Free Princess Thief: Stealing Your Heart by Jennifer Enander Page B

on the back.  After a few seconds,
Miguel belched the loudest burp that Juliette had ever heard.  She stared at
Miguel for a moment in shock, then laughed and laughed.  “That was
amazing!”
    “Miguel!”
his mother admonished, embarrassed.
    “Miguel,”
Guillermo asked, “why didn’t you just burp?”
    “Because
Jon Aiza says that every time you burp, your soul pops out of your mouth and
the devil can steal it!”
    Guillermo
smiled warmly.  “Well,
he’s wrong.  There’s nothing dangerous about burping.  Does your tummy feel
better?”
    Miguel
nodded.
    “Thank
you, doctor,” his relieved mother said, patting her heart.  “Oh — I mean, your
highness.  Come on, Miguel.”  She grabbed his hand and led the boy outside. 
“You embarrassed me in front of the prince!” the woman continued.  “That’s it —
no more soda for you.”
    “But
moooooom!” the child whined.
    Juliette
looked up at Guillermo and smiled.  “You handled that quite well.”
    “Thanks,”
Guillermo said, reaching for a bottle of hand sanitizer on the medicine
cabinet.  “I’ve seen my share of Miguels.  You’d be surprised how many kids
show up with the oddest things.  You just have to roll with it; if you make too
big of a deal out of something, you could embarrass the child and maybe even
stunt his emotional growth.  I remember this one boy, he came into the office
with a crayon stuck halfway up his nose-”
    Just
then, the front tent flap opened again and a man in his late 40s wearing
glasses and a white lab coat with a stethoscope draped around his neck stepped
into the tent.  “Doctor
Valdivia!  I thought I heard your voice!”
    “Doctor
Casiraghi!  What a pleasant surprise!”  The two men greeted each other like old
friends, shaking hands and smiling broadly.
    “Let
me get a look at you,” Doctor Casiraghi said.
    “How
have you been?” Guillermo asked.  Juliette had never seen the prince look so
ecstatic.
    “Fine,
fine.  Back from Africa, I see.”
    “Yes,
well, I’m sure you’ve heard the news.”
    “How
is it over there?”
    “It’s
much better than it was 6 months ago, but there’s still so much to do.  The new
vaccine is working wonders.”
    Juliette
watched Guillermo speak passionately with Doctor Casiraghi.  His entire
demeanor lit up; he was so animated, so excited, so smart .  She found
him utterly intoxicating.
    Not
good, not good.  At this rate, I ’m going to jump his bones in front of
all of these children!
    As
the men continued laughing and chatting, off in their own world of medical
jargon, Juliette surreptitiously crept to the exit and slipped out unnoticed.
     
    It
was a short walk to the magician ’s stage from the First Aid Tent. 
Juliette made a beeline for the backstage area and smiled when she found what
she was looking for.
    “Uncle!”
Juliette waved.
    Fran çois looked up
and beamed at the sight of his niece.  “Ma ch ère ! ”
    Juliette
embraced her uncle.  Fran çois
pulled her close and whispered in her ear, “What in God’s name are you doing,
child?  Your picture is all over the news!”
    “Uncle,
don’t start.”
    They
broke their embrace.  Fran çois smiled broadly and spoke in a loud voice just
in case anyone was listening, “Here.  Help me unpack this trunk.”
    As
they bent down, their faces hidden by the opened trunk lid, Fran çois resumed
whispering passionately, “How could you have let it blow up like this?  Your
face is on every TV channel.  Why didn’t you return home before things got out
of hand?”
    Juliette
shrugged, “I
couldn’t, uncle.  They posted a guard on the necklace.”
    “To
hell with the necklace, child!  Forget about it!  We’re talking about your life
here.  There are reporters snooping around everywhere.  What if they discover
your other identity?”
    “Don’t
be absurd, uncle.  They won’t.”  She paused.  “And even if they do, Guillermo
will cover for me.”
    “Oh,
so it’s ‘Guillermo’