Chapter Thirteen

It took a bit of work to track down Barret, since they couldn’t call Fiona to ask where he was. Finally, they found him in the sitting room of his suite, about to have afternoon tea. He’d answered the door himself, looking startled to see them, but stepped aside to allow them entry. “I was just about to have tea. Would you care to join me?”

“We don’t have time for tea,” said Bennet.

Harper took a step forward, putting a hand on Bennet’s shoulder and squeezing lightly. “Thank you, Your Highness. We’d be honored.

“That’s Your Majesty,” said Tucker softly.

“Just Barret will do,” said the king. “Let me ring for more tea for everyone, and then you can tell me what’s on your mind.”

Harper felt strange in the king’s private quarters, sitting down to have tea with him. In an abstract way, she knew he was Bennet’s brother, which meant if they continued a relationship, he might eventually become family of some sort to her as well, but the thought was just intimidating.

“We’re in a hurry here, Barret.”

Barret seemed unmoved by Bennet’s urgency. “There’s usually time for tea.”

It was such a British response, even though he was Montrovian, that it almost made Harper giggle. She suspected her need to laugh was more to do with nerves than anything, so she stifled the impulse and took a seat on the pristine white sofa across from the king. Tucker sat beside her, but Bennet made no move to transition to either sofa.

The king placed the call for more tea before turning his attention to them. “What’s troubling you, Bennet?”

“I fired Fiona, and I need you to support that.”

Barret frowned. “Why in the world would you fire Fiona? She’s a consummate professional.”

“She’s a meddling bi—”

“She’s done something questionable,” inserted Harper before Bennet could finish his statement. “Your brother would like to tell you about that in a cool and calm manner.”

Bennet grimaced at her. “I can try,” he said in a grumpy voice before turning his attention to his brother. He quickly explained the situation, and the king’s shock grew by the moment.

They were interrupted by the arrival of another tray of tea, and the uniformed gentlemen poured them all a cup before leaving. After that, they sat in silence for a moment as Barret stirred his tea and stared into the milky depths as though they had all the answers he needed. “You realize she did commit an ethics violation?” He studiously avoided looking at her when he said the words.

Harper swallowed as Bennet let out a harsh breath. Tucker had been quiet, but now he spoke. “I don’t believe so, Your Majesty. Bennet has made great improvements with Harper here, and whatever their relationship outside of physical therapy sessions, I don’t believe it had any influence on her performance. She’s taking good care of the prince, and losing her license for falling in love seems pretty harsh to me.”

Barret inclined his head, but didn’t verbally agree or disagree. “I agree Fiona went about this the wrong way, but I’m still not convinced she needs to be fired. We’ll speak with her.”

Bennet looked like he was going to protest, so Harper stretched forward to put her hand on his knee. “Why don’t we let Barret handle this at his pace?”

He looked unhappy with the suggestion, but settled back in his chair. His arms crossed over his chest revealed he wasn’t planning to be open to any of Fiona’s defenses, and she couldn’t blame him. She felt the same way, but she understood the king had the need to do it in his own fashion. He was almost certainly closer to Fiona than any of them, since she was his personal assistant and probably managed every facet of his life.

They waited in a tense silence after Barret had made the call summoning Fiona to his suite. Harper didn’t speak because she was afraid of saying the wrong thing, and Bennet appeared to be just barely holding himself in check. Tucker looked miserable, and she reached out to pat his knee in a show of silent support. He might not like having feelings for Fiona, but he did have them, so this had to be especially difficult for him.

She arrived less than five minutes after she was summoned, and when she entered the suite, at first she swept in with an air of confidence that quickly crumbled when she saw Harper, Bennet, and Tucker seated with the king. Her doubt was betrayed by the quicksilver morphing of her expression before she regained control. She straightened her shoulders and sounded colder than ever when she looked only at the king and said, “I’m here for you, Your Majesty.”

Barret still held his teacup, though he hadn’t appeared to drink any while waiting for her arrival. Now, he took a long sip as he eyed her, as though looking for something only he could see. When he set down the cup and saucer on the table, his shoulders squared. “I’ve heard some disturbing allegations leveled against you, Fiona. Please tell me honestly if you had anything to do with reporting Ms. Gaines’ ethics violation to her licensing board.”

Fiona took a deep breath. “I did. I’m the one who filed the report.”

Bennet practically snarled, Tucker’s shoulders drooped, and the king betrayed no reaction as Harper watched all of them interact. It was strangely as if she was outside of herself, as though the outcome of this had no effect on her. Technically, that was true, since Fiona remaining or leaving had little impact on her. She was surprisingly calm about what the other woman had done, though it had cost her the position she’d worked so hard for—though that wasn’t technically accurate. Her own actions had been just as much to blame, and while she couldn’t understand why Fiona had reported her, she accepted her own share of the blame enough to know she couldn’t shift it all onto Fiona.

“I see.” Barret eyed her with a severe expression. “What prompted you to take such an action, and without input from me, Fiona?”

“I was trying to protect the family. She’s not good enough to be a Casparian, so I assumed she would just stay in the United States if she lost her license. I’m trying to avert a scandal.”

“That’s an unfair judgment to level against her. I think it matters more whether Bennet wants her to be a part of this family than if you think she should be.”

Fiona’s coolness started to crumble, and her eyes sparkled with anger. “She’s an American, and a common one at that. She has no class or breeding, and nothing to bring to the table. If I’m not good enough to be part of this family, she certainly isn’t.” Fiona looked horrified, clapping her hand over her mouth as she spoke the words.

Harper shared a frown of confusion with Bennet, while Tucker looked resigned again.

“I told you so,” he whispered softly, clearly still clinging to his theory that Fiona was in love with Bennet.

“Are you saying you did this because of jealousy? Did you plan to eliminate Miss Gains from Bennet’s life so you might have a chance with him?” Barret asked the question in a levelheaded fashion, as though the answer wasn’t truly important.

Fiona suddenly burst into tears. “I’m not in love with him. That’s sick and disgusting.”

“I’m afraid I don’t understand why that would be so disgusting? We often develop feelings for people when it isn’t appropriate,” said Barret with a strong note of confidence that suggested he spoke from experience. “There’s no shame in loving someone, but the actions you take from that love might be worthy of being ashamed.”

“I’m not in love with Bennet. He’s my half-brother, just like you are.” Fiona was sobbing now, and Tucker got to his feet. She didn’t turn away from him when he put an arm around her, offering comfort.

Harper was still gasping from the revelation, and she could see the shock on Bennet’s face. Barret’s reflected it as well. “That’s a strong allegation to make. Do you have any proof?”

Fiona spent a moment crying, clearly having trouble regaining control. When she spoke, her voice was thick with tears. “My mother was your father’s chambermaid, and she offered him comfort after your mother’s death, Barret. Their relationship lasted only a short while, and when he discovered she was pregnant, he wrote her a hefty check and sent her away. He couldn’t have a bastard child tainting the Montrovian royal family.”

Fiona sniffed, and Harper reached for a tissue beside her before holding it out to the other woman.

She wiped her face before continuing. “Before she died, my mother revealed who my father was, and I wanted to get to know you all. She’d made it clear that I wasn’t good enough to be part of your family, as had the king before you, Barret, but I was still curious. When you hired me, it seemed like fate, and I’ve done everything I can to protect the family’s image.”

“Including staying disassociated from it to avoid risking scandal,” said Barret softly. “Fiona, if you’re telling us the truth, I want you to know that both my father and your mother were wrong. You would certainly be good enough to be part of our family, but your actions have harmed us, and I can’t have you in a position of trust. You’re dismissed from service, but I’d like you to remain in the palace for the time being as a guest of the family while we await DNA tests.”

Harper watched Fiona carefully, looking for any sign of misgivings or hesitation that might reveal what she had claimed wasn’t true. Instead, the woman just looked stunned, and perhaps a little hopeful. “Thank you, Your Majesty.”

“If you’re my half-sister, I think you’d better call me Barret, don’t you, Fiona?”

She nodded, but didn’t repeat the name at his invitation. “I’ll return to my room and remain there until the results of the tests come in.”

“Isn’t your room next to mine, Fiona?” asked Harper.

Fiona looked at her, and there was a hint of regret in her gaze. “It is, but I promise I’ll stay out of your way, Ms. Gaines. I’m sorry for harming you. I simply wanted to maintain the integrity of the Casparian family.”

“I think your dedication to a family that you didn’t think you would ever be a part of is admirable,” said Harper. “I actually just asked because I wanted to point out that you’re in the servants’ quarters. Perhaps you should have a suite on this side of the house?”

Bennet stiffened and glared at Fiona. “You put Harper in the servants’ quarters? What the hell, Fiona? I thought she was down the hall, just like Tucker.”

Harper frowned at him. “That isn’t important right now, Bennet.”

He crossed his arms over his chest. “If she’s moving to this side of the house, so are you.”

Harper shrugged. “I have no objection, but the final decision isn’t mine.”

“I assume it rests with you and Bennet,” said Barret. He looked at Fiona and Tucker. “Dr. Carlton, will you please assist Fiona with transferring her possessions from her current room to the gold suite at the end of the hallway?”

Tucker looked a bit like he’d won the lottery, and his arm tightened even more around Fiona’s waist. “I’d be happy to help, Your Majesty.” With those words, he turned Fiona and carefully steered her from the room, and his exaggerated motions made Harper grin. He was acting as if Fiona could shatter at the slightest touch, and he was determined to be the one to act as her buffer. Maybe it would give him the opening he’d been seeking so that Fiona would give him a chance to reveal his feelings.

Bennet barely seemed to hold himself in until the door closed behind them. “How can you accept her words so calmly? You should send her on the next plane out of here and back to England, where she belongs.”

Barret reached for his tea, sipping calmly again. “And if she really is our sister, how would that be? We would be rejecting her.”

“I don’t care. I don’t want anything to do with her after what she did the Harper.”

Harper leaned forward, taking his hands. “She did hurt me, but please think about it, Bennet. She spent her whole life, or at least the last few years, believing she wasn’t good enough to be part of the royal family because she was illegitimate. She actually has Casparian blood flowing through her veins, and she considered herself unworthy. Imagine how she would feel about me, an American commoner, who might bring scandal to the family if you and I deepened our relationship. I’m not condoning her actions, but I do understand them. I think you should give her a chance.”

Bennet sneered. “I don’t care what the DNA tests say. She’ll never be my sister.”

“You shouldn’t be so harsh with her. We’ve all made mistakes, Bennet. If Fiona proves to be related to us, I hope you’ll give her a chance. Try to move past what’s happened, because bitterness is not baggage you want to carry for the rest of your life.” Once again, something in his voice and expression revealed a glimpse that he was speaking from personal experience.

“Whatever. I’m not going to debate this at the moment when we don’t even know if she’s our sister.”

“She does have almost the same shade of blue eyes as you and Asher,” said Harper in a musing tone. “The king and Sabrina both have green eyes, but your purple-blue is fairly distinctive. Hers is a little more blue than purple, but when I think about it in this new light, with new information, I believe I see a resemblance.”

“I believe you see what you want to, because you hope to excuse the behavior she undertook to hurt you. It’s easier to take if she did it to protect someone else than simply because she wanted you out of the way.”

She let out a sigh at Bennet’s words, realizing she wasn’t going to get through to him. It would take time for him to adjust if Fiona proved to be their sister.

“If you’ll excuse me, I’ve had enough drama for the afternoon, and I still have a few phone calls to make after my tea break is over.”

Recognizing the polite dismissal, Harper leaned forward to set the cup and saucer that she had held without sipping from onto the tray before standing up. She went behind Bennet and grasped the handles of his chair to turn him in the right direction, trying to facilitate their exit. “Thank you for your assistance in this matter, Your Majesty.”

He inclined his head. “Barret, please.”

“Thank you, but I don’t think I could do that just yet.” It was too intimidating to think of calling the regal man across from her anything but King or some other formal title. Perhaps she’d be comfortable enough to use his first name in the next twenty years or so, assuming she was there that long.

That thought made her heart skip a beat, and she stumbled slightly as she walked beside Bennet, who insisted on wheeling himself. Their future was uncertain, but she was optimistic that she would be there for at least twenty years, and hopefully for the rest of her life.