Page 53 of Her Red Hot Secret Royal Fling

She frowned as she loaded up the screenshot he’d attached, so that it filled her whole screen. It was taken from an article, and the headline alone had her reaching for the bed, to sit down before her legs gave way.

King of Hearts?There was a photo of Ares with, unmistakably, Louisa. She read the accompanying text with a sense of ice in her veins.

King Ares of Moricosia jetted into Sydney for a whirlwind evening to wine and dine his former partner. The pair was spotted having dinner at the exclusiveMorettirestaurant, late into the…

The article—or rather—the screenshot, stopped there.

Sofia stared at her phone, stared at the picture, until her screen went dark and she had to tap it again to light it up. She burned holes in the photo, because here she had proof that Ares was moving on with his life.

He hadn’t loved her.

He had liked her. He’d liked sleeping with her. He’d wanted her to stay. But she’d turned him down, taking her heartbreak out of the country, and he’d decided to try to win back Louisa.

Because he still loved her, just as Sofia had believed all along. Because they had a long history, and he’d planned to marry her.

She made a sound that was barely human and fell back on the bed, and this time, she didn’t cry. She was too overcome for that. She simply sobbed dry, wrenching sobs, clutching her arms over her chest, as if that simple act could hold the pieces of her heart together.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

SHE’D ALWAYS KNOWN THE Salvatores were a force to be reckoned with, but she’d never understood just how determined they could be, particularly when they teamed up.

“Look, he’s worried about you,” Portia said, apologetically, her cheeks a little pink. “We all are. If you don’t just come to Italy and eat some pizza, sing some showtunes, they’re all going to move into your place until you tell them what’s going on. Believe me, I’ve heard them scheming,” she said with a half-smile.

Sofia shook her head, staring at the other woman. In all of this, she’d barely thought about anyone but herself. Let alone the fact Portia was growing a human. “How areyou?” she asked, instead, gesturing for a seat.

“I’mfine.Unlike the last pregnancy, which totally kicked my arse, this time around, I actually think I might be one of those women who—okay, doesn’t exactly glow—but at least doesn’t need to carry around a bucket.” She pulled a face. “Take it from me, baby making is not for the faint hearted.”

“Warning heeded,” Sofia said with a nod.

“So? Do you need help packing?”

Sofia shook her head. “I really can’t go,” she said. “It’s too hard.”

Portia nodded, as if this made perfect sense, and made her way into the kitchen. She began heating the kettle and putting tea bags in cups, and somewhere, from the very distant past, Sofia’s mother’s voice came to her.A cup of tea always helps.

“Georgia sends her love, by the way.”

Sofia groaned. “You guys are making this hard.”

“Good, that’s kind of the point.”

Sofia rolled her eyes, sitting on one of the kitchen stools and watching as Portia made them cups of tea then slid one across for Sofia.

“Why don’t you start at the beginning?”

Sofia bit into her lip. “I can’t.”

“Yes, you really can. Just give me a hint, and I’ll draw the rest out of you.” She wiggled her brows, but as tears formed on Sofia’s lashes, Portia sobered. With good reason—no one had seen Sofia cry in a very long time. Not since she’d been a little girl, and her mother had made her feel that showing grief was a sure-fire way to lose her love.

Sofia sobbed and dropped her head forward. “I promised I wouldn’t say anything. And so did he.”

The only sound was the clink of Portia’s teacup against the counter, after she’d taken a sip. “Okay. Well, so now we know a man is involved.”

Sofia squeezed her eyes shut.

“And I’m guessing this happened around the time you went to Moricosia, because you were yourself before that trip, and definitely not afterwards. Salvatore said you barely spoke two words on the flight home, and almost got run over leaving the airport, because you were off with the fairies.”

“Jeez, great to know I’m being spied on around the clock.”

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