Page 17 of Bitter Prince

I gave him my word: my loyalty for Reina’s life.

I couldn’t believe I settled Romero’s debt at my own expense after we’d just hatched a plan in our favor. However, as I watched Reina’s pale face, I didn’t regret it. She was still gripping my jacket, her eyes locked in the direction of the disappearing car.

“Are you alright?”

She lifted her head and stared at me, a soft pink hue on her cheeks. I jolted when I saw her looking at me with hearts in her eyes. The kid was fourteen.

I peeled her fingers from my jacket and put some space between us. The scent of cinnamon lingered in my nostrils, but I didn’t let myself decide whether I liked it or not.

“Reina, are you alright?” I repeated.

She blinked, clearing her throat.

“No, I’m not okay. I was almost abducted.” Then she rolled her eyes as if to emphasize how dumb my question was. I took it as a sign she was okay. “That asshole is your cousin?”

My lips twitched at her tone. She was adorable, although way too young. Maybe Romero had the right idea by keeping his daughters out of the underworld. Reina kept her innocence, but certainly had a backbone. When I pulled up, I’d seen her fight Itsuki and his men tooth and nail.

“He is, but he won’t bother you anymore. I’ll make sure of it.”

She nodded her head. “Thank you.”

Hiroshi received intel from his source back in Japan that Itsuki was coming after Romero’s daughter. I’d been traveling for the past twenty-four hours to get here on time. If I had been even five minutes late, I would have missed her altogether.

My chest tightened at the thought. The kid didn’t deserve any harm, despite who her father was. Dante and I would find the document our mother needed, bypassing the Romero girls at all costs.

“What are you doing out here alone?”

She shrugged, walking away from me.

“It was my turn to sneak out for snacks.”

I caught her when she tripped over her feet and winced. I cursed silently. The fuckers must have hurt her. She resumed walking, both of us silent, until she came up to the spot where her snacks lay scattered over the pavement.

When she reached for the bag of pretzels, her movements slow, I stopped her.

“Let me.” She watched as I shoved all the snacks into the bag. “Don’t they feed you snacks in this boarding school?”

She let out a breath. “Only healthy stuff.” The look on her face confirmed her opinion about that fact.

“There’s enough snacks here to feed ten,” I pointed out, amused as I rose to my full height. I knew she wasn’t done growing, but she still seemed so small compared to me. A child who needed protection.

“Well, there are three of us in the room,” she remarked, reaching for the bag in my hand. “I can take it from here.”

“No, I’ll walk you back to your dorm.”

She gawked at me. “You can’t walk me into my dorm. I snuck out. I’d prefer to sneak back in so I’m not grounded for the next month.”

“I’ll sneak in with you,” I told her. It was clear she didn’t like my suggestion. Too bad. I didn’t travel over six thousand miles not to see her through to safety.

“Whatever, Amon.” She must have seen on my face that I wouldn’t change my mind. “But if you get caught, I don’t know you and you don’t know me.”

“Oh how you wound me,” I teased her.

She whipped her head around, her golden curls framing her face. She opened her mouth to say something but then clamped it shut.

“I guess since you saved me, being grounded for a month as repayment isn’t all that bad.”

“We won’t get caught,” I assured her, then nudged her forward. “Lead the way, cinnamon girl.”