Alaric laughed, shaking his head. “And I would hope that you would still be my friend.”
“That goes without saying.”
Part of me felt in that moment that it was the right time to reveal the truth of what was going on—if there was such a thing as the right moment to tell a father that you were sleeping with his daughter.
I didn’t breathe a word of it, however. There was no chance that Alaric would understand, or if I’d even be able to find the right words with which to explain myself.
Instead, we finished the bottle of Cab Franc and opened another, sitting in front of the fireplace and swapping memories of those wild first few years in the palace. As the evening came to a close, both of us a little tipsier than we’d anticipated, I left, stopping by Hailey’s door to check in on the girls. The lights were still on, music playing as the sisters laughed and chatted.
Good. She needs this,I thought as I began the walk back to my room.
Hopefully seeing her sister was the reminder she needed to continue being herself, to not let this place and her title as princess change her. Then again, if there was one thing Ava didn’t need help with, it was being herself.
And I loved that about her.
Chapter 33
Ava
The next morning, Hailey and I were off to the races. We rose with the sun, getting out of bed and exploring the palace together. She wanted to see everything, and I was more than happy to show it to her.
We started in the garden, checking out the flowers and topiaries and the big water fountain in the center. The sun was finally out after what had seemed like a solid week of rain, the air fresh and crisp.
“I can’t believe you actually live here. Like, this is a real royal palace!”
I laughed, the two of us walking side-by-side through the gardens, the few members of nobility there shooting us strange glances.
“What were you expecting?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I mean, part of me was worried this was all a scam to get you into some creepy guy’s penthouse somewhere and he wanted to make you his ‘princess’ for a night.” She laughed, and I did too. “Of course if I really believed that I would never have let you leave Seattle. But… this is your life now. Are you sure about giving all of this up?”
“It’s only my life by biology. My real life is the one I’ve built back in Seattle, the one with you and the truck.”
“You really feel that way? I get what you’re saying I really do. But at the same time…” She trailed off, as if not sure how to finish her sentence.
“At the same time what?”
“Think about it… out of the blue you find out that you’re a princess, that you’ve got royal blood in your veins. Have you stopped and wondered if maybe that’s the universe’s way of telling you that you’re destined for greater things than making crab cakes all day?”
“That’s one way to look at it. Another could be that it’s the universe’s way of telling me just the opposite. Think about it—if I can live in a place like this andstillbe sure that my destiny is in Seattle, then that’s a pretty big clue that the life I left is the one for me, right?”
She pursed her lips together, not saying a word. I could sense that she wasn’t entirely on board with what I was saying.
“You’ve got a better idea, then?”
Hailey shrugged. “I don’t know. I mean, maybe you’ve got a point. And I’m not going to pretend to know what’s best for you. It’s just… I think you could do a lot of good here. With all the power and money you have at your disposal, you could really make a lot of people’s lives better. And that’s what you’ve always wanted, right? Remember how you used to talk about growing the food truck business so big that you could afford to hire foster kids as part-time help? So they would be able to work and have the opportunity to learn skills like you did? Shit, with what you’d have at your disposal as a princess, you could open up a whole freaking culinary school for them.”
It was my turn to say nothing. She had a damn good point. It was true—I had always dreamed of one day being successful enough to be able to help kids who’d been in foster care like me. Being a princess would be the best way to do it.
“I do want that,” I said. “But I want to do it on my own terms. I want to be able to earn the money myself, not have it just handed to me.”
Hailey gave me another look that suggested she didn’t entirely believe me. Truth be told, I wasn’t sure I believed myself.
“And then there’s the matter of the little peanut inside of you.” She pointed to my belly, as if she needed to make it clear what she was talking about.
I looked around, making sure no one was near enough to hear us talk.
“I told you, I can raise this baby all by myself.”