Page 15 of The Prince (Spy Girl 1)
"That was the plan."
"And now?"
"I'm not sure," he says softly as he kisses me. "I'll be back for the race and the big ball. Don't become a princess while I'm gone."
I scoff at him.
"I don't think you'd make a good princess, anyway," he says.
"Why's that?"
"I can't imagine he's as good in bed as I am."
"Just because I slept with you--thinking I'd never see you again--doesn't mean that I sleep around. I don't go home with a different man every night."
"But you have quite a bit of previous experience?"
"None of your business."
"Do you want to know mine?"
"No, it's been splashed all over the tabloids that my friend used to obsess over."
"She obsessed over me? Maybe I should meet her."
"She obsessed over the tabloids, Daniel."
"Good. I'd rather have you obsess over me. You have to admit it was good."
"The pizza was by far the best I've ever had."
He pushes me against the headboard and gives me a smoking hot kiss.
"I'm not looking to get serious with anyone, Daniel. My life is--"
"Shh. Don't ruin our night with excuses. Go back to sleep."
X X X
"It seems you have an admirer," Ari says, waking me up around noon with a very large bouquet of pink roses.
My heart does a little leap thinking they could be from Daniel.
I rub my eyes as Ari sets them on my desk and plucks an envelope out of the arrangement. He's followed into the room by our housekeeper who places a large gift-wrapped box on my bed and then retreats. On top of it is a formal invitation with my name in a gorgeous gold calligraphy.
Ari plops down on my bed as I brush my hair off my face and fluff it. I'm sure it's a freaking mess.
He narrows his eyes, surveying me and then my messy bed. "If I didn't know you were home early and alone last night, I'd think you had a night filled with sex."
"I had a restless sleep," I say, attempting to explain the rumpled sheets and the duvet strewn across the floor.
"You always sleep in a man's shirt?"
I arch an eyebrow at my fake brother. "Sometimes I just sleep naked."
He rolls his eyes and picks up the phone on my bedside table. "My sister and I would like to have brunch on her terrace."
"Could you ask the chef to make me something hearty? Maybe a grilled cheese and roasted tomato sandwich?"
I'm starved. Must be from all the calories I burned with Daniel last night.
Ari lets the kitchen know what we'd like and then holds up the invitation. "This is from the Queen."
"So, the flowers must be from the Prince," I say, hiding my personal disappointment even though I am actually professionally thrilled they're from him. It means he's interested. I pop the seal, pull the card out, and read aloud. "Please accept these flowers as a token of my sincerest apologies regarding the events yesterday. I'd be delighted if you would accompany me to the Queen's Garden Party today as well as the fashion show this evening. Sincerely, Lorenzo." I open the larger gilded envelope to find an inner envelope with both my name and Ari's, followed by a formal invitation to the tea. I toss it to him. "Looks like you're invited, too."
"You're playing him well," Ari says. "I'm impressed. I'm also impressed with your quick thinking yesterday. I wasn't sure if you were just theory and promise."
"Is this your first mission?"
"With the CIA, yes. But I've been on special ops missions in the Army."
"Have you ever killed anyone?" I ask, tilting my head. Sometimes I wonder if I could really do it. Hitting targets with rubber bullets and in simulations is a lot different than seeing it happen in front of you. I should know.
He looks down. "Yes, I have."
"I haven't. You're right to have concerns about me. I'm well-trained and prepared but not yet field tested. Ari, what was your mission? Like, what did they tell you?"
"No one told me anything. I was simply given an envelope. Inside it was a single card with my mission. To uncover the person or persons behind the plot to assassinate the Prince of Montrovia."
"What color was it? The envelope."
"It was pink and covered with glitter, rainbows, and unicorns." He rolls his eyes at me. "What do you think? It was a nondescript plain white envelope with a plain white card inside with black print." He studies me. "What color was yours?"
"Same," I lie, realizing that my mission was slightly different. While I, too, was ordered to uncover the plot, my mission varied in that I am supposed to also both protect the Prince and eliminate those responsible. I think about my training. I was taught to kill a man with nothing more than a paper clip. I can tail a mark without his knowledge. And, once during training, I jumped out of a three-story building using an embroidered hankie as a parachute. I was the star student at Blackwood Academy. Only instead of excelling at normal collegiate activities like keg stands and frat parties, I'm an expert marksman, unbeaten in hand-to-hand combat, and impossible for even the school's best to tail. "Is that all it said?"
"Isn't that enough?"
"Yeah, it is," I lie, opening the gift. Inside are three smaller boxes. One with the golden gown I was trying on the day I met the Prince.
"That's quite the dress," Ari says, as I hold up the dreamy golden masterpiece. Under the gown are a pair of Jimmy Choo sandals and a complementary clutch.
"I had it on when we met. Well, actually, I was looking at ties when we met, but then he came over to the women's side and introduced himself when I was standing in front of the mirror in this.
"Must have made an impression. Do you think this will work? Getting close to him? I feel like being close to him might only allow us to protect him. To react to an attempt."
"My orders were a little different than yours," I confess.
"How so?"
"I was told to get close to and protect him." I don't mention the part about killing the bad guys.
"So I'm the sleuth, and you're the bodyguard?"
I shrug. "Maybe. But I think you're right. We have to figure out who's behind this. I feel like we aren't making any progress."
"I wish we could have interrogated the gunmen," Ari says. "Maybe we could have gotten some clues."
"The fact that a group hasn't claimed them by now leads me to believe we can rule out the major terrorist groups." I open the other box to find a demure pink crepe dress with an Alexander McQueen label.
"Terrorist organizations are infiltrating all areas of the world. It could be a smaller group," Ari counters. "What's in the last b
ox?"
"Oh! It's a hat!" I place it on my head and stand in front of the mirror over my desk. "Look at the beautiful sweeping brim. And the roses and feathers are so pretty!"
"You're going to look like royalty in that," he teases. "I think the Prince fancies you."
I roll my eyes. "He probably sends invites and dresses to lots of girls."
He holds up a card. "Did you not see the note in the hat box?"
"No. What does it say?"
"I'm honored to custom design your millinery for the Queen's Garden Party. Best, Anna Remaldi." Ari sets the hat down and pulls out his phone, clicking buttons. "It says here that Anna is the Royal milliner for the Queen of Montrovia."
"Wow. Okay, maybe he does fancy me a bit. But that's the goal, right?"
"Yes, it is. So at the Garden Party, let's try to spend more time with the cousins. We need to figure out if they are threats or targets."
"And I want to find out more about the gunmen. Who they were. Who they were working for."
"You think they're mercenaries not terrorists?" he considers.
"I think we have to consider that possibility. What if there is something bigger at play here? Most terror happens in protest. Some is simply to disrupt the governments they are against. The biggest terror group now says their ultimate goal is to overthrow governments of unstable, heavily Muslim nations and establish their own state." I pause. "Which doesn't really fit Montrovia. I read that about ninety percent of the country is Roman Catholic."
"But it's a jewel of great wealth."
"So where does the Terra thing fit in?" I wonder.
"I think terra sounds a lot like terror."
Our server taps on the door and enters with a tray of food.
"Looks like it's time to eat," Ari says. "I expect Allie will be up to join you soon. An invitation to the party was delivered for her and Peter as well."
A short time later, Allie is at my door.
"You awake?" she whispers.
"We're out on the terrace. Come join us."
She's still wrapped in a robe and looks like she just woke up.
"Did you get an invitation to the Queen's Garden Party?" she asks.
"We did."
"What are you going to wear?"
"The Prince sent me an outfit and a hat."
"I looked online to see what Kate Middleton wears when she goes to these sorts of things in Britain. Usually a proper suit or a tailored dress and always a hat. I have a floral dress that will work, but no hat. Do you think they wear them here?"
