Page 60 of Incurably Cupid

As he left, Mesmer and I turned to each other.

“I’ll pack our things,” I said.

He nodded. “I’ll alert the villa and form a team.”

I held up a finger. “About that—I may have an idea…”

Chapter 20

Indie

“To love deeply is to cherish.”

Cupid Inc. New Recruit Training Manual

We circled the behemoth cruise ship once or twice in the helicopter before touching down on the landing pad. The ride had been new and enjoyable for me, but Mesmer was an emotional wreck, and I spent the entire journey quietly reassuring him that we would arrive on time and that the king was not an idiot—he would be on high alert. For that matter, I’d heard Sebastian Solace wasn’t an idiot either.

Both men awaited us at the landing pad as we descended from the helicopter. At least, I assumed the second man was Sebastian Solace. He had black hair, dark green eyes, and the vampire attractiveness that they all seemed to possess.

Sebastian moved first to shake Mesmer’s hand, then mine, while King Draven regarded Mesmer with a concerned frown. “I assume you found something during your time of enforced rest,” he said pointedly, giving Mesmer a brief hug before shaking my hand.

The men who filed out of the helicopter behind me were carrying our belongings, so I was free to hold Mesmer’s hand. We hadn’t had enough room in the helicopter for Lance, but Leo was safely tucked in my satchel.

Mesmer nodded respectfully. “Yes, Sire. I’m grateful for the short vacation you’ve given me to find my mate,” he said tonelessly. He was clearly experienced at trying to outwit the king—or, at the very least, keeping up with him often enough to protect him from those who wished to harm him.

Now that I thought about it, to keep pace with the king, one had to be exceptionally intelligent. Not that I ever doubted Mesmer’s intelligence—I’d seen it often enough over the past year—but he was perhaps more intelligent than I realized, because, as everyone knew, King Draven was a genius.

Speaking of genius.

King Draven had already noticed my hand in Mesmer’s even before Mesmer spoke, but at his words, a wide smile broke across the king’s handsome face. “Indie is your mate?” He joyfully stepped forward to hug Mesmer again, then me, which surprised me so much that I blinked at him dazedly. “I’m so happy for you two! Congratulations!”

Mesmer looked at me tenderly, then back to his friend. “Thank you, Sire. Can we talk? Privately?”

Sebastian nodded, made a few gestures to what I assumed was his security team, and we all began moving away from the helicopter platform. “Of course. Let’s head to my office.”

We walked across the private deck to a posh, private elevator that took us directly to Sebastian’s office. I found a seat near Mesmer, while the rest of the security team we’d brought with us filed out and stood guard in the hallway.

Sebastian offered King Draven the seat behind his desk, but the king shook his head and settled onto the couch. “What’s happened?”

Mesmer squeezed my hand and then began explaining to the vampire king what we’d discovered. I brought Leo into the conversation, and he supported both Felix’s account and Mesmer’s with data he’d obtained from encrypted files on the servers he’d infiltrated. Lunch was ordered, and I ate while everyone spoke around me. When it came time for my part in the plan, I carefully outlined my idea, and everyone agreed that it could work and that it gave us an advantage.

By early evening, I was exhausted. Sebastian, Mesmer, and I got off on Deck 17, The Stargazer Deck, while King Draven and his security remained in the elevator. Evidently, his deck was above ours.

“I’m sorry to just crash onto your ship,” Mesmer said regretfully. “Thank you for finding rooms for us.”

I snorted. As long as the king and consort were on board, Mesmer would have crashed this ship, even if it belonged to the President of the United States.

Mesmer shot me a look, and I smiled innocently. He shook his head, his lip curling in a small smile.

“It’s no problem,” Sebastian assured him. Mr. Solace looked tired. I imagined it was difficult when your wife was newly pregnant, and you were constantly worried about her and the baby’s safety, as well as the safety of the king of vampires, who’d decided to take a joyride on your ship.

I felt a little sorry for him.

“We always leave several rooms open for unexpected guests.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Do you often have people arriving by helicopter mid-cruise?”

His laugh was weary. “You’d be surprised. Here we are.” He used a card key to open first my suite, then Mesmer’s, and handed both key cards to us. “My cruise director, Rafe, will bring a packet of information about the ship, the activities on board, and the various restaurants.” He smiled. “I know you’re not hereto shop or see shows, but I wanted to make you aware of them just in case.”

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