Total pages in book: 162
Estimated words: 165618 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 828(@200wpm)___ 662(@250wpm)___ 552(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 165618 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 828(@200wpm)___ 662(@250wpm)___ 552(@300wpm)
Hurley was also on the bed with us, lying on his belly, jaw on his paws, blinking rapidly at the food on the tray in hopes we’d take the hint and give him some (and, okay, this might have something to do with the fact I’d secreted a slice of cheese to him…or three of them).
“No, we’re not leaving this room until I have to let you go tomorrow morning,” Tanyn answered my unasked question.
I considered if I was down with this.
A nanosecond later, I decided I was down with it, reached and grabbed an olive.
I tossed it in Hurley’s direction.
He caught it in midair and swallowed it without chewing.
I laughed, only to have the laughter kissed from my lips when Tanyn caught me at the back of my head and pulled me to him.
When he finished with my mouth, he ordered, “Stop feeding him being food.”
“Olives are vegetables,” I defended.
“Stop feeding him being food,” he repeated.
I opened my mouth to retort.
Tanyn got there before me, “Either you stop feeding him, or I’m sending the tray back.”
I wasn’t done nibbling, so I gave in ungracefully, that being with a roll of my eyes.
He let me go and lounged back against the pillows.
“I wonder which of your seven hundred members of staff would come get the tray,” I muttered with an I’m sorry look at Hurley before I loaded a slice of bread up with some red onion marmalade and brie.
“Pardon?”
I turned from my food to my male. “You have a lot of staff.”
“I have a big castle.”
“You do indeed. You still have a lot of staff. And their obsequiousness is more than mildly creepy.”
His brows drew together.
“You haven’t noticed it?” I asked.
“I’m king,” he pointed out.
“So is King Fillion. And he does expect protocol to be observed. But not like your staff does it.”
His tone was very curious when he asked, “How do my staff do it?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know how to explain it. But, like, when Laura showed the last time I was here. A member of your staff announced her like she was arriving at an official event.”
“That’s not how it’s done?”
I froze at his question, because of course he wouldn’t know how it was done.
He didn’t grow up with royal protocol.
“No,” I said softly. “Perhaps sharing she’s arrived, but not who she is, because I already know who she is. Mom and I were the only ones in the room. She’s my bestest bestie. Maybe the staff member didn’t know that, but I can’t imagine how she wouldn’t, considering it’s all over the tapes and the media. You don’t announce a best friend when they enter a room. It was weird.”
His attention drifted to his dog, who he reached out to pet.
Immediately, Hurley lost interest in the tray of food and turned his attention to snuggling with his daddy.
Mm-hmm.
My male could be adorable.
“I’d have to talk to your butler and your housekeeper,” I went on cautiously. “But if they’re good at their jobs, I believe even they’d admit you’re overstaffed.”
“We can’t have bots in this house. It’s historically registered.”
“I know, honey, but—”
He looked at me. “It’s Tatra.”
“Sorry?” I asked.
“I’ve looked over the accounts myself, as well as had them forensically inspected. Arnaud was a wastrel. He had a great number of parties, most of them, I’m sure it won’t surprise you, were debauched. He spent an astronomical amount on clothing, cufflinks, wrist units. I was told his clothes filled that closet.” He jerked his head toward the closet. “And the closet in the queen’s chamber.”
“Holy Hecate,” I breathed.
I liked clothes, but even that was beyond me.
“Yes,” he agreed. “He commissioned a luxurious space yacht, which I already auctioned off and gave the proceeds to charity because I’ll never use it. It was a monstrosity. The interior is covered in gold leaf.”
I made a face.
He nodded his agreement and kept going.
“He bought an island off the coast of Land’s End. An entire island. He was in the middle of planning to build a space station, one for his personal use.”
A personal space station?
Good gods.
“He was well-known for spending money,” I noted. “But that’s crazy. Did he drain the treasury?”
“He gave it his best shot. Fortunately, there are safeguards in place where he couldn’t get to the seed funds. I tightened things up when I took the throne, but maybe I didn’t tighten them enough.”
Well, if he had the money, beings always needed jobs.
But from what I could tell, he could definitely tighten things more.
“Tatra was the same,” he continued. “Actually, worse. Clothes. Jewels. Art. Depending on her wont, daily she had fresh fish or rare delicacies flown in from all over the twenty realms. She did not use machines to do her hair and makeup. She had a full-time stylist and makeup artist. And a dresser.”
“A dresser?”
“Someone to help her get dressed.”