Total pages in book: 120
Estimated words: 112917 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 565(@200wpm)___ 452(@250wpm)___ 376(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 112917 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 565(@200wpm)___ 452(@250wpm)___ 376(@300wpm)
Bear and Lou exchanged a look I was very familiar with. Before they could tell me no, I added, “Let me be clear. I am going for a walk. If you’d like me to wait a few minutes or take one of you along, that’s fine. But I can’t spend another moment sitting down.”
Bear stretched his arms up and leaned his muscled torso from side to side, looking a little sleepy and disgruntled… exactly like the animal I’d named him for. His crumpled button-down shirt was half-untucked, and the motion exposed a glimpse of a furry happy trail leading down into royal blue underwear behind the low waistband of his jeans. My eyes locked onto the sight like a starving cub who’s just spotted a salmon.
“I’m very happy to take a walk,” he said. He dropped his arms, cutting off the stellar view of his happy trail, and I blinked and looked around. “Lou?”
“Nah.” Lou tilted her head toward the gatehouse we’d passed as we’d entered the property. Two men in dark trousers and sweaters had let us in while actively monitoring a bank of monitors showing security camera feeds. “I’m going to touch base with those guys and get settled in.”
On the plane, Bear had explained that he’d selected this property because of its built-in security staff. Apparently, it had been built originally by a minor Norwegian royal who’d upgraded to a newer place farther north. I couldn’t imagine an upgrade nicer than this.
The property was incredible, perched above a fjord with jaw-dropping views in every direction. The house itself sat on a peninsula. Its clapboard siding was painted red, set off by a dark roof. Giant windows looked out from three sides, and a large deck jutted out from the side facing the water, providing the perfect view of the mountain peaks across the fjord.
Behind the house was an open, grassy field leading to tree-covered hills I was eager to explore. I waited impatiently for Bear to tighten the laces on one of his shoes, and then we set off.
Within five minutes, I was already feeling more settled in my skin. The sky was a light, steely blue, and the silence around us was broken only by the sound of the wind through the trees and across the water. The leaves seemed to be in their peak autumnal splendor, and the air felt just shy of bracing. It was the kind of day I’d only seen in Hallmark movies growing up, when the air was cold enough to turn your nose and cheeks pink and fresh enough to brighten your eyes. The leaves floated on the wind in reds and oranges.
“You picked the right place,” I admitted. “How did you find it?”
“I came here once with King Asger and Prince Gerhard’s oldest son, Auden, years ago on a grandfather-grandson trip. Auden had been caught cheating in school, and Asger was convinced it was because he and Gerhard hadn’t been present enough in the boy’s life. The trip was his attempt to correct that.”
“Did it work?”
“Surprisingly, yes. They spent a lot of time talking about tradition and reputation, about the burden of being born into the royal family and the privileges that helped balance out the responsibilities. Asger was a good man, and that trip was one of the first times I got to see that part of him. Auden always looked up to his grandfather, but that trip really made an impact on him, too. He seemed to grow up a little and start to embrace his role. He began to emulate Asger and aspire to be just like him.”
“Auden must have been devastated when the king died. Both of them, really. Gerhard and Auden.”
“Mm. I can’t even imagine. I’m glad they have Gisella. She’s very fun-loving. A great mom and wife. Hopefully, she’ll balance out Gerhard’s strict stodginess and remind Auden not to take himself too seriously.”
We reached the tree line and continued into the small forest on a path that looked well traveled by the property’s summer visitors.
“I had a friend like that in college,” I said. “Bodhi, actually.”
“Asshole,” Bear coughed.
A laugh bubbled up unexpectedly. “He’s not an asshole.”
“Remind me again what he said about your teeth.”
Bear’s growly, instinctive protectiveness surrounded me like a warm blanket and made things in the vicinity of my heart get tight… to say nothing of the situation in my jeans.
Instead of luxuriating in the warmth, though, I forced myself to wave his words away. I concentrated on walking faster and the rhythmic crunch, swish of my feet on the leaf-strewn ground.
“Bodhi was young and stupid,” I said. “That was one of the things I liked about him. I took myself incredibly seriously at Yale. Felt like I had something to prove. Bodhi convinced me to live a little. Have some fun. Make time for music in the midst of all the academics. He taught me about balance.” I thought about it for a moment and added with a smile, “And my teeth were genuinely awful.”