Princess Thief: Stealing Your Heart (3 page)

She
hesitated, then replied,
“Of
course.”

The
waltz came to an end.  The prince held her hand and bowed slightly. 
“Thank you,” he
said with a smile.

“I
enjoyed it,” Juliette also smiled. 

As she
left the dance floor, the jealous stares followed her.  Ladies whispered to
each other:

“Have
you seen her before?”

“Who
does she think he is?” 

Juliette
just shrugged it off and continued to smile.  She wasn
’t going to let
anyone take away from this moment — least of all, some empty-headed socialites
from the useless aristocracy. 

But,
as the intense stares lingered for 10 minutes, then 20, she began to feel
uneasy.  Part of her plan — a big part of her plan, in fact — was to slip out
of the ballroom unnoticed.  If this kept up
…

She
turned around and scanned the back of the room. 
There she is!

“Paulette!”
she waved.  “Save me!”

“What
is it dear?” Paulette asked.

“I’m
so bored.  Can I hang out with you?”

Juliette
leaned against the back wall of the kitchen and checked her watch.  9:35. 

Time
to go.

The
few catering staff that were left in the room were distracted, busy gossiping
and cleaning up.  Juliette carefully inched her way along the wall towards the
door, unseen, then quickly left.

Out
in the hall, she walked briskly with her head held high.  She looked like a
confident woman running an errand — a skill she had practiced so that if anyone
did notice her, she appeared to belong.

She
approached the ornate wooden door to the gem room, gave a quick glance to her
right and left, then slipped inside.  The room was pitch black.  She lifted her
gown, retrieved the thin flashlight that she had stashed in her lace garter
belt, and directed the beam to the far left corner of the room.

There
you are!

The
emerald necklace was laid out on a blue velvet mat.  Even the pale glow from
her flashlight made the gems sparkle, casting vibrant colors against the
surrounding walls.

She
quickly snatched the necklace, pocketed it, and headed back towards the door. 

In
60 seconds, little necklace, you
’ll be safely tucked underneath a
rhododendron
. 

She
smiled.

Suddenly,
as she was reaching for the door, the knob turned. 

She
froze in terror.

There
was movement behind her.  The room lights came on.

The
door opened.  A dignified-looking butler entered. 
“Juliette
Thierry, I presume?”

“Juliette,”
a voice called from behind her.  “So good to see you again.”

Fear
coursed through her veins.  She couldn
’t move, couldn’t react.

This
can
’t
be happening!

She
felt a hand reach into her pocket from behind and retrieve the necklace. 
“I’ll take that,
if you don’t mind.” 

She
forced herself to turn.

There,
holding the necklace, looking smug and self-satisfied, was the devilishly
handsome Prince Guillermo.

“Would
you follow me, please?”

Juliette
opened her mouth to speak, but the words wouldn
’t come. 

What
’s happening? 
How?  Why?  I’m caught?  I can’t be caught.  It’s not possible!

The
prince gave her a gentle nudge from behind.  Her legs started moving on their
own.

Automatically,
robotically, she followed the butler out into the hall.

She
felt numb and strangely cold; an icy tingle on her arms and legs.  She trudged
along, head down; her legs weighed a thousand pounds.

This
isn
’t
happening.  This can’t be happening.

At the
end of the hallway, the butler opened a door, and motioned inside. 
“If you please.”

Juliette
did as she was told.

Inside
the room, there was an oval wooden conference table surrounded by 6 leather
chairs. 

“Please.”

Her
eyes found the butler; he was holding one of the chairs away from the table for
her to sit in.

Juliette
numbly complied.

She
waited, silently, the same thought playing over and over in her mind.

Wake
up!  You
’ve
got to think!  Don’t give up!

Finally,
when the smiling prince entered the room and shut the door behind him, a wave
of fear crashed over her. 
“This isn’t what it looks like!” she began
babbling.  “I was just-”

The
prince held up the palm of his hand. 
“Save it.  Please.”

“No,
really, I was just-”  She stopped short: the prince tossed her white cloth bag
— the one she had hidden behind the rhododendron — onto the table in front of
her.

Well,
that
’s
that.  You’re caught, hon.

He
sat down. 
“Juliette,
I have a proposition for you.  But, before we get to that, can you tell me one
thing?  Why
this
necklace?
”  Guillermo
held up the emerald green necklace; so, so beautiful.

Juliette
remained silent, defiant.

“You
walked past several pieces that were far more valuable,” Guillermo prompted.

Again,
Juliette refused to comment.

Even
if I go to prison, I
’ll be damned if I reveal a thing about the
orphanage.

Guillermo
gazed at the necklace, seemingly lost in thought, letting it pour slowly from
one hand into the other, then back again. 
“This was the necklace my mother wore
when my brother was crowned,” he muttered.  “My sister is going to wear it for
her coronation ceremony, as well.”

He
abruptly snapped out of his funk. 
“Well, it doesn’t really matter, I
guess,” he said, sliding the necklace into his jacket pocket.

The
prince looked at the butler. 
“Armand, would you do the honors?”

“Certainly,
sir.”  The butler, Armand, picked up a black leather notebook and flipped it
open.  “Juliette Thierry,” he read.  “Age 25.  Graduated with honors from
Université Paul-Valery, a small liberal arts college in the south of France. 
Owns and operates a successful flower shop on La Rue de Couer.  Single, never
married, no children.  Her last known lover was 3 years ago, one André Duchamp,
member of the Cirque du Montpellier-”

Juliette
frowned at the prince. 
“Is
this really necessary?” she snapped.

Guillermo
responded,
“You’re
right.  I apologize.  That was thoughtless of me.  Armand, there’s no need to
lay out the lady’s entire personal life.  Please skip ahead to the relevant
passage.”

“Very
well,” Armand sniffed.  “I shall summarize.  Miss Thierry’s flower shop has
catered 8 functions for the aristocracy over the past 3 years.  In all but one
of those functions — including tonight’s ball — a valuable piece of jewelry was
reported stolen shortly after the event.”

“That’s
just a coincidence,” Juliette deadpanned.  “You have no proof.”

Prince
Guillermo chuckled. 
“You’re
something else.”

“Wait
a minute,” Juliette grew angry, “how long have you known all of this?”

“Why
do you think we hired you to do the flowers?”  There’s that grin again.  She
was starting to despise that grin.

“So
you just toyed with me!”  Juliette spat out the words.  “You filthy rich smug
bastard!  If you’d done your job properly in the first place, I wouldn’t have
to-” she stopped short.

Shut
up, Juliette!  You
’ll
ruin everything!

“Hold
your tongue, young lady!” Armand chastised her.  “The prince is not to blame
here.”

Juliette
glared at the prince. 
“I
had no idea you were so sadistic.”

He
seemed truly taken aback. 
“Sadistic?  How can you say that?”

“Then
why did you dance with me?”

“Because
I wanted the room to know that we were acquainted.  That way, it won’t be such
a shock when we announce our engagement.”

“Wait! 
What?  Engagement?!”

Guillermo
motioned to the butler. 

Armand
slid a contract across the table to Juliette. 
“You are to be the prince’s legal
bride for a period of one year,” Armand explained.  “To the outside world, you
must appear to be in love.  Privately, you may do as you please — so long as
you are discreet.  You will be assigned separate bedrooms.  You will keep the
details of this arrangement a secret from everyone.  Should you run away or
otherwise fail to hold up your end of the bargain, the contract will be
considered to be null and void, and the police will be notified of tonight’s
attempted theft.”

“Oh,
and no burglaries for the next year,” Guillermo said.  “I can’t have a thief
for a wife.”

Juliette
sat in stunned silence. 

Is
this really happening?  Am I dreaming?

Armand
walked to Juliette
’s
side and offered her a pen.  “Sign here, please.”

“Wait,
wait, wait, wait,
wait
!
” Juliette
said.  “You want me…to marry…
you
?
”

“Yes,
for one year.”

“I’m
completely lost.”

Guillermo
sighed. 
“I…” 
He looked up at his valet.  “Armand, should we trust her with all of it?”

Armand
considered for a moment, then said,
“These are desperate times, sir.”

Guillermo
grimaced. 
“In
for a penny, in for a pound, I suppose.”  He looked back at Juliette.  “The
truth is, I have no desire to be king.  If I could, I would give the throne to
my little sister, but I’m barred by the Constitution from doing so.  I have to
wait a year until my sister becomes 21.  Then she can become queen and I can
get back to my humanitarian mission.”

“But
what on earth do you need me for?” Juliette asked.

“The
law dictates that any prince must be married before he can become king,”
Guillermo explained.  “If I’m not married in 2 weeks time, I can’t become
king.”

“It
would be a crisis for the entire country, miss,” Armand interjected, his tone
weighty and serious.  “The monarchy would be thrown into chaos.”

Juliette
leaned back in her chair and grinned like the Cheshire Cat. 
“I refuse.”

“What?” 
Both men spoke at the same time.

“You
want me to save the monarchy, right?  I refuse.”

Prince
Guillermo looked stunned. 
“Isn’t it every little girl’s fantasy to be the
princess?”

“Oh? 
Isn’t it every little boy’s fantasy to be the king,
your highness
?
”

The
prince chuckled. 
“She’s
got us there, Armand.  We’re trying to sell her a product that we, ourselves,
wouldn’t even buy.”  He looked back at Juliette.  “All right, fair enough. 
Armand, how much
is the necklace worth?
”

“At
its last appraisal, Le Collier de Couronnement was valued at one hundred and
fifty-one thousand U.S. dollars, sir.”

“OK,
how about this?  At the end of the year, provided everything goes according to
plan, I’ll give you one hundred and fifty-one thousand dollars in cash to do
whatever you want with.”

Juliette
raised her eyebrows.

One
hundred and fifty-one thousand.  That would buy a lot of meals for the orphanage
… but they can’t
possibly wait another year for a new roof.  Then again, if I’m in prison,
they’ll get nothing at all…

Prince
Guillermo continued,
“After
a year, we’ll annul the marriage or get a divorce or whatever.”

Juliette
stared long and hard at Prince Guillermo, then at Armand, then at the white
cloth bag on the table in front of her.

“All
right,” she picked up the pen.  “I’ll sign — but on two conditions.”

“Name
them.”

“First,
I’ll need fifty thousand dollars
in cash
the day after
the wedding.  You can deduct it from my final payment, but it has to be in
cash.
”

That
should keep the orphanage safe until I can get out of here.

“Done. 
What else?”  Guillermo asked.

“I’ll
have to let my uncle know the truth.”

*  *  *

Once
Juliette had signed the agreement, Armand placed the document into his leather
binder, snapped it shut smartly, then asked,
“May I show you to your room?”

Juliette
nodded, her head still spinning a bit, and followed Armand out into the hall.

“I
am so pleased that you agreed, miss,” Armand was practically beaming with
delight.  “Might I have a word in private?”

“Hmmm? 
Oh.  Of course,” Juliette replied.

“Right
this way,” Armand indicated a door at the end of the hall.

Unlike
the spartan modern office they had just left, this room was positively regal. 
Two of the walls were lined with wooden shelves filled to the ceiling with
books, punctuated by a yellow stone fireplace in the middle.  Above the hearth,
a painted portrait of a woman wearing a tiara gazed down into the room.  On the
wall farthest from the door, several diplomas and awards were hung behind an
elegant mahogany desk.  Two plush leather visitor
’s chairs sat facing the desk;
two comfy-looking couches were pushed against the bookcases.

“Wow,”
Juliette breathed, taking it all in.

Armand
closed the door. 
“This
is the Solicitor General’s office.  This room and the room we just left — the
King’s Study — are the only two soundproofed rooms in the entire castle.  This
is important, you see.  You should assume that any conversation you have
outside of these two rooms will be overheard, especially if you are in the
hallway.  It is absolutely critical that you do not discuss any part of our
agreement outside of these two rooms.”

Juliette
had a sudden realization. 
“Wait.  Are you saying that it’s just us three?  No
one from the rest of the staff knows about our deal?”

“Not
just the staff.  No one in the entire aristocracy knows, either — that includes
the prince’s sister, Princess Sofia.”

“What
about the separate bedrooms thing?  Won’t that be a dead giveaway?”

“On
the contrary, that is actually quite common among royalty.  Kings and queens
usually have their own bedrooms.”

“Hunh. 
Rich people problems…”  Juliette trailed off.

“If
I might be so bold,” Armand stepped forward.

“Yes?”

“Have
fun with it.”

“Have…
fun?”

“My
dear, you are now the fiancée of his royal highness, Prince Guillermo of San
Morrando.  Hold your head high.  Be proud.  If you act like a hostage, people
will see through our ruse and everything will be exposed.”

“Yes,
but-”

“It
matters not how you got here.  The fact is, you are now the prince’s fiancée. 
You are living in a castle.  You will have 2 personal maids assigned to you, a
chef to make you whatever you want, a personal trainer, clothes, shoes,
whatever you desire.”

“Except
my freedom.”

Armand
looked puzzled. 
“I
believe we stated that you are free to do as you wish — in private, of course —
so long as you keep our secret.”

“Armand,
it’s prison,” Juliette stated flatly.  “Oh, it’s a sumptuously decorated
prison, but it’s still a prison.”