But even if she was comfortable with having so many people helping her with daily and mundane tasks, she still didn't know if she'd ever fully settle in to the role and expectations.
Too late now.
The side door to her office opened without warning.
She didn't sit up straight. The only person who should be coming in from that direction was Enzo.
"Is everything all right?" The concern in his voice made her straighten more quickly than anything else would have.
"Yeah. Just contemplating my life."
A fleeting look of panic crossed his face. "Contemplating yourlife?"
"Not in a bad way, necessarily, just trying to wrap my mind around everything that's happened in the last few weeks and what it means for all aspects of my life." She picked up the file folder then dropped it back down. "Like how many different assistants and aides and everything else I'm supposed to have."
"It's different than any other life out there," he replied slowly. "Even those in the public eye because of their careers, like actorsand so on, can choose to take their life and live it out of the spotlight at some point. That's not something we can choose."
"No, we can't." She slumped back again. "It's just a momentary melancholy. I'm fine, I promise."
"Would you like to have lunch with me?"
He was asking her to have lunch? She'd joined him a few times, but never the other way around. "That would be lovely."
Enzo pulled his phone out of his pocket. "Have you ordered yet?"
She nodded. "I can have them send it to your office if there's enough time to change the delivery. Or I can just bring it over after it gets here."
Enzo shook his head and held out a hand to help her to her feet. Once on them, he pulled her into a comforting embrace. "I've already arranged to have mine sent here, unless you'd rather go somewhere else. Maybe eat outside?"
Victoria looked around - at least as much as she could with her cheek resting on his chest - and made a decision. "I'd rather not eat in either of our offices if we don't have to. Maybe just up in your quarters?"
"You mean our quarters?" he corrected. "We can do that."
With her arms wrapped around his waist and his around her, she couldn't think of anything better than some time alone with her husband.
It struckEnzo as a bit odd that Victoria hadn't mentioned her history lessons in several days. They'd taken to talking about them in the evenings. He remembered things he'd learnedyears earlier and details she hadn't heard before, though there was nothing lacking in the Royal Historian's lessons. Different people found different things important.
Enzo tended toward the personal stories while the Historian generally went in depth about things he considered important on a grander scale. Geopolitical alliances. Leaders of Parliament and the Council. Less about the interpersonal relationships between the people involved - at least the ones that he didn't consider important to the overall narrative.
But they hadn't had any of those discussions in days.
He finally decided to broach the subject one of the rare mornings when they had breakfast together. "Is everything going well with your history lessons? What era you studying right now?"
She gave a one-armed shrug. "I haven't had one in a few days. I don't know why. He just told me he'd let me know when to come back."
Enzo frowned. "He didn't give you a reason?"
"No. He was on the phone when I arrived. My Italian isn't great, but I understood enough to know something was wrong. I couldn't tell what, but he definitely acted off the entire time I was there. He said he’d let me know when the next one would be."
He didn't press for more information. She likely didn't have any more to give - or at least didn't know that she did.
The rest of breakfast didn't last long and they went their separate ways.
As he walked toward his office, Enzo let one of his aides know that he needed a meeting scheduled with the Royal Historian as soon as his schedule allowed.
About the time he sat behind his desk, a message came in that the Royal Historian was out of the office and had been for several days.
It surprised Enzo that he hadn't heard about it, but there wasn't really any reason why he should have. He asked his aide to find out more details about the absence and when he was expected to return. He supposed it gave Victoria more time to focus on the rapidly approaching state dinner.
