Page 21 of Princessa
Chapter 14
“Iwant to hug you.”
Mama’s words squeezed my heart the way her warm hugs had a tendency to squeeze my bones.
While it had only been a few weeks since I’d left home, missing my parents had me weeping at the mere sound of her voice. Up until that phone call, we’d only been exchanging text messages. She and Papa wanted to give me space, time to get settled in France. On top of that, the time difference impeded our ability to find the right moment to connect via phone.
But after lunch with Grayson and all that chatter we shared about the days I watched telenovelas with my mother, I wanted to hear her voice.
“Me too, Mama.” It was a simple response, but the only one I could muster without tearing up. “How’s Papa?”
“He’s fine—just left for a 9 a.m. planning meeting with city officials. How are you,amor? What is it, about 3 p.m. there?”
“Yes, sure is. And I’m doing well, all settled, working on event stuff.”
“Oh,mi amor, so good to hear! I’ve been following your Instagram and noticed you went to Paris. Loved seeing the pictures of you, Camille, and Lauren. Her belly is all baby now.” The sound of laughter in her tone pulled my lips into a smile. “What else have you been up to?”
Well, for starters, I met a dashing prince who makes my heart shimmy, nerves tingle, and all of my dormant lady parts come to life.
Oh, if only I could’ve been gutsy enough to be upfront, tell her all about Grayson. Ask if my decision to be friends was the right thing to do—which showed signs of being harder to pull off than I originally hoped. After telling him about my ideal Mr. Right during lunch, I came up with an excuse to head back to my office; a sudden urge to have another lip-and-tongue throw-down doused me like a midsummer rain shower.
Yet knowing Mama, I thought for sure she’d refrain from giving me heartfelt advice filled with the passion and angst of any tried-and-true love story, and instead feed me something boring and practical.
Leaning back in my desk chair, I belted out a colorful lie. “Nothing much—just keeping myself busy.”
“Are you dating?”
What?
I sat up, jaw nearly touching the floor. I mean, I’d heard of a mother’s intuition but… “Why would you ask me that?”
“Well, it’s been months since your breakup, and France is dripping with handsome men. I figured you would have gone out on at least a few dates by now.”
Oh, come on. Don’t be such a freaking wuss. Grow a pair. Tell her.
“I met a prince.” Maybe being oceans away from home provided the newfound gumption I needed to spit out the truth. Or maybe I wanted to shut up salty Santana egging me on.
Nevertheless, once I told Mama everything about Grayson—well, I left out parts about that make-me-wet kiss and how my dreams starred him wearing nothing but a pretty smart-looking birthday suit—a weight of uncertainty drifted off my shoulders.
“Ah,mija. You’re afraid to trust because of what happened between you and Parker. And believe me, I understand. It’s hard to move on, be vulnerable to more heartache. But if this prince has left his country—his family—to hide out at a resort, live in a posh suite versus a presumably royal palace, don’t you think you can give him the benefit of the doubt? Abandon your apprehension? Get to know him without those imposedjust friendsconditions?
Getting to my feet, I padded over to the floor-to-ceiling window, my gaze unable to see the breathtaking view through my hazy thoughts. Mama was right. Grayson was potentially giving up his chance at the throne to stand up for what he believed in—his right to marry someone he loved.
Blowing out a breath, I said, “I thought for sure you’d tell me to stay away from Grayson, no matter what.”
She chuckled. “Why?”
“Therules, Mama.”No cussing. No drinking. No nude photos or videos.No drama.I walked back to my desk, eased down into the chair.
“Well,mi amor, I trust you won’t get into anything that will shame our family name or image. You always have your gut to fall back on and when in doubt, rest assured I’m here for you.”
About an hourof more chitchat later, Mama and I hung up with a pledge to have once-a-week phone calls. Then after a quick meeting with Emma about an upcoming fragrance launch party for Henri Baton, a well-known perfumer, we both decided to call it a day—an excellent way to end a Friday.
Up in my room, I nestled into a warm bath with a glass of wine and my phone, scrolling Instagram, hoping the combination of all three would help me unwind. A few sips of wine in, my phone beeped and Grayson’s name, along with a text message, flashed on the screen.
My stomach dipped. Who would have thought I’d get giddy about receiving a text message?
Grayson:Thinking this will make you laugh out loud since it was mentioned during our lunch today, but I have to warn, it’s NSFW because you may laugh your ass off.
