Royally Benevolent (Resplendent Royals #4)

71. Value Added

71

VALUE ADDED

WYATT

O dette was out like a light in my arms when I finally pulled away and sat up to reckon with it. She didn’t owe me this. She also hadn’t said she accepted my apology explicitly, yet we found ourselves entangled in her bed in the most wholesome way. She wasn’t herself, though. Something was off. We needed to talk about it.

I turned on the television to distract myself and let her sleep off her day drinking. Odette wasn’t much for getting sloshed. She was careful because of her medications and just her general persona. Odette wasn’t a party girl. She was a homebody, much like I was. I popped into the bathroom to find the stock of crystal glasses kept on the vanity top. She shared the bathroom with Ingrid. I assumed Ingrid had yet to return to Neandia but would arrive soon. Grabbing a glass, I filled it and sat it on the nightstand for Odette.

After about an hour, there was a knock. I cracked it. Rick appeared with Manon on his hip. She was no longer a tiny little bean. Instead, she was a chubby, slightly fussy child who gave me a glare that mirrored her father’s.

“Is everything alright?” Rick asked .

“She’s out like a light,” I said. “We should check her ankle when she wakes. She was… drunk. I suspect a hangover is just on the horizon.”

“I wish Lex would have slowed down. C’mon. Let her have her rest. Do you want some food? I’ve got to watch Manon, but Lex, Astrid, and the other kids are watching a movie in the family room.”

“Sure,” I agreed.

I closed the door and followed Rick to the family dining room, where we sat. Manon gnawed on toast with some spread while Rick talked to the staff.

“What interests you? Given the circumstances, we have no plans for dinner,” Rick said.

“Well, I don’t want to eat before Odette wakes. She should eat.”

“She will get food,” Rick chuckled. “Promise.”

“She just panics when she isn’t sure there will be another meal.”

“I know,” Rick said. “It’s why we always have things that any of them would eat on hand. I’m well aware, Wyatt. But if you are famished, as I am, then we should eat. Sea bass? How does that sound?”

I was distracted by the child. She blew a raspberry at me that melted my heart.

“Wyatt, are you alright?”

I looked at Rick. “Sorry, she’s adorable. I was transfixed. Um… yes, sea bass is great, thanks.”

The butler left.

“She’s precious and probably our most devilish. Which, after her next-oldest sister, I thought was impossible.”

“This age is the one I remember most fondly. I forget everything for a bit after this age.”

“Because you lost Isla?” Rick asked.

“I did, yeah. And I feel like I lost so much of Theo’s childhood. Which is why I told myself we’d move back to the States and I’d see him more, except… I feel like I see him less, and he’s fucking miserable.”

Rick sighed. “I’m sorry, man. I am sure you feel like that. It all goes too fast. And with just the one, it has to feel much louder like you’re letting all the sand slip through.”

“It does,” I agreed. “Never supposed to be an only, but here we are. I love him to bits and miss him like crazy, but it’s a real struggle. Do you ever feel like you know what the right thing is?”

“Never,” Rick admitted. “I am constantly failing, just a little less each time.”

I chuckled. It was too relatable.

“So, you’re back? I don’t mean to pry, but?—”

“I don’t know if I’m back.”

A staff member appeared out of nowhere to display a bottle of wine for Rick’s review. It was so bizarre. He could be casual and normal but was still there to approve the wine list. Rick sighed.

“More champagne?”

“It is all Her Majesty is permitting in the household at present. Those were her orders.”

Rick rolled his eyes. “Bring whiskey or something.”

“Yes, sir.” The kid disappeared.

“Apologies for my beloved wife. She is frothing at the mouth with excitement over Celeste’s death. Please don’t see this as cruel. That woman tortured them.”

“I know,” I said. “I get the feeling Odette feels a mix of emotions and is struggling. I’ve never seen her get drunk before. It concerned me.”

“I blame Lex. She’s never drunk like that. Poor girl is going to have a hangover.”

The boy reappeared with a rare bottle of Scotch and two glasses.

I appraised the bottle. “This is impossible to get in the States.”

“Well, I believe this was a gift from Ingrid’s ex. His family sent it. That whole thing was a fucking mess. I wish they’d get back together. I still want to strangle the bastard slightly, but I suspect he thinks he was doing a favour by cutting out, and she’s still hopelessly in love with him.”

Like Odette.

“What was he protecting her from?”

“He was going on a deployment, but I think it was more than that. He lost his father when he was very young—like the girls—and I think it worried him when Lex nearly died in childbirth.”

“It was that bad?” I asked .

“We thought we’d lose her. He was here. Astrid and Parker were running things. Odette and Ingrid were back here with the kids. It probably triggered him. Shortly after, things devolved. I keep hoping he will grovel, and we can get this over with. Perhaps he could show up here in her time of need and apologise?”

I blushed.

“She thought she did you a favour, which I understand.” Rick sighed and handed the baby another piece of toast to gum. “Royal life is complicated and messy.”

“I don’t want Theo’s childhood to be even more fucked up than it has.”

Rick shrugged. “You think our kids are pretty well-adjusted, right?”

“You’ve done a great job,” I admitted. “You all are not what I expected—I say that with love. I am surprised Odette is as normal as she is, given the circumstances. That’s a credit to you and Alex.”

Rick smiled. “Odette is the sweetest person I’ve ever met. She loves wholeheartedly but it’s gotten her hurt before. If I can be candid, I think she overcorrected. She deserves to be happy.”

“I know,” I said. “But, Jesus, it’s not easy!”

“Wyatt, it’s tacky to remind you, but you’re a fucking billionaire. No matter what you do, Theo will grow up different.”

It never occurred to me how much that was true.

“I just figured he’d lay low if I did.”

“That’s not how it works,” Rick said. “We cannot choose. I will protect my children with everything I have because that’s my job, but…”

Baby Manon beamed at Rick. He turned and spoke at her, voice and face brightening. “I can only do so much, man. None of us are perfect parents. We do the best we can. We love them. And isn’t it better to have two exceptional parents to protect a kid? You don’t get better or more protective than Odette.”

I never considered that even with Odette’s status, she was value-added for Theo. I knew she was good with Theo and made me happy, but I hadn’t considered how good she was for him. He missed speaking to her in French and running with Grieg in the backyard. She’d thrown him a beautiful party because she knew I couldn’t .

“Without her, he never would have had a party at all,” I remarked.

“What?”

“Theo’s birthday is the hardest day for me. I told her this. I told her he wanted a party, and I wanted to give him one but couldn’t bring myself to do it. She just worked with Mom to get it done. I love her so much for that. I focused on the press and all that, but not how happy she made him and how lost he’s been without her.”

“Perhaps you both overcorrected?”

“Perhaps,” I agreed. “I’ll be back. I’ve got a couple of calls to make before dinner arrives.”