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“Oh, Nic.” Olivia was at his side, her soft hand gentle on his arm. “I’m sorry you are in so much pain. And what happened to your rocket and that man’s death are a horrible tragedy, but you can’t let that get in the way of your happiness with Brooke.”
Gabriel grabbed his other arm and gave him a shake. “And you really don’t belong here.”
“Yes, I do. The country needs an heir to the throne.” But his protest was cut short as Olivia and Gabriel shared a moment of intense nonverbal communication. “What’s going on?”
Olivia shifted her gaze to Nic and offered him a sympathetic head tilt. “We can’t get into specifics...”
“About what?” There was obviously an important secret being kept from him and Nic didn’t like being left out.
The crown prince’s lips quirked in a wry smile. “What if as the future leader of your country I order you to return to California, resume work on your rocket ship and marry the mother of your child?”
Nic spent a long moment grappling with his conscience. He’d come to grips with sacrificing his happiness for the sake of the country and although it had torn him apart to let Brooke go, he’d known it was for the greater good of Sherdana and his family.
Now, however, his brother was offering him a way out. No, Nic amended. Gabriel was directing him to forsake his duty and chase his dreams all the way back to California. The walls he’d erected to garrison his misery began to crumble. He sucked in a ragged breath. Permission to marry Brooke and raise their child with her. The chance to complete his dream of space travel. All on a silver platter compliments of his brother. It was too much.
But as he scrutinized Gabriel’s confident posture and observed the secret smile that lit Olivia’s eyes, he sensed that whatever was going on, these two were well in control of the country’s future.
Nic offered Gabriel a low bow, his throat tight. “Naturally, I’d do whatever my crowned prince commands.”
* * *
On her way to the Mojave Air and Space Port to visit her brother, Brooke took a familiar detour and drove past the house Nic had rented for the past three years. The place looked as deserted as ever. Nic hadn’t spent much time there, sometimes not even sleeping in his own bed for days at a stretch because the couch in his workroom was within arm’s reach of his project.
Still, when she could get him to take time off, they’d often had fun barbecuing in the backyard or drinking beer on the front porch while they stared at the stars and Nic opened up about what he and Glen hoped one day to accomplish.
Brooke stomped on the accelerator and her Prius picked up speed. Those days were behind her now that Nic was back in Sherdana, but at least she had the memories.
A ten-minute drive through town brought her to the hangar where Glen and his team were working on the new rocket. Brooke hadn’t been here since the day Nic had broken off with her and she was surprised how little work had been done. From what Glen had told her, the inflow of cash hadn’t dried up after the first Griffin had exploded. In fact, the mishap had alerted several new investors who’d promised funding for the project.
Brooke spent several minutes walking around the platform that held the skeleton of the Griffin II, her footsteps echoing around the empty hangar. She wasn’t accustomed to this level of inactivity and wondered if she’d misunderstood her brother’s text, asking her to meet him at the airfield rather than at his house.
As she made her way to the back of the facility where the workrooms and labs were set up, Brooke detected faint strains of music and figured her brother had gotten caught up in something and lost track of time. Except the music wasn’t coming from Glen’s office, but from Nic’s former workroom.
The wave of sorrow that swarmed over her stopped Brooke in her tracks. Someone had obviously been hired to replace Nic on the team and had been given his office. The shock of it made her dizzy, but she quickly rationalized the unsteadiness away. How could she expect forward progress on the rocket without someone taking on the fuel delivery system Nic had abandoned? With the exception of her brother, no one else on the team could match Nic’s brilliance or comprehend the intricacies of his design. Someone new would have to be brought in.
