҉ A PrinceSSly CoNNectioN ҉

ChaPtEr TWENTY-TWO _________________________

My mind had wandered after Mom's words: Life is unpredictable. It was filled with fantasies of bumping into Jason and an adorably and corny confession from his part telling me how much he couldn't live without me. Pathetic. I know. Still, I had barely slept at all completely lost in another world where things worked out just the way you wanted to.

Faint sunlight seeped through the curtains as I sighed defeated. One thing was sure, Jason could keep on living without me. He was strong and confident and probably not an idiot unlike me. Pulling over the blanket, I cuddled in bed missing the bright Mexican sun and its heat.

My room door opened as my little sister carefully strolled in with a steamy mug in her hands. The bitter scent of coffee filled my room as her lips tugged up on a bright smile. My heart warmed for her as I sat up mimicking her smile.

"Hey there!" Ash's brown eyes glinted with glee. Gosh, I loved my sister. Even if she was a pain in the ass sometimes.

"I didn't know you missed me so much," I flattened my blanket as I sat up hiding a smirk from her.

Ashley rolled her eyes before she handed me a cup of coffee, "No need to rub it in, you know? Life has been awful without you." She sat on the edge of the bed. Her hair was up in a ponytail and she was wearing track pants and a light t-shirt.

"Really?" I raised an eyebrow. "I would have thought that you've been enjoying yourself with that amazing boyfriend of yours."

She groaned and sent daggers at my window, "he's on tour," she muttered angrily.

Frowning at her, I asked curiously, "well, isn't that a good thing? Him being a singer and all?"

She sighed, "Yeah, I guess..."

I rolled my eyes and bumped her shoulder playfully, "well, then you should be happy for him. That's what girlfriends do, you know?"

Her brown eyes turned to me, "how the hell should I know? He's my first and only boyfriend and I'm sure that there are a gazillion girls jumping on him right now."

"Hey," I left my mug on the bed stand, "Ben would be the ultimate jackass if he didn't appreciate it. And I would totally beat the crap out of him." I slid an arm on my sister's shoulder as she snorted. I didn't like listening her like that. Totally self-conscious. Ashley was a beautiful girl. Her dark brown hair, cute freckles and chocolate eyes made her a knock-out. Not to mention that the whole nerdy style was really cute. Looks aside, she was really smart, gentle and friendly. "You know you're awesome, right?" She looked at me not really convinced. "And don't make me repeat it, Ash. I mean it."

She sighed, "I should record it on my phone and play it after you've yelled at me."

I shoved her playfully, "I never yell at you." She gave me a pointed look, "Undeservingly." She rolled her eyes after a small smile played on her face.

"Love sucks." She laid in bed after I crawled into my original position. Coffee in hand and all. "I mean," she propped one arm and laid her head on her right hand, "is this how you are supposed to feel? Because I haven't enjoyed it, to be honest."

A snort left my lips, "Beats me. You're asking this to the wrong person." My eyes locked on my coffee for a moment as sadness washed over me. "I'm clueless about love..." The last image I had on Jason played in my mind. The one where he was boring his bloody eyes at me on the plane. The last time I'd seen him.

"Are you ok?" Ash asked genuinely concerned.

Shaking my head, I looked away for a moment before taking a sip of my coffee. My eyes were already teared up.

"Marianne, what's going on?"

I swallowed hard bubbling all my feelings away. "I'm happy for you and Ben. I truly hope that everything works out for you." Don't make the same stupid mistakes as your idiot of a sister.

She sat up somewhat alarmed, "but-"

"I just don't want to talk about it, Ash." My tone was sharper than I had intended it to be. She looked hurt for a moment before getting up. A pang of guilt played in my chest. "I'm sorry. I didn't meant to-"

She raised a hand to shut me up, "It's ok. I know that you'll tell me when it feels right for you." The hurt expression on her eyes had disappeared. Nodding, I took a deep breath as she walked to the door, "Are you going to go see Grandma Isobel? Because you look like crap, Marianne." Her lips formed a smirk and I knew she was teasing me, so everything was fine between us. She smiled and left the room as I finished my coffee.

An hour later I was downstairs ready and waiting for the chauffeur to drive me to the hospital where my great grandmother was. Ashley had been right, though. I did look like crap so I was wearing more makeup than usual trying to hide the dark circles under my eyes. Mom smiled at me as I made an appearance at the kitchen where she was talking with a fortyish man about dinner. When her eyes landed on me, she grinned and finished giving out instructions.

"Who's that?" I asked frowning. The blond man seemed like a big-shot around the kitchen.

She sighed contented as she flattened her shirt, "He's a vegan Chef. Your father invited Hugh over for a few days," she rolled her eyes, "you know how strict he is with his food so I had to hire someone for the next few days."

I smiled at that. Hugh was Mom's best friend since forever. He was great. Funny and sarcastic as hell, but having him around meant usually a blast. We called him Uncle and I had to admit that he had a soft spot for us. He lived with Chris in Spain, now. They owned a vegan restaurant in Madrid. They always wanted to adopt a child but for whatever reason, they either couldn't or didn't. But we were like daughters to them. It was a shame that Chris couldn't come to. Together, they were double-fun.

"He'll be here for dinner, then?"

Her green eyes lit, "yes!" she chuckled, "I've been so stressed lately that your father thought it would be nice to have him around for a few days." Her tone was loving as she talked about Dad. Her smile faltered as she glanced at me, "are you going to go see Lady Isobel?" I nodded as she raised an eyebrow, "good luck with that."

I blinked at her as uneasiness filled me. "Ashley basically told me the same thing!" She raised both eyebrows in a knowing way as the doorbell rang. Awesome.

Tom was my designated bodyguard. He was also my chauffeur when I needed one. He was over thirty and a really nice guy. He beamed as I greeted him. "Good morning, Tom."

"Your highness," he bobbed his head before leading the way and opening the car's door for me.

"Thank you," I slipped inside. "How's the new baby, Tom?" I asked as he started the car. His wife had been on the last term of pregnancy before I left.

"He's a handful, Miss..." a toothy smile played on his lips as we left the house.

Grinning, I looked outside as I added, "I bet he is." I made a mental note on stopping at the mall to get a present for his second baby as well as the three-year old sister. I rarely saw them but his eldest daughter was really cute.

We arrived to the hospital as I took a deep breath. Both Ashley and Mom had not helped at all. Tom looked at me from the rear mirror as he parked and smiled sympathetically. That did not helped my case at all.

My hand gripped tighter the flowers we had previously gotten for this purpose as we walked around the hospital halls. Stopping at one of the doors, I took a deep breath before knocking. A nurse opened the door for me and let me through.

I found my great-grandmother sat on a plush sofa by the window. Several flower arrangements adorned the room. Despite being ill, she didn't look like it. Her blue eyes gazed at me as I walked in. Her strong demeanor could be felt on the room. Swallowing hard, I greeted her with a kiss on the cheek before the nurse took the flowers from me and left to set them on a vase.

"Good morning, Marianne. I'm glad you're back." Her tone was disapproving.

There was another smaller sofa in front of her. I took a seat and gave her a tight smile. "I'm sorry to hear that you've been ill, Grandma."

She flattened her robe, "I'm sure you have. Although I can't say the same for everyone else." I wasn't sure if she was talking about Mom. But I was pretty sure she was implying it. Which was utterly annoying. Mom was the sweetest and kindest person. Even to her.

The nurse came back with the flowers I'd brought and placed them on the small coffee table next to my grandmother's seat. She gave her a pointed look, making the poor woman scurry away. As we heard the door close, Grandma Isobel's blue eyes turned to me. "I just can't believe that your mother sent you away for the summer," she inspected the flower arrangement before glancing at me, "to Mexico, of all places."

My temper flared at her words and annoyed tone. What was wrong with Mexico?

She's ill. She's ill. Be patient.

Taking a calming breath, I added matter-of-factly, "actually it was Dad who made the decision to send me away..."

Ignoring me, she continued to ramble on and on that it was such an insecure country with medieval traditions (I turned away to roll my eyes on that statement) and poor hygiene habits. She was on a roll. Sensing that there was nothing I could say to change her mind, I let her ramble away under the pretense that she was ill and probably annoyed at being on the hospital. Plus, she still had trouble walking or standing up, so she was moody as hell. I had to retell myself that several times over the course of the next thirty minutes.

Patiently, I sort of blocked out to let her say whatever was on her mind. Until she started to talk about Ashley and her poor choice to date a buffoon such as Ben, blaming Mom for the lack of sense that apparently my sister didn't have.

"I think Ashley is mature enough to know who she dates or not."

Her eyes turned to ice. "Is that so? I'd like to see more sense in you. You will be, after all, following my steps."

And here it goes.

My stomach churned uneasily as my eyes ran across the room. Swallowing hard, I glanced at her. It was time to be bold and truthful. Sick or not sick. "Maybe. I'm still thinking about it. At least I know that I won't have to make that decision in a while."

Grandma sucked in a breath, "What are you talking about? I'm passing the crown to you."

"And I'm honored. But I'm not ready." She opened her mouth to say something but I kept on talking, "I'm 20 years old. I'm supposed to make mistakes and screw up like any other girl my age."

She shook her head disapprovingly. "I was 19 when my father passed the title to me."

I fought the urge to rub my face exasperated. "Yes but that was last century!" Literally.

"The royal family has the obligation to follow our country's traditions."

"I know," I sighed, "and that's why Dad is so keen on being King." Although to be honest I wasn't sure if he really was...

She smiled a fake smile, "well, unfortunately, that will never happen."

My temper flared as I pinched the bridge of my nose, "Why not?"

Looking as authoritative as always, she raised her shoulders for a second before saying, "your father made a wrong choice when he was young. Now, he will pay the consequences."

My heart started to race as my blood felt like it started to boil. "Choosing my mother was the best thing he could ever do." I snorted out not caring if I was talking to my great-grandmother or not, "I wouldn't be here if things had played differently and my parents love and respect each other. They are happy together."

Her blue eyes narrowed, "I believe that your stay in Mexico may have caused you to forget your manners, young lady."

"Well, I'd say that I'm saving my manners to someone that respects my family."

"That's completely out of line, Marianne."

"Is it?" I looked away since I was already sending daggers her way. "You talk about my mother as if she was a complete nuisance to you, when she has always been kind and respectful to you." I glanced at her once only to be met with cold blue eyes glaring at me. "If anything, she's the example I try to follow. You should try it sometimes."

"This is outrageous!" she exclaimed offended.

This time, I did roll my eyes and made a show of making it front of her.

Standing up, I stared at her. "If you want respect, start out by being respectful yourself." With that, I walked out of the room seething and feeling extremely guilty at the same time. She was, after all, in the hospital.

Leaning against the wall, I took a deep breath.

Bloody hell.

That went well...

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Hey there!

Short chapter :) but sooner than expected so I deserve a vote ;)