POV: Cat
"Are you here to gloat?" Prince Leopold asked his sister as we climbed out of the back seat of the limo.
Princess Lupa was leaning against a marble column on the steps of the place, in her signature black dress and red lip ensemble.
"A guaranteed outcome is nothing to gloat about," she replied. Then: "Father wants to see you."
Prince Leopold ran a hand through his dark curls as he stopped beside her on the terrace. His eyes flicked to me, then back to his sister, then behind me to the limo that was pulling away.
"Get changed into normal clothes," Prince Leopold told me. "Wait for me in your room."
His eyes moved to his sister, one brow raising in a silent challenge. "Lupa?"
The Princess smiled. "I didn't hear anything."
Prince Leopold brushed past his twin and into the palace. The Princess' attention turned to me.
"You were perfect," she said.
"So the plan worked?" Relief filled me. I hadn't brought my phone with me to the studio. Didn't know how people were reacting to the interview.
It seemed like it had gone well, based on the live audience's reactions.
"The news and social media are going crazy," she confirmed. "My father wants to speak to Leopold about next steps."
We stepped into the foyer and I pulled off my heels. My aching feels were instantly calmed by the cool stone floors.
"What does that mean?" I took hold of the carved banister of the main staircase.
"That's for you and Leopold to decide. After today, I have a feeling you'll know exactly what you want."
We were at the top of mine and the Prince's hall now. The Princess stopped, waiting for me to answer.
I frowned a little, unsure what she was trying to imply. "Why do I need to put normal clothes on?"
She smiled. "You will see. Just give him a chance."
Feeling more confused than before, I went down the hall to my bedroom.
Angelique wasn't there, so I shimmied out of the pretty blue dress, and carefully laid it over the back of the couch, then went to my closet.
I tried not to worry about what exactly normal clothes might mean given the fact that I was in a castle, and pulled on my favourite pair of ripped jeans, a pair of converse, and an oversized t-shirt.
Then I plunked myself down on the couch and waited.
I had no idea what the Prince might have planned. He'd been dead silent in the car on the way back to the palace. Had barely spoken two words to me since the interview finished.
To be honest, I was pretty grateful for it. I had no idea what to say. Not since he'd announced that he'd gotten into a fist fight because some guy had insulted my virtue.
Whatever the hell that meant.
I was pretty certain that the Prince had been pretty close to doing something to my virtue in the hall when he'd gotten back from his scuffle. Not to mention that he'd said I was 'nothing but a girl' and tried to get me sent home pretty much every hour since I'd arrived. Seemed a bit hypocritical of him to punch some other dude for basically the same thing.
But also very surprising.
And pretty hot.
I groaned, and fell sideways onto the couch.
Why was being a girl in the 21st century so hard?
Couldn't I just think it was sexy as hell that some rich, sexy, European prince protected me with his fists and not feel guilty about it or worry that he might have some sort of patriarchal, oppressive agenda?
A knock sounded on the bedroom door.
I grabbed my yellow beanie off the coffee table, then pushed myself off the couch and crossed the room to open it.
"Ready?" Prince Leopold stood in the hall looking very unlike himself.
No more suit or dress shirt. Instead, he was in a navy shirt that had a military sort of looking logo over the beast, dark jeans, boots, and a leather jacket. His dark hair was hidden beneath a baseball cap with the same logo as the t-shirt. A pair of aviators hid his eyes.
"I think so."
He handed me a pile of material. A leather jacket, I noticed as I un-balled it. With another pair of aviators in the pockets
"Put that on and follow me...quietly," he instructed.
I pulled on the jacket, rolling the sleeves so that they didn't fall over my hands, and shut the door quietly behind me.
We moved through the halls until we came to a discrete door. It was almost hidden as it was decorated with the same gilded trim as the rest of the wall.
The Prince held a finger to his lip, then pulled the door open and slipped through.
We entered the main foyer of the palace. Unlike when I'd arrived, the space was now filled with people, the front doors of the palace thrown open wide. No one seemed to notice when two more people joined the buzz. It was like we were invisible. Normal.
The Prince caught my hand, making me jump.
My first instinct was to pull away, the no-touching rule glowing neon bright in my mind.
But he'd touched me, not the other way around, and no one seemed to care.
I let myself enjoy the warmth of his large hand. Wondered why his hands were rough and calloused when he'd grown up in a palace and probably literally had silver spoons in his mouth. Maybe even gold ones.
We went against the stream of traffic flowing to the castle, out the big carved doors. We didn't stop until we were outside the main gate.
The Prince released my hand and turned to look at me. "We are going to walk through the old town, and we're going to talk."
I raised an eyebrow. "Talk?"
The Prince nodded. "Just us. No palace. No ancient decrees. No camera crews."
"Got it. Lead the way."
"No. None of those rules. We're equals here, Cat. Come on."
He stepped off the walkway, leaving me no choice but to follow him across the street and down one of the cobblestone streets.
"What do you want to talk about?" I asked when I caught up.
"The interview went very well today." He put his hands in his jacket pockets.
"Yeah, your sister said that." I was careful not to say her name. Didn't think it would be a good idea to draw attention to us. Someone could overhear it. Our jackets and hats weren't the most bullet proof disguises.
"It was the most positive press we've had since Henri announced his engagement," the Prince said. There was nothing happy in his voice though.
We turned a corner into an open square. Colourful shops lined the space, a fountain spat water in the middle. There were carts set up around it, people laughing, and talking, and walking through them.
"Oh wow," I said under my breath as I took in the market. Then to the Prince: "That's good, right?"
"Yes."
We walked straight into the crowd, blending in with them, getting lost in them. No one looked twice in our direction. We were just another couple out for a walk.
"Then what's wrong?"
Prince Leopold stopped beside a cart and quickly ordered something from the vendor.
He handed me a steaming glass mug. "Solisian hot chocolate."
We sat down at one of the small tables set up between the cafe cart and the fountain.
"Why did you agree to come here, Cat?" he asked directly.
I frowned. "What do you mean? I was asked to come. Invited."
"Yes, but why did you agree to it?"
I blew on my hot chocolate. "Seemed fun. Like the right thing to do. Not the kind of offer that just pops up every day."
"Do you understand the consequences? The interview today was just the start. There will be parades, and balls, and paparazzi."
I shrugged. "It's just a few months. It will help you and your family. Then I can go back to normal."
The Prince leaned in closer, the urgency in his voice rising. "What if you can't? The title, the fame, the expectation. It might follow you the rest of your life."
I laughed a little. "I'd never even heard of Solis before Mr. Arsenault showed up. No one is going to care about some girl who was almost royal in a few months."
The prince rubbed the back neck and leaned back in his chair. "What do you expect in return?"
I choked on my hot drink. "Pardon?"
"What do you want? Money? Jewellery? Notoriety?"
"No, no, no," I shook my head." You've got this all wrong. I don't want anything."
His eyebrows raised above his aviators. "Nothing?"
"I mean, I was told I'd be paid something for coming here," I blushed a little. "Was hoping to use that to cover tuition next year since I turned down a few jobs to come here."
"I don't understand."
"Look," I signed, fiddling my fingers along the handle of the mug, "how about we make a deal? I will agree to help you for the summer, whatever you need. In exchange, you stop accusing me of wanting sex, or money, or anything else. I get a nice summer in Europe, a cheque to cover my university bills, and a flight home at the end of the summer."
I stuck my hand out over the table.
Leopold contemplated it for a moment then said, "We need to set some ground rules."
I pulled my hand back. "Fine."
"The people, they want us to be together, Cat. They are going to need to believe we are falling in love."
"Are you asking me to be your fake girlfriend?" I smiled.
Blush rose in Leopold's cheeks and his jaw tensed. "Yes."
My smile grew bigger. "Are you asking me to kiss you?"
"Cat," he warned.
I rolled my eyes. "You sister gave me the whole spiel. No touching, two steps behind at all times, yada yada."
"That's true," Leopold said. "When we are in public. The trick to making this believable is getting caught doing things we aren't supposed to."
"So what are the rules?"
"This stays between us," Leopold said. "No one can no. Not my family, not the guards, no one."
"Why?" The king had already told me there was no wedding. That I could go home at the end of the summer. Why did he have to think I was falling for the Prince?
"They need to believe in the fairytale romance, too. It will make it more believable."
I finished the rest of my hot chocolate. "Fine. What else?"
Leopold pushed his still full mug towards me. "We can't see any other people."
I nodded and took a sip from his mug.
Easy enough. I didn't expect I'd have any more betrothals or a whirlwind romance with the stable boy this summer.
"We follow proper protocols. My sister will begin teaching you required etiquette and training."
I wrinkled my nose. "More Princess Lessons?"
"Yes, you need to know the ins and outs of this world if you want to play the role correctly. There is no one better to teach you."
"Fine."
"We agree on next steps together."
I nodded again. I wasn't altogether too sure what that meant but it sounded like a good thing.
"Is there anything you would like to add?" The Prince asked.
I put down the second empty mug. "I don't think so. Is that all?"
"Just one more," Leopold said. "No falling in love."
I laughed. Loudly this time, drawing the attention of the people at nearby tables.
"I'm serious," the Prince said.
"So am I," I replied. My mind turned to my mother. To the months she spent in bed after my father left us. To the pints of ice cream and boxes of tissues after every breakup since then. To how her whole world was now filled with John, with no room for anything else.
"I don't plan on falling in love. I've seen what it does to people." I held out my hand across the table again. "So we have a deal?"
The Prince licked his lips, like he wanted to say something more. Then he shut his mouth and took my hand. "Deal."