A Royal Internship | Complete

Chapter Forty-Two

The next morning, I was up and dressed before the sun poked over the horizon to make sure I was appropriately attired for breakfast with the queen. I ate as quickly as quietly as possible so as to avoid any further embarrassment, and then excused myself to attend to my work day. I was nervous enough about the day's planning with Clarence, so I was glad breakfast didn't give me anything else to be anxious about.

"So what are we doing?" Clarence asked me when he plopped down into the seat next to mine in the public relations office. The usual pomp and circumstance had been followed with the whole office curtseying and bowing, but the hum of the office was back to normal by the time I answered him.

"According to your mother--" I pointed at him-- "we are researching information on the charity for a function she is hosting which is some type of formal tea, so no dinner, only finger food."

"You'll starve!" he joked. "We'll have to feed you when it's all over."

"No," I protested. Then, I thought about it. "Well, yes. But we can focus on that another time. Right now, we have to research this charity and make sure we know everything about them and double check everything to do with the preparations."

"Isn't that normally done by staff members?"

I raised my eyebrow and gestured to where we were sitting, but he shook his head in confusion.

"I am a staff member." I pointed to my chest. "So in a way this is being done by staff. Why your mother saddled you with it, I have no idea."

"So what does this charity do, exactly?"

"It's a food security charity. They operate world-wide and your family has been trying to woo them into a particularly important partnership of some kind." I shrugged. "That's basically all I know. I guess we should get to researching."

He pulled his chair closer to my desk and I fired up the computer.

"Genevieve!" Abigail screeched from her office. "I cannot find the file I'm looking for anywhere!"

I scurried out of my seat and shuffled across the room to her office. "Sorry, Abigail." I spoke, slightly out of breath, "What file can I get you?"

"Peter's latest," she answered me, but her face remained trained on her computer screen. "I need something from it."

"Do you have a project name or type of paperwork or anything else I can go on?" I asked, wondering how on earth I was supposed to figure out what 'Peter's Latest' file was.

"Do I look like I have time for your questions?" At least she actually looked at me as she said that. "Go ask Peter!"

"Yes, of course. Sorry, Abigail." I slipped out the door of her office and flattened myself against the wall, breathing a sigh of relief to be away from her. Something about that woman was even scarier than Queen Adele.

Ask Peter. Okay, good idea. But which one is Peter?

"Semret," I whispered, approaching her desk from behind, "Abigail is looking for a file on Peter's latest project, but I don't know who Peter is. Any ideas?"

"Peter's project?" She drew her eyebrows together and tapped her fingers on her desk. "I don't know what he's working on. He's obnoxious and has red hair. Sits somewhere up by you." She pointed.

"Okay, thanks," I smiled and waved as I clicked my way across the stone floor towards the redhead in the corner near my desk.

"Hey, Peter?" I called out as I approached. "Abigail is looking for the file on your most recent project. Do you have it?"

"I told her I'd bring it to her when I was done." He rolled his eyes. "Sorry for that, I'll go talk to her." He got up and walked away. He wasn't going to make me talk to her for him? That's a first.

"So," I said to Clarence, plopping back down into my seat, "where were we?"

His face was stony and angry. Did I do something wrong? I didn't have the guts to ask out loud, so I pivoted. "I think maybe we should start by learning more about this group and the people we've invited."

He shook his head slightly, as though clearing the cobwebs. "Yeah, that's probably a good idea." Turning absentmindedly towards the file in front of him, Clarence seemed to read without seeing.

"Is something wrong?" I asked, trying to get him to meet my gaze.

"No." He shook his head. "I just didn't know how it ran down here. I don't think we pay that much attention to what goes on behind the scenes. There's just some stuff I think we could do better." He shrugged and met my gaze. "Nothing major. I'm sure it can wait."

I didn't know what to do, so I turned back to my computer and pulled up the information on the charity and its founders. I scrolled through the information, carefully reading about the woman's past charity work and connections to the royal family of some other small country I'd never heard of.

"Wait, can you go back for a second?" Clarence asked when I scrolled past some political stuff. I hadn't even realized he was paying attention, but I scrolled back to let him read it. I couldn't make sense of any of it, so I excused myself to go get a coffee while he worked. This is going to be a long day, I thought, rubbing my eyes with my hands. I checked the clock on the wall, and it's only 10:30.

"Hey, Genevieve?" A guy I didn't recognize poked his head into the breakroom. "Prince Alexandre is looking for you. Apparently you urgently have something to attend to."

I rushed back down the hallway to my desk, but Clarence wasn't at it.

"Where'd he go?" I asked the annoying blonde beside me.

She looked up at me just long enough to shrug. "I don't know."

I groaned and walked out the door into the hall, but he was nowhere to be found, so I went back to my desk to get my phone. When I pulled it out, there was already a text message from Clarence. Just thought of something. Have to go. I will see you later.

Okay, I typed back. I hope everything's okay.

I bounced my knee while I waited for the little dots in the bottom of the screen to turn into a message from Clarence. Finally, it arrived. Everything is wonderful. I've had a great idea but I have to ask Dad before I ask you.

I was about to put my phone away when another message came in. I'll come get you when I'm done. Learn as much as you can.

What is that supposed to mean? Why is he so cryptic? I put my phone away before Abigail caught me with it and turned my attention back to my research.