glanced up to meet Prince Stefan’s gaze. He didn’t look friendly. She gave a quick curtsey, on the wrong foot, and dipped her head.
Prince Stefan extended his hand and she rose. “It is our pleasure to meet you. I trust Mr. Bernard has taken good care of you,” he said.
“Yes, thank you.”
“I must leave due to a meeting this afternoon. Please don’t hesitate to call Mr. Bernard for anything you may need during your stay. Have a good day to all of you,” he said, glancing at his sisters and he left the room.
Coco vaguely remembered that she was supposed to curtsey again, so she did, using the correct foot this time. As soon as the prince left, the servers changed the tablecloth in record time. Self-conscious, Coco glanced toward the princesses. Their expressions suddenly seemed cool and remote. Coco would almost swear someone had turned the temperature in the room down to freezing.
Sinking carefully into her chair, Coco pressed her lips together and made herself smile. None of the princesses returned her forced grimace. A server asked her if she would like more tea and she shook her head. She didn’t want to ruin any more antique linens.
Silence permeated the room like the most stifling heat and humidity in July. Coco was at a loss as to what to say, and it appeared the princesses felt no need to chat. She wondered if they were truly that upset about her spilling tea.
A clock sounded three times. Fredericka glanced at her watch and stood. Her sisters followed. Coco quickly rose to her feet.
“We’ve kept you long enough,” Fredericka said. “It was a pleasure to meet you and we hope you’ll enjoy your visit to our lovely country.”
Blinking from the abrupt ending to the visit, Coco dipped a few times. The princesses exited the room and Mr. Bernard appeared. “I shall escort you to your villa now,” he said.
Her mind whirled during the few moments it took to ride to the villa. Was that it? she wondered. She’d flown halfway around the world to have tea with her so-called half sisters and a few seconds with her so-called half brother.
She’d told herself to expect nothing. Her stomach began to turn and her heart hurt. Locking her fists together, she lectured herself. Do not get upset. Do not get upset.
Mr. Bernard ushered her out of the car. She felt him watching her as she walked toward the front door.
“I’m not disappointed,” she whispered to herself. “I’m not disappointed. I’m not—”
The front door opened before she’d barely touched it and Benjamin—strong, wonderful Benjamin—studied her face. “How’d it go?” he asked.
Coco burst into tears.
* * *
“Not great,” Benjamin muttered and gently pulled Coco into the small den. He helped her onto the love seat as she continued to cry.
“I—shouldn’t—have—” She broke off and sobbed again.
The sound made his gut twist. Plus, he was starting to get real concerned that she would hyperventilate. “Hey,” he said, taking her shoulders. “Take a breath.”
She opened her mouth as if she were trying to comply, but another sob escaped. “I’m sorry,” she managed. “I haven’t—”
“Take a breath,” he told her. “Really.” He cupped her face. “Close your eyes. And breathe.”
She closed her eyes and drew in a shaky breath. She shuddered as she exhaled.
“Another one,” he told her.
She breathed again and her sigh was a little less shaky. “I’m sorry. I can’t remember the last time I cried this much.”
“Then I guess you’ve been holding it in. If you’re okay, I’ll get you some water,” he said.
She nodded and rubbed at her wet cheeks. “Just embarrassed.”
“Don’t be,” he said and got up to get her a glass of water. “You’re in one hell of a strange situation.”
Returning, he held the glass to her lips and noticed how plump and pink her mouth was. She sipped the water then took the glass with her own hands. “Thanks.” She took another sip and another deep breath and shook her head. “I just feel so stupid.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know what I was thinking. I kept telling myself and you that they wouldn’t have any interest in me, but some stupid part of me must have hoped they would.” She closed her eyes. “It’s not that I really believed there was any chance for a real sister-sister or sister-brother kind of relationship. I just hoped it would be a little more friendly.”
“What did they do?”
“Nothing terrible,” she said. “They were just horribly polite. The prince came into the room where we were having tea and I spilled my tea all over this beautiful tablecloth. I wondered if that was why they acted so cold after he arrived. He was only there for about a half minute.” She shook her head in confusion. “Before that, Bridget and Phillipa were almost nice. They even smiled a couple times and laughed.”
Benjamin frowned. Why would the royal chicks turn suddenly mean? “Did Prince Stuffy say anything to his sisters when he was there?”
“Stefan,” Coco corrected, but laughed. “Never thought of that about his name, but—”
“Did he say anything to his sisters?” he repeated.
She shook her head. “No. He kinda glared at them, but he didn’t say anything.”
“Hmm,” Benjamin said, wondering if the way the royals had behaved toward Coco was all part of a plan.
“What are you thinking?” she asked.
“Just thinking,” he said.
“Well, I don’t have to think about this situation one more minute,” she said. “I’m ready to leave now.”
Emma let out a cry from the room where she was sleeping. “Oh,” Coco said. “I should get her. I hope I didn’t wake her.”
“Probably not. She’s been asleep for a while,” he said and thought about Coco’s situation with the Devereaux. He hadn’t expected them to fall all over themselves welcoming her, but something about it didn’t smell right to Benjamin.
An hour later, after Coco gave Emma a bottle and her dinner, she put the baby on a big blanket on the floor of the den. Benjamin noticed Coco pacing restlessly. She was still upset about the Devereaux. He’d come up with a plan of his own, but he didn’t want to tell her about it quite yet.
“It’s still light out. You want to take her for a little stroll?” he asked.
Coco nodded, her face easing with relief. “Great idea. Do you want to go?”
“I think I’ll stay inside. I need to go over some updates from the foreman,”
