Page 31 of Her Royal Rebellion

That had me smirking. Mum would fall over if I said that to her, but it was one of my favorite Charlie-isms. Every time she said it, I thought of a small gold figurine frozen in place with a fixed smile, forever on a pedestal. It didn’t sound all that far off from my life, well a life with one of these men. They didn’t want me. They wanted the Princess of Lochland. Why didn’t my parents see that?

Did I not deserve more than that?

I froze as the white stable came back in view. Did they not think I should have more out of life than a loveless marriage based on money and titles? Didn’t my happiness matter?

I couldn’t believe my parents would be that heartless, but that’s how it looked right then.

The idea stung, but I couldn’t fixate on it.

“Isla, there you are!” Joseph called out. “Marius is arriving. You’re needed back at the palace immediately.” I groaned.

As I got closer, he met me and helped me off Jasmine before taking her reins. “Thanks for letting me know. Logan and Philippe are still out there. Would you mind letting them know where I went when they get back?”

He nodded once. His tan skin was lined with wrinkles that shifted as he smiled. “Can’t imagine they had any problems.”

I grinned and shook my head. “You’re a clever man, Joseph. I won’t forget that.’

He winked and led my horse back inside while I took the path to the palace.

12

Logan

“So, it’s safe to say Philippe isn’t a contender?” Shane asked as we rounded the corner to a better position in the ballroom.

“You should have seen it. You would have fallen off your horse.”

I chuckled, thinking about how the Belgium man attempted to romance the princess and ended up embarrassing himself. She even left before I returned to the stables with the disgraced Philippe. The lord wasn’t all that happy about getting left behind with her guard, but I doubted very much that Isla cared.

She looked beautiful, but unlike herself, in her gown. The ballroom was full of Lochish nobles and the family’s friends. I recognized several faces, but there were a handful of young women who I only vaguely recognized from pictures in Isla’s room. These must be the friends she called to come in and act as distractions.

When she told me and Shane what she’d done in response to her father’s announcement of the ball, I wanted to pick her up and hug her. She was a genius. Her parents couldn’t get upset that she invited her closest and most trusted friends to come meet the men who were pursuing her.

Of course, Isla’s friends were doing much more than that. They were acting as very discrete barriers between the princess and the various men who wanted to speak to her. She was currently sipping a bubbly drink and chatting with Charlie at a small table on the outskirts of the room. No one could say that she wasn’t trying or making herself available. She smiled and greeted the guests, but the men just happened to be occupied with her very determined friends.

“Watch this one.” Shane tilted his head in the direction of a tall brunette wearing a gold ball gown. She was stunning, and seemed to have Philippe under her spell. Every time he glanced in Isla’s direction, the brunette would side step, blocking him and ensuring his attention remained on her.

The downside of being a well-bred noble was the standard of impeccable manners. He couldn’t very easily excuse himself or risk offending a young, beautiful, powerful woman. If this was who I thought it was, the king of Spain would not appreciate Philippe disrespecting his youngest daughter.

I let a small smile slip. “He’s in quite a precarious situation.”

“And Marius is stuck as well.”

I scanned the room for the dark haired man. He stood out among the crowd with his slightly unruly appearance. He had a long, full beard and wore a flashy white, silk tux. Two of Isla’s friends were occupying him, but he wasn’t making nearly as much of an effort to pretend to be interested. His eyes stayed on Isla and he was slowly shifting so his back was to her. In a few more minutes he’d have an unobstructed path to the princess. He was clever.

The moment I laid eyes on him this afternoon, something in my gut put me on alert. He didn’t say or do anything suspicious. He wouldn’t still be around if he was that obvious, but this was more than me simply not liking a man that was here for the woman I cared about. No, this was my military training kicking in and telling me to watch carefully.

“See what he’s doing?” I asked quietly.

Shane didn’t respond immediately, but eventually caught on. “He’s moving them without their notice. He’s going to be able to quickly excuse himself and get to Isla in just a few more moments.”

I nodded as we watched exactly what he predicted unfold. There wasn’t anything we could or should do to stop it. As long as we were paying attention to the rest of the room and there was no threat to the princess, we were to remain unnoticed.

Isla looked up from Charlie when Marius approached them. I watched her forced, fake smile appear, then Charlie stood and left them alone. Isla shifted so her legs were folded away from him, and she leaned back in her seat, creating as much distance between them as possible. Was he not picking up on her body language? It screamed to leave her alone.

He continued talking to her, undeterred. She gave brief responses and her eyes roamed the area, probably looking for an escape. What were all of those friends doing? When her gaze met mine, I saw the plea. She wanted an interruption. She wanted me to come over, but I couldn’t. I knew my place. Unless she was in danger, I couldn’t simply walk up and ask for her to leave the man. That would raise more than a little suspicion.

My heart was breaking at her pained expression. I could only pray she knew how badly I wanted to be there for her. If things were different, I never would have let him within ten feet of her, but I had to remember who I was and more importantly who she was.