changed. Everything had, for all of them, especially in Annie’s life.
She had an allowance to spend now, which the cabinet had approved. It seemed extremely generous to her, and was put in an account for her every month, but she had no expenses living at the queen’s stables, and she’d never been extravagant. She did wish she’d had time to shop more when she packed her meager summer wardrobe for Balmoral. She saw Anthony briefly the morning she left. He was rushing to the airport for his flight to Nice, and what he referred to as Sodom and Gomorrah with French subtitles in Saint Tropez, on his friend’s yacht. He couldn’t wait.
&nbs
p; “Good luck!” he called over his shoulder as he hurried down the stairs. She left a few minutes later, and Lord Hatton had one of the grooms drive her to the train station, where she boarded with her single battered suitcase, feeling like an orphan again, and not a royal princess.
The trip to Aberdeenshire in Scotland took eight hours, changing several times, and the scenery was beautiful along the way. The area around the castle was very rural, which was what the queen and Queen Mother loved about it. She had already spent most of the summer there, and was now at Sandringham in Norfolk with friends. And she was leaving this time in August to the young people. Annie knew that the family usually spent Christmas there, and only went to Balmoral in the summer, for a proper holiday. Of all of them, Balmoral was the queen’s favorite castle. It had a romantic history. Victoria and Albert had rented it in 1848, and had liked it so much, they continued to lease it for four years, until Prince Albert bought it as a gift for Queen Victoria in 1852. They had built an entirely new castle there, and it remained their favorite holiday home. The rest of the time, they used Windsor Castle as their main residence, and preferred it with their nine children when they were growing up. They lived at Buckingham Palace for part of the time, but Windsor was the main seat of the monarchy during Victoria’s reign.
Balmoral was on the bank of the River Dee, near the village of Crathie, and the queen’s private secretary picked Annie up at the station, and was surprised to see she had come with only one very small bag, which he carried for her, and put in the queen’s Rolls for the short drive to the castle.
“Did you have an easy journey, Your Royal Highness?” Sir Malcolm asked pleasantly. He was happy to see her again, and she was relieved to see a familiar face.
“The scenery was beautiful.” She had brought a picnic lunch to eat on the train, prepared by the excellent chef at the stables.
“Dinner will be at eight o’clock,” he informed her. “Family in the drawing room at seven.” A wave of panic washed over her as he said it.
“Is it formal dress?”
“Never at Balmoral. Her Majesty prefers to keep things informal here. A simple dress will do nicely. There’s a picnic lunch planned tomorrow, and a barbecue the day after. Her Majesty’s children love barbecues. They visited a ranch in America last summer, and the queen enjoys barbecues too.” He smiled at her, and a few minutes later they reached the castle. It was more of a large estate house, and was less daunting than Buckingham Palace, or the other residences like Windsor, which was a real palace, and one of the oldest castles in the world, and rivaled Versailles in France. Balmoral was far more human scale.
A flock of corgis greeted them when they got out of the car, and the queen herself appeared a few minutes later to welcome her, and escort her inside. She hugged Annie when she saw her. Annie was wearing a navy blue linen skirt, which was sadly crumpled from the trip, a white blouse, a blazer, and sandals, and looked like a schoolgirl as she followed her aunt into the house.
There was a striking redheaded woman playing the piano and singing, with a crowd of young people around her, and Annie recognized her immediately. It was Her Royal Highness Princess Victoria, her other aunt. She waved from the piano with a broad smile, and three handsome young boys glanced at the new arrival and went on singing. They were singing American show tunes, and knew all the words, as Annie approached cautiously, the queen went outside with the dogs, and the head stewardess took Annie’s bag from the secretary, who followed Her Majesty outside for a brief conversation before he left.
The song ended a few minutes later, and Princess Victoria stood up and came around the piano, observing her niece closely, and looking deeply moved. Annie looked so much like her mother that there were tears in Victoria’s eyes when she hugged her.
“At last! I was in India for a month when you met my mother and sister. I’ve felt quite cheated not to meet you before this. Do you sing? We do a lot of it here,” she said, and the boys laughed. “I have no voice at all, but that never stops me,” she said easily and laughed. But she played the piano beautifully, and sang better than she admitted. She did a lot of it at parties. “I’m your naughty aunt,” she said happily. “The queen is the good one. And these are your cousins, my dear.” She introduced her to the queen’s three sons, who were eighteen, seventeen, and fourteen, close to the ages the three princesses had been during the war. They were Princes George, Albert, and William and were good-looking boys. They had the Teutonic blond looks of their father, who appeared a few minutes later to welcome her as well. He was Prince Edward. He had renounced his German nationality when he married Alexandra and exchanged his German title for a British one.
They all went out on the terrace after that, and half an hour later, Princess Victoria offered to show Annie to her room.
“You’re a brave girl to come and meet all of us at once. I hear you’re a smashing rider. Your mother was as well, dangerously so, I fear. She was about your size, and fearless on a horse. Our father was always afraid she would break her neck and kill herself riding.” She looked wistful as she said it. “I’m afraid I was the wicked older sister who always scolded her. Jealous, I suppose. It seems so stupid now. I’m so glad you’re here.” She didn’t say it, but it had occurred to her that Annie gave her the chance to do things better now, and make up for how mean she had been to Charlotte in their youth. “You look just like her, you know,” she said softly as they reached the top of the stairs and she walked Annie into a splendid room, all decorated in yellow satin, and floral silks, and filled with antiques. “This is my favorite guest room of all,” she said, as Annie caught her breath and looked around. She had never seen a bedroom as beautiful in her entire life. There was a portrait of Queen Victoria in her youth on one wall, and a huge canopied bed. “This was her favorite house,” Victoria said, pointing to the painting. “Prince Albert bought the original house for her as a gift and then built her a new one. They were a very romantic couple, and madly in love. I suppose all those children were testimony to that,” she said and laughed. She had a very light spirit and seemed like a lot of fun, as Anthony had said. She was much more frivolous than her older sister, although they were only a year apart. Princess Victoria was forty-two but didn’t look it. She seemed very young, in white linen slacks, with a starched white shirt and silver sandals. The queen had been wearing a linen skirt and pale blue twin set, and her traditional double strand of pearls, which she wore every day, wherever she was. “And don’t worry about dressing for dinner. We don’t bother here. It’s all very casual,” she added.
“I didn’t really know what to bring,” Annie said in a soft voice, feeling nervous with this dazzlingly attractive woman who seemed so at ease in her own skin and so full of life. It had shocked her how much Annie looked like her late mother, they were almost identical, but she tried not to let it show. It was a knife in her heart, and almost as though her younger sister, Charlotte, had returned to them in the form of this shy, pretty young girl.
She could see why her mother and sister liked her. She was so unassuming, and so sweet and direct, with no artifice or pretense. Her manner was like Charlotte’s too, and even the way she moved. “Don’t let us overwhelm you, my dear,” she added before she left the room. “There are a lot of us, but we mean you no harm, and your cousins are wonderful boys. We’re all going fishing tomorrow. And you can ride if you like. Alexandra keeps some very nice horses here. I hope you’ll enjoy it.” She smiled and left the room, closing the door behind her, and Annie lay down on the huge bed and looked around, smiling. Everything was so beautiful, and they were all so nice. She still couldn’t understand how all of this had happened to her. She wished Jonathan was with her, so he could see it all too. She would tell him all about it after the weekend.
She bathed before dinner. The bathroom was old-fashioned and had an enormous tub. She wore a plain black skirt and a white silk blouse, one of her few choices. She made up with yout
h and beauty for what she lacked in fashion, and the queen looked as though she approved when Annie entered the room in her simple skirt and blouse and black high heels that were new too, and hard to walk in, but looked pretty on her. Victoria came downstairs a few minutes later in a Pucci dress she’d bought in Rome, which the queen thought was too loud and too short, in a bright paisley pattern in turquoise, yellow, shocking pink, and black with shoes to match. Victoria had famously great legs and liked to show them off, although the queen disapproved. Annie looked like a schoolgirl in comparison, but a very proper one, and resolved to go shopping soon with her new allowance, for future family occasions. She had almost nothing to wear, and they all looked so fashionable to her. She wouldn’t have dared to wear a dress like Victoria’s, but it looked like fun, and molded her fabulous figure. It all went well with her flaming red hair, which she wore loose down her back, and made her look even younger. Annie could easily see how she’d had an affair with one of Anthony’s thirty-year-old friends. She looked barely older than that herself.
The queen had seated Annie next to her at dinner, and they talked about horses all through the meal, which suited them both, and put Annie at ease. She knew little about anything else, but a great deal about horses. And the queen invited her to go riding with her the next morning, before the planned fishing expedition. Annie accepted with delight, and after dinner they all gathered around the piano again, and sang all their favorite songs. Annie even knew the words to some of them and sang along. It was a fun evening, and they all went to bed early.
Royal Page 18
