A skilled packer, Avery rolled a couple of shirts to prevent them creasing. ‘And Kalila isn’t wimpy. It’s not her fault if she’s been bullied into submission all her life by her father. I feel sorry for her. Better not to have a father around than have a bad one.’
‘Let’s leave your father issues out of this. There’s enough going on without that.’
‘I do not have father issues.’
Jenny rearranged the pillows and cushions on the bed and slumped against them. ‘What I don’t understand is why the Prince would even ask you to do this. That must have taken some nerve.’
‘He didn’t ask. I offered. Without a bride he can’t get married and I want him married.’
‘You want him married?’
‘Of course.’ Avery added two pairs of trousers to her packing. Once he was married there would be no going back. If nothing else could kill her feelings for Mal, then surely marriage would. It would bring the finality she’d been looking for. ‘And I want the party to go ahead. It’s bad for business if a party is cancelled.’
‘So you’re doing this for the business?’
‘I’m doing it because I’m worried about Kalila. You should have seen the way he looked at me when I told him what I’d said to her. As if I’d pushed her into the lion’s cage and locked the door from the outside. I like her.’
‘Really? She sounds like a wimp to me.’
‘I think she’s a victim of her circumstances. She’s sweet. And yes, I feel responsible.’ Avery sorted through her make-up, picking out the bare minimum she needed in order to not look like a train wreck. ‘And guilty. That is the last time I ever tell anyone to face their fears.’
Jenny picked up a lipgloss and tried it on the back of her hand. ‘You’re not responsible for the fact she clearly has appalling judgement and did something rash and stupid. Nice colour, by the way.’
‘Maybe I am responsible.’ Avery rescued the lipgloss and added it to her bag. ‘I was the one who put the idea in her head. Without me, she wouldn’t even have thought of doing something so radical.’ She packed carefully, referring to the list on her phone, knowing that the right clothing might be all that stood between her and an unpleasant experience in the desert. She picked items designed to cover her, not just because of concessions towards modesty or even protection against the sun, but because she wanted to do nothing that might be remotely described as provocative. The last thing she needed was Mal thinking she was trying to attract his attention.
‘This is ridiculous. You’re running a business, Avery. You don’t have time to gallivant off after some woman you barely know with a guy you used to date. You should have—what are those—?’ Jenny stared in alarm as Avery packed her sturdy hiking boots.
‘“Those” are going to save me from snake bites and scorpion stings.’
Jenny recoiled. ‘OK, forget my last sentence. No wonder the Princess ran away. She isn’t wimpy, she’s sensible. She’s thinking long-term. Better a brief stint in the desert now than a lifetime of the place. If I had to wear boots like that I wouldn’t marry the Prince either. It was meant to be a glass slipper, honey, not a hiking boot.’
‘The desert is beautiful. Wild and stunning.’
‘This from a woman who never likes to be more than ten minutes from a spa?’
‘Actually I did stay in a spa while I was there, but I also stayed in a Bedouin camp and I enjoyed that as much. It’s a really romantic place.’
‘You’re not romantic.’ Jenny shook her head slowly. ‘You’re in trouble; you know that, don’t you?’
Yes, she knew that. ‘I’m not in trouble. I know what I’m doing. I’m in control.’
Jenny flopped back against the cushions. ‘So I guess this means I’ll have to call the Senator myself and break the news about the swans and the balloons.’
‘Yes. Just speak with authority. And if there are problems you can call me. I’ll have my phone. What I might not have is a signal. But Mal will have a satellite phone so I can use that to call you. You’re not to tell anyone where we are. We’re going to rescue her and then make up some story to cover her absence.’
‘What sort of story?’
‘I don’t know. The spa idea is a good one. Maybe she and I went into the desert for a girly break or something. I just need you to be vague. If anyone asks, tell them I’m with a friend. I’ll be gone two days. Three at the most.’ Avery caught Jenny’s expression. ‘What? Why are you looking at me like that?’
‘You’re assuming she’s going to want to come back with you, marry Mal and live happily ever after. What if it doesn’t happen like that?’
‘It will.’
‘She ran away from him.’
‘They just need to start communicating with each other. It will be fine.’ She was going to make sure it was fine.
‘I hope you’re right.’ Jenny handed her a bottle of sunscreen that had fallen out of her bag. ‘In the meantime, you don’t even know where to start looking.’
‘We’ve got a few ideas. I’ve already spoken to Kalila’s sister. She thinks she’s probably hiding out in a desert community she was sent to when she was a teenager so we’re going to start there.’
‘Like a summer camp?’
‘That sort of thing.’ Avery found her passport and dropped it into her bag. ‘It’s a find-yourself, Zen type of place.’
‘Camp with scorpions. Thank goodness my parents didn’t send me to that one.’ Jenny shuddered but Avery didn’t smile because she knew her problem wasn’t going to be the desert wildlife or even the inhospitable terrain.
It was Mal. Or, more specifically, her feelings about Mal.
‘The scorpions aren’t a problem as long as you remember to shake your boots out in the morning before you put them on and you’re careful about moving rocks and things.’
Jenny curled her legs under her. ‘You are the woman who knows everything there is to know about throwing a good party. When did you learn about scorpions?’
‘I spent time in the desert with Mal.’ And she didn’t want to think about that now. Didn’t dare think about it, but of course having heard that comment Jenny wasn’t about to let it go.
‘He’s the Crown Prince. I assumed that when he went into the desert he had jewel-encrusted tents and hundreds of people to wait on him. Surely scorpions aren’t allowed in the royal presence?’
‘His father sent him to spend a year with a desert tribe to understand how they lived. And he spent a couple of years in the Zubrani military after Cambridge. He knows the desert, although this is different because we’re travelling into Arhmor, which is where his princess comes from. Which hat?’ Avery held two of them up and when Jenny pointed she dropped it into her bag. ‘Apparently we’re pretending to be tourists.’
‘Won’t he be recognised? For that matter, won’t you be recognised? With your blonde hair and your blue eyes, you’re going to stand out like a pair of red shoes at a white wedding.’
‘That’s why I’m packing the hat.’ Avery added a silk wrap to her packing. ‘And anyway, no one will expect to see the Crown Prince of Zubran slumming it in a four-by-four, and because they don’t expect to see him, they won’t see him. But you make a good point. I don’t think travelling in disguise is his thing. Can you grab me a baseball hat with “I love London” on it or something?’
Jenny shuddered. ‘If I have to. But are you absolutely sure you’re fine with travelling alone through the desert with a man you were once in love with?’