Page 186 of Modern Romance September 2026 Books 5-8

Livia rolled her eyes and tried to suppress her own smile. “Of course you will.”

She hopped off the boulder and walked along the bed of pine needles, thinking about how good she had gotten at this game of sounding like she didn’t care. But her heart was still galloping at full speed, the way it always did on these nights. What would it feel like to show him that she did care?

The warmth of spring had come early, and there were still patches of snow under the trees. She walked around them, making sure not to leave tracks. Gustav’s gaze stayed on her, his eyes shining as if he had been waiting here for her since the last time he had seen her eleven days ago—though she knew for a fact that he hadn’t. Because she had been here. And she’d ached for him, an ache that had kept her up the night before, imagining things she wanted to try with him. Things that made her wild with a secret kind of freedom.

But relationships were forbidden at the Alpine School, which made each illicit meetup unpredictable. And exciting, she reminded herself. Besides, it was better this way. Under regular circumstances, a boyfriend would ask about her day, which she didn’t want. A boyfriend might talk about actual plans for the future, which she also didn’t want to think about. A boyfriend would ask about her sister, which she really didn’t want. But a boyfriend would have already asked her to her very first—and very last—spring formal in two weeks, which, well, maybe she wanted just a little bit.

Livia had imagined it, of course, in the great hall down by the water, strung with lights. Gustav’s arms were around her as the string ensemble played in the background, his wry smile turning into something deeper the way it did when he was about to kiss her. She would know then how much he wanted her. Maybe she actually would kiss him there, even though kisses were strictly forbidden at formal events, right in front of every single one of the awful girls in her hall who looked at her that way. Especially Marika, that entitled peacock with some stupid title or another, who was always dropping the names of a princess she had met for a ski weekend or a countess who had dropped in on her family’s summer home.

Okay, maybe this spring-formal fantasy was a bit caught up in her own revenge fantasies, but she had told Gustav enough stories about Marika that he would understand. She could tell from the way he scowled that royalty rubbed him the wrong way. But if they actually went to the spring formal together, it would be so much more than the looks she would get if she showed up like Cinderella. She would be with Gustav. And when they would sneak out and meet up afterward, the night would be filled with more than kisses.

Livia climbed onto her favorite rock and sat close enough that their legs almost touched. Close enough that he could put his arm around her if he wanted to. He didn’t move, but she could feel the air between them change. She glanced at him, and his lips quirked up in a wry smile. He lifted an eyebrow at her, and she turned away so he couldn’t see her blush. Instead, she focused on untying her shoes and stripping off her socks. She scooted forward on the damp rock and dipped her feet into the river. The icy water stung enough to stop her heated thoughts, the way it always did. Livia let out a sigh.

“Favorite dinosaur?” Gustav’s voice came from behind her, and she could hear he was smiling. They had long ago played this game of guessing each other’s favorite foods and movies and had moved onto stranger territory.

“Yours has to be Tyrannosaurus rex,” she said.

“I’m offended you think I’m so basic,” he said. “But also you’re right.”

Livia turned around and flashed him a triumphant smile. “And on the first try.”

He shrugged, like this didn’t provoke every bit of his competitive spirit. But she knew it did. “Yours is a pterodactyl.”

“Not technically a dinosaur. More like a flying reptile,” she said, just to get under his skin. He glared at her, and she beamed. “But I’m going to give it to you. I love the way they could swoop out of nowhere and snap up their prey.”

Gustav laughed. “Aren’t you sweet?”

She loved the way they could talk like this for hours, their conversations wandering between English and French, the school’s two official languages.

He sat up and moved closer, and her breath caught in her throat. Was he going to kiss her again?

“I also know your favorite insect,” he whispered, his lips so close. “Praying mantis.”

She pressed her lips together and tried to look offended, but a laugh escaped. “I guess we can never mate,” she said archly.

His eyes narrowed in interest, and she wondered exactly what kinds of sexual experiences he’d had. Almost certainly more than she’d had.

In the rest of her life, she was never, ever this bold. But here by the river, she was just…herself. So, she added, “Or maybe I’ll save my kills for royalty.”

Livia fully expected him to give her that amused half smile she liked so much. He had never responded much when she had made similar comments, which was fine with her, but today he looked rather…dissatisfied. A wave of uneasiness washed through her as he tilted his head to the side.

“You really don’t like royalty.”

There was a hint of something she couldn’t identify in his voice, but she just shrugged. “I don’t.”

“What if I am royalty?” he asked, and there was a challenge in his voice. Or maybe it was defiance.

“Then you should be down at the lake with Marika.”

The words were supposed to come out light and playful, but they didn’t sound anything close to that.

Livia bit her lip. “I mean, you would have told me by now if you were. All those times I talked about inherent corruption with all that power, you didn’t argue. You…”

She couldn’t exactly say what he did, but she was absolutely sure that he had shown some form of agreement. He had entertained his own escape fantasies countless times, hadn’t he?

“What was I supposed to say?” he snapped. “This isn’t my favorite topic, either. But it doesn’t change who I am.”

Livia swallowed. “You’re not royalty. You can’t be.”