Chapter 4: Lemon Cakes

~o0o~

Jorah re-read the letter from Rhaegar several times before folding it up and sticking it back in its envelope.

"What the bloody hell, Rhaegar?" Jorah asked the empty office. He had always known of Rhaegar's fondness for his little sister, but never once had he indicated anything like this. Jorah wondered if it was a rushed, well-intentioned but misplaced thought on Rhaegar's part; surely in the blistering heat of the Middle East in the middle of active terrorism, anyone could start wishing for best-cast scenarios. Jorah's own thoughts had gone to some wild places when he had been facing imminent danger both in the service and on classified government missions.

Rhaegar wanted Jorah happy, that much he had always known. He had pushed him to continue on after his world all but completely shattered when Lynesse served him the divorce papers. But with Daenerys? Princess Daenerys?

There were so many reasons why the thought was inconceivable. Sure, Jorah was knighted and well-respected, but he was still a commoner. And given his current role as her equerry, it would seem like he was trying to take advantage of a trusted position. On top of that, she was fresh out of Uni, far too young for him, and not even remotely interested. Unless Rhaegar knew something that Jorah didn't, his proposition was laughable.

Daenerys was beautiful – anyone could see that. With her long, wavy, naturally platinum blonde hair, small but curvy figure, and inherent charm, everyone wanted to be around her. He certainly wasn't going to mind working with her every day for all of those reasons, but it would simply be a nice perk of the job. It wouldn't change anything.

Jorah sighed, shook his head, and headed downstairs to wait for the Princess.

~o0o~

"This is all mine?"

"Five bedrooms, six bathrooms, kitchen, sun room, living room, drawing room, and private garden. And all of the staff quarters and offices. All of it yours. Not quite as elaborate as Visery's entire wing of Buckingham, but it should do." Jorah told Daenerys, watching her take in her new residence with a big smile on her face.

"It's gorgeous." She continued, standing in the middle of the living room and looking around. It was a massive upgrade from her suite in the palace, even though that had still been the epitome of luxury. But this – this was a home. Something to grow with, settle in, and maybe raise a family in one day. It was made doubly sweet by Kensington's connection to her mother. Her mother had loved this residence the most and would spend time in the elaborate gardens often or use the orangery for parties. Now, the public facing sector was a beautiful museum, dedicated mostly to her mom's legacy, with emphasis on her humanitarianism. It made Dany happy that she would be so close to the public in that way – instead of behind big gates in Buckingham.

"I've been told you can completely redecorate if you'd like…" Jorah continued. The residence had already been refurbished just for her, with multiple prominent British designers working tirelessly on it. He thought they had done rather well. It was an eclectic mix of modern, sleek materials like marble and gold accents, with Louis XIV furniture, rounded out with contemporary art on the walls. Everything was in creams, blush shades, or pale blues.

"There's no need to." Daenerys finally turned back to him, "And everyone has a space? You, Grey, and Gilly?"

"All just as nice as this, yes. We are on the other side of the courtyard with our own separate entrance so you'll have complete privacy when you wish. I'll be looking for a live-in chef as well. For now, we have someone on loan from the palace."

Daenerys nodded and sat down on a velvet tufted loveseat, still coming to terms with the new chapter of her life she was about to begin. An entire household to essentially run herself – well – to let Jorah run for her, while she had to fully immerse herself as Princess, and take appointments and attend functions.

"Oh…the tea…with Sansa?"

"Lady Sansa will be here within the hour. I'm having tea prepared and you'll take it in the sunroom, if it suits you. I'll bring her in when she arrives. It's a bit of a madhouse out there – Grey is dealing with all the paparazzi eager to catch a glimpse of you." Jorah said gently. In truth, he had an overwhelming amount of work to attend to in setting up the new residence, but he felt a tinge of guilt in just leaving her alone. She seemed a bit lost, looking nervously out the large French windows into the garden, as if everything was about to disappear and she was grasping to mentally capture every moment.

"Thank you, Jorah," she said, her voice distant. He bowed and took his leave to help Grey.

~o0o~

Daenerys had already made her way to the sunroom when Jorah accompanied Lady Sansa Stark into the room, announced her, and then took his leave. She caught the red-head look back over her shoulder for a moment to watch him walk about before she turned to Daenerys with a smirk.

"God, he's hot, isn't he?" Sansa said before she curtseyed, "Your Grace." She then sat herself at the small table across from the Princess, which had been set beautifully for tea.

"Thank you for paying me a visit, Lady Sansa. You are the first guest in my new home." Daenerys ignored her comment about Jorah and returned the pleasantries with a well-practiced smile, but it was far from genuine. She hadn't interacted with the Lady or Norfolk for some years now, since before she went to university. They were both just girls then, and now they sat, their differences striking. A few years older than Dany, Sansa walked and talked as if she were a Princess. She possessed such a calm, cold, and mysterious air about her that Dany found quite intimidating. Her sleek, vibrant red hair was stick-straight today and parted down the middle. The black McQueen suit she was wearing made her look both chic and edgy at the same time. Daenerys preferred her Jenny Packham dresses in creams, pastels, and the occasional jewel tone. They looked like night and day sitting across from one another in the bright room.

"I've been wanting to catch up for some time now, actually," Sansa continued on as she poured her tea and left it black, without milk even. Daenerys swallowed back her horror. She supposed northerners just did things differently. "Oh…lemon cakes. How thoughtful, these are my favorite."

"I'm glad you like them," Daenerys said as she took one for herself, making a mental note to thank Jorah for his clear research in planning the menu. "So…what was it that you came to talk to me about?"

Daenerys poured herself some tea, added milk, and two lumps of sugar before turning her gaze to Sansa. The Princess often had little patience for beating around the bush, which she inherited from her father and older brother. Viserys, on the other hand, could talk about the weather for an hour with an acquaintance and be fine with it.

"Direct, I like that…" Sansa smiled before taking a sip of her tea. "I really wanted to talk about our families. And again, my condolences about Prince Rhaegar. But with all of this sadness, I think there is a silver lining. It has brought our two families in proximity again. I know the King and my father have had their differences, but the King is fair, and he made my father the Duke of Norfolk long ago for a reason. Norfolk and the Crown have had the strongest bond of all of the dukedoms going back centuries. We have respect for one another. And we shouldn't let that go to waste."

It wasn't hard for Daenerys to see where she was going with this, so she just nodded and took a bite of her lemon cake. It was too tart, and she pushed it away.

"What did you come here to propose, Lady Sansa?"

"Your brother needs a Princes and my brother needs a Lady. We could be sisters, and our children would be cousins," Sansa said as if it was already a done deal and Daenerys didn't care for the coolness of her tone, or the sureness of her words. She hardly knew Sansa and she didn't trust her - so the thought of being her sister by marriage wasn't a selling point.

"You are interested in Viserys?" Daenerys raised an eyebrow. This was the most entertaining bit of it all. Viserys was such a daft prick and Sansa seemed, well, very much out of his league.

"I find him handsome and charming." Sansa had a great poker face and Daenerys respected that. All of the Targaryens had good genes, but charming?

"As do many other noble women. But, if you are as enamored with him as you say, you don't need my permission," Daenerys said as she looked straight into Sansa's eyes, "But it seems he is just one of many men you are enamored with." Daenerys hadn't wanted to bring back up Sansa's initial comment about Jorah, but after today and seeing her stare at him at dinner the night before, there was clearly a pattern. Dany couldn't pinpoint why it bothered her exactly, but it did.

Sansa paused for a moment as she considered Daenerys' comment. "I'm only interested in your brother".

"Then, Viserys would be very lucky to have a woman like you," Daenerys conceded to what she knew Sansa wanted to hear, even if she didn't believe Sansa for a second. It made Lady Stark smile as she helped herself to another lemon cake.

"You are very kind. It's one of the reasons both of my older brothers are already mad for you," Sansa steered the conversation out of risky waters and onto the Princess.

"People have been saying that, but I've yet to hear it from either of them…"

"Both Robb and Jon are shy, especially Jon. But once you get to know them…"

"Lady Sansa. I appreciate what you are trying to do…but I have no interest in being married for the foreseeable future. My beloved brother just died, everything around me is changing, and it just isn't on my mind. You are older than me and it seems like that is what you want, but it isn't the same for me." Daenerys spoke honestly and Sansa nodded.

"I apologize. I didn't mean to come on so strong. I just know my brothers. They are good men and I like to think either of them would make you happy. And you could use some happiness," Sansa continued on and Daenerys could see she was trying to position herself as her friend.

"Thank you. If that is the case, then I look forward to talking to both of them more at dinner tonight." Daenerys smiled and put her napkin on the table, signaling their tea time was finished. She stood up and Sansa followed – towering over Dany in her heels.

"I hope we will have many more afternoons like this one. It was very enjoyable." Sansa curtseyed again and Grey, who had clearly been waiting outside of the sunroom, appeared to lead Sansa to the car waiting for her.

"Yes, I would like that. I will see you tonight." Daenerys offered one last smile as she walked away. Her mother had always told Dany her own spin on the old adage, which was – "keep your enemies close and your friends closer". Sansa could be a 'friend', and she knew that she needed to start forming a deeper relationship with her based on circumstances. But after that meeting, she needed a true friend to confide in. Sansa was Lyanna's niece, so it couldn't be her. She needed to talk to her best friend in the entire world – Missy.

~o0o~

"I went to see your brother…at Westminster. The crowds were unbelievable. Flowers everywhere…have you been since…"

"No. But thank you for going. That means a lot to me," Daenerys sighed into the phone, her legs tucked under her on the couch in the sitting room, comforted by her best friends' voice. Missandei was everything to her. They had met at Cambridge and became fast friends. Missy hadn't been put-off that Daenerys was a Princess. She didn't treat her any differently or try to befriend her for association alone. Her integrity was something Dany valued.

"Of course. Can I come see you soon…in your new digs?" Missy's voice was hopeful on the other end. It had been a month since they had seen one another. Her job as translator to Prime Minister Lannister had her travelling often. Dany couldn't fault her friend for being a genius with languages – having mastered seventeen of them. She was proud of all she had accomplished so soon after graduation.

"Anytime you want. You are always welcome and I miss you. I have so much to tell you".

"Will..uh…Grey be there?"

Dany knew her friend well enough to decipher she slightest shift in her tone. It made her smile. "Yes, my security detail who you have a fat crush on lives with me. You'll absolutely see him. But I'd hope you'd be more interested in seeing me…"

"Of course, Dany. Now tell me what is going on. Your texts had me worried."

"Ugh, so I had tea with Lady Sansa Stark this afternoon…" Daenerys began when she heard someone clear their throat. She glanced over to the doorway and saw Captain Mormont standing there, looking as if he needed to tell her something but also not wanting to interrupt her, "Missy, I have to go. I'll text you later…plan to come over this weekend, alright?"

"I'm sorry for interrupting, Daenerys, but your father called. He said he'd like you at the palace a little earlier this evening than previously planned. Gilly has a dress ready in your room whenever you are." His low, slightly rough voice left no room for negotiation and the Princess had to resign to the fact that the final hurdle of her Stark-filled day was fast approaching.

"Will you be joining?"

"Unfortunately, I will not be."

"More like fortunately for you."

"Lady Stark seems pleasant."

"Does she?" Daenerys cocked an eyebrow at his admission.

"Grey informed me that the two of you seemed to be having a nice chat."

"Then I will have to tell Grey that although his job is to stand outside my door and that often means hearing everything I say, he should not be passing the contents of those conversations on to you." Daenerys was only half-teasing as she looked across the room at her equerry.

"My apologies, your Grace. I probed him for it. You didn't seem particularly happy to be having tea with her and I wanted to make sure you weren't upset." Jorah stood up a little straighter and his address to her turned formal. She couldn't decide if she was annoyed or flattered that he cared about that.

"How did you know to serve lemon cakes? Did you know they are Lady Stark's favorite?"

"It's my job to make you look like the best hostess I possibly can. You shouldn't have to worry about details like that." His blue eyes met hers for a second and then he averted them.

"And you did a wonderful job. But my conversations are private. Maybe they weren't for you with Rhaegar, but they are here." Daenerys ended the conversation and stood up to go get dressed for dinner. She knew her tone had been a bit harsh and maybe in any other circumstance she wouldn't have cared who heard them. But Sansa Stark was starting to annoy her and his mention of her bothered Dany. She tried her best to shake it off and headed towards her room.