Page 3 of His Runaway Princess

Somehow, the powers-that-be were convinced to let a boat captain take them out by himself. Just the three of them on a fairly small boat. When a large whale breeched, they were knocked overboard.

As much as Amalia had hated to admit it at the time, Ginny had taken charge of the situation. She found them shelter and firewood and help - before running into some separatists who’d been after them all along. Fortunately, the cavalry in the form of the Øyanordian military, showed up not too long after that.

It took days for the chill to truly dissipate.

Amalia shuddered just thinking about it.

“Are you all right?” The concern on Ryker’s face and in his tone struck Amalia in a way she wouldn’t have expected.

“I am,” she nodded. “Just remembering the last time I went for a... swim. The water was really too cold for anyone. It took nearly forever to feel warm again.”

“All right. No water sports.” He tapped on his tablet. “What about hiking?”

“Nothing too strenuous. I do enjoy being in nature. I am not fond of it feeling like work to get there.”

His chuckle sounded... different than any others she’d ever heard. Warmer, maybe? “I can understand that. Would you like to swim at all? The water is warm enough. There are a number of places protected enough to be enjoyable without the surf.”

“Possibly.”

He scrolled with his finger. “What about an ATV ride? Beaches, forests, some ancient ruins.”

Amalia tilted her head to one side and stared out the window behind Ryker. “That could be fun.”

After a few more questions, he stared at something beyond Amalia then turned back to the tablet. “Here are a couple of options.”

They discussed them briefly which led Amalia to an embarrassing discovery. She had no funds. Her cards were useless unless she wanted to be found and quickly. She’d have to figure something else out.

“This one looks nice.” She pointed to it and handed the tablet back to Ryker before pulling out her phone. “Could you tell me which one it is? Then I can get a Yfir, other ride share, or cab to the pick-up point.”

Why did he hesitate? Only for a second, but long enough for her to notice.

“I’d been thinking about going on one of these tours myself. Perhaps we could share a ride?”

What was it about this man that made her feel safe? She didn’t feel that often, not with people she didn’t know well. “That would be lovely.”

It pained her to say, but Amalia didn’t know a whole lot about living outside of the royal bubble, as it were.

She’d said she’d catch a Yfir but had no idea how one actually did that.

Before she realized what happened, Ryker sat next to her. Close enough to feel his leg alongside hers and his arm along the top of the bench behind her.

“My apologies, ma’am.” He spoke just loud enough to be heard over the noise of the ferry. “Please trust me if you can.”

What...

“Hello, darling.”

Amalia looked up to see a slovenly man stumbling down the walkway between the two sets of benches. Tension mounted in her shoulders, but Ryker gave them a light squeeze before standing up.

“Can we help you?”

The man tried to push his way around Ryker, but Ryker somehow managed to quickly and quietly get him to leave. Amalia couldn’t tell exactly what he’d done, but he’d done it well.

He turned to look at Amalia once the other man could be seen lying down on seats across the ferry. “Ma’am, I would hate to make you feel uncomfortable, but he’s been watching you since about the time I sat down. We have quite a bit of time left before we arrive. May I have the pleasure of your company at least until we arrive at the tour stop?”

With another glance at the man now lying across three seats, she nodded.

Ryker sat next to her again, but not quite as close.

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