Page 47 of His Hidden Royal Heirs

When Beaugonia was ushered into his office, he was certain once he dealt with her, he would feel it. She was the last loose thread.

“Good afternoon, Cristhian,” she offered cheerfully, though he didn’t fully believe the cheer. “It seems you are in desperate need of my company.”

“I have an important question to ask you, Your Highness.” He walked over to the door, closed and locked it himself. Beaugonia looked at the knob with great suspicion, so Cristhian stayed bythe door rather than approach her. It was not his goal to make her uncomfortable.

But he had to know the truth.

“I would like to know what you and your father discussed this morning that had such an...effect on you.”

Beau looked him up and down, head cocked to one side. “Too bad.”

For a moment, he couldn’t speak. When he did, he was alarmed to find his voice had raised an octave. “I beg your pardon.”

“I don’t want you to know. So you won’t. Not yet, anyway.” Then she shrugged. As if that was that.

He supposed he finally saw some of the resemblance between the two sisters. Stubbornness in direct opposition to his goals.

“Princess—”

“You saw me through a panic attack, Cristhian. I think you can call me by my name.”

It was hard to reconcile this self-possessed woman with the woman from this morning, shaking and struggling to breathe, the one he’d initially met who hid behind her parents and didn’t speak. And yet he’d always seen his mother as a whole, complicated woman, hadn’t he? Sometimes she was upset, and sometimes she had it all handled. She was not all one thing.

Perhaps none of them were allonething.

“Beaugonia,” he said then, keeping his gaze on hers. A firmness in his tone so she could understand he was serious and would not be deterred. He needed answers. With answers, everything would be sorted. “Your father had a seemingly miraculous change of heart after charging out of that room. I would like to know what caused it, and if it might affect Zia in some way that she is not aware of.”

Beau didn’t react to this right away. She stood, still and blank-expressioned. Then she turned away from him, walking aroundhis office, poking at books on shelves, papers on his desk. She settled herself at the window, looking out over a world of white.

“Everything I do is for my sister,” she said at last. “For the entirety of my life, she has put herself in front of me like a human shield. Because I was different and couldn’t be what our parents wanted me to be. Well, I’m old enough, clever enough and aware enough now to deal with all that. Strong enough to be the one shielding Zia this time around, so she can protect those children.” She met his gaze then, direct and determined. “I would do anything to keep my parents from having any influence on another generation.”

“I may not know your sister as well as you do, but I can assure you, she wouldn’t want you to sacrifice yourself for anything.”

“No,” Beaugonia said with a smile. But it didn’t last long. Her mouth curved back into a frown. “But I didn’t always want her to protect me at great cost to herself. Helping someone isn’t always aboutwants.I suppose that’s love, all in all.”

Love. Cristhian did not like how this topic kept coming up, how it seemed to root him to the spot. Like an anchor.

Drowning him? It should feel like it was drowning him, against his will. But he had a strange new thought then. An anchor didn’t drown. It tethered. Kept a boat secured to an important shore.

And if love...could be an anchor. If he loved Zia, told her that, would she stay tethered to his very important shore?

What the hell was wrong with him thinking in boat analogies?

But then Beaugonia crossed the room to him. She stopped a few feet away, but he could see Zia stamped all over her. The soft cast of her mouth, the intelligence behind her eyes. All behind a very thin mask of wariness.

But willing to brave the wariness to do what needed to be done, say what needed to be said. Protect who needed protecting.

How could he not respect that?

“I think you might be a good man, Cristhian Sterling. And if you’re not, I’ll make sure to make you suffer. But for now, I’m entrusting you to protect Zia. And that niece and nephew of mine.”

“There is nothing I take more seriously. I could protect you, too. Now, or in the future should you need it.”

She smiled. “That is very kind. Zia never mentioned you were such a softy.”

He scowled a little at that, and she laughed, reminding him of Zia.

“Should I need it, I’ll take you up on that help. But for now, I need you to leave this. To make Zia leave it as well. These are the things I need to do for my sister, with no interference. Please.”

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