Blackstone Ranger Scrooge - Alicia Montgomery Page 0,66
that Arabella was here and obviously was responsible for the presence of his great-uncle. But all J.D. had to do tonight was smile and be polite, at least until this whole thing was over.
“Tell me, Ms. McNamara,” Stepan began. “What is it you do?”
“I run a garage,” she said.
“Garage?”
“She’s a mechanic,” Arabella interjected with a snort. “A tradesman.”
“She owns the whole garage,” Cam clarified. “She’s a businesswoman.”
J.D. stiffened at his side. “I fix cars, trucks, and motorcycles. It’s a business, yes, and I get paid for what I do.”
“Well, we all know what people who get paid for what they do are called,” Arabella sniped.
J.D.’s face turned red. “Why you—"
The orchestra’s horn section heralding the arrival of their guests of honor couldn’t have come at a better time, and Cam sighed with relief as J.D.’s mouth snapped shut.
“If I may have everyone’s attention,” a voice boomed over the loud speakers. “Let us welcome, Their Majesties, King Aleksei and Queen Sybil of the Northern Isles.” A round of applause erupted from the crowd.
“I’m glad they used the short version,” Jason joked. “If they used all their titles, we might be here all night.”
King Aleksei entered the ballroom, his queen consort on his arm. They made a striking couple with the king being so tall and elegant in his formal wear and Queen Sybil looking regally beautiful in a full-skirted silver ball gown. Flanking them on either side were two fierce-looking men whose eyes scanned the crowd, their presence effectively keeping people away.
“The famed Dragon Guards of the royal family,” Stepan remarked. His normally stoic uncle sounded impressed.
“Why is there no receiving line? Does no one in this country observe proper protocol?” Arabella asked. “And why is no one else being presented? Princess Natalia should have been introduced before them, as the second-ranking royal. And before her, Cam, and any other members of the aristocracy.”
Of course, what Arabella meant was that she wanted to be announced, a fact that didn’t go over J.D.’s head. “The vice president’s here, too, you know,” J.D. said in an irritated voice. “And he’s our second-ranked elected official here. In America.”
Cam felt a headache coming on at the thought of being trapped between the two sniping women. But thankfully, Jason’s diplomatic ways saved him.
“Sybil begged and pleaded that they make this informal,” Jason explained. “Actually, she didn’t want a ball at all, but seeing as they were visiting heads of a foreign state, there had to be some kind of social event. So, she and the State Department’s protocol office made a compromise: no dinner or a receiving line and an announcement only.”
The crowd parted and made way for them, and though this wasn’t a formal state affair, they first made their way to Vice President Baker’s party. They chitchatted for a while before turning toward Natalia.
“Princess Natalia,” King Aleksei greeted. “How lovely to see you again. It’s been such a long time.”
Natalia curtseyed. “Your Majesties. Indeed, it has been a long time.”
“You remember my great-aunt, don’t you, Sybil?”
Queen Sybil smiled warmly. “Of course. Thank you for accepting our invitation. And welcome to Blackstone. How are you finding it so far?”
“Your birthplace and childhood home is a wonderful place, Your Majesty.” Natalia answered.
“Your Majesty,” Stepan said. “It is a pleasure to see you again. And your beautiful queen.”
The dragon king’s expression remained neutral, but the queen’s posture turned rigid. “Stepan. Thank you for coming all the way just to meet us. Though it was unnecessary to travel so far as my trade ministers meet with you quite often.”
“According to my social secretary, Mr. Dashokov was very insistent on giving us the honor of his presence,” Queen Sybil added, her lips pursing. “How could we resist?”
Natalia smoothly slid into the conversation with a delicate clearing of her throat. “Your Majesty, you remember my grandson, His Grace, the Duke of Westmoreland? You met only once during your wedding.”
“Of course,” Sybil gave him a warm smile. “It’s Cameron, right? Cam.”
“Cousin Cam,” Aleksei greeted. “It is nice to see you again.”
“Your Majesty,” he said, giving him a deferent nod.
Sybil looked to her brother. “Jason told us you were living here and working as a ranger! Why didn’t you say anything?”
“I was quite surprised to hear that you were in Blackstone, but then again, I should have known,” King Aleksei said with a shake of his head. “Even though we were in Oxford around the same time, he much preferred mucking about the countryside doing his research rather than having pints with