Page 11 of The Royal in Room 3

“And speaking of the devil…”

The squad car came to a stop at the end of the driveway, and Officer Vale stepped out. The smile on his face dimmed when his gaze shifted from the man at my side to me. Vale and I worked closely with Halo House, and we might have been good friends if he didn’t get so territorial over Phoenix because of our closeness, but I’d known Phoenix far longer than him.

“Behave,” Phoenix said from the corner of his lips. “Lately you’ve been having too much fun goading him.”

I couldn’t stop the grin that parted my lips.

Vale didn’t approach us immediately. He went around the car, opened the passenger door, and helped someone out. The grin on my face froze in place, and the breath whooshed right out of my lungs. A young man with beautiful mahogany skin stepped out, one hand braced lightly against Vale’s arm. He raised his head, and the light caught the rich texture of his skin over the sharp cut of his cheekbones and the elegant line of his throat.

He was stunning.

There was strength in him, his arms and shoulders well defined without being bulky. He had a softness to his beauty, and despite the exhausted, pained look in his eyes, his lean muscles suggested an elegance about him that didn’t suit the crumpled clothes he wore.

Vale had to coax him forward, and his eyes darted around as if he were looking to bolt any second. Protective instincts pushed against the wall of my chest, making my arms tingle with the need to wrap around him, place his head beneath my chin, and hold him until the tension in his shoulders eased and he no longer looked so scared.

“Jude,” Vale said, coming to a stop in front of us. “How are you?”

“Good, good. You?”

I heard the mumble of his voice but didn’t hear the words because the young man chose that moment to glance up, and our gazes clashed violently. Light brown eyes with golden flecks widened, and his full, dewy lips parted. Decades of experience prevented me from reacting similarly, but I couldn’t seem to drag my eyes away. His skin looked so soft and supple. He didn’t give off the vibe of a young man who was living on the streets, but those were the type Vale usually brought to Phoenix.

“Do you mind, Jude?” Vale’s voice pulled me back to whatever he said that I might have missed. “We need to talk to Phoenix privately so we can get Soren settled.”

Soren.

A pretty, delicate name for a beautiful boy.

I nodded. “I was just leaving. Phoenix, I’ll be in touch. See you tomorrow.”

“Does this mean you’ll be here then?” Phoenix asked, his voice full of hope.

“Yes. You were right, so I’ll stop by for a few minutes to show my support. Have a good night, and thanks for the dinner.”

“Drive safely!”

I waved at him as I headed for my truck, which was parked next to the squad car. I had to pause to transfer the dishes to one arm while I dug the keys from my pocket.

“—doesn’t have anywhere to stay,” I overheard Vale saying. “His roommates took everything and disappeared.”

I frowned as I unlocked the truck, having no choice but to get in, although I had the overwhelming urge to stick around and find out what had happened to Soren. He didn’t have the look of someone disadvantaged, but I knew better than to assume as much. One of the boys who’d passed through Halo House had been a governor’s son.

As I backed out of the driveway, I couldn’t help stealing another glance at the young man. There was something unusual about him that I couldn’t put my finger on. Whatever it was, my interest was piqued, and I couldn’t wait to hear his story.

4

SOREN

Despite the horror of the day before, I slept like a log at Halo House. I must have been exhausted because despite Officer Vale—Aaron’s—reassurance that the owner, Phoenix, was a guardian angel, I still had so many doubts. And who would blame me after everything I’d been through?

In a daze, I got out of bed. I was dressed in the borrowed pajamas Phoenix had given me last night when he’d brought me to a room with the number three on the door. It gave the feel of the room being private, almost like a hotel, but the bathrooms were shared, something I was still getting used to after years of having my own in the royal palace. In fact, I’d had my own wing, and if I hadn’t been ousted, I would have received my own residence in time.

I walked over to the bay windows and drew the curtains apart, sucking in a breath at the beautiful landscape before me. Last night I’d been too distraught to notice much about the house, but the property was bigger than it had seemed. My bedroom overlooked a well-maintained hedge maze that gave me the shivers just by looking at it. I wondered if anyone had ever gotten lost in there before. How would anyone even find you except by air?

My room was just high enough for me to see two figures sitting on a stone bench tucked discreetly inside the maze. I was too far away to make out anything distinct, but one was sitting in the other’s lap, and they were kissing. Or were they…?

I pressed my face closer to the windowpane, and yup, a lot more was going on than just kissing.

A knock sounded on the door, and I scrambled upright. The last thing I wanted was for anyone to catch me being a Peeping Tom, though I didn’t know if the term was accurate, given they were out in the open. I opened the door and came face-to-face with two young men eagerly staring at me.