Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 88487 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 442(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88487 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 442(@200wpm)___ 354(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
“Forever sounds like heaven, but we both know it’s more complicated than that. You’re the crown prince of Gaoxing. I believe your father will get his heart transplant and return to the throne, but we both know that is where you’re destined to sit one day. You’re dedicated to your people and their well-being. And I’m an American with a past,” West said as he worked. “I never knew my father. My mother described him as some scumbag, while she was an alcoholic, drug-addict thief who died just before my eighteenth birthday. I joined the military because I had no other choice. While I was there, they discovered I had what it took to be a sniper. My hands…my hands are soaked in blood from more than two hundred successful missions. After that, the CIA recruited me, got me to kill more people before tossing me aside. I’m a mercenary because killing is the only skill I have.”
“It’s not your only skill! You’re the man who has saved my life more than once. A man who has proved his dedication to the well-being of Gaoxing. It doesn’t matter about your past or that you’re an American,” Jin argued, his voice rising and trembling in his passion.
A lump grew in West’s throat as he met Jin’s fierce gaze in the mirror, the words he wanted to say to argue his case trapped behind that ball. Jin made him want to let go of all that old weight and embrace the person Jin saw, be the lover and protector he needed.
“Dianxia, how free are you to choose who you will be with? Be honest with both of us. The people of Gaoxing adore their crown prince and feel possessive of him. I’ve seen the headlines. Right now, they are curious about me, but I wouldn’t say accepting. With the hard road that is ahead for your country, do you really want to throw out there that this weird American is also the person you want to be with?” West removed the last pin he could find and allowed the black hair to cascade down Jin’s back, earning a small sigh of relief.
“I’m allowed to date and marry whom I want,” Jin announced. He closed his eyes and rested his head in West’s hands as they massaged his scalp. “There are no arranged marriages. I’m not expected to be matched with another kingdom’s prince or princess.” He twisted in his seat so he could look up at West with a broad smile that did dangerous things to West’s heart. “Did you know that my mother was a nurse?”
“I didn’t,” West replied.
“Yes, my parents met at the hospital. My father was accident-prone when he was younger. From his stories, it sounds like he scared many people because he was an only child, and no one believed that he’d live long enough to ascend to the throne.” Jin chuckled and turned around on the stool, allowing West to resume his ministrations. “Anyway, he fell down some stairs and broke his collarbone. My mother was the nurse on duty who helped the doctor. Father says it was love at first sight. Mother said he was annoying, and she only agreed to date him because he looked so pathetic in his cast.”
“Sounds like he wore her down,” West murmured.
Jin huffed a laugh. “They loved each other to the moon and back. She died of heart disease a few years after Ming Tao was born. He wasn’t old enough to remember her well. I do, but only a little.” The sigh that left Jin was soft and wistful, but he seemed to shake it off. “The point is, there is no law to determine who I’m allowed to be with.”
“How about an angry father?”
Wide eyes jumped up to meet his in the mirror and then skitter away almost as quickly. He didn’t fault Jin for his new set of nerves. The crown prince loved and admired his father. He wanted to make his father—and his kingdom—proud of him. If the emperor banned his son from seeing West, he wasn’t sure that Jin would disobey him. West wasn’t all that sure he wanted Jin to disobey his father either. How could they have any kind of happiness if Jin was heartbroken over the loss of his father’s approval?
“I will be frank with you, West. I don’t know how the emperor would react to the news of us dating. He would have questions.”
“A lot of questions,” West chimed in. “And concerns. Just like any loving father. I wouldn’t blame him.” This time, it was West’s turn to sigh. “I guess I just wanted you to know that I don’t think I could do the secret lover thing if you were forced to marry someone your father did approve of, leaving me to sort of hide in the shadows. I get needing to share you with all of Gaoxing, but to share you with another man…”