Someone pounded on Kingston’s door, and he shot up in bed, ready to hide Romaine, but she wasn’t there… She was gone. The bed was cold on her side, and he frowned, wondering when she’d snuck out last night. What kind of bodyguard was he since he didn’t hear her leaving the room?“King! Wake up, man! We have a situation!” Brent yelled through the door.“I’m up, dude! Just give me a minute,” he called back and grabbed his clothes. Once he was dressed, Kingston unlocked his door, and Brent burst in.“What is this about? What the hell is going on?”“All I can say for now… It’s not good, man! Not good at all! King Hernando and Queen Dorothea want to see you in the surveillance room… NOW!” Brent told him. “I’m sorry, King… I really have no idea how it happened.”“How WHAT happened? You’re not making sense… What are you talking about, man?” Kingston asked in a cold tone.“I think it’s best if you see for yourself, King,” Brent said. His tone told Kingston whateve
Romaine’s mouth was dry and her vision fuzzy. She tried to remember exactly what had happened, but there was a blank in her memories. She moved, trying to stand, but her hands were bound in her lap and she was tied securely to a chair. Panic set in and her eyes widened.“Help!” She yanked hard and yelled as she tried to break free.“Please! Somebody, help me!” Romaine screamed over and over. Steps sounded close by, and when Thiago appeared in the doorway, Romaine tried to lunge toward him, but the ropes cut and burned into her.“Oh, damn it! You son of a bitch! What the hell do you think you’re doing? Let me go! Let me go right now!” He pulled a gun from his waistband, and Romaine glared at him.“Is that supposed to scare me? Well, I got news for you, you bastard… I’m not scared of you,” Romaine spat and hoped her voice wasn’t shaking like her hands.“Oh, of course not, little Princess,” Thiago said casually. “Don’t worry, sweetheart… This isn’t f
Kingston unlocked his old storage shed with all of the things that he hadn’t taken to the palace with him. Iker slipped in behind him, and Kingston went straight to the gun safe in the back. He opened it and said he was going to give Brent an update. He stepped back and texted Brent, asking him to call if he could. A second later, his cell went off.“‘King, I’m here! Tell me everything! What did you find out?’”“I was able to hear Romy and trace her current location… Brent, she’s been kidnapped by Thiago and Raoul,” Kingston said tightly.“‘Are you kidding me?’” Voices echoed behind him, but they died down.“‘Guess who is here telling them all Princess Romaine ran away…?’”“Thiago? How in the hell had he gotten there already?”“‘No, bro… It’s Alba. She showed the King and the Queen a text from Thiago saying Romaine told him early this morning she was taking off. He hasn’t shown up yet.’”“He will… soon enough.” Kingston filled him in briefly on w
Two other men charged forward, their guns firing towards Kingston, but one was dropped by Iker and the second went down when Kingston fired.“Four… Romy, what do you hear?”“‘Nothing… It’s quiet… No! Get your filthy hands off me, you bastard!’”“Romy! What’s happening there?”“‘Let me go, you coward! King!!!!! King!!!!!’”“‘Shut up, you little bitch!’” Raoul shouted. Kingston stared through the scope, and when Raoul came back into view with his gun aimed at Romaine’s head, his entire body exploded in fury.“Put down your weapons!” Raoul called out to the dockyard. “Do it or I’ll kill her! I swear to God I will!”“‘King,’” Romaine whispered, and Raoul yanked hard on her hair. She reached back, trying to get free, but Raoul smacked her with the gun, and Romaine staggered.“‘King, can you get a shot?’” Iker asked quietly. “‘I’m blocked. I can’t see shit.’” He scooted forward, his hands the steadiest they’d been in years, and put his eye back to the
“This is not true! It’s all lies!” Thiago yelled, but Kingston shook him hard enough for his teeth to rattle. Queen Dorothea’s hand covered her mouth as King Hernando’s opened and closed like a fish out of water.“Romaine… What are you saying? This is madness! This is pure madness! Thiago is your cousin! You’ve been close your entire lives… He cares for you…”“And he wants the throne, Father,” Romaine argued angrily. “But you know this… Both of you do.”“I don’t understand,” Queen Dorothea whispered. “Romy, sweetheart, we would have known if you were kidnapped.”“Obviously not, Mother,” she replied gently, trying to reign in her rage. “You’ve been too busy deciding for me, controlling my life, playing my strings like I was some soulless, stupid marionette to realize the actual danger I was in.” She tossed the phone to Brent.“Can you, please, play the file that’s up, and make sure everyone can hear it.”“Immediately, Your Royal Highness,” Brent said. He b
Sun shattered the darkness in his bedroom, and Kingston groaned as he rolled over, diving back under the covers for another few hours’ sleep. A squeal greeted him, and he shot up in bed, glancing around, his hand slipping beneath his pillow until the other head popped up.“Oh, King! You’ve been so wicked… I will not walk straight for a week after last night.” The black-haired beauty grinned beside him, the sheet pooled around her waist. His hand relaxed, and Kingston left the handgun tucked under his pillow. He forced a grin, even though smiling was the last thing he felt like doing.“That is the idea, darling,” he pointed out. “But unfortunately, my precious, you need to go and I have to get ready. My new job starts today.”“Wow… Isn’t this wonderful… And where is this new job? You aren’t working at the nightclubs anymore?”“Sadly, no, but this one will pay the bills even better,” Kingston replied, knowing the new income would take care of him for quite some time i
Romaine tried hard not to groan like a child, but having someone watch her constantly grew tiresome, and dealing with a new person meant reminding said person again and again that personal space was a must.“Why can’t you just let me have Theodore? Or Brent? They’ve been here long enough. They knew me,” she muttered. “I know Ralph retired, but why do you need to bring in another one?”“Because my daughter needs a personal bodyguard at all times. You know this very well. I have one and so does your father. We are the Royal family and that’s the way it is, Romaine. I don’t know why you don’t see that.” She wanted to say that a bodyguard hadn’t protected her older brother from the terrible boating accident that took his life when Romaine was only six. Instead, she nodded in apology.“Very well, Mother, as you wish. I will meet the new security guard.” Though she didn’t see why she still needed protection… No one had tried to hurt a member of the Royal family
Once the door closed firmly, Romaine let out a sigh and laughed quietly.“I adore her though she’s a bit overzealous some days.”“Is that right…?!” Kingston mused as he walked slowly about her rooms. When he shifted, Romaine noticed the bulge under his side where his jacket pressed against his side in the holster, reminding her he was not here for small talk.“Yes… Well then… These are, of course, my rooms. My bedroom is through that door if there is ever an issue, though I assure you this palace hasn’t been broken into in decades. No one has targeted my family… Not that I’m aware of,” she added with a shrug. He wandered towards her bedroom door and peered inside.“Still,” he said after a long moment of staring into her private chamber, “we can’t be too careful.” The flare of heat in his look had Romaine struggling to breathe, her chest tightening as she turned away from him. How dare he look at her like that? She was the princess.