Princess Thief: Stealing Your Heart (11 page)

“Oh,
yes, yes, I can see that,” Marie agreed enthusiastically.

“Passion
for his work?!” the redhead, Roslynne, burst out laughing.  “Oh, that’s rich.” 
She drained her wine glass, then motioned towards Alicia for another round.

“That
does seem rather pedestrian, doesn’t it?” Olivia agreed.

“I
don’t think it’s pedestrian-” Juliette protested.

“My
dear, it’s the type of answer a stranger might give, not a lover.”

“’Passion
for his work,’” Roslynne smirked as she took another snort of wine.

“Roslynne!”
Marie admonished.  “Slow down.  You’re drinking too much.”

Roslynne
tilted her head back and waved at Marie.

“Tell
me, Juliette,” Olivia continued, “what are your views on the monarchy?”

“My
views on the monarchy?” Juliette parroted back.  “Like… what?”

“Yes,
surely you must have some opinions on the aristocracy.”

Juliette
drew a blank.  Gazing at Olivia, words like
“lazy, spoiled, worthless, fake” popped
into her head, but nothing that she could say out loud.

“I’m
not sure I’ve formed an opinion yet,” Juliette said.

“Oh,
no?  Surely you see the importance of the royal class?” Olivia pressed on.  “Of
elites being a symbol for the people to aspire to.”

“I’m
not really big on symbols,” Juliette replied.  “I’m much more partial to action
than words.”

“But,
my dear, our words shape the actions of the citizens,” Olivia said.  “Surely
you see how important a motivational speech can be?”

“Not
as important as a vaccine or a warm meal.”  Juliette locked eyes with her.

“I
wouldn’t expect a flower girl to understand,” Olivia replied.

Roslynne
sputtered in laughter.

Juliette
went red-faced with rage. 
“How dare-!”

OUCH!

Juliette
stopped abruptly when she felt a sharp pain in her left shin.

Somebody
kicked me!

She
looked to her left; Princess Sofia sat calm and still, her placid expression
betraying no hint that she had just kicked Juliette
’s shin
underneath the table.

Oh,
she
’s
good!

Olivia
wasn
’t
done.  “Well, all I know is, if it were my husband, there’s no way I’d have him
playing with some dirty orphans in Africa.”

Before
Juliette could respond, Princess Sofia intervened,
“Yes, well,
Olivia, sometimes doctors have to perform duties other than plastic surgery.”

Oh. 
My.  God.  She didn
’t!

“What
is that supposed to mean?!”  Olivia stood up and slapped the table.

The
princess gave no response; she simply raised her wine glass to her lips in a
delicate, fluid motion and took a sip.  As she smoothly set the glass down,
Juliette noticed that there wasn
’t so much as a ripple in the liquid.

Oh,
she is REALLY good!

“Olivia,
I’m sure she didn’t-” Marie offered.

“I’m
not going to sit here and be insulted,” Olivia angrily cut her off.  “Come on
you two.  We’re leaving!”

Marie,
looking uncomfortable, rose and apologized to Princess Sofia.  Roslynne looked
supremely annoyed at her half-filled glass of wine.

“Your
highness!” Olivia bowed.

“Olivia,”
the princess made a slight head nod in Olivia’s direction letting her know she
was excused.

Olivia
stomped out of the room, her two minions in her wake.

Suddenly,
two of the children, little Roberto and Mia, ran up to the princess looking
worried. 
“Were
you fighting, princess?”

Princess
Sofia
’s
expression immediately lightened.  “Fighting?  Oh no, dear, we were just
playing.”

The
children brightened; Roberto grabbed the princess
’s hand and tugged eagerly. 
“Come look at my new robot.  He’s so cool!”

The
princess responded,
“I’ll
be there in a minute, sweetie.  I just need to fix my shoe.”

Juliette
leaned back in her chair, closed her eyes, and exhaled deeply.  The danger
appeared to be gone, for now.  Her thoughts were interrupted by a whisper:
“Go.”

She
opened her eyes; there was no one there — except the princess, bent over and
running a finger through her shoe. 
“Get out while you have the chance,”
Princess Sofia continued whispering while pretending to stare at her shoe. 
“Take the back stairwell so you aren’t seen.  Don’t make any excuses, just walk
out of the room.  I’ll meet you in the Solicitor General’s office in two
hours.”

The
princess
’s
head popped up above the table and she smiled at the children.   “Be right
there!”  She never even glanced in Juliette’s direction.

Juliette
felt her heart absolutely melt with admiration.

The
state dinner dragged on for another hour.  The mood was growing more raucous as
the men filled themselves with champagne, wine, and top-shelf liquor.  Laughter
and merriment filled the ballroom.

What
a complete waste of time.

Guillermo
shifted uncomfortably in his chair, feeling slightly ridiculous wearing his
ornate crown.

I
wonder how Juliette is doing.  I hope this isn
’t too stressful
for her.

He
smiled, despite himself, as he thought of Juliette; her joyful laugh when
holding that fat white bunny for the children to pet, her fiery eyes when she
was mad.

I
wish I was with her instead of stuck in here.

Finally,
when the tedium of it all became unbearable, Guillermo stood and began to say
his good-byes, stopping by each group of men to chat amiably, shake hands, and
bid them good night.

Eventually,
he reached a group of three men surrounding Baron Amsel, chatting and laughing
uproariously.  Guillermo shook each man
’s hand in turn, wishing them well,
thanking them for attending.  The baron took Guillermo’s hand and, squeezing
just a bit too tightly, pulled Guillermo close and whispered into his ear with
a somber tone, “I know you think I’m probably an old fool but please do
contemplate my offer.  Think of the children in North Africa!  Don’t do
anything foolish!  There’s no need to enter into a hastily arranged marriage
with a woman below your status.  Especially when there are so many eligible
young ladies within your echelon — why, my own daughter Olivia, for example. 
At any rate, please consider letting me assume the throne.  I solemnly swear
that I will comport myself with the dignity befitting the office.”

Guillermo
forced a smile onto his face,
“Thank you, baron.  I promise, I will consider it.”

“Good
show,” the baron said, happily slapping Guillermo on the back.  “Good show,
sir!”

“Good
night,” Guillermo nodded, smiled, and moved on to the next group of men.

What
a complete jackass.

Juliette
flipped on the light switch and walked into the Solicitor General
’s office,
closing the door behind her.  The room had a musty scent today, a satisfying,
old book smell mixed with pipe tobacco.  She took a seat on the couch in front
of the fireplace and waited.

Just
a few minutes later, there was a polite knock, then the door opened, and
Princess Sofia, wearing jeans and a University of Colorado sweatshirt, stepped
into the room holding a pint of ice cream with two spoons. 
“Juliette, are
you in here?”

“Over
here,” Juliette answered.

Sofia
smiled. 
“I
thought it might be nice to get to know each other a little better — since
we’re about to become sisters.”   She looked over the room.  “I’ve always found
it funny that the Solicitor General has the best office in the entire castle. 
It just goes to show you the power that he has.”

“Now
that you mention it, the King’s Study is rather bland.”

“It
looks like something out of a corporate office building.”  They both giggled.

Sofia
closed the soundproof door and fixed her big blue eyes on Juliette.  In a
singsong, playful voice, she said,
“I know your secret.”

“E-Excuse
me?” Juliette said.

Sofia
laughed. 
“Oh,
that reaction is perfect.  Just perfect.”  She set the ice cream down on the
coffee table and stuck out her hand.  “Hi.  I’m Sofia.”

“Juliette.” 
They shook hands.

Sofia
plopped down on the Persian rug, grabbed the ice cream and a spoon, and crossed
her legs. 
“I’m
sorry I teased you.  I just couldn’t resist.  Memo told me your secret.  Well,
I had kind of figured it out, honestly.  There’s no way he would have fallen in
love without telling me.”

“Memo?”

“Memo
— my brother Guillermo.  It’s my nickname for him.”

“I
see.  And just what did he tell you?” Juliette ventured cautiously.

“That
the engagement’s a hoax,” Sofia said around a mouthful of ice cream.  “That
it’s a business arrangement.  That you’ve only just met.  Although, that was
pretty obvious from your performance earlier.”

“Anything
else?” Juliette pressed.

“Like
what?” Sofia gazed up at her with innocent blue eyes.

Good. 
It sounds like he left out the part about the necklace.

“Never
mind.  Oh, yes, by the way, you really saved me back there,” Juliette said.  “I
can’t thank you enough.  I’m a fan.”

“Hmmm?”
Sofia held the spoon at an angle.

“You
handled that Lady Olivia Whatever with such ease.”

“Oh,
her,” Sofia resumed eating.  “I’ve been dealing with Olivias my entire life. 
You get used to it.”

“Well,
I thought you handled it beautifully.”

“Thank
you,” Sofia bowed her head slightly, “but it never should have happened in the
first place.  I could kill Memo for throwing you into the fire like that.”

Juliette
took the other spoon and sat on the Persian rug across from Sofia. 
“Oh, how so?”

“You’ve
got to get your story down pat, Juliette.  The way you were hesitating and
looking panicked, everyone is going to know you’re lying.”

“Do
you think Olivia knows?”

Sofia
shook her head. 
“She
suspects
something but
she doesn
’t
know
.  Not yet,
anyway.
” 
She stuck her spoon in the ice cream.  “OK, let’s get the basics down.  First,
no one is going to believe that you met in North Africa.  I’ve been there
visiting Memo.  It’s nothing but bugs, sand, trees, and huts made of mud.  From
now on, say that you met when he was doing his residency four years ago at the
Morrando la Vella Hospital.  You met, began dating, and fell in love.”

“Actually,
that might work,” Juliette nodded.  “I was at that hospital about 4 years ago
for a twisted ankle.  It’s plausible.”

“So
the handsome doctor worked on your ankle and you fell in love.”

“I
like it.”

“Yes,
well, we’re going to have to get both you and Memo in a room together and work
on your stories.  If not, Olivia — or one of the hundred women just like her —
is going to rip your hoax apart.”  She sighed in frustration.  “Oh, that Memo
can be so blind sometimes!  He thinks that just because men don’t ask these
types of questions, they’re not important.  He should have done more
preparation.”

Each
of them took a spoonful of ice cream.

“You
know, I probably shouldn’t say this but, well, Memo used to date Olivia.”

“What?! 
I can’t picture them together at all.”

“It
was a long time ago, back when I was still in elementary school.  She looked a
lot different back then…”

“Well,
what happened?”

“Oh,
they broke up.  They were both young and in college.  Memo just got bored.  It
didn’t last long.  But Olivia has never really given up, I don’t think.  She’s…
ambitious, that one.  She wants
things
.
”

“That’s…
actually quite a good way of putting it,” Juliette grinned.

Sofia
got a playful look on her face. 
“You know, Memo dated quite a bit when
he was young.”

“Really?”

Sofia
nodded. 
“Like,
a
lot
.  He was quite
a heartbreaker.  Then it all changed. When he got into med school, he became
the lovable robot we know and love.
”

“Sofia!” 
Juliette giggled.  “So, med school changed him?”

Sofia
glanced at Juliette, then looked away. 
“A woman,” she frowned.  “She broke his
heart.”

“Sounds
serious.”

“I
only know bits and pieces so I can’t tell you much.  You know, he’s 11 years
older than me so I was, like… 12 at the time?  Anyway, he dropped out of med
school after they broke up and traveled the world for a year.  When he came
back, my Memo was all grown up.”

“He
loved her that much?”

Sofia
stuck her spoon in the ice cream and leaned back on both hands.  She gazed at
the ceiling in thought. 
“Honestly? 
I don’t think so.  I think it was just the accumulation over time, one after
the other.”

“I’m
not following you.”

Sofia
contemplated for a moment, then said,
“Just a string of, like, really bad
girlfriends.  Oh, this is difficult to explain.  Okay, look: You want your
boyfriend to be successful and rich and handsome and all that, right?”

Juliette
nodded,
“Of
course.”

“Yeah,
me, too.  I think every woman is like that.  But imagine if you’re the prince. 
Some women look at you and all they see is the money.  Or the royal title.  Or
the prestige.  They don’t see a man, they see, like, a gateway to a lifestyle. 
So she agrees with everything he says, laughs at every joke he makes, thinks
every idea he has is a stroke of genius — you know what I mean?”

“Actually,
yes, I think I do.”

“So…
I don’t know what I’m trying to say here, exactly, but some days I feel like
I’m the only girl who’s ever truly loved Memo.”

“Wow,”
Juliette realized.  “That sounds so…lonely.”

Sofia
swallowed her ice cream and nodded. 
“Yeah, I think it is.”  She gestured
with her spoon, making a wide circle.  “All this?  Memo hates it now.”

“He
hates it?” Juliette said, shocked.  “But he seems so at home here.”

“’It
poisons relationships,’ he told me right before he left for Africa.”

Juliette
suddenly felt very sad.  She wanted to see Guillermo
’s smiling face.

“Anyway,
that’s how I knew it was all too good to be true.  There’s no way that Memo
suddenly fell in love.”  Sofia placed the spoon on the table and stretched her
hands over her head.

“Are
you still tired?” Juliette asked.

“Nah,
I’ll be all right.  Hey, do you want to see some pictures of Memo as a boy?”

Juliette
lit up. 
“You
bet!”

Sofia
pulled a thick book with a white cover off of the bookshelf. 
“You’re going to
love these.”

They
sat next to each other on the floor, flipping through the pages.  Guillermo in
his 3rd grade school uniform, Guillermo playing soccer in 6th grade, Guillermo
posing for his 9th grade class photo, Guillermo shaking hands with his high
school principal.  Juliette loved them, pointing and giggling at the photos.

They
chatted for an hour about this and that, sharing the pint of ice cream like old
friends, laughing and gossiping about their favorite actors and actresses.

Juliette
pointed at Sofia
’s
sweatshirt.  “Is that where you go to college?”

Sofia
looked down. 
“Yeah. 
Boulder, Colorado.  It’s beautiful out there.  I actually chose it because it
reminds me of San Morrando so much.  The mountains are wonderful.

“Do
you know that no one in America knows I’m a princess?  It’s true.  When I
pledged a sorority, I told two of the seniors that I was royalty.  I don’t
think either of them believed me, but they still let me in!”

Juliette
laughed. 
“I
went to college in southern France — Université Paul-Valery.  Majored in
literature.”

“Nice,”
Sofia said.  “Mine was history.”

“Was?”

Sofia
nodded and sighed. 
“Yeah,
‘was.’  If I’m going to become queen next year, there’s no way I can stay in
college.”

“I’m
sorry to hear that.”

“It’s
okay.  I had a good cry about it last night and got it out of my system.  These
things happen.  I’ve always known it was a possibility…” she trailed off,
gazing at the ceiling.

So
that
’s
what last night’s temper tantrum was about!  She didn’t want to quit school.

“Juliette,
can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“What
do you think of San Morrando?”

“I
love it,” Juliette said.  “It’s beautiful.  A beach on one end, mountains on
the other, swimming and skiing all within a few kilometers of each other.  It’s
my home.”

“I
love it, too.  I love it dearly.  But some days…  Can I tell you something? 
Promise you won’t say anything?”

“I
promise.”

“I
loved my brother but he wasn’t a very good king.”

“You
mean King Arturo the Second?” Juliette asked.

Sofia
nodded. 
“Yeah. 
He was all about the status quo.  So was my grandfather, at least towards the
end of his life.  We haven’t had a good king in, like, years.  The income
inequality in San Morrando is really shameful.  And no one’s even doing
anything about it.

“When
I become queen, I’m going to do something.”

“Oh? 
What?”

“I’m
going to raise awareness,” Sofia chirped enthusiastically.  “I’m going to make
as many speeches as I can. 

“Oh,
I heard what you said at dinner about ‘symbols’ and all that — and I get that
you’re, you know, frustrated with the aristocracy — but I grew up in this
world.  I know that there are plenty of aristocrats who want to donate, who
love San Morrando just as much as you and I do.  I’m going to focus my speeches
on giving to charities — starting with my coronation address.”  Sofia finished,
very pleased with herself, looking like a proud puppy that had just performed a
trick, waiting for her congratulatory pat on the head.

“But
how is giving speeches any different from what Olivia was suggesting?”

“Oh,
Olivia is all talk,” Sofia scowled.  “If she were queen, she wouldn’t give a
single speech — you know that.  She’d be off in Barbados with her lover. 
Whereas I am going to follow through.”

“Yes,
but I don’t think San Morrando needs more words; we need more actions.”

“But
words lead to actions, Juliette.  Besides, what else can I do?” Sofia entreated
Juliette with her clear, innocent, big blue eyes.

Juliette
swallowed her arguments and smiled.

She
’s only 20. 
Give her a break.

“Sofia,”
Juliette took the princess’s hands in hers, “I know you are going to be an
awesome queen.”

“Thanks,”
Sofia immediately brightened.  “And I know that
you
are going to be
a great princess.
” 
She squeezed Juliette’s hands.

Oh
dear.  Can I get back to you on that?

Sofia
stood and gathered up the empty ice cream container and spoons. 
“This was fun. 
I haven’t had this much fun inside the castle in…  well, forever.”