Page 74 of Raul

Raul waved a hand toward a seating area with two wing chairs and a table. He couldn’t look at the sofa without remembering what he and Erica had done there.

“How may I help you?” Mikel asked as they settled into the deep green leather chairs.

“You vetted Erica Ortiz for her job as Gabriel’s pilot. That means you feel she would not reveal any…indiscretions she discovered, correct?” Raul had to work up to his confession.

“Yes. She also signed the usual nondisclosure agreement.” Mikel cupped his glass in both hands, his attention laser-focused on Raul as he waited.

Raul took another swig of Scotch. “You know that Erica and I have had a…a brief relationship, which is now over.” He didn’t want to cheapen it by calling it afling, because it felt like far more than that to him. “I was so comfortable talking with her that I made a comment that revealed more than I meant it to.”

Mikel remained still and silent.

Raul braced his shoulders for Mikel’s condemnation. “Erica knows that Odette is Grace’s birth mother.”

“That is unfortunate.” Mikel swirled the liquor in his glass. “However, I believe thatSeñoritaOrtiz is both honorable and intensely loyal to your family. The secret is probably safe with her.”

Raul’s shoulders sagged as the tension released. Mikel was not unduly worried, so he did not need to be either.

“I am glad you informed me, though,” Mikel said. “It will keep us from being blindsided if something unexpected occurs.”

“Thank you for not beating me up about my lapse of judgment,” Raul said with a rueful smile.

“I imagine you have done enough of that yourself,” Mikel said.

Raul nodded. Mikel knew him too well. “Now I have the unenviable task of confessing to my father.” Raul swallowed the last of his Scotch at the thought.

“Why would you do that?” Mikel raised his eyebrows. “I will keep tabs onSeñoritaOrtiz. There is no need to worry your father.”

“De verdad?You really think that?” Raul had never hidden information he deemed important from his father. It felt like lying.

“Will it help or hurt him?” Mikel asked.

Raul frowned into his empty glass. “It will not help him, but I feel wrong in not confessing my mistake.”

“So your confession would make you feel better, but it would not be useful to your father.”

For some reason, he thought of Erica choosing the sky rather than the water, separating herself from her father. Was this a moment when he needed to do the same?

“I would rather tell Pater the truth,” he said. “But you make me think that it would be a selfish choice.”

It would also create the smallest hint of a barrier between them that his father wouldn’t even know was there.

“I am tired and possibly a little drunk, or I would not say this.” Mikel set his empty glass on the table between them. “As hard as you try not to be,Señor, you are human. You cannot watch every word you say every minute of your life. InSeñoritaOrtiz, you seem to have found someone you can let down your guard with, and I applaud your instincts in choosing her as your confidante.”

That was a lot to unpack. Mikel—the head of the royal family’s security—was sympathetic about Raul’s blunder. Even stranger, Mikel seemed to be endorsing Erica as a girlfriend.

Maybe the man really was drunk.

“I thought you would be more upset,” Raul said.

“Perhaps I will be in the morning.” Mikel stood, and for a moment, Raul could see the exhaustion in his eyes.

Mikel was coordinating with every branch of the police, security forces, and military in Caleva to make Gabriel and Quinn’s wedding safe for everyone attending, a massive and stressful job.

Raul should not have dropped another problem on the man’s shoulders.

“You’re right,” Raul said as he also rose. “I can trust Erica. She has assured me of that, and now you have as well. I will consider the matter settled.”

“Gracias, Señor.”Mikel gave his signature half bow and let himself out of the apartment.