Page 3 of Royal Bargain

He hands me his phone, and I type in my number with shaking hands, even as Lucky gives me a quizzical look, eyebrows raised.

I don’t know what the hell just came over me. But as I meet Burns’s gaze, I tell myself it’s the right thing. It has to be.

This is my chance to prove myself to Rory and my brothers, to show them I’m more than the family screw-up.

I ride that high for the rest of the evening—right up until I get home, when reality comes crashing down on me.

What the fuck was I thinking?

Sleep is impossible. I toss and turn, my mind running a hundred miles an hour, every scenario playing out in my head. What the hell did I just get myself into?

I can’t back down now.

Throwing the covers off, I stretch and roll my shoulders, figuring this is the best time to start getting to work.

By the time the sun starts creeping through my window, I’ve already hit the ground running. If I’m doing this, I’m doing it right.

When Senator Burns and I meet later that morning over coffee, I’m buzzing with adrenaline as I slide a folder across the table—a list of people we can bring on to help, along with another, shorter list of potential HQ locations.

Burns scans over my notes, his brows lifting, nodding to himself. “This is great work, Liam. I never knew you were interested in politics.”

“It’s a recent interest,” I say smoothly, skipping over just how recent it actually is. “I want to make sure you succeed. If anyone deserves to be running things around here, it’s you. I believe in you, and I want to help.”

Burns smiles, reaching out to shake my hand, his grip firm. “I think the two of us will make an excellent team, then, kid. You just keep bringing in those good ideas, and you’ll go far.”

The whole thing has been a good distraction—one I needed—but as Burns and I travel to the locations on my list, checking them out for HQ, my mind drifts back to the other pressing problem.

Specifically, Ana’s request.

I asked for a few days to think it over, and that deadline is closing in fast. I can’t just keep ignoring her.

And just at that moment, as Burns and I step out of the taxi, my phone vibrates.

It’s a message from Annika.

My heart thumps as I glance down at the screen.

Liam, I need you. Please get back to me soon or something bad might happen to us.

2

ANNIKA

As I gently bounce my little girl in my arms, I feel a deep dread settling into the pit of my stomach. It was a huge risk going to speak to Liam like that, but I honestly, genuinely thought he would help.

The Brannagan family preach loyalty and honor, and I figured that he wouldn’t be able to say no to his own child.

But when he’d asked me for time to think, I panicked and now here I am, two days later, on the verge of a breakdown because Lily won’t stop crying, and I worry I won’t be able to stay here much longer in this safehouse with her, alone.

Agitated wails echo through the cramped space, slicing through my skull like a knife. I squeeze my eyes shut and rock her in my arms, shushing her with soft noises as I press her head to my shoulder. Her little body trembles and she yanks her head back, screaming harder, face red and scrunched tight, tiny fists shaking as though she’s pissed at the world.

I don’t blame her for being upset. The two of us are stuck in this strange new place, the anxiety of everything weighing down on us. We’re waiting to hear back from Liam, hoping that he’ll help us out.

The peeling wallpaper curls at the corners, stained with years of neglect. The air around me reeks with the stale scent of cigarette smoke, lingering like the ghosts of the past.

Tears prick at my eyes as exhaustion weighs me down, the urge to close my eyes for just a moment overtaking me. It’s been days since I’ve gotten more than a couple hours of sleep at a time and my body is starting to shut down. My muscles are sore right now, my brain foggy and sluggish.

The problem is, I don’t know what’s wrong with my poor, sweet girl. I don’t know how to help her. I don’t know what she wants.