“That’s true. She was a total mess, Arabella. Trust me,” Nikki adds. “And you’ve got those ‘Will’s Wild Girls’ who would love to see your head on a spike.”
“Thanks for that image,” I say, wrinkling up my nose. “They’re not going to be a problem. Honestly. I’m sure they’re a bunch of tweens sitting in bedrooms that have been freshly decorated with unicorn everything. Besides, not only have I learned a lot from watching what you and Arthur went through, but Will and I have already made it through some crazy shit together. Literal life and death stuff. And when push came to shove, we chose each other.” I pick up a spring roll with one hand, dip it in the plum sauce, and take an enormous bite. When I’m done chewing, I say, “The truth is, though, I need some advice from you, Tess. But not about the show. I need to help him ease into royal life.”
Tessa tilts her head and stares at me for a second. “I thought you and Will were going Megxit.”
“NotfullMegxit,” I say, my stomach tightening at the idea of giving up my entire life for the unknown. “I mean, I considered it briefly, but it’s all so much more complicated than it seemed at first, what with the need for a security detail and letting all my charities down and—”
“Having to pay for everything yourself…” Nikki adds.
“That too,” I answer. “Also, I’ve got the UN gig now, which is something I’ve always dreamed of. I can’t really abandon ship now, can I?”
Tessa sips her vodka. “I suppose not. How does Will feel about joining the royal ranks?”
I push my chicken ball around on my plate with my fork so as to avoid eye contact with her. “Um, I’m sure he’ll be fine with it. I mean, once he gets to know everyone and gets a glimpse at all the perks.”
“Have you twonottalked about this?” Tessa asks.
Clearing my throat, I say, “Not as such. The truth is, we’ve only gotten as far as knowing with absolute certainty that wedowant a life together. I mean, that bit alone takes a while. But, now that we’re here, we’ll sort it out. Right?” I ask, glancing back and forth between them.
Tessa makes a clicking sound and sucks some air in through her teeth. “I don’t know, this would be a complete lifestyle overhaul for a man like Will. It’s not exactly footloose and fancy-free.”
“You could build him a gigantic jungle gym in the meadow,” Nikki offers.
“He’s not amonkey,” I say. “Surely, Will and I can find a way for him to meet his need for adventure whilst allowing me to continue on with my family and charitable obligations. It can’t bethat hard, can it?”
“Maybe.” Nikki rips open a packet of plum sauce and squeezes some onto her plate. “Especially if you two keep filming survival shows even after you’re married.”
“Well, I’ll be quite busy as a UN ambassador, but he can certainly continue on doing a show or two a year,” I say. “The whole thing will fit in quite nicely with whatever charities he wants to take on actually.”
“Why do I get the feeling you’re trying to come up with a way to sell this to him?” Tessa asks.
“Because I am,” I admit, feeling a pang of guilt. “The thing is, as soon as I got back here, I realized how much I missed my life. Well, aspects of it anyway, like you two, and Gran, and the twins and well, frankly, living in a palace isn’t all that bad either. And now that I’m finally doing somethingmeaningful, I don’t want to give that up, and honestly, I don’t think Will would ever ask me to. He’s not that kind of man.”
Risking a glance at Tessa, I can instantly tell I won’t like what she’s got to say. I quickly continue before she can impart her happily-married-woman wisdom. “I’m not about to make any major decisions without him, and if this life made him terribly miserable, we’d figure something else out. I was hoping you may have some ideas as to how I could help him findhis own version of this life.”
Tessa sighs. “I’m not sure how many versions of this life are possible. It’s kind of a full-on lifestyle, and once you’re in it, you get sucked in all the way.”
“Which I would happily welcome,” Nikki adds. “No more scrubbing scalps for a living.”
I pour myself another margarita, then top up Nikki’s. “So, you’d be happy to give up your career for this life?”
“In a heartbeat,” Nikki says, taking a long pull of her drink. “But I’m not sure I have the same feelings about my career that your man does. I pretty much became a hair stylist for the gossip.”
I chuckle, then my heart drops when I think of Will. “He really does adore his job.” I sigh and look at Tessa. “You had to leave the journalism world for Arthur. Do you ever regret it?”
She sets her fork down. “Yes and no. I mean, when I realized I had to quit working as a reporter, it was a bit of a shock in a way, as stupid as that sounds. But I had to ask myself what Ireallywanted to get out of reporting the news. Clearly, it wasn’t the money because I never made much at it. It was respect, which is something I have now.”
“Do you?” Nikki asks, wrinkling up her nose.
We all laugh, then Tessa says, “For the most part, I’d say so. Well, among my family anyway.” Holding up one finger, she says, “Now that I’m doing so much charity work and I’m momming, they see me as slightly less of a failure than they used to. It’s nice, really.”
“Okay, good. That’s good,” I say. “I’m sure Will wants respect, too, and we can make that happen, no?”
“Maybe, but men are different.” Tessa stands and drops some ice into her glass, then free-pours more vodka, apparently deciding to stretch her ‘two-drinks’ as far as possible. “Arthur would never agree to live off of me, if I were the one with the cash.”
“Well, that’sArthur,” I say, my hackles going up slightly. “Will and Arthur are about as different as two people can get.”
“Tessa might be right,” Nikki says. “It’s harder for a man to join a royal family than a woman. Think of Prince Phillip. He did not adjust wellat allto being the consort to the queen.”
