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“Maybe I could help with that,” he offered, picking up another block from the pile and adding it to another block.
She copied his movements and placed the A on top and burst out in the cutest giggles I’d ever heard.
Nic laughed. “She’s a natural with castles.”
“It would make sense, given she’s a princess.” I grinned.
A few minutes later Sophia entered the room with a tray of coffee. “Here we go. I have to say I rarely make tea anymore. It’s coffee, coffee, coffee here.”
I pushed off the floor and rose to meet her.
“Thank you.” I took a cup.
Nic seemed preoccupied with every sound and gesture Adaline made. Sophia watched them cautiously. She might be trying to be gracious, but I saw the stiffness in her shoulders and the way she clutched her coffee mug.
“I guess things are different since the last time I saw you, Kenley.” Her eyes dipped to my left hand. It was bare, of course. She smiled. “Dominic tells me you’re together now.”
I nodded. “That’s right. We are.”
I didn’t need a ring on my finger to prove how connected I was to him. We had pledged our lives to each other in a way that was stronger than a band of platinum, but I didn’t need to explain that to Sophia. This meeting was about Adaline.
Nic made a circle of blocks around his daughter before joining us. He took the last cup of coffee from the tray. The mood in the room shifted. Play time was over.
“I’ve given this some thought, Sophia.” His eyes lingered on Adaline. “It won’t take long to have you and Adaline relocated to Spain. You won’t have to worry about any of the details. I’ll make sure everything is taken care of. The complete move will be handled by the palace.”
“Are you insane?” She raised her voice, before lowering it quickly. “I’m not moving. I never said we would move.”
“I didn’t ask.” He clenched his jaw.
“If you think you can use the crown to bully me into submission, you’re wrong. My daughter is an American. And this is where she’s going to live. You may visit when you like.” She folded her arms.
“You’ve already had eighteen months with her. I don’t see why you think you get to bargain. It’s not up for discussion. You and Adaline will have a royal residence in Spain. You’ll have a full security detail and I will have her on weekends. We can split summers. That is the best compromise you’ll get from me.” His eyes were dark as coal. I shuddered. This wasn’t going the way either of us expected.
I realized I had only been privy to Nic’s version of yesterday’s meeting. I hadn’t taken into account how set Sophia was on staying in South Carolina.
“You can’t force us to move,” she hissed. Her eyes landed on me. “Are you part of this? Is this one of your grand publicity solutions? The master fixer does it again.”
I pressed my lips together. “Sophia.”
But Nic cut me off.
“This is what I want.” His voice was low, but angry. “I want my daughter. Do you have any idea what it felt like to realize I had a child you had lied about? Can you even fathom that kind of pain? Have you even tried?”
Sophia closed her eyes. “I have to protect her. Not you. She’s innocent. She still has a chance.”
He paced in front of the doorway. “She can have the world. But not if you get her hurt or killed.”
Sophia gasped. “Don’t say that.”
He leaned toward her. “You know that’s a possibility if she doesn’t have security. Why do I have to travel with agents? Why does the king? Hell, my entire family? You can live in some dream world where our daughter gets to play in the park and grow up like a regular care-free American child, or you can put her first. She’s not normal. She’s royal.”
“Nic?” I looked in his eyes. He was frustrated and angry.
“What?” he snapped.
I exhaled. “Maybe Sophia and I could talk for a minute?”
He threw his hands in the air. “I’ll be back.” He slammed the front door behind him as he stormed toward the park.
