He put down the last of his toast. “In fact, I think I’m going to rest for a little while. If I’m feeling up to it, I may sit on thebalcony later, but I do want to get some more rest before I have to do some work.”
“Work?” Elise looked directly at him, certain she had her concern written all over her face. “You’re going to work the day after surgery?”
“Not much,” he reassured her. “George will be here in a few hours to go over a couple of things that need to be taken care of today. The rest will be pushed back for at least a couple of days. I didn’t have much on my schedule since we were supposed to be traveling on the yacht.”
All of their engagements flashed before her eyes. “We’ll have to go again. Visit all of the places we won’t be able to while you recover.”
He nodded. “That was mentioned in the press release. At least we didn’t have anything scheduled yesterday or today.”
“And it’s a good thing you stopped to visit me.” The Queen Mother gave him one of those mum looks. “If you’d been out in the middle of the ocean somewhere, you wouldn’t have had access to a doctor when you needed it.”
“We wouldn’t have been that far from shore,” Frederick told her with a groan. “Maybe a couple of hours at most.”
That didn’t sound quite right to Elise, but what did she know? She knew there were a few ferries connecting some of the islands but had no idea how long they took to get from one place to the other.
“But you’re not wrong. It is good we were at your home. Having the resort doctor nearby would have been very helpful even if my own physician hadn’t been on the island.” He pressed the palms of his hands into the table.
Elise hurried around to help him stand. With one hand on his elbow and the other arm wrapped around his back, they started for the bedroom.
“I think I’d rather go to the recliner.”
After they shifted direction into the living area, Elise helped him sit back down and then recline the back as the footrest came out. She found a blanket and laid it over him.
The Queen Mother came over to give him a kiss on the forehead and surprised Elise with a hug. “Thank you for taking care of him,” she whispered.
“My pleasure,” Elise whispered back.
A moment later, she was alone with Frederick. “How are you really feeling?”
“Tired,” he admitted. “I am very glad to be in this suite. Would you mind opening the doors and letting the fresh air and ocean sounds in?”
“Of course.” She did just that, taking a moment to close her eyes and let the smells and sounds wash over her.
“Thanks.”
Elise took a seat on the couch near Frederick. “I didn’t say anything to your mum on purpose. She said something about the Monarch’s Suite being familiar. I guess I made a bit of a face so she pressed. I told her you’d said a couple of things that made me think you wished you had a choice. I got the impression all you had to do was say you wanted to live somewhere else, and it would happen.”
“I was too young to assert any authority like that. It took me a long time before I felt I could give an… I don’t like saying order, but I suppose that’s what it is… and have it be followed without much question.” He pulled the blanket up a bit more. “By the time I would have thought to do that, I had lived there for years and it really wasn’t high on my priority list.”
“I hope you’re not mad?” That thought had started to plague her.
“No. I think it will be a good thing.” He took a deep breath and let it out. “What else was she talking about?”
“She asked if there was anything else. I didn’t say anything but she guessed that there probably was something I didn’t feel comfortable telling her.” The breeze coming in through the door gave her a chill so Elise pulled a blanket over her.
Frederick looked puzzled. “What else haven’t I told her?”
Had he really never thought about telling his mum that he missed her hugs? “Just about missing human contact. She’s your mum, not a random staff member or member of the general public.”
His eyes remained closed but a thoughtful look crossed his face. “I never thought to bring I up. It wasn’t really something I thought about in detail until that day on the plane.”
Elise didn’t reply but waited for him to go on.
“She’s had more physical contact with me in the last couple of days than she has since the service for my father. It’s been nice.”
“Maybe it signifies a change? Maybe she’ll keep doing that?” Elise couldn’t imagine not having that contact with her own child, but she was new to the whole royal thing, so there could be some kind of unwritten norms she was still unaware of.
“Perhaps.” He began to relax further. “If not, maybe I’ll talk to her.”
