Oh, my God! I’ve visited some impressive homes and Nikolai, Star’s billionaire husband, lives in one hell of an impressive mansion, but never in my wildest imagination could I envision something like this. First; the size. The room had to be easily larger than my entire flat back in London. Second; the beauty and luxury. One entire wall is made up of tall, narrow windows. Sunlight streams in through them and falls on the Princess bed. A fairytale canopy bed, draped in silks with lilac and gold stripes, and smaller strips of deep blue stretching up to each corner and surrounding the top of the bed.

The sheets are the snowiest imaginable. Four pillows in snowy cases line the top of the mattress. A blanket embroidered in gold is folded back and lies halfway down the mattress.

“Do you like the room?” Dante asks seemingly entertained by my reaction.

“What’s not to like? It’s gorgeous.” I walk toward the window.

Directly in front of me are painstakingly manicured formal gardens with their precise rows of flowering plants. I see three gardeners hard at work to keep it utterly immaculate. Beyond the city are rolling hills scattered with cottages that remind me of those one would expect to find in the Swiss Alps. One could never tire of a view like this no matter how often one saw it. I could stand here for hours. I’m overwhelmed already.

Dante comes to stand behind me. I lean back against his body. “Spectacular, isn’t it?” he says, wrapping his arms around my waist.

“It is a very unfair world we live in. Some people are born to this and others are born starving in Africa.”

He kisses the side of my neck and there is a catch in his voice. “It is the way of the world, bella.”

There’s a soft knock on the door and Dante turns toward it.

“Miss Winchester’s luggage is here, Your Highness,” the maid announces from the doorway.

“Bring it in,” Dante says, and a male servant brings my suitcase through the door.

Dante speaks to him in rapid Avantian, then turns to me, a scowl on his face. “Rosa, would you mind if I leave you and go to see my horse. He’s too old to ride now, but he is bonded to me, and he is not very well. It will make him happy to see me again.”

“Yes, of course, go see him. I’ll be fine. I’m still exploring my room!” I say.

“I will introduce you to him tomorrow,” he says, coming over and kissing me gently on my forehead.

“Please don’t worry about me. Go see your horse.”

After he strides out of the room, the maid who had been hanging around the door speaks up. “Would you like for me to unpack for you, Miss Winchester?”

“Thank you, but that won’t be necessary as I didn’t pack very much.”

“My name is Elsa and if you need me for anything at all you can call me by pressing this button,” she says pointing to one of the buttons hidden under a bit of swirling material over the bed.

I thank her and she starts to walk out, then stops, and curtsys. “The clothes in your suitcase must be creased by now, I’d be happy to steam them for you.”

I smile. “You know what, Elsa. I’d love some help unpacking. Thank you.”

She smiles back, then goes to my suitcase and carrying it, opens the door to a walk-in closet that would make the Kardashians envious. My meager possessions will hardly make a dent. I see myself reflected again and again down the length of the closet.

“If you need to refresh yourself while I put away your belongings, Miss Winchester,” Elsa says pointing to another door.

“Thanks, and please call me, Rosa.”

She looks shocked. “Oh, that would not be proper, Miss Winchester.”

No wonder Dante ran away from all this rigid adherence to tradition and regulations. Shaking my head, I step into the bathroom. The counters are covered in gleaming white and black marble. There are two matching sinks, each with—can they be real gold faucets? Inside my own head, I utter a few more “wows.” A mammoth Jacuzzi bath stands to one side, and in another corner is a massive shower.

By the time I freshen up and come out Elsa has finished unpacking my luggage. “Unless there’s anything else, Miss Winchester, I will go and steam these clothes, and arrange for your ball gown to be professionally taken care of tonight.”

I give her a grateful smile. “Nothing else, Elsa. Thank you. I appreciate your help.”

Elsa closes the door behind her and I have to go up on tip toes to reach the top of the bed. The mattress sinks under me. I have never slept in a bed this sumptuous. I run my fingers lightly on the silky embroidered thread. Star and Cindy will die when I tell them about all this. Just as I am about to call Star, I hear a knock on the door.

“Who is it?” I call.

“Cassandra. May I come in?”

Cassandra. It must be Dante’s sister-in-law. “Of course,” I say, and hurry towards the door, but before I have a chance to reach it, a beautiful woman rushes inside. She grabs me around the waist and leaning forward, kisses both my cheeks.

“Rosa,” she says, “it is so nice to meet you at last.”

“At last?” I echo. To be honest I’m stunned by her extraordinary friendliness after the formal way everyone else in the palace has behaved.

She steps back and gives me a sparkling smile. She’s a slender woman maybe a few years younger than I am. Her hair is pale blonde, and her complexion is creamy. She is wearing a knee-length dark green silk dress with a pattern of yellow roses. I recognize it instantly as this year’s summer collection from Gucci.

“Yes. I’ve been wondering about the woman who could enchant Dante so much that he’s now ready to get married and settle down.”

“Enchant? That’s a quaint word I hardly ever hear anymore.”

She wrinkles her nose charmingly. “Perhaps there is a better word. I directly translated the word we use in Avantian. Should I have used the word hook instead?”

I grin. “No. don’t use that word. It makes Dante sound like a fish.”

She giggles. “I heard you’re the new editor of Fashion Rome. It is one of my favorite magazines.”

“I’m afraid I’ve been the editor for such a short time, I haven’t done a single thing yet.”

“I’m sure you’ll do a great job … that is, if you continue.”

“What do you mean?”

She looks surprised. “Surely, you won’t continue with the magazine after you and Dante get married, will you?”

“Yes, I will. I want to work and Dante is fine with that.”

Her eyebrows rise. “Oh.” Then she smiles suddenly. “We need to sit down and have a good gossip session.”

Slightly taken aback, I stare at her. This is a princess, and she wants to gossip. She carries on looking at me expectantly so I motion in the direction of a nest of sofas and chairs, not really expecting her to take up my offer, but she immediately crosses in front of me and floats down into one of the winged chairs. I follow her and sit at one end of the sofa.

“So tell me all about how you met,” she invites.

My eyes widen at her directness.

“You’ll get used to me. Everyone eventually does, though it takes some people a lot of time.”

I laugh. “Yes, Dante told me about you.”

She leans forward eagerly. “What did he say?”

“Well, for one thing, he said you bring a breath of fresh air to the palace.”

“He said that, did he? That’s very nice of him. And what else did he tell you about me?”

“That you’re sassy.”

She throws back her head and laughs. “An apt description, I must say.” Then she becomes serious. “So come on. Tell me about how you met Dante, but most of all how you managed to tame him when no other woman could.”

“Well, I don’t know that I’ve tamed him.”

She gives me a meaningful look. “I watched you arriving from my window and he looked pretty tame to me.”

“He did?”

She nods. “It is common knowledge that Dante sowed a lot of wild oats in his time and you’ve put an end to all of it.” She glances at me more closely. “In the beginning, I had a choice between the two brothers, but I couldn’t be hacked with someone as wild as Dante. I mean, I would never be able to relax. What if he went back to his old ways? No, Linnus is much more my speed. Besides I wasn’t that special person to make a man like Dante stop whoring and settle down.”

I touch my stomach. “Well, I don’t think I am either, but he really wants to make this work for the sake of the child.”

“It doesn’t matter why, I’m just so glad you’re going to be a part of the family.” Even though we are the only people in the room she leans forward and whispers conspiratorially. “Linnus’s parents are so stuffy. It’s like they are caught in a time warp.”

“But I read they are one of the most progressive royal families in Europe.”

“No, that is not a word I would use on them. Not that I dislike either one of them. Far from it. I like them very much, but they wouldn’t know what progressive was if it sat up and slapped them with a wet fish.”

“Oh! Can you tell me about them? What they’re like?”

Her eyes run down my body. “They’ll like you; I’m certain of it, though neither of them likes to show any emotion in public. When I first got here I wondered if they had sex with all their clothes on.”

My eyes widen. I definitely did not want to gossip about Dante’s parents in this way. “I suppose they have their traditions and responsibilities to live up to.”

“You can say that again. They certainly keep their traditions going.” She laughs. “Just promise me something.”

“What?”

“Once you’re married to my brother-in-law, please don’t change and become like everyone else in this palace.”

“I’ll certainly try.” I look into her eyes. “Seems you managed that just fine.”

“I’d like to think so. I’ll kill myself before I become one of the walking dead around here.”

I laugh. “If you don’t mind my asking are you also from a royal background?”

“I don’t mind at all.” She sighs. “My father is a Count.”

“A Count?”

“Minor royalty, I suppose. But my father never much considered that important.” She raises her eyes to meet mine. “I hope you don’t hold it against me.”

I gaze at her surprised. “Why would I do such a thing?”

“Inverse snobbery is very fashionable these days. Talking about fashion, how would you like to go shopping tomorrow afternoon?”

“Shopping?”

“Why not? Avanti is a tiny country, but we have excellent stores. Nearly anything you’d ever want is right here.”

“Uh … it’s just I don’t know what plans Dante has made.”

She laughs as if I have said something really funny. “Dante wouldn’t have made any plans for tomorrow afternoon. He knows that you have to get ready for the ball.” She frowns. “Did you bring something for the ball?”

“Yes, I brought a dress.”

She springs up. “Show me.”

I go to the walk-in closet with her following closely behind. I open the cupboard and take out my dress. It’s made of black lace, with floral appliqués across the bodice.

She frowns. “Well, it’s very nice, but I’m afraid it won’t be grand enough. You’re the guest of honor.”

I look at the dress that I had thought would be perfect because of its simplicity.

“Don’t worry. I know just the place we can get something awesome for you.”

I take my time hanging the dress back in the closet while I decide what is the best way to handle the situation. Judging by the fact that she is wearing the latest Gucci dress while she is technically at home, a shopping expedition with her will definitely be more expensive than I can afford. I turn back. “I … er … ”

“What?” she asks, her bright eyes round with curiosity.

To my relief, I am saved by a knock at the door. “Rosa, are you there?” Dante calls.

We walk back into the bedroom. “Yes, come on in.”

“Hey, Cassandra,” Dante says as he walks in.

“It is good to see you again, Dante.”

“Likewise.” He turns to me. “You okay?”

“Yeah. Cassandra and I are just becoming acquainted”

“I’m trying to persuade your fiancée to take a shopping trip with me tomorrow afternoon. We need to get her a suitable ball gown, but she is reluctant because she doesn’t know what you have planned for her.”

He turns to look at me. “Yes, go get something lovely for yourself. Just put everything on my account.”

Cassandra winks at me. “See how easy that was. Right. I’ll see you at 2 p.m. tomorrow?”