A Royal Internship | Complete

Chapter Fifty-Seven

I was laying on the floor spreading note cards out everywhere when Janet flew into my room almost half an hour later, her hair looking like a bird had made a nest out of it.

"Are you okay?" I looked up at her frantic face.

"Umm..." she looked around, nervously picking at her fingernails. "There's a lot going on right now. I've just found out Abigail placed Semret on some kind of probation for disobeying her orders, so I've been dealing with a lot of stuff today. Plus..."

"Plus what?" I asked, certain this had something to do with me.

"Well, the queen also has me working with the PR department to prepare a strategy for if, well..."

"If I don't figure out a way to stick around." I finished the sentence she couldn't.

"Exactly." She sat down on the floor beside me. "But we aren't going to let that happen, right?"

I sighed and put my face down onto the floor. "I don't know, Janet. I've been trying to figure it out since I called you and I'm not sure I'm getting anywhere. I know that I want to be his girlfriend, but I can't for the life of me figure out how to prove that to other people."

She nodded, sliding one of my headbands onto her hair to keep it out of her eyes.

"And," I pointed out, "I feel like if I'd just gone home two weeks ago, I wouldn't be here right now about to lose something before I even get to see where it ends up. If I get kicked out, that's it, right? No coming back into his life later. I'll be the ex forever."

Janet bit her lip and turned away from me.

"I'm right, aren't I?" And if Clarence goes against their wishes, he'll be his uncle. I can't let that happen either. He deserves his chance.

"The term banished was tossed around." She winced as she said it. "But I'm sure we won't let it come to that, will we?"

I shrugged, letting my face rest on my arms again. "I guess not."

"Well, that's an attitude," she laughed, sitting down beside me. "I've been thinking about what you said where Queen Adele told you two things that seemed unrelated. I don't think they were so unrelated."

I peaked one of my eyes out over the corner of my elbow. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, she told you that you had to make the people love you and then she told you if you were still here you could open a ball for their anniversary. With Clarence." She looked at me as if her point were obvious, but I didn't understand a word she was saying.

"I mean, those are related in that if I can figure out how to stay I get to dance at a ball. How does that help me stay?"

Janet rolled her eyes. "Don't you think an anniversary would be a good opportunity to show the people how much you love their country?" She stared at me for a second and then added, "And what better opportunity than a ball to show you love their prince?"

Why hadn't I thought of that? There seems to be a lot I'm not thinking of right now.

"Ugh, you're right," I pushed the cue cards away from me and sat up, leaning my back against the side of the couch. "So what do I do now?"

"Are you, Genevieve Levin, asking for my advice? Who are you and what have you done with my best friend?"

I swatted at her, but missed. "Hey! I have been known to ask for help every once in a while!"

She laughed and shook her head. "Yeah, sure!"

"Wait!" I sat up super straight, suddenly realizing something Janet had said. "What did you say about Semret earlier?"

"Oh, apparently Abigail threatened her job if she didn't complete her tasks but she told Abigail off and how she is your personal assistant first and a public relations assistant second and Abigail knows that. So then Abigail--"

"Semret stood up to Abigail?" I asked, sure I must have heard wrong.

"Oh, yeah. I'm sorry I missed it, it was a big dust up or something. So I guess Abigail must have realized she couldn't actually fire Semret and had nothing to bargain with so she gave it up but I just got word that she had been put onto some kind of evaluation plan for her position in HR."

"Oh, no," I breathed. "I shouldn't have made her help me. I should have--"

"You should have nothing," Semret said, standing in the door of my room. "I did it because it's what's right. And because Abigail is awful."

"I'm so sorry." I stood up and walked towards her. "I never meant to--"

"Do you want to see what I found?" she asked, handing me a small file.

"Yes!" Janet screamed, leaping off the couch to take it from Semret before I could.

"Janet," I said, snatching the file back from her and opening it. "That's mine."

Janet didn't appear to hear what I was saying as her eyes scanned the paper in front of me, landing on the bolded words at the bottom. Enclosed: Photograph taken by Mr. Jeremy Applestead.

I quickly flipped the page, searching for the picture. I flipped a couple more pages before landing on a pristine image captured that night outside the club. Clarence and I laughing and talking like we were old friends as we waited in line.

"How was this not sold?" I asked, looking up from the file. "It's such a good photograph."

Janet and Semret both had the same look on their face, but I didn't have time to assess it. Finally, Janet spoke. "I suspect no one would have bought a picture this generic when there were others of his face or him doing something more scandalous. Usually the innocent cute ones get thrown by the wayside until there's at least a girlfriend in the mix."

She shrugged like it was common knowledge. And judging by the look on Semret's face, I guess it was.

"It's perfect. Now can we figure out how to get me to this ball and prove I'm genuinely in a relationship with this guy?" I pointed at the photograph for effect.

They both nodded and walked back to my pile of cue cards. "Let's get started." Semret sat down beside me on the floor and smiled, flipping open her clipboard and pulling out her phone and pen.