The Prince was at his uncle’s office bright and early the next morning. The King had requested that he sit in on a meeting, after which they would talk.

The King’s secretary escorted him to a room he hadn’t been in before, an interior room with no windows and only one heavy door with a guard outside. Inside the room, his uncle’s national security advisors were gathered. They all stood when Raffaele entered the room, and he quickly waved them back into their seats.

“Good morning, gentlemen,” he said, wondering to himself where he should sit.

An older man in a dark suit gestured to an empty chair towards the middle of the table. “Your Highness, why don’t you take this seat?”

Raffaele realized it had been reserved for him, so he nodded his thanks to the man and moved to sit. Before he could, the door opened again and everyone in the room stood once more.

“Good morning,” King Filippo said. “Take your seats, everyone.” Raffaele’s uncle looked at him. “Prince Raffaele, thank you for joining us this morning.”

“Thank you for inviting me,” Raffaele replied courteously.

“Let’s get started. Matthias, where are we?”

Raffaele listened closely through the briefing. The main subject was the military operation with Spiaggi’s allies, and Raffaele quickly understood that this was the operation his father told him he was likely to join. It was a short meeting, filled with terms Raffaele didn’t know yet, but he resolved to learn them quickly. Even if he would only be training on a Spiaggian military base, he wanted to be able to contribute to the discussion.

After the meeting, Filippo gestured for Raffaele to follow him. In the King’s office, Raffaele waited until his uncle was seated, then took the chair across from him.

“Thank you for asking me to attend the meeting this morning, Uncle.”

Filippo nodded. “I’m glad you were so attentive. If we go through with this operation, you’ll be expected to join it.”

Raffaele tried to phrase his next question respectfully. “What role will I be expected to play?”

“You’ll have some training of course, and you won’t be on the front lines. More than that, I can’t say right now.”

“Where will I be stationed?”

His uncle shook his head.

“I can’t tell you. In part, it depends on what role our military plays in this joint operation, but even once I know, you won’t find out until it’s time for you to be deployed.” The King anticipated his nephew’s next question. “I don’t know exactly when you’ll leave, but it will likely be in the near future. I’d ask that you remain close to home for now.”

“I have a few things planned over the next few weeks.”

“Keep to your schedule. It’s better if the news of your deployment doesn’t get out until after it actually happens. Of course, you may talk about your upcoming service in general terms—we want the people to know that you are committed to completing it. But keep any details vague.”

“Of course.” Raffaele was already thinking of what he would be able to tell Maggie. “I did have a trip planned to New Orleans.”

“Let’s see what happens over the next week or so. Once we know more, it may be possible for you to travel.”

His uncle stood and Raffaele quickly followed his action. “Thank you, Uncle.”

King Filippo gave him a benevolent smile. “Thank you, Raffaele. I appreciate the fact that you’re taking your military service seriously.”

* * *

The first thing Raffaele wanted to do after he talked with his uncle was call Maggie, but he waited another couple of hours so that it wouldn’t be too early for her.

When she answered the phone, she sounded like she was in a bad mood.

“Chef Bechet, have you had your coffee yet?” Raffaele asked.

He heard her laugh, a bit reluctantly it sounded like.

“I have, but it hasn’t helped much. Sorry, Raffa. Late night last night, and early morning today.”

“What happened?” Raffaele settled into a chair to listen.

“One of our ovens gave up the ghost last night—in the middle of service, no less—and I had two servers and one line cook call in sick. Plus, I got beets instead of apples in the produce delivery, and don’t ask me how that even happens.”

“Well, they are both red.”

“Ha. Not helping,” Maggie groaned, but Raffaele could tell she was smiling. “How has your morning been?”

“Ah, my meeting with my uncle wasn’t quite as enlightening as I’d hoped.”

“No word on when you’ll be deployed yet?”

“The most definite answer I could get from him was ‘the near future,’ though it’s unclear what that means exactly. I did mention that I have a trip planned to New Orleans.”

“Raffa, if you can’t make it—”

He didn’t want to even think about not being able to visit her.

“I’ll be there. Seeing you is important to me. I don’t want to miss a chance to spend time with you, especially since I don’t know how long I’ll be gone.”

“Good. I can’t wait to see you.”

“Me, too. Now, tell me what you’re planning on doing with those beets.”

Maggie laughed. “Beet salad, beet pasta, beet cake.”

“Beet cake?”

“Oh, yes. Beets and cocoa pair well in cake.”

“That sounds…healthy.”

She laughed again.

“Well, I guess it balances out the chocolate and butter. And trust me, it’s not the most unusual thing I’ve ever put in a cake. Although, technically, it’s not unusual for this part of the country.”

“And that would be?”

“Mmm, chocolate cake made with mayonnaise?”

“With…with what?” Raffaele was sure she was teasing him.

“I know, it sounds weird, but mayonnaise is just eggs and oil. Makes perfect sense to put in a cake.” When Raffaele was silent, Maggie added, “It’s a Southern thing.”

“I thought I’d done my research when I read up on Cajun and Creole food.”

“Oh, you have so much to learn. Just wait until I take you to my favorite place for a meat and three. Best fluffy rolls you’ll ever eat.”

Raffaele wanted to be there, with her. He wanted was to erase the thousands of miles between them, and it was so tempting to ignore all the responsibilities he had and just go.

“Raffa?” Maggie asked quietly.

“Sorry, I got distracted by talk of rolls.”

His attempt at a joke fell flat.

“Talk to me. What’s bothering you?”

Raffaele sighed. “I feel like I just found you and now we’re talking about being separated for a long time. It’s not fair.”

He heard her huff a small laugh, not unkindly.

“Welcome to how the world works for the rest of us, Your Highness. Life isn’t always fair.”

Raffaele grudgingly acknowledged the point. “True.”

“But it’s still tough, I know. I’m not looking forward to being separated from you, but even if you weren’t being deployed, there’s still the tiny matter of the whole ocean between us.”

“You know, I do have a private jet. Makes it easy to get back and forth.”

“Bit of a long commute, though, to do every day.” Maggie paused. “We’ve got time to work things out, though, and I’m sure of one thing. Whatever happens, I want to be with you.”

* * *

Raffaele did as he’d promised his uncle, and stayed close to home for the next few days. He spent time with his mother, talked with his father about business matters, and lived for his calls with Maggie.

They talked at least once a day, and texted throughout the day. Maggie would send him a text when she woke up, and he’d send her one as he went to bed. They’d talk before she went into the restaurant, and she kept him entertained with stories from her kitchen.

But as each day passed, Raffaele got more restless. He wasn’t used to being home for this long. He went to eat at Clarissa and Stefano’s several times, feeling like he could relax there. He spent hours at the gym and running the grounds around the palace; it burned off stress and it certainly wouldn’t hurt to be even more in shape for the months to come.

He tried to stay cheerful for his phone calls with Maggie, but he knew she could tell he was apprehensive about when and where he would be deployed.

Two weeks after Maggie’s return to New Orleans, Raffaele was even more on edge. His uncle had asked him to sit in on another briefing, and afterward had clapped him on the shoulder and said, “Stay ready, Raffaele. It likely won’t be long now.”

After the meeting, he rushed back to his apartment at the palace so he could call Maggie. He was late, and when she answered the phone, he rushed to say, “I’m sorry, Maggie. I got held up in a meeting with my uncle.”

“It’s okay, Raffa.”

He could hear clanking in the background and guessed she was already at BienVille.

“You want to give me a call later, after dinner?”

“Give me a second.” The background noises got quieter and Raffaele heard a door shut. “I’ve got a few minutes. Tonight may be a late night. Let’s talk now so I don’t wake you up later on.”

Raffaele shrugged even though she couldn’t see him. “I really don’t mind if you wake me up. In fact, I find it rather pleasant.”

He was hoping to make her laugh with his lightly suggestive tone, and she did. “No disagreement from me.”

Just the sound of her voice made him less tense. “Tell me what’s happening at the restaurant,” he said.

Maggie snorted. “We’re still busy. Booked every night. Anna’s decided that you are our lucky charm. She’s thinking of building a shrine to you.”

Raffaele laughed. “I told you people would flock there.”

“You did, and I’m grateful. It’s a lot of fun having a full house all the time, even if I’m still struggling to find enough good staff to handle it.”

Raffaele heard a knock on the door and a sigh from Maggie.

“You have to go?”

“Yeah. Sorry,” she murmured.

“Don’t be. Go and be brilliant. I’ll talk to you tomorrow, okay?”

“Can’t wait.”

Raffaele almost said ‘I love you’ but thought better of it. He didn’t want to push Maggie, and he’d see her soon enough. He wanted to say it person and not over the phone.

So, instead, he said, “I miss you.”

He loved that he could hear her smile in her voice.

“I miss you, too. Good night, Raffaele.”

* * *

A few days later, Raffaele was pacing through his apartment, thinking. His uncle hadn’t given him any more detailed information, but Raffaele didn’t think that meant his deployment was being delayed. He hadn’t brought up his plan to go to New Orleans, but given his uncle’s comment to be ready, he was certain that if he asked for permission to go, the answer would be no.

He didn’t want to upset his father or his uncle; they were right that he needed to be serious about his service. He had a responsibility to his country and his family, and so staying close and being ready was the right thing to do.

He also didn’t want to put Maggie in a bad position by showing up only to have to leave abruptly. That would almost be worse than not showing up at all.

Raffaele picked up his phone to call Maggie. He knew she’d understand if he postponed his visit while he worked things out. Once he knew exactly when he’d be leaving, he could plan a short visit before he was deployed. Or, failing that, he’d plan a visit as soon as he was given some leave.

Making up his mind, he started to dial, but just then there was a sharp knock on the outer door of his apartment and then the inner door opened.

One of Spiaggi’s highest-ranking officers stormed in. The uniformed man saw Raffaele, but before Raffaele could say anything, the officer reached out and grabbed his cellphone.

“My apologies, Your Highness. You can’t make any phone calls.”

Raffaele tried to be reasonable. “I’m not under your command yet, so I’d like my phone back.”

The officer shook his head. “Again, with apologies, as of now, you are under my command. Your service beings immediately, and for your safety, I cannot allow you to contact anyone.”

Raffaele tried to argue. “I told my uncle I’d need a week or so to wrap things up.” He looked at his phone. “I need to let someone know that I’ll be away for a while.”

“I’m sorry, Your Highness, but you can’t do that. We can’t risk revealing any information about your deployment.”

Raffaele was getting frustrated. “I understand that, and I don’t intend to let anyone know my whereabouts, but I do need to let at least one person know that I’ll be out of touch.”

“It’s not just your location. If word gets out that you are being deployed now, enemy forces can use that information as part of their intelligence operations.” The man hesitated. “It’s not just you that would be at risk, but everyone that is part of your unit. You’re a valuable target for the enemy; if they were able to kidnap you, it could endanger our presence there as well as our partnership with our allies.”

Raffaele hadn’t thought about his presence being a danger for the people he would serve with, but then, he’d expected his “service” to be training on one of Spiaggi’s local bases.

“Can you at least tell me where I’m going?”

“I can’t give you the exact location now, but I can tell you that you’ll be traveling to the Middle East to one of our joint operation bases.”

Raffaele’s mind whirled as he tried to think of a way to get a message to Maggie.

“At least let me talk to my parents before I leave. I’d like to say goodbye to them.”

The man shook his head regretfully.

“Your parents are aware of procedure. Your father will be given a message after we’re gone. You need to pack now, Your Highness. One small bag. We’ll give you everything else you need once we get to the base.”

Raffaele nodded sharply and grabbed a bag out of his closet. He hurriedly packed a few things, not even really seeing what he picked up and placed in the bag. He wasn’t prepared for this, and he’d promised Maggie he would see her before he left. He didn’t even know what he was going to be doing as a soldier, and he wasn’t prepared for this kind of active duty.

If Raffaele could talk to his father, he could convince him to send a message to Maggie, but that might not be for weeks. If at all. If he couldn’t get word to her, would she wait for him?

Forty minutes later, Raffaele stared at the solid wall of a military aircraft as it lifted into the sky, heading towards the Middle East and away from everything he’d even known.