Made it to the Cavanaghs’ safely. It’s beautiful in the country. There are tons of security cameras. Royal calls it an ‘intelligent home’ with a lot of security. They have more weapons in their house than we do.
I hit send,and the message sits spinning in my inbox, looking like I have really spotty service.
Royal’s phone makes a noise, and he looks it over. “Sounds perfect.”
After a tap on his screen, the message shows as sending on my end, and finally, the checkmark indicates it’s been delivered.
“That’s so scary you can do that.” I put my phone aside. The little device that’s only one part of how he’s been watching me. “You can do it to everyone?”
“I mean, that would be incredibly inundating, and I’d never get anything done, but I can block just about any phone I can get access to,” he admits, running a hand across the back of his neck. “The link I sent you for the first Late Nite Bytes was a Trojan horse. I admit it was wrong, but I wanted to know everything about you.”
Somehow that doesn’t sit right with me. But I can’t put my finger on it. “Me? Or Dad’s business.”
“You. It’s always been about you.” The look in his eyes is somber. And I want to believe what he’s saying. He elaborates. “To be honest, we couldn’t give two fucks about your dad’s business. All we cared about with the truce was stopping the bloodshed.”
Does he mean that? Or am I just a pawn in someone else’s chess game?
Royal reaches over to the nightstand and pulls out a remote control. He looks back at me, and whatever he sees stops him. He must see the hesitation on my face. “Leticia, I’m not joking. Yes, we’re keeping eyes on your family. But I’m not supposed to look any deeper than just making sure your family is holding up their end of the truce. Me watching you was purely,ispurely, personal.” He tosses the remote aside and puts a hand on top of mine in my lap. “I’ve liked you since I first saw your text messages coming in on Antonella’s phone. And the more I’ve talked to you, the more intense it’s gotten.”
Swoon.Tears well up in my eyes, and I blink them away quickly. “I’m trusting you.”
“Good. Because I’m trusting you too. You know a life-changing secret.” He leans forward and presses his lips to mine. I kiss him back, but he breaks away. “Let’s throw on a movie. I’ll go up and get some snacks.”
After a quick how-to on the remote and a reveal of the childproof password to watch something more than a PG-rated movie, Royal drags himself away from me. I find a campy-mystery movie that I’ve seen before, but it isn’t showing up as watched in Royal’s system.
He’s back ten minutes later with a massive tray piled high with food.
“Normally, I lay this on half the bed and then lie next to it, but since I’ve got a much better partner to snuggle, I think if we put it on my desk chair, it’ll work?” Royal pulls out his chair with his foot and makes it look easy to place the board down, resting on the armrest.
“How much food do you think I can eat and still have room for dinner?” I gape at the board.
“Well, I wanted you to have options, and really, I figured you’d only eat a quarter of it. The rest is all me. Plus, whatever we don’t eat, we can put back.” Royal shrugs. His hair is disheveled, but helooks so perfect. He hands over a big forty-ounce cup of water. “Drink a little, please.”
The ‘please’ gets me. It’s not a command, but it’s definitely not a suggestion. It’s strong yet spoken with a soft tone. I take the straw between my lips and draw a few sips. It’s just ice water, but it hits the spot. I didn’t realize how thirsty I was.
35
ROYAL
BROTHERLY LOVE
“Royal,”Mom growls. “Don’t make a mess.”
I look at the area next to the sink where I’m cleaning up breakfast dishes. “I’ll clean it up.”
“Not what I meant,” Mom whispers. “You and Leticia?”
“We’re both well aware she’s someone else’s bride. In the meantime, it’s just fun.” I shrug and run the rag over the counter for good measure to wipe up.
“You’re going to get hurt.” She wraps an arm around me and squeezes me to her. “I hate seeing my babies hurt, and Valor is hurting enough for the both of you.”
I snuggle against her. “I know.”
“As long as you know.” Mom lets me go and steps away. “Can you and Leticia handle making dinner and watching Kerrianne? Your father and I are going to be at a meeting with a mercenary and his family until late, and I don’t want to eat at ten p.m. because I have to come home and cook.”
“Absolutely, I shall order takeout.” I salute her.
“Oh, absolutely not. I taught you how to make one meal so you can impress a woman. Dust off that skill set.” Mom smacks my arm before walking away. She calls over her shoulder, “You missed a spot.”
