Part 8. His POV

/Tristans POV/

The Prince of Walsh was used to the hustle and bustle of his Royal Household, had grown up along with the chaos. He had people expecting conversations in the corridors, a look from him, people greeting him as he walked by. There was so much more to the title of being a royalty than he could ever describe.

Sunlight filtered through the Green Park, making his eyes squint as he walked through the hallway. He was summoned for an early breakfast which didn’t sit right with him. Whenever that happened, there was always a hidden agenda. He rarely ever sat along with the entire family for breakfast. It’s been years since that. 

Tristan caught the fragments of a conversation from the sitting room and stood quietly for a moment, straining his ears. It was unethical to eavesdrop especially as a Prince, but frankly, he didn’t give a bull about rules. He had to know why he'd been roused at an ungodly hour to put in an appearance. Just his luck he couldn’t hear anything through the thick wood of the door.

The Prince decided to enter the dining wall without waiting for a further moment. 

He halted his steps as soon as his eyes fell on James Blunt. Their publicist. That was not a good sign. It was never a good sign for the Head of Royal Communications to be present outside of regular office hours.

"Good morning." He cleared his throat, shifting his attention from James to his mother. 

The King, his father, was out on business, so his mother was seated at the head chair. His twelve-year-old twin sisters were sitting on the left side, quietly buttering their loaves of bread. Something was the matter. They are never that quiet. 

His uncle, Duke William and Duchess Emerald were fully engrossed in their breakfast. It was nothing new. They didn’t care about anyone else while eating. 

The full English breakfast was neatly laid out on the table, various assortments of meat and chopped fruits to accompany them. Tristan felt a bit out of sorts, glancing at the menu even though he was used to it. But staying away from the Palace taught him a few things. 

“Morning, my Prince” James flashed his pearly whites. 

The Queen set her cup down, raising her head to look at him. Her voice was even and soft when she addressed him. “Prince. Please be seated. We have been waiting for you.” 

“Sorry about that. I had trouble finding my clothes” Tristan lied, pulling a chair beside his mother. 

“Really? I thought the maids might have unpacked all of your stuff” His mother frowned, lifting the delicate porcelain cup to her lips. 

Tristan ducked away from her stare, finding the plate in front of him all too interesting. Seeing as he did return from Spain three nights ago, he should have been all set. He completed his education and was set to take over the Crown soon. The only reason his mother called him back. 

James cleared his throat, “How have you been Your Royal Highness? I hope you had a pleasant journey back home.” 

Tristan heavied a sigh, grateful for the sudden change of topic. Nothing was reassuring about being called in for an early breakfast with James blunt of all people, but he put on a brave face. 

“I am fine. The weather was clear, so there was no problem. Thank you very much.” 

The Queen cleared her throat, “James Blunt called me this morning, and he wanted to meet you. So I decided to invite him for breakfast.” 

James Blunt was a professional fixer in short. He has been working for the Royal Family since the start of his career. He managed to establish himself as the person you called on the eve of a severe crisis. He and his team effortlessly handled everything. James was notorious among the Royal families for hiding all sorts of scandals. But why did he want to meet with Tristan? 

“Ahh, no problem. I can talk with Mr James after breakfast.”

“Great” James smiled.

***

After breakfast, they decided to take a walk in Green Park. It was the most beautiful part of the Palace. Atleast for Tristan. He used to love spending his time in the Park during his childhood, fooling around with the dirty pond water and lying in the grass. 

In the middle of the Park, there was a seating area, a dorm architect with engraved pillars and high roof, with two benches and a long table in between. 

“There’s a problem.” James cleared his throat, retrieving his iPad and unlocked it, sliding it across the table for the Prince to see.

As soon as Tristan's eyes fell on the image, his blood turned cold. He froze in his seat, staring at the article written in bold letters. It was clear as a day that the picture was of him with none other than Jane, the bartender he spent a night with. 

No. No. No. They were in her apartment! How did they manage to stalk him to her place? Tristan squinted his eyes, staring at the grainy background, his car behind him. Then it clicked him. The photo was taken when he had those stupid panties stuck on his sleeves. He had no idea that someone clicked his photo during that! How embarrassing. If a picture existed, there were bound to be more than one published in the paper that would be far more... revealing.

Tristan swallowed the lump in his throat and pushed the iPad back towards James, didn’t dare lift his head to meet his eyes. How can he be so careless? He should have known better than to go out and sleep with the first person he found attractive. 

“This picture has gone viral. It’s everywhere. My team saw the image in the newspaper today, and I immediately had to rush here” James softly sighed. 

Tristan gripped the edge of his seat, trying to steady his breathing. His father would kill him. That’s not even his top concern at the moment though. The Queen has been pestering him to find someone, and if she sees the image, he’s dead meat. It would be a perfect excuse for her to start finding a suitable bride. He should do something. 

“Your Royal Highness we need to discuss what to do about this now. The damage to the Crown could be considerable, which is why I immediately rushed here. The Queen still isn’t aware of this, but it won’t be long before everyone finds out.”

He felt numb. Every single piece of information felt too much for him. 

“Excuse me I need a moment” Tristan muttered, walking out. 

***

Once Tristan came back, he noticed James managed to call a few members of his team. There was a moment of silence as the Prince walked back in. He was used to their looks because most of them were trying to see him after his return. Tristan had no idea why they were so interested in him though. 

James has shared the picture with everyone present. 

A blonde spoke up, “Your Royal Highness, how do you know the girl in the picture?” 

Everyone’s eyes were on him. He felt a bit embarrassed at that. There was no shame in admitting how he met Jane, but it felt too personal to share with a bunch of strangers. He didn’t have a choice, though. 

“In a bar. Floral Liquor. She’s a bartender.” 

James furrowed his brow; his eyes focused on the image, “I was just wondering that there may be a chance that this girl might have set you up. Or well both of you. What do you think?” 

“No way!” Tristan was quick to deny. For the first time, there was a hint of authority to his tone. “Jane had no idea about my identity, so why would she set me up? There is zero chance it was her. Just no.”

James pressed his lips together, “Shes still a stranger Your Royal Highness. People these days do stupidest of things to get fame, and this situation sounds just like that. After all, she’s a bartender and must have thought this was the easy way to earn some extra cash.”  

The mocking edge to James voice accompanied with a hint of disgust towards a working woman made him cringe. A frown settled on his features. Jane was anything but that. Even though they only met twice, he did not get that feeling that she was after his money or name. 

“Do you have a problem with bartenders in general, or is Jane a special case?” 

James spluttered an awkward laugh, shaking his head. “No, Your Royal Highness. I didn’t mean to sound so hateful. I am sure you are a better judge of character than I.” 

“Good” Tristan huffed, leaning back. He had no idea how to control the damage. 

“We could have already paid them off, but it’s too late now” James mumbled out loud.

“What should we do then, sir?” The blonde hair girl spoke again. 

Tristan thought about it. Jane must be in shock. More than him. She had to find out the hard way about his true identity.

The Prince stood up, buttoning his coat jacket, “First, I need to talk with Jane.” 

***