The Reluctant Wife: Chapter 40

‘Thank you so much for the invitation,’ Harper gushes.

‘We really appreciate it,’ Grace adds.

‘You’re so very welcome!’ I smile.

Ryot and I, along with Veronica and the security team, boarded a flight the day after we announced to the Davenports that we were getting married. The king and his courtiers were, of course, on board with the wedding. Not that they’d have an objection, given the money the Davenports will be pouring into the country.

Luckily, the public-facing announcements were limited to a joint press release that Ryot and I put out announcing our upcoming nuptials in a month. After which, I handed my phone to Veronica and had her deal with the flurry of questions coming my way.

I also briefed the palace’s PR team on dealing with the publicity in the weeks leading up to the wedding.

‘How are you doing?’ Zoey hugs me, then takes a seat on the chair to the left of the settee where I am. “Are you happy to be back home?”

We’re in a conservatory within the Royal Palace in Verenza. The scent of flowers fills the air, but below it is the slightly salty air, reminding me that I’m never far away from the sea on this island. It’s been a week since I returned here. I spent three weeks in London fulfilling various public engagements, and before that, I was on a European tour, stopping in five countries.

“I’m happy to be back in Verenza. But I already miss London.”

“You do?” Grace asks, surprised.

I take a sip of my tea. “Verenza is where I will always be seen as a princess. London is where I went first, to boarding school and then, university. It’s where I led as normal a life as I possibly could. Also, the media in England is more fixated on the British Royal Family, so with careful planning, I can fly under the radar, unless I am at a public engagement.”

“I’d have never guessed that, but it makes sense.” Harper nods.

“I do miss some things about my home country, of course.” I place my teacup back in the saucer on the table. “The food, for one. The fish caught off the shore of Verenza tastes different from fish I’ve had anywhere else. I also miss the fact that everyone here speaks both Italian and English.”

Given we’re off the coast of Italy, everyone is fluent in both languages.

“And then, I like the slower pace of life. I’m also appreciative that, in many homes here, generations of families all live under one roof. Despite modernization we’ve kept the old ways alive.”

Grace laughs. ‘And let’s not forget the weather. It’s gorgeous here!’

‘I can’t believe it’s only three days to go to the wedding,’ Harper exclaims.

I laugh. ‘It’s gone by quickly.’

‘A month is nothing in terms of wedding preparation time, let alone, enough to prepare for ‘the wedding event of the century’ as the media has been referring to it.’ Grace nods.

She’s perched on the chair opposite me, with the coffee table between us. Zoey is on a chair which is twin to hers. Harper and I are on the couch facing the door.

‘You should know, Ms. Morning Show host. I caught one of your shows when I was in London. You were excellent,’ I gush.

‘Thanks.’ Grace seems pleased by the praise. ‘It’s what I’ve always wanted to do. It’s why I embarked on a journalism career. What they don’t tell you is that you have to be up at three a.m. and at the studio by four a.m. to do your makeup and prep, so you’re in the studio and on air by six a.m.’

‘Ouch.’ Harper winces.

‘Not that working for a Michelin-starred chef means you’re spared the early mornings.’ I turn to her. It’s thanks to Zoey that I know about their professional accomplishments.

‘My boss is a bastard.’ Harper scowls. ‘A beautiful bastard, but a bastard, nevertheless. He’s so up his own arse, the only time he notices us is if one of us screws up, and then he’ll chew us out. He doesn’t even know our names and refers to us by numbers.’

‘He refers to his team by numbers?’ Grace coughs on the sip of wine she’s taken. ‘That’s horrible.’

‘He says it’s because no one on the team stays around long enough for him to need to learn our names. I’m determined to prove him wrong,’ she says with vehemence.

The fire in her eyes tells me she won’t stop until she’s brought him to heel. It also tells me, perhaps, there’s more there than just hate for her boss, but I wisely don’t share that. Instead, I ask, ‘He’s a Michelin-starred chef. Is there a chance we know of him?’

‘James Hamilton.’ She tosses her head. ‘He thinks the world begins and ends with him.’

‘James Hamilton?’ I sit up straight. ‘He’s the one in charge of the food at the wedding reception.’

‘Really? Well, thankfully, I’ll be on holiday and attending the wedding as a guest. So hopefully, I won’t run into him.’ She mutters under her breath, ‘He probably won’t recognize me, anyway.

‘He’s invited to the reception,’ I warn.

‘He is?’ Harper seems taken aback. ‘I mean, of course, he is. He hobnobs with the rich and famous.’ She sniffs.

Grace clears her throat.

‘What?’ Harper scrunches up her forehead. Then her gaze widens as realization sinks in. ‘Ohmigosh!’ She turns to me. ‘I didn’t mean you by that. I mean, you are rich and famous, but I was referring to models and actresses and the kind of airheads he likes to date. Obviously, not you.’

‘Hmph.’ I raise one eyebrow. ‘I think you did.’

Her jaw drops. ‘No, honestly, I didn’t, I…’

She looks so mortified, I burst out laughing. ‘Relax, I was kidding with you.’

She doesn’t look convinced.

I reach over and squeeze her shoulder. ‘I know, you don’t have a mean bone in your body, Harper.’ Which is why I was surprised to find out she was apprenticing to be a chef. It’s not an easy path she’s chosen. But then, none of the four of us are put off by challenges, are we?

‘Ryot had arranged for James Hamilton to cook for us. That’s when I was shot at.’

‘Gosh!’ Harper looks stricken. ‘That’s awful. Not that James cooked for you, but the fact that you were shot at.’

I laugh. ‘No, the food was amazing prior to that.’

‘I’m glad you escaped unhurt,’ Grace exclaims.

The girls already know about the note that appeared in my room. They also know that someone tried to break into Arthur’s place while I was there.

‘Good thing Ryot was with you.’ Zoey scans my face. ‘Speaking of, how has he been coping with—’ She waves a hand in the air.

‘Honestly, I’m not sure.’ I reach over to nibble on a carrot stick. I eschewed a bachelorette party for the more mellow afternoon tea with my girlfriends.

‘What does that mean?’ Grace frowns.

I hesitate, wondering how much to reveal. She notices the expression on my face and holds up her hand. ‘You don’t have to tell us. Especially not if it means breaking a royal confidence.’

‘Umm…’ I choose my words carefully. I do trust them. And I want to share, since I want to have these women in my life.

‘Ryot, he and I, uh… It’s kind of a marriage of convenience.’

Grace looks skeptical, but Harper nods. ‘Of course, it’s common enough in some cultures. Especially among those with a lot of money to protect, and who want to manage who will inherit their wealth.’ She winces again. ‘Don’t mean to sound insulting or anything.’

I laugh. ‘You’re not. Our alliance does have money at its heart.’

‘Oh?’ Grace leans forward. ‘How’s that?’ Then her forehead furrows and she adds, ‘Again, you don’t need to share anything that would put you in a spot. I’m curious because I’m a journalist. I love to get to the bottom of things. Not that I’d report anything you tell me,’ she adds quickly.

‘It’s what makes you a good reporter,’ I say with admiration. ‘And yes, it is confidential, but you’re my friends, and I trust you.’

Grace and Harper exchange glances, then Grace tips her chin in my direction. ‘We would never speak of this with anyone.’

‘Whatever you share with us will never leave this group,’ Harper says solemnly.

Tears burn the backs of my eyes, and I blink them away. ‘You guys are so good to me. I’m sorry I didn’t make the effort to keep in touch with you.’

‘It’s understandable. It’s not easy being a princess, especially in today’s world, where everyone wants a piece of those in the public eye,’ Grace murmurs.

Harper reaches over to take my hand. ‘We’re here for you, honey, whatever you need.’

I sniffle, then brush away the tear that escaped down my cheek. ‘I don’t know why I’m getting this emotional. Ignore me.’

‘It’s allowed. You’ve been under so much pressure; it helps to cry it out.’ Zoey rises from her chair and sits next to me, then puts her arm around my shoulders.

Grace’s gaze is also understanding.

I take in their faces and feel relieved that I don’t have to go through the next few days on my own. Of course, Ryot will be with me, but it’s a different feeling from having girlfriends to lean on. A feeling, I realize, I’ve missed so much. I take a sip of my wine, allowing the tart Chardonnay to roll over my tongue, then place the glass back. ‘When Gavin decided to get aggressive with me, it’s Ryot who came to my rescue.’

‘I’m so sorry you had to go through that.’ Zoey’s lips tighten.

‘Gavin took me by surprise.’ I rub at my forehead. ‘The man gave me the impression that he’s a laid-back, spoiled heir to the family fortune. But for some reason, he seemed to find his balls when he wanted to get into my pants. No pun intended.’

The girls laugh.

‘Thankfully, Ryot intervened before things got too far.’

‘And now, you’re marrying him.’ Harper sighs.

‘Ryot says, this way, he has a reason to stay by my side all the time without raising suspicion. This way, he can protect me. It also gets his grandfather off his back about getting married. In return, he’s going to invest enough money into Verenza to help us pay off our debts to the International Monetary Fund.”

‘Hmm’—Grace purses her lips—’and how do you feel about this?’

“Frankly?” I look around their faces. “The money he’s investing is too important for me to turn down the offer. But if I put that aside, I honestly don’t mind the idea.”

‘But does he love you, right?” Grace asks.

I glance down at my locked fingers then up at her. “He cares for me, a lot. As for love”—I pop a shoulder, trying to look unconcerned— “hopefully, that will come later.”

‘And what about you?” Harper tilts her head. “From the look on your face when you speak about him, I’m assuming you do love him?”

I wince. ‘I’m that transparent, huh?’

‘Only because I’m a romantic.’ Harper smiles a little. ‘I want to believe that, while the two of you might have an unorthodox start, you’re meant for each other. I truly hope that this marriage of convenience turns out to be the real thing.”

‘Hear, hear,’ adds Grace. ‘It’s not for nothing we belong to a spicy book club. Aura is currently living the ‘fake marriage’ trope.’

Everyone laughs.

I’d like to believe that too, but the fact is, I’ve only seen Ryot twice since we returned to Verenza. And that’s only because I needed to update him on the wedding arrangements. He might have wanted to marry me so he could stay close to me, but the arrangements are taking up a lot of his time. He’s trying his best to stay close to me, but he told me he doesn’t trust anyone else with the arrangements and wants to oversee them as closely as possible.

He’s roped Tyler in to stand in as my bodyguard whenever he’s unable to be with me. He also drew up a cordon of handpicked guards around the palace, and given I haven’t left the premises, I’m as safe as can be.

‘So, are you ready for the wedding?’ Zoey scrutinizes my features. ‘There’s been very little time to plan for it.’

She’s right. The last three weeks since returning to Verenza have zipped by in a storm of preparations for the wedding.

Harper throws up her hands. ‘A month is very little time to organize any wedding, let alone, a royal one.’

‘There’s a blueprint in place. One which has been followed for royal weddings for generations, and which I revisited with my father and brother not long ago. We updated it in anticipation of the next royal wedding, so all we had to do was activate the protocol. I’ve also brought in a wedding planner recommended to me by Zoey.’ I nod in her direction.

‘Whew.’ Harper pretends to wipe her forehead. ‘That’s good.’

‘It still feels like a very rushed timeline,’ Grace murmurs.

I pop my shoulder. ‘Arthur and my father agree that we don’t want to wait too long. Especially since we need the investment to come in quickly.’

‘And Ryot was okay with that?’ Grace asks with a shrewd expression on her face. Nothing gets past this woman.

“He was concerned that the time required to organize the security necessary for the event is very tight,” I concede. “He argued for a more private wedding to better protect me but was overruled.”

He’s also managing operatives on the ground who are tracking the person who broke into Arthur’s home, and who they believe is also behind the attempt on my life.

‘And what about the man who’s a threat to your life?’ Grace scowls. ‘Is Ryot confident of managing that?’

‘He’d have to get past me first,’ he interrupts from the doorway.