I wanted to die.
If the floor opened up and swallowed me whole, Iโd be the happiest person on earth. Or under earth, as the case would be.
Sadly, I remained in the drawing room with a whiteboard covered with pictures of European bachelors, a stone-faced Rhys, and an oblivious Mikaela.
โItโs the event of the season,โ she continued. โThe timing is rushed, but Elinโs team is working on it around the clock and invites went out this morning. Dozens of people already RSVPโd yes.โ She let out a dreamy sigh. โAll those handsome men, all dressed up in one room. I could simply die.โ
Yes, the big idea my grandfather had alluded to the other day in his office was a thinly veiled matchmaking gala. Iโd protested, horrified at the thought of spending an entire eveningโmyย birthday, no lessโmaking small talk and dancing with over-inflated egos disguised as humans.
Iโd been overruled.
Apparently, my twenty-fourth birthday was a good excuse to invite every eligible bachelor in Europe to the party,ย andย it was coming up in a few weeks, which made for perfect timing, even if it was, as Mikaela had said, rushed.
โI didnโt realize you were looking for a husband, Your Highness,โ Rhys said so coldly goosebumps erupted on my arms.
The current of electricity running between us froze, turning to ice.
At the same time, indignation kindled in my stomach. He had no right to be angry.ย Heย was the one whoโd left and insisted on keeping things between us professional after Costa Rica. He couldnโt possibly think he could waltz in here again after six weeks because he changed his mind and expect me to have put my life on hold for him.
โItโs a politics and public image thing,โ Mikaela said before I could answer. โAnyway, what were we talking about? Right.โ She snapped her fingers. โLord Rafe and Prince Hans. Never mind about that. Prince Hans ranks higher, of course.โ She moved his headshot to theย yesย side of the board.
โIโll leave you to it then, Your Highness. I was just checking in.โ Rhysโs face shut down, and frustration stabbed at me, joining the cocktail of emotions coursing through my veinsโexcitement and giddiness at seeing him again, annoyance at his hypocrisy, lingering anger over his initial departure, and a smidge of guilt, even though we werenโt dating, weโd never dated, and I was free to dance with every man in Athenberg if I wanted.
If we do this, it stays here. This room, this night. We donโt talk about it again.
That wasย hisย rule, so why did I feel guilty at all? โMr. Larsenโโ
โIโll see you tomorrow, Your Highness.โ Rhys left.
Before I knew what I was doing, I followed him out the door, my spine hardening with determination.
I wouldย notย get drawn into an endless cycle of what-ifs again. I had enough to worry about. If Rhys had a problem, he could tell me to my face.
โWhere are you going?โ Mikaela called after me. โWe still need to figure out the dance order!โ
โLadiesโ room,โ I said over my shoulder. โI trust you.
Order them how you wish.โ
I quickened my steps and caught up with Rhys around the corner. โMr. Larsen.โ
This time, he stopped but didnโt turn around.
โThe ball was my grandfatherโs idea. Not mine.โ I didnโt owe him an explanation, but I felt compelled to give one anyway.
โItโs your birthday, princess. You can do whatever you want.โ
I set my jaw even as my stomach fluttered at the wordย princess.ย โSo, youโre okay with me dancing with other men all night?โ
Rhys finally turned, those inscrutable gray eyes flickering. โWhy wouldnโt I be? It sounds like the perfect solution. Youโll find a nice prince, marry, and rule happily ever after.โ A mocking inflection colored his words. โThe life of a princess, exactly as it should be.โ
Something inside me snapped, just like that.
I wasย angry.ย Angry at Nikolai for abdicating and running off to California with Sabrina afterward so they could โtake some timeโ for themselves. Angry at not having control over my life. And most of all, angry at Rhys for turning our reunion into something ugly after weโd been apart forย six weeks.
โYouโre right,โ I said. โItย isย the perfect solution. I canโt wait. Maybe Iโll do more than dance. Maybe Iโll find someone to kiss and take up toโโ
Two seconds later, I found myself pinned to the wall. Rhysโs eyes werenโt flickering anymore. They had darkened, turning gray into near-black thunderclouds like the kind drenched the city in springtime. โNot a good idea to finish that sentence, princess,โ he said softly.
Iโd provoked him on purpose, but I had to fight a shiver at the danger rolling off him.
โTake your hands off me, Mr. Larsen. Weโre not in the
U.S. anymore, and youโre overstepping your boundaries.โ
Rhys moved in closer, and I struggled to focus when I was so consumed byย him.ย By his scent, his breath on my skin. By memories of lingering looks and stolen laughs and sunsets in a pool halfway across the world.
โFuck my boundaries.โ Every word came out slow and deliberate, like he wanted to etch them into my skin.
โWhat a first day back on the job. Itโs just like old times.โ I pressed my back tighter against the wall, trying to escape the searing heat from Rhysโs body. โWhy are you here, Mr. Larsen? You were perfectly happy to walk away when I asked you to stay.โ
โIf you think I was anything close to happy these past six weeks,โ he said grimly, โYou couldnโt be more wrong.โ
โYou were happy enough to stay away for that long.โ I tried and failed to hide the note of hurt in my voice.
Rhysโs face softened a smidge. โTrust me, princess. If I had a choice, I wouldโve been back far sooner than that.โ
The velvety tips of butterfly wings brushed my heart.
Stop it. Stay strong.
โWhich brings me back to my question,โ I said. โWhy are you here?โ
A muscle jumped in his jaw. He hadnโt shaved that day, and thicker stubble peppered his face than I was used to.
I curled my hands into loose fists, resisting the urge to run them over the short black hairs on his cheek and the scar on his eyebrow. Just so I could reassure myself he was actually there.
Angry and infuriating, butย there.
โBecause Iโโ
โAm I interrupting something?โ
Rhys moved off me so fast it took me a few seconds to process what happened. Once I did, and I saw who had
interrupted us, my stomach sank.
Because standing at the end of the hall, wearing a half curious, half smirking expression, was none other than my cousin Andreas.
โI was on my way to my room when I heard something and came to investigate,โ he drawled. โApologies if Iโฆ intruded.โ
Rhys spoke up before I could. โWhat the hell are you doing here?โ
โIโm Bridgetโs cousin.โ Andreas smiled. โI guess Iย will
see you around after all. Small world.โ
My head whipped between them. โYou know each other?โ How was that possible?
โWe met at the airport,โ Andreas said casually. โI thought he dropped his wallet but, alas, I was mistaken. We had a nice little chat, though I never caught your name.โ He directed the last part at Rhys, who waited a few beats before answering.
โRhys Larsen.โ
โMr. Larsen is my bodyguard,โ I said. โHe wasโฆhelping me get something out of my eye.โ
Secretly, I kicked myself for being so careless. We were in a side hallway of a quieter part of the palace, but there were eyes and ears everywhere. I shouldโve known better than to get into it with Rhys where anyone could pass by and overhear.
Judging from Rhysโs expression, he thought the same thing.
โReally? How considerate of him.โ Andreas didnโt sound convinced, and I didnโt like the way he was sizing us up.
I drew myself up to my full height and stared him down.
I wouldnโt let him intimidate me. Not in my own home.
โYou mentioned you were on your way to your room,โ I said pointedly. โDonโt let us stop you.โ
โFirst time weโve seen each other in years, and this is the greeting I get.โ Andreas sighed, pulling off his gloves
with deliberate slowness before slipping them in his pocket. โYouโre different now that youโre crown princess, dear cousin.โ
โYouโre right,โ I said. โIย amย different. Iโm your future queen.โ
Andreasโs smile slipped, and I saw Rhys smirk out of the corner of my eye.
โIโm glad you made it here safely.โ I extended a small olive branch, if only because I had no desire to engage in overt hostilities with my cousin for the next month or however long he planned on staying here. โBut I have a meeting I need to return to. We can chat later.โ
By later, I meant never, hopefully.
โOf course.โ Andreas tipped his head and cast one last glance at me and Rhys before disappearing down the hall.
I waited a good two minutes before I allowed myself to relax.
โYour cousin seems like a shithead,โ Rhys said.
I laughed, and the mood between us finally lightened.
โNot seems. Heย is.ย But heโs also family, so weโre stuck with him.โ I twisted my ring around my finger, trying to find a tactful way to bring us back to our earlier conversation. โAbout what happened before Andreas interruptedโฆโ
โI came back because I wanted to come back,โ Rhys said. โAndโฆโ He paused, like he was debating whether to say what he was about to say. โI didnโt want you to be alone while youโre dealing with all this shit.โ He gestured toward our lavish surroundings.
Alone.
It was the second time heโd said it. First on my graduation night, and now. He was right both times.
Iโd tried and failed to name the empty, gnawing feeling thatโd haunted me since Rhys left. The one that crept up on me when I lay in bed at night and tried to think of something I looked forward to the next day. The one that washed through me at the oddest moments, like when I
was in the middle of an event or pretending to laugh along with everyone else.
Now, I had a name for it. Loneliness.
โWell.โ I smiled, trying to hide how much his words had affected me. โItโs nice to have you back, Mr. Larsen. At least, when youโre not acting like a grade-A you-know- what.โ
He chuckled. โItโs nice to be back, princess.โ
Thisย was the reunion Iโd wanted. I didnโt like Andreas, but at least heโd broken the ice between me and Rhys.
โSo, where do we go from here?โ No matter what we said, he wasnโt just my bodyguard, and deep down, we both knew it.
โWe go wherever you go,โ Rhys said. โI keep you safe.
The end.โ
โYou make it sound so simple.โย When reality is so complicated.ย Between Costa Rica, his departure, and his reappearance right when pressure to find a โsuitableโ husband bore down on me, I felt like a bug stuck in a web of secrets and responsibilities I couldnโt free myself from.
โIt is simple.โ Rhys spoke with such quiet confidence it resonated in my bones. โI made a mistake when I left, and Iโm fixing it.โ
โJust like that.โ
โJust like that.โ The corner of his mouth tipped up. โThough I imagine youโll make it as difficult for me as possible.โ
I let out a soft laugh. โWhen have things ever been easy for us?โ
But even though I was still upset with Rhys for leaving in the first place, I realized something. The empty, gnawing feeling had disappeared.