Page 5 of Royal Rising

“You went for coffee with him yesterday,” Stella reminds me. Not that I need reminding. “The entire town noticed, so I think that can be considered a date.”

When you live in a town as small as Battle Harbour, everyone knows your name and your business, especially if you have a close association with the royal family. And when you’re seen out and about with one of the Peace River royal family… “You should get used to that,” I warn Stella. “Having the entire town notice things. Gunnar makes a splash wherever he goes.”

It’s better to talk about Stella than acknowledge how nervous I was just walking through the town square with Mathias. I—whohas been called bubbly too many times to count—could barely string a sentence together. Andstill, Mathias invited me to dinner!

“We’re leaving next week. Six weeks in Southeast Asia.” Stella tries for cool but excitement tints her every word. “So no one here will notice anything.” There’s the smile again. “But I didn’t call to talk about that.”

“What did you call for then?” But I grin at the screen to take away any sting.

“To give moral support because that’s what friends do. You look nice,” she adds.

I check my reflection for the sixteenth time, pushing a wayward strand of dark hair behind my ear.

I miss my ponytail.

I’m not used to lipstick.

I’m wearing high heels.

But I have to admit that I do look nice. “Thanks.”

“Good luck,” Stella sings. “You can let me know how it goes if you want.”

“I’ll call you tomorrow with all the dirty details,” I promise. “Not that they’ll be dirty.”

Stella laughs as she says goodbye.

I’m going out for dinner with a prince. My reflection shows a nervous/excited/slightly crazed grin with too many teeth.

I point at the mirror. “Get it together,” I tell myself in my best end-of-night-voice when I have to tell those holding up the bar it’s time to go home. “He’s just a prince.”

The laugh bubbles up because… Mathias is a prince.

Reluctantly, I check my texts.

Enid: You ready to wow him?

Ella: A PRINCE! Mom is FREAKING!

Eloise: He’s so cute. Looks just like Odin.

Ella: When are you going to get that P O is so out of your league.

Enid: Plus married

Eloise: A girl can still dream

Enid: Mom does that enough for all of us

And then on a separate text string, there is a text from my mother.

Mom:I am so proud of you! Even if this goes nowhere, know that you have fulfilled my dream to have a prince fall for one of my girls.

And my mother is not joking.

When I told her I had not only met Prince Mathias at the wedding but danced with him several times, she clapped so much her palms were tomato red. And there were real tears in her eyes.

It’s a good thing I’m not part of Laandia “society,” like in Bridgerton or my mother would be one of the mamas who terrorize the season’s bachelors in their attempts to marry one of their daughters to a prince.

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