Page 60 of Knot your Princess
The out-of-the-blue question catches me off guard.
“The way I see it, you have two choices,” he continues. “You can leave and be a lone wolf for however long that lasts, or you can accept what I’m offering you and maybe find a home and family like your brother did.”
“Can I think about it?” I ask, not sure how to react to this.
He snorts. “Yeah, take your time.”
He picks up his pen and goes back to scrawling on the paper in front of him. I glance upwards and see a pretty, ornate wooden box about the size of a bread bin on the shelf near the window.
“Nice box,” I murmur.
He grunts his response.
Backing away, I know I just found what I’m looking for without even trying.
Now all I need is the key to open it.
Making my way back to Sophia, she is about to leave when I catch up with her. “Sorry,” I say. “Your dad is a talker.”
“Pah,” she snorts. “Now I know you’re lying.”
I grin, and she returns it. So far, so good. I hope she holds onto that when I tell her who I am. Who Iwas. I guess my time with the IPP has come to an abrupt end. Funnily enough, I feel okay about that as I stare into her deep green eyes.
“Sit,” I say, pointing to the wide doorstep that leads into the private part of the residence. “I need to tell you something.”
“Sounds serious.”
“It is.”
We both sit, side-by-side, and I briefly clench my hands into fists before I relax them. “Before I came here, I worked for the IPP. I mean, maybe technically, I still do. I was at the gallery to find you and infiltrate your life to get here and to take down your dad.”
Her green eyes widen with fear, and her face pales as if she has been punched in the gut that has somehow gone through and come out the other side.
“Oh,” she mutters.
“I know it’s a shock, and something I’m not proud of now that I’m here and I see that family matters more than anything else.”
“You’re betraying the IPP?” Her slow, cautious questions gives me pause.
“Yeah, I guess I am.”
“Why?”
“Because for my sins, I want to get to know Cain, and this Trent guy. Plus, I want to get to know you. I may have been given the job of getting close to you, but I’ve been watching you for a long time, Sophia. I’m already mostly in love with you, and I think I always have been. Getting close to you and drawing in your scent has opened up my eyes and made me realise that there is more to life than being alone and married to my work.”
“Okay…”
She looks like she wants to say more, but is in shock. “Does my dad know all of this?”
I chuckle. “Yeah, he knows.”
“Oh, well, I guess that’s that then.”
“Meaning?”
“If my dad knows and he hasn’t strung you up by your balls, he must trust you.”
“Hmm.” Quite the honour. “Do you?”
