Once Upon a Romance 01 - Before the Midnight Bells (36 page)

Sadly, the king hadn’t come around yet. With the duke once more staunchly behind his heir, it was assumed that eventually she would be invited to be presented at court, but thus far no invitation had arrived. When Duke Nathaniel had written to request permission for his son to marry, a very brief note had been sent back, granting the permission, but warning that neither heir nor wife were welcome at the palace. The missive Ella held, in fact, was addressing that very topic.

Don’t fret, my darling. You and Max have each other. His father adores you and
everyone
adores your work. Be patient. His royal stubbornness will come around. I am writing him as well, and you may rest assured I have not held my tongue on the subject of his silly grudge. I suspect that all he really needs is to see his daughter again, and then he will let bygones be bygones, but no one has been able to find Vivienne, and the mountains are nigh impassable this winter.

Since I specialize in the impossible I have decided to go and fetch the headstrong girl. It means I shall be out of town for a while, but never fear. Should you need me you have only to call, and I will come. In the meantime, make sure you and Max take fine care of one another, and know that I send you all my love.

Your Godmother

“
What does the Dame say?”

“
Be patient and love one another.”

“
You know my dear, I believe that is an excellent suggestion.”

Both letters dropped, forgotten for a time, by the fireplace, while Max and Ella very thoroughly followed her Godmother’s advice.

Dear Reader,

Well, you’ve reached the end. If you’re anxious to find out what happened to Vivienne, never fear, book two is on the way.

A big debt of gratitude is owed to all the people that supported me while I was writing this, most notably my fabulous editor, Zanne, without whom this book would have been nothing more than a nifty idea with some cute dialogue attached.

Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it.

Jessica