Page 44 of Royal Caleva: Luis

Eve’s bed had a huge headboard carved with twining lilies, a canopy made of tapestry woven with more lilies, and draperies of rose velvet. The windows sported tapestry valances and moss-green velvet panels with cream silk undercurtains. Eve ran her hand over the quilted green velvet bedspread, finding it so soft to the touch that it had to be woven out of silk.

“Check this out,” Grace said from the closet door she had pulled open. “Your clothes are already hung up in here.” She closed the door and turned with a grin. “If we wanted to switch rooms, I bet they’d come up and move our clothes.”

“Do you want to swap?” Eve asked.

“No, I was just imagining what would happen.” Her grin disappeared, and she perched on one of the carved wooden chairs. “If I become a princess, I might have a suite like this here in the palace.” She looked around. “It’s not exactly cozy.”

“You’d get used to it,” Eve said, but she didn’t feel like she belonged here either. These overwhelming rooms were Luis’s first miscalculation in his efforts to win over his daughter.

“I’m not so sure,” Grace said before she jumped up. “I need a real drink, and then I’m going to take a shower. Let’s go raid the bar.”

They had enjoyed a couple of glasses of excellent wine before trundling down to meet the rest of their group in a comfortable—and not overly formal—dining room. Everyone was exclaiming over their rooms, the palace, the food, and the incredible level of service. As Eve listened to the descriptions of the guest rooms, she realized that she and Grace were the only ones with an over-the-top suite. Neither she nor Grace shared that fact with their colleagues, of course. More wine flowed, and by the end of dinner, all of them were ready to go back to their rooms to sleep.

As Eve thanked their guide and closed the suite’s door, she heard two pings, one from her phone and one from Grace’s. Grace pulled hers out first and read something before she looked up with happiness dancing in her eyes. “Luis wants to know if he can stop by to see how we’re doing. He sent the text to both of us.” She didn’t ask how Eve felt about it before typing something back. “I told him that would be great.”

The exhaustion dragging on Eve evaporated at the thought of being able to see Luis without concealing their prior relationship. At the same time, she remembered the deep curtsies and bows of all the Calevans in the room when he had entered. The Luis she had gotten to know in Iowa now seemed to be someone beyond her reach.

Another message pinged, and Eve read it herself this time.

Luis wrote, I will be there in five minutes. Do not be surprised when a panel in the wall opposite the fireplace opens. Castles have convenient secret passages.

Grace dashed to the mirror by the door to smooth her hair. Eve barely stopped herself from doing the same. Her daughter turned away from the mirror with a twist to her smile. “Is it strange that I’m nervous about seeing him again? All that curtsying and bowing at the reception made me understand what a big deal he really is.” She shrugged. “He was so normal back in Iowa. Now, he’s the king.”

“Oh, sweetie, I understand,” Eve said. “He is still your father, though. No amount of pomp and circumstance can change that.”

Yet she was glad that Grace was beginning to grasp what being the daughter of a king would mean to her life.

A loud click sounded from the side of the room, and the panel swung inward, revealing a dimly lit doorway. Luis stepped through, and the panel closed. He was dressed in the same clothes he had worn earlier, minus the suit jacket and tie.

“Grace, hija mía!” He opened his arms and strode to where Grace stood, enveloping her in a hug. “I wanted to do this the moment I saw you this afternoon. I am so happy to have you here.” He skimmed his hands down to her shoulders to hold her away from him as he examined her face. “Have you been well taken care of?”

“We’ve been treated like royalty,” Grace said with a sly grin.

Luis laughed, the deep, rich sound vibrating through the air. “I hope that’s a good thing.”

Damn the man, he knows exactly how to reel Grace in.

“And you, Eve.” He turned to her. “It is a pleasure to welcome you to my home.”

“It’s a heck of a home,” Eve said, waving at the opulent room.

Luis grimaced. “I am sorry about the overblown splendor. Since the secret passage connects this suite with my quarters, it allows me to visit without observers.”

“I always wanted to live somewhere with a secret passage,” Grace said. “It’s very mysterious and romantic.”

“Several of our early queens would not find it so romantic,” Luis said. “This is where my long-ago predecessors would house attractive guests so that they could visit them clandestinely.”

“Why two bedrooms?” Grace asked.

“Ah, the husband would be installed in one, and the wife in the other,” Luis said.

“The husbands didn’t mind?” Eve asked.

“In those days, they didn’t have much choice if the king coveted their wife. Better to be cuckolded by royalty than tossed into the dungeon,” Luis explained. “Some men even considered it a useful way to curry favor with the king.”

Eve had a vision of Luis gliding into her candlelit bedroom, his long legs clad in tight breeches tucked into tall boots, his broad shoulders covered by a ruffled shirt open halfway down his chest, a long brocade dressing gown billowing out behind him. She was dressed in a translucent silk nightgown, her hair loose around her bare shoulders, waiting for him… A shimmer of heat sparkled through her body.

“What about the female guests?” Grace asked. “Did they have any say in the matter?”

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