Another cup was procured, and Dree drank hot cocoa with the rest of them.
When everybody was settled, Maxence turned to Dree and reintroduced Alexandre and Georgie, and then said, “The final guest is Lady Christine Grimaldi, currently third in line for the throne in the traditional line of succession.”
Christine waved with her fingertips at Dree, who dutifully wrote down the name.
Maxence turned and looked at Dree, and his direct stare into her eyes startled her for a minute. She was supposed to be the invisible secretary, not somebody who got looked at by the prince. Max said, “Today’s topic is the amount of wine produced in the French vineyards around Monaco.”
Dree nodded and started writing baloney about grapes and wine barrels. She hoped she didn’t get stuff wrong.
Christine held up one finger and waved it at Maxence and Alexandre. “I cannot believe that I let you guys talk me into coming back here.
Georgie, who had sat right next to Dree again, leaned over and said to her, “I can’t believe she came back, either.”
Dree snickered in appreciation as she wrote fake notes about the amount of sunlight that grapes needed.
Christine continued, “And Marie-Therese was the worst. She’s been badgering me to come back ever since I took off. If I didn’t know better, I’d say she was trying to lure me back here so her father could kill me and be one step closer to the throne.”
Maxence raised an eyebrow at Christine.
She brushed at the air with blunt fingers. Her fingernails were trimmed back tightly to her nail beds on her left hand and barely longer on her right. “She knows what he is. I can guarantee that Marie-Therese isn’t on his side foranything.”
“If you hadn’t come back,” Alexandre said, “the Council might’ve elected you in absentia. You wouldn’t have even had a chance to renounce before they crowned a mannequin in a brown wig.”
Christine shook her head. “You guys did not see the weird stuff that happened while I was in America.”
Maxence said, “I can have Sault look into it.”
Dree glanced toward the back of the room. Quentin Sault was standing by the door, his hands clasped in front of him. He rocked on his toes just a bit.
Christine said, “He won’t find anything. Jules has decided that he’s going to lie, cheat, or steal his way to the throne.”
Dree went back to making up stuff about wine.
Maxence asked Christine, “What happened that was suspicious?”
She said, “One day, my car wouldn’t start.”
Alexandre laughed at her. “Are you still driving that Jaguar? You should know you need two of those, so you have something to drive when one is in the shop.”
“I don’t think my Jaguar is going to be getting out of the shop very soon because after I walked inside to call a cab, it exploded.”
Dree wrote hurriedly about wine and tried not to look completely aghast.
Maxence’s face lost all emotion and hardened. “You didn’t tell us this.”
“I didn’t tell anybodyanything.Flicka’s husband set me up in a little house in the suburbs with a detail of four security guys. I had to leave the door open when I went to the bathroom, because evidently, they were worried ninjas would sneak in through the exhaust fan and kidnap me.” Christine elbowed Georgie. “Those mercenaries were cute, though. I kept leaving mybedroomdoor open, but it didn’t seem to work.”
This time, Alexandre’s face went rigid.
Georgie cracked up.
Christine was cool and collected in the face of danger, even cracking jokes. That was very country of her. Dree approved.
Maxence leaned on his elbows and clasped his hands on the desktop. “Let’s get right to business. Christine, would you like to be the Sovereign Princess of Monaco?”
Christine threw her head back and laughed hard, her shoulders up around her ears. “Oh,hell,no. What have Ieversaid that made you think I would acceptthat?”
Georgie said, “I don’t think she can. The treaties with France might not allow a female to inherit.”
