23. Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Three
Bri
There it was again. Bri ducked beneath the large window near the living room. For the second time this evening, she’d heard a series of clicking sounds outside, eerily similar to the snapping of a camera. She thought she was just hearing things the first time it happened, but now Bri knew she hadn’t been mistaken.
She sat on the ground and pulled out her phone. After opening the Royal Inquisitor news app, the first headline she saw made her stomach drop.
Princess Brielle Now Residing at Hillside Cottage.
From skimming the article, she discovered a “close source to the royal family” had shared she was living in Glencrest at one of the palace’s properties before the wedding. She knew it wasn’t likely someone from the paparazzi had made their way onto the palace grounds without catching the attention of a guard, so whoever was taking photos of her cottage right now had to be someone they knew—someone who wouldn’t be questioned walking around the palace in the evening.
When she heard the same sound a third time from her spot beneath the window, Bri attempted to call Bastian. He didn’t answer, so she clicked open her text thread with Drew. She couldn’t help but smirk as she reread his space fact from this morning.
Drew : Did you know that if you could fly a plane to Pluto, the trip would take more than 800 years?
She had no idea how someone would estimate such a thing because it seemed impossible for a plane to last that long. Bri shook her head. She needed to focus and message Drew.
Bri : Hey, I know you’re probably busy and getting ready to relax for the evening, but I think someone is outside my cottage taking pictures. Bastian didn’t answer my call, and I wasn’t sure who else to reach out to.
Drew’s response popped up within seconds.
Drew : Stay inside. Coming with backup.
A few minutes later, Bri heard sounds outside. She moved onto her knees and peeked out the window, spotting five figures running toward the cottage, backlit by the setting sun behind them. Her body immediately filled with relief as she recognized Drew’s figure leading the group.
She rose from her spot and walked to the front door, opening it as Drew raised his hand to knock. He rushed to her, pulling her into his chest in a crushing hug.
“Are you all right?” He ran his hands up and down her arms as he searched her eyes.
She saw so much care and concern in his gaze that Bri immediately felt safe and comforted.
“Yeah, I honestly thought I was hearing things the first time, but when it happened again, I knew there had to be someone out there.”
“Did you see a person or a figure? Someone you could describe to the guards?”
She shook her head. “I ducked below the window so they wouldn’t get any photos of me.” Bri looked at the wood flooring. “Did you see the Royal Inquisitor article this afternoon?”
“No, I was in meetings all day. What happened?”
Bri showed him the article on her phone. “It explains why someone was here, but I also feel like it had to be a person the guards wouldn’t have stopped. I don’t think someone would get this far onto the palace grounds without a guard’s permission.”
Before Drew could respond, three palace guards gathered around her front door, along with Bastian.
The head guard spoke first. “We’ve secured the perimeter, Your Highness. Some footprints near the window appeared to fit the shoe size of an average female, but we didn’t spot any individuals around the premises or the surrounding trees.”
Drew nodded curtly before turning to Bastian, whose lips were pressed into a firm line. “Tonight was my night off, but I won’t leave my post again until they discover who was here.” His eyes took on a steely determination. He turned to Bri. “I’m so sorry I missed your call, Your Highness. I assure you it won’t happen again.”
“I appreciate your dedication to keeping my fiancée safe.” Drew clapped Bastian on the shoulder before pulling his group of guards aside, whispering orders to them Bri was unable to hear. When Drew walked back to her, his cheeks were flushed, and his chest visibly puffed, like he was breathing deeply.
She wrapped her arms around his waist. “I’m fine. You don’t need to worry about me.”
“Of course I’m worried. There are footprints in front of your house.” He stepped into the cottage, closing the door behind him and locking it. “I’m not leaving until they find whoever was out there.” Drew moved into the living room and plopped down on the couch, patting the seat beside him. “Let’s watch a movie.”
She remained standing, crossing her arms over her chest. “You should go back to the palace, Drew. It was nothing. I overreacted.”
“I’m not leaving until I’m positive you’re safe. Nothing will ever happen to you on my watch.”
She looked at him, searching his features. He’d been saying things like that a lot lately—and not when there were people around to hear, which had her questioning what was real and what was fake. But they were best friends, after all. Maybe he wanted nothing to happen to her for that reason alone. Maybe she was reading into everything lately.
He kicked off his shoes and rested his feet on the coffee table in front of them, settling deeper into the couch. “What movie are you feeling?”
She knew she was fighting a losing battle, so she sighed and took the seat next to him. “How about The Proposal ?”
Drew turned on the television and pulled up a streaming platform, scrolling until he found the movie. He clicked play and pushed up from the couch.
“Where are you going?”
He smiled at her. “We can’t have a movie night without popcorn and candy.”
Bri leaned over and grabbed the remote, pressing pause. Even if Drew would never admit it, she knew he loved this movie as much as she did. She played around on her phone until Drew came back with snacks.
When he sat back down beside her, he was closer than before, his thigh touching hers. Trying to ignore the fluttering in her stomach, she grabbed a handful of perfectly buttered popcorn.
Once she finished chewing, Drew extended an open box of watermelon-flavored sour candies her way. Her eyes widened. “Do you carry my favorite candy around with you?”
“No, but I do have the palace staff put boxes of it in a secret spot only I know when they bring your weekly groceries—in case of emergencies.”
“What emergencies call for these?” She reached in and grabbed a mini watermelon, popping it into her mouth.
“Low blood sugar. Or a…candy emergency.”
“I would say tonight is a candy emergency.” She grabbed the box from him, pouring herself a handful, eating them one at a time, savoring the sour coating that morphed into a sweet watermelon flavor.
She held a piece of candy out to Drew. “You know why these taste nothing like actual watermelon?”
He smirked at her before taking it from her hands and eating it. “I don’t. Please enlighten me.”
“It’s because the chemistry of watermelon’s flavor is so complex, scientists still haven’t found individual molecules that mimic the taste of actual watermelon.”
“Huh…you learn something new every day.” He smacked his lips like he was evaluating the flavor. “I think I like the candy watermelon taste more.”
Bri deadpanned as she whirled on him. “You did not just disrespect my favorite fruit like that.”
“I don’t say things I don’t mean.” He raised his eyebrows before eating another piece of candy and then a whole handful of popcorn. “Can we start the movie? I’m ready for my Betty White duet.”
“Your Betty White duet?”
“The fire dancing scene.”
Bri cackled as she imagined Drew dancing between Betty White and Sandra Bullock. She hit play on the remote.
“What? You have no comment on that?”
“I have plenty of comments, but I’m saving them.” She motioned toward the television. “For now, I’m starting the movie so we can get to the scene, and I can unleash them all.”
He took a swig of water and settled back into the couch. “As you wish.”
“Now you’re quoting The Princess Bride to me?”
Drew smirked, but his eyes remained on the screen. “I am.”
Her breath hitched. I wonder if he remembers that line is code for “I love you.” She brushed off the thought. There was no way he remembered that.
This new version of Drew continued to surprise her. He spoiled her with her favorite snacks. He flirted with her. He got her heart racing at the mere sight of him. He quoted her favorite movies. He kissed her, and she hadn’t been able to forget it since.
Bri was still staring at him when he tossed a few kernels of popcorn at her. “Are you going to watch the movie or not?”
“Yeah.” She straightened, turning her attention back to the television. “Yeah, of course.” When Bri leaned back into the couch, her shoulder pressed up against Drew’s. She didn’t shy away from the touch. She embraced it.
Drew shifted beside her until his whole arm was pressed up against hers. He brushed his pinky finger against hers, and they sat like that, brushing their fingers as they watched the movie.
The popcorn sat untouched on his lap as Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds faked their relationship and slowly fell for each other. It felt like déjà vu watching it play out on the screen. A little too familiar.
She was thankful when the fire scene finally arrived. Bri couldn’t wait for Drew’s performance of the “duet,” but it also meant Drew had to get up and give her a little bit of space to get her head back on straight before he sat next to her again.
Drew jumped up from the couch as Sandra Bullock encountered Betty White on the screen. He bounced his hips back and forth to the beat of the drum. Bri held her hand over her mouth to contain her laughter, not wanting the show to end early.
Drew jumped around the living room, shaking his booty with absolutely zero rhythm. He had a goofy grin on his face as he flailed his arms around like an air dancer, also known as a wacky waving-inflatable-arm-flailing tube man.
For someone who had just won a rowing championship, which required precision in his movements, Drew didn’t have one ounce of rhythm in his body. He could follow a routine dance like a waltz, but put on some pop music and he looked incredibly awkward…and she loved it.
Suddenly, he turned around and placed both of his hands on the built-in bookshelf and started shaking his booty. She hit pause on the remote, laughing so uncontrollably that she was unable to pay attention to anything aside from the wild dancing in front of her.
“What in the world are you doing?” Bri asked between gasped breaths and laughter, tears streaming down her face.
“Isn’t it obvious?” He shot a wry look over his shoulder before turning around and continuing to shake his booty. “I’m bookshelf twerking.”
“Bookshelf… what ?”
“I’m twerking…while holding onto the bookshelf.”
She waited a second to see if he was joking, but when he didn’t say anything else, she burst into laughter. “I don’t know what it is you’re doing”—Bri motioned to him—“but it definitely isn’t twerking. It’s more like a toddler doing an ‘I need to pee’ bounce combined with a dog wagging its tail.”
He stopped and turned to her, forming a fist and hitting it to his chest. “You wound me.”
“I only speak the truth.”
Drew held his hand out to her. “Then get up here and show me how it’s done.”
She pushed up from the couch and took his hand. He twirled her around as they danced to a beat of their own. She threw her hands up in the air and moved her hips side to side, spinning around in a circle. When she turned back to face Drew, he was closer than she’d anticipated.
His hands landed on her waist, their faces mere inches apart. All it would take was the smallest of movements and their lips would collide. She could pull him in for a kiss she had no doubt would be world-changing, but she couldn’t do that.
So, instead, she took a step back and returned to the couch. “We should probably finish the movie.”
His lips pressed into a thin line. “Right.” Drew sat beside her again, leaving a little bit of room between them this time.
She played the movie but had a hard time focusing. Bri missed his touch, so she kept her hands busy in other ways, like eating popcorn. I shouldn’t be missing anything. He’s my best friend, not my real fiancé.
As they reached the grand gesture moment of the movie, Bri’s eyelids felt heavy. She yawned, and when the credits started rolling soon after, the music lulled her to sleep, and Drew’s shoulder felt like a nice place to rest her head…