Page 34 of Royal Salvation

The meal Elodie had prepared was wonderful. Chicken parmigiana with a green salad and bread rolls, followed by passionfruit pavlova. Sitting back, she tapped her stomach wishing her skirt had an elasticated waist. “Mrs Carson, that was fantastic. I don’t think I can move, so you’ll just need to roll me out of here.”

Elodie laughed and it reminded her of how Justice had laughed with Valentina and Bishop on the flight over. “It’s Elodie and I’m glad you liked it. Do you cook at all?”

She glanced at Justice, a smile twitching her lips as he watched her through sexy hooded eyes. “I do actually, and I have to confess that Justice showed me how to make your famous burgers, and they’re the best burgers I’ve ever tasted.”

Elodie blushed her hand patting her hair. “I’m lucky, both my boys can cook and iron. I never wanted to make them into men who had to rely on a woman to eat.”

“Well, it seems like you did a wonderful job.”

“Yes, but can Justice design a building to compete with the Sydney Opera house?” Caleb questioned, a natural sibling rivalry showing its head.

Justice threw a bread roll at his brother. “Can you shoot a terrorist from a mile away?”

Caleb threw it back, but Elodie’s hand reached out to intercept the doughy projectile. “Boys, please behave. We have a guest and I’m sure she’s not used to such juvenile behaviour.” Her words were stern and Lucía had to hold her laughter in as both grown men dropped their heads.

“Sorry, Ma.”

“Sorry, Mum.”

“That’s better. Now you two clean up this mess while I show Lucía her room.”

Justice stood but dipped his head close, his hand resting on her shoulder, the skin there tingling from his touch and the silent promise in his eyes. “Will you be okay while I clean up?”

Her hand reached up and covered his hand as his thumb moved in small circles on her skin, the scene at once carnal and innocent. “Of course, your mother is wonderful.”

Justice glanced at his mum, his face full of love. “Yeah, she is.”

Not sure if they were keeping their relationship a secret, she was shocked when he dropped a kiss on her shoulder, her breath a gasp amongst the sound of the china being cleared from the table.

Straightening up, he winked as he began to stack the dishes up his forearm like a pro. He was such a contradiction. So tough and dangerous. She knew he’d killed people and seen horrible atrocities yet he retained his humour and love for life. That was the thing about her job, she’d seen the same things more than likely. At least enough that she’d begun to let those experiences change her.

She just couldn’t be who her family needed. She felt a duty to give more, to do more, to make herself worthy of the family she’d been born into. The weight of it had been slowly suffocating her which was why she’d been so determined to do this six-month stint in the Middle East. To see if the places she’d photographed in the past had healed at all because she needed it to heal.

Yet as she sat there, the weight didn’t feel so heavy, the pain of what she’d witnessed duller. The guilt that still weighed the same she could rationalise. If she’d stopped the attack she’d witnessed, the chances were she wouldn’t have survived herself. It all seemed so long ago, and time had healed her a little, but here, in the beauty of this place, nothing seemed as dark.

“Now, my dear, let me show you the garden and your room and you can take a nap or shower if you want. For the next however long, this is your home and I expect you to treat it as such. Help yourself to whatever you need and if you can’t find something, ask Justice and he will.”

Lucía strolled around the large garden, admiring the pool, the water glinting in the light. She knew she’d be taking a dip in there as soon as she got the okay from the doctor Justice had secured for her follow up care. They chatted about the garden and Lucía asked the names of the different flowers as they walked. As they came around the side of the property, she saw two sliding doors and Elodie stopped outside the first.

“This is you.” Elodie nodded towards the other door. “Justice is next door.”

Pulling open the door, she let Lucía go first. The addition was beautiful and reminded her of her cottage in England. It had an open plan kitchenette and the living space had a television, two comfy chairs, and a two-seater couch facing the window to the back.

A bedroom was off the hallway beside the kitchen and had a full bathroom, and on the other side was a door that led into the interior hallway of the house. The décor was light and airy with touches of luxury here and there and she could see Caleb’s hand all over. “This is beautiful.”

Elodie clasped her hands together as she looked around a sad expression on her face. “Yes, it is. Caleb was the one who designed it and we had it built for my mother, but she died before she could use it.”

She reached for Elodie’s hand and squeezed, offering her comfort. “Oh, I’m so sorry.”

She smiled as if pushing the memory away. “It’s fine. It was a long time ago and my son learned of his love for designing from this very project, so it was meant to be in many ways.”

“What about Justice? Did he always want to be in the military?” She found herself wanting to know more about the man she’d promised not to fall in love with, even as the sweet promise of sharing her body with him made her body electrify.

A faraway look crossed her face and she looked to be in another time, a not so happy one. “Justice wasn’t really given a choice. My husband was military, and he was a high-ranking soldier. He assumed Justice would follow in his footsteps. My boy always wanted to please him so he did. But his heart was soft, and I know it cost him greatly. Even if he did turn out to be as good as he was, it took something from him. Every tour he went on he came home different, until one day it took it all. I knew when he left he needed to go to save himself.”

Lucía felt her heart break for the boy without a choice and a willingness to do what he could to secure the love of his parent at any cost. Wasn’t she trying to do the same thing when she allowed people to treat her as they had at the Palace?

“Well, he seems pretty good to me and I’m sure that’s down to you.”