Great. Just what they needed. “So the presumption is that we’re engaged?”
Her only answer was a single nod.
Enzo sat back, letting his hand slide out from under hers as he brought it up to pinch the bridge of his nose, something he’d been doing far more than normal often in recent weeks.
“My first inclination is to neither confirm nor deny for the time being.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and senta message to his senior aide to set up a meeting with the Communications and Public Relations Director, or CPRD, as soon as possible - to the point of interrupting almost anything else on his agenda. “Can you get in touch with the PR Director in Southern Santiero? We need to coordinate our responses.”
“She said she’ll make herself available whenever we need her, just give her a ten-minute warning.” Victoria sank against the back of her own chair. “I’m sorry this is coming now. You’ve got enough to deal with here and I’m adding to it.”
A smile slid back onto his face. “It’s not your fault. We both know there’s always a chance of a long lens photographer seeing us. There’s very few places that are safe.” The knock on the door meant the CPRD must have arrived. “Let your PR Director know we’ll be in touch momentarily?”
Enzo stood and walked toward his desk calling for the CPRD to come in. Victoria let him know her PR Director was standing by for their call.
A few minutes later, they were seated at the conference table with a couple of people from Southern Santiero on a video call.
Victoria leaned over and whispered to him. “It just hit me - I never talked to my brother.”
“Your brother?” She had several brothers. Then it hit him, and he lowered his voice. “You didn’t tell Frederick?”
She gave a slight shake of her head. “I never saw him privately. He was recovering from surgery and only came back right before I left.”
Great. Enzo didn’t let his smile slip and betray his frustration. He hadn’t expected to need to make that phone call next. “Before we begin, I do need you to know that the princess did not have the opportunity for a private audience with the king to discuss any of this. He will be our next call.”
There were nods and murmurs of assent from those gathered.
Enzo sat back and gave a nod to his CPRD who then took over the meeting. He didn’t pay as much attention as he probably should have but the odds were that he’d take whatever advice they came up with.
It didn’t take long to come to the consensus that, for the time being, both palaces would say nothing. They would speak with her brother first. The palaces would confirm it was Enzo and Victoria in the photos, but nothing beyond that and only if asked directly. The Southern Santierians hadn’t even confirmed the accuracy of Victoria’s agreement with the question about being engaged.
Fifteen minutes later, everyone else had left, and Victoria had scheduled a video conference with her brother for later in the day.
“It’s time for me to go spend some time with my mum.” Both his favorite and most dreaded part of every day. “She would love to meet you officially.”
He could see the hesitation written on her face, but she nodded.
Hand-in-hand, they left out the side door where very few would see them. This palace didn’t have many secret tunnels or hidden rooms, but there were a number of narrower, lesser known passageways he could use to get around quickly and unseen.
They emerged just outside the monarch’s family quarters. Though officially called an apartment, the size belied the term. In fact, it had multiple bedroom suites with their own dressing rooms and ensuite bathrooms, several sitting rooms, a kitchen, storage areas, as well as the monarch’s official suite which had a large ensuite bathroom, two large dressing rooms, a sitting room, a balcony overlooking the interior garden of the palace, and the actual bedroom.
Enzo and his siblings had spent most of their time living in this apartment. He’d moved to another, much smaller, apartment several years earlier. He knew he’d be expected to move into this one before long, but he hoped to put it off a while.
“How is she?” he asked the nurse sitting outside the door of one of the other bedrooms which had been turned into more of a hospital suite.
The man stood and bowed his head toward them. “Good afternoon, Your Royal Highness, ma’am.” He must not realize Victoria was a princess in her own right - he might not even know who she was. “It’s not her... worst day, sir.”
But not her best either. Clearly.
Taking a breath and being grateful for Victoria’s hand in his own, they entered so he could introduce his wife to his mother.
5
Since she was a young child, Victoria had known the proper way to greet royalty from her own country and others. She’d never been nervous before, so why was she now?
“Mum?” Enzo called softly as Victoria waited behind him and tried not to shift nervously from one foot to the other.
The room in the Monarch’s Quarters looked much like a hospital room, albeit much nicer - and quieter. The beeps normally associated with the equipment found in the room were muted. She’d noticed they were louder where the nurse was stationed outside the room. There must be some sort of remote monitoring that allowed the in room machines to be turned down.
Rather than the stark bedding normally found on these kinds of beds, the queen enjoyed much nicer options.
