I grew up playing in these halls, hiding from my mother and chasing my younger brother. I’m tired and ready for bed when the sound of hushed voices stops me in my tracks.
“Pompous ass. He’s going to kill himself with these outbursts. We need to be ready to move when that happens.” The glee in Hubert’s sniveling voice revives the anger in my chest. I step into the shadows to listen.
“By climbing into bed with Wade Paxton?”
I recognize my uncle’s voice, and my jaw clenches. Is Father right? Is Reginald conspiring with that worm against the crown?
“Wade Paxton would unite the kingdoms and make us both leaders in the new government.”
“Wade Paxton is a thug.”
“Not very respectful verbiage for the Prime Minister of Totrington, also known as our future partner.”
“He’s no better than one of those mob bosses on American television. Savage.” Reggie’s voice is laced with snobbery. “He’d tax the people and change the very nature of Monagasco.”
Hubert’s tone is undeterred. “Some things might change, but as leaders, you and I can help maintain the best parts, the heart of the nation. Once Philip is out of the way, of course, which could be sooner than we think.”
My fists tighten at my sides. I’m ready to step out of the shadows and shake Hubert’s traitorous neck until his teeth rattle. The only thing stopping me is my desire to hear the extent of this treachery.
“You’re right about one thing,” Reggie says. “Philip’s health is tenuous. We need to be prepared to act should a crisis arise.”
“What about Rowan? If he’s not on our side, we could end up in the same position—and with a much younger king to wait out.”
“Possibly.” My uncle pauses, and I feel the heat rising around my collar.
“Wade has a plan for managing such a contingency. Should Rowan prove . . . difficult.”
“I’m sure he does,” Reggie scoffs. “And Cal? Shall we wipe out the entire Tate line?”
Hubert’s voice is low and wicked. “Perhaps being in league with a ‘thug’ as you put it has its advantages.”
How dare these bastards! What they’re saying is high treason! My body is poised to move when Reggie’s words freeze me in place.
“I’m sure Wade’s tactics won’t prove necessary. When the time comes to do the right thing, we can count on Rowan.”
Count on Rowan? Is it possible he thinks I would even consider a merger with Twatrington? Their voices recede down the corridor as my level of disgust and loyalty to my father rises. The king has had a difficult evening. I’ll let him rest tonight, but I will present him with this conspiracy first thing tomorrow. Reggie is right. When the time comes, I will do the right thing.
Looking back, I had no idea the time would come in less than twenty-four hours . . .
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TIA WOULD LIKE to thank Ilsa for having the vision for us doing this. I was a little nervous at first . . . I’d never co-written with anyone and wasn’t sure my writing style would play well with others—LOL! (It’s so scatter-brained and constantly evolving.)
We talked about doing something silly to take the pressure off. We talked about a lot of things. Then Rebecca and Chas appeared in my head so vividly.
Cade was only a fuzzy idea of a cocky jock who helped Rebecca out—in more ways than one (wink). Then you brought him to life so fully and beautifully. He’s an amazing book boyfriend—the absolute best!
So THANK YOU, my friend, for believing in this little tale, for taking this crazy first step with me, for knowing we could do it, and for all the calls and chats and laughs and rants along the way. Here’s to meshing.
I love you!
~T.
Tia, I love your sweet heart, your goofy humor, and the silly emojis you send me because you know they make me giggle. Thank you for writing a short story that we shaped into a full-length, hilariously awesome book.
We’ve had so many great times together: stuck in a hot as heck elevator in Nashville, plotting funny storylines over breakfast in Dallas, and a weekend in Kiawah where you accidentally locked me out of our room. Watch out for alligators!
You’re EPIC, and I love you! I can’t wait to see where this adventure leads us next!
Love, Ilsa xoxo
Special thanks to Tara Sivec for reading the first half of our baby project and giving us our first huge kudos—or death threat if we didn’t send the rest STAT! (same diff . . . )—and on your birthday! Love you, lady!
Thank you to Rebecca Freidman for running her eyes over the beginning (gotta have a hook) and offering feedback.
Thanks to our beta readers Ilona Townsel, Lisa Kuhne, Kylie McDermott, Lisa Paul, Miranda Arnold, and Joy Novel-Thoughts—you ladies are rock stars! Thank you for running your eagle eyes over our story and falling in love with the characters.
Thanks to Wander Aguiar for the gorgeous photography, to David Wills for bringing Cade to life, and to Shannon for the perfect design.
Thanks to all the amazing authors who made time to give us a read and a little praise. We appreciate you more than we could ever say!
Thanks to all the bloggers for sharing your love of our books. You ladies are the stars of our reading world.
Thanks to Lisa Hintz (The Rock Stars of Romance) and Jenn Watson (Social Butterfly PR) for coordinating our promo efforts.
Thank you to Caitlin Nelson for the great line and copyediting.
Huge thanks to Tia’s Babes and Ilsa’s Unicorns for the nonstop love and excitement, especially when we’re in the cave bringing these characters to life. You’re the reason we do it!
Thanks to Tina Morgan, Tammi Hart, Lulu Dumonceaux, Helene Cuji, and Elle Ramsey for helping Tia stay sane!
Thank you to Miranda Arnold, Suzette Salinas, Tina Morgan, Heather Wish, Pam Huff, Erin Fisher, Stacy Nickelson, Elizabeth Thiele, and Lexy Storries for keeping Ilsa focused.
Most of all, saving the absolute best for last, THANKS to our families for the love and support, the patience and the encouragement. Mr. TL, Kat, and Laura; Mr. Mills, Eli, and Mia. We love you so much.
Stay sexy,
Ilsa & Tia
WALL STREET JOURNAL bestselling author Ilsa Madden-Mills and the “Queen of Hot Romance” Tia Louise are not a secret duo, but simply themselves.
Great friends, former English teachers, and southern gals in real life, they’ve teamed up to bring you laugh-out-loud naughty romances with strong leading ladies and sexy alpha males who know how to please their women—and who sometimes you just want to slap.
Keep up with them online:
www.IlsaMaddenMills.com
www.AuthorTiaLouise.com
Join Tia’s Reader Group at “Tia’s Books & Babes” on Facebook
Join Ilsa’s Reader group at “Ilsa’s Racy Readers” on Facebook
The Last Guy Page 23
