Once Upon a Princess. Holly Jacobs

turned to the boy. “And you?”

      “Hot chocolate and a chocolate donut.”

      The man cleared his throat.

      “Sorry, Uncle Jace.” The boy looked at Parker and added, “Please.”

      Uncle.

      The man wasn’t their dad.

      For some reason, Parker’s heart did a queer little double beat.

      He—Uncle Jace—turned from the children and looked right at her.

      Parker noted that his eyes were as dark as his hair. Deep and penetrating eyes. They looked at her as if they could see more than her well-worn jeans and ponytailed blond hair.

      He peered at her as if he knew things about her, things that she’d rather no one know.

      “Coffee,” was all he said in a low voice that sounded as if someone had taken sandpaper to his vocal chords.

      Something within her stirred at the sound.

      “Cream and sugar?” she asked, her voice oddly breathy.

      “Black.”

      It figured, she thought with a small smile. Of course Mr. Tall, Dark and Handsome took his coffee black.

      “Be right back.”

      She headed over to retrieve their food, but couldn’t help one quick glance over her shoulder. Uncle Jace appeared to be scolding the kids, who were both wearing guilty looks.

      “Hey, that’s some hunk,” Shey said as Parker came behind the counter. “Too bad about the kids. Like they say, all the good ones are taken.”

      “They’re not his kids. They called him uncle.”

      “Not too bad, then. I don’t see a ring.” She was looking past Parker toward the table. “Do you know him? He’s watching you.”

      Parker turned, and sure enough he was. He shifted his gaze back to the kids, but he’d been studying her. “I can’t quite place him, but he looks familiar, like I should know him.”

      “So ask him,” Shey said.

      That was Shey in a nutshell.

      She was the kind of person who always cut to the chase. She didn’t have the time or the patience to pussyfoot around issues.

      Shey only had one speed: full-steam ahead.

      She’d been the one to spearhead Parker and Cara into forming a partnership and opening the two stores. Parker had her degree in international business. And although Perry Square wasn’t exactly international, it felt good to use some of her education to put together a business plan. She’d been the stores’ financial backer and business manager. Having a healthy trust fund had made things much easier.

      Full-steam-ahead Shey had taken responsibility for Monarch’s Coffeehouse. And Cara, who was the quietest of the trio, had surprised them all by not only managing Titles, the adjoining bookstore, but really enjoying it.

      Each of their positions had played to each of their strengths. It had been perfect.

      The stores weren’t generating a huge profit yet, and that hadn’t been a problem until her father cut off her access to her trust fund. That’s why she’d taken the vacant waitressing position to help make ends meet.

      Both her friends had argued against it, but most of the time Parker was enjoying it. Eyeing Uncle Jace, she had to admit she was enjoying today, and this particular table, more than most.

      “Go on. Ask him if you two know each other,” Shey prompted again.

      “That’s okay. It’s not important,” Parker said as she poured the hot chocolate into a cup.

      “Come on now, Parker, he’s a hunk. You should just go for it. You’re on a roll lately,” she said with a chuckle. “So why don’t you roll his way? Nothing can be as hard as standing up to your father. By the way, he called again…or rather, his secretary did. You’re supposed to call him back. He said it’s important.”

      “I don’t think so.” Parker topped the hot chocolates off with whipped cream and got a coffee cup.

      “You should call your father,” Shey scolded. “After all, what’s he going to do? You’ve said no. You’re an adult, free to make your own decisions. And just because you’ve decided not to go home, not to give in to his demands, that doesn’t mean you should cut yourself off from your family. Family is important.”

      Parker felt a stab of guilt. She knew she should appreciate her family more.

      It wasn’t that she didn’t love them.

      She did.

      Her mother was the sweetest, most easygoing woman Parker had ever known.

      Unfortunately Parker hadn’t inherited any of those qualities from her mom.

      She tried to recognize her own virtues…and laid-back wasn’t one of them. Parker knew she was as hard-headed and sure of herself as her father and brother.

      She smiled as she thought of them all.

      She adored them, even her bossy father. And to be honest, she missed them terribly.

      But loving her family and living with them were two distinctly different things. There were so many burdens associated with her family name.

      Parker wasn’t shy, but being the focus of so much public scrutiny was trying. Endless appearances that were little more than photo ops. And press who found even the most private details of her life to be fair game, as well. Being followed, hounded… A claustrophobic feeling pressed on her chest, making her pulse start to race.

      Parker forced herself to draw in a long, slow breath and release it as she pushed unpleasant memories aside.

      No, she wasn’t going back to that life, but that didn’t mean she didn’t miss her family. Despite everything, she knew she was lucky to have them all.

      Look at Shey.

      Shey didn’t have anyone except for her and Cara. The three of them were truly sisters of the heart. But Parker knew that Shey longed for more. That her friend would give anything for a real family, even if they came with unwanted baggage.

      “I’ll call tonight,” she promised. “But right now, I’m off to work on my waitressing skills.”

      “Ask Mr. Tall, Dark and Yummy if the two of you have met.”

      “Maybe,” Parker said, hefting the tray and trying to balance it. “Maybe I will.”

      “Maybe I won’t tell if you promise not to follow me again,” Jace O’Donnell told his niece and nephew.

      The twins looked stubborn.

      “You know your mother will ground you, right? Your mom is tough.”

      Jace knew that was stretching the truth more than a little. His sister liked to pretend she was tough, but to be honest, she had a soft heart.

      It’s what made her special.

      It’s also what had caused her so much pain recently.

      “We eat, then you leave,” Jace continued. “And maybe, just maybe, I won’t tell.”

      “Come on, Uncle Jace,” Amanda whined. She reminded him of her mother. Shelly had the same brown hair with streaks of blond, the same inquisitive blue eyes as the twins…she’d also been a huge pain when they were growing up. Her kids were carrying on the tradition.

      Chalk one up for genetics.

      Part of Jace wanted to hug his pretty little niece. The other part knew that if he didn’t come down on them hard now, he’d spend the rest of the twins’ summer vacation checking over his shoulder to see if they were tailing him.

      “You