“You do not wear me out,” he said, cutting her off. “You are fresh air and sunshine. Good food and excellent wine. You make me feel well. I am so very glad you are here.”
She smiled. “I’m very glad I’m here too.”
“Tell me about yourself, Adelaide. Your life, your interests.”
Without painting too pitiful a picture of her somewhat deprived childhood, she gave him a brief biography of her life and accomplishments. “And I’m nearly finished with law school.”
“My daughter a lawyer?” Pride shone in his eyes.
“I hope.”
“You do not speak of your love life. Such a beautiful young woman ... is there no man?”
She shrugged. “Oh, I was involved with a guy for a few years, but his plans were different than mine. We went our separate ways.” She didn’t care to go into details over Brent’s insistence that they move in together ... or that she’d been holding out for an engagement ring. It was all water under the bridge now.
“You spoke of Anton Balazs.” His brows arched and his eyes twinkled. “He is a handsome fellow—a very good man. Just a little older than you.”
Using her poker face, she simply nodded. “A valuable and helpful friend, no doubt.”
“Anton is the youngest member of Parliament.”
“He told me he works with his uncle, but he didn’t mention Parliament.” She couldn’t help but feel impressed.
“He is a humble man who represents a humble province.”
“He spoke fondly of his province.”
“His uncle is a good man too. I trust Albert Kovacs like a brother.”
“Speaking of brothers...” She instantly regretted her words, because his eyes grew very sad, and he reached for his handkerchief.
“I do not know what has become of Farcus,” he told her. “Albert has hired investigators, but no one is able to find him. I fear he is dead.”
She leaned forward, peering curiously at him. “But if he died on the fishing trip in Scotland, wouldn’t you have been notified?”
He slowly shook his head. “I do not know. Some are certain he has drowned. Maybe in a boating accident.”
“With no witnesses, no evidence, no body? That doesn’t make sense.”
“Prince Georg blames the Loch Ness Monster.” He scowled.
“You don’t believe that, do you?”
“No.” He looked more tired than ever, and Adelaide got out of her chair so she could kneel by his side. She took his hand.
“I’m sorry to have troubled you. Please, don’t worry. Perhaps your brother is simply enjoying an extended vacation. Maybe he met someone and plans to bring home a new wife. Wouldn’t that be nice?”
King Max smiled, clasping her hand with both of his. “You are good medicine, mein lieber. But you are right in your assessment. Iamtired. Let me rest. You come back to dine with me ... at six? I keep da hours of der Greis—a very old man. You come back then, ja?”
“Ja. I will see you at six.” She leaned over to kiss his cheek, which probably surprised her more than him, because he simply leaned back, closed his eyes, and smiled.
She stood and quietly slipped out to see both the king’s aide and a uniformed nurse waiting with anxious expressions. Shewas barely out the door before they hurried past her to check on the king. She went back down the dimly lit hallway, hoping that Anton had stuck around like he’d promised. The youngest member of Parliament and he’d never said a word.
“There you are.” He came up from behind her in the entry hall. “Your visit was longer than we expected. I was just talking to my uncle.” He pocketed his phone. “Did the visit go well?”
“I, uh, I think so.” She felt on the verge of tears, wishing that she, like the king, had a clean white handkerchief tucked in her pocket.
“Your things have been placed in your room.” He put his elbow out for her to take. “I’ll show you where that is and, if you are willing, I’ll wait while you take a moment to freshen up and then I will take you to lunch.”
