Page 34 of Royal Caleva: Luis

“What’s her mother like?” Raul asked.

“Down-to-earth, hardworking, and devoted to Grace.” Luis kept his thoughts about Eve’s other attractions to himself. “She is torn between wanting Grace to have her rightful position and wishing to protect her daughter from the…drawbacks of being a royal.”

Eve probably worried about how her own life would change as well.

“They know Gabriel’s story, of course. That was all over the international media,” Raul said. “What about Odette’s?”

“I’ve told Eve some of it. I gave Grace the barest outline. Not surprisingly, she was quite distressed by her birth mother’s actions.”

“I understand.” Raul looked down with a grimace. “At least my mother tried to kill only herself, not others.”

“Hijo mío…” Pain ripped through Luis’s chest all over again. He had tried to shield his son from the knowledge of his mother’s fragile psyche as much as possible, but as Raul had grown up, he’d heard the whispers about Sofia’s attempted suicide after his birth. When a teenage Raul had finally confronted Luis about it, he had told him only as much of the truth as he’d thought was necessary, but had withheld his suspicions about the fatal auto accident.

“I am not like my mother.” Raul’s gaze returned to Luis. “I will try to help Grace understand the same is true about her and Odette.”

Love overlaid the pain. “Your personal experience and insight will mean more to her than anything I can say.”

“Pater, it may be hard for her to adjust to what her new…heritage will mean to her life,” Raul said. “I will try to help with that as well.”

Luis nodded. He understood all that his son had left unspoken. Luis had once been el Principe de los Lirios, the Crown Prince of Caleva, with all the honors and responsibilities it carried. Grace might now be second in line for the crown, which was not as heavy a position as Raul’s, but it still brought its own burdens.

He had no doubt that Grace was capable of handling the position. The question that clawed at him was whether she would want it.

“When will I get to meet her?” Raul asked.

“Bruno is working on that. I hope it will be soon.” Luis let his gaze rest on his son’s beloved face on the monitor. “I cannot wait to see the two of you together. It will be one of the happiest days of my life.”

“I look forward to it too, Pater,” Raul said. “Having a sister… That will be a new experience.”

Raul was undoubtedly feeling the absence of Gabriel. The duke had moved out of the palace once his relationship with his fiancée, Quinn, became public. In his role as cultural ambassador for Caleva, Gabriel traveled a great deal as well. “I think Quinn will enjoy having a fellow American in the family,” Luis said.

“And Quinn will help her adjust to being royalty.” Raul grinned. “Although I’m not sure whether Quinn has adjusted herself.”

Luis smiled too. “She’s making progress. I must go, hijo mío. Te quiero mucho.”

“Y yo también,” Raul said. “It will be good to have you home.”

After Raul’s face disappeared from the screen, Luis dropped his head into his hands, wishing yet again that he had grasped the seriousness of his wife’s emotional state all those years ago. He had been overwhelmed by inheriting the throne so suddenly, but he should have seen the severity of Sofia’s pain and stopped her from destroying herself.

Still, he couldn’t regret his affair with Odette, for all the horror she had caused his family. He would not have Grace now if he hadn’t temporarily lost his sanity all those years ago.

He lifted his head and glanced at his watch. Too early to call, but he could text Eve about lunch. Picking up the secure cell phone from his desk, he thought a moment before typing.

I would very much like to meet you for lunch to discuss how Grace is feeling. Would you be able to join me at whatever time is convenient for you? Will send a car for you, and we will eat near your workplace.

He sent the text and set the phone on the desk, feeling a spark of anticipation at the thought of seeing Eve again.

He quashed it by plunging into the unending list of governmental matters requiring his attention.

Eve was sitting at the kitchen table, sipping her coffee, and watching the early morning sunbeams slide through the windows, when a text dinged on her new super-secure cell phone. It still boggled her mind that she and her daughter had a king on speed dial.

“Someone’s up early,” she muttered, swiping to the new message with a strange mixture of trepidation and excitement. “Oh, shit!” Her coffee mug hit the table with a thunk.

Lunch with the king!

Why did he want to see her? Alone? She pushed down the shock and considered the invitation rationally. He probably just wanted to know how Grace had reacted to meeting her father, as he’d said in the text.

Eve felt like she couldn’t say no to him, but she barely got an hour to eat lunch and usually not even that. Leaving her coffee behind, she tiptoed upstairs to the bedroom-turned-office and flipped open her laptop to check the day’s schedule.

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