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“How do you propose we go about writing this book?” Shechem asked with a sigh. “You had the idea. You take the lead.” He was lounging on the sofa in Dinah’s sitting room, feet propped up with a bored expression. He’d been in business meetings all day, but his suit coat was now thrown over the chair near the door, his tie loosened and the top button of his white shirt undone. The combination looked good on him, but Dinah pulled her attention back to the task.
 
“I was thinking we could take the concepts I teach in my motivational speeches to teenage girls and adjust them to fit the experiences of teen boys.” Dinah was taking this project seriously and had spent the afternoon organizing notes and outlining her thoughts and was looking forward to obtaining a man’s perspective on her talking points.
 
“I’m pretty sure teaching them empowerment and self-defense wasn’t what you had in mind,” he said with sarcasm.
 
Dinah suspected Shechem hadn’t forgiven her for the way she’d treated him earlier in the day and was still seething from her embarrassing tirade in front of their fathers. “You’re probably right. We wouldn’t want guys to learn ten different ways to inflict bodily harm on women.”
 
“Is that really what you teach girls?” Was that fear in his countenance? Or disgust? Maybe both.
 
“I was totally joking.” Sort of. “We teach girls how to defend themselves in the event that they are attacked.”
 
“Is that really what you think I did to you?” Hurt darkened his countenance. “Do you honestly think I attacked you?”
 
“No… but most survivors…” she hesitated.
 
“Many survivors were probably in exactly the position we were in.” His bold statement gave her pause. Were they? Was that true? “There’s a reason why fifteen-year-olds shouldn’t put themselves in a position to make adult decisions. We had no idea what we were doing. Obviously.”
 
Shechem leaned closer and took Dinah’s hand in his. Her breathing increased, and her stomach fluttered.
 
“You were right there with me, Dinah. Loving me. Holding me in your arms. Kissing me. Encouraging me.”
 
He was right, but she wasn’t ready to admit that.
 
“I never would have hurt you on purpose, and you know that.” He squeezed her hand lightly. “People treated me like I was a monster who lured you into a dark alley, pinned you down, and raped you. And you know darn well that’s not what happened.”
 
She couldn’t deny the truth. There was nothing violent or frightening about that night until she cried out in pain and her brothers came running and found her in tears. Her older brother, Simeon, had almost been arrested that night for beating Shechem within an inch of consciousness.
 
“Dinah, I’ve loved you my whole life,” Shechem told her softly. “Our parents practically arranged our marriage when our moms were pregnant at the same time. We were either destined to be best friends or married. Preferably both.”
 
They had definitely been best friends. Marriage was no longer up for consideration. She had slammed that door closed many years ago.
 
“Everyone encouraged our courtship,” he continued. “Our relationship made sense politically to ensure peace between our kingdoms. And we were like brother and sister growing up… until you kissed me in the treehouse when we were twelve.”
 
“Oh, you think I kissed you?” Dinah chuckle-snorted. “You kissed me.”
 
“That’s not how I remember that day.” His voice was like honey.
 
“I remember that when our teeth clunked together, I laughed so hard I almost peed my pants and had to run into the house.”
 
“Yeah, being laughed at during your first kiss doesn’t exactly boost a guy’s confidence.” Shechem’s face blushed pink. “Didn’t try that again for a long time.”
 
“Our second kiss was worth the wait,” Dinah whispered.
 
“Yeah… it was.”
 
They stared at each other for a long moment, and Shechem glanced at Dinah’s lips. That woke her up.
 
“Anyway, so, about this book.” She sat up straight and held her pen above the open notebook sitting in her lap. “Maybe my original premise needs to be refocused. I think I need to take some time to think about this, and we’ll discuss this again in a day or two… or ten. I have to go now.”
 
Dinah hurried from the room, wondering how she could ever face him again.
 
What had she been thinking by allowing him to get so close to her like that? She couldn’t concentrate when his deep brown eyes focused on her, when he smelled like pheromones mixed with the lingering note of his cologne.
 
How was she expected to stay mad at him when he looked like a puppy dog who had been kicked for chewing up someone’s favorite shoe?
 
Even at twenty-one, Shechem had a baby face and innocence that detracted from the maturity required of a person ready to rule a kingdom.
 
And he was right. About everything.

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“Good morning, Father,” Dinah said cheerfully as she swept into the breakfast room where Jacob was just sitting down with Prince Shechem and his father, Prince Hamor of the Hivites. All three men stood when she’d entered the room and offered the appropriate welcoming—if not shocked—expressions.
 
Jacob’s eyes sparkled with humor, Hamor’s brows raised—he had a nervous tightness to his jaw—and Shechem fell all over himself, pulling out a chair for Dinah.
 
“Your Highness,” Shechem said with a slight bow. “Will you be joining us for breakfast?”
 
“Why, thank you, Your Highness.” Dinah allowed him to push in her chair, and all three men returned to their seats. A staff member from the kitchen hurried in with an extra plate, and before everyone could get settled, there was juice, fruit, and a Danish in front of her, with a promise that an omelet was being made fresh. Before lifting a fork, Dinah glanced around the table. “I hope I’m not disturbing any business you’d hoped to accomplish over breakfast.”
 
“Of course not,” Shechem said.
 
“You’re always welcome, my dear,” Jacob said.
 
And Hamor raised his glass of juice. “I don’t know about you, but I can’t even think about business on an empty stomach.”
 
“Well, I hope you’ll eat quickly then because I have a business proposition that I think you’ll all appreciate as we enter into the time when transitions will be made in our respective kingdoms.” With insincere praise, Dinah turned to Shechem. “Congratulations, by the way, on the impending date upon which you will step into your father’s shoes and rule your kingdom. I’m sure you’ll do an exemplary job, as Prince Hamor has.” She offered a nod across the table to the current reigning leader.
 
“I hadn’t realized a date had been set for that.” Shechem coughed lightly. “I think I’m in the early stages of learning how to run our kingdom and will require my father’s tutelage for years to come.”
 
Hamor frowned and leaned his elbows on the table, steepling his fingers.
 
“Of course you will, Your Highness,” Dinah said with a tone of sympathy. “But isn’t that why you’re here in Israel? To get reacquainted with my father and brothers? After all, they will someday be taking over for my father, and you will need their… approval if we are to maintain peace between our kingdoms.”
 
Dinah’s father cleared his throat to hide what she could tell was a snicker.
 
Shechem gulped. “I really hadn’t thought that far ahead.” He pulled at his collar.
 
“I’m sure they’re just as nervous to see you as you are to see them.” She offered him a pitying smile, knowing they would be less nervous and more vindictive.
 
“Your brothers are… reasonable men,” Shechem said. “I’m sure they will be agreeable as we get reacquainted.”
 
“Right. Agreeable.” Her tone was curt. You keep telling yourself that. “Anyway, that’s not why I came to crash your little party this morning.”
 
Her father interjected. “Seeing as how your countenance has changed since I spoke with you yesterday, I’m assuming you had a revelation overnight.”
 
“Oh, Father, you’re the one with visions and prophecies.” She patted him on the hand. “I merely had an idea for a collaboration of sorts between myself and Prince Shechem.”
 
“A collaboration?” Shechem’s voice squeaked.
 
“Yes, something that you said this morning when I ran into you in the chapel got me thinking.” She turned to her father again. “Father, you really should have another chapel built in the palace so that guests can feel welcome without having to interrupt the family’s devotions.”
 
“What a wonderful idea, my dear,” her father said. “I’ll have someone draw up plans for an addition. In the meantime, I’ll have workers remodel one of the sitting rooms in the guest wing of the palace so that Prince Shechem will have a space for his own worship.”
 
“Thank you, Father. That would be wonderful.”
 
“Yes.” Shechem cleared his throat. “Thank you for your accommodations. I wouldn’t want to disrupt the family’s routine.”
 
“Anyway, back to my idea.” Dinah flicked her hand in the air as if to say she was done with that part of the conversation. “Yesterday, my father reminded me about one of the primary messages I try to convey to the young girls who attend my motivational speeches and self-defense trainings. That of peace through forgiveness.”
 
“That is an excellent message for all of us, isn’t it?” her father agreed.
 
Dinah continued as if he hadn’t spoken. “And I was thinking that young boys need to learn that same concept in order for them to heal. After all, an unfortunate incident in their youth could have generational consequences if they can’t learn to forgive themselves and get on with their lives.”
 
Shechem’s jaw dropped, and his father’s face turned red. Was that anger or shame? Maybe both. Oh well.
 
She continued. “Not to attempt to capitalize on the unfortunate event that occurred when we were young, but I think by utilizing my platform and Shechem’s notoriety, we could write a book together and—”
 
“Notoriety?” Shechem’s question included an increase in volume.
 
“Was that a poor choice of words?” Dinah batted innocent eyelashes at Shechem. She could have continued with her impassioned discourse but enjoyed Shechem’s squirming, so she let her question hang in the air, waiting for one of the men to be brave enough to challenge her.
 
“Tell us more about this book you’d like to write.” Her father, always the peacemaker, provided Shechem with a lifeline.
 
Looking relieved, Shechem lifted his orange juice to his lips.
 
“Well,” Dinah began, “the book could address a number of things in addition to teaching boys to forgive themselves and move on with their lives, and also how to behave around the girls they will likely have to face eventually, and also the importance of abstinence.”
 
Shechem missed his mouth, splashing half his glass of orange juice onto his lap. He jumped up from his seat.
 
“Oh, gosh. Here, have my napkin.” Dinah handed over the cloth napkin she had beside her untouched plate of food.
 
“Thank you,” Shechem mumbled as he made an unsuccessful attempt to clean off the juice that had already soaked into his tan slacks and light blue shirt. He sat down with pinched lips and a flushed face.
 
“Dinah… was that really necessary?” her father hissed.
 
“Come to think of it, no. It probably would need to be a separate lesson, wouldn’t it? Finding peace through forgiveness would only be useful after an incident had occurred. Lessons of abstinence should happen at a much younger age. Possibly fathers and mothers need to be more diligent in teaching their sons and daughters lessons on the importance of abstinence. Would you agree with that, Your Highness?” She looked pointedly across the table at Prince Hamor, whose eyes flashed with anger.
 
“Princess, may I have a word with you?” Shechem asked, standing. “Could you walk with me out into the hall since I need to return to my suite for a change of clothes before our next meeting?”
 
“Of course, Your Highness.” She allowed him to pull out her chair but gestured with her arm toward the open door to the hallway. “I’ll follow you.” Dinah had learned years ago that the person to the back of a procession had the upper hand. She would not allow a man to make her feel vulnerable by coming up behind her.
 
When they were out of earshot of their fathers, Shechem whispered in an angry growl, “What are you doing?”
 
“You asked for my suggestion on how you could get over me, and I think this is an excellent way.”
 
“I don’t want to get over you,” he said through clenched teeth. “I want to marry you. There’s a difference.”
 
Caught off guard by his statement, Dinah faltered momentarily. When she regained her composure, she stepped closer to him. “I want to make your stay here at my palace a living nightmare so that you will crawl back to your kingdom and find yourself a nice Hivite girl to marry. Then you won’t have to sleep with one eye open your entire married life.”
 
“You can make all the threats you want, Your Highness”—Shechem took a step closer to her so that he was practically towering over her—“but I will never want to marry any other woman but you.”
 
“Then you will either have a very unhappy marriage to your Hivite princess or remain celibate. Kind of adds a new level of torture to the theme of abstinence, doesn’t it?” She tweaked his chin and smirked at him. “You might want to soak those pants. That juice is going to leave a stain.”
 
With that, she turned on her heel and walked away with her head held high.
 
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Click here if you missed Chapter One of Dinah, Princess of Israel.
​
Dinah’s confidence faltered the following morning when she walked into the palace chapel to find a young man sitting in the front pew.
 
When the door to the chapel clicked shut the man startled and rose to his feet, turning to face her. “Oh, I didn’t realize anyone would be up this early,” he said. “I’m so sorry. I’ll come back some other time.”
 
Suddenly his face dawned with recognition, and he stopped short, holding up his hands in surrender. He didn’t come any closer.
 
“Dinah! I didn’t expect to see you.” Shechem’s voice was deeper than his young teenager’s voice. His jaw was firm. His hair was perfectly styled. His eyes were apologetic.
 
“I live here,” she said with exaggerated sarcasm. “Did you honestly think that you would be able to stay in my palace for a month and not eventually run into me?”
 
Ignoring her question, Shechem attempted to escape. “If you will move to the far wall, I will exit the room so that you can have the chapel to yourself. I don’t want to frighten you.”
 
“I’m not afraid of you.”
 
“You’re not?”
 
“You have no power over me,” she said.
 
“I’m glad. I never wanted power over you.” He lowered his hands but still didn’t come any closer. “I only wanted to love you. I still love you. I’ll always love you.”
 
“Well, that’s your misfortune.” She didn’t offer an ounce of sympathy. “You need to get over me and get on with your life.”
 
“I wish that were possible.”
 
“It is possible,” she said flippantly. “I’ve gotten over you, and you will never have control over me. And I don’t need to move to the other side of the room because I could take you down with my bare hands. I have more self-defense skills than you could ever hope to have.”
 
“I don’t doubt that for a second.” He chuckled and took a tentative step closer to her. “I’ve seen some of your speeches. Only as YouTube videos though. I would never be stupid enough to show up at one of your events.”
 
“That’s very smart of you.”
 
“Thank you. I like to consider myself an intelligent man.” He took another step forward.
 
Diana snorted. “Yeah right.”
 
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
 
“If you were intelligent, you would have gotten over me by now.”
 
“How would I go about doing that?” he asked. “You are the love of my life. What happened that day destroyed both of us. I lost my best friend.”
 
“Cry me a river.”
 
“I will admit to having cried many tears over the past six years.”
 
She would never admit to such a thing. She had decided long ago that she was too strong to ever give him another tear. Yet there were many times when she crumbled, usually late at night, and usually when she missed him desperately. He was right that they had been best friends. He had been her first love, her only love to this point in her life.
 
As she pondered his admitted tears, he cautiously moved with painstaking slowness toward the back of the chapel, where Dinah stood confidently, not willing to show an ounce of vulnerability.
 
Until Shechem was close enough for Dinah to inhale a whiff of his cologne. She nearly lost her resolve, and her eyes fluttered shut. When she opened them, Shechem had stopped two feet in front of her, with his hands in the pockets of his slacks and a knowing smirk on his face.
 
On a whim, Dinah smacked him hard across the cheek. Even as he flinched and squeezed his eyes shut, he didn’t remove his hands from his pockets. With vengeance, Dinah whispered, “I’ve wanted to do that for six years.”
 
“I’ve deserved that for six years,” he whispered back, his voice trembling. “I took your innocence. That was unforgivable.”
 
“I gave you my innocence. There’s a difference. I am not a victim and I’m tired of everyone treating me like I am. I am a survivor.”
 
“You are now. But that night… you cried so loud that everyone heard you.”
 
“It hurt! What was I supposed to do?”
 
“You did nothing wrong. That’s the point. It was all my fault. And I will never forgive myself for hurting you.”
 
“Well, I’ve forgiven you,” she said softly, but that didn’t mean she could abide his presence just yet. Dinah rose to her full height and spoke with the authority of a princess. “Go find somewhere else to beg God for mercy and forgiveness. This is my chapel.”
 
“As you wish, my love.” Shechem quietly left the room and closed the chapel doors behind him, allowing her the solitude she desired.
 
Dinah sank into the nearest pew, shaking, but proud of herself for standing up to him. With resolve, she muttered to herself, “I am not your love.”
 
She wished she believed her own declaration.

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​“Father! How could you let that man into our home after what he did to me?” Dinah stormed into her father’s office, shoving open the door so that it hit the wall with a thud.

“Dinah, the prince has repented of the sins of his youth and has committed his life to God. He has asked for our forgiveness.”

“How could you ever forgive him?” Tears fell from Dinah’s eyes, and her rage shifted to feelings of betrayal. “There is no excuse for what he did to me.”

“I would never try to excuse his behavior.” Her father, Jacob, pushed back from his desk and walked around to give her his full attention. His office was ornate and masculine, with leather and carved mahogany furniture. Looming bookcases lined a whole wall, giving the space a studious feel. Floor-to-ceiling windows opposite them gave the space a bright and inviting attitude, which went great with the sitting area for entertaining dignitaries. But the large walk-in closet off to the side was Father’s sanctuary from the world. He used it for prayer and meditation. Dinah liked the enclosed feel of the sacred room. “He is not the same boy he was six years ago. He is not perfect, nor are you, nor am I. He is slated to take over his father’s kingdom, and our nations are at peace. He and his father will be staying with us through the end of the month.” His expression, however apologetic, didn’t assuage her anger.

She couldn’t stop her own sarcasm. “So what? Since he’s the crown prince, he can get away with whatever he wants?”

“You know that’s not true,” her father said. “He hasn’t gotten away with anything. Throughout his kingdom and ours, he will be forever known as the boy who hurt you. He will never escape that.”

“Newsflash, Father, he’s not a boy anymore.” Dinah balled her hands into fists and seethed. “And I have no sympathy that he can’t escape being known as the boy who hurt me because I will never escape being known as the girl he hurt!”

“And I am very proud of the way you have turned that around, to become an advocate speaking out in our kingdom against teen sexual violence.”

After a year of wallowing in the loss of her childhood sweetheart, along with the loss of her innocence, she had chosen to take action. Everyone in the kingdom already knew what had happened to her, so she had decided to make it her life’s mission to minister to other survivors.

“You reach into the hearts of teenage girls who feel just as alone as you felt the night that young man dishonored you,” her father reminded her. “You have given them hope that there is life after tragedy. You have shown victims that they can empower themselves and be forever known as survivors. You, princess, have changed the world by using your voice.”

Dinah lifted her chin with pride at having accomplished so much in her twenty-one years of life. She vowed long ago not to let something that happened to her when she was fifteen keep her from making all her goals a reality. 

“My sweet daughter, I’ve heard you speak many times to survivors about finding peace in their lives by forgiving those who have hurt them.” Her father patted her softly on the cheek.

Great, she thought. He’s using my own platform to prove his point.

“An hour ago, you believed those words,” he pointed out. “Seeing his face again for the first time in six years brought all those old feelings to the surface, didn’t they?”

She nodded but couldn’t answer through the emotions choking her throat. He didn’t just hurt her, he left her and never came back, not even to say he was sorry. And after six years, if he thought he could just waltz back into her life, he was wrong.

“Keep your chin held high and fight through the old feelings. You are still a survivor even if the man who hurt you walks back into your life.”

Wasn’t that what she told girls all the time? Most guys didn’t get more than a slap on the wrist for crimes of passion committed when they were barely old enough to shave. 

​Young girls needed to know how to face the boys who hurt them because the odds were that they would see each other in the hallway at school, or in the market, or at a teen hangout. She had taught girls to stand up for themselves, learn self-defense, and become empowered so that they could forever stand as survivors.

Most young girls didn’t have her platform. They weren’t a princess as she was. They didn’t have the world listening whenever a microphone was placed in front of them. They also weren’t facing off against the crown prince from the kingdom to the north.

“Our palace is very large. You can easily avoid him.” Her father’s voice held a promise. “I will never ask you to sit at the table and have a meal with him. I will never ask you to socialize with him. You don’t have to go anywhere near him.” 

“Thank you, Father. I appreciate that.” Although I would have fought against the notion regardless.

“But don’t allow yourself to be a prisoner in your own home,” her father said. “Find the forgiveness in your heart that you encourage others to have. I know it’s there or you wouldn’t be able to speak so passionately about peace through forgiveness.”

“I hate it when you use my own words against me.” Her shoulders fell in defeat.

“I would never be against you, my dear. You’re my favorite daughter.”

“I’m your only daughter, but good try.” Without another word, Dinah spun on her heel and stomped from her father’s office. 

Halfway up the stairs to her wing of the palace, she stopped, and a vindictive smile crept onto her face. 

“I hope I do run into that jerk. I can finally show him what happens after six years of self-defense training. His Highness, Prince Shechem of the Hivites, won’t know what hit him.”

​With a sneer and determination, Dinah continued up the stairs of her palace, empowered and confident.

Want to read the first twelve books of the Prince of Israel Series in chronological order? Here's a link to the chapters on Kindle Vella!