CHAPTER 15
A va was grateful that, true to his word, Justin got her out of the Christmas tree farm without anyone recognizing her.
Still, her anxiety grew as they pulled up to the Christmas market to get Stormy.
She adjusted her so-called “disguise” in the mirror.
She made sure all her hair was tucked into her hood, and that her scarf covered most of her face.
She put on her sunglasses but could still feel her heart pounding with fear.
She twisted her watch around her wrist.
Justin watched her. “You okay?”
She nodded but didn’t trust herself to say anything because she’d started shaking. She hated that she was reacting like this. Having people recognize her had triggered a lot of pent-up anxiety she’d never dealt with over the years.
“Then let’s go get him,” Justin said as he swung his door open, got out of the SUV, came over, and opened her door for her.
Ava hesitated. The only place in Skydovia that had more people than the Christmas tree farm was the village’s annual Christmas market. She stared at the ground as she wrung her hands together.
Justin studied her. “You’re not okay, are you? Look, you stay here, and I’ll go.”
Ava’s eyes flew up to meet his gaze. “Really? Thank you. I’ll let Lydia know you’re on the way.”
“No problem. You just relax. Lie low, and I’ll be right back,” Justin said and shut her door.
“Thank God,” Ava whispered to herself as she watched him walk away. She glanced around the parking lot. It was full. She sunk down lower in her seat, trying not to think about the close call she’d just had at the Christmas tree farm.
She got out her phone. She really wanted to talk to Henry. He was always so in control that no matter what was happening in her life, she felt she could count on him to be calm, the voice of reason, just like her father had always been.
She sent Henry a quick text.
Can we talk?
Henry answered immediately.
Not now. Call later.
Disappointed, Ava stared at her phone. She couldn’t help but compare Henry to Justin.
Henry was her soon-to-be-official fiancé, but he never checked in on her.
Where Justin was always asking if she was okay.
She knew they were two completely different personality types.
She felt a little better telling herself that if Henry knew she really needed him, he would be there for her.
She cringed thinking what his reaction would be if she told him about Stormy.
She might have been imagining it because she was under so much stress, but lately, she felt like he was growing more impatient with her.
She wasn’t sure what she was doing wrong.
She knew he was upset that they hadn’t gotten the official green light yet for announcing their engagement at the party, so she could only imagine what he would say about her losing her mom’s new dog.
“And that’s why I’m not telling you,” she said out loud to herself.
Henry was someone who was all about solutions, not problems. While he had a lot of strong opinion, she couldn’t even remember the last time they fought.
If they ever disagreed with each other and things got too heated, he always seemed to know what to say to either divert the conversation or end it entirely.
She thought about how, over the years, she’d walked away from more than one conversation with him wondering what had just happened.
She’d start with something specific she wanted to discuss, but somehow, the conversation always got derailed, and she never ended up addressing what she truly wanted to say.
Her reminiscing was interrupted when Justin suddenly flung open driver’s side door of the SUV and jumped inside.
Ava’s hand flew to her heart. “Oh my God. You scared me to death. I didn’t see you come up—” She abruptly stopped talking when she saw the distressed look on his face. “What is it? What’s wrong? Where’s the dog?” Ava looked out the window for Stormy.
Justin shook his head, visibly upset. “He got away.”
“What?!” Ava cried out. “No! How?”
“Lydia put him on a leash, but somehow he pulled out of his collar and ran off,” Justin said as he held up Stormy’s bejeweled Christmas collar.
Ava squeezed her eyes shut with frustration. “Because it was too big for him. I can’t believe this is happening. Didn’t they chase him down?”
“They tried to look for him,” Justin said. “But he slipped away before anyone knew he was gone.”
Ava groaned. “So he could be anywhere.”
Justin nodded. “But the good news is everyone’s still looking, and we know he’s okay—”
“But we still don’t have him!” Ava interrupted him. She dropped her head into her hands, distraught.
“Look, I’m going to take you home, and I’ll come back and continue the search,” Justin said. “We’re going to find him. He was just here.”
“He’s probably running around the market destroying all the decorations,” Ava said.
“And that means we’ll catch him,” Justin said, sounding optimistic. “The candy cane booth owners said they found Stormy chewing candy canes off the wreaths.”
Ava rolled her eyes. “Of course he was.”
Justin chuckled. “At least we know he’s okay.”
“But I’m not going to be when my mother finds out about this,” Ava said. Nothing about this was funny to her. It was a nightmare. “She’s going to think I lost him on purpose.” She turned to stare out the window.
Justin shook his head. “What? No, she wouldn’t think that…”
“Yes she will,” Ava said, twisting her watch.
“She knows I didn’t want him. I told her she had to take him back to the shelter, that we couldn’t keep him.
Then, she has me watch him for a few hours while we’re waiting for you to pick him up and I lose him?
A coincidence? No. Trust me. She won’t think so. ”
Ava continued to stare out the window feeling worse by the second. “Can you just please take me home?” she asked in a small voice.
“Okay,” Justin said, as he started the SUV.
As they pulled out of the parking lot, Ava stole a glance at him. She frowned a little, realizing he was even more handsome in his profile, because it accentuated his chiseled jaw. She jumped when he turned and caught her staring at him.
As she blushed, she scrambled for something to say. “I’m sorry I can’t help you search the Christmas market. If the paparazzi found out about any of this, God knows what kind of lies they’d make up this time—”
“It’s okay. I got you,” Justin said as he turned his attention back to the road.
Ava’s phone rang. “What now?” she sighed. When she saw it was her mother, her blood went cold. She promptly declined the call and started taking deep breaths to try and calm herself.
“Who was it?” Justin asked. “Edgar? Lydia?”
“No, my mother.”
“So, why didn’t you answer it?” Justin asked.
“Because I’m not ready to talk to her,” Ava said. “I need to prepare myself for exactly what I’m going to say to her.”
“Are you going to tell her about Stormy?”
“Not unless Edgar makes me,” Ava said. “Hopefully, he’ll give us more time now that he knows we just had him and we’re so close. You said we would find him. You still believe that, right?”
“Yes,” Justin answered without hesitation.
“Then why worry her?” Ava said with conviction. “They’ll probably track him down before you even get back there,” Ava said, forcing herself to sound more confident than she felt.
“Right,” Justin said.
But when Ava looked over at him, she saw his hands on the wheel tighten. You’re not fooling anyone , she thought. You’re just as worried as I am.
? ? ?
The sun set as Justin walked Ava up to the front door of Vailgate Castle.
“You didn’t have to walk me to the door,” Ava said.
“What kind of gentleman would I be if I didn’t?”
Ava arched one eyebrow. “Are you trying to say you’re a gentleman ?”
“Are you trying to say I’m not?” Justin shot back with a sexy smile.
Ava shivered all the way down to her toes. His smile was lethal. She doubted anyone could resist it, so she knew she shouldn’t feel bad when her pulse quickened and a rush of excitement swept over her.
She pulled herself together. “I don’t have time for your witty banter.”
Justin’s smile grew. “You think my banter is witty .”
“I didn’t say that.”
“Uh, I think you did,” Justin said, grinning back at her. “You must be feeling better if we’re going at it again. You were so quiet on the drive back here that I was starting to get worried.”
“Very funny,” Ava said.
“I’m not kidding. I know today was rough on you.”
Ava was surprised that he wasn’t joking around anymore. He was being genuine. She held out her hand. “May I have your phone, please?”
Justin looked surprised but intrigued as he handed her his phone. “Sure, but what for?” He watched as she filled out a new contact form, putting in a phone number under the name Holly.
“Holly?” he asked confused.
“That’s the code name my father gave me. Please only use that name for me going forward. Don’t ever call me ‘princess’ again in front of anyone, anywhere.”
Justin saluted her. “Yes, ma’am.” When Ava frowned, he rushed on. “Sorry, I meant ‘yes, princess.’ No wait, I’m not supposed to call you the ‘P’ word. How about Your Royal—’”
“Stop, just call me Holly. That’s it. No other names. Got it?” Ava asked.
Justin grinned back at her. “Got it. So, wait, no last name?”
“Seriously?! You’re impossible.”
“But I’m witty, so at least I have that going for me,” Justin said, flashing another smile.
Ava gave him a look like she wasn’t amused, but when she turned to open the door, the corner of her lips twitched with a smile that she couldn’t help.
“Call me on that number if you find out anything. I don’t care how late it is.
Please keep me updated. I’ll keep looking around here in case he comes back.
” She stepped into the castle, then turned around and faced him. “Thank you for not giving up.”
“On Stormy or you?” Justin asked.
“Both,” Ava found herself saying before she could help herself.
Their eyes met.
“We’re going to find him,” Justin said.
She nodded. “We have to. Goodnight, Justin.”
“Goodnight…Holly,” Justin said with a wink before he headed back to his SUV.
When Ava shut the door, she leaned on it for a moment, inhaling a deep breath.
Her mind and heart were colliding with emotions she wasn’t used to having.
The only way her practical mind could make sense of how she was feeling around Justin was to tell herself she was just exhausted, emotionally and physically, from all the stress of losing Stormy.
She told herself that had to be why every one of her emotions right now seemed topsy-turvy, turned upside down and inside out.
She knew there was only one thing that would make her feel better.
Work.
She stood up straighter, squared her shoulders, and headed for the Grand Hall. As she picked up her pace, she started going through a checklist of all the things she still needed to do to get ready for the Christmas party.
She was worried about what she would find when she entered the Grand Hall.
She’d left instructions on how she wanted all the decorations finished, but who knows what had happened without her supervision.
She was pleasantly surprised when she walked into the room and saw it was now completely decorated for Christmas.
A canopy of white twinkle lights was strung across the ceiling, casting a magical glow over the entire room. Glittering gold garlands and wonderful sparkling wreaths added to the festive flair, while a collection of life-size vintage nutcrackers brought a touch of whimsy.
Ava smiled with relief when she saw the star of the show. Their massive Douglas fir Christmas tree now had perfectly placed lights. She could tell even from a distance that each row of lights was exactly five inches apart, just as she’d instructed, and just like her father had always done.
Ava turned when she heard someone enter.
“You’re back,” Edgar said as he entered the room.
“Without the dog,” Ava said sadly.
“Yes, I know. Lydia informed me,” Edgar said, looking disappointed.
Ava jumped in before Edgar could say anything more, because she saw the concerned look on his face and knew what was coming. “Edgar, I know you want to call my mother and tell her I lost her dog—”
“I wasn’t going to say anyone lost him. I was going to say he ran away and is missing,” Edgar said.
“Edgar, I appreciate you trying to protect me, but at the end of the day, he was my responsibility. He disappeared on my watch. This is my fault. I know my mother will see it the same way. You know things have always been…difficult for us. I feel like after this, she’ll never forgive me.”
“Your mother loves you very much.”
Ava shook her head. She wished she could believe that.
“What she loves right now is that dog.” She took Edgar’s hand and looked into his eyes.
“Edgar, I promise you we’re going to find him.
We just had him an hour ago. We know he’s okay and at the Christmas market.
He couldn’t have gone too far. Justin will find him.
He’s a dog trainer. He knows what to do.
Remember, my mother said he’s the best of the best, right? ”
“Yes, but—”
“So, let’s give him a little time to find him,” Ava pleaded. “This way, I don’t completely ruin my relationship with my mother, and we don’t have to upset her.”
“She would be very upset if she knew he was missing,” Edgar agreed.
“Exactly,” Ava said. “It’s not like we don’t know where he is. It’s just a matter of Justin tracking him down and bringing him home. So, can we have a little more time? Please?”
Silence.
Ava held her breath as she watched Edgar consider the idea. What she knew of Edgar was that he was always reasonable and made smart decisions solely based on what he ultimately believed was best for the family.
When Ava saw a flicker of doubt in his eyes, she tried one last thing.
“You know my father would always keep upsetting things from my mother so she could concentrate on being the queen while we would troubleshoot from behind the scenes. That’s all I’m asking you to do now.
What my father would do. If he were here, he would ask you to do the same thing, don’t you think? ”
Edgar took a deep breath then nodded his head slowly. “Yes, your father probably would be doing the same thing.”
“So, you’ll give us a little more time?” Ava asked, her voice filled with hope.
Edgar didn’t look happy about it, but he nodded again. “Okay.”
Overjoyed, Ava hugged him. “Thank you! Thank you so much!”
Edgar stood stiffly, surprised by the hug. “But—”
Ava stepped back quickly. Edgar’s tone worried her. “But what?”