Her Royal Pen Pal

Chapter 15 [Protocol and Family Secrets]

Thought accustomed to being the first one home, Elise wasn't really surprised to see her mom already there. But she was surprised to see her normally smiling and carefree mother, with frown lines and deep in thought. 

"Hey mom, everything okay?" Elise asked, a little concerned when she realised she had startled her mother. 

"Hey Ellie Belle," Her mother recovered, "you missed Leonidas' call. He had to postpone us meeting his family until the Ball, since his father had to meet with the Council about a matter, and the Queen also has meeting elsewhere. This is kind of a good thing, since your father also had to cancel, since he has an important case he’s working on. Which is on another level: strange, because usually he tells me about this stuff, and now he's all secretive, not even telling me the name of the client. He left early, and hasn't returned yet. He then calls and asks for Albert's number, saying he needs an historian's point of view, which I don't believe for one minute! I can feel it in my bones; he's hiding something from me. I don't know why. I mean, he's my husband, of course I can tell if he's hiding something from me. He's a lawyer and there's the whole attorney/ client privacy stupidity, but I mean, it's not like I'd tell anyone. I run a fashion magazine, not a gossip rag! And another thing---!"

"Whoa! Hold on there!" Elise cut her off, relieved that her mother was only being her usually self. 

Her mother could always tell when her husband was keeping something from her. The bigger the detail, the more irritated she felt. It was almost like a sixth sense. And by her mother's display, she knew it had to be something big her father was hiding. She wondered if she had that sixth sense, because she was almost certain that she felt Leonidas was keeping something from her last night when he and the King exchanged looks. Brushing the thought aside, Elise cajoled her mother.

"Relax mom, I'm sure he's just working on a top secret drug bust or something. He'll tell you eventually," she said.

"He's worried. I can feel it, and if he could just tell me, I'd be able to help him, or at least try to help. I don't want him worrying, and I can't do anything but sit back and watch," her mother said in reply. 

Not knowing what to say, Elise just gently, if not a little awkwardly, patted her mother's back, at a loss of how to react or behave.

Her mother smiled at her, and said, "I forgot to give you your message. Leonidas said to tell you that he emailed the questions the interviewer will ask on Sunday, and if there's anything you need, you should call his assistant." 

Thankful she had an excuse to leave, she went to check her mail, a little disappointed that he didn't call her and tell her about the change of plans and questions.

She read through the list and saw that they were simple enough questions, not divulging too much into their personal lives, but she was still skeptical on how her response should be. Is there a protocol she should follow? Scrolling through the email, she saw that he did not mention anything about a protocol or a guideline to follow, and it wasn't exactly something she could Google. 

'If you have any concerns, call his assistant.' She had a concern, so she called Thane, who informed her, in a friendly tone that she should answer the questions as she saw fit, but remember to keep the responses brief and to the point, not allowing for a follow up question that could throw them for a loop. Yeah! Big help, Thane!

Still not convinced she was capable of handling this and not embarrass herself and Leonidas, she called him. For a little moral support! That's all! Liar! She just wanted to hear his voice... 

But she got his voicemail. At least she heard his voice telling her to leave a message, right?

"Umm, Hi! You're probably busy, so I won't take up much time. Just wanted to let you know that I got the questions, and that I'm sorry you had to postpone tonight. Yeah...I guess I’ll see you then... Oh! Am I going to see you before the Ball tomorrow? If not I'll see you then, then? ...Anyways, Call me..or Not, You don't have to if you're busy... "