An American Cinderella:A Royal Love Story(23)

I groaned and shook my head, trying to tuck my face into his shoulder. It was too bright now.

Which meant the power was back on.

"I'm going to take you home," he said softly.

I got to my feet like a newborn baby deer. It was hard to stay upright.  He picked up our picnic things and put his arm around my shoulder to  take me downstairs. I followed him like a puppy, doing my best to keep  my eyes closed against the glare of the overhead lights.

"Here," he said, guiding me out to the curb. A car sat waiting. It was  the same one from the night of the game. I slid inside. It was only a  moment before he was beside me, his leg pressed against mine and his arm  around me. I closed my eyes and fell back asleep on his shoulder for  the short ride home.

I didn't remember waking up to go up to my apartment, yet somehow I  found myself in bed. My shoes were off and I wore just my underthings  under the sheets.

"Shh," he whispered, leaning over and kissing my forehead. "Go back to sleep."

"Stay with me," I said, reaching for him.

"I can't," he replied, the anguish clear on his face. I pouted, wanting more of him. "Just for a moment."

He lay down on the bed next to me, his warmth infusing the bed with instant good dreams. Before I knew it, I was back asleep.

I didn't hear him get up or lock the door, but when I woke up in the morning, he was gone.





Chapter 13





"How was your weekend?" Jaqui asked, poking her head in my office early  Monday morning. "Any more dates with your handsome suitor?"

I grinned. "I had a wonderful night with him Friday," I told her,  thinking of what we had done in this very room and grinning. "But then  he had to work all weekend, so I didn't get to see him much."

But, we did get to chat through text messages and phone calls. Those were still pretty amazing ways to get to hear from him.

"That's too bad," Jaqui replied. "He's easy on the eyes. I still haven't  figured out where I know him from, though. When do you see him again?"

"I get to see him Tuesday. We have a fun date planned. I can't wait. He's going to work on my cooking skills."

"He is a brave man to put you in the kitchen." She grinned as she leaned against the door frame.

"Yeah, someone has to teach me eventually, right?" I said with a  chuckle. "Hopefully I don't burn down the place. Or poison him. At least  the odds are good I'll only do one or the other."

"You just light up when you talk about him," Jaqui remarked. She shook her head and smiled. "You are totally in love with him."

"Maybe." I shrugged, trying to play it off, but I couldn't help but  think of how I lit up when he touched me. The way he made me feel when  he looked at me with those blue eyes. The way my heart sped up when he  called me and the way we talked until three in the morning on the phone.

"And there's that in-love smile." Jaqui pointed to the smile currently  filling my face without me realizing. "You've got it bad."

"Maybe a little," I admitted. Jaqui just laughed and pushed herself off the door frame.

"Remember, if he has a friend..." Jaqui shrugged and waved as she left my office.

I smiled as I got back to work. I was almost done with the research for  Anastasia. I only had a few more things to add. It wasn't my best work,  but then I didn't exactly have enough time to do my best. I had put  everything I had into it, though.

Just because I wasn't getting the credit didn't mean I wasn't going to do a good job.

I put another set of files into the scanner and watched as they  uploaded. It was one that Audrey would most likely want. Guilt washed  through me. I didn't have any files for her. I couldn't bring myself to  do it.

My father was going to lose his reputation and it was my fault. I had to do something. I was running out of time.

I took out my phone, checked to make sure no one was walking down the  hallway and snapped a picture of the file. It felt wrong. It felt like I  was betraying everything I stood for. Guilt made my stomach twist and  all the happy feelings I had dissolved like tissue paper in rain.

"It's for Dad," I told myself, putting my phone away. I wanted to delete it.

I did a another few boxes before my stomach began to rumble. I needed to eat something.

I stood up and stretched, purposefully not looking at my phone. I didn't want to think about what I had on there.         

     



 

Jaqui knocked at my door, making me jump. I yelled and put my phone in  my pocket, shame heating my face. I knew she had no way of knowing what  was on my phone, but that didn't make the dirty feeling of betraying her  go away.

"Sorry," Jaqui said. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"It's okay. I was just in my head." I did my best to smile. "What can I do for you?"

"The coffee machine broke. I was going to run over to the shop and grab some. Want to come?"

"And escape from the boxes for a little bit? Yes, please!" I grabbed my jacket and purse. "Plus, I can grab breakfast."

"You mean Henry isn't bringing you that too?" she teased as we headed down the stairs.

"Ha ha," I replied, rolling my eyes. Jaqui chuckled.

We both waved to Gus as we walked out. Outside, the sun was shining with  hardly a cloud in sight. After the rain of the other day, it was a  welcome change. I took a deep breath of fresh, cool air and we started  to walk.

"I have orders for Gus, Bethany, Janet, and Bob," Jaqui said, pulling out a small piece of paper.

"Oh, so I see. I'm the hired help to carry all these. That's why you asked me to come along," I teased.

"Well, you are the new hire. You get the fun jobs," she replied. "Just be glad I don't make you scrub toilets."

I made a face and Jaqui laughed. She pulled open the glass door to the  coffee shop. The scent of roasted coffee beans and syrup filled my nose.  I looked up at the menu and decided to order one of their breakfast  sandwiches. I was really hungry now that I could smell food.

Jaqui and I stood in line, chatting about our lives. My phone burned in  my back pocket with the image of the file I had stolen. I kept imagining  giant neon signs pointing to me with the words, "traitor" and "thief."

I wasn't sure how long I could do this.

We ordered our food and coffee and stood off to the side of the counter  while we waited for it to be made. I looked up to see the news on a lone  TV. It appeared to be breaking news, with a man in a dark suit waving  off reporters as he hurried into a car.

Jaqui followed my gaze. "Oh that. It's been all over the news all morning."

"What happened?" I asked. "I haven't heard."

"That guy is a congressman. Allegedly, he let some information leak to  an oil company about some new drilling laws coming down the line. The  oil company bought mining rights to the preserved area before the  information was publicly available." Jaqui shook her head as she looked  up at the TV. "He is so screwed."

"What do you mean?" My stomach turned to ice. His story was sounding far too similar to my own.

"He sold secret information. He's going to go to prison. It doesn't  matter how much money he made off the sale of the info." Jaqui narrowed  her eyes. "I can't stand people like that. They disgust me."

Guilt hung around my shoulders like wet cloth. They called my name for  my coffee and sandwich, but I suddenly had no appetite. My phone still  burned against my body.

"Aria? Your coffee is ready," Jaqui said, giving me a gentle bump. "You sure you're okay? You went all pale again."

"I'm fine," I stuttered. I reached mindlessly for my coffee and knocked  it over, spilling a good amount on my shirt. I wiped at it, but it was  too late. I had coffee all over my cream-colored shirt. "I guess I just  need more sleep."

"Do you want another coffee?" Jaqui asked, handing me some napkins.

"No, it's fine," I said, dabbing at my shirt. "I managed not to spill all of it."

"Are you almost caught up on your boxes? I've seen you hard at work all  morning. Gus says you stayed late on Friday," Jaqui said, picking up one  of the drink carriers. I threw away the used napkins and picked up the  second one along with my sandwich.

"Yeah, just trying to get ahead of things," I replied. I didn't tell her  that I had been busy doing research for my stepsister and not totally  focusing on the job I was hired for. Again, I felt like a terrible  person. I was lying to my boss about so many things.

She smiled and together we headed back to the office. Gus waved to us as we came in.

"They brought that thief in," Gus said to Jaqui. He nodded toward one of his screens. "They are going to crucify him."

"You've been watching it?" I asked. I'd kind of been hoping that no one would notice something like this.

Gus nodded. "It's big news. No one can believe he did it. Seemed like a decent guy and everything. It's all over every channel."