Above All Else: A Bad Boy Military Romance (Easy Team Book 2) by Gemma Hart Page B

the longest she had made me go.”
                  Xander’s dark brows rose suddenly. “You mean, she’s starved you before then?” he asked in surprise.
                  “Before then, after then, it was a very common disciplinary method of Lady Angstrom’s,” I said. I eyed the mug a little, already missing the taste of the soup.
                  Xander caught my gaze and obliged, pressing the mug against my lips. Although it was clear that I was enjoying the soup and able to feed myself, he made no motion to put me down and I made no motion to get off. I was feeling quite comfortable and soothed where I was.
                  It had been a hectic and emotional last few days and for the first time in a long time, I felt all that stress melt away from me, leaving me drained and almost drunk. I felt like a boneless mass that had used up all its energy in trying to keep calm and sane.
                  “Is that a common thing for governesses to do?” Xander asked. I could tell he was trying to speak casually but I saw the cut in his brow that spoke of his worry and outrage on my behalf. I felt touched.
                  “Well, I’ve only had Lady Angstrom so I don’t know how any other governess would’ve treated me. But I’ve met girls at school who had governesses as well and not all of them seemed to have had bad experiences. Some of them were quite close with their governesses actually.” I pressed my lips, feeling that sight raise of tension whenever I thought about my former governess. “I was not, of course.”
                  “Why didn’t you complain? Tell someone about what your governess was doing to you?” Xander demanded, clearly not happy at this injustice.
                  I gave a mirthless smile. “Who would I have complained to? My parents died when I was three. Even though that meant I was now a Crown Princess and future Queen, I wouldn’t formally be coronated until I was twenty six years old. So until then, I needed a guardian.”
                  “Your uncle,” Xander guessed.
                  I shook my head. “Minister Pryto,” I corrected. “My uncle always knew he’d never be King as second son. So he never took part in any of the more formal State functions and didn’t operate within the royal schedules. So parliament decided that Minister Pryto would be the better option since he was familiar with the workings of government and was Royal Liaison.”
                  “What is that—Royal Liaison?”
                  “It’s basically like a Prime Minister. He works between the monarchy and the parliament. Next to the King or Queen, he is the highest level of government.”
                  I saw Xander’s mind turning over my words. I could almost see him drawing up the correct conclusions. “It makes a lot of sense why he’s heading this revolt then,” he said.
                  I nodded encouragingly. “That’s right. If he overthrows the monarchy, he’d be the logical next bet to take over.”
                  Xander shook his head, confused. “So he was the one that was responsible for you while you were growing up?”
                  I gave that odd shrug/wiggle. “Well, he was supposed to be like an advisor. He was supposed to guide me and mentor me so that when I finally ascended to the throne, I would be a knowledgeable leader.” I pressed my lips and blew out some air in a sign of defeat. “But he did more than that. He hired my nannies, my governess, my maids. He dictated what curriculums I would follow, what schools I would attend. And whenever I made complaints, he would always say that he was giving me the absolute best and that I deserved nothing less.”
                  I remembered the first time I had come to Minister Pryto at nine years old. I had