AllFreeNovel
Share Us
CHAPTER ELEVEN
SHE’DKNOWNTHE event was being filmed live but Chloe hadn’t expected the cameras to be outside as well.
She could hear the young woman speaking into the mic as she stepped out of the car that bore the royal crest of Vela. She squared her shoulders. If her sister, who absolutely hated being the centre of attention, could do this then so could she...all she had to do was channel her inner show-off.
‘And this...yes, that is Lady Chloe Summerville, who is standing in for her sister, the future Queen of Vela. We understand,’ the reporter continued with a coy smile for the camera, ‘that the princess was unable to attend tonight, and, though there has been no official confirmation, I’m sure you recall how the Princess suffered terrible morning sickness during her first pregnancy...?
‘Lady Chloe is wearing...’ she consulted a sheet of paper she was holding ‘...yes, I believe she is wearing a creation by Tatiana... Lady Chloe, hello.’
Chloe paused in front of the mic that had been pushed into her face, and smiled. ‘Hello.’ The personal touch would have been nice but she didn’t have a clue who the other woman was.
‘That is a beautiful cape,’ the reporter said, gazing at the floor-length velvet fur-trimmed cape Chloe wore. ‘Real fur?’
‘No, it’s not real.’
‘You are presenting one of the awards tonight, I believe, to the little girl who, I’m sure our viewers will remember, ran back into a burning house to save her baby sister and was injured herself. Humbling...so humbling...’
‘To Kate, yes, I got lucky being able to present that particular award.’
‘Standing in for your lovely sister? And how is the princess?’
Sabrina was where she spent most evenings at the moment, hanging over a toilet bowl...still asking anyone who’d listen why they called it morning sickness.
‘She is really sorry she couldn’t be here as it’s a cause very close to her heart. Heroes so often go unsung and it’s good to redress the balance just a little.’
‘So why was she—?’ The fortuitous arrival of the cast of a famous reality TV programme saved Chloe from fielding any more questions, and as the camera moved to the new arrivals she made her way quickly up the steps and into the theatre’s foyer, which was filled with small gaggles of well-dressed people chatting. Tatiana immediately peeled off from one of the nearer groups and came across to where Chloe stood.
Chloe bent to kiss her when almost immediately her phone began to bleep and, fishing it from the minuscule bag she carried, she glanced down. ‘A text from Sabrina,’ she explained, skimming the message her sister had sent her.
Good luck and chin up! If you change your mind that’s fine either way. We’ll be cheering you on, so have a glass of fizz for me! And hurry back, please. If my husband asks me if I’m all right one more time I might have to kill him.
Chloe’s smile was tinged with wistfulness as she switched her phone off and slipped it back into her bag. What would it be like to have a man be as crazy about you as her brother-in-law was about her sister?
Swallowing the emotional lump in her throat, she knew how lucky she was to have a family like hers, who were aware of her plans and supported any choices she made. It had been a struggle to stop her parents from flying over to offer moral support, and she suspected they were a bit hurt by the rejection, but she knew it was something she had to do alone.
‘Is everything all right?’ Tatiana asked.
‘Fine if you discount the fact that Sabrina can’t keep anything down. The doctor says if things don’t improve by the end of the week, they’ll have to give her IV fluids.’
‘Oh, the poor thing!’
‘So what happens now?’ Chloe asked.
‘Well, you’re up first so they want you to go straight backstage, and after you’ve presented the award you’ll see Kate back to her table, where they’ve seated you there for the rest of the dinner.’
Chloe nodded. ‘That sounds good.’
‘You sure about this?’
‘Quite sure.’ Chloe was surprised by how calm she felt now the moment was almost here.
‘You know there are going to be headlines.’
Chloe nodded again, refusing to give mind space to fear and doubts. Producing headlines was the idea. You couldn’t challenge common perceptions from a position of fear. She’d been going around telling the world that they should accept people with scars while hiding her own.
Which made her a big fat hypocrite.
‘Tonight is the night of the big reveal.’
