The Education of His Royal Highness

A brand-new king and a volunteer schoolteacher's lives collide, and neither will ever be the same. Will they rise to the challenges before them and come out stronger, or will they both crumble under the weight of their mutual responsibility? And who can they really trust? One thing is for sure, they are both in for quite the ride.

*****

She listened intently. Her expression didn't change. She didn't seem repulsed by me, so I decided to test out my fear. I reached out, putting my hand to her face. She didn't flinch or shrink back; she didn't act like I was disgusting or a sniveling weakling. In fact, she put her hand over mine against her face as she spoke. "I think...that's a lot for one person to carry. Could you...could we...would you be willing to see if Christine is available? I can go with you for moral support. But this secret...it's eating you alive. And if you talk to someone who is trained to not only listen but help you process and work through all these complex emotions and traumas...you will feel a lot freer. Would you be willing to do that?"

Fear gripped me so tight, I couldn't move my tongue. I couldn't move. Part of me yearned for freedom. Another part, the one rooting me to my chair and rendering me silent, reminded me in Henry's mocking voice that no one would think of me the same. That I had too much to lose. But I found myself nodding, causing Caroline to give me a radiant smile. Her warmth thawed a little of my fear, but it was still there, under the surface.

She went to the panel and did the intercom for Christine. I secretly hoped she was asleep. It was very early, after all. But I heard her somewhat grouchy voice tell Caroline that she'd see us in a couple minutes. Too late to back out now. God, how different this morning was shaping up to be than I'd originally expected. Instead of a fun, easy movie date morning, I was about to spill my guts to Christine with Caroline present. A worse way to spend a morning, I cannot imagine...