LITMIR.BIZ

       Chapter One

      Princess Fredericka hoped her brother wasn’t going to be impossible.

      She knew she had made more than her share of mistakes. She’d been a wild child when she’d been a teenager and terrified her family with her antics. Everyone had breathed a sigh of relief when she’d gotten married, because she’d appeared to calm down. In many ways she had, but she’d learned things didn’t always turn out the way one expected. She’d managed to make the best of what life had dealt her. Ericka knew her brother Stefan, the ruling prince of Chantaine, however, would have a hard time seeing her as a competent single mother to her adorable son, Leo.

      She resisted the urge to fidget as she waited to be invited into her brother’s office. She nodded at staff members as they hung holiday greenery and put candles in the window. Ericka suspected the Christmas decorations had been ordered by Eve, her brother’s wife. Ericka barely remembered seeing Christmas decorations when she had been growing up in the palace. With the exception of the huge Christmas tree in one of the formal rooms, one might not have known the holiday existed. Of course, the deep chill between her mother and father hadn’t helped matters.

      Her father, Prince Edward, had been a philanderer and an absentee father and husband. Her mother had felt trapped and bitter. Ericka remembered wishing only that she could run away. She’d done exactly that in more than one way, which was why she suspected this was going to be a messy discussion. Stefan was extremely protective.

      The door to Stefan’s office finally opened. “Your Highness, Princess Fredericka, please come in,” Stefan’s assistant said.

      She nodded. “Thank you very much,” she said, then entered her brother’s office while the assistant left the room. “Stefan,” she greeted, walking toward her brother. She noticed a wisp of a couple gray streaks on the sides of his dark hair. The burden of his position was obviously weighing on him.

      She kissed his cheek and he kissed hers. “How are you?” she asked.

      “I’m well,” he said. “I’m more concerned about you and Leonardo.”

      Ericka smiled. “Leo and I are great. I’m happy to be back in Chantaine after spending the last year with Tina in Texas.”

      “You could have spent the last year here in Chantaine,” he said, and rounded his desk to sit in his chair.

      Ericka sat in the chair across from her brother, watching him as he tented his fingers and studied her. “I think it was good to be with Tina in Texas during my pregnancy and delivery. She and her husband were supportive, and it was fun having their daughter, Katarina, around. She’s quite the spitfire. Little ones put everything in perspective.”

      “True,” Stefan said, giving a serious nod. “I think it would be best for you and Leo to live at the palace.”

      Ericka’s stomach twisted and she bit the inside of her lip. She hated to go up against Stefan but knew it was necessary. “I think not,” she said. “I’ve found a lovely gated cottage and a nanny. I think this will be best for Leo and me.”

      Stefan frowned. “But what about security? You and Leo need to be protected. That would be much easier within the palace walls.”

      Ericka

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