by Ella Miles
“Shit.” I run my hand through my hair, trying to think about what we should do. How we will salvage this. How to keep Ivy in my life but also as protected as she can be. But my mind is racing so fast that it’s hard to come up with anything.
I turn to Thomas. “I’m going to go talk to Margaret. You handle getting Ivy somewhere where she’s safe and protected. Understood?”
“I’ll make sure she’s escorted back up to her room, Your Highness.”
“We don’t have time for all that Your Highness. Don’t let her back into the ballroom. I don’t want her to deal with this right now. Tell her nothing, just that I will be up soon and she’s not to worry.”
I start running across the ballroom in search of Margaret. She’s seated at her table with her usual scowl on her face. But, this time, she looks even angrier than before. I hear the commotion behind me, and I freeze. I’m standing in the middle of the ballroom when I slowly turn around to see that Ivy has entered. She gets swarmed immediately by press and others asking her questions, trying to figure out why she lied about who she really is. And what a stripper is doing here. Because, of course, that’s the only thing the press report on. Her past as a stripper. Not the fact that she saves animals every single day.
I lock eyes with her over the crowd, doing my best to reassure her that I’ll be there in just a second. But I feel someone’s hands on me, holding me back before I have a chance to take a step toward her.
“We need to get you somewhere safe before all hell breaks out,” Andy says.
“We have to get Ivy first.”
“We have a team going in for her. It’s best that she go out the other way instead of through the crowd. I’ll have her brought around to you.”
I don’t move. I’m too worried about Ivy. She is clearly in shock. I wasn’t expecting the chaos that has now broken out around her. But I spy several of the other bodyguards moving toward her, only seconds away. So, I let Andy start pulling me away even though it kills me that I can’t see her for even a second.
I promised I would protect her. But it’s clear in just the twenty-four hours she’s been here that I can’t. I can’t protect her from anything. I should’ve never brought her here.
Andy pulls me into a small room that he secured. I see that Murray and Margaret are seated on two of the couches in the small sitting room that hardly ever gets used. It’s just the closest room to the ballroom where Andy thinks he can keep us safe.
I walk over to Margaret. “So, what’s the plan? How do we resolve this?”
She looks at me with pain in her eyes. “We don’t.”
“What do you mean? There has to be some sort of plan. This isn’t Ivy’s fault. And this isn’t even the worst scandal that we’ve been through. It’ll all blow over. We just need to do some damage control about her past. And, if she chooses not to stay here, I just need to find a new woman fast to spark the public’s interest.”
Margaret runs her hand through her hair with a worried expression on her face that I haven’t seen in a long time. I sink down onto the couch next to her, so they can look at me.
“What is it?” I ask even though I’m afraid to.
“She’s not the one, Luca. I desperately wanted her to be, for your sake. I thought she was strong enough. I thought she was intelligent enough. And maybe she has those things.”
“What are you talking about?”
“She didn’t keep the secret. She didn’t keep the lie. She told Jennifer her real name. She is the reason that the press now knows her entire past. And, if she can’t keep a secret that simple, how can she keep any of ours?”
My mouth drops with all the air sucked out of my lungs. I can’t marry Ivy. I can’t even ask her. It doesn’t matter that it was an honest mistake. If she slipped up with any of our lies, everything that we’ve built the last twenty years will come crashing down. This country will be in turmoil. Everything will be destroyed.
I have to stop loving her. Period. Because she can’t be the princess.
25
Ivy
I step back inside the ballroom, and everything is chaos. Everyone is staring at me. As I take a step forward, everyone starts running toward me, all asking questions, saying my real name, revealing a past that I never thought would come back to haunt me. Cameras are thrust into my face as more and more questions are asked.
I eventually stop listening, trying my best to tune them out, while I search for the only thing that does matter in my life—Luca. I spot him in the center of the ballroom and make eye contact for just a second, long enough for him to reassure me that he is on this and is going to figure it out. That he’s going to protect me, like he always does.
I take a deep breath and try to calm my beating heart and my heavy breathing as I watch Andy approach Luca and start leading him out of the room. As much as I wish that Luca were standing right beside me, I’m actually happy that Andy has him. He’ll keep him safe, and I’m sure that I’ll be reunited with him soon enough.
I feel a hand on my arm, and I try to pull it away, but the grip is far too strong—something that I have gotten far to used to since coming here. I look up to see whose hand is holding on to me.
A bodyguard, I realize. Thank God.
I think he says something to me, but the crowd is much too loud for me to hear, so instead, I just let him guide me with his hands out of the ballroom and away from the crowd.
“What is going on?” I ask the bodyguard.
He continues to hold on to me as he focuses on getting me somewhere safer than this hallway. I glance around and notice at least three more members of the security team surrounding us.
“There’s time for explanations later. Right now, I need to get you to safety.”
We move forcefully and quickly down the hallway and toward a door at the other end. A few people have started emerging from the ballroom, but the security team doesn’t give me enough time to worry about them as we move quickly past them. Still, I can’t help but notice the closer that we get to the other end of the hallway, the more people come spilling out of the ballroom, trying to get to us.
So that they can ask more invading questions to sell newspapers, I think.
The door opens at the end of the hallway, preparing to let us in when we get there, and I can see Luca. But before we can get there, the crowd breaks loose and shots ring out. I stare at Luca in the room and see his eyes, the fear in them for just a second before the door is slammed shut in our faces, and then I’m being pulled away to a nearer room.
I have no idea what just happened or when I’ll see Luca again. I don’t think any shots were fired into the room for the split second that the door to Luca was open, but I can’t be sure as more shots ring out around us. The security team surrounds me and carries me off, not giving me time to think. They don’t stop until I’m outside, shoved into a car, and driven far away from here. Far away from Luca. Giving me no idea if Luca is safe or already gone.
It’s been two days. Two freaking days, and they haven’t told me anything. I’ve been locked in a hotel room—albeit a nice hotel room, but with no access to the outside world. They didn’t even give me access to a TV, so I don’t even know what happened that night.
I haven’t heard from Luca in all that time either. Not one single word.
It makes me automatically fear that the worst has happened. Were more shots fired? Was Luca killed? I never even heard if they caught the guys who had kidnapped me. Did they come back that night? Were they the ones behind the shooting?
I’m about to lose my mind, being alone in the hotel room with no answers, when I hear the hotel room door open again. The security team usually comes in and checks on me a couple of times a day to provide food and any other basic necessities I need, but they never answer any of my questions, which is the only thing I really need.
I run to the door, expecting Drew, the security guard that has been protecting me, or one of the other guys whose names I’ve learned, planning on doing eve
rything I can to get some answers.
It’s not any of them though. It’s Luca.
I run to him and tightly wrap my arms around him. He does the same, hugging me back, tightly holding me like he’s never, ever going to let me go again.
“Oh, thank God that you’re alive,” I sob into his neck. “I thought that something had happened to you. I thought that you had been killed.”
Luca slowly lets go of me, taking a step backward. “Something did happen, Ivy.”
I wipe my eyes and step closer to him, but he retreats quickly backward, like he can’t stand to hold me or touch me anymore.
“What happened?” I ask.
“Let’s go sit down,” Luca says, walking toward the chairs in my living room.
He takes his seat, and I take a seat in the closest chair to him.
“What happened?” I ask again.
“There was another attack. A different group this time, but they tried to kill us.”
“Oh my God. Was anyone hurt?”
“A bullet grazed my arm, but it was nothing serious.”
My eyes immediately go to his left bicep where I notice a small bandage for the first time.
“My father’s dead,” he says next.
My heart sinks. “Luca, I’m so sorry. I know how much you loved your father.”
I touch my hand to his, trying to provide him with some comfort, but he pulls his hand away.
“It wasn’t a bullet that got him. It was a heart attack. Something that could have happened at any time, under any level of stress.”
“I’m so sorry,” I say, not knowing what else to say.
We both sit in silence for a long time—Luca thinking about his father and me frustrated that he won’t let me comfort him.
“Why do people keep trying to kill you and your family?” I finally ask.
“Because they want power. And they wouldn’t have to go too far down the succession line to get the power they want. All they need now is my mother and me gone. I don’t have an heir. I don’t have anyone else to pass the crown on to if I were killed.”
“I’m so sorry, Luca. I wish I could’ve been there for you when that happened.”
“I’m glad you weren’t.”
“What do you mean?”
“Because, as horrible as losing my father was, something else happened that night that devastated me even more.”
“What could be worse than losing your father?” I ask, not believing that anything worse could have happened.
“Losing you.”
“What do you mean? You still have me. I’ll marry you tomorrow if it could be arranged that quickly. If this last week has taught me anything, it has taught me that life is far too short to let little things get in the way.”
“You see, that’s just it. I’m running out of time. And you couldn’t keep the lie. Not one single lie.”
I suck in a breath, realizing why he is upset. “I didn’t do it on purpose. It was just a slip of the tongue. I was going to tell you, but then we got distracted, and everything else happened. I didn’t mean to tell Jennifer who I really am. What my real name is. I didn’t mean for all my past history and scandal to become yours, too.” I pause. “I’m sure we can do some damage control. We can fix it. Especially with everyone mourning your father’s death.”
“It’s not about that, Ivy. It was all one big test to ensure that you were the right fit for me. Because I don’t get to choose a woman based on whom I love. I have to choose a woman based on what’s best for this country. And what’s best for this country is my family staying in power, and that means keeping secrets. Secrets that we can no longer trust with you because you failed the test.”
I sink back into my chair. “It’s my fault you got shot. It’s my fault your father is dead, isn’t it?” I ask. I already know the answer that he’s going to give will be a lie.
“No,” he says.
But I know he’s lying. I know that it’s all connected. That if my scandal hadn’t caused chaos that night, giving the shooter the perfect opportunity to take a shot at Luca, then his father might still be alive.
It’s then when I realize that, even if Luca wanted me right now, I wouldn’t take him back. He is right; I’m not what’s best for him or this country. I put him in danger, and I don’t want to do that.
I have to let him go even though it is going to be the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I have to make him realize that, that is what I really want. Because I know him. He broke up with me before because he knew in his heart that we weren’t a good fit for his life. But then he came back. I have to make sure that he doesn’t come back this time. He needs to marry someone like Jennifer, someone who understands this world far better than I ever will. Someone who will keep him safe and protect the power that they need to hold on to, for the sake of the country.
“Well, I guess there’s no point in hiding anymore,” I say slowly, carefully choosing my words.
Luca leans forward in his chair.
“I told Jennifer on purpose. I never forgave you for all the lying and pain you caused me. I thought the scandal would destroy you. I thought it would hurt you to be dating a woman with such a scandalous past. I just didn’t realize how full of scandal your family really was.”
I stand up, intent on going to the bedroom and getting out of here as quickly as I can so that Luca doesn’t see me cry.
Luca grabs my arm, stopping me from ducking into the bedroom where I plan on crying my eyes out. “That’s a lie.”
I slowly turn to look at him because he needs to see that I’m brave enough to look him in the eyes when I say it. He needs to never question that what I’m about to say is anything but the truth. I need to break his heart to protect him.
“I never loved you. I just said it so that I could make you hurt like you made me hurt.”
“That’s a lie?” Luca asks.
I smirk. “I guess you’ll never know.”
Luca drops my arm as he gives in to the lie, just like I did with all of his before. He starts walking to the door, completely done with me. He pauses for just a second. “I’ll have the security team pack you up and get you on the next flight home. Don’t worry about your safety. You will have a small security team follow you around until it’s determined that you’re safe again.” He pauses a second longer. “Good-bye, Ivy.”
And then he’s gone. He walks out my door and out of my life forever.
My heart breaks into a thousand tiny pieces, and I know there’s no hope of ever getting over him again.
26
Luca
Losing my father was hard. Losing Ivy was worse.
I replay our last exchange over and over again in my head. I still don’t know if she was telling the truth or not. She felt so sincere when she said it. But I thought I knew her. I thought I loved her. And I thought she loved me back.
But I guess lying to her and hurting her before did too much damage to her for her to ever forgive me. She wanted to hurt me back. And she got her wish.
But it’s probably for the best. Because, that way, I didn’t hurt her again. She had already guarded her heart, which made it easier for her to leave.
While I’m stuck here. Margaret will have a new princess for me to marry within the week. I’ll be married, and then shortly after that, I’ll become the king. This is what my whole life has been building toward. This is what all the sacrifices I’ve made were for. For this moment right now.
But, instead of being ready for the moment, I’m in incredible pain. There’s a hole left in my heart that will never be filled again.
I shake my head. It kills me that Ivy will never know the truth. She will never understand that all the lies were not really lies at all. And, worst of all, she’ll never know I was willing to give all of this up for her.
27
Ivy
Three Months Later
My life has gone pretty much back to normal in the months since I left Luca. I’ve buried myself in work, tr
ying my best not to think about him. But, unfortunately, since he visited the clinic, everything there reminds me of him. Just like everything at home does.
But, somehow, I’ve managed to get back into a routine again. Wake up extra early to go to work. Stay late. Come home to my dogs and cats. Drink or cry until I fall asleep, and then get up the next day to do it all over again. That’s my life now. Staying as busy as I can so that I don’t have any time to think. And that’s how my life is gonna remain forever if I have the choice.
Skye has been the one who surprised me the most. I thought that she would be happy that Luca and I broke up. I thought that she would be throwing guy after guy at me, trying to get me to move past him and on to someone bigger and better. But she hasn’t. Instead, she’s encouraged me to do the opposite. She wants me to call Luca.
Every damn day that I go into the office and see her, that’s what she tells me to do. To call Luca.
I finally snapped at her the other day. I yelled and screamed and told her to stop meddling in my life. We haven’t talked since. It is really a shame because I have a court hearing today for the lawsuit that was filed against me, and I could really use a friend.
I walk into my closet and put on the jacket that matches the skirt and heels I bought to wear to court. That’s what my lawyer suggested—that I wear something pretty and feminine yet businesslike. So, that’s what I’m wearing.
My lawyer is confident he can win my case, and he should be for the amount of money that I’m paying him. He is one of the best lawyers in the country. He just wasn’t good enough to get the case dropped before having to go to court.
I feel something cold and wet lick my hand. I look down to see Sophie licking my hand. I sigh as I bend down and pet her, knowing that the dog hair is going to go all over my skirt and jacket. But maybe that’s a good thing. Maybe it’ll make it seem like I actually give a shit about the animals that I treat. Instead of the coldhearted, businesslike woman that my attorney wants me to look like.
