She blinked. “So he was going to… what? Send his guys to tune me up a little and see if that pulled you out of the woodwork?” Beat her and leave her to see what she did, who she called. If Galen hadn’t arrived in time, or at all, would Meg have called Theo to warn him?
Yes.
She couldn’t even pretend she wouldn’t have.
Theo would have come to her immediately. She might not know him well in the grand scheme of things, but she knew thatwithout a shadow of a doubt. He would have rushed to her—they both would have. And the end result would be the same.
Thank god Galen was there.
Theo shook his head. “It doesn’t matter now. Galen stepped in and so they know hurting you will draw us out. That puts you at risk, and there’s not a single thing we can do to stop it at this point.” He watched her closely. “We could set you up somewhere for the time being, but I’d prefer you come with us.”
“Come with you,” she repeated. “Where?”
“Overseas. There is a… discrepancy that led to my being removed from my position as Crown Prince after my father died, and Galen and I intend to rectify it.”
That meant absolutely nothing, but she filed it away to deal with later. Right now she cared less about Theo’s exile than she did about her life tumbling into shambles around her. Selfish? Without a doubt. Meg couldn’t bring herself to feel bad about it. “I don’t have a passport, Theo. How am I supposed to come with you out of the country?” As much as she’d always dreamed of traveling, at the current junction in her life, a passport was a luxury expense. Even if Theo threw money at this problem, there will still be a waiting period.
“Galen’s taken care of it.”
She blinked. “That seems convenient.” How the hell had he pulled that off?Whyhad he pulled that off? Passports took time and securing one inside of three days had to be impossible, which meant Galen had done it earlier. Perhaps much earlier.What the hell is going on?
“He likes to plan for every eventuality.” An answer that meant nothing at all.
Yet another thing to file away to deal with later. The weight of all the things she didn’t know pressed down on her, threatening to flatten her to the floor and never let her up. “I’m going to lose everything.”
“No. Never that.” He hesitated, but then his eyes went hard. “We’ve paid your apartment through the next twelve months, as well as the remainder of your tuition.” He held up a hand as she shoved to her feet. “Donotargue with me, Meg. I don’t give a fuck about your pride right now. You’re in danger because of me—because of us—and you should damn well be compensated for us fucking with your life. If everything has to be on hold until I sort out my country’s issues, then I’m going to make damn well sure you don’t suffer more than necessary.”
This wasn’t a fight she could win.
It didn’t seem like she could winanyfights when it came to this situation.
The front door thumped open and Galen appeared in the bedroom a moment later, a handful of garment bags dangling from his hand. He laid them on the bed and glanced at Theo. “We leave in ten.”
“Got it.” Theo motioned at the garment bags. “Pick something to wear and pack the rest in the bag in the closet. No arguing, Meg. We don’t have time for it. You can file your deferment paperwork online once we get to our destination.” He followed Galen out of the room and shut the door softly behind him.
“You son of a bitch,” she snarled under her breath.
No, he might not have intentionally put her in this position, but he sure as hell was enjoying playing god with her life. Turning her into a kept woman, a plaything for him to cart around with them as they pursued thisdiscrepancy. She marched over to the three garment bags and unzipped them one after another. Two sundresses that flirted between innocent and sex appeal. A maxi dress with a deep diving neckline. And a pair of designer jeans with a plain white T-shirt. All in her size. She looked at the price tag on the white shirt and cursed. Of course itwas designer, too. Why not? He wasn’t exactly the kind of guy to pop into Walmart and buy something on clearance.
Sending them back was the smart thing to do. If he was telling the truth about paying her rent and tuition, then she was already in a hole of owing him that she’d never climb out of. Adding clothing she never would have paid this kind of money for on top of it?
She should demand they stop by her place.
Meg stopped short and closed her eyes. Galen thought there were men watching her apartment, which meant going back there put them in danger they wouldn’t be in otherwise. All for the sake of her pride.
It’s not pride when he’s the one in the wrong.
It didn’t matter. She’d find a way to pay him back or convince him to let her stop somewhere that was more in her price range, like a Salvation Army. Meg cursed again and yanked Theo’s shirt off. The dress she wore to bartend was ruined, otherwise she’d have put it back on.
As she lifted the jeans and shirt from the bag, she caught sight of a lingerie bag tucked behind it. Meg shot a glare at the door and dug into it. Lace panties in nude and red and bright pink—enough to last her a week without laundry. Bras to match, as if a matching set was really a priority right now.
They were nice though…
No, Meg. Use only what you have to and stash the rest so he can return it.
She grabbed her old bra and a pair of pink panties and pulled on the new clothes. Since they didn’t have time to fight about it, she stashed the rest of the clothing in the bag Theo had indicated, pausing to ensure that all the tags were still attached. She hooked the bag over her shoulder and headed out of the room.
Exhaustion weighed her down, but Meg kept her spine straight and her chin high. Life kicked her in the face all the time. There was no reason to be surprised it’d delivered a particularly devastating blow just when she was so close to achieving her goals.
