Chapter 17

I had just finished up my duties for the day, which felt amazing. I hated going to court and talking to the many nobles, but it was apart of being Queen of Scotland.

I walked out of the throne room and started heading toward the exit of the castle. My ladies had set up a little picnic near the water so that we could finally talk. It had been quite a bit since we were able to hear about each other's lives and I was really missing it. I used to know everything that was going on with them, but now I mostly heard it from gossip.

I took a step outside and took in a deep breath, soaking in the summer weather.

It had been 2 months since the wedding and summer was in its full cycle. Trees were covered with leaves and flowers swarmed the gardens. It was one of my favorite times of the year. It made me feel so happy to see everything in full bloom. It felt like everything was almost reset and everyone could have fresh starts. The past no longer mattered and the only thing that mattered now was the present.

When I reached my ladies they excitedly surrounded me and squealed. "Mary! Sit!" Aylee said happily.

I kneeled down and crossed my legs together, sitting down on the plaid blanket that covered the ground. Kenna leaned in and grabbed a grape that laid on the blanket. "So," she paused and popped the grape in her mouth. "How's married life with Francis?"

I almost blushed but controlled myself. Francis and I were better than ever. I could never get him out of my head even when we were together. At night though, he would always make me feel extraordinary. In more ways than one.

"It's good!" I responded quickly, trying to cover my thoughts. Kenna giggled along with the other girls. Lola raised her brow and laughed. "I think she meant something else."

I stared at her blankly for a moment, trying to figure out what she meant by that. But I couldn't figure it out. "What do you mean?"

All the girls giggled once again, but I was lost. I wasn't used to these type of talks. In court everyone was serious. There were no jokes or hidden meanings. It was all straightforward and if you didn't understand you dared not ask again.

"How's the sex?" Greer whispered to me. My eyes shot open and I stared at Greer, then at Kenna. My cheeks began to blush as I attempted to form a sentence. Kenna only laughed. "It's good!" I said before she could tease me.

"Is he-" before she could finish I butted in. "What about you Kenna?"

Kenna raised her brow. "What about?" She smiled, waiting for me to continue. I glared at her playfully.

She leaned back, placing both of her hands behind her. Before she spoke there seemed to be an awkwardness between the rest of the ladies.

"I have my eyes on someone," Kenna responded slyly.

"Who is it?" I pressed. If Kenna has found a proper suitor I would love to help her. Kenna bit her lip, then smiled. "The king has taken a liking to me."

An almost sickening feeling came up my throat. I almost wanted to laugh, but by telling how serious everyone else was this wasn't a joke.

"You're," I paused, pushing myself to finish the question. "You're seeing the King?"

Kenna nodded as if she was a young girl keeping a small secret. But this wasn't small, this was a large problem. She may not think so yet, but she obviously hasn't been seeing the King's sudden decline. "Kenna, that's extremely dangerous. And what about a proper suitor? The King isn't going to be interested in you forever." I immediately regretted my words. I tried to take them back, but Kenna was furious. "I love him and he loves me! He also said he would find me a suitor when the time comes." She crossed her arms like some child getting scolded at. I couldn't believe this, but it wasn't my life. I couldn't make these decisions for her, I could only watch. "Alright, Kenna." I sighed. "Just be careful. The King. He's not like himself right now."

Kenna continued to glare at me. "I don't need your advice. I know him."

I nodded and attempted a smile. I placed my hands on my lap. "Yes, you are right."

The back of my mind was fighting with me, telling me to yell at Kenna. Tell her that what she is doing is wrong! But I have to realize that there are some things that I'm just not in control of. Things that I will have to watch fall apart.

Kenna stood up and walked away without another word. Lola sighed and rolled her eyes. "We all know this is a terrible idea but whenever we try to talk her out of it she doesn't want to listen."

Aylee nodded in agreement. "I just hope she'll be okay."

The rest of the picnic was nice, even with Kenna's absence. Aylee was telling me about a nice man she had met recently and how she really liked him. This was the type of stuff I wanted to talk about with my ladies.

As time went on and we talked about all the drama around court, the sun was starting to set, so it made the air a little more chilly. We put the rest of the food in the basket and folded the blanket then headed back to the castle. When we got inside I was greeted by a servant. She bowed then took the basket and the blanket from us. "Excuse me, Miss." The servant said to me. I turned toward her questionably. "You are needed in court."

I almost wanted to roll my eyes, but it wasn't the servant's fault. Someone must not have known that I was done for the day. I turned toward my ladies and smiled. "I really enjoyed the picnic. I'll see you in a little bit, okay?"

They all nodded and said goodbye. I made my way toward court, but I took my sweet time. I didn't want to step back into that room today. I was tired of all the bickering and questions.

When I turned into the room I froze. There James stood, examining the artwork that was hung on the walls. I almost wanted to run toward him and hug him, but instead, I sneakily walked toward him and when I was behind him I tapped his shoulder. He jumped and whipped around, but when he saw who it was he immediately dropped to the ground and onto his knees. I quickly grabbed onto him and pulled him into a hug. "There is no need for that, brother."

James smiled and laughed nervously. "Well, you are the Queen of Scotland. So there should be no exception." He responded.

"Why are you here, James?" I asked.

James sighed, then motioned away from court. "Walk with me."

He wrapped his arm around mine and began walking out of court. We began walking down the halls that were filled with people. "What is it?" I asked, eagerly wanting to know what is the reason he is here. "Your rule is in trouble."

"Wha-what?"

"Your mother has only brought in French people to run court. They are making decisions for the Scottish. Your mother doesn't care enough to fix the problem. I don't even think she sees the problem. We are sick of it," He paused. " You need to come home."

I tried my best to process all this information all at once, but now my mind was going at a frantic pace, making it hard to understand what he meant. "That's why I have you, James."

James laughed and patted my hand. "I am but one Scot in an army of Frenchmen." He stopped walking and made me pause as well. "Just come home. Show your people they have a loyal Scottish Queen."

"When are you going back to Scotland?" I asked him.

"Tomorrow night."

I slowly nodded. I had no idea what I was going to do. It wouldn't be a problem if I left Francis now, right? He can obviously handle anything that comes at him. I'm sure he wouldn't have a problem with this. He may even come with me.

I grabbed James' hand. "I'll go talk to Francis and see what he thinks."

James glared at me almost. "Why would you need to talk to Francis? You're a Queen. You don't need his approval."

"Francis is my husband he has a right to know." I shot back. James took a step back and bowed. I took this chance to turn and leave. I wasn't able to find Francis so I just went back to our chambers and got ready for the night so I could talk to him when he got here. By the time Francis arrived in our chambers it was extremely late. He opened the door and smiled at me, but it disappeared quickly. "You're up late," Francis said to me as he began taking off his coat.

"I needed to discuss something with you," I said, turning toward him in the wooden chair. Francis sat down on the side of the bed and looked up at me. "What is it?"

"James is here in France," I said. Francis waited for me to continue as if James wasn't much news at all. "He wants me to go to Scotland."

Francis' eyes lit up. "Why?"

"My Mother isn't taking care of the problems she should be. She is creating more problems than she is solving them." I responded.

"Then we send more French advisors." Francis clapped his hands together as if the problem was already solved.

"That's the problem, Francis. The people running Scotland's affairs are all French. My mother is French. They don't want any more Frenchmen. They need their Queen."

Francis could only stare at me. "Mary, there is no way you can leave now. My father is going completely mad! He's going to start a war if we don't keep an eye on him."

"But Francis, this is my country and it needs my help!" I fought back.

Francis stood up quickly and shot me a glare. "I need you here. End of discussion."

I stared at him in amazement. How could he treat me like this? All I would need is a couple of weeks to sort out the problem. That's all! Something must have happened with his Father, that's why he's acting like this. But that's no reason to deny me the chance to show my country that I'm here for them and they have a true Scottish leader.

"But Francis, I'd only be there for a little while. You could even come with me to show them French supports them." I pressed harder. I took a step toward Francis and grabbed his arm. "Please, Francis. Let me help my country."

Francis slowly turned toward me. "And if I don't? Will you find another man to help you?" He paused and glared at me. "Like Tomas?"

I was blown away by his words to the point where I was speechless.