I ended up staying for a day longer than expected. As there was more paperwork that needed to be addressed. Cas and I decided to keep the secret of Alek between us. Save for Vlad, who would know simply as a confident. 

Our time was spent mostly away from one another. Cas managed to drop by a few times on the Sunday. It was brief; a quick update, a few kisses and any updates with the wedding. A few plans had changed; Cas would stay at the Ardeena Base leading up to the wedding instead of a secretive hotel, for one. They'd make the move on Wednesday. The wedding day would be condensed from a traditional two-day event to just one. The wedding rehearsal would be moved from Wednesday to late Thursday. Cas' family would arrive and leave on the same day. 

There were a lot of headaches for Pat to address. I sat with her most frequently, in my favourite nook. It was more of a reading room for guests than anything. Two, beautiful shelves lined either wall, a large window allowed a view into the garden. It was a peaceful place, one that was rarely interrupted by other guests. We would spend most of the morning there. Order lunch. Take a walk around the garden and then return to the space. 

Pat would insist that the minor and major details had to be handled by her. She proudly showed me her arrangement- thirty or so, separate Excel spreadsheets detailing everything from vendor movements to allergies and accomodation. Princess Daryna was flying back from a stint in America, Ivan would return from his honeymoon with Katryna. Neither of them would be using the family jet but rather, taking commercial or other ways in. 

So as Pat would furiously type away, I would spend most of my time reading marriage advice books or texting my family.

"Are you sure-?" I'd turn to Pat.

"I've got it under control," Pat would smile with a slight nod. 

"Okay," I breathed out, sighing, flicking through another page.

Late Sunday, I was finally assigned my protection team- it ended up becoming a two-person team. One was a man approaching his fifties, he had a bald head and an angular face. He was intimidating, and almost an exact personification of what security personnel looked like. His name was Officer Franciszek. 

"Wonderful to meet you Franciszek," I smiled gently, after we exchanged a firm handshake.

"Honoured to be at your service, m'lady,"

"The thanks is all mine," I smiled. 

Monday morning was our first trip outside. A simple walk down to the bakery. I wore my dress from Saturday and borrow a pair of large sunglasses. It was mostly to fit into the flow of how Franciszek and I would work. While we'd been briefed on boundaries and personalised codewords, nothing worked better than the two of us in action itself. 

For such an event, Franciszek took a more, personalised approach. He acted as a guardian, following me in and sitting with me outside. I wasn't too sure what to say, offering his a scroll.

"How long have you been a part of the Protection Team?" I asked him in a low voice. The street was relatively empty. People moving back and forwards, car whizzing past to all the sights. 

"Thirteen years," Franciszek declined the scroll, opting to cross his fingers instead. He gave a gentle smile before scanning the street with a hawk-like gaze, "I mostly worked with medium-level politicians and lately had been doing some higher-level diplomat work,"

"Nice," I grinned, "I hope I'm not too much of an interruption,"

"Not at all," Franciszek pressed down a smile, watching the street, "I enjoy the challenge,"

"I hope to not be too much of a headache," I chuckled to myself, pulling a part a bit of the scroll with my fingers. 

"You get used to headaches early in the job," He nodded to himself, "don't worry, I hope your transition into royal life runs as smoothly as possible,"

"And hopefully as quietly as possible," I spoke, but more so to assure myself than anyone else.

"I hope to be frank," Franciszek looked to me earnestly, a storm brewing within his grey eyes, "now that you're out on the front page of the media, as an associate of the prince's, you won't likely have a quiet life,"

I was silent, pressing the scroll to my lips without eating it. 

"At best, you'll be caught once or twice appearing around His Highness, at worse..."

"I know," I breathed out, "I know it's silly of me but I kind of hoped for the invisible life,"

"The invisible life?" Franciszek tested out the words in his mouth- they were unusual. Likely very few people that he interacted with in his profession wanted an invisible life. They were supposed to be in front of cameras and the go-to for media outlets. 

"Yeah, a life lived out of the spot light," I mumbled to myself, "where I can love the man for who he is, not what he's born into,"

I couldn't bring myself to look at Franciszek. My ranted mumblings were probably pathetic and rather whiney. I knew the man I was falling in love with was a prince. I knew that my life would likely no longer become my own. I knew from day one, when I signed up that I may be called to sacrifice everything I am. This was something that I knew very well. 

And still, a part of me wished that I could have it both ways. That I could have the prince without the kingdom. The devotion without the responsibilities. Instead, I know had to be tracked and traced. Constantly followed and watched. Because the person that I loved was important, and this put me in danger. 

I wanted to flop onto the ground and mumble meaningless nothings about it all. 

"I know, that you knew, that it wouldn't be like that," Franciszek's words were straight to the point. 

"I know," I sighed, "I know,"

"In the meantime," Franciszek stood as I finished the last of my scroll, "you can make the best of what comes,"

"I will," I smiled, brushing myself off. 

I followed him back to the palace. 

...

Monday morning, I met the part two to my personal Protection Team. Officer Lena was a serious looking woman. She was significantly younger-looking than Franciszek, likely in her early thirties. Her hair was an ash-blonde and she had a wider face. She was tall, and stood board. Between the two giants, I probably looked insignificant.

She was proud. not in the sense of arrogance, but in the way that she took her job seriously. She met me with a firm handshake and a nod.

"M'lady," Lena nodded, biting down a smile.

"If people start calling me that, I might start believing it," I chuckled. A general chuckle of ease filled the room. Lena and Franciszek were both preparing for our trip home. One would stay for night shift at home while the other would stay at organised accomodation down the street. A full, twenty-four-seven watch. I'm sure my father would be impressed. 

After the wedding, there was talk about Cas and I taking up residence on an estate on the outside of the city. We were still waiting for permission from his parents. 

"If you'll excuse me, I'll finalise preparations with our transport," She nodded. 

"Go ahead," I nodded, stepping out of her way. Franciszek followed her, giving Cas and I a moment of privacy. 

"You're not going to run away from me between now and Wednesday will you?" Cas murmured, drawing me close.

"With your bodyguards, I don't think I could, even if I tried," I chuckled, holding him tightly. 

I savoured every moment with him. Between the meetings and chaos with the Insurgency, Cas had been a rare appearance. Add to his bachelor's party, which he would be flying out to, tonight, and he really did have a full plate.

"Of course, if everything still goes ahead?" I jested, looking up at him and resting my chin on his chest. 

"It will, don't worry," Cas' words were a solemn promise, "they've found everything that they needed to. The wedding will still go ahead,"

The wedding, I beamed at that. A wedding, of course, being a stressful day that marked the start of a new beginning. My reminder to myself wasn't to look forwards to the wedding itself, but the continual, everyday walk with one another. 

"Speaking of the wedding," Cas pulled away, rummaging through his pockets. He produced a small pouch. It was soft to the touch, but the gift was inside. A simple, gold chain that curled in my hand, "the paps always search for a ring. If you feel like it's necessary, don't be afraid to show it in more unconventional ways,"

"Thanks," I beamed up at him. The thought had crossed my mind, more than a few times. I wrapped him in another hug, "I wish I had another present for you,"

"Don't be silly," Cas shook his head, "you're the gift,"

"Cheesy, but thank you for the extra time to figure something out," I chuckled, Cas did too.

And so, with a final squeeze of one another's hands and a promise to stay safe at our various celebrations, we departed.