Chapter 2
Nicole narrowed her eyes and frowned at her. Why?� she asked, “what for?� . “You must be crazy. Listen to me, I do not think that this is possible. And what is it that you hope to gain?�
“I want to know more about the man I am going to be with for the rest of my life, Nicole. Remember, I am not supposed to meet him until my wedding night.�
Nicole smiled slyly. “Yes, but that puts me in a bad position, doesn’t it?�
“Excuse me ladies, but where would I find the lady of the house?�
“That would be me,� Nicole and Marie both cried in unison. Marie turned around to find Prince Francis looking at her straight in the eye.
“Well, which one, then?� he laughed
“Well,� Nicole said, “actually right now it is both of us, but, Your Highness,� Nicole said, giving a deep curtsey, this small country manor belongs to Jacques and Danielle de Lancret. This is their daughter, Nicole,� she said, pointing to Marie. And I am Marie de Bois, visiting from the province of Avignon.�
“Yes, so I have heard,� the Prince said, looking at Nicole. “I did not expect you to be so lovely, not that Nicole isn’t beautiful herself,� he said, looking at Marie. It made her blush. Marie was almost sorry she had Nicole switch places. She would have to make this up to Nicole somehow.
“Nor did I, Your Highness,� the Prince’s companion said. He was all eyes for Nicole, in fact, he couldn’t take his eyes off her.
And Nicole couldn’t stop staring at his companion.
“Monsieur,� Marie interuppted, “may we have your name?� she said, ribbing Nicole in the side.
“Of course, milady, it is Captain Auguste de Barbarac of the Royal Guards at your service.� Auguste bowed low, even on the horse. He smiled and turned to find Nicole again and found she was still staring at him.
“And how do you two know each other?� Francis asked, smiling.
“Well, you see,� they both started in unison. Nicole backed off; Marie was speaking with him.
“We are friends, best friends. We grew up in Hautefort and Marie moved away, so now she comes back every summer to visit.�
Francis smiled and looked at Nicole. “Oh, really, maybe we can discuss that sometime. We have a house there, maybe we compare notes.�
“Maybe,� Nicole tried to smile. She had been to Avignon twice to visit Marie and hadn’t remembered a thing.
“And maybe we can swap stories as well,� Auguste said, still looking at her. Nicole couldn’t take his eyes off him.
“Um, maybe we should go inside,� Marie said, looking at everyone. She was starting to feel a little guilty. Maybe this had been a bad idea.
“Perhaps we should,� Auguste said, getting of his horse and walking toward Nicole, his arm out for her to take “shall we? I have always wanted to escort the future Princess somewhere. This may be my only opportunity.�