“I will, when we meet later. I’ll come by your office.”
Her stomach clenched as the thought of the cameras and photos resurfaced. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”
Alex spoke softly. “We’ve already swept your offices again today, okay? There’s nothing for you to worry about. I wouldn’t let you or Cat go back there if I thought it wasn’t safe.”
Her fear softened as she thought of Cat. Alex would do anything to protect her, so if he said it was safe to return, it was. “All right, I trust you.”
“Progress,” he said, and somehow she could tell he was smiling.
Catching sight of the clock, she said, “I’ve got to go, Alex.”
“I know. I’ll see you soon. We’ll make plans for tonight.”
“I don’t know, Alex. It was pretty risky for us to meet last night.”
“Some risks should be taken. And you, my dear, are a risk worth fighting for.”
Oh, my. “Thank you.”
“Until later.”
“Later.”
After she hung up, she fanned herself with her hand for a moment before stripping on her way to the bathroom. Perhaps a nice, cold shower this morning would do just the trick.
***
Alex strode into his offices, trying to put the image of a wet, naked Rebecca out of his mind. Tavin came in just minutes after he’d sat down and gave him a run through of the day ahead. Meetings, meetings, and more meetings. Another thought came to him, so he interrupted Tavin.
“What about public functions?”
“No, sir, you haven’t got any until Thursday. Princess Catharine does have a function today at a local elementary school. Would you like to attend, sir? I can rearrange your schedule, if you wish.”
“Rearrange Catharine’s.”
“Sir?”
“No public appearances for any royal family member for the time being.”
“I see, sir. I’ll make sure the royal schedules are clear. What reasoning shall I give? It will certainly draw attention if none of the royal family are seen in public for a period of time.”
“Nicely put, Tavin. Yes, I suppose you’re right. Reschedule hers today and mine as well. Don’t mention anything specific. And check on the schedules for the rest of this week, at least.”
“Of course, sir. Anything else?”
“When Marcello calls, put him straight through. He’s been avoiding me all morning.”
“Yes, sir. You’re to meet with King Gabriel in ten minutes, sir,” Tavin said and bowed his head before leaving.
Alex had ten minutes to put the threat and Rebecca out of his mind and focus on the work.
God help him.
***
Rebecca turned into her parents’ driveway earlier than expected. She’d sent her mother a brief message letting her know she’d be stopping by; her father was already out on the grounds working.
It was probably for the best, Rebecca thought as she stepped out of the car. Her father was friends with the king, and she wasn’t sure how he’d react. She didn’t know how her mother would react, either, come to that, but she’d always been a fair woman.
Rebecca gave a few swift knocks before stepping inside. “Hello? Mama?” she called.
“In the kitchen, dear. Come on through,” her mother called.
Rebecca stepped through the cozy living room filled with well-worn, soft furniture and scads of family pictures scattered about, and followed the aroma of fresh croissants and coffee to the kitchen.
When she stepped inside, she was transported back to a scene that just as easily could have been from her childhood. Her mother, Francine, stood in casual clothes rolling out dough, her floral apron spotted with flour. Her mother’s golden hair was piled in a messy bun atop her head, and she was humming a cheerful tune.
Rebecca smiled as she stepped over and gave her mother a quick kiss on the cheek. “They smell wonderful, Mama,” she said as she grabbed the plate of baked croissants and took them to the small, functional dining table.
“If you’d have given me more notice I could have prepared something else.”
“You didn’t have to prepare anything at all, but thank you just the same. Come sit. Let’s have coffee,” Rebecca said as she began to pour a cup for her mother, then herself, knowing her mother would never let a cup of coffee go to waste.
Francine dusted off her hands on her apron before removing it, and washed her hands in the sink. When she sat down a moment later, Rebecca had already selected a croissant and drizzled it with warm honey.
“So what’s wrong?” Francine asked as poured some cream and sugar into her coffee.
Rebecca swallowed a bite of flaky, sticky pastry and licked her fingers. “What makes you think something’s wrong?”
“You only come to visit during the week if something’s troubling you. I’m happy anytime you come visit, of course, but I sense you have a problem and need advice.”
“Mother’s intuition?”
“Damn right.”
Rebecca laughed. “I never could keep anything from you. All right. Yes. There’s a problem. Two, actually.”
“Work-related?”
“Not really.”
“Oh?” Francine said as she put down the mug she was about to drink from. Her daughter had never really had personal problems. A hundred possibilities swum through her mind.
“I’ll tell you the worst problem first, though I’m not sure I’m allowed to.”
Francine put her hand over Rebecca’s and squeezed. “I don’t want you to get in trouble. You don’t have to tell me if you’d rather not.”
“I rather would, actually, but I’m not sure the palace would agree.” Rebecca took a deep breath and wondered again if it was right to say anything and cause them more worry. “There’s been a threat.”
“Against the palace?”
“Against me, and others,” she said, not elaborating further. “I’ve got extra security following me now,” she said as she gestured out the window. Her mother rose and saw the agent outside.
“What kind of threat was it?” her mother asked as she sat back down and took her daughter’s hand firmly between both of hers.
“Nothing specific, and I’m not the only one who received similar ones. They, whoever they are, seem to be targeting people in the palace. I wanted you to know that I’m safe. A lot of people are working on this and are protecting me.”
“I’m not sure if I would rather have been kept in the dark, but I am glad you told me. I’ll have to tell your father.”
Rebecca squeezed her mother’s hand. “I know. I was hoping to catch you both this morning, so I’m sorry you’ll have to tell him on your own. I could come by later and tell him myself, if that’s easier for you.”
Francine shook her head. “I couldn’t keep it a secret that long. Your father will be in for lunch in a few hours, and I’ll tell him then.”
“All right. Well, now I have another problem to distract you.”
“Another threat?”
“No, a man.”
Francine’s eyebrows shot up. “A man? As in a boyfriend?”
Rebecca frowned. “I’m not sure if you could us boyfriend and girlfriend. We haven’t decided that yet.”
“So, it’s early days, then? Someone you work with? You spend so much time at work, I can’t imagine you meeting someone anywhere else.”
“You could say it’s someone who works at the palace, yes,” Rebecca said noncommittally.
“So vague. I won’t drag him over for dinner, at least not yet. Oh,” Francine said as she reached over to give her daughter a hug. “I’m so happy for you. Your father and I were worried you might never meet anyone.”
Rebecca returned the hug halfheartedly. Time to admit the rest. “There’s more to it, Mama.”
“Oh?” Francine said as she pulled back and settled in her chair again. “What else?”
“Not what, who.” She took a deep breath. “It’s a member of the royal fa
mily.”
“Really? Some distant family member, I suppose. Oh! Did someone come visit Ilva while you were there with Princess Catharine?”
Rebecca squirmed in her seat. “It’s not a distant member, Mama. It’s a direct descendant.” When her mother still had a quizzical look on her face, she said, “It’s Alex. Alexander.”
Francine’s mouth dropped open. She tried to speak twice but changed her mind before doing so. “Are you playing a trick on me?” she asked finally.
Rebecca shook her head. “No, though I had a similar reaction as you.”
“Tell me,” she said, and Rebecca did. She told her mother about the dinner he’d arranged, and how he’d confessed his intentions for her, if not his feelings. She told her about their dinner last night and how Alex had arranged extra protection for her.
“Rebecca, it sounds like he might be sincere, but are you sure he’s not just interested in sleeping with you? I’m not saying that to hurt you.”
“I know. I thought the same thing myself, and I even asked him as much. Apparently, he’s cared for me for some time. It’s come as such a shock. I don’t quite know what to make of it.”
“My daughter, a future queen,” Francine said, a little shock still on her face. “I can’t wrap my head around it.”
“I don’t know if I can either.”
“Oh, honey, any marriage is difficult. There are ups and downs, fights and making up, misunderstandings, and just about everything you can think of. It wouldn’t be easy to accept all of that on top of royal duties and having a life in the public eye.”
“I know.” Rebecca gripped her stomach again. The flaky croissant she’d eaten suddenly felt like lead in her stomach.
“However, I will say that if you love, truly love and respect the person you’re with, then you can make it through anything. Just look at the King and Queen, and you’ll see it. Every time they look at each other, you can still see the love there, and that’s after nine children and running a country for a few decades.”
“That’s the thing, Mama. I think I could love him, but what if I’m not enough to be what the country needs?”
“It’s a tough choice, probably the toughest you’ll have to make. Your father and I will stand by you, no matter what. Be confident in your own feelings, and don’t just placate his. You are a strong woman in your own right, and deserve an equal marriage, too. He should be willing to compromise just as much as you will be, understand?”
“Yes,” Rebecca said as she gave her mother a hug. The feeling of her mother’s warm, familiar hands around her gave her a sense of comfort and peace. She still didn’t know what she would do about Alex, but she had been right to come seek her mother’s advice.
Her mother whispered against her ear. “I don’t envy you this decision.”
“Did you know you would marry Papa when you met him?” Rebecca asked as she pulled away and picked up another croissant, as her appetite slowly returned.
Francine smiled. “Oh, no. I was working as a waitress in town when he came in one day with some of the other men on his staff.” Francine took a sip of her coffee as she remembered. “He was very handsome and very flirty, but I was working. I served their food and that was that.”
“So how did he convince you to go out with him?”
Francine laughed. “Perseverance. And begging.”
“Begging? Papa?” Rebecca couldn’t imagine her father begging for anything.
“Yes. He came in for lunch every day after that, even on the days I wasn’t working. He’d always sit in my section when I was there, and try again and again. Finally, one day he didn’t show up during my shift, and I actually got a little worried. It wasn’t like him, and truthfully, I’d almost gotten used to his smile and easy laugh.”
“Was he all right?”
Francine nodded. “He was actually waiting for me when I got off shift that day. I walked outside and saw him leaning against my car, and I just stopped. I asked him what he was doing and why he wasn’t at lunch earlier. He said he wanted to see if I missed him.”
“Sounds like Papa.”
“Yes, it does, doesn’t it,” Francine said wistfully. “Anyway, I started laughing, and he took me out to dinner, and we’ve been together ever since.”
“And Thank God for it,” a voice sounded behind them.
Her father, Ettore, walked into the kitchen and kissed them both on the head. “Reminiscing?”
“Something like that,” Francine said. “You need something, honey?”
“No,” he said as he sat down and took a sip from his wife’s coffee. “Saw our Rebecca’s car outside and thought I’d come by and see my girl.”
Rebecca gave her father a kiss on the cheek. He had rarely aged in the years she’d grown up. His dark hair had a few specks of distinguished gray and he had more laugh lines on his face, but overall he was the same. He stayed fit due to walking the grounds everyday as part of his job, and his clothes today were more casual than usual. “Were you working in the greenhouses again, Papa?”
He nodded. “Trying to get things blooming before winter sets in. Now, do you want to tell me why there’s an agent from the Royal Protection Service by your car?”
Rebecca and Francine exchanged glances before Rebecca told him about the threat, and tried to assure him that she was fine. “I only wanted to tell you and Mama because they’re still not sure why I was targeted, and I want you both to be on the alert as well.” She took a hand of each of her parent’s in hers. “I want to make sure you’re protected as well.”
Her father squeezed her hand. “Don’t you worry any about us; we’ll be fine.”
Rebecca nodded just as the clock chimed. “I’ve got to get to work,” she said as she stood and gave both her parents a hug and kiss on the cheek. “I’ll keep you updated, all right?”
Her father held on a little longer during his hug. “Stay safe, my little Rebecca.”
She smiled. “Not so little anymore.”
He sighed. “You’ll always be little to me.” He kissed her on the forehead before letting go.
As she walked out the door with a backwards wave, she missed the moment when her parents, with worry in their eyes, embraced each other in their homey, sweet-smelling kitchen.
***
Alex entered the Situation Room after a long morning of meetings with more to come. Marcello had told him it was urgent, so Tavin stayed behind to rearrange his schedule. As he entered, he noticed that several ministers from the Royal Council and his father were already there.
“Father, Ministers,” he said as he greeted them, and they bowed quickly. Once they were all settled, Marcello spoke.
“The threat’s been escalated,” he said as he gestured to the screens behind him. “These are a few of the latest threats received barely twenty minutes ago.” Alex watched as images of himself, Rebecca, and this time three of his brothers and sisters, including Cat, also appeared on the screen. Their chiefs of staff were also featured.
“All of these came with death threats,” Marcello continued. “What concerns me most is this one,” he said as a new image popped on screen and Alex’s heart jumped. The photo featured a picture of Cat greeting a crowd; even Rebecca’s face was blurred in the background with some of the citizens nearby. A message in thick black lettering was scrawled across it: Prepare Yourself. Death Comes at 1 PM.
Only years of maintaining a poker face in politics had kept him from cursing, and he could see his father was doing the same. Alex’s conversation with Tavin earlier came to his mind.
“The school,” Alex said as every eye turned to him. “Catharine was supposed to be doing a royal visit at a school today at one o’clock. I’ve already had it postponed,” he said to his father and brother’s questioning gazes. “However, the perpetrators may not know that. We should contact the school and evacuate.”
“That will only draw attention to the threat,” one of the ministers said.
“So will hundreds of dead scho
ol children,” the King replied, fury in his eyes.
“Of course, Your Royal Highness,” the minister backtracked. “I am, of course, in agreement that we should evacuate. However, perhaps we should give another reason for doing so.”
“I was thinking along the same lines,” Marcello said. “We’ll say it’s a gas leak. That’ll give our team time to scour the place for the bomb.”
“Do it,” the king said as he stood and the room stood with him. “Keep me updated, Marcello. Alex, my office when you’re done here.” With a nod to the ministers, he left the room.
Alexander & Rebecca (Royals of Valleria #1) Page 13
