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“Exactly, but I wanted my children to understand that food doesn’t magically come from the kitchen. Someone has to prepare it, and if you want to be self-sufficient, sometimes that someone needs to be you.”
“Even if your father is a billionaire prince.”
“Even then.” Emma made a humming sound, like she was gathering her thoughts. “On family dinner nights, the staff are given time off.”
“You all wash your own dishes?”
“Yes. Again, teaching our children that dishes and tables don’t magically clean themselves.”
“While giving your little family a couple of nights of privacy. Only you still have security.”
“Not in the family quarters. Privacy is at a premium, I will not lie, but there are ways to prevent you from feeling like you live in a fishbowl.”
“I’m pretty sure the media contributes to that feeling.” The fear of scandal had played a major part in Jenna not being able to file charges against Skylar.
“Yes, but Mirrus is a small country, and the Merikovs aren’t of nearly as much interest to the paparazzi as more well-known royals.”
“They’re of enough interest that news of Nataliya’s miscarriage got leaked.”
“Yes, and Dima got dumped in a very public manner, which the news cycle ran with,” Emma agreed. “But honestly? I drop my children off at school like all the other parents, and there aren’t a bunch of photographers hanging around, hoping to get a picture.”
“Like every other parent with a security detail,” Jenna teased.
“Sure, but I’m willing to live with that to know my children are safe, that my husband is safe. That I am safe.”
“That’s one thing I’ll say for the Merikovs. They don’t distinguish when it comes to security between the brothers.”
“No. But they’re all billionaires in their own right, because they each own one third of Mirrus Global.”
“I don’t think Prince Evengi would settle for anything less than the strongest security measures for any of them regardless.” Jenna had seen how protective the sometimes interfering former king was toward his family.
“It’s not really his call anymore, but I agree. Nikolai is pretty adamant.”
“Tell me about it.” There had been times over the past years that Jenna had been assigned her own temporary security detail, and that was all down to Nikolai.
She’d dealt with the inconvenience for the sake of Nataliya’s peace of mind and that of Jenna’s own parents, who worried about her connection to a royal family. Jenna had also always known it was temporary.
The prospect of taking on that sort of thing permanently couldn’t be dismissed just because she recognized the feelings she had for Dima.
However, neither could Jenna deny that she was more open to it than she had ever been before.
Love was a terribly powerful emotion. Her love for her brother Matt, and debilitating pain at losing him, had dictated choices in her life that might well impact her ability to have a long-term relationship with Dima.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
JENNAWASSTILLmulling over her conversation with Emma when the scrape of sandals on the stone surround of the pool brought her head up.
Dima was dressed in chinos and a short-sleeved button-up. And yes, he was wearing sandals.
“Those aren’t swim trunks,” she said, a little stunned at this casually dressed Dima.
“No. I thought we could go to the Old Fort this afternoon.”
She nodded, but her gaze was fixed on him, and her body wasn’t moving.
“That hungry look in your eyes would make more sense if Iwaswearing swim trunks.” His voice was laced with laughter.
“You mean European trunks, like swimmers wear?” she asked, her mind immediately going there and her tone husky from desire she made no attempt to hide.
