The gamekeeper walked them to a pride of lions. “Are those animals tame?”
“Ya, I guess so.” The gamekeeper opened the gate and invited them to follow. Albrecht stood white-faced and smiled, while Margie walked over to the little ones with her large bag of treats. Within seconds she was surrounded by all four, the father and mother and their two cubs. She opened the bag and distributed the meat. As they gobbled up the food, Margie petted the little ones and encouraged Albrecht to do the same. They were so docile it was uncanny. They spent thirty minutes inside the cage. As they left, Margie gave the gamekeeper a nice tip and thanked him.
Their excursion around the estate got as far as the botanical gardens. It took the best part of the day, and then they went back home for dinner. After that it was back up to bed. it seemed Margie couldn’t get enough of Albrecht, and he didn’t need any encouragement.
After months of this liaison, they were seated on the settee after their romp between the bed sheets. The princess spoke, “Albrecht, I’m trying not to get carried away with this infatuation.”
“What do you mean by infatuation? I love you more than life itself!” cried Albrecht.
“My darling you’re young, and you’ll meet someone your own age.”
“I thought you loved me.”
“I do, but I’m wise enough to know the ways of the world.”
“There’ll never be anyone else but you, you’ll see.” The Count’s entanglement with the Princess became more amorous.
They always followed the same routine. First a visit to the lions, and he seemed completely mesmerized by these creatures. Then, all roads lead to the bedroom.
Chapter Three
This romance carried on for months with seemingly no end in sight, until his cousin the Duke decided to get married and asked his lordship to be best man. Count Thalfingen obliged. He didn’t know of the bride, but only that she came from a very distinguished family. On the day of the wedding, the Count showed up and was introduced to the bride. He was smitten by her beauty. Neither the bride nor the Count had ever met her prospective husband, and she was filled with apprehension. The Count did his best to console her. After what seemed an interminable amount of time, his Grace, The Duke Henry Fitzroy, arrived replete with his entourage and proceeded to take command of everything. He treated his bride as he would the purchase of a new horse.
The new bride, Catalina, was completely forlorn by this mistreatment, resulting in a near state of anarchy. Albrecht tried to defuse the situation by being an intermediary between Catalina and his Grace. The situation became so tense that Albrecht drew his sword and challenged his Grace to a duel outside. The father wanted the match at any price, as the financial rewards and prestige far outweighed his daughter’s feelings. After about an hour of this melee, Catalina decided there was no way she was going marry the Duke. In the end Albrecht grabbed Catalina, drew her into an adjoining room and said, “Lets get out of here, otherwise you’re domed.”
They ran out of the house to the stables, grabbed their horses and headed to Princess Margaret’s castle. She would have the last word on this. On this occasion, they entered through the front entrance and the Count insisted on seeing the Princess immediately. As usual, Margaret was by herself and ushered them into the lounge. “What on earth is going on?” she inquired.
