Dashing: A Royal Cinderella Billionaire Story

by Brooks, Sophie

  I fought the urge to stick my tongue out at her. It had been my go-to response when I was younger and she was being maddening. But I was too happy for that kind of thing today. “We’re… umm… getting along really well now.”

  Autumn raised an eyebrow. “How well?”

  That was a bit harder to answer.

  “Are you… dating?” The expression on her face showed that she knew it was a ridiculous term to apply to the circumstances, too.

  “I guess you’d call it that if this were a normal situation.”

  “This situation is so far from normal that they’re not even on the same planet.” Autumn’s tone was dry.

  “I know.”

  “Let’s put it this way. Are you happy?”

  “God, yes. He’s amazing, Autumn. I never knew I could like a man this much.”

  “Just ‘like’?”

  I knew what she was asking. Did I love the prince? I could, quite easily, if I let myself. But I was holding back, and I suspect Nico was too. The only way our current alliance worked was if we didn’t let ourselves think too much about the future.

  Though I had anyway.

  Autumn sighed. “You can’t lose your heart or you’re going to get hurt. You both will.”

  “I know it’s complicated…”

  She scoffed. “That’s about as much of an understatement as you can make. Remember how after I met Ford, we found out about all that stuff that happened in the past? That was complicated. This situation with Nico, it’s…” She trailed off. “I hate to say it, but it might be impossible.”

  The word hit me hard, but I refused to believe it. Hope was all I had now. “You know me… never say never.” It was a struggle to keep my tone light.

  My sister’s face was sympathetic, but she was determined to make her point. “You’re American, and he’s European royalty. He’s going to be king someday. And you said it yourself—he’s never setting foot in the US again. Even if you two could somehow work something out, could you give up your entire country? What would you do? You can’t be a nanny forever.”

  “I wouldn’t be. I can do stuff from here. Like helping Von with his play. I told you that Professor Adams liked it, right? He sent some feedback for us to incorporate.”

  Autumn dismissed Von with an irritated wave of her hand much the way Nico did whenever I brought him up. “What about graduate school?”

  “I can take classes online.”

  “What about teaching?”

  “That doesn’t matter. I’m not a teacher anymore, remember?”

  Her eyes flashed, and I knew she wanted to argue that point, but apparently she decided there were bigger fish to fry.

  “I can make it work, Autumn. I know I can. If Nico even wants us to stay together, that is.”

  “Have you talked about it?”

  “Not much,” I admitted. “Things are just so good between us right now that neither one of us wants to mess that up.”

  “How good of a relationship can it be if you’re afraid to talk about the future?”

  “Please, Autumn, can’t you be happy for me? I’ve never met a man like him. He’s the most amazing person I know, and he feels the same way about me. I just… I don’t want to do anything jeopardize that right now.”

  Autumn sighed. “I guess he is a pretty special guy if he recognizes how awesome you are.”

  I smiled, appreciating her attempt to lighten the mood. “It’ll work out. You’ll see. I can fly in for visits a couple of times a year. You guys can fly out here. We can talk on Skype every day if we want. It would almost be like being together in person.”

  My sister was quiet for a moment. “There are some things that you can’t do over long distance.” She paused and then added, “Like babysitting.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I’m not babysitting, I’m a nanny. It’s entirely diff—” I broke off, examining my sister closely: the small smile on her face; the light in her eyes; the way one hand rested lightly on her abdomen. My words got caught in my throat for a moment before I could get them out. “Autumn… are you going to have a baby?”

  “Yes.”

  “Oh my god!” I threw myself at her, wrapping my arms around her but being careful not to press against her stomach. “How long have you known?”

  “A few weeks. I wanted to tell you in person.”

  “Congratulations!” I wiped the back of my hand across my eyes. “This is so amazing. How did Ford react?”

  “He’s thrilled. He went all out, of course. He pretty much bought the entire contents of a baby store. And he’s being overprotective as hell. He won’t let me do anything—he waits on me hand and foot.”

  “That sounds like him,” I said with a laugh. He’d always been crazy about my sister. “Just enjoy letting him take care of you.”

  “I am, for now, but I can already tell it’ll get old soon. Fortunately, when the baby arrives, he can expend all that energy on her.”

  “It’s a girl?” My tears intensified.

  “It’s too soon to tell, but for some reason I keep thinking of her as a girl.”

  “I guess we’ll find out.” I took Autumn’s hand and squeezed it. But then my I paused, tilting my head to the side. If I stayed here, I’d be nine time zones away when the baby was born. Of course I could fly back for that—but there would be a lot of other things I’d miss out on, everything from seeing my sister’s stomach grow big to making sure Ford didn’t turn the nursery into a miniature toy store.

  Autumn scooted closer and put her arm around my shoulders. We’d sat like this many times when I was younger and needed her support. Now that she was pregnant, she’d need my support.

  But the children and Nico needed my support, too.

  Why were the people I cared about located on opposite sides of the world?

  26

  Cara

  “Thank you, Gretchen, for all your years of service at the royal palace.” Nico held his drink aloft, and I did too. Even the twins had a small flute of champagne. It was Gretchen’s anniversary of working at the castle and Nico had invited her for dinner.

  “Thank you so much, Your Majesties—and Cara.” Gretchen smiled as servers brought in plates of steak and potatoes. She seemed excited to be joining us even though it was just a fairly regular dinner. The twins, too, seemed keyed up. Maybe it was because we’d be leaving for London the next day?

  “Tell us about what it was like when you first started working here,” Nico urged.

  “No, tell us what Nico was like when he was a little boy,” I countered, winking at the twins. “The more embarrassing, the better.” The kids grinned, eager to hear whatever Gretchen revealed.

  The older woman smiled, her cheeks rosy. “Now, miss, don’t try to get me in trouble. Do you think I lasted thirty years here by telling secrets about the royal family?”

  “I guess not,” I conceded.

  “Mind you, if I did ever tell start telling stories… they’d be really good ones.”

  Everyone laughed, and Nico smirked at me, pleased that my effort to get Gretchen to spill the beans had failed.

  The steak was delicious. Fortunately, I’d finally gotten comfortable with the European style of holding the silverware. The food was too good to have to worry that each forkful might go astray.

  Derrick and Elyse finished eating faster than us, both leaving food on their plates. They were staring at each other intently, and not for the first time, I got the impression that they had some kind of twin telepathy. They looked like they were having some kind of silent argument. Evidently Elyse won—she raised her eyebrows and nodded at her brother until he spoke up.

  “Umm… dad?”

  “Yes?” Nico put his fork and knife down.

  “I’m really excited about Apollo.” The peregrine falcon was supposed to be coming by courier—a friend of Wilhelm’s—over the weekend.

  “Me too.”

  “But Wilhelm said it might get here by Friday.”

  Nico drank so
me wine before responding. “That’s unlikely. It probably won’t be until Saturday or Sunday.”

  “But it could be on Friday,” Derrick persisted.

  “Then you’ll just have to meet Apollo when we get back from London.”

  Derrick was momentarily quiet, seeming to think about this. An elbow from his sister spurred him into speech again. “I just… I’d really like to see him right when he gets here, when Wilhelm put him in the mews. I want to know what he thinks of his new home.”

  “You can do all of that when you get back.”

  “Yes, but I want to see the first time. I was wondering… could I stay here instead of going to London?”

  Nico looked at his son in surprise. “You don’t want to go?”

  “I do,” Derrick said quickly. “But I really want to see Apollo when he gets here. Please, dad? We’ve been waiting for him for weeks, and I don’t want to miss anything.”

  Nico looked thoughtful. It wasn’t up to me, but I was torn. I’d really been looking forward to taking the kids around London. We had a lot planned for the two days when Nico would be tied up in meetings.

  Finally, Nico spoke. “Well, I guess if it’s really important to you, sure. We’re going to miss you in London, though.”

  “Thanks, Dad.”

  I spoke up. “Elyse, we can pick out some nice souvenirs to bring back for your brother.”

  “But I want to see the falcon, too. Can’t I stay, too?”

  “Neither of you want to go? We’ve been planning this for over a week.” Nico sounded dismayed.

  “I know, but Derrick keeps talking about Apollo all the time, I want to see him. We can take pictures and send them to you,” she added, looking in my direction.

  “That won’t be necessary. I’m your nanny. If you stay, I stay, too.” I smiled cheerfully, but inside I felt a little disappointed at the turn of events.

  “No!” Elyse said, looking at Derrick for a moment before turning her gaze to Gretchen.

  “Oh, but miss,” Gretchen began. “You’ve been looking forward to seeing your friend at the theater.”

  “Yeah, you have to give him the thank-you card I made for him,” Elyse added.

  “We can mail that, silly. If you both stay, then I’m staying,” I said.

  Derrick and Elyse stared at each other, silently communicating again. What was with them tonight?

  “I can take care of them,” Gretchen said abruptly. “It would be my pleasure—just like old times. You should go to London, miss. It’s lovely this time of the year.”

  “Yes, you should,” Derrick added. “We’ll be really good here. We won’t run off.”

  “I can’t go without you two—can I?” Helplessly, I looked at Nico. He was staring shrewdly at the twins.

  After a long moment, his gaze shifted to Gretchen. “Are you sure? They’re a lot to handle.”

  “Of course I’m sure,” Gretchen said briskly. “We’ll be fine. They’re like my own grandchildren.”

  “And Apollo will be your grandchild, too,” Derrick said eagerly.

  “Naturally,” Gretchen responded without missing a beat.

  Nico rolled his eyes. “Just what every woman dreams of—having a bird of prey in the family.” He shook his head as if in disbelief at this turn of events. “Well… if you all are sure… then I guess it’ll just be the two of us going to London.”

  His hand found mine under the table, and the realization sunk in as his long fingers stroked mine. Nico and I were going to London. Together. Without two tiny, twin chaperones.

  A warm glow was spreading through my limbs as my mind raced ahead at the possibilities. We’d be together for four days. It seemed almost too good to be true.

  Later, after I tucked the twins into bed, I couldn’t help knocking on the way past Gretchen’s room. She opened the door with a smile.

  We spoke for a few minutes about Derrick and Elyse. Yes, she’d looked after them for years, but currently, I knew more about their daily schedule than she did.

  She asked some questions, jotted a few things down, and then did her best to reassure me. “We’ll be fine. You just go enjoy yourself. You haven’t had much time off since you started working here.”

  Her mention of work reminded me of something. “It sure was nice having you at dinner tonight.”

  “Thank you, miss,” she said, smiling innocently.

  “And it seemed like quite a coincidence, too—today being your anniversary here.”

  “I suppose that’s true.”

  Her face gave nothing away, so I had to be more direct. “Is today really the anniversary of your starting to work here?”

  She shot me a smile. “Goodness knows, that was a long time ago. It very well could be.”

  I shook my head, but I couldn’t help the half-laugh, half-groan that escaped my lips. “I knew it.”

  It’s not that I wasn’t grateful to her and the twins for scheming to send Nico and me to London alone. This trip seemed like a dream come true. But I was also bothered that Elyse, Derrick, and even Gretchen seemed so invested in the nature of our relationship. The last thing I wanted was for their hopes to be dashed. “Thank you, Gretchen.”

  “I hope you and the prince have a very nice time, miss.”

  I hoped so, too. But hope could be a fickle thing sometimes. Maybe it was best not to have any expectations of how our trip might go.

  Or at least that was what I kept telling myself.

  27

  Cara

  “This is the best breakfast I’ve ever had.” Sadly, however, my stomach was too full to eat another bite.

  Nico set down his cup of coffee. “Are you saying that this hotel in the heart of this loud, crowded city makes better breakfast than the royal palace of my homeland?”

  “Umm… yes?”

  “I agree,” Nico said, and I laughed. “Though when you think about it, shouldn’t a castle outrank a hotel, even a swanky one like this?”

  “Seems like it would if this were a chess game.”

  Nico took a huge bite of the crispest bacon imaginable. Over his shoulder, I saw someone coming toward us. “Incoming.”

  He groaned softly, putting the bacon down. So far this morning, the hotel manager, an investment banker, and a family of tourists had come over to talk to us. Well, to talk to Nico.

  This time, however, it was someone I’d met before—Thompson, the head of the security detail Nico had booked for our trip. At Nico’s invitation, he sat down next to us, a phone in his hand.

  “May we talk about the logistics for today, sir?” Though professional, Thompson didn’t seem to want to draw attention to Nico by using his title.

  “Yes. I’ve got another day of meetings.”

  “The same place as yesterday?” Thompson asked.

  “No, first at a bank and then an office across the river.” Nico told him the addresses. Thompson typed into his phone.

  “And for you, Miss Andrews? Back to the Hugo Theater?”

  “Not today, thank you.” The Hugo was the theater where Frankie worked. I’d spent hours there yesterday, catching up with him, touring the costume shop and sitting in on a rehearsal. It had been a fantastic day.

  “What do you plan to do today, miss?”

  “I’m not sure. Perhaps some sightseeing?”

  “Why don’t you wait until tomorrow until I can go with you?” Nico said, his hand on my forearm. Then he turned to Thompson. “Could you give us a moment?” The man nodded and left.

  “It would be great to go together,” I agreed. “Sightseeing is not as enjoyable with just a two-man security detail trailing you.”

  “I’m sorry,” Nico said, his voice gentle. “I know it’s not much fun, but I always need more security when I travel abroad. And I thought the twins would be here, so I booked more men than usual.”

  He was just concerned about safety, I knew that. Still, it felt a bit stifling. “Since it’s just us, can we cut back a little? It’s been okay so far.”

>   “That’s probably because they haven’t figured out I’m here yet.”

  “They?”

  “The paparazzi. They can get really aggressive in London. I’ve seen it get bad before. They’ll shove you, insult you or your companions… they’ll do anything they can to get a reaction out of you so that they can snap a picture. It can get pretty ugly.”

  I sighed, lost in memories for a moment. I’d never experienced anything that bad, but Autumn and Ford had fallen under the press’s scrutiny a few times and it hadn’t been pleasant. “Maybe I’ll just stay in today.”

  “That’s an idea,” Nico said. “They’ve got everything here. A spa, hairstylists, even a boutique. You can get a new dress and get your hair done.”

  “That kind of stuff’s not usually my thing.”

  “Ah, but I forgot to tell you the best part. Once you spend the day pampering yourself, then a prince will show up and take you to the most amazing dinner of your life.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes,” he said, picking up my hand and kissing the back of it.

  “Do I get my choice of princes? Because I’ve always been partial to Harry’s red hair.”

  Nico rolled his eyes and bit the tip of my index finger lightly. “Be good,” he said with a growl.

  “Make me,” I answered back.

  “I might… tonight. But first, I’ve got some meetings across town. I’d say enjoy making yourself look beautiful today, but you already look beautiful. So enjoy relaxing and not having to climb up to the roof to look at pigeons.”

  I laughed. “That does sound like a good day.”

  Nico gestured, and Thompson returned to our table. I got to my feet as he arrived.

  “Have a wonderful day, Liebling.” Nico’s voice was full of warmth as he said the term of endearment. I’d looked it up when he started using it a week or two ago. Various sites translated it as either darling or favorite.