‘You know, Pierce, we’ve kind of settled into a routine here. It seems a bit unfair to rock the boat, you know?’
‘That’s good.’ Pierce clears his throat. ‘I just wanted you to know there are options. I know Ryan feels bad for forcing you into the position. If you approached him now the immediate threat is over, he’d definitely reassign you back here. Huxley Castle isn’t the same without you.’
I pause for a beat, trying to gather the right words. ‘Maybe it’s exactly what I needed. To be forced out of my comfort zone.’
‘Well, don’t get too comfortable over there. There are two tiny four-year-olds robbing me blind with their fucking swear jar,’ Pierce grumbles good-naturedly.
A familiar high-pitched voice shrieks in the background. ‘I heard that! You owe us a fiver,’ Bella demands.
My heart constricts in my chest. I love those little douchebags. But not nearly as much as I love their aunty.
Love? Fuck, yes. Who am I kidding? I was half in love with her before I even got here. Not that I’m going to tell her that. She’d probably run a mile, or twenty, knowing her athletic capabilities.
While we’re perfectly compatible in the bedroom, the couch, the shower, and the dining room table, I’m still aware of our major differences in social class. Okay, financially, I’m comfortable, but I wasn’t raised in a damn castle. My family has zero fame or influence and I don’t have a single GCSE, let alone a fucking degree in medicine.
Would she be prepared to introduce me to her doctor friends as her boyfriend and not her bodyguard? I don’t know.
‘Is that Archie?’ Blake’s voice cuts across in the background.
‘Yep. Want to talk to him?’ Pierce offers.
‘Archie?’ I imagine Blake snatching the phone out of Pierce’s hand.
‘Hi buddy, how are you getting on?’ My pitch changes totally, enough for Victoria to arch her eyebrows in surprise. Peeping at me through those thick ebony eyelashes, relief floods her face. Apparently, she’s not tiring of me just yet. Thank God, because I’m nowhere near tired of her.
‘I miss you,’ Blake whines. ‘But we make more money out of Pierce. He says loads of bad words. Even more than you. Also, he’s no good at baseball. When are you coming home?’
How can I explain that here with his aunty, I feel more at home the last few weeks than I’ve ever done in my life?
‘I’ll be home in the summer, okay?’ I look at Victoria and raise my hands in a question. She nods.
‘Aww, summer is ages away,’ Blake huffs.
‘Think how much money you’ll have made off Pierce by then.’ Fingers roam over the stubble dotting my jawline. Summer. Will we come out as a couple? We’ll have to. I need this to be okay with Ryan and Sasha. I don’t want to live in the shadows. Even if it will cause untold amounts of ructions at first.
How are we going to play this?
The funny thing is, I’m not playing at all.
Is Victoria?
Blake contemplates for a minute. ‘Hmmm. Okay. Will you bring me back a present?’
Got to admire the kid’s ability to say whatever’s on his mind. Maybe the world would be a simpler place if we all did that.
Or maybe it might cause another war.
‘I think I can arrange that. Want to speak to your Aunty Vic?’
‘Sure, is she there?’ His voice ricochets with excitement.
‘I’ll find her for you. She’s here somewhere.’ I press a kiss to Victoria’s lips as she takes the phone. Cooing over the line, she lashes a mountain of praise and encouragement on her nephew, then her niece, promises she’ll play baseball with them in the summer, then returns the phone to me.
After bidding Pierce and the twins goodbye, I hang up and check the fire.
‘So,’ Victoria hovers behind me.
‘So?’ My fingers grip her waist, pulling her against me.
