Princess Thief: Stealing Your Heart by Jennifer Enander

now, is it?  I think you’ll be shocked to find out how
quickly your royal friend Guillermo will abandon you if the truth ever
comes out. ”
    “He’s
not like that, uncle,” Juliette insisted.
    “Oh,
ma ch ère .  You are
deluding yourself. ” 
François shook his head.  “We need to get you out of here today.  I am sure of
it.”
    “No,
uncle,” Juliette’s voice was firm.  “You gave me 10 days to get this job done
and I plan on keeping my promise.  Especially after seeing this so-called
charity picnic today.”  She sighed deeply as she scanned the park grounds. 
“The aristocracy is broken.  They are so disconnected from reality, they can’t
even run a charity picnic correctly — even if they have the best of
intentions.  Guillermo is a good man but how do you fix a problem that runs
this deep?”  Juliette shook her head.  “If I don’t get that necklace, the
orphanage will never get a roof by winter — I know it.”
    “And
if you get caught and imprisoned, the orphanage will never get a roof, period. 
Why can’t you see this is a dead end?”  François smiled sadly.  “Oh, mon enfant,
would you listen to your old uncle for once?  It ’s all fun and games now but the
aristocracy hasn’t pulled out their long knives yet.  Let me get you out of
here before things get worse.”  He playfully nudged her arm with his elbow and
grinned.  “I’m performing the ‘disappearing booth’ today.”
    “You
must be joking.”
    “Now,
now,” he held out his hands, “Let me finish.  Here’s what we’ll do.  There’s a
disguise in the truck.  Philippe has the long black wig.  After the reveal, it
will take at least 20 minutes before they figure out that we used a body
double.  You and I could be over the border into France before they even suspect
something is wrong.”
    Juliette
realized the last part, at least, was true: La Ma çana Park was so far north, she
could literally hike over the border into France in under 30 minutes.  By car,
it was less than five.
    “Uncle,
I-”
    “At
least consider it.  Please?  For me?”
    Juliette
gazed into his kind brown eyes and sighed.  “All right.  I’ll think about it.  But
I’m not promising anything.”
    “Excellent!” 
François clapped his hands together and stood.  “Now, if you’ll excuse me,
young lady, I have a show to perform!”

Chapter 8
    Guillermo
spotted Juliette wandering away from the South Stage.  He tried to get her
attention with a wave but she appeared to be completely lost in thought.  He
jogged over to her.
    “Are
you missing your mommy, little girl?” he teased.
    She
woke from her trance.  “Guillermo. 
I’m sorry.  I didn’t even see you.”
    “Something
on your mind?”
    “I
don’t know,” she trailed off, then, “Tell me, if someone discovered my secret,
what would-  No,” she shook her head.  “No.  Never mind.  It’s nothing.  How
was your friend?”
    “Doctor
Casiraghi?  He’s quite well.  That was actually his tent we were in.  He just
stepped out to get a quick bite to eat.”
    “Have
you known him long?”
    “Oh
yes,” Guillermo said.  “At least 10 years.  He was one of my medical professors
at university.  In fact, he inspired me to become a pediatrician.”
    “Is
that right?”
    “Yes. 
When I was just starting pre-med, I had him for Anatomy and Physiology…” 
    As
he rattled on, explaining to Juliette how much he admired Dr. Casiraghi and the
enormous influence he had on his professional life, Guillermo noticed that
Juliette never seemed to be bored, always asking little questions to keep the
conversation going.  He was growing to like her more and more with each day
that passed, this mysterious beauty that he had trapped in his castle.  She was
quick-witted and full of surprises, unlike any woman he had ever dated before.
    Well,
I doubt anyone would call this ‘dating.’
    “Ladies
and gentlemen,” a voice bellowed through the loudspeakers