Page 3 of Tempted By the Princess

There was a white truck in the alley, emblazoned with the logo of a catering company, the back doors open. I took a quick look around, and seeing no one nearby, I followed my impulse and climbed into the back of the van. There was some kind of a cart in the corner, full of table linens, and I squeezed myself behind it, sliding to the floor of the vehicle and pulling my knees to my chest. Breathing deeply, I willed myself not to cry. Or start laughing hysterically.

What was wrong with my parents? They’d been overbearing before, and I knew that they didn’t like me living in Seattle, but this stunt was crazy, even for them. I had no idea it was coming. Did they really think I was going to marry some random low-level royal that they’d suckered into meeting me?

I jumped as the doors slammed closed, trapping me in the back of the van. For half a second I considered pounding on the side to alert the driver that I was there, but then I realized that the universe was offering me the chance to escape. I couldn’t hide out forever of course, but at least I could get away from this place. Maybe I could find someplace to hole up for a couple of days until my parents left or I figured out what to do about this crazy situation.

Digging my cell phone out of my purse I sent a quick text to my sister letting her know that I was safe, but I needed to go off grid. Before she could respond, I powered the phone off, settling in for wherever fate was going to take me.

Carrie

Iblew out a sigh as I eased my van down the alley. I was exhausted. As grateful as I was to have been chosen to cater the engagement party for some two-bit princess from a country I’d never heard of, it had been a lot. The job was complicated by a broken oven at our commercial kitchen and two servers who got into a shouting match right before we started service. Needless to say, I had to let them go. Then again, it wasn’t a catering job if there weren’t some disasters.

I’d just turned forty and after ten hours on my feet, I was feeling every one of those years. Fortunately my business partner was covering the clean-up so I could go home and relax.

The freeway was inexplicably packed, and despite the fact it was after eight on a Saturday night it took a good thirty minutes to get to my place on the outskirts of Tacoma. I owned a 1950s bungalow that I’d purchased a few years ago after years of renting. It wasn’t much, but it was mine. Well, mine and the bank’s.

I backed up in front of the garage and hit the button to open the door. I had a bin full of dirty linens I needed to wash. After pulling down the ramp, I hopped inside to pull out the bin, then jumped back in shock. There was a woman in my van.

“What the hell?”

“Uh, hi.” She gave me a little wave. “Sorry for scaring you.”

I walked backwards down the ramp, keeping the bin between us in case I needed it for protection. The woman followed me down and my eyes widened as I got a look at her. She was a petite blonde with pale skin, large brown eyes, and an honest-to-God tiara on her head. It looked real too. My eyes traveled downward, taking in her small but full breasts, trim waist, tiny little feet squeezed into what looked like rhinestone studded pumps. She looked like something out of a fairy tale.

“Why are you in my van?”

“I needed to get away.”

“From who? The police? Are you in trouble or something?”

“Oh no, nothing like that,” she laughed lightly. “My parents are trying to marry me off to some minor Scandinavian royal, so I took off.”

I looked around, wondering if there was a hidden camera somewhere. Seeing none, I turned back to my little stowaway. Suddenly I recognized her. She was the person whose engagement party we were catering. I’d only caught a glimpse of her, but it was definitely the bride-to-be.

Whatever this was, I didn’t have the energy to deal with it.

“Well Cinderella, this has been fun, but I’m exhausted. Go along now.”

I made a shooing motion with my hands, but the little princess stayed in place.

“Cinderella had two evil stepsisters,” she said. “I have a perfectly nice sister who’s going to be queen someday, which makes it even more ridiculous that my parents are trying to marry me off.”

I couldn’t suppress my sigh. I’d worked hard to eliminate drama from my life. The last thing I wanted was to hear about somebody else’s.

“Well, as much as I care about rich people’s problems, you need to get out of here. Do you need me to help you order an Uber?”

She seemed like the type who didn’t do anything for herself.

The princess’s forehead creased into a frown. “I know how to order an Uber, but I can’t go back to my condo.”

“Why not?” I asked impatiently.

“That’s the first place they’ll look for me.”

That sounded like a personal issue that I definitely didn’t need to be involved in. So I walked around her to close and lock the van, then pulled the bin of laundry into the garage.

“Well, good luck with all that,” I said, pressing the button to lower the garage door.

“Wait!” she called, scooting forward to follow me into the garage. “Can I stay here tonight?”