Prince Walker
Rock Bottom
“No. No! No!” I roared and slammed my fist onto the desk as Andy hovered on the other side cautiously. “There has to be something we can do,” I raged, half tempted to throw myself at him and pound his face again. My friend’s features reflected remorse. And sorrow. There was nothing he could do. I knew it as well as he did.
Our new Swiss business partners had left moments before, bemused by the new changes to the contract we’d suggested to them. As promised, Razortip’s attorney – a discreet-sounding man from a firm known for representing shady clients – had called barely an hour after we’d spoken. The terms were clear. We would sign over controlling interests to a proxy in a contract that would never disclose his identity. I’d spent a sleepless night mulling it over and waiting for the early morning meeting we’d set up with our partners.
Horst’s legal team had taken one look at the document and tossed it out. It hadn’t helped that we’d been compelled to maintain strict secrecy ourselves. When pressed for information, I’d been forced to remain silent.
“I am disappointed, Prince,” had been my new business partner’s final words as he’d ended the meeting and prepared to leave. “I had expected our venture to be conducted with more transparency.”
It had nearly killed me to say nothing, but I’d kept my lips sealed as he’d fixed me with a hard stare, and then turned and left the room. Perhaps he might have been more inclined to assist if he’d known what was at stake.
But that would have been like signing Sasha’s death warrant.
Nobody could ever know. We’d managed to keep a lid on the media coverage, though it had made my gut clench to spread the lies. “Prince’s Princess Gets Cold Feet” had been one headline, while another had announced, “Prince’s Royal Wedding on Hold.” Andy had handled the PR knowing that I’d have lost it if I’d spoken to those vultures. He’d shared the news that we’d made the decision to postpone the wedding due to personal issues. It would be his job to stop the hotel from leaking any more details of her abduction. That would have fucked us – nobody could know she’d been taken.
Of course, the gossip mill had gone wild in the past day. Everything from me having an affair to Sasha being caught out as a gold-digger. I didn’t care what they said as long as the truth didn’t get out. The truth that would put her in danger. But each cruel news article had buried a knife in my heart. We should have been on honeymoon now. We should have been celebrating our vows, our love. Instead, I was playing a waiting game with a psychopath. Praying for her life.
“Fucking Gutierrez! It’s like he deliberately wants us to fail,” I said hoarsely, sinking into the leather executive seat behind my desk. I dropped my head into my hands and ran my fingers raggedly through my hair, massaging my fingertips over my scalp. My head felt like it was ready to explode. I’d examined this situation from every possible angle. Nothing worked. There was no way out.
“I don’t think he’s thought it through,” Andy sighed, his face softened with compassion. He knew what I was going through, even if he couldn’t imagine the depths of my despair. How could he? How could he know? Andy had never had a relationship with more depth than a goldfish bowl.
“The man’s a fucking idiot,” I groaned, rubbing my eyes. It felt as if I’d been grinding sand into them for the past couple of days. Not surprising. I hadn’t slept since the night before our wedding. A night we’d spent entwined in each other’s arms. It was my last real memory of the woman I adored. When I’d returned home to discover our cleaning staff had serviced the apartment and changed the linen on our bed, I’d wanted to howl with fury. Wanted to bury my face in those sheets that would have still smelled of her. Of us. It might be all I’d have left of her.
“He’s batting out of his league,” Andy acknowledged. “It’s taken us months to pin down the details of this business venture. He doesn’t realize it’s not something that can be strong-armed to suit his agenda.”
I slumped back into my seat. “Why? Why the fuck can’t he just take money? I’ll give him fucking anything!” I wanted to yell the words, but somehow I couldn’t summon the energy. I felt drained.
“It’s not about the money, my friend,” Andy answered. He’d risen to his feet and was making his way to the bar counter on the other side of my office. I watched as he poured two generous glasses of scotch and headed back to my desk. Despite the early hour, when he set the cut crystal glass in front of me, I reached for it eagerly. “Breakfast of champions,” he said wryly, taking a sip. I couldn’t bring myself to return the smile.
“What’s it about then?” I said darkly, swallowing a mouthful of the fiery liquid.
“You,” he said. I frowned. “Your life. What you represent. The Prince of New York. That’s what he wants to be.”
I shook my head. “What the fuck are you talking about, Andy? I’ll sign over my accounts if that’s what it takes. He can have it all, goddamn it! I just…” I felt my voice break and cursed myself for my weakness. “I just want her back safe.”
He set his hand on my shoulder.
“We’re going to do something to make that happen, okay?” His tone was reassuring. I swallowed hard.
“Just give me hope,” I said hoarsely. “I need her back.”
“We’ll do it, my friend. If there’s a way, we’ll find it,” he said. Andy had reached for his phone and was swiping the screen again when my intercom buzzed.
I frowned at it darkly. “Jane?” I snapped, not in the mood to be polite.
“I’m so sorry, Mr. Walker,” my PA spluttered. “I couldn’t stop her…”
∞∞∞
Angelique Delavigne
“Prince! Darling! You’re looking…” Angelique stopped and stared at the man across the desk. This was not the Prince Walker she’d come to know and…well, maybe not love, but certainly lust after. “You’re looking tired,” she finally said. “Is it that wretched girl? I heard the wedding was a disaster.” He stared at her as if she’d stepped out of an alien spacecraft, but that didn’t deter Angelique. Charm was wired into her, and years of dealing with the modeling industry had given her a hide like a rhinoceros.
She swooped toward the desk and rested a svelte hip on the varnished oak.
“Perhaps I can help,” she purred. He didn’t look convinced, but she didn’t let that stop her, either. This was no cheery social visit. It was her last-ditch attempt at making a play for the man.
