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She’d been a job to him. Maybe he did care for her, but how could that negate the betrayal? The absolute lies he’d told? Nothing would ever make this all right. And there wasn’t a thing he could say to fix it. This—whatever they’d had—would remain broken, gone forever.
“Please tell my father I’m ready to see him.”
“Very well.”
He walked to the door. Before he could open it, she said, “Oh, and, Gideon.”
When he turned to look at her, she hardened her heart and said the words that would completely destroy what they’d once been.
“I’m no longer Eve to you. Please address me properly.”
The instant the words left her mouth, she wanted to call them back. Before she could apologize, a cold mask settled on his face, and ice coated his eyes. “Very well, Your Royal Highness, I’ll inform the king you’re ready to receive him.”
The instant the door closed, a lone tear rolled down the princesse’s face.
CHAPTER SIX
Gideon walked out of the hospital a different man than when he’d entered it. He had known nothing would ever be right between them again, but he had never considered the toll it would take on him physically. His gut roiled with the need to spew the vileness inside him. She had put him in his place, and he felt like a slug. Knowing that she had every right to her indignation and anger did nothing to soothe the riotous emotions.
He felt like shit and didn’t see that changing any time soon.
Standing in the parking lot of the small hospital, he drew in a deep breath of pure, fresh air. It had been years since he’d been back home. His brothers and sister were now spread across the globe. Other than memories, both good and bad, there had been nothing left for him here. His place had been with Eve.
Amelie, the capital city of Ile de la Lune, had been an ideal place to grow up. Ile de la Lune was one of the smallest countries in the world. Nestled at the tip end of France, the country was only a hundred and twenty years younger than Monaco, its neighboring country. Established in 1235 by the Wellingsley family, it had been ruled by them ever since. Though not actually an island, it wasn’t as easily accessed as most other countries in Europe. As it had mountains on one side and the Mediterranean Sea on the other, most tourists opted for its much flashier neighbor, Monaco. With a population that rivaled some small US cities, it was easily overlooked or ignored by the world. That was the way most people who lived here preferred it.
Eve came back for Christmas each year and had always invited him to come with her. He had always declined, giving her the excuse of visiting his own family. He usually ended up going to the home of one of his siblings for the holidays. Coming here with her would have exposed him to all sorts of questions that he hadn’t been prepared to answer.
Now the biggest of his secrets had been revealed, and everything had changed.
They would have to talk. He had to find a way to make her understand why he had deceived her. It would take her some time to forgive him. He refused to believe that she wouldn’t. Not only was Eve too levelheaded to not see his point of view, the bond they shared was too strong to be destroyed.
They were too solid, too good together not to get past this. Yes, it would be a monumental hurdle, but they’d faced difficulties in the past and had overcome them. He had to believe they would weather this storm as well.
He was more than aware that he was trying to convince himself of something that might not happen. Eve had major trust issues. For good reason. She wore the scars, both inside and out, daily.
This wasn’t the same. Surely she would be able to see that.
“Monsieur Wright?”
Gideon turned and faced two men dressed as palace guards. “Oui?”
“Please come with us.”
“Why?”
“You are to report to Chief Inspector Clement.”
“And again, I’ll ask why?”
“To discuss the situation with the princesse.”
Chief Inspector Jeremy Clement was in charge of the palace guards. Gideon didn’t work for the man, and he was most definitely not a palace guard. Still, out of curiosity, he followed the men to their vehicle. Any situation that involved Eve he was definitely interested in hearing. She might hate him right now, but that would never keep him from his need to protect her.
Half an hour later, sitting in the inspector’s office, he was wishing he hadn’t bothered. Not only was the guy the same asshat he’d always been, but he was also on a fishing expedition. He’d spent the first half of their meeting trying to find out where Gideon and Eve worked. The second half was spent on his opinion of Gideon’s poor job performance.
Nothing much had changed about Clement. Still skinny, still bald, still mean as a snake. The lines on his narrow face had deepened into furrows, and his brows might have gotten a little shaggier, but all in all, the man had changed little over the two decades since Gideon had last seen the creep.
What confounded him, though, was the knowledge that Clement had regarding Eve. When Gideon had made the contract with the king, they’d agreed to keep their agreement to themselves. Even though he was sure the king had shared the information with some of his closest advisors, the man in front of him should have no knowledge of it.
