Playboy Princes: Royals of Arbon Academy

by Eve, Jaymin

  Nonetheless, for all those dreams and fantasies I'd had, nothing—and I mean nothing—could have prepared me for an actual royal ball.

  I'd entered the room as stiff as a board, my fingertips barely touching Alex's arm in the vaguest display of being a "couple," like he’d demanded. But the second I stepped inside, my breath caught.

  The huge space had been transformed into nothing short of magic. Blossoming trees lined the walls, and thousands of fairy lights and candles created a soft, twinkling glow that reflected off the myriad of jewels, crowns, and glittering dresses worn by the guests.

  “Quite the insult that the king and queen of New America won’t be here tonight,” Alex said snidely, glancing around.

  “Jordan’s parent’s aren’t coming?” I asked. Until this moment it hadn’t occurred to me—and it really should have—that the royals from my monarchy might have been here tonight. Jordan hadn’t mentioned anything at all, no doubt because he’d already known they couldn’t make it.

  “Yeah, they had a conflict in their schedule or something,” Alex said, sounding like he didn’t believe it. “Guess that makes my parents the second most powerful monarchs in the room, should the need arise for anyone to pull rank.”

  Thank fuck King Felipe and Rafe were here because if the Australasian monarchs had been the most powerful, we’d all be in big trouble.

  We moved farther into the incredible room. I’d already spent more time than I wanted with Alex, so at that point, I jerked free of him and made my way over to politely greet some of my teachers. I'd done what he’d asked. I'd turned up on his arm and pretended for prying eyes that we were still together, but I'd rather walk on broken rocks barefoot than spend the whole evening watching him act.

  He'd ruined enough of my Arbon experience so far, I wouldn't let him take this magical ball from me too.

  "You're doing well," someone commented in a quiet voice, startling me as I refilled my glass of champagne from an open bottle. The bubbling liquid sloshed, but I managed to recover before it ended up all over my dress.

  "King Felipe," I exclaimed, blinking up at him. "Hi. I mean, uh..." I looked around, uncertain what the protocol was for greeting a king in public. I mean, we were on friendly terms privately, but were there rules and shit for a situation like this? And more to the point, why had no one told me?

  He gave me an amused grin. "You're fine, Violet," he assured me. "I've been keeping an eye on you tonight and had to commend your slick ability to dodge the Australasian prince. I think to the unsuspecting eye, it would just seem like you're a social butterfly."

  I swallowed my bitter laugh with a sip of my champagne. "Well, thanks. This ball is incredible; I just wish..." I trailed off, biting my tongue against what I wanted to say.

  King Felipe was an observant man, though, and no fool. He gave me a knowing smile. "You just wish you were here with the person you truly cared for. Or, perhaps, people?"

  My face flushed hot, and I had no words. Was he angry? He didn't seem angry, but then how would I feel if I were in his shoes? He was always going to have his son's best interests at heart.

  "I'm not one to go telling you how to live your life, Violet," he said gently, refilling his own glass from the bottle I'd left on the table, "but Rafe is a different man when you're around. He dealt with a lot of heavy darkness as a child, things he never, ever should have been exposed to, and it's a dark shadow he's carried with him into adulthood. This week with you in our home is the lightest I've ever seen that shadow over him." He paused, sipping his wine and scanning his eyes around the room. I knew when he found Rafe because his face softened and his eyes warmed. Anyone could see how much he loved his son.

  "I'm sorry," I whispered, not sure what I was apologizing for exactly, just that I needed to.

  King Felipe shook his head. "Nothing to be sorry for, Violet. You need to follow your heart, same as we all do. Just try not to break my boy’s when you do finally make your mind up? Either of them."

  Jesus fucking Christ. No pressure, or anything. He clearly thought of Jordan as family too, so really... I was fucked.

  Neither one of us spoke for a few moments, and I couldn't help following King Felipe's line of sight. Across the room, Rafe and Jordan stood together with some of their other friends from the Royals soccer team, chatting and laughing. They were such good friends... Was I risking more than just a broken heart? Their bond of friendship was stronger than casual sex with some girl from the wrong side of the tracks. Wasn't it?

  Claudette sidled up to Rafe, pawing at his arm with her hand that wasn't in a cast, and a selfish spike of satisfaction shot through me when he shook her off.

  "King Felipe, may I ask you something?" I spoke before really processing my thoughts. But then, he'd told me during the week to always speak my mind around him. He nodded, and I pursed my lips in thought. "Why is Rafe still betrothed to Claudette? Knowing what you know... it’s just not adding up. I didn't pick you and Jacinta for the arranged marriage kind of parents. Not to mention..." I trailed off then because what I was about to say next was treading a line with so many royals in the room, including Claudette's parents, the king and queen of the Britains.

  Felipe snorted a dry laugh. "Not to mention she's an insufferable, spoiled brat with a mean streak a mile wide? I'm all too aware." He released a long, tired-sounding sigh. "I can't tell you everything, Violet, you must understand." I nodded quickly. "But please trust me when I say Jas and I will never force our kids into a marriage they aren't happy with."

  A small amount of anxiety shifted from my gut. It was a question that had been bothering me all week, having seen how much the king and queen of the Switzerlands loved their kids. The idea that they'd force Rafe into a marriage with the likes of Claudette, all for political alliances, it didn't fit with the people I'd gotten to know.

  Reading between the lines? He'd done it to maintain their alliance with the Britains long enough to secure whatever he needed in regards to the satellite system still controlled by the Britains. Beyond that, I suspected he'd find some very convenient excuse for the betrothal contract to be ripped up.

  "Good," I murmured, and King Felipe shot me an amused glance.

  "Glad you approve, Ms. Spencer," he joked. "Care to take a look at my policies on climate change or the development of the deadlands next?"

  I grinned back. "I'd love to. Just leave it on my desk by close of business?"

  King Felipe laughed, but moments later the smile slipped from his face and he stiffened, looking at someone behind me. "Steve," he said, and I froze. "Lovely to see you. Is Sheila here?"

  "She is," Alex's father replied, his voice deep and musical like his son’s. "I'm sure she'd love to catch up with Jacinta."

  "Ah, that's a shame," Felipe replied, sounding anything but regretful. "Jacinta decided to stay home with the twins. Next time."

  "Mmm yes," King Steve said like he couldn't care less, "Next time. Violet, my dear, you've been a hard woman to pin down tonight."

  I turned a forced smile on Alex's slimy father and tried to hide my shudder of revulsion at his sexual innuendo. "King Steve," I said, keeping my voice calm and respectful, "what an honor to meet you in person."

  His eyes flashed with something, but it was gone again in an instant. "Yes, well, I'd hoped to get to know you after the soccer match last weekend, but I understand you had better places to be." The reprimand was clear, and my stomach rolled with anxiety.

  Thankfully, though, I still had the world's most powerful king on my side. "Yes, we're so sorry about that mix-up," Felipe apologized for me, sparing me the need to lie. "You know how our lovely queens can be when they get their minds set on something."

  "Mmm," Steve murmured, and I got the distinct impression Queen Sheila didn't do anything without her husband's approval or permission. Poor woman. "Violet, may I have this dance?"

  My stomach sank. People had been dancing all evening, waltzing like we'd stepped back in time a few hundred years, but I'd so far avoi
ded making an idiot of myself.

  "Uh," I stammered, frantically searching for an excuse. Trouble was, any kind of denial would be taken as an insult, I could just sense it. "Sure. But I should warn you I don't know how to dance. It wasn't something covered in my foster homes growing up."

  That look was on his face again before he could hide it. It spoke of his disgust that the perfect “broodmare” for his son, the future leader of his country, had begun her life in the dregs of a foster home. He covered it quickly enough, but I was good at reading people.

  I’d known exactly what he was thinking.

  “Don’t worry your pretty little head about it,” he said with all the condescension in the world. “You only have to follow my lead. That’s always the most important part.”

  And I could read between those lines, too.

  King Felipe’s face was like a stone, and I was finally catching a glimpse of the core of steel that allowed him to lead the most powerful monarchy in the world. “Thank you for the delightful conversation,” I said to him, nodding my head respectfully.

  “The pleasure was all mine, Violet dear,” he replied. “I will find you again soon, and we can continue.”

  Gah, I loved Rafe’s dad just a little bit in that second as he made it clear to Steve, the jerkwad, that he would notice if I disappeared.

  “Looking forward to it.”

  Before anything else could be said, King Steve wrapped a firm hand around mine, pulling me forward. Once I started to walk, he placed his hand on the small of my back, and I legit wondered if I might not throw up on him.

  The entire family made my stomach churn like I’d eaten really bad food. If these were the genetics I was matched up too, I was starting to wonder if I might not be a little fucked up too. Because they were all horrific.

  “So,” he said when we reached the main floor. “Want to tell me why you’ve been avoiding my son all evening?” Gone was the false politeness as he jerked me closer, his hand biting into my waist as he used the other to grip my hand. “I don’t appreciate being kept waiting, and I especially don’t appreciate you making my family look like fools.”

  We moved, both of his hands bruising me, but I kept my face calm like I couldn’t even feel it. It would take more than a strong grip to break me.

  “I’ve just been trying to meet everyone,” I said, forcing a smile and an air of casualness into my words. “It’s important to form alliances, don’t you think?”

  He examined my face, and in turn I did the same to him. He looked a lot like his son, but his eyes were smaller and mean. With Alex it was hard to tell he was an evil bastard, at least at first, but his father wore it clearly on his face. His blond hair had no mark of age in it, not a single gray that I could see, but the blond was also a little unnatural, as was his smooth forehead. Something told me that this king was vain and, unlike Felipe, was not aging into a handsome and distinguished older gentleman. Nope. He was fighting every line and mark.

  And it hadn’t done him any favors.

  “What would you say to returning to Australasia with us when we leave here?”

  I almost faltered then as my brain tried to figure out if he’d just said that. “Oh, as wonderful as that sounds”—lies, all fucking lies—“unfortunately I cannot leave school again. I need to catch up on the classes I missed.”

  His smile—smirk actually—sent chills across my skin. “Sweet child, you really don’t need Arbon any longer. Your one goal was to secure a future, and yours is set. You’ll carry the future heir of the Australasias. There’s really no loftier position you could reach.”

  He didn’t say I would be queen, just that I would carry the heir. I wondered if he intended for me to actually marry his son or just be locked up in their dungeon, raped, and forced to give birth.

  What a delightful man.

  “My education is important to me,” I said to him, still trying to appear unfazed by what an absolute monster of a human this fuck was. “I’d like to finish it before I have any children. If I decide to have children at all, of course.”

  I couldn’t help myself with that last line, even knowing it was going to cause me all kinds of trouble.

  His brow bunched, shadows crossing his face. “You really have no choice. The king must produce an heir, and Alex is to be king.”

  There was a command in his voice.

  “Maybe I’m not the right partner for Alex, then” I suggested.

  More darkness, and his grip was actually super painful now. I was going to have bruises worse than from my last fight.

  “You have no choice, you gutter trash,” he muttered. “You’ll shut your mouth, do as you're told, and maybe you won’t end up like Jasmine.”

  I swallowed roughly. “Jasmine fell.”

  We all knew that wasn’t true, but I wanted to hear what he’d say.

  “She did,” he confirmed, that fucking smirk back. “After she decided to get pregnant by someone who was not her betrothed. It was a terrible tragedy.”

  “So she was pregnant?” I pushed. “By whom?”

  A smug look crossed his face. “She chose to try and elevate herself to queen earlier than she should have. The father over the son. She forgot her place.”

  What in the…? Was he saying what I thought he was saying? Before I could ponder the idea that Jasmine might have been pregnant with King Steve’s baby and he’d killed her for it, I was jerked against him so hard my body was plastered to his.

  I could feel the slight bulge in his pants pressing my stomach, and I fought down the scream that was rising in my throat. I was about five seconds from losing my shit and beating the fuck out of this king, but if I did that, I would sign my own death warrant. And I had too much to fucking live for.

  There was still hope that I would figure out a way to get out of this. I had powerful friends and allies. I was not alone and I would not let this king scare me.

  Moving as fast as my hands and body could, I managed to twist out of his hold, putting a few feet of distance between us. He blinked at me like he was trying to figure out what had just happened.

  “Thank you for the dance,” I said. “It’s been truly enlightening.”

  He opened his mouth to say something, but I was already gone, pushing through the crowd as I tried to hold my shit together.

  I couldn’t stay in here a second longer. I needed some air, but I was also afraid to wander around alone. Clearly King Three-inch-dick had big plans to lock me down, and I couldn't let him get his hands on me. I’d disappear never to be seen again.

  My palm reader buzzed.

  Angel: Jordan’s room. Now.

  With a quick look around, I slipped out of the ballroom, lifting the skirt of my dress so I could run along the halls. Before I made it close to Jordan’s though, a dark shadow stepped onto the path in front of me, and I just managed not to kick Rafe in the head.

  “You’re lucky I’m wearing heels,” I said shortly.

  His hands shot out, rubbing along my arms. “You’re trembling,” he said, fury vibrating his voice.

  I shook my head. “Yeah, had a rather unpleasant conversation with Alex’s father.” I leaned in closer, pressing myself to Rafe like that would erase slimy Steve’s touch. I really loved this dress; it was a fucking shame I’d have to burn it now. “He basically implied that he had Jasmine killed because she deliberately got pregnant with his child and tried to blackmail him into becoming queen.”

  I mean, there was a lot of reading between the lines there, but I was pretty sure that was the message he was putting out there. Rafe and I remained close as I whispered everything to him, and if anyone strode past, we probably just look like we were young lovers making out in the dark.

  “That’s what my parents suspected happened to Jasmine,” he growled. “Apparently in their younger years, Steve was well known for his wandering dick.”

  I breathed Rafe in slowly, trying to calm the pounding of my heart. “He asked me to go back to Australasia with them. Said
I don’t need to worry about school because I’m going to get pregnant with heirs and there’s nothing more important for me to do with my life.”

  Rafe’s chest rumbled under my cheek, and when I tilted my head back, even in the dim lighting it was clear how dark his eyes had gotten. “You’re about to cause an international incident, Violet Spencer,” he murmured, his lips grazing mine as his hands continued to caress my back, calming me down.

  “I wanted to kill him,” I confessed. “Every time he opened his mouth. Every single time he touched me inappropriately, I thought about the dozens of ways I could end his life. It would have almost been worth it.”

  “I want to kill him, too,” he murmured, eyes lifting to stare over my head. “But you did the right thing. Now is not the time. We have to be smart about it when it comes to powerful monarchies.” His voice got deeper. “But if I’d had to see him paw at you like that for one more second, I might have taken the fucking risk and dealt with the fallout.”

  Whatever had caught his attention over my shoulder arrived right behind me, and I sighed as Jordan’s arms came around me. He was half-hugging Rafe at the same time, but neither of them seemed bothered about it, focusing on me.

  “We need to get back in there,” Jordan finally said, pressing a kiss to the side of my head. “Meghan wants to meet Violet, and I have heard a few people speculate as to where Rafe went. ”

  I pulled away, looking at them both. “Meghan? As in your betrothed?” I swallowed roughly, wondering if I was a big enough person to meet the chick engaged to the guy I was somewhat, kinda, crushing hard on.

  Jordan shook his head. “It’s not like that. We’re friends… like siblings at best. She knows how I feel about you.”

  Wow. Okay. How did he feel about me? I’d also like to know.

  He glanced at his watch. “We gotta get back,” he said before I could push him more about his feelings.