Page 20 of Guarding the Princess
Charlotte leans her head on my shoulder, her blue eyes peering up at me, intently listening. My breath falters. I feel like some sort of hero with her looking at me like that. It’s a feeling I never want to let go of, but I know on Wednesday—tomorrow—she’ll be flying halfway around the globe and I’ll never see her again. That thought I had earlier resurfaces and I tuck it away to examine later. Much later.
“I guess that’s why I’m so focused on my career. I have to prove I’m just as good as him at something. But the problem is, when I hit a new career goal, there’s always another, you know? How will I know when enough is enough? No matter how good a job I do, I’ll never be famous like him.” I lose myself in her eyes which makes the confession easier to voice. “I have no friends and I’m lonely, Charlotte.”
She snuggles in closer and snakes her arm around my waist to hug me tight. “You’ve got me,Stor Kille,” she whispers.
I close my eyes and let her scent envelop me. My heart pounds, both from telling someone my feelings—a skill I’ve never been good at and have become ridiculously rusty the last decade—and from the feeling of this woman in my arms. A wave of longing threatens to pull me under and force me to behave in a way I know is wrong. I want to lift her head and press my lips against hers. Let myself taste the promise she’s made with her mouth.
We’re friends, but I want to push the boundaries into something more. The lyrical quality of her accent makes me smile. Her inherent kindness is catnip to a grizzly, cynical guy like me. Her eyes draw me in and send me drowning with a smile on my face. She lights a fire in me to do better. A simple hug makes me feel like I’ve found my home.
Too bad my home is with a woman who will live thousands of miles from me.
Fact is, I’m a Duke, not a prince.
And this isn’t a fairy tale.
We’re just two lonely, flawed people in a big city.
If I had my way, we’d stay right here, pressed together and holding each other up all the way to the other side of the country. And for a long time, I let myself pretend that’s what we can do. Just let go of our obligations in the real world and ride off into the sunrise together in this old dusty bus.
9
Charlotte
I’m dead on my feet. All the emotions of running away, being caught, and then exposing myself completely to someone for the first time has me exhausted. The reality of having to go home to Regora seeps into my consciousness minute by minute.
Despite all that inner turmoil, I’m not oblivious. There was a moment there on the bus when Ryker and I crossed the line of friendship. I could have pressed my lips to his and changed everything between us. And goodness gracious, I wanted to. But for what? For me to just leave tomorrow? No. It’s better this way. It was already going to hurt to leave him without complicating matters like that.
Unless…
“So, once I get on the plane tomorrow, is your contract over?” I pull the sweatshirt over my head and drop it onto my backpack. My body feels ancient, the lack of sleep taking its toll.
Ryker locks my front door and turns around, his gaze sweeping over me and heating me more than any sweatshirt could. He walks over, his confident gait doing something to my stomach. His boots step up toe-to-toe with my tennis shoes. His cologne, the one I’ve come to inhale like an addict, wafts over me and the exhaustion is swept away. He tucks a strand of hair behind my ear and lets his thumb drag along my jawline. I tilt my head into his palm like a cat begging for more.
“The contract I signed with your mother will be over, yes,” he says tightly.
Another idea has me straightening my spine. “What if the Princess of Regora were to hire you?”
He tilts his head, those eyes turning a deeper shade of blue. “I’d sign that contract right away. No matter the job.”
Hope, the feeling I haven’t felt since before Zeke and I broke up, lights a fire in my veins. A smile grows on my face the longer I think about it.
“I’d really like a bodyguard I can trust looking after me on the flight over and when I get to Regora.”
“Do you trust me, Charlotte?” His hand, the one cupping my jaw, tightens.
“I do. Completely.”
The intense look in his eyes doesn’t go away, but a smile shows up to match mine.
“Then let’s do this. Together. Let’s get some sleep and then we’ll work out the details.” He leans in, causing my heart to gallop in my chest, and kisses my forehead. His lips linger there as if he wishes to stay and kiss other areas, but he eventually retreats, much to my disappointment. “Do you mind if I sleep on the couch?”
I blink, trying to jumpstart my brain. “Sure. That would be great, actually. I don’t have work tomorrow. Today actually since it’s past midnight. So we can get a few hours’ sleep and then I’ll need to pack to go home.”
I’ve never had a man sleep over and I revel in the intimacy of it. We dance around each other while I find an extra pillow and blankets, both of us aware of the charged tension in the air. When I get him settled, I flee the room with red cheeks when he starts to take off his shirt.
I hurry to change in my room and lie in my bed, my limbs heavy with fatigue, but a brain that won’t stop spinning. Not only have I finally told my big dark secret to someone I can trust, but I’ve also committed to returning to Regora. With Ryker.
This is not at all how I planned things out. I should have been planning my wedding and mapping out a commoner’s life here in California. Instead, I’m doing the opposite: returning home and mapping out a life as Queen-to-be with a commoner by my side. I’m not sure I’m doing the right thing and that keeps my eyes open for another hour before sleep finds me.
