Recklessly Royal(10)

“Sure.” Sam answered. “After coffee.”

“Got it.” David smiled at us. “See you around, Cathy.”

“Bye.” I smiled at him awkwardly. As soon as he walked out of the door, Sam burst out laughing. “What?”

“You sure are determined to get his clothes off.” She shook her head.

“I am not!” My words were a little too loud. Great. I sounded guilty. “It was an accident.”

“Right.” She sat down on one of the stools. “That’s why you were busy stroking his chest a few minutes ago.”

“I was not stroking anything. Oh God, I had stroked his chest. I was making sure I hadn’t hurt him.”

“Uh-huh. Sure.” Sam rolled her eyes. “There was definitely no stroking going on in my kitchen just a few minutes ago. Nope. Not at all. And certainly no sexual tension or gooey puppy-dog eyes.”

“Shut up and drink your coffee.” I glared at her. “I did not give him puppy-dog eyes.”

“Whatever you say.” She hummed to herself as she poured more creamer in her cup.

My phone beeped and I picked it up. Selene, my assistant, had sent a text to let me know a car was on the way. I had to get back to the palace for a meeting and to check some of the last-minute wedding plans.

“I’ve got to go.” I stood up and stretched. “I’ll see you tonight?”

“You know, you really didn’t have to do as much for the wedding as you have.” Sam frowned.

“Hush. I like doing it.” I smiled. “It’s fun to see all of the little details come together.”

She looked up at me and smiled. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” I rinsed my cup out and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge. “I need to go. My car should be here any minute.”

“Go. I’ll see you later.” Sam made shooing motions toward the door. “And I won’t tell David you think he’s hot.”

It wasn’t very ladylike, but I shot her the bird. If there was one thing I had learned about Sam and Jess over the last year, it was that they loved to see me squirm.

“Love you too,” she hollered after me as I pushed through the door. I just laughed. My brother had done well for himself.





FOUR


PICKING UP THE flowers, I frowned. They were the wrong color. Again. Selene had even taken pictures to the florist to show them what we were looking for and they still used the wrong flowers.

“Was there a problem getting the ones the duchess requested?” I looked at the woman across the counter from me.

“We couldn’t order enough and thought this would be a good alternative.” She twisted the paper in her hands.

“You’ve had the flower order for months.” I smiled. Mother had taught me you could get away with a lot more by smiling when you said it, and this woman was already a nervous wreck.

“Yes, ma’am. But there was a problem with the delivery truck and the shipment arrived in poor condition. We were able to receive these on short notice.”

“Ah.” I nodded my head like I wasn’t frustrated. “Well, in that case, they will work just fine.” It wasn’t that I was mad. I just wanted everything to be perfect. The last thing I wanted was for Sam to see her flowers and be upset that they weren’t what she picked out.

The rest of the appointment went well. The centerpieces were being made and stored in one of the large walk-in refrigerators. Food was being prepared and the bakers had begun working on the cake and cupcakes. I shook my head as I looked at the cupcakes that covered a worktable. Alex and Sam hadn’t been able to decide on a cake flavor, so had opted for several different types of cupcakes. It had actually been an ingenious idea, because it meant we could also make separate trays for guests with food allergies.

“The tailor delivered the dresses last night.” Selene looked at her clipboard as we walked through the palace. I had tried to get her to use a tablet, but she didn’t care for electronics. Of course, she was older than my mother, so it shouldn’t surprise me.

“Were there any problems?”

“No. Everything was as it should be.” She marked something on her papers before pointing at the main entrance. “Chadwick has requested that we have an extra guard at the front gate. He’s worried about the guests’ arrival.”

“I think Alex already took care of that. Would you double-check for me?”

“Of course.” The scribble of her pencil made me smile. Selene had been with me from the time I was old enough to start attending official functions—before my father had passed away.

One of Selene’s junior secretaries stopped me with a folder of papers. I flipped through them quickly. Tabitha was a small, petite woman, and while she was thorough, something about her screamed power hungry. It was in the little things, the sharp look in her eyes, the constant volunteering, the way she tried to fit into my schedule. Selene felt that she would make a good replacement for her one day, but I had serious doubts.