Player's Princess (A Royal Sports Romance)(66)

He lets out a deep, rumbling sigh. "Yes."

"On Friday I must skip class and go with him. You must convince everyone that I am sick and cannot leave my room. Bring meals to me and leave them. Do whatever you need to do."

"Princess—"

"Please," I whimper.

His big shoulders roll, and he gives me the briefest of nods.

"End it now," he says. "You'll be happier. Or after this excursion. Let it end on a happy memory you can cherish. A little happiness can last a very long time, but a little anguish can burden happy memories forever."

"It ends on Friday."

He nods again. "Just so."

"Wait."

He stops before he leaves and closes the door again.

"Yes?"

"What would you do if you were in my position?"

He looks up. "Why do you ask?"

"I could abdicate. Refuse to accept the crown. I have six healthy siblings."

He looks confused for a moment, opens his mouth to speak, closes it again. I see his chest swell as he takes a great breath, but he stops before he speaks once more.

"Tell me. What would you do?"

"If I could change my life," he says, "if I could start over, I would follow my heart's desire and damn the consequences. We only have one life, and most of us realize that too late. Sometimes we do not know the value of a thing until it is gone, of a moment until it is passed, of a love until it is lost. I would have tried, Princess. That is all. I would have tried."

Thorlief opens the door and steps out.



The next day, when I finish my classes, I text Jason. He answers quickly.



Jason: I'll let you know when practice is done. I'll pick you up.



I feign coughing that night and tell Mavra I am not feeling well, and ask her for something light. My dinner is a fish stew. I eat some and ask Thorlief to take it downstairs before I slip out the window.

"Tell them I'm feeling ill and I will not be coming out of my room tonight. I need my rest."

"Yes, Your Grace."

He closes the door as I step out onto the porch roof, testing my weight before I grab on to the column and slip down. When I hop the fence, Jason is there to catch me. He wraps his his arms around my waist and lowers me to the ground.

I slip my hood up, and we walk together to the house. I say very little. He says less. It seems as though his hands never leave my body though, whether it's an embrace or hand on my hips or just a hand holding mine.

We order pizza and watch movies, without really paying attention. Eventually I end up on his lap, curled up against him, our bodies lazily entwined like they were formed for each other. A perfect fit.

I am not aware that I fell asleep until I wake up. I wasn't out long, but I was sleeping on his shoulder. Jason is drowsy himself, almost nodding off every now and then.

He shifts his weight and lies down on the couch. I crawl on top of him and settle against his side, wedged between him and the back cushions. It's warm here, and I rise and fall with his breaths. I like this.

I squirm up his side so I can rest my head next to his. He loops his arm around me and pulls me closer, and I lay my arm over his stomach.

"Where are we going tomorrow?"

"It's a surprise."

I laugh. "It had better be worth it."

"Oh, I think it'll be worth every minute."

I smile. "I'm sure you do."

He moves his hand down and squeezes my butt. I wiggle it in his hand and nip at his chin. He plucks a chip from the bowl and sticks it in my mouth.

Eventually, I must go home. I have to pry myself away from him, resting my hands on his chest while I rise. He tries to pull me back down, but I shake loose, stand up, and stretch, pushing my hands over my head.

"Do that again," he says, looking me over.

I give him a sharp look and turn for the door. "I must go. In the morning?"

"Slip out early. Like six-ish. Come on, I'll take you home."

I smile and walk together with him in silence, every breath a sigh, every thought a longing. I feel as though I weigh a thousand pounds as I drag myself over the fence and hop down. I must force myself to move quickly through the yard and up the porch roof so that I am not seen, but even then I slow. I stop, crouched on the asphalt, and wave at him before I slip inside.

I wish that tomorrow would come, but I know when it comes it must also end.





Chapter Thirteen





Jason



Everything has to be perfect. This might be the most important day of my life. I haven't felt like this since, I think, my thirteenth birthday. The sensation of butterflies in my stomach, the excitement and nervous energy, the sense of dread from knowing that which comes to pass must also come to its end. It's a bundle of emotions a child might feel, and it is beautiful and strange.

I wake at six in the morning, and by agreement with Akele I take the Cadillac out and drive her to the self-service car wash just outside town. After I clean the exterior, I spend an hour vacuuming and wiping down the inside and spray it with new-car smell. I may not be able to afford anything better than borrowing my roommates' car, but I'm going to do the best I can with what I've got.

The day has to be perfect.