Secrets of a Prince (The Princes of New Sargasso #3) - Carol Moncado Page 0,9

my attorneys, myself, and Joshua.”

“I understand.” She’d have to discuss it with her father. She’d have no choice. Or maybe she could use the nondisclosure agreement as an excuse. He’d see the deposit though.

If it was a check, maybe she could open her own account and disappear.

“Very well. My attorneys have the paperwork drawn up. When would you like your attorney to look over it?”

She shook her head. “I’ll sign it. I trust you both.” Something her father would never say.

Her father expected her to bring the paperwork back to the estate before she left on the train. Unfortunately, she wouldn’t have time, even if it meant sitting in her vehicle in the garrison for several hours before leaving the palace.

He also expected his attorneys to go over it, likely change a whole bunch of things to benefit himself, and then try to...

She still wasn’t clear on his end game, outside of the money, but she knew something more was at play.

“I trust you will be fair in the terms of the agreement,” she reiterated. “I won’t need my own lawyer to look it over.”

The king nodded once. “Very well.”

She was ushered into a conference room to wait for the king, Joshua, and the attorneys.

Her mind wandered, as she’d tried to let it do for weeks. Think about anything but the situation she’d found herself in.

The painting on one wall wasn’t anything special, not that she could discern, but Minnie found herself drawn to it.

She moved to stand in front of it, studying the forest that somehow seemed to be something more than what it appeared on the surface.

Then she saw it. Camouflaged in the trees, a dragon.

Sofós Voskós.

She’d know those eyes anywhere.

It reminded her of something she’d desperately tried to forget over the last few years, and especially over the last few weeks.

She had a Creator who cared for her, who loved her unborn child even more than Minnie possibly could.

A Creator who formed her in her mother’s womb, just as He formed her child. Whatever the reason for the pain she’d gone through, for allowing her father to find out and using the information to his advantage, there was a reason.

Her relationship with the Creator had never been fantastic, though she believed. Maybe this was a chance at a fresh start.

If such a deity could forgive Minnie for allowing herself to be used. She was a full-grown adult, after all.

She knew Sofós Voskós wasn’t real. He’d been created by an author, just like so many other characters.

But in Sofós Voskós, Minnie had always been reminded of how life worked her in the real world.

Beyond a shadow of a doubt, Minnie knew how Sofós Voskós would react to someone in her situation.

So maybe, just maybe, there was hope for her here in reality.

As the train rolled southward, Joss tried to get his mind off the meeting earlier in the day.

He had no idea what compelled Lady Waterford to change her mind, but he was glad. The back and forth had taken a toll on all of them. He could see it in his father’s demeanor at family meals and the exhaustion written around Lady Waterford’s eyes.

She was going to the library reopening as well, on behalf of The Literacy Council.

Could she be on the same train?

If so, maybe this was a good time to have a talk, uninterrupted.

Joss motioned to a member of his security detail. “Would it be possible to find out if Lady Waterford is on this train? If so, I’d like to speak with her.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Thank you.”

He went back to working on some paperwork until the door to the royal family’s private train car opened and Lady Waterford entered.

After making a note so he’d remember where he stopped, Joss set his tablet off to the side. “Hi.” He motioned to the seat across from him. “Care to join me? You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to.”

“You actually want to talk to me?” She put a hand on the chair as the train rocked back and forth with a bit more emphasis than it had been previously.

“Why wouldn’t I?”

She turned the seat and sat down quickly as the train rocked again. “Because of everything that’s happened.”

“If this had been a week or so ago, I might have different thoughts, but something clearly changed today.”

They’d been left alone in this part of the car.

“It’s just you and me. Why don’t you start at the beginning?”

Lady Waterford turned her chair until she could look out the