Leo closes the door but doesn’t turn back to face me. Instead, he closes his eyes and tips his forehead against the frame, resting it there.

I still have no idea what is going on between Leo and his brother, only that it seems to be something much more than sibling rivalry.

He turns to me with a forced smile. “An hour is a long time, Elle.”

Something isn’t right, but whatever it is, I can’t read it in his expression. I return his smile. “I believe Matthias said within the hour. That doesn’t mean there’s an entire hour.”

He stares at me with the phony grin, but I can tell he’s only barely able to keep it plastered there. “Elle—”

“You were a perfect gentleman last night. I want you to know how much I appreciate that.” I sit up and swing my legs off the side of the bed before I cross my arms over my chest. I force my own smile—this is the weirdest, most awkward morning after I’ve ever had, particularly since we didn’t actually do anything. “I appreciate that you kept your promise.”

A more genuine smile forms on his lips. “And my promise to you only extended through the morning. Since it’s now nearly noon—”

“Noon?” Shit. I stand, still holding an arm over my very exposed chest—it’s not just that the t-shirt I’m wearing is sheer, it’s also about three sizes too big for me and the v-neck would extend well past my breasts if I didn’t have the thing hiked up around my throat.

“You have somewhere else to be?”

My brows knit together. I’m not sure why I think it will piss him off if he knows what my plans are for today, but considering everything that’s happened—fuck, especially now that he slept with me without sleeping with me—I’m sure he isn’t going to be happy. “I need to find some clothes.”

He nods. “I can send Matthias out to find you something—”

I hold up my hand to interrupt. “Not necessary. I can take care of myself.”

He looks me up and down, the grin returning to his lips. “As you wish. Of course, clothing is always optional—”

He doesn’t even finish his sentence before the lock clicks, and his door opens.

Owen is staring at the floor, his ring of keys in his hand. He doesn’t look into the room—he only stares sheepishly at the floor. “Sorry, dudes.”

A tall man edges around him and walks into the room, and I know immediately who he is. Prince Andrew. He and Leo could pass for twins except Andrew’s hair is a bit darker. And there’s something more…regal about Andrew—the way he holds himself, I guess. Leo is confident to the point of being cocky, but Andrew… He carries an air of nobility about him that Leo does not.

Andrew glances at me before he turns to Leo. His lip curls into something that isn’t quite a sneer—it’s more like a look of supreme disapproval. “Desperate times calling for desperate measures, I see.”

My eyebrows rise at the insult and I stand to gather my things from the floor. I pick up my wet pile of clothes and hold it against my chest, almost like armor. I don’t even look at the two men as I rush over to grab my suitcase.

My shoulder brushes against Andrew’s back as I’m leaving and he bristles. My heart is thrashing in my chest and my cheeks are on fire—I don’t even know where I’m going to go. I only know I need to get out of here.

“Elle…” Leo calls my name, but I don’t stop to turn back to him.

“Later, Leo.” I mutter the words under my breath, and I’m not even sure if he can hear them.

Andrew clucks his tongue. “You’re so desperate you’ve taken up with another American?” I can hear the sarcasm dripping in the word. “I thought you told me you were done with them, Brother. Didn’t you say you were only sleeping with French girls from now on?”

I don’t stay to hear the answer. I make it through the door and rush down the stairs.

Owen is standing in the doorway of his room at the end of the long hall and he turns to let me through.

Thank God the place is deserted now except for my brother. I drop my things on the floor and kneel to open my suitcase.

The door closes with a click, and I turn to look up at Owen. He only lifts his eyebrows and doesn’t say a word.

I unzip my cheap, fabric suitcase and pull out the sopping mess of what I threw in there last night. Fuck, was that only last night? It seems like it was weeks ago. Too much is happening and it’s all happening too quickly. It’s exactly like before—like I’m reliving it all again. And I know what I need to do—I need to get the fuck out of here before it’s too late.

“The clothes dryer, Owen. Did you get it fixed?”

Owen edges around me to sit on the end of the bed. “Power’s still out, dude. The generator only runs the lights.”

“Shit.” Everything in my suitcase is soaked—the books and magazines I threw in there last night in some passive-aggressive attempt to make Dr. Mitchell miserable have basically disintegrated, and there is a wet goo all over everything.

I fish out my wallet and check to make sure my passport is still in there—it’s damp but still intact. I chuck it and my wallet onto the bed next to Owen. Everything else is pretty much ruined and not even worth my time.

I shove the suitcase away and plop down on the floor, drawing my knees up to my chest. I pull the huge t-shirt over my legs and bury my head in my lap for a second. I take a few long, slow breaths—I have to calm down to be able to figure this out. There’s a way out of this—I know there is. But I have to get my act together to figure out what it is.

“Dude, there’s a lost and found—the girls always leave shit behind when they go home.”

I smile into my lap before lifting my gaze to meet my brother’s. “You are a genius, Owen.”

He winks at me and extends a hand, pulling me up. I pick up my things from the bed and we walk out of the small men’s dorm. He leads me into the laundry room and pulls a box from beneath a table, motioning to it. “It’s all yours. Glad we kept that stuff around now.”

I nod and begin rummaging through the box for anything semi-decent.

“Elle…”

I don’t even look up at him—I know what he’s going to say. “Owen, don’t.”

He doesn’t take the hint. “The new guy—I recognized him, didn’t I?”

“Owen.” There’s a definite warning in my voice this time. I know he means well, but he doesn’t need to get in the middle of this—whatever this is.

He pretends he doesn’t hear me. “He’s the prince guy—one of the rafting guides last summer had a poster of him above her bed. It was super weird fucking a girl who had a poster—”

I stop what I’m doing and put my hands over my ears. “La, la, la, la, la…” I wait until he’s done talking, and I go back to looking through the discarded clothing. I pull out a pair of shorts I think will fit and a t-shirt that isn’t too disgusting. There’s also a pair of flip-flops that are only a half-size too small and a bikini top that can serve as a bra. Nothing in the box seems all that clean, but it will do. At least it isn’t wet.

Owen swings himself onto the non-functioning dryer next to where I’m standing and sits. “What are you doing, Elle?”

I turn my gaze to his. “I’m finding something to wear home that isn’t going to be too embarrassing.”

“I mean with the guy.”

“Not talking about this with you, Owen.” I pull the shorts on before I turn my back to him, fastening the bikini top under my shirt and pulling it on before I remove the shirt Leo loaned me. I turn back to him and finish dressing. “I can handle it.”

He tilts his head. “You sure? Because it seems an awful lot like last time—”

“We’re going home. Today. Your friend better not have destroyed my house. And you should give him a heads-up that we’re on our way back.”

“Elle, I smoke a lot of weed.”

“No shit, Owen.” I roll my eyes. “We’ll get your surfboards out of storage when we get home and at least you’ll have something to do when we get there—”

He interrupts with a shake of his head. He reaches out and places a hand on my shoulder. “Let me finish. I smoke a lot of weed, but I’m not blind. You’re into that guy. Prince Fancy Pants.”

“Makes no difference. I’m over it.” I smile. “You should get your things—”

“Dude.” He shakes his head. “I’m not going.”

I have to blink a few times. “What?”

He shakes his head again and slides off the dryer. “Patrick—his dad owns this place. We’re going to expand.”

“Oh.” I nod. “Expand into what, exactly?”

“Patrick—that dude has vision. We’re going to make this a destination for rich doctor-types who think they want ‘adventure’ vacations.” He makes air quotes with his fingers. “You know those kinds of guys. Your kinds of guys. No offense.”

“None taken. So, let me get this straight. You’re going to turn this place into a real resort. For people who want an adventure vacation. This place.”

“Yeah.” His eyes widen and he nods. “Exactly.”

“And Patrick’s father is going to fund this?”

“Totally. And they asked me to run it—they said La Playa has made more money in the year I’ve been here than it has since it opened. Can you believe that?”

“That’s pretty impressive, Owen.” I swallow hard to cover my disappointment, but I don’t have time to dwell on this. I can be sad later about my brother staying here. “Will you at least let your friend know he needs to get out of my house?”

“Yeah, sure. My phone’s dead, but when the power comes back on, I’ll give him a call.”

“And I swear to God, if there’s any damage—”

“I’ll cover it. I said I would, but the dude’s cool. He’s out in the water all day, anyway.”

“Yeah, it’s not the days I’m worried about.” I still can’t believe I let Owen talk me into letting his friend housesit for me. If he’s anything like Owen, I’ll be lucky if the place hasn’t burned to the ground.

“So, the prince guy—”

“Don’t.”

“Was he on your list or something? Those lists girls keep of celebrities they want to fuck? Because this is all pretty fucking weird, even for you. I mean, I know you like your older guys and everything—”

“Leo is not older.” My voice drops. “Not like that. Not like last time.”

He nods. “But he’s a prince. I mean, can I tell people my sister fucked a prince?”

Heat burns in my cheeks and I can only imagine how many different shades of red I’ve turned. “Owen, I did not fuck anyone—”

“Okay, fine. Made love—whatever. Can I tell people? Because you totally should.”

I shake my head and decide to change the subject again. “Turn around.”

His brows knit together for a second before he remembers the cut on his shoulder when I motion toward it. He turns his back to me and lifts his shirt over his head.

I only have to glance at his sutures—his wound is so red, it’s impossible not to see it’s becoming infected. “Owen, dammit, I told you to stay out of the water.”

He shrugs and pulls his shirt back down before he turns back to face me. “I’ll have Rachel put some antibiotic ointment on it later.” He grins. “When she’s done with Matt.”

I roll my eyes. “The stitches need to come out in seven days. And go to the hospital if you start running a fever. And I can tell you right now, you’re going to have to get on the bus and go to the actual hospital if you need any more medical attention.”

I take in a deep breath, trying to calm my sudden realization of the time. “The bus. Is it running today?”

He shrugs. “Maybe. You know how that thing is—it’s not like it takes a rainstorm to get it delayed or whatever.”

“Does it still come at one?”

He nods and his brow furrows. “You’re not actually leaving, though, right? I mean, your prince is still here—his room’s booked till the end of next week.”

I glance behind me. “Yeah, well, he’s not my prince. And he can find some other desperate measure.” I turn back to my brother and place a hand on his shoulder. “Your sister dodged a huge bullet. Remind me to make men be gentlemen once in awhile—things seem to work out better that way.”

His brows knit together again—I know he doesn’t understand what I’m saying, but it doesn’t matter. I drop my hand from his shoulder and turn to grab my wallet and passport from where I set them before I turn back to Owen. “Thanks for the clothes.”

He shrugs. “Thanks for the stitches.”

I smile and turn to the door.

“Hey, Elle.”

“Yeah?” I turn back to face him.

“You’re more than a desperate measure, you know.”

I blink back the tears that spring to my eyes at his unexpected remark. “Thanks, Owen.”

He shrugs and edges around me as he walks through the doorway. He turns back to face me again. “You want a little something before you go? Makes the bus ride easier.”

I smile and shake my head. “No. But thanks.”

He grins and walks down the hall, back into the lobby.

I rush through the lobby—the two princes don’t seem to be here. I’m not sure if they’re up in Leo’s room or if they left for the clinic to make their new celebrity employee feel welcome. Leo sure has fucked that up—if he had given me two seconds, I could have introduced Dr. Mitchell properly. But it doesn’t matter now. The new doctor is a total douchebag, but he’s a gifted physician and it makes the guilt of leaving a bit less for me, knowing the children here will be in good hands. And if the people of Montovia are lucky, maybe he’ll find a cure for whatever is making the kids sick.

I walk down the street to the bus stop and I’m relieved to see the bus is still there.

I pull out a few coins and go to the window to buy my ticket before I board. I’ve been on this bus once before, so I know what Owen was talking about when he offered me the weed. The roads are terrible and the conditions inside are less than ideal. There are several chickens in the aisle and a couple of people have brought goats to sell at the markets in Santa Rosa.

I find a seat alone near the back and wait. My heart is beating a little too fast and I can’t take my eyes off the door. I’m telling myself it’s because I don’t want to see Leo board—that I don’t want him to come after me.

But I know I’m lying to myself. My heart is racing because I’m hoping he will. That he’ll try to stop me from leaving. I have no idea what the point of that would be, but I can’t help but almost wish…

This is stupid. Even if he does show up, I still have to leave. There’s nothing left here for me—and no rooms at the resort. And after the thing with his brother, I’m not sure why I even want to see him again. But I can’t deny the attraction any longer, even if I am only some desperate distraction for him.

I don’t have to worry about it for long. The door of the bus closes and we pull away.

I glance out the window behind me, my heart fluttering for a moment…hoping. But he isn’t there. He’s not coming after me.

What a shitty ending to my fairy tale.

* * *