Maid For You

Chapter 7

"Alright then. So..." Luke motioned for me to step off to the side of the hall. His lowered voice tickled my ear as he drew closer. "When we were driving through Wethercross yesterday, Prince Coleman was looking out the window."

"Mmhmm."

"And he suddenly starts shouting, that's her! That's her! Stop the car you imbeciles!"

"Imbeciles?" I giggled.

"I swear, word for word he said that!" His face wore a silly grin. "We had already driven past you, however. So he demands that the driver circle the block again, all the while mumbling about his incompetence."

"But of course."

"We stopped on the curb right in front of you. You were sitting on that bench."

"So it was him in the limo!"

"Yes! The Prince's face was practically pressed against the glass trying to look at you. He kept going on: 'It really is her! That's Cassandra Carmichael.' He got this funny smile on his face. He suddenly says, 'that girl on the bench! I want her to be my maid!" I was very surprised, but I did as he said and wrote a letter to inform you of his wishes. Then I chased after you and gave it to you."

"I was so confused when you gave me the letter," I confessed.

"I'll bet! I was confused just giving it to you. When I returned to the limo, I asked the Prince if he knew you, and he just said that you were a girl who could afford to be knocked down a peg. That you thought that you could get away with insulting him."

"What a ridiculous man!"

"I won't agree with you..." Luke started. "But I won't disagree." We sniggered quietly together in our little corner of the hall.

"Why do you think he is even keeping me around?" I asked.

"You must intrigue him."

"Maybe you're right. I think he just needs more people to yell at him."

"I don't know. If I yelled at him I'd probably be fired." Luke shrugged.

"Well, the day is young. Still plenty of time to be kicked out of the country," I joked. However, my tone then grew more serious. "That being said, I am really grateful for this opportunity. I need it."

"Don't worry. It gets easier. I nearly quit my first week, but you'll soon find out all his little tics and preferences. Then it's not so hard." Luke patted my shoulder.

"I hope so," I sighed. "If I wasn't so desperate..."

"I understand."

"Oh, I have a story of my own to tell you." I had to tell him about my scam-y apartment.

"What is it?"

I ranted and raved about being scammed all the way to the servant's dining hall. When we arrived, Luke explained that lunch time was staggered for the staff so that there would never be a time where all the servants were busy. Food was laid out on a huge, long table at the side of the room and served up buffet style. I snagged a plate from the end of the table and began to pile food on, following Luke's lead.

"May I sit by you?" I asked him. Though we had bonded, I felt slightly nervous to ask. Maybe he was planning to sit by all his butler friends or something.

Luke gave his heart-melting lopsided smile and nodded. "Okay." He took a seat at the main table where I happily sat beside him. As I began to dig in, I found myself surprised at the deliciousness of the food. Even the help at the castle were fed well!

"This is so good!" I marveled. "Do you always eat this nicely?"

"I would say so," Luke replied.

"I usually just pop a hotdog into the microwave for lunch," I admitted. "This is much better."

"I'm glad to hear so," a deep voice behind me said. I turned around to find Chef Jonathan with a smile on his face. He no longer wore the chef's hat, revealing his swooping dirty blonde hair. It made him look younger, though he still looked about five years older than me.

"Did you make all this?" I asked.

"Well, I couldn't have possibly made all of it, but I'd consider myself an important contributor."

"Well, to you and your fellow chefs, this food is pretty great! It's a bit different than food from my home country, but I like it!" I complimented him.

"Glad to hear, Miss Cassie." He gave a dramatic bow, and I laughed. Chef Jonathan turned to Luke for a moment. "Mister Lucas, I'm surprised to see you sitting at the common table. Why aren't you at the head?"