Page 43 of The Duchess Effect

Not more about his duty to the Company and his family! Did these people think about anything else?

He’d been so naive. He’d created this situation the moment he’d agreed to be the family representative for the royal tribute. He’d foolishly thought he’d be able to slip back into his life from before. Even after his mother and Dani had warned him, he’d deluded himself into believing he could achieve what no one else had been able to, outside of dying: escape his obligations as a member of the royal family.

He sighed. “The queen already talked to me.”

“I know. Just as I’m aware of the reprehensible way she gained your cooperation. I’m truly sorry she did that, but I hope you recognize just how desperate she is to have taken that action.”

“The reasonwhydoesn’t changewhatshe did. In the end, she got what she wanted.”

“But we require more than your begrudging participation. You showed your potential during my father’s tribute. We’re going to need that and more during the coming months.”

Months?

“Where’s Julian? Have you talked to him? He made this mess. Shouldn’t he be involved in fixing it?”

Brackets formed around her mouth. “Julian has his hands full.Between Fi and this girl from America... Honestly, the less he’s seen, by the public and the press, the better for all of us.”

Jameson didn’t see how him attending the opening of a new hospital or meeting with tyre factory employees and their families would blind anyone to the spectacle of the heir apparent possibly impregnating two women.

“Don’t you get tired of cleaning up his messes and of pretending that you shouldn’t be the one who takes the throne after the queen? At least you’re actually prepared for the job!”

His grandfather often said that being the sovereign required duty before self, an understanding his aunt had also inherited from her mother.

Catherine’s expression didn’t alter in the face of his comment. She crossed her ankles and shifted in the chair. “I didn’t have the luxury of pretending I wasn’t royal while I was growing up. From my earliest memory, I was taught that being a member of this family meant responsibility and sacrifice.”

Ouch.A velvet-covered whip still delivered a sting.

“As Prince of Wales, Julian is given a lot of latitude. That won’t be the case when he ascends to the throne, no matter what he believes. The monarchy will make sure of that.”

“You speak of it as if it were a person.”

“Not a person, but it’s kind of like a sentient being. Julian will learn, as my mother did and her father before her, that the people in these buildings are loyal to the institution, not the individual.”

Even though the institution could demoralize the individual.

“And so, I must sacrifice and do my duty?”

“Yes,” she said, as if it were the most reasonable response in the world.

He pushed to his feet and strode over to the fireplace, bracing his hands on the sleek stone mantel.

“Jameson?”

“I hear you. And it’s not my intention to be difficult. I know what I have to do. But if you expect me to pretend that I’m happy to do this, then you’re expecting too much. For God’s sake, the queen has essentially blackmailed me. Twice!”

“I understand chafing under the restrictions of the Crown. For all the reasons you so astutely and, I hope, confidentially, stated. But none of us chose this life. It chose us and we must act within its restraints.”

“And so by virtue of my birth, every choice in my life is to be taken from me?”

“Stop acting as if this is a hardship. You’ve benefited from it. I’m not saying you haven’t worked hard. But you’ve had the softest of cushions known as the royal family behind you, ready to catch you if you fell. Or rather, to guarantee you never did. Who you are has made what you’ve achieved easier.” She took a deep breath. “You’ve made your feelings clear about being a working member of this family. If you seek to venture beyond its protections, can I assume you have a plan in place?”

“I’ll be working on it.”

She nodded. “Then while we still have you, I’m asking for your help. We have our own strategy in place. First, there’s the St. Lucia state visit in a month. Mother is worried about the family’s influence with the Commonwealth of Nations. Then there’s the matter of the third in the line of succession. When Fi gives birth in six months, despite everything going on, it will bring goodwill to this family. It always does. In the meantime, we’re working on making this Samantha Banks situation go away.”

“Good luck with that.”

He knew how much she’d affected Dani and why. Now that shemay have her hooks in the royal family, there was no way she’d willingly let go.

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