A/N: See Chapter 1 for Disclaimer.
Chapter 3: Tony
"Married?" Jo said in utter disbelief.
"That's correct."
"But that's crazy. And besides, even if I do have to be married in order to ascend the throne, why the big rush? I mean, I'm not even dating anybody right now. I haven't been serious about anybody since Eddie and I broke up last year. If I really have to get married before I can rule, I don't understand why it has to be by the end of this year. Why can't we just wait and see if I find somebody in college?"
"If it weren't for my brother, believe me, I would be more than happy to let you take your time to find a husband. Sadly, we simply do not have that luxury. The instant he finds out about you, he is going to do everything in his power to stop you from ascending the throne. I may be this country's ruler, but Edward does have some support in our government. Since I have had to cut back on my duties, he has been calling constantly for me to abdicate the throne in favor of him, and those calls are getting louder and louder all the time. Due to my health, my claim to the throne is continually weakening, especially in the eyes of Parliament. If you announce to the public that you intend to rule someday, in that very moment, Edward and his political allies will begin screaming to the press that because you are not married, you are not a valid heir to the throne. He will not waste a single moment in challenging your right to rule, and he will work continually to convince Parliament and the public that I must be forced to step down because of my health, and that he is the only person who can legally take my place. And there is at least some chance that he could succeed. I am so very sorry my dear, but if you do decide to officially accept your royal title in May, then it is imperative that you be engaged and then married to a worthy young man as soon as possible so that your uncle will not have an opportunity to threaten your place in the line of succession."
During the following moments, Jo simply responded by taking in a deep breath and blowing out a very long sigh. Prince John then put his hand on her shoulder and said, "I know, darling. I know I'm asking you to make yet another great sacrifice."
"If I'm going to go ahead with this whole princess thing, then I have no choice but to agree to an arranged marriage. Is that what you're telling me?"
"Yes. That's what I'm telling you."
Jo shook her head and said, "I can't, Dad. I'm sorry, but I just can't. I want to do what I can to protect Momi from your brother. You know that. But there's no way I can get married to someone I don't love. When I do get married, it has to be to a man that I'm in love with. I can't imagine anything more miserable than being stuck with somebody that you don't have any feelings for."
"I felt the same way when I married your mother. I wasn't much older than you are now when she and I were married. As you already know, at that time in my life, I had feelings for someone else."
"Alice," Jo said knowingly.
"That's right. Mother knew that I was still in love with Alice, and she was terrified that I would further embarrass the family by having another illegitimate child with her. She wanted to get my mind off Alice, make me forget her once and for all. She felt that it was in everyone's best interests for me to get married as soon as I graduated from college. I was terribly unhappy about the idea to say the least. I wanted to rebel, I wanted to run away, but I just didn't have the guts to do it. I fell into line. I did what was expected of me, no matter how much I hated it. And the first year of my marriage to Rose was absolutely miserable, for both of us. I'm ashamed to say that in that time, I was very unfair to your mother. I was very unkind. I resented it so much that I couldn't get married to Alice and be with her and Stephen, and I took all of my resentment out on your mother. She was an incredibly sweet, gentle soul. Although she was from a noble family, her status never went to her head. She tried very hard to be a good wife, to help me with my burdens as a prince, but for a long time, I wouldn't let her in. The Bible commands husbands to love their wives, even to the point of sacrificing their lives for them just as Christ sacrificed Himself for His church. But I didn't do that. I withheld love from my wife, and she suffered because of my selfishness. She too was forced into the marriage by her family, but she was a better person than I. During that first year, she tried very hard to make it work. She was patient and generous with me, but I gave her nothing in return because I was so foolish and spoiled. I was angry that for once in my life, I hadn't gotten my own way. Finally, she began to succumb to very deep depression. She was in so much emotional pain that for a time, she couldn't even function. She couldn't get out of bed. She barely ate. She hardly spoke to anyone. I hadn't realized it, but during that first year of our marriage, my coldness towards her had been killing her spirit. It was then that Mother took me aside and asked me, 'What kind of man are you going to choose to be, John? Are you going to choose to be kind and responsible, or are you going to choose to be cruel and stupid like your brother?' It was at that very moment in my life that I finally began to truly grow up. I saw it then that if I didn't change the way I behaved in my marriage, I would eventually become as cruel and corrupt inside as my brother. At last, it dawned on me that even though I was a prince and the future ruler of my country, the whole world actually didn't revolve around me. After my conversation with Mother that day, I changed my attitude and my behavior. Even though at the time, I didn't have the same feelings for your mother that I had for Alice, I decided that I would choose to love her; that I would begin treating her with the dignity and the respect she deserved; that I would start being a true friend to her and start being there for her as a husband should be there for his wife."
"What happened? Did she get over her depression?"
"She struggled with clinical depression until her death, but she functioned as best she could, and I started doing everything I could to help her. In the end, my efforts did make a difference, and things changed between us. It took some time, but I did develop very deep feelings for your mother. She was my best friend and my biggest fan, and I came to cherish her above all else. We cultivated a deep, meaningful relationship between the two of us because every single day, we chose to love one another, to work together as a team, and to put each other above ourselves. Our marriage wasn't perfect. No marriage is. But I will always be grateful to Jesus for every moment I got to have with your mother.
"I guess in the end, what I'm trying to tell you is that contrary to popular belief, it is possible for an arranged marriage to work out well. Everybody's getting divorced these days, Jo. Granted, there are legitimate reasons for divorce, such as abuse or unrepentant adultery. However, I do believe the majority of divorces occur because many people have entirely unrealistic expectations that are rooted in Hollywood fairy tales. A lot of marriages are based on nothing more than emotion, and believe me, my dear girl, there is nothing on God's green earth that is more fickle than human emotion. This isn't true for everyone, but for a lot of people in today's world, they foolishly expect their marriage to keep them on a constant emotional high, and then when the reality of life sets in and they hit a few bumps in the road, they bail out. This so-called 'marrying for love' is often really just immature people marrying for an emotional high that masquerades as love. I'm not saying that it isn't important for a husband and wife to have some attraction to each other. I'm just saying that there's so much more to marriage than the silly fairy tale Hollywood portrays. A man and a woman can make the decision right from the start that they're going to love each other, put God and each other before themselves, be each other's best friend, and build a life together. And that commitment can grow into a very beautiful, deep, powerful love over time. I speak from personal experience."
"I don't know," Jo said with a sigh.
"I understand your doubts and reservations. I really do. And I am terribly sorry that it has to be this way. I would be much happier if we could wait until you had a few more years of life experience under your belt before you got married. I know it's not right and it's not fair that we have to ask you to get married at age eighteen. I know you deserve more time."
"I'm going to have to think about this. I mean really, really think about this."
"Of course. But in the meantime, we're going to begin introducing you to potential suitors."
"Can't you hold off on that? Can't you at least give me a chance to catch my breath, here?" asked an exasperated Jo.
"I'm terribly sorry. I wish I could, but if you decide to formally accept your title on your eighteenth birthday, we must be prepared to immediately announce your engagement to the press."
"So in other words, if I decide to become your princess in a few months, I have to already have a future husband picked out so it won't be as easy for your brother to pull any stunts."
"Precisely."
Jo then let out a frustrated sigh and buried her head in her hands, and Prince John gave her a sympathetic pat on the back.
"I know I'm asking a very, very great deal from you, Jo. The weight of the crown can often be crushing, and most people cannot bear up under it. But you are a remarkably strong young woman who understands the meaning of things like duty and honor better than many people twice your age. You are an immensely special young lady, and even though it is hard, I know you can do it. There's not a doubt in my mind. Look at how far you've come. Look at all you've already accomplished. Many kids in poor, gang-infested neighborhoods from broken homes get caught up in a lifetime of bad habits. They get trapped in gang life. They become alcoholics, drug addicts, and criminals. You were abandoned by your adoptive father. You constantly witnessed violence in the streets as a kid. You lost two of your friends to suicide. You had so much going against you, but with the help of the good Lord and Mrs. Garrett and your friends, you overcame all of that and made something of yourself. You reached the top of your class at one of the most academically challenging private schools in the U.S. There isn't a college in America or elsewhere that wouldn't love to get their hands on you. After all you've lived through…after all you've survived in your young life…you are more than capable of handling this. And I give you my word as a father that I will do everything I can to help you. I will screen your suitors personally. No one will be allowed to meet with you without my permission, and I assure you, I will only allow a young man to see you if I am convinced that he is worthy of you. You should know by now that I have extremely high standards."
"I know you do. I just feel that…I should be the one to decide who I marry and when."
"I may screen your suitors, but you will always make the final choice. If there's a young man you don't like and you no longer wish to meet with him, just say so, and that will be the end of it and you will be introduced to someone else. You will always have the final say in this, Jo. You can still decide to reject your title on your eighteenth birthday and go back to the life you had before. It's all your choice. I know that ever since you got here about three months ago, I've been putting a lot of pressure on you to accept your rightful place in the Momian line of succession because I'm worried about what will happen to our country if you don't. But I want you to know that if you do decide that this life isn't for you, I will not think less of you. I won't ever love you or respect you any less."
Jo then looked into her dad's eyes and said, "You really feel protective of me, don't you?"
"You're my little girl, Jo. How can I not feel that way?"
Tears came to her eyes in that moment. All her life, there had been a very sweet, sensitive, brokenhearted little girl living beneath Jo's tough exterior. Until now, she'd never really been allowed to be vulnerable, to look to her daddy for the protection she needed, because her adoptive father had never really been there. All her life, she hadn't had much choice but to act tough and pretend she wasn't in pain. But now, for the first time in her life, Jo did have a father, a real father, who knew how to be an adult, who knew how to act like a man, and really be there for his little girl. For the first time, she could finally let that brokenhearted little girl within her come out to the surface, because she finally had a real daddy in her life she knew she could trust. It was a whole heck of a lot more than she ever got from the likes of Charlie Polniaczek.
Jo then turned to her dad, put her arms around him, and just allowed herself to cry while he hugged her tightly. Through her tears, she allowed herself to admit, "I'm scared, Dad."
"I know you are, darling," he said gently. "It's okay to be scared. But I promise you, as long as I am breathing, I am always going to do everything within my power to protect you from harm. You can always trust me, Jo. Always. I would never do anything to hurt you, and I would never allow anyone else to hurt you, either. I don't blame you for being frightened. I know how scary all of this can be. I really do. But I promise you that you can trust me. We'll get through this. Everything will be alright."
In that moment, the embrace ended and Prince John handed Jo a tissue so she could wipe her eyes.
"If you want me to, I'll meet with suitors. I'll try to give this whole thing a chance."
"Thank you."
"But you should know that I really don't think I'm going to be able to say yes to this in May. I don't think I can handle getting married right now, especially to someone I barely know."
"I've been there, Jo. I understand exactly what you're going through right now. When I was your age, I was terribly afraid of ascending the throne. I was terrified of the responsibility. I didn't want to have the weight of seventy-one thousand people on my shoulders. I didn't want to have the press snooping into every nook and cranny of my personal life. And when I was twenty-one, I didn't want to get married to anyone other than Alice. But sometimes in life, we have to walk a harder path. We can't always take the road that we want to take. But as long as we make wise choices and remember to always act with compassion, things have a way of working out in the end. Remember what Jesus taught us? To love God with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our strength, and with all our mind, and to love our neighbor as ourselves. If you spend your life doing that, if you commit yourself to His will, God will cause everything in your life to fall into place. I believe that with all my heart. In the meantime, we just have to trust Him and go about our work."
"You mean, you with running the country and me with all the lessons and meeting suitors."
"Yes," said Prince John, and then he kissed Jo on the cheek. "I know it's scary, but even though it's hard not to worry, try not to. Trust God, and trust me. I promise you, this is going to work out."
Jo nodded, and then she said, "Goodnight, Dad."
"Goodnight, my dear," he told her, and then after planting a gentle kiss on her forehead, Jo got up and walked out, and was escorted to her suite for the night by her guards.
Over the next two weeks, Prince John spent much of his time screening potential suitors for his daughter. He met with a number of Momi's most eligible bachelors, some of them with titles and others who simply came from "good" (a.k.a. wealthy and well-known) families. Unfortunately, none of them met his very high standards.
"If I may be so bold, Your Serene Highness, you simply must stop being so hard to please," Andrew complained to Prince John in his office one afternoon. "We do not have much time, and you realize more than anyone how very important it is that we find a suitable match for Princess Anne as soon as possible. We haven't a moment to waste."
"I understand your concerns, Andrew," Prince John said patiently. "And I am painfully aware that as the sovereign prince of this nation, I have a duty to my people. However, I also have a duty to do my job as a father. I cannot and I will not introduce the Princess to someone I know she would not be happy with. And so far, all of the young men I have met with have been nothing but immature, entitled, spoiled little brats. Anne would never be able to tolerate any of them. My daughter has absolutely no patience for such nonsense, and frankly, neither do I."
"His Highness is right, Andrew," Grace chimed in. "It's true that we are in a race against the clock, but that doesn't give us the excuse to be careless and marry the Princess off to just anybody. Think about it. Being the husband of a sovereign princess is a full-time job in and of itself. It's important that we make certain we match Her Highness with a young man who is willing and able to dedicate his entire life to giving her the emotional support she needs as she runs a country, without a macho ego getting in the way."
"Indeed," Prince John agreed. "If and when Anne ascends the throne in the future, she is going to have the responsibility of thousands of lives on her shoulders. It's a tremendous burden, and it is vital for her husband to be a Godly man of character and maturity, who will do everything he can to help ease her burdens as much as possible. He must also be a man who will not be offended at having to stand in the background and allow his wife to continually shine in the spotlight. As you said, Grace, there is no place in the Princess's life for a silly macho ego."
"You know, it's really a shame that Her Highness must be married to someone with wealth and status," Grace mused. "I know that the Princess must marry a member of high society, someone with a title, but it sure would be nice if we could just give a middle class man a title and let her marry him instead."
"Is there someone you have in mind, Grace?" Prince John asked.
"Do you remember when I was hit by that drunk driver last year, Your Highness?"
"Of course I do."
"I had a concussion and had to spend several days in the hospital, and while I was there, I met the most wonderful young man. If I weren't already married, I would have tried to go after him myself."
"A doctor?" Prince John inquired.
"A registered nurse, actually."
"Unusual occupation for a man," Andrew commented with a hint of disapproval.
"We got to know each other fairly well while I was there. At the time, at least, he was single. And even though it is unusual for men to be nurses like you said, Andrew, he never let that stop him. It's true that he couldn't afford to go all the way through medical school, but he said he didn't mind because he really liked spending a lot of time with patients and getting to know them."
"He seems to have made a strong impression on you," Prince John observed.
"Well of course he did. He was so warm and kind and intelligent, not to mention gorgeous."
"How old is he?" Prince John questioned.
"I never asked him his age, but he looked to me to be in his early twenties."
"What's his name?" asked the Prince.
"Tony Daniels."
"Sir, are you seriously considering this?"
"Is there some reason why I shouldn't consider it, Andrew?" Prince John asked pointedly.
"Your Serene Highness, with all due respect, allowing the Princess to marry a commoner would be horribly improper to say the least. Every prince and princess of the royal House of Konopka has always married nobility or other royals, people with titles."
"If I approve of this Tony Daniels and he agrees to the union, I'll give him a title."
"But sir…forgive me if I am overstepping my bounds, but it just wouldn't be right. It's never been done before. The people expect–"
"This is 1983, Andrew, not 1883," Prince John interrupted. "I realize that it's a long-standing tradition in this country for our royalty to only marry other royals or nobles. However, times are changing, even in this country. People no longer care about that sort of thing as much as they used to; they've wised up since the olden days. People today are smart enough to see that it's not titles that matter; it's character. If I allow my daughter to marry a spoiled idiot just because he has wealth and a title, I will be doing her and our entire country a grave disservice. Tradition does still matter in this country, yes, but I firmly believe that doing the right thing matters so much more. And it's only right that Anne's husband be a man of honor who will respect her, love her, cherish her, and care for her as a husband should; a man who will spend his life doing everything in his power to help her with the great burdens of her position. As long as this Tony Daniels has what it takes to be the kind of husband my daughter deserves, I'll take care of the title problem."
"But sir, if the man Princess Anne marries doesn't come from a proper family, it will only give your brother more ammunition to use against her," Andrew protested.
"And if I allow the Princess to marry a man without the maturity or the character required to be a worthy husband to her, he too would also give Edward plenty of ammunition to use against her. My mind is made up, Andrew. I'll meet with this Tony Daniels and get to know him for myself, and if I think he's the kind of man Anne and I can trust, I'll allow her to meet with him and let her take it from there."
Andrew could easily tell by the look on Prince John's face that he had pushed the issue as far as he could with him, so he simply told him, "As you say, Your Serene Highness."
"Now, Andrew, Grace, if you two will please excuse me, I have an entire mountain of paperwork that I must catch up on."
"Yes, sir," they said simultaneously, and then they turned around and left.
One week later, Tony Daniels came to the palace to meet with Prince John for the first time. He was escorted inside through a back entrance, the guards ensuring that no one saw him. After one of the guards knocked on Prince John's office door and showed him inside, he approached the young man and shook his hand.
"Welcome," Prince John said kindly.
"Thank you, Your Highness," Tony quietly responded.
"Please, come over here and sit down," he said as he motioned towards his desk.
A couple of moments later, after Prince John sat down at his desk and Tony sat down in one of the two chairs across from him, Prince John told Tony, "I know that you work at Lani General Hospital as a registered nurse. Therefore, I can assume that you understand the value of a human life better than most."
"Yes, I think I do."
"I'm not being dramatic when I tell you that if word ever got out about the things I'm about to discuss with you in this office today, it could endanger someone's life. What I am about to tell you must not leave these walls. Do you understand."
The young man looked Prince John straight in the eye and told him, "I understand. I won't say anything."
"I have your word?"
"Yes."
Prince John then explained everything to Tony over the next several minutes, and when he was done, Tony was shocked to say the least.
"Let me see if I get this straight: Princess Anne never died?"
"No. Most people are unaware of this, but the Princess is very much alive."
"And she's been living in New York the past seventeen and a half years? In the Bronx?"
"That's correct."
"And if she publicly accepts her title on her eighteenth birthday, she has to get engaged as soon as possible because of your brother, Prince Edward, and you want me to think about marrying her?"
"That's the situation in a nutshell. No decision has to be made right this minute. But I have looked into you, into your background, incredibly thoroughly, and according to what my security team has learned about you, you appear to be a Godly, kindhearted, hardworking young man – exactly the kind of man I would want to see my daughter marry."
"Yeah, but don't you royals only marry other royals or nobles…or at the very least, people who are filthy rich? And how would the rest of your royal family feel about some black blood coming into the royal bloodline?" Tony's mother was a Pacific islander and his father was black, and both sides of Tony's family had lived in Momi for generations. Tony was six feet tall, taking after his dad who had been six-feet-two, and while his skin tone was darker, it wasn't as dark as his father's had been. He had a low-cut brown afro, warm chocolate eyes, and he was dressed in a very nice gray suit and blue tie.
"I only judge people by the content of their character, not by the color of their skin. As long as you are the kind of man who will do right by my daughter, I don't care if you're black, white, or turquoise. If this union goes forward, I know there will be others in the family who will not be pleased. We may also receive a lot of criticism in the press. Reporters can be pretty ruthless. But I don't care what others think. I just want to do what's best for my daughter and for my country. Because of our archaic laws, she cannot ascend the throne in my place unless she is married. And because of my ruthless brother, she must be the one to rule after me. However, I won't marry my daughter off to just anyone. As a father, I must make certain that the man she marries will give her the love and devotion she deserves. That's what I care about, not skin color or royal titles. And I believe you could be the right man for my daughter. You work endless hours at the hospital doing the kind of work most people would balk at, and then you come home and take care of your eighty-year-old grandfather who suffers from dementia. It takes a very strong, special man to do the things you do every day. And it is going to take a very strong, special man to be the kind of husband my daughter is going to need in her life. Being the husband of a future ruler is a full-time job, Tony, and a lot of men couldn't handle it. But I believe you can. As I said earlier, no decisions have to be made right now. But I do hope that you will consider meeting my daughter in the near future and start getting to know her."
"If I did end up going through with this – and that's a big if – what would it mean for my grandpa and me? Would I have to give up my career?"
"As far as your grandfather is concerned, if you married into our family, I would make certain that he received the very best care possible. And as far as your career goes, unfortunately, yes, you would have to give it up. I wasn't kidding just now when I told you that being the husband of a princess would be a full-time job. If things did work out between you and my daughter and you got engaged, I would grant you a noble title of some kind, as she would not be allowed to marry an untitled man. Then after you got married, you would officially be made a duke, and you would be expected to make appearances at various charity events and participate in an endless number of royal functions. I won't try to tell you that it wouldn't be tedious. However, your most important job would be to give my daughter the emotional support she will need as she prepares to accept the responsibility of caring for the needs of seventy-one thousand people. And as trying as this kind of life can be, it doesn't come without its privileges. While you wouldn't be working as a nurse anymore, you would be able to use the power and prestige of your new position in the royal court to speak out about the issues that are most important to you, like our broken healthcare system, for example, that is in dire need of repair. You could use your position to help make a big difference for our entire country. You could help raise money for a wide variety of charities. I'm certain you've already made a difference in the lives of your patients as a nurse. If you ended up marrying my daughter, you could make a difference on a much bigger scale."
After a couple of moments of silence, Tony finally said, "Well, you've certainly given me a lot to think about, Your Highness."
"You should think about this very carefully. If you do eventually decide to marry my daughter, I can assure you, your life will never be the same. It will be a mind-boggling change from the life you're used to, and that's putting it mildly."
"What's the Princess like? I mean…what's she really like?"
"Well, she…to be perfectly honest, her personality is not at all what you would expect when you think of a princess. She's not delicate, like one would expect a princess to be. She's not always very ladylike. In fact, she's pretty tough. She's very blunt. She doesn't worry about hurting people's feelings; she just speaks the truth and tells people exactly what's on her mind, and lets the chips fall where they may. But there's a very sweet young girl hiding underneath that tough exterior of hers, and when that sensitive side of her comes out, it's most endearing."
"She sounds like a lovely person."
"I certainly think she is, although my opinion is hardly unbiased."
"I don't know how I feel about this whole arranged marriage thing yet, but I don't suppose there's any harm in meeting her and getting to know her a little."
"Wonderful. When is your next day off?"
"Tomorrow, actually."
"Why don't you come back here at noon? You two can get acquainted over lunch."
"I'll be here."
"Excellent."
The two men stood up then and shook hands, and then Prince John walked with Tony to the door of his office. Just as Prince John was about to say goodbye, though, both he and Tony heard a sudden commotion outside, and Prince John opened the door. In the following moments, they stood together in the doorway and watched an unfortunate scene play out.
Prince Edward had been away the past several months on one of his many vacations in Europe. No one had expected him to suddenly turn up back at the palace today – drunk nonetheless – but then again, his behavior had always been erratic and unpredictable. And barely two seconds after stumbling through the palace doors with several of his drunk buddies, he began harassing one of the maids – who just happened to be seven months pregnant. After bullying her for the next couple of minutes, even bringing her to tears, it was in that particular moment that Prince John opened his office door and saw what was going on, along with Tony. But just as the Prince was about to intervene, Jo came into the corridor with Grace, and she too saw what was going on.
"How did they ever let an ugly fatso like you on the palace staff?!" Prince Edward yelled at the maid in an obnoxious drunken slur, who had tears running down her cheeks.
"Hey!" Jo cried out, and then she purposefully put herself between Edward and the maid. "What's your problem?"
"What's your problem? Don't you know who I am? I am Prince Edward of Momi, and I will be treated with respect!"
"I don't give a rat's butt who you are! You have to give respect in order to get it. That's just basic common sense. It's also common sense that a prince ought to know better than to go around treating people like dirt, especially pregnant women."
"You don't like the way I'm treating her?" he asked, still slurring his words, all the while stumbling and struggling to maintain his balance.
"No, I don't."
"What are you going to do about it, you stupid little punk?!" he asked, and then he gave her a shove. Prince John, Tony, and the guards began approaching them then, all of them ready to step in. Jo, however, was about to prove that she was quite capable of taking care of herself.
With a wry smile, Jo responded, "I was hoping you'd ask me that."
In the next unforgettable instant, Jo punched her obese, drunk, pathetic excuse for an uncle so hard, everyone could literally hear his jaw crack! While Edward screamed in pain, Prince John ordered the guards to take him away to one of the guest suites, which they were more than happy to do.
After they hauled him off, it was just Jo, Prince John, Tony, and Grace standing together in the corridor, with a couple of guards standing around in the background. Once they stood there for several long seconds, Grace finally broke the silence and scolded Jo.
"Your Highness, a princess must never behave that way! A princess never, ever, ever resorts to violence," she complained.
"So in other words, you're saying that a princess tolerates fat drunk jerks and does nothing about it when a pregnant woman is being bullied? Maybe all your other princesses were like that, Grace, but I'm not. Besides, from what all I can tell about my dear uncle, I probably did the entire country of Momi a favor by breaking his jaw."
Tony audibly snickered then and struggled to keep a straight face. On the inside, he was absolutely cracking up.
"Anne, your lessons are finished for today," Prince John told her rather sternly. "Go to your room and wait for me there. We have much we need to discuss."
Jo walked off with one of the guards then, and after excusing herself, Grace left as well. When Prince John and Tony were alone (with the exception of the other guards, of course) Tony looked Prince John squarely in the eye and said with surprise, "That's the Princess?"
"That's the Princess," Prince John said quietly.
"I think I'm in love already!"