Chapter Nine
Bryn
Bryn sat on the edge of the bed. The tears that had threatened to spill the entire ride to the hotel burned her eyes, but now that she was finally ready to let them fall, no teardrops would form.
For not the first time, she wished that she had a normal sisterly relationship with her sister.
Someone she could talk to. Randi could listen when she wanted to, but most of the time she was too wrapped up in her own life to really benefit anyone else.
Her mother would have been nice, too, but the thought of calling her just made Bryn shake her head.
Close friends had never been a thing because she had been too busy raising her sister while most teenagers were creating their own lives.
Nope. She was on her own in every sense of the word.
She stretched and walked to the window. The Silver Snow Mountains rose in the distance, steady and strong, but the turmoil in her heart tarnished their beauty. For the first time, Stagholt didn’t hold that mysterious wonder that she had always associated with it.
Because of him.
“He almost kissed me!” she muttered. “Two more seconds and he would have.”
She could still feel the heat on her lips. “How could I have been so stupid?”
Nothing had worked out the way it was supposed to. For a place that had beckoned to her for so many years, she was ready to tuck her tail between her legs and high tail it right back to Alabama. The problems and issues she had left behind were still there, but at least she was familiar with them.
It’s better to stick with the devil you know than the devil you don’t.
The one saying that her mother had always used on her that actually made sense. Just the fact that she could admit that made her even more depressed.
She had one more day to make up her mind before she was obligated to start her new job. Could she stay in Stagholt and risk running into Sven again? How often did a normal person run into royalty?
It was actually the redheaded bitch that she was concerned about. Oh. Her.
The words echoed in Bryn’s mind. She would still love an explanation of how that came about. She let out a long sigh. Maybe some things were better off not known.
She glanced toward the bathroom. A long, hot shower would make her feel better, or at least get her started in the right direction. Maybe a movie afterwards, so long as it wasn’t a sappy romance.
Bryn stripped down and turned the water on. Maybe she would go talk to Hannah at that store and find out how common it was to run into the royal family. Hannah was about the only one who had been nice to her, so she might talk.
A snort escaped. Now that she knew about Lars’ suspicion that she was a spy or whatever, it could explain why the townsfolk had treated her like an intruder. They knew she had mingled with the king even if she hadn’t yet. Maybe he was well loved and revered.
She suddenly wished she had spent as much time researching the people as she had the landscapes. She may have been better prepared for the royal family.
Steam curled around her as the shower pounded against her shoulders.
She let the water run over her long hair and loosen the knots between her shoulders.
The little bottle of hotel shampoo smells vaguely like pumpkin spice, of course, and she lathered her hair with the cinnamon-y smell while she wondered how long the scent would last once washed out.
She rinsed and lathered on the conditioner while she reached for her poof and body wash.
The hot water was doing the trick and washed away the realities of the last few hours. She lost herself in the heated scents and refused to think about expectations, obligations, or the mess she inadvertently caused because she did the right thing.
She shrieked when the bathroom door crashed open.
Two men in dark suits invaded the small space and before she could even fully scream, one yanked the dark colored shower curtain free and wrapped it around her like a blanket.
“What the hell are you doing?!” she thrashed and landed an elbow in someone’s ribs. “Let me go!”
The conditioner made her slippery and she got one arm free. One man grabbed her legs while the other supported her torso.
“Scream again and we’ll gag you again.”
Again? Were these the same fools that had grabbed her at the castle?
She figured if they were, no screams were going to get her help and she did not want another gag. She managed to snatch a towel from the rack as they dragged her out, and she clung to it like it was a life line.
Cold air hit her damp skin like sharp knives. They took her out the servant’s entrance and withIn seconds, she was shoved into the back of a black SUV. Rivulets of water and conditioner dripped down her forehead and across her shoulders.
“Would it have killed you to let me finish my shower?”
Neither man spoke.
“Or at least let me get dressed?”
Silence.
“Care to tell me where we’re going?”
They didn’t need to answer. She knew from her previous ride that they were on the way back to the castle.
By the time they parked, Bryn had way surpassed anger and was well within fury. And then she saw him.
Sven.
He stood in the doorway of the garage. His dark eyes widened slightly as the men helped her from the vehicle. She wrapped the towel around her shower curtain-draped body.
The sight of him further infuriated her. He looked calm and collected while she was a poster child for a drowned rat.
“You sonofabitch.” She clutched the towel tighter and tried to kick the shower curtain out of the way so she could walk. Water trickled down her legs and pooled on the polished floor. “You had me kidnapped out of my hotel?”
Sven’s voice was maddeningly calm. “You weren’t safe there.” His glance moved to the men. “Although you could have allowed her to dress.”
His composure only added fuel to the fire. “Protective custody? That’s what this is?” Her voice cracked with disbelief. “Do you hear yourself? I came here to get away from people controlling my life, but you,” she jabbed a finger at him, “you think you can run it for me?”
A gust of wind blew through the garage and she shivered. In a single movement, Sven was by her side and wrapped a blanket around her.
“I’m sorry it had to be like this. I didn’t know you would be in the shower.”
“It would have been really difficult for them to knock.” Her teeth chattered.
Before she knew he moved, Sven scooped her up and held her against his chest. She gasped and tried to pull away.
“You’re going to hurt yourself. You can’t carry me like this. Put me down!”
He ignored her and carried her inside. “You can shower in my quarters.”
Heat flooded through her, from both the closeness that he held her and being alone with him in his bedroom. She tried to focus, but her anger slipped.
“I don’t even have any clothes.”
His jaw flexed, but he continued his path down the hallway. “It’s been taken care of.”
The words should have annoyed her, but instead, the heat sparked higher. She glanced around but there was no sign of Lars. None of the other guards followed.
“You don’t own me,” she said, lower this time.
“No, I don’t.” He pushed open a door and they entered a huge sitting room.
Instead of putting her down, he sat on a sofa and held her on his lap.
The room suddenly became smaller. “But I am the king around here, and sometimes I have to make decisions that aren’t popular.
And I’m not taking the risk of you being in danger. ”
She never meant to touch him, but her hands betrayed her. She laid her palm against his cheek and felt his warm skin. It was as if something physical pulsed between them, just in a single touch. There was something she couldn’t ignore, but she had no idea what it was.
Her grip on the towel slipped, just an inch, and his eyes flickered down before lifting back to hers. Her breath hitched as that single glance burned hotter than the shower had.
She read in his eyes that he felt the same thing. She hated it even more that a part of her wanted him to.
Sven exhaled slowly and brought his hand up to cover hers. He held her fingers tight as he turned his head and placed a kiss in her palm.
She tore her gaze away. If she didn’t, she was going to kiss him. And he had that woman. She tried to reclaim the anger that had deserted her.
“Where am I supposed to go now?” she snapped. “And can you please tell me why I’m in danger? I thought your boy said I was the danger.”
He smirked. “My boy, as you so eloquently call him, now understands that you are not the danger.” He told her about Eva.
“She is resting now, with help from our royal doctor, but only time will tell if she recovers. We still don’t know if those who attacked her knew it was her or if they thought it was you since she came from your hotel. ”
“Seriously? You think someone is out to get me?”
He shrugged and helped her stand. “I don’t know. But until I do, you’re safer staying here.”
She wiped the conditioner from running into her eyes. “Can we please continue this conversation when I don’t look like a drowned rat?” She gestured to the towel. “And when I have some clothes on? Plastic isn’t really my look.”
“I disagree. If you look like a drowned rat, then I’m suddenly a fan of wet rodents. I feel the plastic is quite…” he looked her up and down, “complimentary to you.”
A new wave of heat ripped through her. She backed away before she did something she’d be ashamed of. “Where can I get clothes?”
“We have a room prepared for you. Clothes, toiletries. Everything you need.”
Bryn blinked. “What exactly is going on here?”
“We’ll talk about it once you feel more comfortable.” He stepped closer to her. “Come on. I’ll take you to your room.”
“Why did you bring me to yours?”
He gave her that smirk again. She was going to have to learn to defend herself from its effects. “So that your room could be prepared.”
He stepped past her and she caught the warmth of his body as he brushed against her damp arm. The brief contact sent a shiver down her spine.
She followed him down a short hallway to a large, elaborate door. “Everything from your hotel is here. If you need anything else, just let me know.”
Her eyes widened when they entered the room.
Well, a series of rooms, almost bigger than the apartment she had in Andalusia.
And much nicer. The wardrobe was neatly arranged with her blouses, her jeans, even the soft sweater she had bought at Treks.
Someone had unpacked her life with more care than she usually gave herself.
She turned toward him. “You went through my things.”
His mouth curved, a flicker at the corner of his lips. “I didn’t personally, but Lars made sure everything was safe.”
“He made sure that I was safe.”
Sven shrugged. “Like I said, he’s on your side now. He’ll tell you that when he’s wrong, he admits it.”
The way he said it made her pulse trip. Safe. It was the first time she actually felt a word.
She should have been furious. And yet, as he reached past her to pick up a remote on the dresser, his hand brushed hers and lingered just a second longer than necessary.
She tried to focus. He hadn’t just brought her here. He’d brought her life here. And she had just decided that she would never see him again.
He showed her the remote. “Television, stereo if you want music, and this button rings the staff.”
Bryn snatched the remote. Her heart thudded so hard she was sure he could hear it.
“Get dressed,” Sven said with a voice steadier than hers would have been. But when his eyes met hers, they weren’t steady at all. She saw the same heat she felt reflected back at her. Restrained, but very real. “I’ll be back in an hour.”
When the door clicked behind him, Bryn let out her breath. How she was going to live right down the hall from him was beyond her. She looked around and a wet strand of hair fell against her cheek.
First things first. She whirled and headed for the shower.