“Did you know?” I sat down and looked at him. “Did Mom tell you?”
“I think you’re going to have to start at the beginning.” He passed me a piece of bread. “All I know is I woke up today to seeing you on the news and had voicemail from several news stations.”
“Oh, Dad, I’m so sorry.” I sighed and poked at my food. “I should’ve asked them to send someone over for you.”
“Who to send who over?”
“Mom was from a royal family. I don’t know if she knew or not, but I sure didn’t. But they gave me a detail to keep the press away and I should have asked them to send someone over here for you too. I mean, the duchess that came to tell me about my family assigned a detail.”
“Huh.” We ate in silence for a few minutes, each of us working through things in our heads. “I don’t guess they’re going to bother me too much, since I’m just your stepfather.”
“You’re not just my stepfather. You’re my dad.” I knew he would understand the differentiation.
“I know, but that probably makes a difference to the people wanting to ask questions.”
“Did she know?”
“Your mom was always a mystery, Sam. That’s one of the things I loved about her. She was brilliant, funny, and the most loving woman. But I knew there were things about her I would never learn.” He smiled at me, his love for her still as alive as ever. “She never told me she was from a royal line, but I know she placed a great deal of emphasis on family. I suppose that could mean something.”
“I have this folder full of birth certificates and a family tree. Of ship itineraries and land deeds.” I frowned. “And it all leads back to Duke Rousseau of Lilaria.”
“Why did they hunt you down?” Dad had always been practical. It was probably why he had done so well in the military. “Seems like a lot of work just to tell you your great-great-great-grandfather used to own some land.”
“They want to reinstate my title.” I bit into my bread and chewed thoughtfully. “Supposedly the queen has made it her life task to bring back the families that left.”
He looked at me, processing what that could mean. “They want you to move back, then?”
“Yes. I think so.” I frowned. “They aren’t pressuring me, but there’s a lot to accepting the position. I’d be on the council to the queen.” I laughed. It was such a ridiculous thought. “I’d be in charge of lands and a house.”
“That’s a very big honor.” Dad looked at me seriously and I stopped my giggles.
“It is. But me? On the council to a queen?” I shook my head. “Can you imagine?” I snorted. “I don’t know anything about their country and let’s face it, I’m not the most diplomatic person.”
“Maybe that’s what they need. New insight and someone that isn’t constrained by centuries of protocol.”
The fact that he was echoing what Alex said scared me. I stared at him while he ate. Did he really think it would be a good idea?
“They also have a really great healthcare system.” I watched him for any indications that this would excite him. “They have a really great specialist that would be willing to work with you.”
“Don’t base your decision on me, Sam. The truth is if it’s my time there isn’t anything to be done about it. You know that.” My heart clenched and I fought the tears that gathered at the back of my eyes.
“Anything has to be better than what you’re going through.” I reached out and grabbed his hand. He was only fifty-five and yet his hands looked like those of an eighty-year-old. There were bruises from all the IVs, shots, and blood work. This was only his second round of chemotherapy, and yet it had already taken so much out of him.
“I’ve had a wonderful life, Sam. You and your mom have given me everything I could need.”
“Don’t talk like that,” I snapped at him, angry he seemed to have given up. He smiled and squeezed my hand, not bothered by my anger.
“Baby, I’ve always told you that you should travel. Here’s a chance in a lifetime.” Traveling had been Dad’s favorite part of being in the service. He’d told me and Mom countless times about the places he had seen.
“This isn’t the same thing. This wouldn’t be a vacation.”
“I know. If you decide to go, you need to do it for the right reasons. You need to do it because you’re ready to accept the responsibility.” He laughed. “Though I bet there are some amazing perks as well. It can’t be all bad, can it?”
I smiled, even though I didn’t feel like it. I remembered the media hounding me as I left the center and how the people I’d known for years had treated me differently.
Later that night, Dad fell asleep in his chair in front of the television. I went to the kitchen and sorted out his medicine for the night and got him a glass of milk. When I came back into the living room, I stopped and watched him for a minute. He looked so tired and worn out it made my heart ache. He’d barely started the chemo and I hated seeing him so vulnerable. He was my father; he was supposed to be invincible.
As I worked on setting up his medicine, I caught the glint of something out of the corner of my eye. I turned around to look out the kitchen window and froze. There was a man with a camera standing just on the other side of the glass. The light above the kitchen table must have reflected off the lens, because he wasn’t using a flash. From the way his finger moved over the button on the top of the camera, I knew he was taking pictures.