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He folded his arms as the coffee percolated. He could have gone out to buy some from across the street but that would only have killed time and he couldn’t put this off any longer. He had to tell Arissa who he really was.
His stomach was churning. His two weeks were rapidly coming to an end. He knew that he’d be heading off on the plane soon, what he didn’t know was whether he’d have a chance to pursue this blossoming relationship with Arissa.
It surprised him just how much he wanted to. Just how important this was to him. They were right at the beginning. Who knew where this could lead? But with him in Corinez, and her heading to the UK, there would be hundreds of miles between them. Could a long-distance relationship actually work? Particularly when they were both so dedicated to their jobs? All he knew for certain was that he wanted to try.
He waited as she saw the last patient out of the clinic and closed the door for lunch.
But before he had a chance to speak she stopped at the computer to check her emails.
Her face fell.
‘What’s wrong?’ he couldn’t help but ask.
She was staring at the screen, then shook her head for a few moments and picked up her phone. ‘Give me a minute, would you?’
The expression on her face was a mixture of panic and worry. She disappeared into the office with her phone pressed to her ear. The door didn’t entirely close.
He paced around outside. Attempting to be busy doing other things and trying his best not to listen, but it was hard not to hear the rising tones of her voice.
After around fifteen minutes she appeared at the doorway, her face drawn.
‘What is it, Arissa?’ He couldn’t help himself. He walked over and put his hands on her arms.
She shook her head. She looked numb. ‘There’s been a problem with my visa. The agency I’m due to start with in London hasn’t applied in time. I needed the visa to secure my post in London at the children’s hospital.’
Philippe frowned. Doctors moved to positions in other countries all the time. Visas were always a tricky issue, but usually dealt with promptly and without delay when the paperwork was submitted. ‘Have they made a mistake?’
She nodded. ‘Oh, yes.’
‘Can the hospital sort it out for you?’
She gulped and shook her head. For the first time he thought he could see tears glistening in her eyes. ‘No. It’s too late. They need someone to start August the first. My visa will never process in time. It was part of the terms and conditions of the contracts that the visa requirement would be met by a certain time. They can’t afford to leave posts like this vacant, Philippe. These kids need doctors. They don’t have time for delays.’ Her voice was shaking now.
Philippe could see the pain in her eyes. ‘But they need you. They’ll be able to pull some strings. Doctors are a priority around the world. If we can speak to the visa office, I’m sure they’ll sort things out for you.’
She shook her head again. ‘They won’t buy it. As soon as the hospital were notified my paperwork wasn’t agreed in time, they offered the post to someone else.’
She sagged down into a chair. ‘For the first time in my life—I don’t have a job to go to.’
He could see how upset she was by this. He was upset for her. Most doctors were meticulous planners. They all knew that job visa requirements could take months and generally worked with agencies to ensure all these things were in order well in advance.
He knew how hard she’d been working. Covering the job she’d had in Washington, spending all her holiday time here, and helping document the research. It was no wonder something had slipped. It could happen to the best of people.
But from the look on her face it had never happened to Arissa before.
‘I can try and help. Let me see what I can do. Let me try and speak to someone.’ He was babbling now and he knew it.
But she shook her head again. Her eyes were vacant when they met with his. ‘But the job’s gone already. Even if strings were pulled and I got my visa, I wouldn’t get this job. The opportunity is gone.’
It was almost as if all the energy had gone from her body. Her shoulders sagged, her head dipped and her breathing got heavier.
He’d never seen her like this.
His mind was whirling around and around. He knew exactly what he should do right now. But the timing just felt so off.
It was inevitable. He’d spent the last two weeks in a bubble that didn’t really exist. It was time to tell the truth. His brain was desperately trying to create a spin on what he was about to reveal.
He took a deep breath. ‘Arissa, I know this is a shock. But, maybe this means you have an opportunity to do something different?’
‘Different like what? What else is there that I can possibly do?’
He gave her a hesitant smile. ‘How about I take you someplace else? A different country. A country that could benefit from your expertise.’
She frowned and shook her head. ‘What?’ It was clear she had no idea where this was heading.
There were parts of this story that he knew she wouldn’t be happy about. He took a few breaths. ‘Arissa, have you heard of Corinez?’
She shook her head. ‘Where?’
He wasn’t offended. While most people in Europe had heard of Corinez, in other continents around the world it wasn’t so well known.
‘Corinez. It’s an island near France, Monaco and Italy.’
A frown creased her brow. ‘Corinez? That’s the place you’re from?’
He nodded. ‘I’m due to go back—to start a new job...’ he cringed as he said those words ‘...and I wonder if—until you get things sorted—you would come with me.’
For a few seconds she looked stunned, then confused. The frown in her brow grew even deeper. ‘To do what?’
He paused for a moment. ‘I have a senior position. One that means I’d be able to look at the possibility of setting up a scheme similar to the safe haven scheme you’ve set up here.’
It didn’t take more than a few seconds for the pieces to fall into place for Arissa. It wasn’t usual for a doctor who’d spent the last few years specialising in an ER to go to a job like that. ‘Exactly what kind of job do you have in Corinez?’
‘I’m part of an advisory committee.’ He kept his reply short.
Her eyes widened. ‘An advisory committee for a hospital?’
He hesitated. ‘No...an advisory committee for the whole country.’
‘Wow. That sounds important.’ She gave a little smile. ‘I don’t mean to be cheeky, but how on earth would you get a job like that?’
He looked up and met her confused gaze. ‘I was born into it.’
He waited. She pulled back. ‘What on earth does that mean?’
‘It means that I was born to be on the advisory committee for overseeing healthcare. My sister was born to do the same for finance, and my brother...’ he took another breath ‘...he was born to be King.’
Silence. So long and so amplified that the breath he was holding almost burst his lungs.
She seemed frozen. Her eyes couldn’t get any wider. Finally, she made a kind of stuttering sound. ‘So...so...if your brother will be King...that makes you a prince?’
He flinched at the way she said the word—as if it were some kind of awful disease.
He nodded. His heart heavy. Most of his life when he’d dated he’d wondered if people were going out with him because he was a prince, not because he was Philippe. Working in the hospital in Corinez had felt almost awkward. People had been ridiculously polite to him, tiptoeing around him when they should have been more worried about providing healthcare.
But coming here had been something again. He’d never had such a blank slate before. And for the first time he’d managed to have a friendship develop and blossom with no underlying knowledge of his
true identity. For his part, it wasn’t exactly honest—he knew that. But it had felt so freeing—even if it was only a few days.
He knew that the start of the friendship between him and Arissa had been about him. About them.
‘Why didn’t you tell me?’ Her voice was tight.
He ran his hand through his hair. ‘Because I came here under the radar, for a holiday. I met Dr Reacher on the plane. When he told me what he was supposed to be doing, then...’ he winced ‘...died, it made me curious.’ He gave a smile and held up his hand. ‘And then I reached the luxury resort, and within a day...’ he pulled a face ‘...truth is, I was bored. Even if I hadn’t met Harry on the plane I would still have come looking for something else to do. A way to volunteer or help.’
‘What’s the deal with being a prince? Why keep it a secret?’
He wanted to throw his hands up in frustration. No one really understood what it was like. The constant scrutiny. Living your life under the spotlight. Saying hello to a woman and having a story in the press the next day saying that you were getting married.
