“Maids gossiping inside the castle is different from the PR staff propagating the rumor using every possible channel.” It was a scandal that his mother would be happy to hear about for sure. She might confirm it herself in a statement together with the pronouncement that she was delighted with Rhiane Black’s influence on her son, insinuating the successful integration of a commoner into the royal family. The commoners who identified themselves with Rhiane would be charmed by the news that the untouchable Prince Alessandro was smitten by a lowborn woman. It signified hope that one of their own would be sitting on the throne beside their king, close enough to whisper their pleas to his ear. The engaged couple’s fanbase would grow, and the queen’s agenda of derailing the momentum of the rebellion would come closer to fruition. 

The farmer girl’s move was genius at least, but her future husband happened to have a reputation to uphold. He was not at all pleased with the turns of events. To him, the common people were not the only ones to satisfy. The noble houses, for instance, whose support to the reigning house kept the dynasty running generation after generation, would not be too happy to know that their future king’s will was easily swayed by the charisma of an unschooled commoner. A different kind of rumor would find its way in the ever present gossip circles of the court, one that involved the heir’s lack of conviction and his judgment being clouded by his blossoming feelings for the commoner.

“No, I’m done.” Luke got to his feet, pushing his chair back as he pushed his thoughts aside. Rhiane, in the meantime, might have been contemplating on ways how to phrase her request to move the dining table close to the bathroom. It would have sounded absurd regardless of the excuse her creative mind had conjured. Pity though, because much as he would have liked to hear the extent of his fiancée’s ingenious reasoning, he could not jeopardize their situation without expecting a corresponding disciplinary action from the queen. Besides, he had enough food to appease his stomach. The dish was delightful, but to him it was nothing special, and she too would soon get used to the extravagance.

He chose to make himself comfortable on the edge of the sofa, leaning against the thick and soft hand rest, because it was the closest to the bathroom. There was no way to find out if it was close enough until the princess elect actually stepped into the shower. Before then, all he and Rhiane had was a thin strand of hope that everything would work out fine.

The image manager’s mention of the medical staff caught his attention. Rhiane was halfway to the bathroom door when Ms. Viscomi brought it up and at the princess elect's outright refusal, the crown prince met Ms. Viscomi’s bewildered stare. Luke did not have time to intervene though as a knock sounded on the main door the same time he parted his lips to say something. 

A servant instantly attended to the wordless summon. She cracked the door and addressed the person at the other end before turning back to her audience inside the room. “Your highness,” the maid started, bowing to the prince from her waist down. “Doctor Isaac Gulsvig is here as per Ms. Viscomi’s request.”

The crown prince sought to catch his fiancée’s gaze before ordering, “Let the doctor in.” In other words, there was no way to refuse the appointment. He wanted to say as much, but he thought she understood as much. “Thank you for doing your job so effectively, Luce,” he added without taking his eyes off Rhiane. 

Doctor Isaac Gulsvig entered the chambers in all his white doctor’s coat glory. He was a tall gentleman with graying shoulder length hair that was pulled back in a ponytail at the base of his skull. The years had been kind to him though, because other than the sparse gray strands that stood out against a background of black, there was no other sign of aging on his face. He neither smiled nor frowned when he stepped into the threshold, but he bowed his head when his brown eyes found Luke. “Your highness.”

“Doctor Isaac,” Luke rose to his full height and acknowledged the older gentleman. “It has been a while since our paths crossed.”

“I consider it good news, your highness, that there is no need for us to regularly meet.” The doctor turned his attention to the princess elect, frowning maybe because of her appearance at that moment, which was far from the dolled-up woman presented the night before at the ball. However, before he could raise a comment, Luke had walked up to Rhiane and snaked an arm around her waist. 

“This way, Doctor.” Luke motioned towards the bedroom so that they may have privacy while they consult with the physician. “It wouldn’t take long,” he whispered, leaning against her ear, before ushering her to the room.