Page 52 of Question Everything

“I baked the wedding cake for the King’s younger brother and his wife. It was quite elaborate and…”

“Wait. What?”

“I baked the cake for –”

He interrupted her. “I heard you. That revelation is a lot to take in, don’t you think?”

She watched him mull over what she’d told him and waited for his reaction. Then she saw acceptance dawn on his face.

“It would put the Interpol piece in better perspective, but it doesn’t answer the question of why you left Europe. So, you baked a cake for famous people. What does that have to do with why you ran?”

“You don’t know how it works, Kyle. Unfortunately, I’m involved with these people, and that’s real trouble. The bride wasn’t easy to work with on that cake. I had to make multiple samples for her to taste before I got the okay to move forward. I supplied hundreds of sketches of the design for her approval. Maybe she’s had time to think about the final product and isunhappy. Who knows? That family is everything to England. They wield a ton of power.”

He shook his head. “Yes, but Interpol is looking for Daisy. That’s the key factor here.” His eyes then widened with awareness. “It’s Daisy that the royal family is looking for, isn’t it?”

Maeve heard what Kyle had asked, the words he spoke, but everything around her seemed to spin out of control. Memories flashed in her mind like the reel of an old, silent film, choppy and in short bursts of random images. An angry bride. A late night as she was closing the bakery alone. An unexpected visit from an apologetic groom holding an expensive bottle of wine that he insisted they share to make up for his fiancé’s rude behavior. Kind words. A handsome, famous man. A quick and drunken encounter in the back shadows of her shop. A positive pregnancy test. Finn helping her plot an escape, promising to wipe away all digital traces of her so that she’d be a ghost.

Finn! It was him on the driveway last night.

Blessed relief at that thought, then bone-chilling fear as reality settled around her. She had to leave now and find Finn before he showed up again. If he was here, then he must have risked his own life to find her. She was a fugitive; that was apparent. She’d kidnapped her own daughter and illegally transported her across an ocean.

“Kyle. As difficult as it is to believe what I’ve just told you, I know I’m right. I need to take Daisy and run. If I don’t, The Firm will come here and find me.”

“The Firm?”

“That’s how the royal family refers to themselves. Everyone in England knows that. They’ll have to leave no trace of me, of Daisy, or anyone I’ve met along the way. I’m disposable. They will protect the reputation of crown at all costs. That’s why I ran in the first place. I knew that Daisy was a stain on the monarchythat had to be destroyed. Please, please, just let me go. I can’t let them find me here. I pose a threat that must be put down before the public knows about me or worse, my daughter.” She was shaking and becoming almost hysterical.

“Calm down, Mia. Let’s talk about this rationally.”

She could feel herself free-falling into panic. “When does it ever help to say ‘calm down’ to a person who is having a breakdown, huh? I can’t calm down. And by the way, I remember my real name. It’s Maeve.”

“I know,” he sighed, clearly reluctant to tell her the rest. “I turned that bit of information up when I was on the Interpol site. I was afraid if I told you, I might push you over the edge. As it is, you’re not thinking clearly. You can’t just go, and besides, you’re a danger to yourself and to Daisy in this state of mind. And if you think I’m letting you go anywhere alone, you have no idea who I am. We’ll figure out a plan. I’m going to help you. Please, just let me help you.”

Maeve saw the strength of his conviction in the way he looked at her. If she could, she’d fall into his arms and let him make this situation better, but there was no way that could happen. He had no idea the level of power and influence they were dealing with here.

In a measured tone, she said, “Kyle. I can never repay you for the kindness you’ve shown me, shown Daisy. I cannot in good conscious place you and your wonderful family in harm’s way any longer. I can sneak out of here right after dinner, when everyone is busy cleaning up. I’ll come up with a story. A headache. A stomachache. I’ll be quiet and just run.”

He pulled her into his arms. “I told you this before, but I’ll say it again. I love you. We’re in this together until the end. If you go, I go.”

She shook her head against his chest. “No, Kyle, I can’t let you –”

“We’re done discussing it, Maeve. If you have to run, then I’m coming with you. We’ll make it work.”

Maeve knew that there was no way she was going to win this argument. Now it was up to her to figure out how she was going to leave him behind. She didn’t want to do it, but she loved him too much to let him come with her and risk his own life. He had a family and a career here that he was just getting back to.

No.

This was her problem, and once again, she was on her own. Her mind spinning, she stalled the inevitable by saying, “Okay, Kyle. Let’s not ruin the holiday for your family. I guess there’s no harm in waiting until we have the DNA test results, anyway. Once I prove to everyone without a shadow of a doubt that Daisy is my daughter, I’ll feel better. I don’t want your parents to think that I’m a child abductor. I have made some poor life choices, but Daisy isn’t one of them.”

Maeve watched as relief washed over him and she wished that she didn’t have to lie. She was firm in her resolve to leave – just not with him in tow.Let him think that I’ve calmed down and agreed to his plan. It’s the only way that I’ll be able to get out of here without him.

She reached into the freezer for the tray of brownies and the apple crumb pie she’d baked the week before when she was still blissfully unaware of the truth. She balanced them together and then passed everything over to Kyle to carry back up the stairs.

“Got it?” she asked.

“Yes,” he replied, turning to return to the warmth of his family. He took two steps away from her and paused. “Are you coming up?”

She smiled to make it seem like their difficult conversation was now behind them, closed and agreed upon. “Of course. Let’s go.”

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