by S. E. Rose
“So good to see you again so soon, Auggie,” she says. She seems to get her composure as she pulls back. A polite smile graces her face.
“Well, this is quite a surprise. I assumed Ashlyn would be joining us.” I raise an eyebrow.
Kate’s face turns pink, but she’s saved when her mother pipes up. “Oh, Ashlyn had something at school, but she’ll be here the day after tomorrow. It’ll be so nice for us all to have a few days to relax here. We’ve been meaning to take a family vacation for a while now.”
“Yes, it will be great to have our girls together,” John adds as he motions for us all to take a seat.
I chose to sit across from Kate because I don’t want to seem too eager in front of her parents. I chide myself for caring too much. What is it about this woman?
“So, what brings you to the French Riviera?” John asks as he places a napkin in his lap.
“Oh, just taking a few days to enjoy some sun,” I say.
I’m saved by my aunt launching into questions about their family trip and what they plan to see. The conversation flows naturally as everyone talks about their favorite parts of the region. I’m surprised how normal Kate’s family is. They seem relaxed in our presence but also grounded as a family unit. It’s refreshing to see power not destroy a family.
Kathryn
It takes me a good hour to get over the shock of seeing Auggie at the restaurant. Never in a million years would I have thought he’d be dining with my family. Clearly, he didn’t know he’d be seeing me either from the look of surprise on his face when he spotted me.
His aunt and Logan’s uncle are both charming. I can tell Prince Sten is a bit of a wild child at heart, which makes it even funnier that he’s with Princess Lara who is much more formal than he is.
I’m a little taken aback when Auggie suggests we head down to Italy. What. The. Fuck. Why does everyone want us to go to Italy? Does Auggie not want to see me? I decide to stay cordial until after dinner. My skin crawls as I realize that I was just another fuck for him, a fling, a notch on his belt. I can feel myself stewing with anger that seems to grow with each course of our meal.
I pretend to stay interested in the conversation. Telling stories from the ball and my time in Norddale. But as dessert comes to an end, I try to think of a way to exit as quickly as possible without making a scene.
“Well, I—”
“Kate, why don’t you join me after dinner. I was thinking of taking out the boat for a sunset cruise,” Auggie pipes up as everyone quiets at the table.
Oh. God. Oh. God. I’m like a deer in the headlights. My mouth opens and then closes.
“Oh, you should go, dear. It sounds like fun. Dad and I didn’t have any big plans for this evening,” my mother chimes in because I know she wants me hanging around royalty. Ugh.
“S-sure,” I stammer, taking a sip of water.
“Excellent. I’ll have our security drive us down to the marina. I’ve just texted our captain, so the vessel is ready to go,” he says before looking around the table. “Everyone is welcome, of course.”
Being the traders that they are, my parents quickly make up some lame excuse of why they can’t join us. Lara and Sten have a valid excuse that they really ought to catch their flight this evening as scheduled.
Auggie stands when I begin to rise, and Sten and my father quickly follow suit. I want to roll my eyes at the archaic practice.
“Have a wonderful evening, darling,” my mom says as she hugs me. My father kisses my forehead and gives me a grin that says he approves of Auggie. Fuck. My. Life.
After everyone says their goodbyes, Auggie takes my arm and leads me out to a car. I can see Jackie and Dominic get in a vehicle behind us as we travel the short distance to the marina.
I’m quiet as we drive because I don’t know what to say. But my temper gets the best of me after about two minutes.
“Why the hell are you here?” I ask Auggie, my voice laced with anger.
He turns toward me with a raised eyebrow. “I should be asking you the very same question.”
I huff. “Well, I didn’t know I was going to be here. What’s your excuse?”
“I did know,” he says casually.
“But now you just want us to change our travel plans because you had dibs first. What the hell, Auggie?” I practically yell through gritted teeth.
Auggie sighs and runs a hand through his hair. “Look,” he starts but glances up at the driver and security guard in the front of the car. “We both didn’t know. It’s a happy coincidence. Let’s just enjoy some added time together, OK?”
“Fine. Whatever,” I say and turn back toward the window. I don’t get this guy. One minute he wants me in another country and the next he’s happy I’m here with him. It’s like being with Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
He doesn’t speak another word to me until we get out of the car and walk up to a massive sailboat.
“Here we go,” he says as he holds out a hand to help me walk up the stairs onto the sailboat.
I stop once I’m on the deck. “It’s…beautiful,” I say because it is.
“Have a seat.” He motions to a sitting area in the front of the boat. “I’ll join you as soon as I speak with our captain.”
“Your Highness,” a man says. I see a man not much older than Auggie approach us. He hugs Auggie, and they speak in Swedish, I think.
“This is Erich. He’s our captain,” Auggie says to me.
“A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Miss Bradford,” he says, extending a hand. I shake it. “If there’s anything you need, just let my first mate, Ingrid, or me know.”
I nod. “Thank you,” I say quietly.
Auggie speaks to him some more for a few minutes as Jackie, Dominic, and Nico all get situated. Nico is Auggie’s main guard. He has others but seems to prefer him. I feel like there’s a story there, but I’m still too seething to ask about it.
I walk up to the front of the boat and sit on a built-in lounge chair. The sun is getting lower in the sky and I watch some sea birds diving for fish in the distance. A moment later, Auggie sits down next to me as the captain gets our journey underway.
Auggie doesn’t speak until the wind is blowing across the sails. He leans into me.
“Listen, I don’t want you to leave, but I do need you to leave. It’s for your safety,” he says to me.
I draw back in surprise, meeting his intense gaze. “My safety?” I repeat, pointing to myself in confusion.
He nods. “Yes. I can’t tell you anymore, just that it’d be better if you all were…elsewhere this week.”
I narrow my eyes at him. “Seriously? You can’t say shit like that and just expect me to not ask questions.”
Auggie sighs and leans back against the cushions. He’s quiet for a long moment, contemplating something. I can see the struggle play out over his face. I’m about to give up on him telling me anything when he turns to me as though gauging my trustworthiness. “Do you know about my mother’s crown?” His voice is low, and I almost don’t hear it with all the wind blowing around us.
His question takes me by surprise. “Y-yes?” I answer. His eyes search mine again.
I decide at that moment that I want him to trust me. I don’t know why. I don’t understand why. I just do. I reach out and grip his hand, giving it a squeeze of encouragement. My eyes search his back and I know the moment he decides that he can trust me because the fierce look in his eyes dissipates into something else less severe.
“I’m here to find it,” he finally reveals.
I blink because I don’t understand. I mean, I understand that the crown belonging to his mother is missing. It’s like one of those famous unsolved mysteries, like Amelia Earhart’s plane or the Lost City of Atlantis or all those missing planes in the Bermuda Triangle.
“It’s here?” I ask, looking around like an idiot as though the crown is right here on this sailboat.
He motions back to shore. “It might be here. I…” He trails off
as he contemplates his words.
I bite my lip because I’m about to jump off a giant-ass cliff and I see it coming but I don’t care. My anger from earlier is now gone, replaced with concern. I need to know because…I suddenly realize that I want to help him. I care about him, and that thought scares the shit out of me. “You can trust me, Auggie,” I say as I look up at him. “Trust me.”
I feel like an invisible bubble just formed around us. Part of me never wants to leave. Part of me never wants to be anywhere but right here. I feel safe next to Auggie and I have a foreboding feeling that what he’s about to tell me is going to shatter any false sense of security that I may have.
“There’s an auction,” he begins, “it’s this underground thing. They sell stolen artifacts, artwork.”
“So, you’re going to it?” I ask, my eyes widening in surprise.
“Yes,” he says as he looks back at the shore as though he can see the auction if he looks close enough.
“But…why?” I ask. I still don’t understand.
He’s about to answer when what I gather is our first mate arrives at our side to ask if we’d like champagne. Auggie nods and asks for a bottle of expensive champagne.
He waits to speak until the first mate is back inside the cabin. “When Mom died, Anna was so little. She kept talking about Mom’s crown. Really, it’s a tiara but it was her favorite one. She was wearing it that day because of the gala she was attending was a fancy one. Mostly, Mom used any excuse to wear it. And so it became this fixation for my sister. That’s how she met Logan. She was searching for the crown and came upon a murder for hire on the web. Logan turned out to be a secret prince and someone wanted him and all of us dead. We all know now that someone was my uncle. But even though Anna has put the crown search mostly behind her, I just haven’t let it go. I’m ninety-nine percent sure it wasn’t Uncle Hans that took her crown, but I don’t know who or why. I guess a small part of me just wants answers.”
“Do you think you’ll ever get them though? It’s been years,” I prompt.
He shrugs. “To be honest, I don’t know. I just feel like I can restore a small part of her if I can find that damned crown and bring it home. Every time I go in our crown jewels vault, the empty space it used to sit in is staring back at me and…I just can’t let it go.”
I squeeze his hand. I don’t know if it’s his brutal honesty or the fact that in the mute colors from the sunset he looks younger or if the pained little boy that lost his mother shines through more when he speaks of her, but I find myself wanting to help him, wanting to heal him. I’ve lost my fucking mind, but the words leave my mouth before reason can take hold.
“I want to help.”
He looks at me in shock and then pulls himself together. “No.”
I close my eyes and square my shoulders because I am stubborn, and I don’t like no for an answer.
“Just hear me out. Wouldn’t it make more sense if I come with you? You could be looking for something to buy for me,” I point out.
“No. There’s no fucking way that I’d let you anywhere near the likes of the people who are going to attend this auction,” he hisses, his eyes burning fiercely.
“But—”
He places a finger over my lips. “You are a stubborn woman, Kate. But I can’t risk anything happening to you. Hell, I’m not sure I want to risk going to this auction, but something in my gut tells me I need to be there.”
“At least let me stay with you and help plan it,” I urge. “You may find my skills useful.”
He looks perplexed and I realize he doesn’t know my area of expertise. “You don’t know what I’ve been studying, do you?”
His brows furrow in confusion.
“International relations and politics, but the main topic of my thesis is on the usage of spies in diplomacy,” I explain.
“Seriously?” he asks.
I grin. “So, as you can see, Sir August, I am a well-qualified candidate to advise you on matters of international espionage. And I do believe you require my services since your sister is not here with you.”
“You know about Anna?” he asks.
“Auggie, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure these things out. Plus, as a teenager and college student, I spent a lot of time meandering the halls of the west wing and the walls aren’t too thick if you catch my drift. Before I came here to study last year, I learned about what had happened, well, some parts and with a little detective work of my own, it wasn’t too hard to put it together. Anna’s a dark web genius. She’s a known hacker and that is awesome, but she’s not a trained spy, Auggie, and it sounds like you are about to have to play James Bond. So, let me help you. Please.”
Chapter Fifteen
August
If she thinks for a second that I’m going to let her get involved in anything that might have a hint of danger, then she is sorely mistaken.
“We’ll talk about it later,” I say because I’m a giant fucking pussy and can’t bring myself to disappoint her right now. “For now, let’s enjoy the evening.”
We’re handed champagne as the sunset paints an amazing painting in the sky filled with reds, pinks, and oranges. Kate leans her head on my shoulder as we enjoy our view. I talk about the many times coming here as a child. She’s quiet as she listens to my stories. I don’t know if she’s deep in thought or enamored by my childhood.
“Thanks for inviting me,” she says as we head toward the marina.
“You’re welcome,” I reply as I lean down and kiss her gently.
The car is waiting to take us back when we arrive. We don’t make it far when Nico speaks into his earpiece.
“Yes. Yes. I understand. Ten-four. Copy that,” he says.
I want to roll my eyes at his military speak. “What’s going on?” I ask.
“Change of plans. There’s been a security breach at the house where the president’s family is staying. The president and his wife will be going to a new location tonight. Kate will be coming back with us,” he says.
“Wait? What?” Kate barely has the words out when her phone buzzes.
“Dad? What’s going on?” she says. I can hear the panic in her voice, and I place my hand on her leg. “Uh-huh. When? Are you sure? Fine. Text me when you get there. OK. I love you, too.” She hangs up and looks up at me. “The side gate’s lock was compromised. They don’t see anything on the security video, but they didn’t want to risk it. They are moving them to a small residence that they were able to clear, but my parents prefer it if I stay with you tonight.” She frowns.
“Are they OK?” I ask.
She nods. “I just…it’s odd that they wouldn’t want me with them. I suppose my father has his reasons, but…anyhow. Looks like I’ll be at your place for the evening.”
I smirk. “I’m not complaining,” I say to her. Yeah, I’m trying to lighten the mood, but truthfully, I want to know what the fuck is going on.
She groans. “You really are an ass,” she mutters.
My grin grows because I know it’s true, but I also know she doesn’t truly believe that, and I have no idea why she doesn’t. I’ve not exactly shown her the best side of me so far. To be honest, I don’t even know what the best side is. “I’ve been told that I have a great ass.”
She leans back and looks down at my backside. “I can’t argue with that.” I appreciate the fact that this woman can have a playful side even under stress. She continues to pique my curiosity.
She’s about to say something else when we pull up to the property. Her eyes widen. It is impressive. It’s built into the side of a hill and looks down over the Mediterranean. It’s one of only a few houses along the private drive that is guarded. The gates to the property open and as soon as we are stopped, she pops out of the car. I can see her walking back to Jackie and Dominic. She speaks to them in hushed voices before nodding and walking back over to me. I can’t hear what they’ve said because the wind has picked up, blurring their words.
“You
r Highness, I’d like to get you both inside, now,” Nico says. “Just to be on the safe side.”
I nod. He speaks into his earpiece and I see Dominic look over at Kate. He takes her by the arm and leads her over toward me as the three of them usher us inside.
Once we are in the safeguard of the compound, Kate’s phone rings again. She immediately picks it up.
“Dad?” Her voice is filled with concern and I want to wipe it away. I don’t know why she’s bringing out this caveman, protective side of me; it’s alarming.
I decide to give her privacy. My security will debrief me when they have all the information. I walk toward the pool and stare out at the sea. I’ve spent so many years not caring. I excel at the art of not giving a fuck. I don’t know when I stopped caring. I suppose it was sometime between my mother’s death and the realization that my life was somewhat meaningless. My father once called it the middle child syndrome. Chris says it’s because I’m the spare. Anna thinks it’s because I haven’t found my true calling. But, in all honesty, I think it’s been the lack of purpose in my life. It’s not that I didn’t enjoy my time serving my country in the military. And I loved my college years, too. I never felt a purpose until Kate needed me to get her away from Jared. Suddenly, I was needed. I mattered.
“Auggie?”
I turn and Kate’s standing in the doorway, watching me.
“Everything OK?” I ask. Her brows are furrowed.
“They aren’t sure. Some neighborhood kids were playing nearby. There doesn’t appear to be any video footage showing sabotage of the gate. It could have been the kids. They are checking the video surveillance from nearby properties,” she says on a sigh. “Either way, my parents will be moved to a new location for the duration of the trip.”
“And you?” I ask her, leaning back against the railing.
She shrugs. “My sister comes in tomorrow night. I…should spend time with her.”
She walks over and leans on the railing, looking out at the vista. “Are you actually going to go to this auction?”
I turn and our elbows touch. I swear electricity flies between us. There’s something about this woman.
