Reluctantly Royal(68)

Marty threw himself headfirst into the car and slid across the leather bench.

“Watch the shoes,” I said.

“I am!” He disappeared in the dark interior.

“How is Meredith?” Rachel asked.

I looked over to where Meredith was standing next to her father and grimaced. She was currently talking with Tabitha, and a pang of guilt slid through my body. I had taken the quickest way out of the receiving line that had formed.

“She’ll be fine.” Cathy read the guilt on my face. “She handles people as well as Alex.”

I looked back toward where she was leaning forward and speaking quietly to an elderly woman. Her shoulders were loose and relaxed and she was smiling. If I wasn’t looking for it, I would miss the way her body was angled away from her father’s, the way she tucked her hair nervously behind her ear.

“It’s not the people that I’m worried about.” I glanced back at my sister.

“He is on good behavior right now,” Rachel informed me. Apparently I wasn’t the only one worried about Arthur. “I’ve kept a close watch on him today. Unless he’s been sneaking stuff in the bathroom, he’s sober.”

I looked back over at Meredith and frowned. Samantha and Alex were right there with her and her father.

“The reading of the will is tomorrow?” I shot Rachel a glance.

She adjusted her glasses and frowned. “Yes. Tomorrow afternoon the attorney will be at Thysmer.”

“Has my mother sent a representative?”

“I believe that she asked Alex to be present.” She looked at me over her glasses. “Unless you want to be there.”

“I’ll do it. The old man already hates me anyway.” I shrugged before checking to make sure Marty wasn’t listening.

“You must have said something that made an impact.” Rachel looked back toward Arthur. “He was sober when I arrived at Thysmer this morning and muttering about a prince.”

“I gave him an order from the crown.” I frowned. It wasn’t something that was done lightly. In fact, I’d never used my title to force something on someone. I was surprised that it didn’t bother me more.

“That explains it.” Rachel sighed..

“Well, it worked.” Cathy sighed. “I’m just glad today has gone smoothly.”

“Now we get through tomorrow.” Rachel nodded her head. “And things will sort themselves out.”

“Do you have any idea what the old man left?” I looked at the small woman.

“I wasn’t privy to that information.” She frowned. “Though I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was concerned.”

I let out a breath. If I was worried, I couldn’t imagine how Meredith felt. She truly felt a sense of responsibility to her township. Having her father take over as duke would leave them in a bad place. However, if her granddad did something drastic, it would change her course of life. It would be nearly impossible to be both the acting duchess and go to school full-time, much less having an active stage career.

Not to mention having a son.

“I found crackers and grapes!” Marty slid across the back bench of the car and held up his treasures. “Anyone want some?”

“I’m good.” I ruffled his hair.

“Well, don’t stuff yourself with fizzy water and crackers. I’m thinking we’ll have a lot of food waiting on us when we get home.”

“You mean Thysmer?” His face took on a worried cast.

“Um, no. I meant D’Lynsal.” I looked over at Cathy quickly, but she shrugged her shoulders. How did the two royals with no kid experience end up with the munchkin? “Is that okay with you?”

“Yeah.” He frowned and popped a grape into his mouth. “I like it there. Mom acts more like herself there.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

“Is that because of the mushy stuff?” He cocked his head to the side and looked at me while he chewed.

“Um.” I looked around at Cathy and Rachel. Cathy was smiling, but hiding it behind one hand, while Rachel looked distracted by her phone, obviously pretending that she hadn’t heard what Marty had said.

“I’m just happy you both are comfortable there.” My palms started to become sweaty and I wiped them on my pants.

“Yeah, we are.” He popped another grape into his mouth. “My room is pretty awesome, but I miss my toys.”

“I’m sorry about that.” I frowned. “Is it anything in particular?”

“I dunno.” He shrugged. “Just stuff.”

“I’ve got some outdoor stuff you can play with,” Cathy offered.