A Scandalous Adventure by Lillian Marek

course than to take charge himself. Still, he must learn to make decisions, and I sometimes fear he will never learn if we keep him in ignorance.”
    Susannah opened her mouth to agree that too much protection was not good for a ruler, but decided it was pointless. Advice from a stranger, especially a stranger who had never even seen the prince, was unlikely to be welcome. So she simply nodded.
    â€œBesides,” he said, grinning once more, “it will be fun.”

Eight
    While the general instructed Olivia in the protocol of Hechingen and those bits of history that even Princess Mila would be expected to know, Susannah hovered over them. This, Max decided, would not do. She was making her friend nervous, and the general’s temper was beginning to fray.
    â€œYou are not needed here,” he said. “Come for a walk with me. The fresh mountain air will blow your worries away.”
    Susannah allowed herself to be led, but continued to look distressed, even when they reached the lake. Max tucked her hand under his arm and began the walk along the path circling the water. She seemed to be sufficiently agitated to run the entire circuit, so he made his pace deliberate to slow her down.
    â€œIt is not a race, you know,” he told her.
    â€œIsn’t it?” She stopped completely and stared across the lake at the road they had come on, the road that would lead them away tomorrow. “We may all be racing headlong toward disaster. Olivia will never master all that history.”
    â€œNo? She did not seem to be having any difficulty that I could see.”
    â€œShe always hated lessons.”
    He could see the uncertainty on Susannah’s face. “Perhaps this time she is having lessons that she wants to master.”
    â€œShe doesn’t seem to realize the danger she faces—the danger we all face. And you are the same. You treat this all as a joke. How can you?”
    â€œWhy not? Will it change anything if I put on a long face and say tsk-tsk all the time?”
    She stopped and glared at him. “Is that what you think I am doing?”
    Max didn’t say anything, but he answered her glare with a smile. She was adorable, but she took things much too seriously. He answered her with a question. “Do you think smiling will make things more dangerous?”
    â€œYou don’t understand.” Susannah turned away and waved a hand at the schloss. “Olivia and Aunt Augusta, they’re my responsibility. I’m expected to keep them safe and out of trouble.”
    â€œThat is a great deal of responsibility for such a young lady.” He tried to sound serious, but he wanted to laugh. No matter what she thought, he doubted anyone expected a pretty girl like her to be responsible for anything more than choosing a bonnet.
    She looked annoyed. “Well, I’m a very responsible person. Everyone in my family says so. And those two need looking after.”
    That he could believe, but Susannah needed to be looked after as well. How could their families have sent these ladies off on a trip without a man to take care of them? Max shook his head. She was fortunate that he was here to see to her protection. “Well, you do not need to worry. I will make sure that none of you come to harm.”
    She looked even more annoyed at that. Did she think he was unable to take care of three women? He smiled to reassure her. “Come, let us forget all these worries. Let us pretend you have just come for an ordinary visit and we are out enjoying the sunshine. It is a pleasant day, is it not? Warm for this time of year.”
    She looked at him as if he had suddenly lost his mind.
    His smile turned into a grin. “Is that not what a proper Englishman would do? Talk about the weather?”
    Her annoyance dissolved into reluctant laughter. “Yes,” she said when she recovered, “very proper indeed. All right then, let’s pretend we are not engaged in a