I could tell by his tone that he wasn't happy with me. He sounded polite enough, but I'd spent hours in hotels like this and could tell the difference between professionally polite and genuine cordiality, even in heavily accented English. I didn't answer, looking to Nami to see what she wanted to do.
“Let them in,” she said. She straightened, shoulders back and chin up. The vulnerability she'd had with me was gone. Whoever her parents had brought her up to be, that's who she was now.
“Just a minute,” I said as I turned back towards the door. I took a deep breath and opened the door.
I stepped back so that I was at Nami's side, not touching, but close enough to make it clear she was with me. I knew she'd said that her bodyguards wouldn't hurt her, but I wasn't entirely sure I trusted them. The impression I'd gotten from Nami had been that she'd never really done anything like this before, which meant she couldn't know how they'd react, not really. And I'd be damned if I let anyone lay a finger on her.
The manager came in first, the expression on his face carefully blank. I had no doubt he'd seen much worse than this. Following him were Tomas and Kai. Even though they didn't really look alike – aside from their bulk – I didn't know which one was which. They weren't wearing blank expressions. They were pissed. I automatically took a step forward and to the side, shielding Nami. I caught a glimpse of surprise on their faces, but it passed quickly.
“It's okay, Reed,” Nami said. She put her hand on my arm as she stepped up next to me. “Tomas and Kai won’t hurt me.”
My hands curled into fists, but I didn't argue with her. I'd let her believe it, but if either one of them came near her, they'd have to go through me first.
“We have spoken with your father.” One of the men spoke to her as if I wasn't even there. His voice was surprisingly soft for such a large man. “We told him that we experienced some technical difficulties that delayed our flight.” He glared at me. “But we must go. Now.”
Nami slid her hand down my arm until she reached my hand. Her fingers threaded between mine. “And if I do not wish to leave right now?”
The other one spoke, his voice apologetic, but firm. “Then we will involve the police.”
“The police?” Nami echoed. “What are you talking about, Kai?”
Kai looked at me, his gaze anything but friendly. “We will tell the police that this American kidnapped you and violated you.”
My mouth dropped open. Was he serious?
“You cannot do that.” Her hand squeezed mine. “I went with him willingly. I will not support your story.”
“You will have no choice.” The one who must've been Tomas spoke up. “The media will pick up the story and your only options will be to confess the truth to the world or go along with the lie.”
I found my voice. “I don't know who you two think you are, but I'm not some nobody. My family has money and influence too. I'll have the best lawyer in Venice on my side and I won't just refute the charges, I'll file lawsuits against both of you for defamation of character.”
The look Kai gave me told me clearly that he thought me beneath him, no matter what I'd just said.
“Can I speak with you for a moment?” I turned my back on the bodyguards and looked down at Nami. “Privately.”
She looked at Tomas and Kai. “Give us a moment.” When they didn't move, her voice hardened. “Now.”
Neither one of them looked happy, but they stepped back into the hallway and closed the door behind them. I had no doubt they'd taken up their post there, ready to do whatever was necessary to get Nami home.
“I'm sorry, Reed,” she apologized. “I never thought things would go this far.”
I made a dismissive gesture. “You don't have to go with them, Nami. I'll protect you. Let them try to get me arrested. I wasn't kidding when I said I could have the best lawyer in the city. And that's not counting the American lawyers my parents would send as soon as I called home.” I took both of her hands. “I'm sure my family knows people here that will make a big enough fuss that nothing will happen to me.”
“But they're right,” she said. Her smile was sad. “If the press picked up the story, I would have only two choices. One, to hurt you and lie, or two, tell the truth and ruin my family.”
My heart gave a painful thud. “Admitting to being with me would ruin your family?”
She raised our hands and kissed my knuckles. “Admitting to what happened between us would. Maybe not ruin, but certainly harm.”
“I thought you said your parents weren't that old-fashioned.”
“You don't understand.”
The words were gentle, but they sparked my temper.
“What do you mean I don't understand? I'm probably the only person who can come close to understanding. I know what it's like to have parents pressuring you to do what they want you to do. Mine forced me into an arranged marriage, for fuck's sake!” My voice was rising and I struggled to keep it down. I wasn't angry with her, not really. I was angry at the circumstances, the stupid little things that were keeping us apart. Her family. Her sense of duty.
“No, Reed.” She pulled her hands out of my grasp and took a step back. She took a deep breath, a resigned look on her face. “You don't understand because my parents aren't some rich family with a business they want me to run.”
I looked at her, confused. Had she lied to me? Was she trying to scam me? Get money from my family? A thousand possibilities ran through my head, each one worse than the last. Were my instincts with women that awful? Granted, Piper was as good as I'd thought she was, just not the right girl for me. Britni, I'd known she wasn't the kind of woman I wanted. Maybe it wasn't bad instincts, but rather bad luck.
Then Nami said the last thing I expected.
“Reed, I'm a princess.”
Chapter 17
Reed
“Excuse me?” I had to have heard her wrong. I could've sworn she'd just said that she was a princess, but that couldn't be right.
Could it?
She spoke stiffly, formally. “I am Princess Nami Carr, eldest child of King Raj and Queen Mara, heir to the throne.”
I stared at her. This had to be some sort of joke. A weird, twisted prank.
“Tomas and Kai are my bodyguards, my protectors,” she continued. “But they were also sent to the States and Europe with me to make sure I didn't do anything that would embarrass my family...or cause problems with my betrothal.”
“Betrothal?” This kept getting better. I was getting light-headed. “You're engaged?” The thought occurred to me that Piper would've appreciated the irony of me falling for someone who was engaged.
“Not officially,” she said. “Like you, I was given no choice in the matter. My parents are in the process of selecting an appropriate husband for me. A man from my country who has a good name and a good family.”
“And who wants to be king,” I quipped, trying to make a joke out of it. This couldn't be happening.
“No.” She shook her head. “I will rule. He will be king in name only. Our children will inherit the throne when I am gone. His bloodline will rule only because it is a part of mine.” She stopped suddenly and waved a hand dismissively. “That's not important.”
I sat down on the arm of the couch, not trusting my legs to hold me. “Right. The succession of monarchs isn't important.”
She gave me a sharp look and I could see the hurt in her eyes. I immediately regretted my flippant remark.
“It's just a lot to take in, Nami...I mean, Princess.”
“Don't call me that!” she snapped.
Her face was flushed, but I knew it wasn't because of arousal or embarrassment. She was pissed and I was pretty sure it was at me. And I deserved it.
“This is why I did not tell you when we first met.” Her eyes were dark and flashing, the color of an ocean during a storm. “I have spent my whole life as Princess Nami, one day to be queen. Never knowing if someone wanted to be close to me for my title, for royal favor. I wanted only to be wanted for me.”
Now I really felt like shit. I stood and crossed the distance between us quickly. She didn't move or reach out to me, her jaw set.
“I'm sorry,” I apologized. I pushed back a curl from her forehead and let my fingers linger for a moment. “I was shocked and acted like an ass.”
She relaxed a bit, but still didn't try to touch me. Her arms hung at her sides, her hands clenched into fists.
“Please, Nami. Forgive me.” I went for quiet and sincere rather than charming. I put my hands on her shoulders, but didn't try to pull her towards me. If she came to me, it would be her choice.
Suddenly, her shoulders sagged and she leaned against me, her free arms sliding around my waist as she rested her head on my chest. Her other hand clutched the sheet to her chest. I wrapped my arms around her, closing my eyes as I kissed the top of her head.
“I wanted to tell you,” she confessed. “When you were telling me about your family and everything that happened. I wanted to share it all with you, but I didn't want you to look at me differently. I wanted to be seen as just me.”
“There's nothing 'just' about you.” I looked down at her as she tilted her head back so she could see my face. “And knowing who you are...it makes me admire you more. It took a lot of guts to rebel.” I paused, and then tried to lighten the mood by adding, “The whole political science major thing makes a lot more sense now.”
That got a faint smile. “Just one small step in the process that started when I was born. Training for the throne. Etiquette and language classes outside of my regular classes. In depth history of most countries. Knowledge of treaties and trade agreements.” She sighed.
“And that's why you won't abdicate,” I said, understanding. “Why you won't hand things over to your sister. You don't want her to have to go through all of that.”
She nodded. “If my brother had lived, I could have turned things over to him and no one would've thought worse of me for it. There are plenty of countries we deal with who have issues with women in power.”
“You're right,” I said. “Your situation is definitely different than mine. My parents can hire someone to take over the company if Rebecca screws things up. You have an entire country relying on you.”
“And that's why this meant so much to me.” Her hand slid up and down my bare back as she turned her face and pressed a kiss over my heart. “Time to be me and not have to worry about my responsibilities.”
“Because you have to go home and be the crown princess again,” I said.
“Right.” She flicked her tongue against my nipple and I bit back a moan. “And that means marrying a stranger. Bearing his children and letting another raise them. Even if I'm not queen yet, I won't be allowed to raise them the way a normal person would raise their children.”
“And you don't want your husband doing it either.” I wasn't sure how I knew it, but I did.
“I don't know him,” she said. “What kind of man and father he will be. Maybe he'll be a good man and I will grow to love him.”
I tried not to acknowledge the flare of jealousy that went through me at the thought of her loving another man. Of another man touching her. Making love to her. I clenched my jaw. She wasn't mine, I reminded myself.
“If that is the best I could hope for, I wanted to have something I could remember.” Her fingers traced patterns on my lower back. “That's why I slept with my best friend in college, so I would not have my first time be with a stranger.”
“And me?” I asked softly.
“You.” She made a quiet sound that might have been a sigh. She pulled her arm between us so she could put her hand over my heart.
“I'm a stranger.”
She smiled and pressed her lips against my chest, heating my bare skin. “But you wanted me. Not the princess or the chance to see your child on the throne. Me.”
“And what was that about?” I asked, gesturing back towards the bedroom with my head. “Taking it slow. Wanting me to...”
I swallowed hard at the memory. I'd never done that before, not even with Britni. Even thought we'd been contractually required to try to start having kids shortly after marriage, I'd kept making excuses about why I wanted to wait just a bit longer. I'd never had sex without a condom.
Nami's face turned red and I thought she'd refuse to answer, but she didn't. I supposed since her big secret was out of the bag, there wasn't any point in hiding anything else.
“I wanted to remember you,” she said. “What you feel like, smell like, sound like. When
he
is touching me, I wanted to be able to close my eyes and imagine it was you.”
Fuck. My fingers flexed on her waist and I told my rebellious cock that it wasn't allowed to get hard again.
“We will be expected to start a family immediately,” she continued. “And I wanted to remember what you felt like inside me, what it felt like to have nothing between us, to have you come inside me. I thought that if I had those memories, perhaps doing my duty would not be as unpleasant.”
Yeah, my cock was definitely not listening to me. I closed my eyes and rested my forehead against hers. “I hate this,” I admitted. “I hate knowing you’ll be forced into a marriage you don't want. Into the bed of a man who won't know how to please you.” I didn't add what I was thinking. A man who might hurt her. I pushed the thought away. I couldn't bear to think of someone harming her.