Page 46 of Falling for the Queen Mother

Alaina rested her forehead on the top of her desk and let out a groan. It had been a very long time since she was so uncertain about what to do with her life. Even after being widowed, it wasn't this challenging. Her job had been to mourn until she was ready to move back into "regular" life.

It had been expected by everyone and understood that it could be a long time - or not long at all. That it was different for everyone. No right or wrong way to grieve.

But this was different.

Maybe a nap would help her come to an answer.

She couldn't say it publicly - at least not where she'd be taken seriously - but her favorite verses were in I Kings 18. Elijah was exhausted and hangry - though that word never appeared in any version of the Bible that she was aware of. He had a snack and took a nap.

Since she'd just had lunch, she didn't need the snack, but the nap?

That sounded like the best idea she'd had all day.

If he didn't know better, Nate might think Alaina was avoiding him.

He'd heard a couple of comments from those around him that she ended up having meetings all day, though he didn't know what about. He suspected she'd rather be doing just about anything else.

"Sir?"

The voice of an assistant whose name he couldn't remember pulled him back to the present. "Yes?"

"I think that's all we can do for today. We've finished with our goals and don't have anything else ready to check just yet."

Nate nodded. "I guess we can be done then. Everyone can lock up everything they're working on and go home for the evening." He had no idea why anyone wanted his approval for any of it. He didn't work here, not officially. He'd confirmed the one painting was a forgery but nothing more.

It had to be because of his recently disclosed marital status.

Where would he go? He didn't think he felt comfortable just going to Alaina's quarters, but there wasn't anything for him in the suite where he'd been staying previously. Would he even have access to it anymore?

Maybe he could go wander the gardens or something.

Was there a place he could get supplies so he could make dinner for himself and Alaina? There had to be, but he didn't know how to make it happen. Was there a help option on the app he'd downloaded?

He'd already left the conference room and was near the entrance to the archives themselves. Glancing around, there wasn't anywhere to sit down and look it over. Instead, he walked out into the main hallway. A large sitting area was a bit down the hall so he took a seat in there. He didn't think it was somewhere that he'd get in trouble for being. It wasn't random wandering around the palace, just taking a seat when one was available.

He opened the app on his phone and scrolled through the options, tapping around until he found a circle with a question mark in it. When he tapped on it, immediately, it made a call.

Nate hadn't expected that, but he held the phone to his ear.

"Good evening, sir. This is Tyler in the main kitchen. How may I serve you?"

How had Tyler known who was on the phone? Or had he guessed. "This is Nate Dougherty..."

"Yes, sir." It sounded like he knew.

"I'd like to make dinner tonight if I can, but I have no idea how to make that happen. Is that something you can help me with? Or can you tell me who I'd need to talk to?"

"Of course, sir. I'm going to send you a pin. You can follow the instructions on your phone and when you arrive, we'll be able to assist with whatever you need."

Nate's phone buzzed. He looked at it to see a notification showing exactly what Tyler had said to expect. "I guess I'll be there in a few minutes. Thank you."

"We'll see you shortly." The call disconnected.

Standing, Nate held his phone flat and tried to figure out exactly where he needed to go. The arrow was pointed toward his abdomen, so maybe he needed to turn around?

When he did, he saw a wide entrance on the other side of the room. As he walked toward it, the arrow turned green.

Good to know.