by Nora Cobb
“I think,” he started, tapping his wrinkled finger to his chin. “That you have to make that decision, lassie. There is always gonna be someone who is not happy with your decision, I can promise you that. But they do not have to live the life you choose. Only you have to do so, and you might as well make it one that you enjoy.”
“But what if I make the wrong decision?” I asked in a small voice, wanting to pull my legs up in the chair and pretend that the curator was a member of my family, like a kindly old grandfather who gave great advice. I’d never had a grandfather before, or really anyone save Sarah to give me any advice that mattered.
Somehow, I felt like the curator was great at giving out advice.
“We all make wrong decisions,” he said after a moment, a kind smile on his face. “We have all done things that we aren’t proud of, lass. I know I have. Ah, the things I would like to take back! But that’s not how life works. We live and we learn. We make a mistake and we move on, learn from it, become stronger.”
My cheeks flushed as I thought about how many times I had thrown Arthur’s mistake in his face, embarrassed to think that I had made him relive it repeatedly because he had hurt my feelings. It was wrong to do so. I wouldn’t want someone to do that to me, yet I was doing it to him.
What if Arthur was truly trying to do what was best? How did I know it wasn’t?
“I can see the conflict in your expression, lass,” the curator said softly. “Don’t beat yourself up about it. I’m sure they deserved it.”
His words made me laugh. “Well, maybe not to the extent they are getting it now. You know you really should charge for this therapy.”
“Och, lass, you are making my head swell. Off with you! You shouldn’t be spending your time in a dusty library or with an old man like me!”
I stood, grabbing my bag. “Some days it’s the best company.”
The curator waved me off and I walked back to the entrance, finding my head was a bit clearer now that I had talked with him. I couldn’t keep beating Arthur up about his mistakes, but I wasn’t going to let him run my life either. He would have to get over the whole fact that I was spending time with Royce now, and whatever happened after that. He had no claim to me, and I was going to have to keep reminding him of that.
That, and I was going to continue my quest to learn more about my mother, which meant I would hold Royce to his promise to give me more information. Finding out what sort of relationship she had with my father was very important to me, for it likely would answer the truth about how I got to the States.
I just had to push hard.
Chapter 11
Royce
I opened the door, grinning as I saw Anna shivering on the doorstep. “Why did I come all the way over to your mansion?” she asked, her teeth chattering.
“Get inside before you freeze your ass off,” I said instead, pushing the door wider so she could step inside.
She did as I asked, dropping her bag on the hardwood floor. “God, it’s freezing cold out there.”
I frowned. “You walked.”
Anna glanced up at me, her eyes giving me the answer. “Damn, I’m sorry,” I said instantly. I hadn’t even thought about how she would get over to my house when I sent her that text.
She arched a brow as she rubbed her hands together. “I still don’t think I’m used to you actually apologizing to me.”
“Don’t get used to it, pauper,” I answered, grabbing her bag. “Come on. It’s warm enough in the gym to thaw you out.”
I didn’t wait for a response, instead moving toward the rear of the mansion. Mine was different than the other two kings’. I much preferred the warm, dark wood interior and deep colors than the coldness of tile floors and granite. I don’t know why I did, but it was an exhale from the rigors of the academy the moment I stepped inside this place.
Bloody hell, I was going to miss this place, but it wasn’t the only thing I would miss when my time was up at the academy.
One of them was right behind me, taking in my home. I wondered what Anna thought about it. It didn’t meet my personality. I was the party boy, the one who liked the finer things in life, from my liquor to my clothes.
This mansion didn’t match me. Instead it was quite plain compared to Arthur’s.
I led Anna past the kitchen and down the stairs that led to the heated basement, feeling a sense of satisfaction when I saw what I truly considered my domain.
“Oh my God,” she breathed as she stepped onto the floor. “You have an entire ring down here.”
I did. It was my crowning glory. The entire basement had been turned into a sparring ring, higher quality than the one at the academy. Every once in a while I threw private sparring matches with high-stakes money on the line, preferring to be out of the academy. But for the most part, I used it for my own personal use.
I dropped Anna’s bag on the floor next to the ring, turning to face her. “I thought this would be better than the academy’s.”
She eyed me. “Better in what way?”
I couldn’t tell her the truth. I wanted her to myself, without the chance of the other kings interrupting us. After my ‘discussions’ with them both, I knew they would be gunning for me to separate from Anna and hell, I wanted my turn with her.
Not in any way other than the pleasure of her company.
Then we would figure out if it was going to move on to something more.
“I figured you could use a break from Arthur.”
Her expression shifted and suddenly Anna looked tired. “Yeah, I guess you are right. We are fighting like every day now.”
I fucking knew it. “I’m not lying to you, Anna, when I tell you that he’s looking out for himself and his family’s future. Without you, he isn’t shit. Arthur has no future.”
She touched the barrier with her hand, sliding it along the metal. “Can we not talk about Arthur right now?”
“If that’s what you want,” I said slowly, trying not to grin at my small victory. “Maybe you can take out your aggression on me.”
Anna laughed. “Don’t say that too loudly. I might have to do just that.”
I swept my arms wide. “Bring it on, pauper.”
Her eyes narrowed, but I didn’t wait for her to agree, grabbing my sword and walking into the ring. I wanted Anna to lose control and I wanted to watch as she did so. Arthur thought of her as some sort of princess in the making, like he could mold her into what he wanted.
I thought of her as a hellion itching to break free.
I did a few stretches, rewarded by the sight of Anna striding into the ring like she owned the fucking place, the other practice sword in her hand. “When do you graduate to real swords?”
I chuckled, palming the lightweight sword. “When I know you aren’t going to accidently stab yourself with it.”
“Have you ever?”
“All the fucking time,” I answered as I stalked around the ring. “It’s almost like a rite of passage.”
Anna just shook her head as she did the same. We circled each other, sizing each other up. I already knew what her first move was going to be, but I was going to give her the benefit of at least thinking she had one up on me before I brought her back down to reality.
All I had to do was rile her up a bit. “Tell me what dear old Art said.”
“I told you I didn’t want to talk about it.”
I shifted my stance, prepping myself for what was to come. “Then come over here and shut me up.”
“I think you would go into withdrawal if you couldn’t hear your own voice.”
Her response caught me off guard and I laughed aloud. “Damn, pauper, you are getting pretty good at the insults lately.”
Anna smirked. “I learned from the best.”
“Damn right you did,” I growled, motioning for her to come at me. “Come on, pauper, show me what you got.”
She returned my growl and charged me, her sword raised at an awkward angle. I dodged her immediately, hit
ting her sword and sending it flying away from her. “You’ve forgotten everything I taught you,” I told her as she scrambled to pick up her sword.
“I have not,” Anna huffed, repositioning herself. “I just was hoping to get an easy strike.”
“Baby, you are going to have to do something better than that,” I mocked her, placing my sword at my side. “Go on. I will even give you a second chance.”
She made a sound and charged me again, this time with her sword held correctly in her hand. The force of our swords hitting each other caused my ears to ring with the sound and I parried her thrusts, taking a swipe at her side with my fist.
Not hard enough to break her ribs, but enough to have her know what it was like to have not only the sword to worry about, but also the free hand that could destroy her in another way. Anna held her side as she straightened. “What was that for?”
“Call it payback,” I grinned, feeling the sweat start to break out over my forehead. “Come on, pauper. Make me feel your wrath.”
“God, you talk too much,” she muttered, her eyes raking over me. I knew she was looking for a weakness, exactly how I had taught her, and my chest warmed at the thought. She had actually listened to me at some point.
Anna did better the third time, our sparring lasting longer than I had expected. I struggled to block all her thrusts, her sword catching my shoulder more than once. Though the blade wasn’t sharp enough to go through my T-shirt, I still winced as it struck the muscle.
“Got you,” she said, her face flushed with exertion.
I growled in response. “I do love a woman who can handle a sword properly.”
Anna’s eyes danced in laughter. “Well you did teach me, after all.”
Damn right, I did. A swell of pride flowed through me as I heard her words. I had done more for her than Arthur had, that was for sure.
We sparred for another hour or so before I laid down my sword. “Enough. I need a break.”
Anna did the same, pulling up her shirt to wipe her forehead. “I should be getting back to the academy.”
Hell, I didn’t want her to go. “Why the rush?” I asked casually as I placed my sword on the holder in the wall. “I’m the only one that matters.”
Anna rolled her eyes, following my lead. “Yeah, okay, Royce. I have work to do. I can’t spend all day sword fighting with you.”
“What about watching the tube then?” I offered, hoping that I didn’t sound desperate. Since the kings were at odds, I was fucking lonely as hell. “I will even cook you dinner.”
She shook her head, picking up her bag. “I really should get back, but thanks for the workout. I’m getting better at this.”
“Yeah, you are,” I said reluctantly as I walked behind her up the stairs to the main level, not bothering to hide the fact that I was staring at her ass in the process.
“Holy crap.”
I stepped into the hallway, following Anna’s gaze. “It’s snowing.”
“That’s like a blizzard,” she said, walking to the window.
“It is a blizzard,” I answered, watching the snow swirl outside the window. “You can’t walk in that.”
Anna turned toward me. “Then you will have to give me a ride back to the academy.”
I chuckled. “You haven’t seen my car, have you? One tire on that slick-ass road and we will both be in the hospital. I don’t have chains for it. You will have to stay here.”
Anna bit her lip and turned away. Damn, she was actually thinking about walking back. Was it that fucking bad to spend the night with me? “Listen,” I started. “You can sleep in a different room if you want to, but the offer of a movie and dinner still stands.”
“You can cook?”
I grinned at her back. “We kings aren’t fucking helpless, Anna. We can survive on our own.”
“I doubt that,” she laughed, dropping her bag on the stool in the kitchen. “Fine, but I’m expecting a damn good meal, Royce.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
**
Three hours later, I set my plate on the coffee table before me, watching as Anna finished the remains of shrimp fettucine on her plate. “Well?”
She placed the fork in her mouth, pulling it out empty a moment later. “Well, you weren’t lying, Royce. This was really good.”
I took her plate from her, replacing it with her wineglass. “I told you.”
“Where did you learn to cook?”
Her plate joined mine and I picked up my glass of whiskey instead. “My mate in boarding school, actually. His father was a French chef and there wasn’t much for us to do other than get into trouble, of course. They would always put us on kitchen duty, which was fucking ridiculous considering he loved to cook.”
“Well, it definitely paid off then,” she answered, taking a sip of her wine. “I apologize for judging your cooking skills.”
“I have a lot of skills, pauper,” I said in a low voice.
She blushed and I grinned, wondering if she was remembering our kiss from earlier in the week. “You kings are all the same,” she finally said after a moment. “Always trying to one up each other.”
Shrugging, I downed my whiskey, feeling the burn all the way down my throat. “Maybe. It’s what we do. It’s what our families do. The one with the most power will come out on top.”
Anna stared at me for a long moment. “Is that all you want? To be on top?”
I knew she wasn’t talking about my sex position preference. I placed the glass on the table, a frown on my face. She couldn’t understand the need to be on top, to never have to worry about others looking down at you. You reigned supreme. “Yeah, Anna, it is.”
Anna sighed. “All I have ever wanted is to just live. I don’t care about the money or prestige. I just want to have my own life, where I don’t depend on anyone.”
“Yet here you are, likely wealthier than most people at the academy,” I argued, a part of me wishing I just wanted to live. She was so naïve when it came to my world, to what would be her world, and I knew she would struggle without my help.
Well, maybe not just my help, but I liked to think of it that way.
“Yeah,” she said, tucking her legs underneath her and cradling her wineglass in her hands. “Still, I feel the same inside. I don’t imagine you understand any of what I am saying.”
“No,” I answered darkly, standing to refill my glass. “But I do know that you aren’t like the rest of them. You have to learn to be like us, Anna, if you want to survive this, and I don’t mean that shit that Arthur is teaching you.”
Without waiting for a response, I stalked over to the bar in the living room, grabbing the sifter of whiskey and pouring a healthy swallow. Anna didn’t understand the shit we went through, how the outer skin had been thickened over the years so we wouldn’t get ourselves hurt.
So we wouldn’t feel.
Her hand landed on my arm and I looked up, catching her eyes. “Come with me,” she said, tugging on my arm.
I arched a brow. “What are you doing, Anna?”
“I’m showing you what it’s like not to be a king for a little while.”
I allowed her to tug me away from the bar and to the coatrack, where she handed me my coat. “Come on, Royce,” she said as she shrugged into her coat. “Unless you are afraid of what I might do.”
I shrugged on my coat, my curiosity piqued. “I am afraid of you, Anna.” I was. She was too good for this. She was going to be a broken person at the end, nothing like the woman I saw before me now. There had been a time I wanted to destroy her, but now I wanted to just keep her away from what was to come, to breathe in her innocence just a little longer.
She laughed, brushing off my words, and opened the front door, where the storm had abated some. There was still snow coming down, but not in the same swirling mass as before.
Anna went straight to the small patch of grass that served as the front yard, dipping her hands into the snow. “Have you ever had a snowball fight?” she asked,
packing the snow into a ball with her bare hands.
“You shouldn’t be doing that without gloves,” I answered. “Your fingers are gonna fall off.”
“Not for only a few minutes,” she answered before launching the snowball at me.
Chapter 12
Anna
I watched as my snowball sailed through the air and hit Royce square in the chest, seeing his look of surprise. After his talks about not having a real life, I wanted to put some realness into the king, though by the looks of it, he wasn’t expecting me to launch a snowball at him.
