I headed upstairs and went to my office, probably for the last time.
Although, I thought that about seven years ago too.
I’d gotten through about half of the remaining boxes when Jaqui stopped by.
“Hey.” She smiled as she came in. “Looks like you’re almost done.”
I nodded. “Did you hear about my exciting weekend?”
“Nope. That’s why I stopped by. I want to hear how Henry liked your purple dress.” She grinned.
Oh boy.
“Well, I didn’t get to wear the purple dress,” I replied. “Instead, Senator Glenn supplied me with a really pretty blue one. Oh, and Henry is actually Prince Henry of Paradisa. That’s probably why he looked familiar to you.”
Jaqui stared at me like I’d suddenly grown three heads and a green tail. “What?”
“I wore a blue dress and Henry is actually a prince.”
She sat down on a box of files. “I leave you alone for one weekend and you suddenly wear a senator’s dress and start dating a prince?”
I shrugged, not quite sure what to say to that. Instead I gave her a better telling of my night at the ball and why Henry had called her the day before. She stared at me in disbelief the entire time.
“Now you really have to get me his friend’s number,” Jaqui smiled. “I knew he was a keeper, I just didn’t know how much of one.”
I let out a small sigh of relief that she wasn’t mad. So much had gone on this weekend, I hadn’t had a chance to call or text her.
“After you finish, we’re going out and getting drinks and you’re telling me all the details.” Jaqui stood up from her box and shook her head. “A prince? That is so cool.”
Henry sent me text messages every few hours to give me encouragement. I didn’t need it much at first, but as the day grew later, I became more and more nervous about meeting with my stepmother in the evening.
I quickly worked through the last of the boxes and then cleaned up my work space. It felt almost bittersweet. My life was going to change again. I wasn’t sure how, but I hoped it was for the better. If everything went to plan, then maybe I could have a future with Henry.
Even though I didn’t know what that would look like right now, I wanted it. I wanted to try. And it wasn’t because he was a prince. It was because I loved him. I would have wanted to try if he was just the simple businessman I had thought he was.
I loved him.
The end of the workday came and I said goodbye to my co-workers. Now that the scanning job was done, I didn’t have anything to do. It was possible that I would be reassigned to another task in the building, but I knew that Senator Glenn would want me back eventually.
For all intents and purposes, it was my last day.
Especially if things went the way Henry and I planned for Audrey. Or if they went the exact opposite. I wouldn’t be in this building anymore either way.
I hugged Gus and Jaqui extra long before heading out. Neither one of them knew just what I was about to do. They would have told me not to do it. They would have tried to help me.
I couldn’t risk them, so I simply smiled and promised to visit.
I just hoped I didn’t end up in jail instead.
I had to pretend that everything was normal as I got on the train and then the bus to Audrey’s house. I tried not to check my phone every two seconds or fiddle with the button on my jacket, but it was hard.
I was walking into the lair of the dragon. I only hoped that Henry had the right magic to take her down.
The sun was just beginning to dip behind the horizon as I came to Audrey’s house. The world bathed in the golden glow of the setting sun and the trees whispered of summer coming soon. The world had the appearance of peace, even if I knew that wasn’t truly the case.
I swallowed hard, adjusted my jacket, and walked up to the front door and knocked.
Chapter 29
“There you are, darling. I was beginning to think you might be late,” Audrey purred, holding open the door.
She looked resplendent in a boxy-cut tea-length white dress. Her dark hair was up on the top of her head and her green eyes shone from under long lashes. She wore white heels that clicked on the marble floors as she walked to the kitchen.
“Take your coat off,” she commanded. I didn’t, keeping it buttoned up. I wasn’t about to take it off.