Page 19 of The Prince and the Double Shot
“Madman?”
“Well, persnickety.”
“Oh, that’s a good word.”
“I’m royal, good words are about all I’m worth. It’s expected.”
“I’m aware.” He reached down and took my hand in his again. The warmth made my spine tingle.
“Are you going to tell me from what part of Europe you’re from?”
“Are you going to tell me what kingdom you rule?”
“Will rule… and, maybe? If you earn my trust.”
“Trust? You are nonliterally killing me.”
“I would hire someone. A prince never gets their hands dirty,” he scoffed.
“And we are almost there. It’s just around the corner. You’re going to love it.Trustme,” he teased as he pulled me along.
We turned to the left, and a small building with exposed outside walls stood in front of us. No, not exposed. It was a wall of glass that was so clear it was almost invisible. Lights twinkled inside from the flickering of the candles.
“It’s very pretty. What is it?”
“It’s one of my favorite little hideaways in Princedelphia.” He let go of my hand and gestured broadly. “Welcome to The Little Brewery. They make small batch beer, and you never know what you’re going to find here. They also have one of the best charcuterie boards in America. All of their cheese comes from Europe. It’s almost like being back home.”
“Hmmm… You know I’m going to get it out of you.”
“Maybe? Maybe not.” He gripped my hand again, and I had to stop myself from sighing. It felt like a moment in the past when Petra and I would get away and find something just like this. But this wasn’t Petra, and I needed to understand that. Zane was exciting and a little scary – perhaps reckless and wild – the opposite of the person he resembled.
The more time I spent with him, the more comfortable I became. I wasn’t the kind of person to run into danger willingly, but I had seemed to throw caution to the wind within a mere walk with this man. He was… something else, and I liked it.
My knees were weak. My face flushed. My heart raced with the possibility of a moment that would take me out of mycomfort zone. Zane was an unknown, and I was ashamed at how much that had started to excite me. One decision, one momentary lapse of reason, and here I was. My mind tried to make sense of it. The little voice in my head, which I usually ignored, told me to relax and let go.
Maybe it was to please my mother – or Sheena. That wasn’t my normal routine; I was not a people pleaser by nature, and it was not how one was raised in a castle. Maybe it was time to let go? Maybe itwastime to live again? I know it’s what he would have… What Petra would have wanted.
Maybe it was too soon. Feelings for a stranger were idiotic at best.
A tumble in the hay loft could lead nowhere or everywhere.
Feelings. I did not trust my own any longer.
Trust? I did not give trust willingly, but at this point, I wasn’t sure I could even trust myself.
I knew that I had been living in an unhealthy state of grief that sometimes crushed me. If I let myself feel anything else, would the guilt take its place? I was here with a man who looked so much like my lost love, and that alone was… My chest tightened.
A chance. I had to give life a chance, or I would wallow in loss forever. I was so tired.
Two years is enough.I could hear his voice in my head.
I stepped forward.
Zane opened the door, and I stepped into an enchanting small room that had fairy lights flickering from the ceiling as if this were a small enchanted grotto instead of a business. Small round tables, reminiscent of a French café, were arranged in a myriad pattern on the stone floor, creating a magical pathway between them. The fireplace stood unlit in the corner with a few plush couches around it, and a small bar finished the interior.It was charming and bizarre all at once, as if it didn’t fit in the surroundings. It was so European. I loved it.
“Want to sit by the window?” Zane glanced around.
“That sounds lovely. This place is so… It reminds me of home somehow?”
