Page 48 of Fallen Prince

And what was this whole article-thing about?

“Great. I’ll text you, and we can work out the details.”

“Okay,” I agreed, my mouth moving on autopilot.

He ended the call, and I stared at my phone for a second, stunned.

“Who was that?” Davis asked. “You look totally shook. Was it that douchebag?”

“No.” I blinked, trying to clear my head in the wake of the short, dizzying phone call. “It was Nikolai Ivanov. He asked me out.”

“Oh my god!” Isabel squealed. “Hot, billionaire heir Nikolai Ivanov? From the fundraiser?”

“Yeah.”

“Wait, I saw him talking to you,” Charlie chimed in. “He’s totally gorgeous. Why do you look sick? Don’t you want to go out with him?”

“No.” My refusal was firm and immediate, and for some reason, Max’s dark eyes flashed through my mind. “I mean, I don’t know. He said something about an article his dad planted in theTimes. I got flustered and agreed to a date.”

“What article?” Davis already had his phone out, entering my and Niko’s names into search. “Ohmygod,” he said in a single exhalation. “Holy shit.”

“What is it?” Isabel demanded.

We all crowded around the small screen. My stomach dropped when I saw the picture of Niko and me at the fundraiser. His hand was on my arm, and I was staring up at him with a stupidly awed expression on my face. I saw the headline, and I wanted to sink into the pavement:New York’s Own Royal Romance?

Davis eyed me, a teasing smirk tilting his lips. “Allhail Princess Allie!” He offered me a small bow. “Why didn’t you tell us you’re a royal?”

Charlie slapped his arm. “Read the vibe, Davis. Don’t tease her right now.” Her big blue eyes were wide with concern. “You okay?”

Isabel snatched the phone from Davis and hastily began reading the article. “I’ll give you the Cliff’s Notes,” she promised. “Let’s get you a martini.”

“No,” I countered, even as they ushered me forward. “I’d so much rather hear about your audition. And Davis, you had one today too, right? I haven’t checked in with you guys since you gave your performances. We don’t need to talk about me.”

Isabel waved me off. “I know you’ll worry about this all night if we don’t deal with it right now.”

I’d so much rather erase the article’s existence from my mind. I turned to Charlie, desperation touching my voice. “Seriously, we’ve talked about me way too much lately. What about your internship withVogue? I’m so proud of you for landing that, and I feel like we barely discuss it. You must be just as stressed by work as I am.”

Charlie shot me a sympathetic smile and shook her head. “Uh-uh. We are so talking about you for a little bit. This is too important to ignore.”

Isabel shushed me imperiously. “Hush and letme read. I’ll share the deets in just a few minutes.”

Somehow, my feet moved, and we were inside the restaurant. My friends urged me into our corner booth, and I dropped down onto the padded leather seat, finally allowing my shaky knees to give out.

I hated the public scrutiny that came along with being Ron Fitzgerald’s daughter. In the past, the press had mostly left me alone other than snapping photos with my dad at important events. It was bad enough that some of the most awkward years of my life were forever memorialized on the internet. Now, that mortifying image of me stupidly staring at Niko would be popping up on thousands of news alerts on people’s phones. Anyone who followed the social column of theTimeswould receive a notification, and even a passing glance would ensure that they saw the embarrassing photo.

And oh my god, the royalty thing. Gavin would make my life hell.

“So basically, it’s nothing,” Isabel declared, returning Davis’ phone before pushing my freshly-delivered martini toward me. “Just a fluff piece. It’ll fall into obscurity in no time.”

“But what does it say?” Davis prompted, leaning forward and resting his chin on his palm, intent on getting more info.

“It just comments on what Allie was wearing—totally complimentary, by the way,” she hastened to clarify. “And says how good she and Nikolai look together. It’s total clickbait. News about the British royals is really hot right now, so they’re just trying to drive traffic based on that. Seriously, it’s only speculating that you and Nikolaimightbe dating. There’s no substance.”

“See, it’s not bad at all.” Charlie laid a comforting hand on my forearm. “You looked gorgeous in that gown. The photographer saw you sparkling and wanted to get a good shot. I know you don’t like the attention, but it’s a nice article.”

“But I’m not dating Niko,” I protested, running a hand through my hair. “And I look so stupid in that picture, ugh.”

“Honey, it sounds like you are going on a date with him,” Davis said carefully. “Didn’t you just agree to go out with him?”

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