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“Have played some crazy, juvenile trick on the entire country?” Toby finished for him.
“You seem to understand well.”
“Just common sense,” Toby said, then her head came up. “If the king is away, who will handle his duties? I’m sorry but I don’t know much about Lanconia. Are the royal family’s duties all ribbon-cutting or more serious?”
Daire sighed. “If they were only what the public sees, this would be easy, but every visitor who is important to our country wants to deal with royalty. They want to say they negotiated a contract with the king or his son, not with a committee of old men and women. They want to be wined and dined and entertained in the palace.”
“Oh,” Toby said as she sat down on the rim of one of the raised beds. “Graydon could handle that, but from what I understand, Rory hasn’t spent enough time in Lanconia to know all the things he’ll need to.” She looked up at Daire. He was holding the hose and looking down at her. She put her hand up to shield her eyes from the sun behind him. “Graydon is going to have to do the king’s job as well as Rory’s, isn’t he? And all from the other side of the world.”
“I think you do see the problem.”
She couldn’t help smiling at his tone. He sounded as though he was quite proud of her. “Wait a minute! What about the engagement ceremony? Rory can’t do that, can he? And does the woman know about the exchange?”
Daire turned away to hide his smile. Lady Danna was “the woman,” was she? “No, she doesn’t. She has been very solicitous of Prince Rory’s injury and she calls him Graydon. She cannot be allowed to pledge herself to the wrong man, as once the engagement is finalized it is as good as a marriage. But Lorcan and I have planned for this. We will secrete Graydon back into the country the night before the ceremony, then out again afterward.”
“But wouldn’t Rory go see his father in the hospital?”
“It has been publicly reported that the king is relaxing at a spa, so Rory’s unscheduled visit would draw attention to the matter. It is better that no one know of the king’s stroke. After the ceremony, if the king has not shown significant signs of recovery, he will step down and Graydon will take over.”
Toby looked toward the house. Which meant that very soon Graydon could be a king, she thought. “What’s he doing now?”
“Instructing his brother in how to deal with the president of a country few people had heard of until six years ago. A sheep fell down a hole and when they pulled it out, it had four lavender diamonds stuck in its wool. Since then, the inhabitants have ravaged their country looking for more of them.”
“Did they find any?”
“Several,” Daire said. “Lady Danna’s engagement ring contains one.”
“How nice for her,” Toby said but there was no enthusiasm in her voice.
Daire was watching her. “Lady Danna knows nothing about any of this. We are entrusting only you with our country’s secrets.”
“Don’t worry,” she said. “I’m no snitch.”
Daire started to reply, but the back door to the house opened and the formidable-looking Lorcan appeared. She seemed to be glowering in disapproval.
“I believe I am wanted,” Daire said and gave a small bow. “It has been a pleasure.”
“For me too,” Toby said and they smiled at each other.
He took a few steps toward the house, but then turned back. “Perhaps tomorrow we could train together.”
“I’m not very athletic,” Toby said.
“I will teach you,” he replied. His eyes were very dark.
“Yes” was the only thing she could think to say.
“I will give you first choice of weapons.” Turning away, he hurried into the house.
“Weapons?” Toby said as she rolled up the hose, then thought, Maybe Victoria would like a Lanconian wedding. Maybe two lines of these glorious men could form a tunnel of swords and Victoria could pass under them. It would certainly be dramatic.
“You were out there a long while,” Graydon said when Daire entered the dining room, which had been set up as an office.
Rory was on the screen now. “Hey, Daire!” he called out. “How do you like Nantucket?”
Daire moved the screen around to face him. “I haven’t seen much,” he said in Lanconian, “but the streets are nice and wide.”
The two of them laughed together. It would be difficult to find narrower streets than in Lanconia or Nantucket.
