The Prince's Unwilling Lover (The Royals of Monaco, #1) (3 page)

“Annie, it's not funny,” Macee complained when her sister surprised her by laughing.

“I am sorry, sweetheart, but it is kind of funny. You are the one who never wanted to have anything to do with the royal family or go out with us to those public events. Now you are the one who is going to be the future queen-” before Liane finished speaking, Macee cut her off.

“I will not be the queen.” Liane laughed. “This is not right; I do not want to marry him or anyone for that matter! I am not ready. This must be some kind of sick joke.”

“Macee, it's not hard to believe that he found you attractive.”

“Annie, those were not the words he used.”

“No, but he still chose you, it's not surprising.”

Macee raised an eyebrow. “Are you kidding me? We could not be more different than a fish and a bear.”

Liane burst out laughing. “What kind of a contrast is that?”

Macee smiled. “Well it makes sense. A fish and a bear are not even of the same species.”

The two of them talked and laughed for a while. They both felt bad for Francesca, as she was the one who really wanted that kind of lifestyle. Liane simply wanted someone she was in love with while Macee was not even thinking about marriage. Macee asked Liane if she had told Jean Pierre about the baby, but she shook her head. She had not told him yet and the last time she spoke to her mother, she had questioned her about the identity of the baby's father.

Macee agreed with Liane that it was best to keep that a secret for as long as they could or at least until the Crown Prince was married. Maybe then, the royal family would be a little more forgiving if the prince was happy.

*                                                                                  *                                                                      *

I
t had been a few days since the prince had announced that he wanted to marry Macee instead of Francesca. Macee avoided speaking about it, as she felt that she had said all she needed to about the matter. Francesca was sour about it but she tried to handle it with grace. She chose not to speak about the matter as she was convinced that it was never going to happen.

Macee freaked out when she returned home to find her mother invading her room. There were shopping bags on the floor and her clothes were being tossed out of the closet and onto the floor. “Mother, what is the meaning of this?” Macee demanded, as soon as she walked into her bedroom.

“You do not possess any decent clothes,” her mother replied as she continued to throw her clothes out of the closet. Macee's jaw dropped. The nightmare had begun.

“Stop it! These are my clothes!” Macee cried out in fury.

“You need to change how you dress. You start your classes tonight,” her mother spoke calmly as if she was not doing anything wrong. This annoyed Macee further.

“No mother, I already refused the proposal. I will not take any classes or change my clothes.”

Her mother threw everything she was holding on the floor and turned around to face Macee. “Do you think I want this either?” This time she changed her tone. She was annoyed with Macee and the prince for choosing her.

“I know you do not but for different reasons. I am a disgrace to you and the family,” Macee said flatly.

“Macee, I never said that.”

“But you do, mother, every time you speak to me. So since I am such a disappointment, please return to the palace and ask the crown prince to reconsider.”

“I am your mother, young lady, and you speak to me in a more respectful manner!” her mother demanded.

Colonel LeBlanc ran into Macee's room. So many times, he had to play referee between Macee and her mother. “What is going on in here?” he asked.

“Mum is throwing my clothes out,” Macee quickly told on her.

“With good reason,” she defended herself.

“I do not want to marry Louis. Dad, please make this go away.”

“It's Prince Louis.”

“Whomever!”

“Ladies, control your anger. Macee, I will try to speak with him but darling, this is his will and I cannot change it,” her father told her.

“It is not fair.” Macee crossed her arms over her chest. Being born in that family had caused her many problems from day one. It meant she could not live the life she had wanted for herself.

“I concur, speak to him and ask him to reconsider Francesca,” Mrs LeBlanc said.

“Because she is the better child,” Macee stated petulantly.

“That is not true, you are both good,” her father told her.

“Tell that to mum.”

“I never said anything of the sort,” Mrs LeBlanc defended as she stormed out of the room flustered and annoyed. Macee sat on her bed while her father stood there helpless unsure what to do. It was heartbreaking to see them fight constantly. So many times, he asked his wife to be nicer to Macee but it just went in one ear and out the other.

He kissed Macee on the forehead and told her to relax. “Everything happens for a reason,” he said to her. That did not exactly comfort her. She knew that if the prince wanted to marry her, she had no choice but to oblige and the idea killed her inside. She had so many things she wanted to do with her life and getting married to the crown prince was not one of them. Nevertheless, she was going to fight it to the end. She was not going to give up that easily.

M
acee was angry the whole ride over to the palace. Her father had tried to speak to the prince but he had not changed his mind about the marriage. The queen informed the Colonel that he was to bring both daughters to the palace and let the prince see them both once more. She also wanted to meet the girl her son had chosen.

Macee grumbled as she put on a dress; one of the things she detested. Slipping on a pair of low-heeled shoes, she wobbled as she tied her hair in a high ponytail. Looking in the mirror, she declared her appearance good enough as she stomped to the front door. Francesca on the other hand wore a beautifully custom-made tight fitting cream dress. She spent hours doing her hair and wore pearls. She hoped that she could use this chance to impress the royal family. Her sister did not want it, so it was not wrong for her to try to win their hearts.

“Be on your best behaviour,” Mrs LeBlanc said to Macee as they walked into the palace.

“This is really messed up,” Macee complained.

The maid showed them to the room where the entire royal family was. The king and queen had come to help choose their future daughter-in-law. The crown prince, his sister, Princess Katherine and the queen’s sister, Bridgette were all in attendance.

“The LeBlancs have arrived,” the maid announced as they walked into the room. Macee's eyes flew open. She had not been expecting such a large panel. Colonel LeBlanc bowed as Mrs LeBlanc and Francesca gave deep curtsies. Macee attempted to curtsy, but it resembled something between a curtsy and a bow. She had not learned how to do it properly and everyone noticed. Bridgette whispered it to the queen as she nodded, she had seen it too.

The LeBlancs joined the royal family at the table as they indulged in tea and pastries. Macee could feel eyes burning into her skin as she ate. They were watching how she handled herself making her feel extremely uncomfortable; she did not even want to eat anymore. She knew she was not always graceful when she ate or did much of anything else. Macee had to hold back a smirk as she thought, sabotage! This was the best way to show subtly that she was not appropriate for the prince.

The queen asked Francesca and Macee a few questions. It was obvious that she was trying to compare the two girls and Macee knew that her sister’s answers were superior to hers. Prince Louis stared at the two sisters. He was pleased to see that Macee was even lovelier once the paint had been scrubbed off her skin and she was more suitably dressed. While it was clear that Francesca was more prepared for palace life, since the prince suddenly found himself with the opportunity to choose, he liked the idea of being married to someone who had more to offer than proper etiquette and the ability to curtsy. 

“I would like to have a moment to speak with Macee in private,” Prince Louis said as he rose. Macee looked up in surprise.

“That is a good idea,” the queen said.

Macee looked around and got up reluctantly. She did not want to speak to the prince. What in the world would they possibly discuss? She followed him out of the room and into the corridors. As he walked, Macee couldn’t help but notice how tall he was. As the shortest of the three sisters, Macee felt even smaller as she attempted to keep pace.

“So how old are?” Prince Louis asked her.

“I’ll be nineteen at the end of the year.”
And too young for marriage!
she told herself.

Prince Louis stopped walking and looked at Macee. She was looking at the ground. He asked her what she thought of their union. “I was surprised at your choice and quite frankly, I do not understand it,” Macee responded.

“You should be delighted.”

Macee frowned and looked at him. “Whatever for?”

“To be marrying the crown prince.”

Oh the arrogance!
Macee wanted to laugh in his face. “I am afraid I am not delighted, your highness.” she was not afraid to let him know what she thought. There was nothing special about marrying him; she was not the kind of girl who dreamed about marrying a prince.

“It does not please you to be marrying the crown prince and becoming the future queen?” Prince Louis was suddenly intrigued. Since when was there a woman in Monaco that did not dream of being his wife? It did not make sense to him.

“Your highness, it would be better for everyone if you changed your mind and agreed to marry my sister instead.”

Prince Louis raised his eyebrows. “Why should I?”

“She will suit you better and she is better prepared for...all this,” Macee answered as she waved her hand at the room.

“Is that so?”

“Yes.” Macee tried to conceal her frustration. It seemed as though she was not getting through to him. He was standing there looking at her with a smug look on his face.

“I am afraid I have already made my decision.”

“But you can change it.”

“I can but I will not.”

“I do not want to marry you.” She did not want to sound mean or ungrateful, but he wasn’t getting it. Maybe if she said it in that way, he would grant her request. Or maybe he'd be offended and call all this off. Either way she was not good at concealing her thoughts.

Prince Louis was not offended. In fact, he was amused and intrigued at this young woman. No one ever said no to him. Who did Macee think she was to say no? She should feel honoured not dismayed. Was it simply because of her sister or was there more?

“We should return,” he said after studying her for a moment. He knew that she wanted a different response but he was not going to indulge her. He had to admit that he was enjoying the challenge and he looked forward to getting to know her.

Macee frowned as she watched him walk back into the room where everyone awaited them. She stood there for a moment, wondering if he had heard what she had just said. She followed him back into the room wondering if maybe there was something wrong with him. Perhaps he was slow, she thought. Whatever it was, getting out of this union was going to be even harder than she had expected.

“How was your talk?” Bridgette asked. She was not impressed with either one of the girls. Francesca seemed to try too hard and Macee was simply not appropriate for the position.

“Quite alright,” Prince Louis replied.

After the LeBlancs left the palace, the royal family discussed the matter at hand amongst themselves. Bridgette was the first to point out that Macee was not an appropriate match. She curtsied wrong, her table manners were not spectacular and her attire and demeanour were simply not up to par.

“Those are things that can be taught,” Prince Louis interjected.

“Liane had a natural elegance that both her sisters do not have,” Bridgette continued.

“I concur,” the queen said.

“Does the bride have to be from the LeBlanc family?” Princess Katherine asked.

“Enough,” the prince stated. “I have chosen Macee already and I consider the matter closed.” The more his family argued against Macee, the more he wanted her.

“My son has made up his mind,” the king stated. “What do we need to do next?” he asked as he looked to his wife.

“We will send her an instructor to teach her how to be more fitting for the position,” the queen said. As she thought about it, there was a lot that needed to be done to prepare Macee for the wedding and the reception. If they had the option to put the wedding off, they would, but it was to take place at the start of the jubilee in celebration of the anniversary of their emancipation and return to a sovereign nation.

M
acee sat up in bed glaring at her mother. She rarely got up before ten, but her mother was insistent that she get up and get dressed. The royal instructor had arrived to start coaching her. She clutched the covers tighter. She did not want to wake up nor did she want to be coached. Her mother pulled the covers off the bed.

“You have to get up this instant,” she demanded. Macee dragged herself out of bed muttering complaints under her breath as she marched to the bathroom to brush her teeth before heading downstairs in her pyjama bottoms and a vest top.

Walking into the living room, Macee saw an unfamiliar man and woman seated on the sofa. “You must be Lady Macee,” he said to her in a very posh accent.

“And who are you?” Macee asked as she slouched down in the chair opposite them.

“I am Charles, your royal instructor and this is my assistant.”

“I do not need an instructor.”

“On the contrary, you do. As the crown princess, you will be expected to behave in a certain manner and that means not sleeping in or walking around in your night wear.”

Ridiculous!
Macee thought to herself.

Her mother walked into the room and snapped at her to stand up and listen to everything Charles told her.

“We will be working on your posture today,” Charles said to her. “Given your...diminutive height, it is of the utmost importance that you learn to carry yourself with grace. Correct posture and body language ARE necessary,” he emphasised.