Honeymoon With a Prince (Royal Scandals) (28 page)

“I hope it’s fun, though I’m not sure what jail has to do with it.”
 

The female voice coming from the direction of the bedroom was lighthearted, but its unexpectedness sent Kelly’s measuring tape flying back into its case with an embarrassingly loud snap.

Before Kelly could ask the woman who she was, the tall, striking blonde entered the closet and offered Kelly a hand up from the floor.
 
“I’m April.
 
I’m told you’re redesigning Prince Massimo’s closet.”

“Yes, I—”

“I’m your carpenter.
 
Great to meet you!
 
It’s Kelly, right?
 
I heard that you’re from the States.
 
Where?
 
I’m a New Yorker, myself.”
 
April put her hands on her hips and looked around the closet, assessing its size before she walked to the far wall and ran her hand along it, checking its condition.
 

“Dallas.
 
And did you say you’re the carpenter?”
 
The woman’s movements had an easy flow, similar to what Kelly had seen in other craftsmen.
 
In her experience, those who worked with their hands stayed relaxed in every other body part.
 
But she had yet to meet a carpenter who looked like April.
 
Her neat blonde bob, gold hoop earrings, softly faded designer jeans, and closely-fitted black top oozed casual sophistication.
 

She also sported black Converse sneakers and had more energy in her little finger than Kelly possessed in her entire body at the moment.
 

“I know, I totally don’t look it.
 
But I swear I know a bandsaw from a jigsaw.
 
You can quiz me.
 
My dad rehabbed prewar buildings in Manhattan when I was a kid and I spent as much time as possible tagging along.
 
Those old buildings were glorious.
 
Best hide-and-seek spots ever.”
 
She ran a finger along the lower edge of the window frame and shrugged.
 
“Turned out I learned a lot along the way.
 
My brother and I eventually took over my father’s business, but Queen Fabrizia lured me away by promising better beaches.
 
How could I say no to that?”

Kelly tried not to laugh at the quick recitation of April’s qualifications and life story.
 
The blonde would be a joy to work with, assuming she was as competent as she professed. “Was she right?”

“You’ve probably seen the beaches,” April said with a shrug.
 
“You tell me.
 
What really got me, though, was that the queen sought me out after staying in a building I’d renovated.
 
She noticed details most people don’t, then asked the building’s owner who’d done the remodel.
 
I was impressed by how much she saw.
 
Well, that and she called back twice after I refused her first offer.
 
So now I make a great income doing what I love and don’t have the stress of running a business.”
 

Kelly could understand the appeal in that.
 
While she’d loved running her closet design company, day-to-day management headaches often added to her stress level.

April tucked her hair behind her ear as she gestured to the notebook lying open on the closet floor.
 
“Tell me what we’re doing in here. Better be a total remodel, because it’s dismal as is.”

“I haven’t come up with a final plan, but if you have a few minutes, I can pull up some photos on the computer to show you.
 
You can let me know what’s possible.”
 

April’s blue eyes widened with excitement.
 
“Please tell me you mean the computer in your room.
 
You’re staying in Prince Stefano’s old place, right?”

“I am.”
 
Word traveled fast in the palace, apparently.

“Awesome.
 
I did the cabinetry in his closet and kitchen when it was remodeled five years ago.
 
It was my first project when I came to the palace.
 
Haven’t been in there since and I’ve been dying to see how it’s held up.
 
Maria—she’s the housekeeper—insists it looks as good as when I did the installation, but I want to see it with my own two eyes.”

“Come see for yourself, then.”
 
Kelly gathered her belongings and they made their way to Stefano’s suite.
 
After April inspected the cabinets—noting a few scratches she wanted to touch up and hinges she felt needed tightening—they spent the rest of the evening brainstorming closet layouts and finishes.
 
It quickly became apparent that their approaches complimented each other, as did their personalities.
 
They tended to like many of the same design elements, finding them both visually appealing and practical.
 
As the dinner hour approached, April picked up the phone and ordered an appetizer tray and a bottle of wine from the kitchen.

“You can do that? I never would’ve thought to order food as if I were in a hotel.”
 
Kelly’s jaw dropped as April hung up the phone.
 
Massimo might’ve done it with pancakes, but he was the prince.
 
Not a guest or an employee.
 

“I don’t do it often, but if we’re busy working, then you bet.
 
Prince Stefano even encouraged it when I did these rooms.
 
In my experience, a bottle of Sarcaccian wine is the best thing for the creative juices.
 
I mean, you’ve seen Prince Stefano’s kitchen.
 
How do you think I managed to construct such spectacular cabinetry in such a tiny space?
 
There were at least two or three bottles of wine along the way.”

Kelly pushed away from the table where she and April had spread out several sketches and photos.
 
Her legs ached from hours of sitting, but until she stood and moved to the windows, she hadn’t noticed the tightness in her muscles.
 
She’d been so caught up in her discussion with April she’d lost track of time.
 
As she looked out at the gardens, lit only from the glow of the palace windows above, the lack of sleep finally hit her.

“I’m not sure how much creativity I have left in me, wine or not,” she admitted.
 
“I was up pretty late last night.”
 

“Beats jail, though, doesn’t it?”

How much gossip went through the palace, exactly?
 
“Um, sure.”

“You were talking to yourself when I met you, remember?
 
The word ‘jail’ tends to stand out when anyone’s talking.”

“I suppose it does.”
 
She’d momentarily forgotten what April had overheard.
 
She leaned against the wide window frame and turned to face her new friend.
 
Explaining the statement felt like it would be a violation of Massimo’s privacy, so she kept to what he’d said earlier.
 
“I actually got this job after Prince Massimo helped me get out of jail this morning.”

“No way.”
 
April’s mouth wrenched into a wicked grin.
 
“I wouldn’t have pegged you as the type to live a life of crime.
 
You strike me as pretty straight-edged.”

For the moment, she’d take it as a compliment.
 
“I was here on vacation and found his dog on the beach.
 
Unfortunately, at the same time he was claiming his dog, I was trying to talk sense into the landlord of the villa I was renting.
 
There was a bank snafu with my payment and since I couldn’t fix it until the banks opened back home, the landlord wanted me arrested.
 
Prince Massimo was kind enough to pay the landlord for me.
 
We got to talking after that.
 
Turns out he needed a closet designer and I just happen to be one.
 
So he hired me.”

April let out a low whistle.
 
“Wow.
 
And I thought I had a great getting-hired-by-the-Barralis story.
 
Yours is much better.
 
It’s like the beginning of a fairy tale.”

“Other than the jail part,” Kelly laughed.
 

“I’ll grant you that.
 
No glass slippers there.”

“Or evil witches, unless you have something to tell me.”

April faked throwing a notebook at Kelly’s head before they went back to work.
 
As they scribbled out plans, Kelly realized that Massimo’s point had just been proven.
 
Give people an interesting enough story, one that’s believable, and they’d be entranced.
 
It wouldn’t occur to them to think anything more salacious took place.
 
Judging from April’s tone, it certainly hadn’t occurred to her.

A short time later a knock sounded at the door, announcing the arrival of their food.
 
They wrapped up work for the evening as they savored cut veggies and an assortment of small sandwiches and drank their wine.
 

“What made you decide to take on work in the middle of a vacation?”
 
April asked between bites of a cucumber and salmon sandwich.
 
“Either you really love what you do or you couldn’t say no to Prince Massimo.”

Kelly managed not to choke on her own sandwich at the second part of April’s observation.
 
“I imagine anyone would have trouble saying no to the Barralis, but even if Massimo wasn’t a prince, I figured it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity.
 
Who gets a budget like this one and carte blanche for the design?”

“Massimo’s good that way,” she replied as she popped a piece of crust into her mouth.
 
“But Stefano had definite opinions on his closet.
 
He wanted everything to be just so.
 
All the plans were done ahead of time and my job was simply to build it.”

“Was it a bad thing?”

“No, not at all,” she insisted.
 
“Stefano could’ve been an architect.
 
He sees everything at a glance when it comes to functionality.
 
But with Massimo, you can use your imagination.
 
It adds an element of fun to the project.”

“That it does.”
 
Kelly picked up a photo of a clean-lined closet with masculine gray shelves and an industrial-style silver carpet that had caught her eye a few years before.
 
There were a few elements she planned to incorporate into Massimo’s closet, though she’d change the color scheme, given the lighting challenges she faced.
 
“I’m looking forward to seeing this finished.
 
I never in a million years thought I’d work on vacation, but having so much latitude makes me realize how much I love what I do.”
 

Or
did
, at least until her noncompete expired.
 
Much as her job had eaten all her free time over the last few years, she already missed it.
 
Whatever new business she started needed to give her the same creative fix or she’d be miserable.

 
“I hope you haven’t given up your whole vacation for this,” April said.
 
“There’s so much to see.
 
And the weather’s been spectacular lately.”

“I have a tour booked tomorrow morning.
 
I’ll be back by two, though.”
 

When April asked for more details, Kelly explained her itinerary.
 
A bus tour of the city that included a stop at two museums and the cathedral were on tomorrow’s schedule, then later in the week she’d scheduled a tour to the center of the island, where she’d visit a winery and have lunch.

“Sounds like you’re hitting some of the highlights.
 
Good.”
 
April poured more wine for Kelly, then tipped the remainder of the bottle into her own glass.
 
“If you don’t have plans Saturday night after the parade, how about if I take you out in Cateri?
 
We’ll catch the fireworks over the marina, then you can see the nightlife the tourists miss.
 
It’ll be a great time.
 
The whole country’s in a partying mood after the Independence Day parade.
 
You can soak it up like a local.”

Nightlife and parties weren’t exactly what she’d envisioned when she’d booked the trip.
 
“I’m not much of a club person.”

“Then how about we go to the parade itself?
 
If you want to go out afterward, great.
 
We can keep it tame.
 
If not, no big deal.”

April’s openness won her over.
 
“In that case, sure.
 
Let’s plan on it.”
 

“Just remember that I said tame.
 
Not boring.”

“There’s a lot more to you than jigsaws and bandsaws, isn’t there?”
 

The spark of mischief in April’s eyes as she cleared the plates made Kelly wonder just how April defined
tame
.