Page 9 of Regally Binding

Liss bit her nails. She should head to the pub first and tidy up from the lunchtime rush. It was an excellent place to hide away from her life like she always did. Steve was probably tearing out his curly hair while managing the place in her absence.

The flashes increased rapidly, and strangers shouted. Liss gripped the door handle. Maybe something had happened to the pub. She should get in there. Liss tapped her pockets before she huffed loudly. She needed her phone.

“Let’s get her in her flat,” Bear replied. Strike nodded.

“Her has a name,” Liss replied before wincing. That made no sense at all. She unsnapped her seatbelt and leaned forward to force her presence on the pair, although the movement removed the last of her energy from the strenuous day. She checked her watch, and her mouth fell open. It had only been four hours since she’d left the pub. “You need to share whatever you’re talking about with me or… or….”

“Or what?” Bear asked. The edge of his lips twitched as if he was concealing a smile.

“Or I’ll probably fuck it up,” she conceded.

“There’s a bunch of paparazzi outside. We need to get you into your flat,” Strike said. There was no twitch to his lips or softness to his voice. Strike was business only. “I want your keys and for you to explain the route. I will stay in front, and Bear will remain behind you. We’ll flank you the entire way.”

Why did being flanked by Bear make her blush?Get a grip, Liss.The situation sounded serious.

“How did they find my flat?” As she took in the view out of the windscreen, she gasped. Crowds of people swarmed around her front door, with others by the pub. She glimpsed through a gap between paparazzi the pub’s shut front door. The closed sign was in place. With this much custom, they could have a bumper evening.

“Keys,” Strike grunted.

“You don’t need to be a dick about it,” Liss snapped. Again, Bear’s lip twitched.

“Give me your keys now, Felicity,” Strike said between gritted teeth. “I’m not in the mood to piss about.”

“Mate,” Bear reasoned.

Strike glared at him. “Be careful, Bear. We can’t have more mistakes.”

What did that mean?

Bear glowered. “Fuck you, Strike.”

Liss fumbled in her bag for her keys. “There’s only one door. It’s the blue one next to the garage. It leads up the stairs and into the flat. The door only leads to my flat.”

“Right. And will there be anyone else in the flat? I know you don’t have a partner. Boyfriend?” Strike asked as she threw her keys into his lap.

Her emotions were smacking around her body like balls on a pool table whacked hard with a cue. One minute, she was scared and, the next, ready to rip the heads off her so-called bodyguards. “How do you know I don’t have a partner? I could be polyamorous or be fucking the entire local rugby team. You don’t know nothing.”

“I researched you when your grandma contacted us this morning. You spend all your hours at the pub and don’t have much social life. Your only family is your nana,” Strike replied as Liss’s eyes twitched with tiredness. She spun her ring. “Although you’re not on social media, your digital footprint is extensive. Our IT support will sort it out and get you a burner phone. I couldn’t find a boyfriend or girlfriend, but they might be new. Do you have anyone?”

“You’re fucking rude, and I don’t see what any of this has to do with you. You can get stuffed. I’m not answering any more of your questions.” She folded her arms and flopped back against her seat.

Silence filled the car. Paparazzi were congregating around them. The palace hadn’t conclusively declared she was a princess, so the newspapers shouldn’t care. Liss toyed with her ring as her eyes flitted around the vehicle.

“She doesn’t have a boyfriend, and her only potential date still hasn’t replied to her earlier message. Her friend Isla is in the flat, as is a guy called Steve who works at the pub. I’m guessing he fancies her. She doesn’t have anyone else.”

Liss’s mouth dropped open as her stomach muscles tightened. She wasn’t safe with these guys and needed to return to her flat. She needed Isla. Her breathing was so noisy that it crowded the space of the vehicle.

“And before you ask, I’ve been monitoring the notifications on your phone.” Liss’s nostrils flared as Bear’s eyes snapped to Strike. “For work purposes.”

She jumped out of the car and slammed the door. How dare they research her, go through her phone, and make judgements about her friends. She opened her mouth to scream when suddenly a microphone was shoved into her face.

“Felicity, what did the King say when you saw him?”

“Felicity, when do you move into the palace?” another voice shouted.

There were so many of them that it was impossible to distinguish features. They crowded Liss like demons in the underworld, each clawing for a piece of flesh.

“How does it feel to be rich?” a woman with a microphone screeched.

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