Page 93 of Protecting his Secrets

Nick nodded. “Thousands of balloons, Your Highness.”

“A balloon room?” George asked, eyes wide.

Nick nodded, and George whooped and raced into the room, fighting his way through the multi-coloured balloons. It had taken hundreds of volunteers hours of work to blow up enough balloons to fill the room from top to bottom, but it was worth it. The balls of air floated from the room the further George pushed his way in until they couldn’t see him. They could hear him, though.

“I don’t know how you do it, but you always seem to know what we truly want as a party,” Kean said, stopping beside him.

Nick chuckled. “I base it on what you would’ve liked as a child and go from there. Being brought up in the royal family might’ve shown what you couldn’t have, and I wanted to bring back the chance. Besides, everyone loves inflatables and balloons. What could I do wrong?”

Kean squeezed his shoulders. “Don’t belittle the talent you have, Nick. Knowing people is what makes you excellent at your job. And I will never take that for granted. Enjoy yourself. You deserve it as much as my brother does.” He nodded, leaving Nick a little emotional.

“He’s not wrong,” a voice said, and Nick turned. “You do deserve it. That and more,” King Andrew said. “You’ve been through hell and back these past few weeks, and yet you’ve made sure you turned up for work and did your job, even when you were unsure if you would survive.You put your life on the line for me, and then go home and put your life on the line for yourself and Malachi. I can imagine the amount of stress you’vebeen under, and I just want to acknowledge that you are one of the best men I know. And if you ever need anything, anything at all, you let me know.”

Nick tried to talk, and it took a few swallows before he could. “Thank you, Your Majesty.”

Andrew winced. “Andrew, please?” He put his hands together in prayer.

Nick huffed a laugh. “Against my will, thank you, Andrew.”

Andrew lifted his fists into the air. “Someone said it! Finally! Someone called me Andrew!”

Nick’s cheeks heated as everyone started clapping and cheering. Andrew dragged him in for a hug and whispered, “You’ve made my day now, too. Thank you, Nick. For everything.”

He pulled back, and Nick smiled. “You are very welcome…Your Majesty.”

Andrew groaned and palmed his face. “Once is better than none.” He stepped away and then back again, leaning close. “Malachi has clearance for Club Royal, just so you know. The details were included in the original NDA he signed.” He winked and headed over to Kean, who was fangirling over Malachi again.

Darius and his boyfriend, Jason, sidled up. “He seems to have settled in with everyone well,” Darius said, nodding towards Malachi.

Nick smiled, and he was aware how sappy he probably looked. “He has. Like he was born for it.” Malachi glanced over at him at that moment, and Nick waved him over. When Malachi had made his excuses, he slipped beneath Nick’s arm and kissed his cheek.

“Hey, you.” He glanced at Darius. “Hey, Darius.”

Darius nodded. “Malachi, this is Jason, my boyfriend. I told you far too much about us all, so it’s only fair I introduce you.”

Malachi chuckled. “That’s what happens when you get talking to my grandmother.” He held out his hand to Jason. “Nice to meet you.”

They spent an enjoyable day filling up on food, drink, music and company, and Nick had several requests for birthday parties, but he couldn’t fit them all in, so he decided to keep them to close family and friends, which naturally included the royal family. Unfortunately, that meant he had to start planning the next one, Patrick’s, which was in two weeks’ time.

When he finally made it back home with a sleepy Malachi, he had a fully booked party calendar, and Malachi, Felix and Jason had a coffee date-that-wasn’t-a-date. Nick would admit to being worried about that trio.

As sleepy as Malachi seemed when they entered his house, he soon perked up as they climbed the stairs for bed. They had yet to make it back to Nick’s apartment. Well, Nick had, but Malachi couldn’t yet face it, which he could completely understand. Sometime soon, he would broach the subject of selling the apartment and buying a new one to make the memories easier for him. But they weren’t at that stage yet.

Malachi slid his arms around Nick’s neck, fusing their lips the moment they closed the bedroom door. “I feel like I haven’t touched you in days.”

Nick chuckled. “Definitely not days. More like hours.”

“Don’t care. I need you. Get naked and on the bed. Now.”

Nick paused, the king’s voice coming back to him. “Actually, I have something you might want to see. Do you fancy a quick trip out again? It won’t take long.”

Malachi narrowed his eyes. “Sure?”

Nick smiled. “I promise, you’ll like it.”

Malachi lifted his fingernails to his mouth but hesitated, a reminder they were trying to break him from the habit of biting them. He nodded, and Nick took his hands and led him backdown the stairs and into the car. Malachi asked where they were going several times during the journey, but Nick wouldn’t tell him. He wanted him to see it first.

When he parked in the underground parking and took Malachi’s hand, leading him to the lift, he kissed the back of his hand. “Calm down. It’s all good.”

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