Page 19 of Once Upon a Royal Billionaire

“Oh? And why’s that?”

“New beginnings. You know, where do we start from here.”

“I like that.”

She shivered, and he reached into his backpack. “In the meantime, here’s a sweatshirt. I think we might be in here for a while.”

She pulled it on while he checked his phone. It wouldn’t connect. “Oh, that’s not good.”

“What?” Emily stood at his side immediately.

“My phone won’t connect. The security detail is gonna go nuts.”

“They know where we are.”

“Of course, but the storm, and then I go off the grid.”

“Oh, I see.”

He moved to the opening of the cave, the rain still pouring down and rushing in a river outside the entrance. “Still no bars.”

“That flooding out there doesn’t look too good either.”

“No, it doesn’t.” There would be rescue teams, helicopters, and all his security detail on high alert right now. If things got too bad, they’d call in Luke Valdez, the Torren prince over high security.

All this commotion would draw the attention of the press, and the last thing he wanted was country-wide speculation about another relationship with the ever-interesting Emily Harrington, heiress to her own American wealth. She was the stuff of legends where his country was concerned.

None of that could be helped now. “Looks like we might be here for a while. Should we explore?”

“Sure. At least there aren’t any animal smells.”

“True. I think we’re too high up on the bald part of the mountain to attract many animals besides goats.”

They circled the walls of their new shelter but found that it was just a small opening in the rocks, more like a room, with no further exits or openings.

“Let’s sit near the opening and watch the storm roll through.” Emily’s face lit with interest.

“I love that about you.” Was that too much? he wondered. Perhaps. But something about this cave felt intimate, freeing. He moved closer to the opening. “Shall we sit?”

She scooted near him so that their bodies could share warmth, and they watched the rain start to come down sideways as the wind whipped across the top of the mountain.

“Wow, I’m glad the opening hits at an angle. We’d be drenched.”

Thunder shook their cave and Emily flinched. “Sorry. I usually love storms.”

“But this one is a little too close?”

“Maybe that’s it. But we’re obviously protected in here. I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

“Tell me about Lily.”

The grateful smile she gave him made him want to see that expression aimed at him again, and often.

“She’s an incredible human.”

“Sounds like her mother.”

Her blush belied the hand she waved to brush off his compliment. “She really is. Smart, creative. If I tell her no, she tries to find a way to make everyone happy and still get a yes. She’s kind and so funny. You should have heard her the other day at dinner. She had my parents rolling. Tears.”

---