Mistress to the Prince (7 page)

Tara
groaned silently. 
Cindy wasn’t holding anything back in her efforts to get
Tara
out and dating someone. 
“You really know how to twist things, don’t you?”

Cindy laughed but wouldn’t relent. 
“I don’t need to twist anything.  I’m looking into my crystal ball right now and I can see the future.  So what do you say?  Want to meet
Greg
?”

“No.”

“
Don’t be so quick to say no on this one. 
He’s very nice, in his thirties so that means he’s ready to settle down so
oner rather than later and he’s
a programmer so he makes a good living.”

Tara
shuffled through the papers on her desk, knowing she’d need to get back to work soon or she’d be in the office all night.  She didn’t want to be rude to her friend, but she was not interested in meeting this new man. 
“I make a good living.  I don’t need a man to provide for me.”

“I’m not sayi
ng that as if it
should be
the sole criterion
for your future
husband
.  It is only an indicator of personal integrity.  I mean, come on, would you want to meet a man who is a leech to his parents, living at home and smoking marijuana all afternoon?”

Tara
shuddered at the picture in her mind. 
“No.”
  Definitely not, she told herself. 

”Good
,” Cindy said victoriously
. 
“
Then when he calls
tonight
, remember to be nice.”

Tara
gasped at her friend’s words. 
“You gave him my home phone number?  Why did you do that?  You didn’t even get my permission.”

“I know.  But it was more expedient this way,” Cindy laughed.  “And I didn’t give him your home phone number.  You’re never there.  I told him to call you here at the office
or on your cell phone
but in the evenings when you’re supposed to be home anyway.”

Tara
didn’t like this one little bit.  She felt as if she’d lost control of a part of her life she’d never even had before.  But
what
good was having a personal life if her friends were going to commandeer her into relationships? 
“How could you?  I don’t even know this guy’s last name!” she said and looked up, right into the angry eyes of Max.  “Cindy, I have to go,” she said and hung up the phone before Cindy could utter ano
t
her word.

“I’m sorry,
Your Highness
,”
Tara
said, standing and bowing her head slightly.  She could tell he was extremely angry and suspected it was because of her personal call. “I’ll make sure all personal calls happen at home,” she said.

“Another date?” Max snapped.  “Who with this time?”

Tara
was stunned by his anger.  He’d never shown this kind of emotion in the office with anyone.  Max was always the epitome of the diplomat.  “I’m sorry?” she stammered, not sure if he was angry over the phone call or the fact that she was going on ano
t
her date.

“Who is he?” Max snapped again. 

“He?”

“Your date?”
Max was trying to control his temper but he absolutely hated the idea of anyone touching her other than him.  He thought he’d dodged this bullet since her previous night had gone so poorly but obviously she was still looking to get involved.  And she obviously wasn’t looking
toward
him as a possibility. 

“I don’t know,” she replied honestly.

His lips thinned in anger and a muscle started twitching on his jaw. 
“You don’t know?  And you’re going on a date with him?” he asked, becoming angrier by the second. 
“I thought last night was enough to set you straight on blind dates.  Are you looking for someone to hurt you before you realize that it isn’t a good idea?” he demanded, leaning over her desk
with his hands flat on her papers
.

Tara
was sick of his intimidation tactics
and tired of
his anger over her personal life.  Unless he was going to volunteer to step in, he could just step out
.  “Listen here,
Your Highness
,” she said, leaning
toward
him and not backing down, “I don’t know who this
guy
is but I’m going out with him.  I’m heading
toward
thirty and I’m not going to be single and childless for the rest of my life.  And who I date is no concern of yours,” she ended, then snatched up a stack of files and walked away from him. 

The rest of the afternoon was tense and
Tara
ignored Max as much as possible.  She didn’t call her friend back for more information and thankfully, her latest blind date didn’t call either
while she was in the office
.  It would be very awkward to be introducing herself to someone knowing Max would be listening in and glaring at her during the conversation. 

Why was he even interested?  He dated plenty of other women.  Why was it so horrible that she date other men?  It wasn’t as if he wanted her, she told herself, feeling awful because it was the truth.  A truth she wished was different. 

Tara
went home that night and all she wanted to do was crawl into a hot bath and soak for an hour with a glass of wine and soft music. 
She pulled the pins out of her hair as she made her way into the house, dropped her bag full of work by the sofa and let out a long sigh of relief that the day was finally over. 

Unfortunately, her wish was not to be
granted
tonight.  As soon as she walked into her
bedroom, preparing to start the water for a bath
,
her cell
phone started ringing.  The first call was from her mother asking about her date from the previous night.  After explaining in horrible details
of
the
evening
, all she got from her mother was that the next man will be the “one”. 

Tara
’s mother was the ultimate romantic, always professing that the right man was out there somewhere and she just needed to stop working so much and start looking for him. 

“Remember, you’re not getting any
younger
,” her mother announced almost daily now. 

“Yes, mother.  I’m twenty
six
years old.  I’m practically over the hill and if I don’t find someone to take care of me, I might need to remain an independent and satisfied woman on my own for the rest of my life,”
Tara
replied
,
not for the first
time
. 

Tonight,
Tara
’s mother wasn’t taking any of her daughter’s sass. 
“Don’t take that tone with me, dear.  I know you better than you think,” her mother came bac
k seriously.  “You’re not as different
from me as you’d like to believe.  You’d like a man to come along and sweep you off your feet an
d some day, when you decide it’
s time for it to happen, it will,” she assured her.
“You just need to be more open to the idea and get over this silly infatuation you have with our handsome prince.”

“Yes, Mother,”
Tara
sighed softly through the phone.  “
I know you’re right. 
I’ll call you later,” she said and
ended the call
. Unfortunately, her mother was right. 
Tara
might look and pretend to be the hard core career woman, and she genuinely loved her job even on Prince Maximillian’s more ornery days
like today
.  But she really did want a family as she’d told him earlier today.  And her mother wasn’t far off. 
Tara
wasn’t getting any younger.  If she wanted to meet, fall in love with and marry a man, she needed to get on the ball and be out there.  
Maybe she should join a gym, get off work at a normal time, maybe spend some time….Tara shuddered at the idea of any couples options.  They seemed just as slimy as blind dates.  She knew it wasn’t her scene.  But what was?  Working alone for the rest of her life?  Watching the man she really wanted
from afar as he married
someone else?  That wasn’t a good option either. 

She shook herself out of her mild depression, determined to figure out how to get over Max and find someone else.  There had to be a way, she thought determinedly. 
Tara
had only taken two steps away from the phone when it rang again. 

S
h
e almost considered no
t
answering it, afraid it might be another friend asking about her blind date of the previous night or even worse, one of them trying to set her up with another man.  In the end, she knew she had to answer it.  She was just too curious not to know who was at the other end of the line. 
”Hello?” she said into the receiver.

“Tara Phillips?” a masculine voice asked.

“Yes.  Who’s calling?”

“This is Greg Knight.  I believe we have a mutual acquaintance.  She told me to give you a call.”

“Ah! 
Cindy.”

“Yes.  S
h
e’s a very nice person.
  Very persuasive.  She told me to call you at work but then later, she called me back and asked me to call you at home instead.  I’m sure there’s a story there but I’m not sure what it is,
”
he said with a laugh. 

Tara
had to give the man points for his laugh.  It was very nice.  Not strong and defined like Max’s but full of life and humor which was a good sign.  A very good sign.  Instead of coming up with a reason to ring off immediately, she hung on for a few moments, giving the man a chance, but not much of one, she knew. 
“Yes, well, I hate to do this, but I don’t think I’m comfortable dating someone a friend of mine meets in a coffee shop.
  Doesn’t it seem a little odd?
”

“I agree
” he chuckled awkwardly
. 
“
It seems a little weird.  And normally, I would have turned her down flat and ignored her suggestion to call, but she said you were really wonderful and I should give you a call.  So how about if we meet for coffee in a very public place and introduce ourselves?
  It could be a neutral place and no pressure.
”

Tara
hesitated for only a moment.  He sounded normal and very nice.  She had no idea what he looked like, but his voice sounded handsome. 
She decided it couldn’t be worse than last night as long as they stayed in a public place.  And it was only a cup of coffee, she told herself.  Making a snap decision, she gave in. 
“That sounds like a great idea.  Where and when?”

“How about tomorrow morning at the same coffee shop I met Cindy this morning?  It is on the corner of Elm and Maple.  That way, if we can’t stand each other, we’ll just use the excuse that we need to get to work.”

Tara
laughed.  “Sounds perfect.  And I know the coffee shop you’re talking about. 
I’ve met her there myself on the weekends.
What time?”

There was a slight pause before he said,
“I have an early meeting tomorrow.  Can we make it early?  Say around
seven o’clock
?  Or is that too early for you?”

Tara
was relieved.  It would mean she could still get to work relatively early with Max none the wiser on her excursion.  What he didn’t know, he couldn’t get mad about, right? 
“No, actually, that’s perfect,” she said.

“Great.
I’ll see you tomorrow morning,”
Greg said and hung up the phone.

Tara
smiled as she hung up and walked into her bathroom
and turned on the warm water
.  She was glad she’d answered the phone now.  He might be an ugly, irritating man but he sounded nice and it would be one night when maybe, just maybe, she wouldn’t dream about her handsome boss.