Some notes on this AU:

This story is inspired by the recent wedding of Prince Harry to Meghan Markle (without the obnoxious father-in-law). I thought it be would interesting to make Joss the CIA assassin, but don't worry John is still his same badass self. You'll see that in Chapter 2. There will also be angst, fluff, and smut.

The kingdom of Montrose is roughly based on England. I actually named it after a defunct English Duchy. In my head canon, Montrose is another island nation slightly south of the isle if Great Britain, about the size of Ireland. I hope you enjoy the way I've worked in the usual POI characters, I tried to keep them in character.

Chapter 1

Mark Snow looked around the table with a smile on his face as his team sipped their coffees and waited patiently for him to begin the briefing. Well two of them were patient, the third, Sameen Shaw, looked like she was ready to kill someone. But then she always looked like that.

The other two women, Zoe Morgan and Jocelyn Carter, were far more professional. Zoe, a former ballerina, was lean and elegant. Jocelyn, one of the first women to pass the rigorous Ranger testing and serve in that elite unit, was all luscious curves that could kill in thousands of different ways. Shaw, despite her murderous attitude, was beautiful with big dark eyes and a petite frame. Mark was amused to hear that his lethal ladies were referred to around the CIA as The Dates with Death.

"Quiz time, ladies," Mark said as he dimmed the lights and punched a button on his laptop, bringing up a map of Europe with one island country marked in red. "Tell me what you know about Montrosian politics."

"Montrose is a small country, but strategically located by important shipping lanes. It's been consistently America's most reliable ally in Europe," Zoe rattled off.

Jocelyn took up the tale. "Ruled by King Harold, graduate of MIT, and his wife Queen Grace. Harold is considered a genius with technology, and has turned his country into an international tech powerhouse. He and his younger brother founded the tech company IFT that is a major part of the Montrosian economy. His subjects enjoy one of the highest standards of living in the world."

Zoe nodded. "Montrose may be small but King Harold wields tremendous influence in the European Union. The other heads of state listen to him. He convinced them to support the war."

"He had two younger brothers, Nathan and Connor. Nathan is still alive, he runs the day to day operations of IFT. He's a real Don Juan and his philandering ways blew apart his marriage. As one commentator put it, he's a 'reliable source of scandal.' As a matter of fact, he had to renounce his claim to the throne after a few too many scandals. Before his divorce he and his wife had one kid, William. Nathan also has an illegitimate daughter Kara, from his affair with an American woman. Kara grew up in America, but she holds the title of Duchess.

"Connor was the youngest brother. He wasn't involved in IFT, he went into the Coast Guard and became a rescue pilot. He was killed many years ago on a mission when his helicopter experienced mechanical problems and crashed. He also had one kid, John.

"Harold was injured in a terrorist bombing several years ago, one that killed Crown Prince William. Since then he's been very active in efforts to fight terrorism," Shaw finished.

"Excellent my dears," Snow approved. "Since William died, Harold's nephew Prince John is next in line for the throne." A click of the mouse brought up a picture of a handsome man with startling blue eyes and back hair going to salt and pepper. Shaw was indifferent but Snow could see that both Zoe and Jocelyn sat up straighter and stared at the screen.

"When John was born he was so far down the line of succession that the only way he was going to attend a coronation was by invitation. He and his parents lived a quiet, fairly normal life. Then Harold and Queen Grace discovered they were unable to have children and couldn't produce an heir. Nathan was next in line, but, as Zoe already mentioned, he had to renounce his claim since he didn't keep his pants zipped. That left William as the heir.

"Then William was killed in the bombing. Normally Connor would have been next in line, but he was already dead. That left John. Should John die, his illegitimate cousin Duchess Kara would inherit the throne.

"Before John was heir to the throne, he was in the Montrosian armed services, Omega Unit."

Sameen and Jocelyn, both military veterans, looked impressed. Zoe fidgeted. "Help a girl out here guys, what's an Omega Unit?"

"Montrosian special forces," Jocelyn replied. "He's like a SEAL, or a Ranger, or a British SAS. Those guys are good with a capital G. They saw some pretty heavy action in Iraq in Afghanistan. From what I understand, Prince John was in the thick of it."

"Yup, he holds their equivalent of the Medal of Honor for taking out a machine gun nest and saving his entire unit." Sameen took a sip of coffee. "He's supposed to be an ice cube under fire. Too bad the reporters reported where he was stationed. It was deemed too dangerous for him to remain after that. He and his unit would have been a target for every terrorist cell in the nation."

"As I recall, there was some trouble with his wife while he was overseas," Zoe said. "Didn't she die?"

Mark brought up a picture of the handsome Prince posed in a formal wedding portrait with a slender blonde. "Princess Jessica. She cheated on him while he was deployed to Iraq because she was 'lonely'," Mark put air quotes around the last word, his voice dripping with contempt. "Unfortunately she wasn't very careful in her choice of lovers and picked Peter Arndt, a real estate tycoon with a temper. She refused to loan him the money he needed to save his empire and he punched her. She fell and hit her head, against a counter, killing her instantly.

"Prince John was devastated." Another picture of the prince, this time his hair and beard were long and scruffy and he looked like he had been sleeping in his clothes for a week. "He descended into alcoholism. Rumor has it he tried suicide.

"However he seems to have settled down. Harold brought him home and cleaned him up. Since he is now the heir to the throne, he had to leave the armed forces and embarked on the standard royal career as philanthropist. Thanks to his Uncle Harold, he has plenty of money to give away. He's quite popular in his country thanks to his good works and good looks."

"So what's the mission?" Sameen was getting impatient.

"Prince John has been questioning the war and. because he's a veteran, people are listening. King Harold is sixty years old and in poor health, thanks to the bomb. We may be about to lose one of our best allies and we need to make sure the person who succeeds him is a good ally too.

"Your job is to get close to John and determine if he's trustworthy. If Harold kicks off tomorrow, will America still be able to count on Montrose?"

Jocelyn frowned. "So what happens if we determine that John isn't going to play nice with us?"

Snow brought up another picture, this time of a brunette woman with sharp features. "We eliminate him so that his cousin, Duchess Kara can take the throne. She was born and raised here in the US by her American mother. She's a patriot."

"But she's also bat shit crazy," Sameen sniffed. "I met her once on a mission, she's unstable."

"Which is why we haven't killed Prince John outright." Snow leaned back in his chair. "We would prefer a stable person on throne. John is popular in his country, Kara is not."

"Quite the dilemma," Zoe commented.

"Yup. We're the ones to solve it," Mark said. He passed out briefing sheets. "Tonight is the Spring Gala, a benefit for veterans. Prince John will be there, and so will you. You are to attract his attention, get to know him, and determine if he will be an asset to the US. See you tonight at 8."

Crown Prince John of Montrose descended the staircase into the Veteran's Spring Gala Benefit Ball warily. He hated this. He hated how everyone would insincerely kiss his ass all night long, he hated dressing up in his tuxedo, and he hated that he had to do it all alone. Nights like this he really missed Jessica, she was the social one. He could just turn her loose and follow her around while she worked the room. His heart ached in his chest at the thought of his deceased wife. He had loved her so much it was probably unhealthy, and she had repaid his love with betrayal. Now he was all alone in all the ways that mattered.

"Your bow tie is crooked again," a voice in his ear chirped.

John rolled his eyes. Samantha Groves, code name Root, chief of security for the Royal Family, was outside in the surveillance van. She and her small team of crack hackers had already hacked into the hotel security system and were watching through the hotel cameras. All members of the royal family wore small unobtrusive earwigs in their ears during all official functions so the security team could communicate with them, but remain out of sight. It was a wise precaution, but Root took far too much joy in annoying the Prince.

"You should have let Lionel tie it for you, his is straight," Root chirped again.

John glanced behind him at Lionel Fusco, his loyal bodyguard and friend. Lionel was a former NYPD detective who had refused to join a corrupt group of cops and was forced to leave New York for his and his family's safety. John still wasn't sure how Root found him and brought him to Montrose, but he was forever grateful for his friend. Lionel was rather non-descript looking, average height, receding hair line, slightly pudgy, and definitely not handsome, but he was whip smart and thought fast on his feet. He was one of the few people who could keep up with Prince John and he was fiercely loyal.

Lionel saw John looking at him and shrugged. "Coco Puffs is right, it's not straight." One of Lionel's more amusing quirks was that he liked to give people descriptive nicknames, and he thought Root was slightly insane, so he was always referring to her by such endearments as "Coco Puffs" and "Fruit Loops." Oddly, it never seemed to bother her.

Was Root insane? John didn't think so, but she was fanatically devoted to his Uncle Harold, and by extension the entire Royal family. He could see how that could be interpreted as insanity, but no more so than any other patriot. His cousin Duchess Kara, who had been raised to be a fanatical American patriot by her mother as a big Fuck You to her father, his Uncle Nathan, was an excellent example of patriotism bordering on mental illness.

"Any security threats that you see?" Lionel asked.

"So far so good," Root replied. "Your former colleagues are doing a good job."

Lionel snorted. "Keep your eyes peeled, they ain't that good."

"Don't worry sweetie, I'm here for you!"

John tried not to sigh, Root's simpering voice grated on his nerves, and he was already wound up tight tonight.

He reached the bottom of the stairs. "Shall we?" she said to Lionel.

"Let's get this over with. We may be able to catch the last half of the west coast game if we work this right."

John eyed the huge room packed with people. "Doubt it." Then he stepped forward with a smile on his to begin greeting the movers and shakers of New York society.

The Dates with Death were already circulating around the room when Prince John made a quiet entrance. Mark Snow surveyed his ladies with satisfaction, knowing they stood out from the crowd. Shaw was dressed in a flowy, white halter dress that set off her tan skin perfectly. Zoe was in a black dress with a plunging neckline and thigh high slit. Joss was in a red strapless dress with a black lace overlay over red satin on the tight fitting bodice and sheer black material over more red satin on the full floor length skirt. All three had already attracted considerable attention from the males in the room.

Joss and Zoe stood together and watched the Prince descend the stair case without fanfare. "Got to be one of our more handsome marks," Zoe commented idly. "But you'd think a man in his position would have learned to tie a bow tie before now."

Joss didn't reply. She was riveted watching the prince move. He descended the stairs with such grace that he looked almost alien. He was even more handsome in person than in his pictures. She gripped her champagne flute so tightly she was surprised it didn't break as she felt something coil deep in her belly. For the first time in her career, she wondered if she could do this mission, the prince was having an effect on her that no one else had ever had on the normally cool and in command Jocelyn Carter. Not even her dear departed husband Paul had made her feel this way on sight. She even liked that crooked tie, it made him look adorable. She WANTED him.

A smiling John stepped away from the latest group of royal ass kissers and swiftly ducked behind a row of decorative potted plants to give himself a minute of peace. Fusco shoved a scotch, neat, into his hand as soon as he was hidden from view. John gave him a small salute and sipped his drink.

"Things are going well," Fusco commented idly as he continued to watch the crowd through the plants.

"Could be worse," John sighed. "I did wonder if that heiress was ever going to let go of my hand."

Fusco snorted. "I was afraid that one little blondie was going to throw her back out she was so busy thrusting her boobs in your face."

John shuddered. "Don't remind me."

"Keep it up," Root simpered in his ear. "The news is reporting that they expect to make over two million bucks tonight thanks in part to your presence."

"I'll drink to that," Fusco sipped his own drink. "How much longer before Wonder Boy and I can duck outta here?"

"Oh you have hours yet," Root replied cheerfully.

"Kill me now," Fusco groaned.

John peeped through foliage at the crowd, and that's when he saw HER. Her black lace over red satin ball gown stood out from the crowd, but it was her smile that lit up the room. She threw her head back and laughed at something one of her companions said and it was like the sun breaking through the clouds that had been following him since Jessica had died. He suddenly felt very warm all over and he tugged at his collar.

"Who is that?" he asked.

"The woman in red and black?" Root replied. "One sec…"

John heard typing on his end of the line. "Jocelyn Carter, lawyer specializing in negotiating international business contracts. She's an army veteran, honorably discharged after being wounded by a land mine." John heard the frown on Root's voice. "Everything looks on the up and up, but there's something not quite right…."

John didn't hear her, he was already making a beeline for the angel in red and black.

Joss looked up to see the Prince approaching her with a devastating smile on his face and she nearly melted into a pile of goo on the floor right there. Instead, she straightened her posture and reached out her hand to take his.

The Prince took her hand and kissed her knuckles. "I don't believe we've met. I'm John."

Joss smiled into his eyes. "I think everyone here knows who you are. Jocelyn Carter. Thank you for all your work for veterans."

John inclined his head to acknowledge her thanks. "Are you a veteran too?" he asked even though he knew the answer already thanks to Root, but it was a good ice breaker.

"Did two tours, one in Iran and one in Afghanistan," Joss replied. "I hear you saw some action too."

"I did," John replied.

Joss laughed. "Don't be modest, I know you were Omega Force."

John's smile faded. "Unfortunately the reporters outed me."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to remind you of that." Joss's eyes were full of sympathy.

John struggled not to get lost in those large, brown eyes. He swallowed hard. "It's not your fault, I just wasn't ready to leave when I did."

"You wanted to stay with your unit, with your friends, while they were in danger."

John smiled at her again, this time a sad smile. It was rare to find someone who truly understood just how hard it had been for him to return to Montrose, and safety, while his friends remained behind in harm's way. It had just about killed him to get on that plane to come home, and it took another veteran to grasp that. "Yes."

John had not released Joss's hand. He gently rubbed her knuckles with his thumb as they stared into each other's eyes. In a room with hundreds of other people, they existed in their own little bubble.

"John?" Fusco hated to interrupt, but he had a duty to do. "It's time for your speech."

John growled deep in his throat. "Duty calls," he said to Joss. "Wait for me?"

Joss smiled. "I'll be right here."

John kissed her hand once then strode away to the front of the room where a small stage had been set up.

As soon as John left, Shaw sidled up to Joss, handing her a flute of champagne. "Good job, Carter. How'd you reel him in?"

Joss sipped from her glass. "I told the truth."

Shaw laughed. "Interesting gambit. Bet you didn't learn that at Langley."

"I improvised," Joss retorted.

"Whelp, looks like you got this, so I get the rest of the night off. In a target rich environment." Shaw looked around hungrily until she spotted a young woman in her early twenties in a gold dress off to one side. "Do you think telling the truth will work with that little hottie over there?"

Joss glanced over at Shaw's new target. "Nope, you'll scare her. Be gentle."

Shaw nodded. "Got it." Then she began stalking her new prey. Joss shuddered and tried not to look. The poor kid had no idea what she was in for with Shaw.

Joss turned her attention back to the speeches just as John was being introduced. His speech was short, but passionate about the sacrifices of veterans and the need to care for them when they returned from the war. He spoke of the measures that Montrose had taken to care for their veterans and how they were still learning to care for the psychological wounds of war. Joss was impressed by the depth of his dedication.

Once the speeches were over, John returned to Joss as quickly as he could. "Impressive speech." she commented when he reappeared at her side.

"You can thank my Uncle Nathan," he smirked. "He's the one with all charisma in the family. He does most of the speechwriting for the rest of us."

"But the passion was all yours," Joss pointed out. "You felt every word."

John shifted his weight, a bit uncomfortable at her praise. The music picked that minute to start. "Would you like to dance?"

They swept out onto the floor along with several couples. "Don't you normally have a predetermined dance card?" Joss asked.

John shook his head. "I normally don't do much dancing, I leave that to Uncle Nathan." He paused, looking down at her with an intensity that took her breath away. "It's hard to find a compatible partner."

They swirled around the dance floor like they had been in each other's arms forever. As far as Joss was concerned, it was like being in dream. She had danced many times with many different partners, but it was never like this. Not even with Paul. She completely surrendered to the music and the man holding her like she was the most precious thing in the world.

The dream was shattered when she saw Mark Snow standing at the edge of the dance floor sipping champagne and watching them with a predatory smile on his face. Her mouth went dry. He raised his glass to her in a salute. She responded with a tight nod, then he slipped away into the crowd.

"Are you alright?" John asked.

Joss forced herself to relax. "I'm fine, I just saw someone I don't like very much in the crowd."

John turned his head to look at the crowd staring at them. "Let's get out of here. Root have my car meet us out back."

"I don't think that such a good idea…." The security chief simpered.

John interrupted her. "I didn't ask if it was a good idea."

"Yes, sir."

He nodded to Fusco, who headed straight out the back of the room with John and Joss following. They took a scuffed-up freight elevator down to the parking garage. As he pulled the door shut, Fusco gave her a wink, "Bet you thought the life of a royal was all glamour."

Joss giggled and gave him a wink back. "I thought you guys all had gold plated elevators."

"I like her," Fusco said cheerfully.

The elevator descended to the first floor. Fusco began leading them through the maze of laundry rooms, kitchen and offices to the loading dock of the hotel. There was a large black Lincoln limousine waiting for them.

John opened the door and let Joss slide inside. He turned to Fusco, "Take the rest of the night off. I'll see you back at the hotel."

Fusco looked dubious, but he nodded.

John got in the car, Fusco shut the door and the car lumbered out of the loading dock.

"Drive around for a while," John ordered his driver. "I'll let you know when it's time to drop Ms. Carter off."

"Yes, sir," the driver responded. He was used to doing this for John's Uncle Nathan, the family Lothario, but for Prince John this was new. The driver secretly hoped the Crown Prince was happy, the man certainly deserved it.

John shut the panel between the back seat and the driver. He poured Joss and himself each a glass of champagne from the mini bar.

They began to talk. John told her about the guys in his unit, the ones he had to leave behind when he was outed by over-zealous reporters. He'd never forgiven the reporter who broke the story and to that day had never granted them an interview. He talked about how hard it had been to make the transition back to civilian life, especially a life in the fishbowl of a royal family.

Joss talked about how hard it had been to be a woman of color in the armed forces. She talked about her survivor's guilt after she survived the land mine that killed her marine escort. She talked about her own transition back to civilian life, complicated by nightmares of watching the marine die.

The car hit one of New York's famous potholes just as Joss was trying to take a sip of her drink, causing her to spill a few drops down her chin and onto her chest. John grabbed a few napkins from the mini bar and started wiping the champagne from her face. She brought her hand to his and their eyes locked.

John pulled Joss to him, kissing her tenderly. She returned it and as they kissed, their kisses got more and more needy. John began trailing kisses and little nips down her neck as she moaned. She was in heaven.

He paused with his hand at the top of her dress, silently asking her permission. ""Please John!" she whispered in response. He pulled down the front of her dress exposing her breasts. He took a moment to stare at her, she was perfect. "So beautiful," he murmured as he bent his head to take one dark tight nipple in his mouth.

Joss whimpered and threw back her head as she held his head to her breast. He sucked and nipped at her, taking as much of her breast into his mouth that he could and then slowly letting it slide out between his teeth. Joss cried out in ecstasy, so he repeated it on the other breast. He hands were all over her naked torso now, touching every inch of her beautiful sienna skin. He was vaguely aware she had pushed his jacket off his shoulders and it now crumpled on the floor of the car. His tie was also gone, where he did not know, nor did he care. All his attention was focused on the goddess writhing under him. All he cared about now was pleasuring her.

Joss began undoing his the buttons on his shirt, each button revealing more glorious tan skin. He was lean, but well-muscled like a basketball player, vaguely she recalled from the briefing he had played for a short time on the Montrosian national team and he looked it. Every little bit she saw just made her want more.

His shirt was off and they had skin on skin contact for the first time. John groaned as he rubbed against her, she was every bit as warm and soft as he had suspected she would be. He couldn't keep his hands and mouth off her as he busied himself tasting every inch of her could reach.

"John, help me get this dress off!" he was only too happy to oblige and soon her dress was completely off and tossed in a corner.

He paused to stare at her as she was sprawled across his seat. Her elegant updo was ruined by now of course, her hair in loose waves around her face and shoulders. Her lips were plump and swollen from his kisses, and her nipples were tight buds. Her legs were spread for him, one foot still in its golden high heel on the back of the seat and the other on the floor. He could see her folds glistening in the low light, swollen and ready for him.

His cock was painfully erect. Swiftly he undid his belt buckle and unzipped his pants, freeing his cock. His pants joined the rest of their clothes on the floor, leaving him completely nude kneeling on the seat in between her legs.

Joss opened her eyes and stared at him, taking his lean frame, broad shoulders and narrow hips. His eyes looking at her with such hunger that her breath was taken away. "Please," she begged. "I want you."

John didn't need to be asked twice. He lined himself up at her entrance and slowly entered her. Her eyes opened wide as he gently filled her. No one had ever felt like this, so right. She arched her back and tilted her hips trying to take as much of him into her body as she could.

John buried himself in her. Not even Jessica had felt this good. For the first time in years he completely let go and lost himself. He pulled almost all the way out and slowly buried himself back in her. He lay on top of her wanting to feel as much of her as he could and he buried his face in her neck as he thrust.

Joss could feel the heat coiling in her belly. It had been so long since she had felt anything close to this. She closed her eyes and allowed herself to be swept away in the moment. This is what it felt like to have a good man make love to you. She opened her eyes to see John staring down at her like she was the most wondrous thing in the world.

They came together. Joss threw back her head and cried out his name as he collapsed on top of her. He lay with his head on her chest while she stroked his hair as they came down off their highs.

Finally John lifted his head and looked at her. "You're amazing,"

She smiled back. "So are you."

They both meant it.

By the time they finally pulled up in front of Joss's condo, the sun was starting to rise. John escorted Joss to the door and kissed her deeply one last time. "Have dinner with me tonight," his asked as he touched his forehead to hers. "Be at my penthouse at 7."

Joss nodded. She unlocked the door. John let his fingers lightly trail down her naked back as she stepped through the entrance. She smiled at him over her shoulder as she reluctantly shut the door.

She watched through the peep hole as John gracefully descended the steps and got back in the car.

"You look like you've been rode hard and put away wet as they used to say."

Joss spun to see Mark Snow leaning against the doorway to her kitchen. "What are you doing here?" she snapped.

"Just making sure Cinderella got home. But you missed the stroke of midnight by a wide margin." He strode forward and seized her chin in his hand forcing her face up and to the side. "Looks like you had a good time," as he saw the line of love bites.

Joss jerked her head out of his hand. "My assignment was to get close to him."

"Is he a good fuck?"

"Jealous? Maye you should go fuck Zoe," Joss retorted.

Mark smirked at her. "Already did. Are you seeing him again?"

"Dinner tonight."

"And probably more fucking," Mark replied.

Joss snorted. "I guess that means Zoe gets lucky tonight."

"Maybe Sameen, too," Mark replied. He pulled Joss to his body and kissed her hungrily. He roughly jerked down her top exposing her breasts. "Did you leave any for me?"

Joss pushed him away. "No, and I need my beauty rest before tonight."

Mark grinned a wolfish grin. "OK, but once this mission is over I expect to reclaim my spot in your bed." He pinched her exposed nipple and then opened the door. "Don't forget you have a job to do." Then he left.

Joss leaned against the door and sank to the ground. She buried her face in her hands and just sat there for a good long while.

There are 4 chapters total. I'll be posting once week. As per my usual procedure the story is written, but I have some work to do on one of the later chapters.