Page 49 of Jonathon, After All

That earned a heavy sigh from Max. “I didn’t expect as much of a fight over you, but it helped to have an Aigner on your side,” he said and Leo smirked.

“It also didn’t hurt that Sabine’s uncle is a board member.”

Sabine’s grandfather had been childhood friends with Max’s grandfather and had been instrumental in the preservation of the House of Hessen during its exile and its return to Austria and reestablishment after the wars.

“They’re asking again,” Max said quietly, nodding in Sabine’s direction. She was standing in the back with the Archbishop of Vienna, giving him a stern lecture from the look of things. The order man’s gaze was cast down and his bald head was bright red as Sabine wagged a finger at him. “There was some hope that your retreat might take a romantic turn,” he confided.

Leo turned to Max, frowning. “With Sabine? She’s…” He shook his head and faced the room, his nose wrinkling as he considered Sabine. “Terrifying,” he whispered, causing Max to laugh and the room to freeze as everyone stared with jaws agape.

“His Czech accent is terrible,” Max said to the old woman in the front row, earning a baffled look.

“Good save,” Leo muttered under his breath and Max waved it off.

“I stand beside you, a profoundly grateful man. A new man, in some ways, and I don’t think anything could bring my mood down,” he said, but winced in Sabine’s direction. “She could,” he amended and shuddered. “She does seem intimidating but I assumed you liked that.”

Leo threw him a hard look. “In an assistant, yes.”

“She’s probably not much fun,” Max agreed.

It wasn’t a surprise that the Foundation wanted Leo to settle down as quickly as possible or that Sabine would be their first choice. Leo just thought he’d made it clear that she would never be his choice. “I wouldn’t know.”

“I’ll advise them to let it go.”

“Thank you.”

The ceremony began shortly after that, and thankfully, it was brief. The Archbishop blessed Leo and then Max signed a decree, naming Leo the new Margrave. He was congratulated by a dizzying array of Austrian celebrities, politicians, and members of the European aristocracy, including Prince Charles. There was a string quartet and a light banquet, but Leo couldn’t remember anything beyond that, he had been in such a hurry to return to his townhouse and call Jonathon.

“What do you mean he isn’t answering?”

“I keep trying but it just—” Sabine stopped when the recording told them to leave a message. She held the phone in front of her face. “Hello, Mr. Hawthorne. It’s Sabine Aigner again. Please return my call as soon as possible and let us know that you’ve made it back to London safely.” She ended the call and held up a hand. “I don’t know what else to do, dearest. I’ve left text messages, voicemails, and emails.”

Leo swept a hand through his hair, twisting it in frustration. “You’re sure their train made it back to France safely and nothing happened when they were crossing the Channel?”

“I think we would have heard something on the news, but I did call Ms. Hormsby’s hotel and she checked in yesterday evening.”

“I don’t understand. He promised he’d call to let me know they had made it and we were going to try the face call,” Leo told her and Sabine hugged her arms, wincing.

“Maybe he’s busy?” She mouthed an apology when Leo sneered. “I’m sorry, dearest. I did tell him that you needed to be 100% focused today. Maybe he’s giving you space so you can focus and will call you in the next few days.”

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Leo said and she shrugged.

“I don’t know! He’s an American and he’s twenty,” she added in a whisper. “Maybe he’s playing it cool and giving you a chance to miss him.”

Leo shook his head. “That makes even less sense. Jonathon’s too mature to play games and we had a plan, Sabine.”

She pushed out a hard breath, squinting at him. “Perhaps Mr. Hawthorne lost his phone and is waiting for a new replacement. That would be a nightmare on a regular day, but while traveling?” She crossed herself. “That would explain why he hasn’t responded to text messages or emails as well.”

“That must be it!” Leo laughed in relief.

A few days later, there was still no response from Jonathon, but Sabine was able to confirm that he was in London with his aunt, from his social media accounts.

Leo couldn’t make sense of it. “Something’s wrong. He wouldn’t shut me out like this without giving me a reason.”

“Perhaps he realized how impossible and dangerous this was and did what was best for both of you,” she suggested, then ducked apologetically when Leo shot her a hard glare. “I’m sorry! I’m sure he was just as carried away while you were together at Schönbühel. But Mr. Hawthorne is an extremely pragmatic and independent young man. He may have simply changed his mind after returning to the real world,” she said gently, but Leo shook his head, growing angrier and more frustrated.

“You don’t understand, Sabine, and you don’t know him like I do. If I could just talk to Jonathon or get a message to him I know?—”

“Dearest,” Sabine sighed at him, her head tilting sympathetically. That only enraged Leo more. He didn’t want her pity and he would not be condescended to like he was some naive teenager. “You know I would move heaven and earth for you, but I cannot force Mr. Hawthorne to talk to you if he does not wish to,” she said slowly. “What if it got out that you were stalking a university student?” Sabine said in a nervous whisper.

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