Page 93 of Royal Reluctance

After I picked up Tema from Abigail’s parents, the car dropped Abigail off at Spencer’s office.

They’re meeting for a drink.

“What’s going on with you two?” I asked before she jumped out of the SUV in the centre of town.

“What’s going on with you?” she countered with a wink.

We talked about everything while Tema played with Mr. Locke—the pros and cons of returning to Victoria, the benefits of staying here. I did my best to leave Bo out of the equation—I left Bo and me out of the equation. Moving forward, I know he’ll want to play a part in Tema’s life, but he can do that from a distance.

It’s not like the castle can’t afford a few plane tickets.

But it would be best for Tema not to be spread between the west coast of Canada and the east coast of Laandia.

And now that I don’t have Timothy waiting for me back in Victoria, the truth is there’s not a lot waiting for me there. The same goes with Abigail.

We don’t make a decision, but it’s understood that we’ll do this together, like we’ve done everything so far.

I’m a little excited but I need to talk to Bo first. I meant it when I told him he needed to work on himself, but if the first session with the therapist went well, there might be others.

If he was off to a good start at forgiving himself, then maybe…

I’m excited about the maybe.

The castle door opens for me, and I’m surprised to see Bo there. “Did someone tell you I was back?” I ask suspiciously.

“I sensed you.” It takes a moment for me to realize Bo is joking and by that time, he’s taken a sleeping Tema from me.

“I can manage,” I tell him.

“I know, but I can help.”

I follow him up to our room, unable to stop myself from watching the way he walks up the stairs.

Watching how one particular part of him moves.

Two parts—the way he holds Tema pulls his flannel shirt tight across his back, which is also nice to look at.

Bo is a beautiful man. That’s undeniable. The royal family of Laandia is a very attractive family. But what people don’t realize is that Bo is beautiful inside as well—and gentle and tender and kind and generous. There is a softness inside his strong, oh-so muscular exterior. And it’s not that he’s weak.

Bo may be one of the strongest people I know. He believed in something so whole-heartedly for so many years that he let it destroy something he loved. And now he’s trying to fix that.

That takes strength and courage.

I open the door of my room and Bo takes Tema straight through to the bedroom and lays her on the bed.

Such a simple action makes my heart flutter. What if this was something he did all the time? What if we could have a real marriage—a real relationship with love and trust? Without guilt?

What if we could love each other and our daughter? Could it be as simple as that?

“Will she be okay by herself?” Bo asks as he follows me to the other room. He doesn’t have a clue what’s going on in my head.

How happy I am just to be here with him.

“For five minutes,” I say with a grin. “If I leave her for six, I’m not sure.” Bo looks at me strangely. “That was a joke.”

“I know. You just… We didn’t joke before.”

I frown. “No, I guess we didn’t. I never realized we weren’t funny.”

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