A Very Merry Princess

The farm’s security system had alerted him to an authorized code being used to open the gate, so it didn’t take long for him to see a familiar car pulling up. He waited while his sister got out of the driver’s side, then, before he could control himself, he waved happily and jumped to the ground.

His fraternal twin stared at him wide-eyed.

“What is wrong with you?” she demanded. “You look...” She stared at him intently. “I don’t know what but you’re freaking me out.”

“Nothing’s wrong.” He tried to look totally casual and manly.

Pallas groaned. “It’s that horse, isn’t it? You’re practically giddy with excitement, which would be charming if you were seven, but it’s more than a little disconcerting on a guy pushing thirty.”

He raced toward her, grabbed her around the waist and spun her in a circle. “I can’t help it,” he yelled, before putting her down and laughing. “Do you know what this is going to mean? We have a stallion from the El Baharian royal stable, right here in Happily Inc. It’s incredible. It’s more than incredible—it’s a miracle. Do you know how rare it is for the king to sell one of his horses? It almost never happens, and if it does, it’s usually a mare. We got a stallion.”

His sister shook her head. “You’re this excited about horse sex? I’m sorry to have to say this, but you need to get out more.”

He swung her around again. She shrieked to be put down, then started laughing with him.

Cade released her. “I’ve been working on our breeding program, but Rida changes everything. He’s going to put us on the map.”

“Technically, Happily Inc has been on the map for a while,” Pallas said sweetly. “You should Google us. We’re right there.”

“Ah, sis, it’s a great day.”

“Then I’m happy for you. And I brought everything you asked for. Although you should have told your fancy housekeeper to take care of the guest room.”

“This is important. I need it to be right.” He shrugged. “You have great taste, Pallas, and I trust you.”

She groaned. “Don’t be sincere. It makes it too hard to mock you.” She led the way to the back of her car and opened the trunk. “All right. Let’s get this stuff inside.”

The “stuff” consisted of several boxes, along with shopping bags. The trunk was full, as were the backseat and the front passenger seat. Together they carried it all inside. Pallas sorted through everything, then took charge of telling him what went where.

When Cade had found out King Malik was willing to sell him Rida, he hadn’t thought much past getting the stables ready. Three days ago the royal stable master had informed him that Rida would be accompanied by one of the horsemen familiar with the stallion. A not-unexpected occurrence. Cade had known someone would tag along to make sure the horse was comfortable, the surroundings acceptable—that requirement was in his contract with the king. What he hadn’t expected was that the horseman being sent would be a woman. Then he’d panicked.

The farmhouse at the ranch was nearly a hundred years old. It had been remodeled a couple of times, but the kitchen hadn’t seen much improvement since the 1950s and the bathrooms weren’t a whole lot better. He doubted many guys would care, but a woman might be different. Women tended to pay attention to their surroundings and have higher expectations. Not knowing what else to do, he’d called his sister and begged for help, and Pallas had come through.

They carried a couple of boxes and a half dozen shopping bags up to the guest room. His sister stared at the purple-and-green wallpaper, then sighed.

“You weren’t kidding when you reminded me how bad it was,” she said. “This is some serious ugly.”

“They’re due later today. There isn’t time to take it down.” Would the wallpaper upset Rida’s handler? Would she want to take the horse home because of it?

“Not to worry. I’ve got the problem if not solved then at least managed.”

She had him strip the queen-size bed and carry all the old linens downstairs. Together they put on freshly laundered sheets in a pale sage color, topped with a thick cotton blanket. A light beige comforter went over all that.

She pulled out two decorative blankets and had him fold them across the foot of the bed, then added about a hundred pillows. She had him put together a couple of small lamps for the nightstand while she fussed in the bathroom. Thirty minutes later, they were done.

The en suite bath was big, but old-fashioned. The floor was octagon-shaped white tiles, with more tiles going halfway up the wall. A claw-foot tub stood at one end of the bathroom. The cleaning service kept it scrubbed, but it looked like what it was—a tub from another era.

Pallas replaced the old shower curtain with a new one done in sage and beige. A small white shelving unit held stacks of towels in various shades of green. The top shelf had a blow-dryer along with a basket filled with tubes and bottles and creams. She’d tucked a small room heater into the corner—a thoughtful touch someone used to warmer temperatures might appreciate. Happily Inc was in the California desert, but unlike El Bahar, it could get chilly in late November.

They moved downstairs. Pallas had him drape a couple of throws over the sofa, then switched out the place mats on the kitchen table and added a couple of ceramic turkeys to the counter.

When they were done, Cade grabbed her in a hug and kissed the top of her head.

“I owe you,” he told her.

“Good. I plan on collecting.” She grinned up at him. “Seriously, this was fun. It was a break from wedding planning, and I have to say shopping with other people’s money is the best!”

“I couldn’t have done this without you. I really appreciate everything.”

She shifted so she was standing in front of him. “I’ve never seen you like this,” she admitted. “You’re always so laid-back and internally confident. You must really want this horse.”

Because that was all Rida was to Pallas, he thought with a smile. A horse. An interchangeable hoofed animal.

“I really do.”

“Then I hope this helps.”

She tucked her hair behind her ear. As she moved, light caught her new engagement ring sparkling on her finger. Pallas’s fiancé was a good guy and Cade was happy to have him in the family. Just as important, he was relieved to know his sister had another person to watch her back and take care of her.

He grabbed her hand and nodded at the ring. “Have we set a date yet?”

“No, and I don’t want to think about it right now. I have holiday weddings to plan.”

His sister owned a destination wedding business called Weddings Out of the Box. Couples came from all over to have a theme wedding. Everything from princess weddings to pirate weddings to some kind of under-the-sea extravaganza. She worked hard to be successful and he would guess the last thing she wanted to do was plan her own wedding.

“You could elope,” he suggested.

“We’ve talked about it.” She sighed. “I just worry everyone will be disappointed.”

“We’ll get over it,” he told her. “Getting married is about you and Nick. Do what feels right.”

“Thanks.” She looked around the kitchen. “Okay, favorite brother of mine, I’m going to go back to work. Good luck with the girl and the horse.”

“I’ll let you know how it goes.”

He walked her to the front door. As Pallas stepped out onto the porch, she swung back to face him. Her eyes widened.

“You have to invite her to Thanksgiving!”

“No, I don’t.”

“Yes, you do. It’s a huge holiday. She’ll be alone.”

“She’s from El Bahar. They don’t celebrate Thanksgiving. Plus, it’s a family thing and she’ll feel weird with all our family around.”

The entire clan got together for Thanksgiving—Grandpa Frank, his seven daughters, their spouses and their kids. He and Pallas had over a dozen cousins. It was loud and frantic.

“Plus, there’s Mom,” he added.