Page 52 of His Runaway Princess

“Not for the moment. We can continue later.” Zoey folded the cover over her tablet.

“Thank you. I’m sorry I’m not as attentive as I should be.” Amalia texted her sister.

“It’s understandable, ma’am. I’ll be in my office if you need me.” Zoey left the room as Amalia thanked her.

A minute later, Ginny walked in without knocking, a sure sign that something had to be on her mind.

While Amalia made a cup of tea for her sister, Ginny walked to the sitting area without saying a word.

After handing over the tea, Amalia took a seat and waited for Ginny to speak.

“You and Ryker are going to remain together, aren’t you?” Ginny stared into the tea cup.

“That’s our current plan,” Amalia confirmed.

“Ollie and I are going to the North Shore for a couple of days. Would you guys like to join us?” Ginny still didn’t look up.

Rather than push her sister for more details, Amalia simply agreed. “Let me double check with Ryker, but I don’t see why not.”

“Thanks.” Ginny set the still-full cup of tea on the small table in the center of the seating area. “I’ll text you the details.” She left without saying anything else.

The door hadn’t quite swung all the way shut and when it reopened, letting Ryker in. “Is she all right?” he asked, looking after Ginny as he did.

“There’s something on her mind.”

Ryker took the seat Ginny had vacated. “Do you know what it is?”

Amalia shook her head. “I suspect it has something to do with Grandfather, but she didn’t say. She did invite us to join her and Ollie at the family’s home on the north shore. I wonder if she wants to talk about her decision.”

“Do you think she’s made one?”

“I don’t know. She could want to tell me before it’s announced or she could need someone to talk through it all with. I really couldn’t begin to guess which one it will be.” She picked up the cup of tea her sister hadn’t touched and took a long sip.

“When do we leave?”

“I’m not sure yet. I do have a few things I need to get done first, though. Could you let the team know we’ll be going with them?” She walked toward her desk as Ryker stood.

“I will. Do we need to pack?”

The question seemed innocent enough, but Amalia wondered if there might be something more behind it.

“My lady’s maid resigned her post a few weeks ago due to health issues and hasn’t been replaced yet so Zoey will take care of my things. You might need to handle your own until you hire an assistant or valet or both.” She frowned. “I’m a bit surprised Grandfather hasn’t assigned one to you for the time being.”

Ryker shrugged. “He said something about it, but that’s as far as it got. I don’t think anyone has been assigned to me. I also don’t have many clothes here at the moment. What kind of things do I need?”

Amalia frowned as she saw an email that had popped up. “Could you get with Zoey on that? I’ve got to take care of this.” She sat down and reached for her mouse.

“Yep. I’ll see what I can find out about the trip and let you know.”

“Thanks.” Amalia knew she sounded distracted again. At least this time it wasn’t because of the creep who’d followed them.

An hour later, a message popped up from Zoey who let her know she and Ryker would be leaving in time to have dinner at the North Shore. She didn’t say if Ginny and Ollie would be there for dinner as well or if they’d be arriving later.

Glancing at her watch, she wrapped up what she’d been working on and closed down her computer. She’d take her tablet with her, but had no plans to work while they were gone. She wanted to spend the time with her sister, her brother-in-law, and her husband.

It was the first time Amalia had really thought about Ryker exactly that way.

With only a moment’s reflection, she decided she liked it.

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