Page 64 of Princessa
“What? Here?”
He nodded. “I’m guessing it was because of that Royal Buzz shit. She tried to convince me to give her a chance before I move forward with you.”
I felt ill, consumed with an uncomfortable feeling in my gut, and it wasn’t from all the champagne I’d swallowed the night before. “Grayson, is she gonna try and raise any problems for us?”
“No,” he said matter-of-factly. “Finn and head of security were informed and I’m pretty sure I got my point across to her before she left. Knowing Iris, she’s already got her sights set on some other royal.” He kissed me. “Don’t you worry.”
So, I tried not to.
Nights turned to day and we’d begun planning theCompromísGala. I’d found a gorgeous fairytale-like floor-length dress that looked a lot like a wedding gown. Grayson mentioned it was tradition for me to be presented with Queen Isadora’s precious tiara atop my head—the thought of me wearing something so regal made me feel like arealprincess.
Days had passed when Grayson got called away to Andorra on what The Royal Family Publicist said was a public relations campaign set up to deflect the recent tabloid chatter. The trip would take my prince away from me for a few days, which sucked, because even Camille and Finn were gone, off in Paris celebrating their nuptials.
I kept myself busy with Emma working on Gala preparation, set to be the biggest event in RRF history. We had a strict order to follow as far as menu selection, music choices, and of course dress code. Andorra was big on church, and family, so there was to be no alcohol served. Emma was up-to-date on all the who’s who in Hollywood stuff and gave me input on which celebrities to invite. We finalized invitations and since it was hush-hush, the only thing everyone knew was that Prince Grayson was presenting his future bride.
“It’s like a mix between a Debutante Ball and a big engagement party, only no one knows shit about the bride-to-be,” exclaimed Emma, eyes sparkling as she reviewed the invitations.
My heart flew high whenever I thought of myself as the bride-to-be. This was really happening. I was going to marry a prince.
Though, no matter how jubilant I was, that sour feeling I had still lingered. It made me anxious, nervous, fidgety.
Plus, I missed my guy.
On the day before Grayson was to come home, Jaxson called me. I answered it on the first ring, because—hello—he never called.
“Jaxson?”
“She’s in labor.” He breathed in and out. “Like full-on she’s-having-Gigi-now labor.”
“Get your ass over here, Arabella!” Lauren shouted in the background.
“Did you hear that? She wants you here. Now. St. Lucia Medical Center.”
Excitement and worry filled my heart. Lauren was only thirty-six weeks pregnant.
I texted Grayson.
Me:Catching the 10 a.m. train to Paris. Lauren is in labor. Leaving Diamond with Emma. Love you.
Grayson:Make sure Wendy goes with you and let me know when you arrive, please. Love you more.
The bothersome feeling I had turned out to be intuition about Lauren. And by the time Wendy and I arrived at the hospital, Gigi had made her long-awaited entrance into the world.
“She’s perfect, you guys. Just perfect,” I said, unable to stop gawking at her.
“She is perfect,” cooed Lauren as she held her bundle of joy. Her eyes were damp with tears, hair messier than ever. “And so feisty. She couldn’t even wait until she was fully cooked.”
While Gigi was considered premature, she weighed in at just over eight pounds and since all of her vitals were fine, doctors assured Lauren and Jaxson their baby diva was healthy.
Wendy and I stayed at the hospital for a couple more hours before deciding to catch the last train back to Saint Jean de Luz. Both Lauren and Jaxson were beat, and I wanted to give them time alone with Gigi.
“I’ll be back once you get settled at home,” I promised before leaving.
“Great. And you can help me plan the baby shower,” Lauren said.
I laughed because for some reason Lauren was against having a baby shower before Gigi was born. Her rationale wasit’s for the baby so the baby should be there.
“FaceTime me in a few days.” I chuckled.
