Chapter Seven #2
‘I… But…’ she stuttered, looking less sure of herself. ‘I’ve been planning this for months. I don’t have any other way to leave without my father finding out and stopping me.’
He got off the bike and walked towards her. She looked devastated. And for some unknown reason, it made his heart clutch again… Another surprise, as he rarely gave a damn about other people’s emotions.
‘Yeah, you do,’ he said. He nodded towards his jet, and the pilot who was standing a respectful distance away waiting for them to finish their argument. ‘I’ll take you anywhere you want.’
But instead of her looking grateful, her brows furrowed. And those remarkable eyes went squinty with distrust. ‘Do you think I’m completely stupid?’ she announced. ‘Why on earth would I believe you? When you’ve already lied to me!’
He simply smiled, enjoying her outburst. Weirdly.
He didn’t usually appreciate discord, especially when he was the target.
But there was something about her temper tantrum that appealed to him.
In her boy’s clothes, her hair peeking out from under her cap, and her face devoid of make-up, she ought to look nothing like the woman he’d met three months ago, but the fire in her eyes—vivid, vibrant and unrestrained—was exactly the same.
And for some reason that captivated him.
‘I didn’t lie. I never said I would take you to the port,’ he offered.
‘You know I expected you to. And I would not have got on your bike if I knew you were planning to kidnap me.’
He laughed. He couldn’t help it. Damned if kidnapping her didn’t seem like a good idea when the pilot interrupted them.
‘Mr Caras, if we wish to depart tonight, we need to make the slot in the next ten minutes or we may not get another.’
‘Thanks, Nico,’ he replied, not taking his eyes off his unwilling travel companion. ‘So, are we doing this the hard way or the easy way, Your Highness?’
‘What is that supposed to—?’ she started in on him again.
‘The hard way it is, then.’ He bent down and scooped her onto his shoulder.
It took her a moment to get over the shock, but then all hell broke loose. She started pounding his back with her fists and kicking her feet, while screaming right in his ear.
‘You bastard, put me down. I’m not going with you. And you can’t make me.’
The pilot looked concerned, but Theo paid the guy enough not to question anything he did. And Nico knew him well enough to know he wouldn’t hurt her.
‘Get the plane started, Nico, and have the ground crew load the bike. We’re leaving right now. And tell the stewards me and the princess here don’t want to be disturbed.’
The man nodded and dashed off. The plane’s engines had already kicked to life, covering Freya’s furious shouting as Theo mounted the steps with her slung over his shoulder.
He manoeuvred her into one of the jet’s bedrooms, his shoulder aching as she continued to punch him.
He dropped her on the bed as the plane began to move.
She leapt up and tried to dash past him, but he grasped her round the waist and dragged her against his chest. He captured a lungful of her delicious scent as her cap fell off and he buried his face in all that glorious hair.
‘Relax, Freya, I’m not gonna hurt you. We just didn’t have time to waste on an argument.’
His breath gushed out in a shattered grunt of pain as her elbow connected with his abs. Doubling over, he was forced to release her.
‘You… You bastard!’ she shouted, again. ‘I hate you…’
‘I’m aware,’ he managed, rubbing his stomach, and feeling a lot less impressed with her throwing arm. ‘Tell me where you want to go, and I’ll take you there,’ he said, because he needed to get her strapped in before they began to taxi.
The stubborn frown remained. ‘Zurich!’
It was his turn to frown. ‘You’re kidding—the press will be all over you there. Plus, Galicos has financial interests in Switzerland. Your father could leverage them to get you back.’ Exactly how na?ve was she?
‘I don’t care. It’s the only place I have connections my father doesn’t know about.’
Except she had him.
But from her mutinous expression he could see that would have to be an argument for another day, when the plane swung onto the runway.
‘Fine, Zurich it is,’ he lied. He’d never had an issue bending the truth whenever necessary.
It was a skill he’d learned as a kid, lying through his teeth to everyone and anyone, so no one would know his father was long gone and he and his brother were living without parental supervision—and call in the authorities.
The princess needed a protector. And while he was nobody’s knight in shining armour, and his motives weren’t exactly altruistic, there was no reason why their goals couldn’t align.
Plus, he could see the awareness darkening her eyes and turning her dewy skin to a dusky red—which meant they could enjoy their time together, once she got over being mad with him.
He’d have to figure out a better destination—because his estate on Kefalonia was probably out of the question, too.
Andreas couldn’t get to Freya there, but why risk a diplomatic incident when he didn’t have to?
Andreas was famous for hating any kind of public drama—because of some scandal involving his ex—which meant he was unlikely to inform the press or the police.
If he knew where they were though, he could use other means to get Freya back.
And Theo planned to have the upper hand when he informed the guy he had his daughter—and she wasn’t marrying Faron.
‘I’ll tell the pilot our destination, but only once you’re strapped in.’ He glanced out of the window. ‘Because we’re about to take off.’
She didn’t look convinced. ‘You promise you’ll take me to Zurich?’ she demanded.
‘Absolutely. One hundred per cent.’ He crossed a finger over his heart and gave her his ‘butter wouldn’t melt’ expression.
Something he’d also perfected as a boy, for the tourists—most of whom had never realised it was the angelic-looking kid with the grubby face and the sweet smile who had lifted their wallets.
She glared at him. ‘One thing I know is that I absolutely don’t trust you one hundred per cent.’
Smart girl.
‘Noted.’ The plane jolted as it picked up speed. She lost her balance, and he grabbed her. ‘Enough talk, let’s get seated before we land on our asses again.’
She was still glaring, but he’d managed to fasten her seat belt and his own just before the plane hit maximum velocity and tilted back to surge into the sky.
She stared out of the window. The lights of Galicos twinkled below them, then disappeared beneath a bank of cloud. He watched her shoulders slump and heard the hefty sigh over the engine noise. She scrubbed her fist across her cheek. And that strange jolt hit him square in the solar plexus again.
Was she crying? Exactly how bad had the last three months been for her? Because he was beginning to wonder if the prince was as much of a monster as his own father—just with more power and influence and a fancy title to legitimise his cruelty.
‘You okay?’ he asked, unable to lock the weird jolt in the box marked ‘not your business’.
Her head whipped round, and he noticed the sheen of emotion in her eyes… But that the misty emerald was defiantly dry.
‘I will be, if we actually arrive in Zurich,’ she said haughtily.
‘About that…’
Her eyes narrowed dangerously again, but he braced himself, ready to rip off the plaster and take his punishment like a man. ‘We’re not going to Zurich.’