Waverly

It’s been two weeks since the ball. Fourteen days, and I can’t stop thinking about Archer. I’ve always fantasized about the man. Who wouldn’t? He’s built and gorgeous, everything I picture when I think of the perfect man. But now? Now he’s at the forefront of my mind. I look for him around every corner, hope he’ll appear and whisk me away. Instead, he’s vanished.

“He’s taken leave,” Alina says as we walk through the rose garden. You’d think we were in a damn Austen novel, the two of us, taking a turn about the garden. It’s ridiculous, but my mother thinks it will be good for me after my recent trauma.

“What? Who?”

“Your guard. Archer.”

“What do you mean, leave?”

“I overheard Clark talking to Ryder. He needs time to recover after his injury.”

My chest tightens, and fear takes hold. Had I not given him the treatment he needed? Was he going to end up sick because he spent too much time giving me what I wanted? “Is he…” I swallow hard. “Is he going to be all right?”

She shrugs. “How the hell should I know?”

I try to brush it off, but the fear of losing him forever is so real it hurts. “I should ask Ryder to check on him. He risked his life for me.”

“Of course he did. He’s a royal guardsman. That’s his job.”

“Alina, he chased down my kidnappers and rescued me.”

“Again, his job.”

“But—”

“Wave, you’re acting like he did something extraordinary. The man signed up for this. He’s probably an adrenaline junkie looking for the rush, and you finally delivered.”

It makes me angry that she’d say something like that. Like what Archer did was normal, everyday, and common. Archer risked his life for me. He saved me from a fate I can’t even imagine. I am not a damsel in distress, but I am his. And he will forever have a part of me. No amount of distance can change that.

“Hello? Waverly?” Alina waves a hand in front of my face.

I shake my head and drag my mind from Archer, and the memory of him taking me in every way I let him have me. “Sorry. I was…” I trail off, because I don’t know what I wanted to say. How much should I tell her? I talk about absolutely everything with my sister. She’s the only one I confide in fully. But if she tells Ryder about what Archer and I did, that could end badly.

“Imagining what he looks like without a shirt on?” Her eyes sparkle with mischief. “Or do you know firsthand? You did spend an awful lot of time alone with the man.”

My cheeks burn. “He looks amazing.” The words come out before I can stop them, and she squeals in delight.

“Oh my goodness, tell me everything.”

“Well, he got hurt—as you know—and I…tended to his wound.”

She takes my hand and pulls me with her until we’re in the center of the maze. “How much of him did you tend to?”

I roll my eyes, wishing I could gush over the tenderness with which he treated me. “He has a beautiful body. That much I can tell you.”

“Is he…well endowed?”

“Alina!” I can’t help the laughter that follows my shocked gasp of her name. “I can’t say. But I cleaned his injury and dressed the wound. Let’s just say, running hands over a man’s six pack is something every woman should get to do.”

She sighs and stares up at the blue sky. “I’m starting to think I’ll never get a chance.”

“You’re only nineteen. You have plenty of time.”

Her lip turns down in a pout. “But not with the man I want. Kingston gets farther away from me with every passing day. What if he finds someone else? What if Ryder chooses someone else for me?”

My skin crawls at the thought of either of us being forced to marry someone we didn’t choose. “It’s possible, but after what happened to me, perhaps he’ll let us do some things differently.” I close my eyes and take a long breath, trying to keep my thoughts from drifting back to the one man I do want. “I don’t think I ever want to get married.”

“So you want to spend your life as Corline’s virgin princess?” She’s teasing me, but right now, I am completely unsure where I want my life to take me. And virgin? Well, that’s already been taken care of.

“I know. I was only joking.”

She takes my arm again and we stroll in silence back to the palace, to the prison of duty and expectations.

After going our separate ways, I decide on a break in the library. Maybe a little reading, some time to myself will put my mind in a better place. One not constantly whirling with memories of the man I can’t love. My breath catches in my throat at the sight of Archer leaving Ryder’s office as I walk down the hall. He bows and offers me a soft, “Your Highness,” before beginning his trek to wherever he’s headed.

“Archer,” I say, needing more from him than a formal greeting.

“Princess?”

I want to run into his open arms and hold onto him for dear life. His eyes lock on mine, the same longing I feel reflected in those depths. “Are you recovered?”

He steps forward, so close I can smell the spicy scent of his aftershave. My nipples harden just from the proximity of him. “I’m recovered from my injury. As to whether I’ve recovered from the loss of you…that remains to be seen.”

“It’s been two weeks. Not a word from you.” I hate the wobble in my voice.

“I thought it would make things easier.”

“I can’t stop thinking about you. Not seeing you makes it worse.”

His lips are close enough that all I’d need to do is lean forward. He seems to know exactly what I’m thinking because he moves closer.

I back up until I’m pressed against the wall, my breaths coming in soft pants as he follows. “We can’t. Not here.”

Understanding burns in his gaze, and he reaches out to brush his knuckles over my cheek. “I know.”

My brother steps into the hall, a smile on his handsome face and the two of us break apart like something shocked us. “Waverly, just the person I wanted to see. I’ve decided to honor Archer with knighthood for his selfless actions during your terrible ordeal. I think it only fitting that you be part of that ceremony.”

Archer sucks in a sharp breath, as though this new development were a surprise. “Your Majesty—”

“You deserve it. If you’re going to be leaving us, the least I can do is give you a title to take with you.”

Leaving? What does my brother mean, leaving?

Archer takes a few more steps back, putting more distance between us as my focus pins him. “Of course,” I manage through a tight throat. “I’ll be glad to take part.”

Ryder frowns as he looks from me to Archer. “What’s going on here? Did I walk in on something I shouldn’t have?”

My heart lurches. “I…”

“Your Majesty, Princess Waverly has been nothing short of gracious. I seem to have forgotten my place in all this.”

Ryder grins. “She’s a grown woman, Archer. I’m certain my sister would’ve reminded you of your place if you stepped out of line.”

Oh, if he knew how far out of line the two of us had been. We didn’t step, we leaped.

Archer bows and presses his lips into a firm line. “If I might take my leave, Your Majesty? I have duties to attend to and staff to inform of my departure. With Clark and I both moving on, there will be a period of adjustment.”

“Of course. As long as it doesn’t interfere with the safety of the royal family.”

Archer nods. “These men and women would die before willingly shirking their duty to you. I’m not the man to take Clark’s position, as I said earlier. Clark has left big shoes to fill.”

“And as I said earlier, you were the only one to suspect something was wrong. I hate to lose you. That kidnapping plot shouldn’t have been missed, but no one’s eyes were open wide enough.”

It’s written all over Archer’s face, but I’m the only one who knows how to read him. He wasn’t watching the family, he was watching me. That’s why he noticed. Is that why he’s leaving?

“Thank you, Your Majesty. I will always be in your service should you need me. You have my word.”

Ryder smiles and then takes me by the arm, gently pulling me to stand next to him. “My sister and I thank you. We’ll have your knighthood ceremony this Sunday, and then you are free to go wherever you need.”

Archer bows again, and his eyes find me. There’s so much pain there. He thinks he’s doing the right thing, but how can that be if it means I won’t see him again?

The man I love leaves, making his way down the hall, and my brother stares at me. I can feel his gaze.

“Oh, Waverly. You didn’t.”

My gut clenches. “Didn’t what?”

“You went and fell in love with him.”

My chest hurts, eyes burn with tears. As my lower lip begins trembling, Ryder pulls me into his embrace. I don’t need to say anything. He knows. He knows because he’s been right where I am. The only difference is, he got his happy ending. Mine is walking out of my life.