CARLY Well, my worse nightmare just became a reality. Although I was thrilled to see my brother, Ash, and Stellan, I was so sad about the terrible news that my grandfather was indeed ill. After the revelation of my identity, Rome wouldn’t even look me in the eye anymore. The silence in the car was profound until we arrived. I immediately regretted keeping this secret from him. I went with him to his penthouse because I needed to explain to him why I had to keep it from anybody, but he wouldn’t even give me a chance to speak about it. -I hurt him. It breaks my heart -What should I do now? -I need help. Give me a sign. Please? After a moment to gather my thoughts, I spoke. “You know the reason. What I told you before was all true.” He scoffed. “Yet you missed mentioning to me the vital part that you are a royal family member.” “It’s not even a big deal.” I shrugged off. But that was not even true. I couldn’t walk alone without a detail following me. Even though I wasn’t aware
ROME It wasn’t the dinner that made me anxious. It was after the dinner—the possibility of not seeing Carly again. It was what I wanted for her—to live out there, doing the job she loved. I couldn’t hold that against her. I knew she missed her family and seeing them might change her perspective. Her feelings for me might change, too. There was no guarantee what we had would pan out, considering what kind of people they were and my family business was here. I would never blame Carly if she decided to be with her family and picked up what she had left off. It was who she was, and I would always support her all the way from a thousand miles away. “What’s on your mind?” She squeezed my hand as we rode toward the address of the house her brother had rented. “That I might punch your ex again,” I cracked a joke. She smiled. “You don’t have to waste your strength for him.” “Oh, that was for you,” I proudly said as I arched a brow. “I think I can defend my honor, Langston.” “I have no
ROME The Prince looked at me. “Carlott did not mention she led the Polo Team, did she?” “I’m afraid she did not, Prince Thayer.” I smiled. I should have known. “Oh, she’s good at it. She’s very natural.” “Last month, she went to Haiti to help plant trees with the volunteers.” And I didn’t know that. Hence, the trees and flowers. The first course was served, then another followed. We had a pleasant dinner, sharing a light conversation about the Caprean. I learned more about who Carly was before she came to the U.S. She was molded to fit into that shoe. I wouldn’t wonder why she was so heartbroken. She’d been working her ass off since she was very young, yet when she made a mistake, people judged her in a blink of an eye and forgot the things she did to make a difference. They dubbed her Rebellious Princess on social media, which was not even the worse. She called her names, a charlatan, a Rogue Princess. A lot of things came to my mind. I wondered what my life would be like
CARLY “Come with me. You can take a few days off.” I didn’t want to let him go. I was not ready yet. “Please?” “You have to go and sort things out. And I’m not going anywhere.” He cupped my face and pressed his lips into mine. But it wasn’t enough. I needed him by my side. “But I need you.” I felt like I want to cry again. “I need you too, but you have things that need to be settled and done with your family. This is your chance.” I looked away, tears welling in my eyes. “I can’t convince you, can I?” “You don’t need to convince me. When things get better, the dust has settled, and you don’t have time to come and see me, I will visit you.” “Visit me, huh?” My tears finally fell. “Why do I feel this is a goodbye?” “No, sweetheart. This is just the beginning. I will be waiting for you. None of us is giving up. Do you understand me?” “Yes.” I nodded even if my heart disagreed. “Good. Now go. Call me whenever you can. I’m going to miss you.” He kissed me again, the kind of kiss
ROME“What the fuck are you all doing here?” I shot a glare at my friends marching in my direction.“Nice place you got here, bro,” Kye said. Of course, they knew this place. They helped me install the camera and security system of the cabin.”“You did not answer my question. I’m here because I wanna stay away from someone like you all.”They all smirked because they knew that was impossible, and I was fooling myself. Honestly, I really could use their help. I wanted them to tell me to move on, and I also wanted them to tell me to fight for Carly.“Cenric and Sadie extend their congratulations,” Linden said.“For what?” I opened the gate.Zee parked the SUV in my driveway, and they all jumped out as if I had just opened the gate to the hottest sex club in town.“I’m happy for you, bro.” Sax hugged me so tight, slapping my back.“What are you all talking about?”“If I hadn’t known you, brother, I would have believed you for a second. So this is how you’re going to play it? Fine. You an
CARLY This is not happening. I put my hand that had touched my grandfather on my chest. I had not even settled in. Everything just happened so fast, and now things in the palace, the cottage, and the manor were changing. Staff was juggling a lot, and I’d never felt more useless. We were supposed to take a break for a moment to mourn, and it seemed that was not the case here. As they said, life must go on. Everyone was back in business, even if it was declared a national holiday until the Late King was sent to his resting place. Not in this place. For most people, this was the first time to witness the death of the King, as King Kamrun IV had reigned for decades. It felt surreal. I was just holding his hand. Suddenly, he was gone. And now my father was the King. And just made his first speech, addressing the country and the world that his beloved father had passed away. I felt suddenly exhausted—drained that I had no one to hold onto. I went to my room after I couldn’t bea
ROMEThree days since the King died, we barely talked. I missed her, but I also had a job to do. I just came back from a business trip and hadn’t slept for twenty-four hours. I couldn’t even take a nap. All I could think of was her cries. I hoped and prayed she was okay.Everything must be foreign to her since she’d been away for years. I wondered if they treated her right, but I knew her brother would take care of her no matter what that the King had decided for her future. Her father, now the King, just gave a speech in line with his father’s death. I saw the resemblance between Prince Thayer and Carly. And I still pinched myself every now and then that my girlfriend was a princess.My new assistant walked with the file in her grasp.“What the hell is that?”“The report you asked me for, sir.”“I needed that three hours ago, Aryan. And why it’s still in your hand?”“Sorry, sir.” She quickly handed it to me, and she almost tripped. “Careful.”“Sorry, sir.”“I don’t need your apolo
ROME I packed another bag with my new sets of clothes. When I went down, Linden had just arrived with my friends. They wore the same suit. “Wow. Isn’t that too much?” “Too much? You should have seen your lobby.” Kye showed me the live footage outside the building. He was right. There were at least thirty heads in the lobby, and I bet a few more outside waiting for me. It was shocking how people were so interested in royal romance. They still believed in fairy fucking tales. “Whether you like it or not, you have to write our cheque,” Kye added. I snorted. “I thought we were friends, asshole.” “You’re kidding. But I can’t wait to see Triberean,” Sax said. “I thought they call themselves Caprean,” Kye told Sax. “Caprean is like pure blood. Tribereans are mix and modern.” I watched Zee and Linden as they planned on the laptop. “Have you talked to Carly— Princess Carlott?” I looked at Sax. “Yeah. Just right after I talked to Linden. Why?” “Did she tell you how the media got