Chapter 14
CHAPTER 14
NATE
N ate shifted his weight, sliding a tentative glance to his brother before he flicked his gaze back to the queen. He forced a puzzled smile onto his face as he grappled with the fact that Elena was gone. “Gone where?”
Queen Sophia flicked her eyebrows up, an amused smile crossed her features. “Well, this is quite a strange situation, but…Elena has gone to Sterling City to support you.”
His jaw dropped open as his features crinkled. “What? She…”
His heart skipped a beat as disbelief washed over him, his hands covering his face as a chuckle escaped him. “Oh, wow. So… I came here to be with her…”
“And she was on her way to Sterling City to be with you, yes,” Queen Sophia said with a nod. “I’m so sorry.”
“There’s no need to apologize. I…should have checked with her before I came out. I wanted to surprise her.”
“I believe she had the same idea with you. She had hoped to surprise you and offer some support.” The queen motioned toward the sitting room. “Won’t you come in and sit down?”
They followed her inside, and Nate perched on the edge of the sofa as the queen settled into a perfect posture on an armchair. “Well, it’s rather late to head back now if you were considering it. I assume you’ll stay the night at least.”
“Uh, well, not if it’s any trouble. I…really should have let you know first.”
“Nonsense, you’ll soon be family,” she said with a polite but warm smile and a dismissive wave of her hand. “This palace is about to become your home, and you do not need an invitation. But I am sorry for the wasted trip.”
Nate shook his head. “Not a wasted trip at all, but I do wish I could have surprised Ellie. I guess we both had the same idea.”
“Yes, she hoped to surprise you, too. Speaking of surprises, how is your family holding up? I understand there is a bit of a…pickle.”
Nate sucked in a breath as he bobbed his head. “Quite a big pickle, yes.”
The queen shifted her gaze to Stephen. “Mr. Kingsley, I am sorry to hear about the tragedy.”
“Thank you,” he answered. “I feel responsible for it.”
“Blame is never constructive in most cases. Is there any hope on the horizon that this will be concluded soon?”
“Uh, I’m not sure. I was planning to check in with them after I’d visited with Ellie. I guess I could call her now and see if there is anything. We probably should discuss our next moves, anyway, before we both fly back across the pond and end up missing each other again.”
“Yes, you likely should square that away,” Queen Sophia said as she rose. “I will see that your rooms are prepared.”
“Thank you,” Nate said with a slight bow .
“There is no need to stand on ceremony, Mr. Kingsley. We will soon be announcing your marriage to my daughter, and we’ll be seeing each other often—you mustn’t bow every time we pass in the hall.”
“Thanks,” he said with a slight smile as he pulled his phone from his pocket.
Queen Sophia left them behind in the sitting room, pulling the doors closed behind her.
Nate blew out a long breath. “Oh, boy, can you believe this?”
“Yeah, what a gaffe. Well, if I wouldn’t have stopped you from going when you wanted to go, you wouldn’t have missed each other.”
“It’s fine,” Nate said as he scrolled through his contacts. “Actually, it’s sort of funny. I wonder if she’s already on her way back or if we should be ready to hop a plane tomorrow.”
“I hope she’s coming back. I really don’t want to go back and deal with everything.”
Nate eyed his brother, his thumb hovering over the call button. “Stephen, you can’t run away from it. No matter what happens, it’s still going to be there. You have to face it.”
Stephen heaved a sigh. “I’m not sure I can.”
“Look, I spent a while avoiding facing things. In fact, I tried so hard to avoid them, I sank to the bottom of a bottle over and over again. But the pain always came back until I faced it.”
“I guess I’m a coward. Because I ran as far as I could.”
Nate clapped his brother on the shoulder. “You’re not a coward, Stephen. You just need some time. And I’m sure you’re welcome to stay here if you don’t want to go back to Sterling City with me.”
“Thanks. I’ll think about it,” his brother answered before he collapsed into a chair again .
Nate bobbed his head and pressed the call button, pressing the phone to his ear as the line trilled.
It rang a few times before Elena’s voice finally answered. “Nathan, guess where I am?”
He grinned at the statement. “I’ll bet I can guess right on the first try, but can you guess where I am?”
“I think so. We’ve made a bit of a mess, haven’t we?”
He chuckled. “Yes, we have. I guess this is what happens when we try to surprise each other. Ironic that we’ve both crossed the world trying to support each other, only to miss like ships in the night.”
“Yes, I suppose so. I assume you’ll be staying the night there at least?”
“Yes, I guess you did the same over there?”
“I did. Your mother was very gracious about the surprise visit.”
“As was your mom,” Nate answered. “She’s having rooms made up for us now.”
“Good. Will you be returning tomorrow morning?”
He shot a glance at his brother across the room before he spun away from him. “Well, actually, Stephen is having a tough time with everything. I know he doesn’t want to come back, and I don’t blame him. But…I hate to leave him here alone. Any chance you could come back here?”
“I see,” Elena said, her tone pensive, “well, I certainly understand that. Perhaps the change of scenery will help him. I would hop a plane back, but…well, we’re in the middle of something.”
“Middle of something? Oh, is my mom helping you with wedding plans?” His forehead creased as he tried to glean the meaning of the statement.
She hesitated before she slowly responded. “Well…no…not quite.”
“What is it, then?” Nate asked .
“I’m not certain I should tell you.”
“Ellie, the last time we kept secrets from each other, we flew halfway across the world only to find the other person gone. I really don’t want that to happen again.”
“I understand, but…all right. I suppose if you aren’t pleased with it…there isn’t much you can do from Eldoria. And also, I could have the royal guards throw you in jail, so remember that.”
His stomach twisted into a knot. What was she going to say that would upset him that much?
“Caroline, Maddie, and I are…doing a bit of investigating.”
His features pinched. “Investigating?”
“Yes. We’re trying to make some progress on the case. You know, sleuthing.”
“What?” Nate’s voice took on a sharper tone than he’d intended as he gripped the phone tighter. “Ellie, that’s a job for the police.”
“Yes, but the police are doing nothing but railroading your mother. And I, for one, don’t intend to see such a lovely woman prosecuted for a crime she didn’t commit.”
“I’m sure they’ll–“
“They won’t. The report says your mother was the last person who entered Chloe’s building before the murder. She is the primary suspect. They are not looking further. So, someone must do this.”
His heart thudded hard against his ribs at the words. When he’d left, he’d assumed her questioning had just been routine, but now…
His throat parched as he tried to form words. “Wh-what?”
“Yes. I refuse to come home when there is work to be done here. But don’t worry, darling. If Stephen needs to stay and you would like to stay with him, us ladies have this well in hand. ”
“Ellie, I don’t want you prowling around looking for clues. You could get hurt.”
“So could your mother.”
“Ellie…look, tell my dad and have him turn it over to the private investigator. In fact, I’m sure he’s already doing that.”
“Perhaps so, but I cannot sit on my hands. The decision is made, Nathan. I’m staying and seeing it through.”
Nate clicked his tongue, his eyes sliding shut as a mix of admiration and anxiety whirled through him. “Ellie, I don’t know what to say.”
“There is no need to say anything, darling. I’m happy to do it. Your family is about to become my family. I would do anything to help them.”
His heart swelled with love for her, and despite wishing they could actually see each other, he felt closer to her than he ever had. “Well, you’ve proven once again that you are an incredible woman. I’m lucky to be marrying you.”
“Of course, you are,” she said with a chuckle that hinted at the sarcasm in her words. “Now, go get a good night’s sleep. We’ll talk in the morning, all right?”
“Sure. And hey, please, please, be careful, okay?”
“I will. I promise. I have wedding planning to get back to, after all.”
“I’m holding you to that.”
After expressing their love for each other, they ended the call. Nate crossed to the couch and eased onto it. “Well, Ellie is staying in Sterling City to help them with the investigation. So, we’ll just have to figure out what we want to do tomorrow morning.”
Stephen slid his eyes toward his brother. “If you need to go back, I get it. I can ask the royals if they don’t mind me staying or just…buck up and head back.”
Nate nodded, torn again between obligation to his brother and desire to be with his fiancée. “Yeah, well, let’s see how things look in the morning and go from there. Maybe they’ll have this settled.”
“Right,” Stephen answered as a maid entered, announcing that their rooms were ready.
“Thanks,” Nate said.
The brothers climbed the stairs and headed to the spaces they’d stayed in on their last visit to Eldoria. Nate climbed into bed and stretched out, wide awake despite the long day of traveling.
He tossed and turned, rising a few times to pace the floor, phone in hand to call Elena, when he thought better of it.
By the middle of the night, he’d made up his mind. He’d return to Sterling City no matter what Stephen was doing. He needed to be with Elena and make sure she was safe.
After making the decision, he crawled back into bed, finally dozing off. When he awoke, bright sunshine already beamed through the window. He squinted against it, checking the time. He’d slept later than he expected.
He scrambled from his bed to dress for the day. As he pulled a blazer over his shirt, a knock sounded at the door.
He cleared his throat as he crossed to it, expecting to find the queen on the other side of the door. He hoped she didn’t think he would be this lazy normally.
His stomach twisted, turning jittery as he spotted the figure hovering in the hall. Heat washed over him, and he considered slamming the door closed again. “Isabelle.”
“Hello, Mr. Kingsley,” she answered in her pert accent. “Elena told me you were here.”
“Oh, yeah, I’ll bet. I’m sure she called you right away to tell you about it.” His words dripped with sarcasm as memories of being setup by the woman only weeks ago floated through his mind.
“I’m serious. I pose no threat to you despite what may have happened in the past. ”
“And why should I believe you?”
“Because I am telling the truth. Call Elena and ask her yourself if you’d like. We’ve had a conversation and put our complicated past behind us.”
Nate crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes at her. “Yeah, right. Like I’m going to trust you.”
“You don’t need to trust me, Mr. Kingsley. Call your fiancée and ask her.”
“I will,” he shot back. “Definitely. But not before you tell me what you’re doing at my door first thing in the morning.”
“Well, first, it is hardly first thing in the morning, you’ve slept quite late, and second, the answer is simple. I need your help. Or Elena does. Without it, she may very well lose her crown. And it would be due to her marriage to you. I don’t think either of us want that.”
“No, I don’t,” he admitted. “But I don’t understand what we can do about it.”
“We are going to fight back. I have a few leads. What do you say, Mr. Kingsley? Are you game?” Her eyes sparkled with mischief, though he couldn’t make out if it was because she was lying to him or genuinely hoped to stop her brother’s nefarious plan.
Nate stared at her for another moment, his mind racing. Would trusting her help Elena, or be his biggest mistake?