The remainder of their time with Priscilla wasn’t as bad as they expected. The woman clearly didn’t like them, but she maintained a professional distance and courtesy as she taught them the intricacies of spending time with the royal family.

Later, the day turned more physical. Geoffrey changed out of his butler’s uniform and into a sporty tracksuit, so he could teach them some self-defense basics. When he informed them that they could no longer be in public alone for security reasons, they both balked.

“You are in the public eye now. Whether you like it or not, you must abide by the royal protocols.” He told them firmly.

Neither woman liked it one bit, but it seemed childish to put up a fight about anything that might help keep them safe. When Geoffrey began giving them training on how to handle a kidnapping, it finally began to fully sink in with both of them how serious it was to be in any way linked to the royal family.

“While you’re staying in the kingdom, you need to limit your social media posting, unlike your American leaders.” Geoffey rolled his eyes to express his disdain before continuing. “In fact, anything you post will need to be sent through the royal censors before going live.”

The women didn’t even bother to respond to that. They both flopped down to rest on their training mat, feeling emotionally and physically drained. They hadn’t realized how big of a deal this was, and now that they were hearing all of the absurd rules and restrictions, it was tempting to push back or downright rebel. Neither of them were used to being told what they could do, when they would do it, or how it should be done.

Mo swiped her sweaty hair back away from her face when Geoffrey informed them that they could no longer take selfies or hug any fans that might approach them. They also weren’t allowed to give autographs.

Feeling utterly frustrated by the entire afternoon, Mo said, “Maybe it would be easier to give us a list of things we are allowed to do, rather than listing off all of these restrictions.”

Revealing that he was indeed human, Geoffrey chuckled at that, but he didn’t let up on their training in the slightest. By the time they went up to dress for dinner, both women were exhausted and overwhelmed.

They showered and primped half-heartedly. Tess admitted to Mo as they walked down the stairs that she would have been happier to climb into bed and skip dinner tonight.

Mo agreed, but said the only thing that had gotten her through the strenuous day was the thought of seeing Pierce tonight. Tess wished she had a love interest like that to make her evenings thrilling. Although excitement pulsed through her veins at the thought of seeing Sebastian again, she was fairly certain that he viewed her as merely another job responsibility.

It was possible that he even had a real girlfriend, whom he couldn’t wait to get back to, while he was stuck entertaining the prince’s love interest’s best friend.

The women had purposely arrived for dinner early, in an effort to appease the queen. They were surprised to find that Pierce and Sebastian were already seated at the massive table. Both men stood to greet them.

“Ah good, we beat her,” Tess said under her breath. The others gave her knowing smiles, proving that she must have said it louder than she intended.

Before long, the queen joined them. With little preamble, the first course was served. Both ladies waited until the queen was served before picking up their utensils. Tess couldn’t deny the swell of pride over how quickly they had learned all of the ins and outs of dining with the monarch. They might be uncouth Americans, but they could at least be taught the finer points of decorum.

The queen seemed to be in much better spirits tonight. She didn’t address the women directly, but chose instead, to chat amiably with Pierce and Sebastian. As they droned on about a particular ruling that the government was trying to slip through the cracks while the king was under the weather, Mo’s eyelids grew heavy.

She wanted to be interested in the details of what they were discussing, but it had been such a long and stressful day that she just couldn’t seem to focus on the legalese they were discussing at length.

It wasn’t until her face slammed down into her dinner plate, and she bolted upright with mashed potatoes on her nose, that she was fully awake.

Each person around the table gawked at her. Tess looked horrified and like she would gladly swap places with her friend if she could. The queen’s face resumed its pinched, sour lemon expression. Only Pierce and Sebastian looked amused.

It was Pierce who broke the silence with a loud guffaw of laughter. Tears immediately sprang to Mo’s humiliated face. Tess wanted to kick the prince for laughing at her friend at such a time, but the table was too massive for her foot to have any hope of reaching him.

Quickly picking up on the fact that Mo was mortified, the prince got his laughter under control, stood, and crossed to stand beside Mo’s chair. Looking down at her, he said, “Only you could make a face-full of mashed potatoes and gravy look adorable.” With that, he swiped the spuds from her nose before licking his finger clean.

Tess couldn’t believe her eyes. They had spent the entire day learning how to be proper, pretty princesses, and now the prince himself was eating mashed potatoes from Mo’s nose?!?

The audacious move effectively erased the tension from the room. Mo immediately relaxed and gazed up at her hero. Tess and Sebastian grinned at each other from across the table. Even the queen cracked a smile, which made Tess wonder if the woman’s face might actually break from its new, unstrained expression.

Obviously feeling much better, Mo turned to the waiter standing behind her chair and said, “I believe I’m finished with my meal.”

“Yes, ma’am,” he responded without cracking a smile at the idea that she might have continued eating after face-planting directly into her plate. Tess wondered if part of their training included never showing emotions in front of the royals. If so, the staff probably really cut loose when they were off-duty.

The queen waved her gloved hand to indicate that the main course was finished, and their plates were efficiently swept away. Tess would have preferred to finish the delicious garlic lemon chicken on her plate, but it would have been rude to continue eating after Mo’s disaster.

With a flourish, the queen said, “In honor of our American guests, the pastry chef has prepared warm apple pie à la mode for dessert.”

Tess and Mo both were flattered at the acknowledgement and honest attempt at friendliness from the royal matriarch. It was the first time she had been anything but disdainful to the two of them, and they appreciated the gesture.

When the dessert plates were presented to the entire table in unison, the queen said, “Now, let’s use our utensils rather our faces to eat our pie, shall we?”

Both ladies looked at the woman’s face to determine if she was being mean or teasing. When her thin lips turned up into the slightest bit of a smile, they all burst out with relieved laughter.

For the first time, Tess began to feel hope that the queen might eventually be able to accept Mo and her relationship with the prince. Their relaxed moment of camaraderie was crushed when the king barged into the dining hall.

“What’s for dinner?” he bellowed in a booming voice. It wouldn’t have been that outlandish of an entrance, if he had been wearing any pants.