Kaylee bent over and checked under the stalls for feet and when she didn’t see any, she came up next to me at the sinks. “Can I tell you a secret?”
I looked at her in the mirror as I turned the tap on and pumped some of the liquid soap into my palm. “Of course.”
“Declan is taking me home for Christmas.”
“What?”
She nodded, barely able to contain herself as she bounced on her feet, and Kaylee was not normally a bouncer.
“I’m not supposed to say anything to anyone, but since you’ll be in London, too, I thought maybe we could get together and do some shopping or something.”
“Really? He’s taking you home to meet the Duke and Duchess?”
She swallowed and her smile faltered a little. “Yes. Is that crazy, or what?”
“A little. But totally in a good way,” I said, turning the tap off and reaching for a paper towel. “As his girlfriend?”
“I guess so. When I told him I was going to be staying on campus for Christmas because I had nowhere else to go, he was horrified and told me I was coming home with him. And that it was not negotiable.”
I squealed and threw my arms around her. “That is so amazing, Kaylee. I’m so excited for you. And of course we can hang out in London! That will be so fun!” We bounced together a little until I pushed back out of the hug. “When do you go? Maybe we can arrange to be on the same flight...”
She shook her head. “So listen to this: we’re flying in his family’s private jet.”
“No way?”
She nodded. “He’s actually flying home tomorrow for a wedding and then coming back after the weekend, but then we’ll fly together to London on the nineteenth.”
“That is so cool, Kaylee. A private jet. So posh!”
“I know, right? Though I’m a bit nervous to meet his parents. I’m scared they’ll be stuffy. The only royalty I know is Hollywood royalty and that hardly counts.”
I put my hands on her arms and looked into her eyes. “You’ll do fine. Just be yourself. Declan—or whatever his real name is—will make sure of it and they’ll love you, too. You’re very charming, you know,” I reassured her.
She smiled. “I’m so glad I’ll have you to hang out with.”
“We’ll do up an itinerary before we go. At least a list of the places you have to see, in between rubbing shoulders with real royalty, that is.”
Her face fell, “Do you think I’ll meet The Queen?”
I laughed. “How would I know? Maybe Prince Harry—does Declan know him?”
Before she could answer, the door opened and a few girls came in, effectively cutting off our conversation. “What movies are they playing?” Kaylee asked, her tone casual even as she gave me a look in the mirror that said we’d continue our conversation later.
“No idea,” I answered. “Not that you’re going to be watching with Declan sitting beside you.”
Her blush and sheepish look confirmed it.
“Come on,” I said, grabbing her hand and tugging her toward the door. “Let’s go find your hot Irish boyfriend.”
She winked at me and we left the bathroom.
~ ♥ ~
It was about twenty minutes into the first movie that my phone vibrated in my pocket. I pulled it out and cupped my hand around the screen so it wouldn’t disturb my friends, though Kaylee and Declan were making out on one side of me and Emmie was whispering and laughing with my brother on the other. Talk about a fifth wheel, I thought, though of course, if Dave were here and it was a week from now after we’d made things official, I’d be doing the same.
Looking forward to seeing you soon, the text said. There was no number, which was weird, but I figured maybe it was Dave texting from his laptop or something.
Next week, I sent back, smiling.
Then a picture came through, but it wasn’t Dave. It was of a guy in desert camo, his face covered with a balaclava, holding a noose in one hand and an assault rifle in the other.
I nearly dropped my phone like it was on fire.
Who is this?
A friend of your father’s. tell him we say hello.
I swallowed and gave myself exactly five seconds to calm down and think. I reached across Emmie and handed Robert my phone. He glanced at me for a second and then looked down at it and read the messages. Half a second later, he stood. “Come,” he said, grabbing my arm and pulling me behind him.
I turned back to my friends. “Family emergency, we’ll be right back.”
But I knew that last part was a lie.