“Is that so?”
His eyes are warm and mischievous and so full of love. “I miss you.”
I look at this man who told me he’d give up his kingdom for me. Who held space for my hurt and met it with patience. Who carried my love note in his pocket like it was a compass leading him back to me.
“I miss you too,” I tell him. “So much.”
He laces his fingers through mine. “Then come with me.”
We slip back toward the palace through the shadows. Nothing has changed on the outside. Our relationship is still a secret and still forbidden, but everything has changed between us.
20
ADDISON
Louis leads me through a part of the grounds I’ve never explored. The path narrows as we move farther away from the palace. The manicured gardens open up to wild grass and vines twisted by centuries of wind. Moonlight filters through the branches and casts silver across the dirt under our feet.
“Should I be concerned that you’re leading me into the woods at night?” I ask.
“Terrified,” he says, reaching his hand out and pulling me closer to him. Our fingers interlock as we walk, and I love how much bigger his hand is than mine. “The prince thing is a cover.”
“Explains the charm. Very Ted Bundy of you.”
He laughs and rubs his thumb across mine.
We’ve been walking for at least twenty minutes. My calves are starting to burn from the downhill descent when I hear the soft rush of water. With each step we take, the sounds get louder until we push through a curtain of hanging vines.
I gasp when I see a waterfall pouring down a rock face into a pool that almost glows under the moon. The water is so clear that I can see smooth stones at the bottom. The air smells like wet earth and flowers. Fireflies drift lazily around the edges, blinking in and out, like the universe scattered stars out for us.
“Wow,” I whisper, looking around. “This feels like a fairy tale.”
“It does. I found this place when I was twelve.” He stands beside me,watching my face instead of the water. “I was hiding from my parents and got lost in the woods. I ended up here and sat on that rock for three hours, watching the falls.”
“Does anyone else know about it?”
“Not that I know of. Only me.” He pauses. “And you.”
This is another one of his sanctuaries. He turns to face me, and I can’t help but study the angle of his jaw.
“I want to share it all with you.”
I don’t have words for what that does to me, so I kiss him instead. His hands come up to cradle my face, and he kisses me back, like we have all the time in the world. Maybe tonight, we do.
When we break apart, he’s smiling. “Can you swim?”
“Yes.”
“Would you like to join me?” he asks, pulling his shirt over his head and tossing it on a rock nearby.
I swallow hard, my mouth going completely dry as my eyes trail down his body. “I, uh … yes.”
Moonlight traces over the muscles on his stomach, the definition in his shoulders, and that trail of dark hair that leads down to that perfect V.
“See something you like?” he asks, catching me staring.
“It’s adequate.” I smirk.
He kicks off his shoes. “I’ll remember you said that.”
