“He was ill, and very poor. He had one son, but he did not want to ask the son to give up everything to take care of him.”
“Wow.” Yena looked down at the letter in her hand. “And you’ve stayed in touch with him all these years since then?”
Nolan nodded. “Yes. He has become… my oldest friend.”
“Why didn’t you just tell me about this?” Yena asked.
“I never wanted him to know who I am,” Nolan said. “I never wanted anyone to know about any of this. I just wanted to be… a regular person to them.”
Yena gave him a sad look.
“I’m sorry,” she said, “but that was not going to last forever. And if
It was an informational pamphlet about the orphanage. “Check it out,” she said. “You can read all about what we’re doing here. It’s still a really new operation, and our first priority was just getting the doors open and getting all the kids a roof over their heads, so we still have a lot of work ahead of us.” I flipped through the pages, glancing at the pictures. Looked like they were all from the opening day. “We don’t have a lot of group activities set up for the kids yet,” the woman added, frowning. “That’s what we really need the most help with.” A younger woman popped her head out from a nearby hallway and called out, “Cindy? Can we borrow you for a minute, please?” The p
“He’s one of your volunteers here, isn’t he?”Cindy nodded and said, “Oh, my. I didn’t know… why would he…”“He didn’t want you to know. Because he wanted to help out here and he didn’t want special treatment.”Cindy’s shoulders relaxed.She must have been worrying about some interaction or another. Replaying something embarrassing in her mind. Something she wished she hadn’t said or done in the presence of the future King.She stared down at Nolan’s photo and shook her head slowly.“Cindy,” I said, pulling her back to the present. “Can I call you later today? Nolan and I actually need your help with something.”“Of course.” She rummaged through a drawer and produced a business card with her contact information. “But what I could I possibly help you with?”“Have you been watchin
NOLANThe freezing night seemed to go on forever. When a tiny bit of sunlight announced it was daytime again, Nolan felt a flicker of hope. Thinking Yena would come to see him again.But she did not come.And the day just dragged on. One slow, cold minute at a time.This was the real punishment. It was not the discomfort or the hunger. It was the isolation of solitary confinement.When night fell once more, Nolan was tempted to slip into feelings of hopelessness.His body missed Yena’s. It felt like part of himself was missing without her.But dwelling on those thoughts did not help to pass the time. And they were not productive, either.Nolan braced himself for another night of deep blackness and bitter cold. He resolved to spend the hours ahead planning.Considering what were Adan’s next possible moves.And how Nolan could anticipate and respond to each one.Nex
YENA When we finally caught our breath, Nolan curled up next to me and rested his head on my shoulder. I combed my fingers through his damp hair. It was getting long and wild. Finally, he asked me how I had done it. Convinced the King to release him.He asked if I found the old man, and what had happened. I started by telling him about my trip to the orphanage. Nolan’s eyes lit up when he heard me talking about my art lesson with the kids. Then I told him about the interview. I sat up and retrieved my phone from the nightstand as I talked. I pulled up the video on the news website and passed him the phone.Nolan was lying flat with his messy black hair splayed all around his head on the pillow. I stroked it as he watched the
Nolan worked with his staff through the afternoon and met Yena in the late evening for dinner. It had been a while since they dined together in their dining room, instead of having food sent up to their bedroom.She was waiting for him. Wearing a pretty blue dress that brought out the color in her eyes.Nolan kissed her. And felt that awful fluttering feeling in his chest.His breath hitched as they broke apart. He hoped she did not notice.She asked him how everything was with work. He waved the question off. Not important.He did want to tell her something she would like to hear.“The King was impressed with you.”Yena’s fork clattered onto her plate. “He really said that?”“Well, I believe his exact words were, that you were clever and well-spoken.”Her face went red. It did that a lot.Nolan smiled.Yena’s regular color returned to her cheeks after she too
First thing in the box was a card, sitting atop glittery gold tissue paper. It was an invitation to go out to a romantic dinner with Nolan the next night. I smiled. He could’ve just asked me tonight. But the formal invite, written out in beautiful cursive, was a nice touch. I lifted a sheet of gold paper and found an elegant black dress folded neatly underneath. I lifted it up and Rafaela went, “Ooh.” She took it from me and hung it on one of my dressmaking dummies. There was something else in the box, too. I pulled out one more layer of gold tissue paper, just as the deaconess was walking back over for a peek. I lifted the garment by its thin, silky straps. And discovered it was a transparent black lace negligee. It was super sexy. Rafaela looked upon it in silent horror. I folded it neatly back into its box. I had to look away from Rafaela to keep myself from laughing at her reaction. She mumbled something I cou
NOLAN Nolan’s secretary was blowing up his phone on the drive home. Just more scheduling problems. Work problems. He turned his phone off and gave it to Yena to put in her purse. Then he told her to scoot closer to him. She slid over. He reached in through the slit in the skirt. His rough fingertips caught on her delicate nylon stockings. They were thigh-high and had a little band of lace at the top. Nolan’s fingers reached the top of the stocking and made contact with her skin. He pushed his hand carefully between her thighs. Yena closed her eyes and shivered. With his other hand, Nolan moved her face
I was in my studio in the next afternoon, sitting in the middle of a pile of fabric samples. I had them all spread out on the floor under the window.The sun had come out, and I wanted to look at everything under the natural light before it slipped back behind the clouds.I heard a distinct knock on the door that told me Nolan was here.I stood and saw him waiting in the doorway, holding a little gold box in his hand.“Please come in, sir,” I said with mock formality.We met halfway across the room and he handed me the box.“What’s this?”“Just a little something.”I lifted the lid off the flat, square box. Inside was a gold necklace.“Oh my Goddess,” I said, “it’s gorgeous.”“Would you like to try it on?”I nodded and led him over to the trifold mirror.I faced the mirror and he stood behind me with the necklace. I h