Page 22 of Her Royal Rebellion

Silence was my answer. I waited, hoping he would crack. He knew something. A man in his particular position always had information. Whether or not he felt the need to share it, that was unknown.

“I just want to protect the princess, Tomas.”

He swallowed. “His technology company is looking to expand. He wants to build a second headquarters somewhere in Europe. Several countries are courting him to bring his business there. I heard a few Americans are trying to persuade him as well.”

“How interesting.”

He hummed his agreement.

I wasn’t sure if he knew what that bit of knowledge meant for me, or Isla. Surely, Tomas would have kept his mouth sealed if this was a top secret development.

Unless, the king wanted her to find out what was at stake. He knew if Tomas slipped the information to me, I would pass it on. He wanted Isla to offer herself up in exchange for the headquarters? It was too devious, even for the King. I doubted he knew how close his daughter and I were. I was overthinking things.

Which meant he didn’t think Isla would find out. Not unless Jean told her himself. What would Isla think of this? Bringing in a company as large as Jean’s would mean more jobs for her people. Increased revenue, tourism from employees of the company, and it could push Lochland ahead in the technology race so many countries were fighting in.

It would almost be enough to convince her to sacrifice for the good of her people. I wanted to believe she wouldn’t sell herself short. That she would ask Aiden to step in and negotiate a deal that didn’t include binding her future to a stranger’s.

But if asked, she would do nearly anything for her country. My heart sank.

The moment I got back to the bunks, I would tell Shane what I’d learned. We had to come up with a plan. It might be time for me to tell Shane how I felt about Isla. It was worth the risk to protect the princess.

9

Isla

Jean was charming. More so than I expected. He was poised and said all the right things. My parents were taken with him. I noticed it the second they walked in how they surrounded him and quickly pulled him into a conversation.

Weren’t they concerned by the significant age difference of at least fourteen years? I was two years out of university and he was the owner of a major technology company, established and experienced in life.

I watched him converse with my parents over dinner and wondered if maybe he would be a better fit as a friend for them than a spouse for me. He looked at my father with so much admiration, like a loyal subject. The sight made me lose my appetite. Clearly the man had a mission, and it wasn’t me.

Peter, sitting beside me at the dining table, leaned close. “Is he here to get to know you or the King?”

I shot him a look. At least I wasn’t the only one who noticed. “I have a feeling I understand this suitor business all a bit more.”

His eyebrows rose a fraction. “What do you mean?”

I checked to make sure Jean and my parents were distracted before bowing my head toward him. “He’s someone my dad can easily influence. He has something my dad can benefit from. It has nothing to do with me.”

Peter’s eyes drifted to the far end of the table where my parents invited Jean to sit. “I think you may be right, Isla.”

He didn’t sound entertained anymore, his voice now held concern.

I dabbed the corners of my mouth and set my napkin in front of my finished dinner plate, hoping to signal the servers to speed things along. Too bad they only cared about my father’s pace. They were so caught up in their discussion there wasn’t a single complaint about the tofu or chickpeas.

“Why are you here?” As glad as I was to have a visit from my friend. I knew he wasn’t here to get to know me or with an interest in marriage. When I asked him earlier he distracted me with tales of his recent travels to South America.

He deflated a bit. “I’m not sure this is the best dinner conversation.”

I wanted answers, but I understood the request for discretion. “Do you promise to tell me as soon as we’re done?”

He agreed and I found Charlie and Aiden watching us. Aiden’s eyes bounced from Jean and back to me before he cocked his head to the side, just slightly.

I rolled my eyes to convey my annoyance. I wasn’t positive of Jean’s motives yet, but I knew he wasn’t here for me any more than Peter was. At the moment, I was quite sick of being used.

Charlie gave me a sad smile. We were only on the entrée course. We still had dessert and drinks to go. I wouldn’t be allowed to excuse myself from dinner early, not without repercussions later. My only option was to endure and hope I got some valuable information out of the night.

“Isla, what do you think about that?” Mum asked me and I glanced back to Aiden for help. He shook his head slightly. He wasn’t listening either. Wonderful.