Page 35

Ava

M y heart felt like it’d been cinched in a vice. Tears welled in my eyes as I hurried with Hailey to the bedroom where she’d stayed the night before. I didn’t want to say a word, for fear of bursting into tears. Hailey, seeming to sense how I felt, gripped my hand tight.

“I’m so sorry.” They were the first words out of my mouth as we entered the room, shutting the door behind us. “I can’t believe what I dragged you into.”

Hailey squeezed my hand one more time, leading me over to the bed.

“You’ve got nothing to be sorry for. When Luc explained this whole crazy plan to me, I knew there was a really good chance that it would go sideways.”

“You did?”

Hailey, a box of tissues from the bathroom in hand, came over to sit with me on the edge of the bed.

“You kidding? Av, I’m a huge reminder that Mom had a whole other life after she left here. I had a pretty good idea me showing up here might cause some drama.”

She handed me the box of tissues. I plucked one out and wiped the tears from my eyes.

“But you did it anyway.”

“Of course, I did! You’re my freaking sister! Luc told me that you needed me, and that was all I needed to hear. I’ll get screamed at by all the kings in Europe if it means that I can make you feel a little better.”

The heaviness in my heart lifted, replaced by love.

“You’re too good to me,” I said.

“I’m normal good to you, this is what sisters are for. And if you’re feeling like I did too much, then make it up to me. If I ever end up stranded in some royal palace pregnant with the king’s advisor’s baby, you can come visit and make me feel better.”

I laughed. Even though Hailey had been in Edoria for less than a day, her presence had already gone a long way toward making me feel better.

Before the conversation could go on any further, a knock sounded at the door. It was a firm knock, and I had no doubt that it was Luc.

“You want me to tell whoever that is to screw off?”

Another laugh as I wiped away the last few tears. “It’s tempting. But I should probably talk to Luc and figure out what to do next.”

Hailey squeezed my hand one last time before hopping off the bed and heading over to the door. She pulled it open and, sure enough, Luc was on the other side.

“Look at you!” Hailey said. “Head still attached and everything!”

“Funny.”

Luc stepped into the room and looked me up and down with concerned eyes. Hailey shut the door.

“How are you?”

“Considering I just got ripped a new one by my father, I think I’m hanging in there.”

I couldn’t even look at Luc without being keenly aware of the small detail of my pregnancy that I was still keeping from him. How the hell was I supposed to tell him that after what had just happened?

“What did he say about Hailey?” I asked.

Luc’s expression was grim. “The king isn’t happy. He wants her out of the palace as soon as possible.” He turned his attention to Hailey. “I’m sorry how this turned out. I’d hoped to keep you in Edoria in a hotel, but at this point I’m not sure if that’s a good idea. I don’t think it’d turn out well for any of us if the king were to see you two together again.”

“Guess that means I’m packing my bags,” Hailey said. “Wait, I don’t even think I had a chance to un pack them.”

“Again, my apologies. I’ll have you booked on a first-class flight back to Seattle as soon as I’m done speaking with Ava.”

“Got it.” Hailey’s gaze flicked from me to Luc. “OK, I’m guessing this is a two-person conversation. Any place I can hang out here in the palace where I won’t risk getting thrown into the dungeon if anyone sees me?”

“I’ve got a place in mind where Ava and I can speak. You stay in here and relax, make sure everything’s packed and ready to go.”

Without even thinking about it, I hurried over to Hailey and threw my arms around her.

“Thank you so much. I don’t even know what to say.”

She hugged me back. “You don’t need to say anything. You need me, I’ll be here no matter what.”

We finished the hug, and I turned my attention back to Luc.

“OK, let’s talk.”

He nodded. “Come along.”

We left the room, silently walking side by side down the long hallway, all the way to the end. A pair of doors leading out onto a balcony were there, Luc opening them and letting me out first. The view from the balcony was gorgeous, looking out over the gardens all the way to the northern half of the city, the Alps rising in the distance. The air was a bit chilly, but nothing my sweatshirt couldn’t handle.

Luc walked over to the edge of the balcony, placing his hands on the railing and looking out, his back toward me. I could sense that he wasn’t quite sure where to begin.

“I’m sorry.”

“Good place to start.”

He turned. “I’m sorry about how things went down. I didn’t expect it to turn out like that. Truth be told, I wasn’t sure what I thought was going to happen.”

“He didn’t take it well at all.”

He let out a snort, shaking his head. “No kidding. I suppose part of me figured he’d be fine with anything that helped you work through your issues about your duties. Not so much.”

He turned and looked at me. His expression was a mixture of disappointment and frustration.

“I have to be honest, it feels like the ground is falling out from under me these days, like I don’t have control over anything. And it’s been like that ever since that day you yelled at me at the food truck…”

I grinned. “I didn’t yell at you, Luc. I gave you a firm hand. You know, made it clear how things work when you’re on my turf.”

He laughed, though his laugh was muted. “I suppose you’re right about that. When you came into my life, things changed in a way that part of me knew would never go back to normal. At first, I resented it, not wanting any part of my life to slip out of my control. The more time that went on, however…”

He came over to me, placing his hands on my shoulders. He gazed at me with those gorgeous, gray eyes. In those moments, I began to wonder if that was the time, if I wasn’t going to get a better opportunity to come clean about my little secret.

“All the same,” he went on, “you need to leave.”

I blinked hard. “What?”

He nodded. “I didn’t realize how selfish your father was going to be about all of this. But I realize it now.” He shook his head with regret. “Part of me wishes I’d lied, told him that I’d never found his daughter, never pulled you away from your life.”

I understood the sentiment, but his words still hurt. I placed my hands on his gently pushing them from my shoulders.

“You want me to go?”

“It’s… not that simple.”

He glanced away, shaking his head. “You should run, run just like your mother did. By this point, you’ve seen all the royal life has to offer, the perks and privileges, the gilded exterior. But you’ve also seen the dark side, the isolating nature of it, the way your life never seems to truly be your own. You’re your mother’s daughter. If she wasn’t happy here, then there’s a damn good chance you won’t be either. You deserve better, and that’s why you need to leave.”

“Now, you know that you’re my father’s advisor, not mine. And if I want to leave, I’m going to do it because I made the decision, not because you commanded me to.”

His expression remained impassive, cold even. “Before you’re presented to Edoria at the Harvest Ball and are officially named the heir at the naming ceremony, this is the best time for you to leave. We can lie, say that it turned out that we’d had the wrong woman. This can all go away just as long as you do what I say.”

I narrowed my eyes, bristling at his comment. “I’m not your employee to command, Luc. And I have made a decision.”

He arched his thick eyebrows. “Is that right?”

“Yep. I am going to the Harvest Ball.” The words surprised me as they came from my mouth. As soon as they were spoken I knew that was what I wanted. “But I’m going on my terms. I’m going to show up my way. Screw the etiquette classes and to hell with what my father wants and expects of me. He can’t control me, and I’m going to show him that.”

Luc didn’t get sucked in by my energy, my flare of righteous anger. Instead, he shook his head, as if my outburst were nothing more than something he’d sadly expected.

“You have to know that I’m right,” he said. “You have to know that you’d be better off without all of this.” He swept his hand toward the palace.

The tone he took rubbed me the wrong way, like I was some airheaded little kid who needed to shut up and listen to her elders, as if there was no possible way that I could make my own decisions.

I narrowed my eyes. “You know, just because we’re sleeping together doesn’t mean that you can tell me what to do.”

That got his attention. His expression softened a bit, surprise forming on his features.

“That’s not what I meant at all, Ava.”

I raised my finger, pointing it toward him.

“This is my situation, and my decision to make. I’m going to handle this how I want, and you can stand aside and watch.”

He scoffed. “Now you’re all about being a princess?”

“Surprised?”

“More wondering how much a royal ascension fueled by spite will affect the kingdom.”

“You think you know everything, huh?”

“I know enough.”

His smug attitude had become too much for me.

“Screw you, Luc.”

With that, I turned on my heels and marched back into the palace. I kept my expression hard and determined all the way back to Hailey’s room. I didn’t want him to see me sweat, not even a drop.

“What happened?” Hailey regarded me with concern as I rushed into the room.

Once I was away from Luc, back behind the privacy of a bedroom door, the tears started flowing. I fell onto the bed, burying my face in the pillow as I sobbed. Hailey sat next to me saying nothing, her hand on my upper back.

All I could wonder was what Mom might think if she were to see me like this. Was I nothing more than a royal disappointment?