The Last-Ditch Heir

4 Night Changes

Sean settled behind the large desk in his office at his town home. He examined the dinner tray his butler left on his desk. Dinner was a pork chop with rice and steamed spinach. He ate quickly and made his first call to his mother.

"Mum?"

"Yes, dear," said Vivian.

He informed her about Uther. and the need for him to stay in Swansholm. She agreed to come the next day.

His next call was to his secretary at the Duchy of Westmere. They discussed how to handle Sean's absence as long as he was required in Swansholm.

He ate the last of the pork chop. He buzzed for a maid to remove the tray and went to his bedroom suite.

Sean changed into pajamas. He dialed on his cell phone and waited as it rang three times.

"Hello?" Isobel's husky, sexy voice answered.

"Ibby. It's Sean."

"Yes, I have your number id, darling," Isobel murmured. "How has your day been? Have you seen the King?"

"Yes, darling. He's going to hospital today. I'll stay in Swansholm for the time being in case he needs me. We'll be able to see more of each other."

"Wonderful, Sean," she said. "I miss you so much. Talking on the phone leaves me wanting more." She waited.

"More?"

"Yes, love, more of you. What time can you be here?"

"Can't tonight, love. The next few days will be much too busy. I have to go, much work to do."

"Call me."

"Of course."

"Goodbye then. I'll wait for your call."

"Goodbye, Isobel. Isobel. I love the sound of your name."

He hung up and left for his office. Isobel turned to the man lying beside her with his arms around her.

"Is he coming tonight?" Anthony asked.

"No. Too busy. Uther is going to hospital."

"That should be in your favor."

She nodded and rolled over to face him. "You can stay tonight, but he'll be in town so you'll have to stay away until I see how this will fall out."

"He should have proposed to you already."

"Uther's death will speed things up. Richard isn't so hostile to me. Sean's mother, for one, dislikes me. Once he proposes, though, we can't see each other. At least for a few years. Until I give him a son."

Anthony sat up. "I hadn't thought of that. If only I had a better title."

Isobel reached for him.

*

Pam checked the messages and texts on her phone as she heated a can of soup for her supper. Her five roommates were out, so she had the apartment to herself.

Seventeen texts from Georg. Her ex-fiancé had been blowing up her phone the last few days. She didn't want to talk to him, but decided to make that clear to him. She dialed his number. He picked up on the first ring.

"Pam? I thought you'd never call back."

"I only have a few minutes, Georg. We really don't have anything to talk about. This is the last call."

"I broke up with Donatella."

Pam was silent. He'd returned to his old girlfriend. Pam gave back the engagement ring, a family heirloom worth at least €15,000. She wasn't pleased or unhappy. I have no feelings for you anymore, George, she thought.

"I'm sorry for you, Georg. You two were together for a long time.

"Yeah, before and after I met you. That greedy tramp sold the engagement ring."

Am I supposed to care? "Oh, Georg, that was stupid of her. Did she claim she lost it?"

"No, she bought a cheap cubic zirconia replacement and we didn't notice for a few months. She also ran up €30,000 on my credit cards."

Pam stirred her soup and poured it in a bowl. "Expensive."

"You'd never have done that to me."

"We're not together anymore, Georg. I'm going back to South Carolina next year. If this is all you're calling about, I can't help you and I don't want to talk with you again. We cleared our finances when you left me. Please don't call me again."

"I thought you'd care more about me. We were so close once."

Pam pulled two slices of bread from a bag and spread mayo on them.

"Once, Georg. Our lives are separate now."

Georg coughed. "There's the matter of your visa."

Pam was frozen, the knife held in the air till a blob of mayo fell on the counter. She started, then grabbed a cloth and wiped it up. "What do you mean by my visa?"

"I sponsored you to come here with the understanding we'd marry. When we broke up, I didn't notify Immigration that was no longer right. Your visa needs to be renewed and I can't truthfully sign to that effect now, can I?"

"What do you want, Georg?"

"I want us to be a couple again. To marry." Pam shook her head. She dropped the knife in the sink.

"Money. This is about money. You know I had €20,000 Euros when we broke up. I'm not paying for Donatella with my life savings."

"I hope you enjoyed your stay in Forland," Georg said. "You'll leave soon enough."

Pam disconnected. She poured the soup down the sink and ran the water to wash it down. She threw the bread away. She stared at the sink without seeing anything and realized she'd left the water running. She turned it off and went to the room she shared with Florence.

She read and read her visa papers and checked the laws allowing residency. She'd have to return to South Carolina in two months. At least she'd managed to save almost €29,000, enough to give her a good start back home.

"Richard. Prince Richard said he'd help me with my visa." She put her face in her hands. "The news said the King is failing. Richard may be too busy to help me."

Richard watched impatiently as the footmen maneuvered Nels' heavy bed into position in his bedroom. The large, heavy headboard rested against the wall. Maids scurried to place clean linen on the bed and prepare it for Richard.

An elderly museum curator watched, resigned, as the ancient bed of the Royal Family was prepared for the Crown Prince.

The maids finished, and bowing, left the room. Richard leaped on the bed to a burst of creaking and squeaking. The curator flinched.

"Bed needs oiling, or something," Richard said as the stretched out on the delicate cover, his shoes tearing the threads. "See to it tomorrow."

"Yes, your Royal Highness," The curator bowed. He'd also replace the coverlet.

Richard kicked off his shoes. He hopped off the bed and dropped his clothes on a chair. He slid under the covers to more creaking. He fluffed a pillow and settled down. He scrolled through the numbers on his cell and selected his current favorite girlfriend. He rang her number and when she answered, invited her to try out his new, ancient bed.