by Sara Hantz
“If she’d known the real reason, she wouldn’t have done it. For all you know, she just thought it was you being stand-offish about not being snapped,” Josh reasoned.
Josh had a point. He’d been telling Nik for long enough about his attitude. If Amber had known the truth, this whole thing could’ve been avoided.
“You think I should’ve confided in her?” He had to admit that he’d thought about telling her his true identity often enough. Whenever they’d been together, at the back of his mind had always been the nagging thought that she didn’t know who he really was. But he’d rationalized his decision to keep it hidden. He’d agreed on this with his parents and hadn’t wanted to jeopardize his time in America.
And, to tell the truth, he just hadn’t wanted to see how it would change her attitude toward him.
“Maybe. I don’t know. You both seemed so right together that I thought you were in it for the long-term.” Josh took a drink from his can of soda.
“Yeah, well, we all made that mistake. I…” The sound of his cell interrupted him. He glanced down and saw that it was from home. “It’s my father. Will you please excuse me?”
“Sure. I’ll hang around in the common area.” Josh left the room.
Nik answered the call, a feeling of dread circling in the pit of his stomach. “Hello.” He pulled himself up to his full height, giving himself the confidence he needed to face up to it.
“Niklas, it’s your father.”
His father wasn’t great with cell phones and didn’t understand about caller id. His secretary took care of everything telephone related for him but actually talking to the person on the other end of the line.
“Yes, I know.” He clenched his teeth and waited for the inevitable onslaught.
“Your mother and I are very disappointed. The agreement was that you remain incognito, and within a very short time, you’ve been exposed.” His clipped tone was no different from usual, despite it being the middle of the night and the fact that he must have been woken up only a few moments ago.
“I’m sorry, Father. It wasn’t my fault.” He cringed at his words. They were hardly manly and not all like he’d been taught to behave. He sounded like a young child trying to pass the blame.
“How can that be so?”
He didn’t have any choice but to tell the truth about Amber. If he didn’t, his parents would soon find out, and that would be worse.
“A girl I’ve been seeing accidentally let a photograph of me get in the hands of an agency in her application for a photography internship.”
“Accidentally?” his father said, the incredulity in his voice marked. “I think you’ve been, how do they say over there, taken for a ride.”
“No. I don’t think so,” he countered.
“You’re a member of the royal family and a target for any person aspiring toward better things. Surely you know that by now. You’ve seen that many times for yourself. What better way to make an application stand out than to include a photograph of a prince?”
Nik swallowed hard. In so few words, his father had managed to make him feel like a small child being chastised for some elementary misdemeanor.
He’d spent the last seventeen years being in the public eye. Of course he knew that people tried to use the royal family for their own gains. But suddenly, he knew, deep in his bones, that it didn’t apply to Amber. Whatever happened to them now, she’d been honest before. She’d liked him for who he was before. “You’re wrong, Father. She didn’t know about me being a prince.”
His father paused, likely surprised by the strength and certainty in Nik’s voice. “That you know of,” his father finally replied.
“I’m sure she didn’t.”
I think.
I hope.
“It doesn’t matter,” his father said, clearly not either caring or believing what Nik was saying. “What we have to decide is how to remedy this situation. Your mother and I believe the most effective way is for you to leave America and come home. You can soon slot back into your old school. The press office can deal with any fallout.”
No discussion. The decision had been made. Nik’s thoughts on it all seemed unimportant. “I guess,” he muttered. He knew what his parents suggested made sense. It would certainly put an end to the mess he’d found himself in. But…
“Guess? What does that mean? What are you guessing?” his father asked.
“Sorry. It’s an American saying. It means that I agree with you. It probably is the best thing to do under the circumstances.”
So why doesn’t it feel right?
“Pia will sort out the flight details in the morning and get back to you. I’m returning to my bed.”
His father’s assistant, Pia, had worked for the family since before Nik had been born. She’d been like a second mother to him before he was sent to boarding school. They’d had nannies, but they were too concerned with their routines. Pia was different. She always had time for him. Nik wondered what she’d make of the whole situation.
“Okay. Good night, Father.”
Nik placed his cell on the bedside table and walked over to his closet. Reaching up, he pulled his suitcase down from the top. He rested it on the floor and opened it. Staring at his hanging clothes, he couldn’t bring himself to pack. He wasn’t ready to trade being Nik the student for being Prince Niklas. He looked at the jeans folded on the shelf. When would he be able to wear them again?
I don’t want to go back home. Not yet.
He kicked his suitcase to the side and headed out of his bedroom. Josh was leaning against the wall.
“I’m going out for a walk,” he said to Josh, as he strode past him.
“Want me to come with?” Josh asked, catching up.
No.
I want to have some time to get used to the idea that it’s over.
That my one shot at freedom is dead.
“If you would like to,” he replied instead. “Don’t expect me to be good company.”
“No worries.” They headed in silence down the corridor and out of the side entrance until they were on the path which ran alongside the boarding houses. “What did your father say?”
“What you’d expect. They want me out of here as soon as possible.” He clenched his fists by his side.
“Nik. Nik.”
He turned at the sound of his name and saw several girls from his class running toward them.
“Yes?”
“Is it true?” one of them asked. “Are you really a prince?”
His heart sank. Now he was back to being the center of attention. Great.
“Leave the guy alone,” Josh said, standing in front of Nik and blocking him from the others.
“It’s okay.” Nik stepped out from behind Josh. “Yes, I am.”
“That’s so cool. I thought there was something special about you,” Dana, the girl on the left said. She touched him on the arm. “Am I allowed to do that?” she asked, fluttering her eyelashes at him.
Here we go again. Now I’m special because I’m a prince.
“I’d rather you didn’t.” His voice was sterner than he’d intended, and Dana flushed. Damn. I sound like my father.
“Let’s get out of here,” Josh said. He nodded good-bye to the girls. “Come on.”
Probably good that Josh had decided to walk with him. They only managed to walk another hundred yards before a group of teachers headed toward them. One of them pointed at him and then spoke to the teacher next to her. As they got closer, Nik drew in a deep breath. But apart from staring at him, they refrained from speaking.
“It’s a good thing,” he said.
“What?” Josh replied, turning and frowning.
“Me leaving here. If this is what it’s going to be like. How could I have a normal existence with everyone staring or losing their minds over the crown when in front of me?”
“Give them a chance. Once they get over the shock. We’ve had movie stars and presidents’ kids come to this school. Peo
ple eventually learned how to function. Eventually, it will all go back to normal.”
Normal. What was that?
“I’ll be flown out of here before that…” His attention got diverted by the sight of Amber and Lauren walking in their direction.
Crap.
He wanted to turn and head in the opposite direction. Except how manly did that make him seem? His chest constricted as Amber got closer, and he could see her red-ringed eyes.
…
Amber’s insides swirled as Nik and Josh got nearer. She wanted to run and hide, but her pride wouldn’t let her.
“We can just walk past and ignore them. Josh will understand,” Lauren suggested, a concerned expression on her face.
“No. It’s fine. I’ll have to see him sometime. Why not now?” She wished she felt as brave as she sounded.
“Because it’s been little more than two hours since you found out the truth about him.”
Lauren was right. And if she hadn’t persuaded Amber to leave her bedroom and come out for lunch, she wouldn’t be seeing him now. But she had to get it over with. And the next time, it would be easier. If there was a next time. She’d have thought that with his connections, he’d have already been on a plane out of there.
That’s if he is leaving.
Of course he is.
“I’m ready. Just don’t leave me alone with him.” She sucked in a breath and prayed that no one could hear her heart, which was pounding in her ears.
“Hi Josh. Nik,” Amber said as they approached.
The look on Nik’s face surprised her. She expected him to still be angry, but he looked sad more than anything else.
“Still here then?” Lauren said.
The blunt question was typical Lauren. Amber wanted to hear his reply.
“Yes. While things are being sorted.” He faced Amber, and his eyes narrowed, his cheeks flushed with anger. He turned and left without saying much of anything. Josh gave them a helpless shrug before following on Nik’s heels.
So much for me thinking that he was sad.
“I’ve already apologized. It was a mistake. Just give me a break, will you?” she yelled at his retreating back.
She stormed off in the opposite direction.
I hope I never see him again.
Chapter Fifteen
Nik went back to his room after leaving Josh, who went to class. He doubted the teachers would mind him missing classes under the circumstances. It hardly mattered now that he was going back home, anyway.
He kept thinking back to the look on Amber’s face when they’d met. And the bratty way he acted by glaring at her and bolting like he did.
Funny, she didn’t seem to care about his royal position. She treated him in just the same way as before, even smarting off to him after he was rude.
Exactly.
And look how I acted toward her.
He sank down onto the bed, his body overcome by heaviness. His insides clenched as he remembered how badly he’d spoken to her earlier. He hadn’t even allowed her any time to explain. He’d just run roughshod over her feelings. Caring only about how everything had affected him. He didn’t once consider how awful she was feeling about what she’d done. He’d iced her out for what was a genuine mistake. Hadn’t he always been taught to be understanding and compassionate? One of his earliest lessons.
He wished he could rush over and take Amber in his arms and forget the whole thing had ever happened. His happiness since meeting her had been so far off the scale, it wasn’t funny. She’d once liked him for who he was.
Could she again? Would she see Nik first and the prince second?
And did he have the courage to find out?
Yes.
Suddenly, he bolted upright, desperately needing to talk to someone from home. He called his father on his private number, hoping that his father’s phone was beside the bed.
“Hello?” By the slurry sound of his voice, Nik had woken him.
“Sorry for disturbing you, Father. This can’t wait.”
“What wrong?” His father sounded concerned.
Nik could’ve slapped himself. His father was probably thinking that something else had happened with the media. Something that would threaten the image of the royal family.
“I want to stay,” Nik blurted out.
His father was silent for a few seconds. “It’s not practical,” he finally replied, the concern no longer in his tone. Now he was back to normal.
“Why not?” Nik pleaded. “If my true identity is out in the open, it now means that Kurt can play a more obvious role as my bodyguard. Just like he always does at home.”
He shoved away any thoughts about how the rest of the school would react to him having a bodyguard or being a prince. All that concerned him at the moment was being allowed to stay.
“We’d have to do something about the media.” Nik could almost hear the thoughts going around his in father’s head. “Maybe send Erik over to liaise with them. We can allocate someone else to watch over your grandmother’s PR.”
“Does that mean you agree?” Nik crossed his fingers.
“No. I’m just thinking through the possibilities. Tell me. Is your desire to stay something to do with the girl?” His father’s voice lightened. Nik imagined he was smiling.
“Amber. Yes it is,” Nik replied.
“Even though she caused the problem?”
“It wasn’t her fault. She’s an amazing girl. I…think she might actually like me. Me, not Prince Niklas. Surely you understand. Remember when you met Mother traveling across Europe when you were younger? You said she bumped into you at the Parthenon in Greece, and she refused to believe you were actually part of the Lutgenstadt royal family. Since there was no internet at the time, she hadn’t seen many photos of you, especially not dressed casually, so she thought you were just a regular guy making a joke. She started traveling with you because she said she liked your sense of humor and thought you had nice eyes.” He paused. “You always told us you knew she was the one because she was smart, beautiful, fun, and she liked you for who you were inside. Amber is the same. And that was when you were heir to the throne. Which I’m not.”
Nik tensed, hoping that playing on his father’s memories would do the trick. He might be King now, but he’d not always been a conforming royal. He knew that from things his mother had told him.
“True.” His father’s low chuckle rumbled across the line. “Did you know she made me skinny dip in the Mediterranean?”
Nik pressed down the urge to cover his ears and start singing loudly to drown out the rest of the story. “Father, I really can’t bear to—”
“I suppose it wouldn’t hurt for you to finish the year.”
A smile broke out on his face. “I’d like to do my senior year here, too. Go to university also,” he added, unsure whether he’d pushed it a bit too far.
“Let’s take one thing at a time. We’ll allow you to stay for now.”
Result! as Josh would say. “Thank you. I promise, no more problems. I’ll say good night now. You must be tired.”
“I am. Your mother sends her love.” His father yawned.
“Send it back to her. Good night.” He slipped his cell into his pocket and headed out of his dorm room. He glanced at the time. It was already afternoon break, so hopefully he could catch Amber in the cafeteria.
Maybe it was time to take a chance. To see where things stood.
It was a terrifying thought.
As he reached the house entrance, Josh was coming inside.
“Hey,” Josh said. “What’s happened? You’re looking much happier than when I left you.”
“I’m staying.”
Josh high-fived him. “That’s awesome. But what about all the prince stuff? How are you going to deal with that?”
“I’ve dealt with it my whole life. I can now. As long I’m with the right person.” Just saying it out loud confirmed that he was doing the right thing.
“Amber, you mea
n.”
Nik nodded. “Hopefully, she’ll let me apologize.”
“A bit of groveling is called for,” Josh suggested.
“Groveling?” Nik frowned.
“Tell her you’re an idiot. That you’re sorry for what you did. Beg for her forgiveness and promise never to be such a dick again,” Josh explained, sounding like the whole process was simple.
Nik felt his eyes widen. “You want me to beg?” The whole concept of begging was totally alien to him. And it wasn’t a position he’d ever intended to find himself in.
“You want her back?” Josh demanded.
“Of course I do. I’ll do anything.”
“Then you beg.”
Nik nodded slowly, as it dawned on him exactly what he had to do. “I’ll text her right away and ask her to meet me. We’ve still got twenty minutes before classes start again. Hopefully that will be long enough to convince her.”
…
Amber lay on her bed staring up at the white ceiling. It needed painting to cover all the cracks. They reminded her of a series of haphazard train tracks. Lauren had gone to the cafeteria to bring them back something after insisting that Amber needed to eat since she’d missed lunch. She doubted she’d be able to manage a single mouthful. Images of Nik kept whizzing in front of her eyes. Kind Nik. Angry Nik. Prince Nik. All conflicting and all playing havoc with her mind.
Had he already gone? Left on his private royal jet. He’d told her that all he wanted was a normal life. Away from everything to do with being royal. She got that. Everyone was entitled to their dreams. Once everyone knew about him at school then his life, at least initially, would be far from normal. Not to mention the reaction of people from outside the school. His life wouldn’t be his own.
Whatever. The fact that Nik would be leaving meant that she’d never get to see him again. Which was a good thing. He’d let her down badly. Betrayed her trust.
If only her heart would follow the same line as her head. But it was too soon. One day she’d get over him, though. If she could get over Wade’s awful treatment of her then she could deal with this. Except this felt so much worse. Tears ran down her cheeks again, and she picked up her already drenched tissue and wiped them away.
