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“No offense taken,” he mumbled. There was no point. They’d all worked together for so long that they all knew the signs of when he was in awful shape and needed to get away. During his time in the Marines, he’d crossed through too many war zones, waded through too many death traps, and killed far too many fucking people to have his sanity in check. “Other than the assassin issue, Gaoxing is amazing. Peaceful. It was relaxing until they started trying to kill the prince.”
Soren huffed a laugh. “Yeah, assassins have an interesting way of screwing up the best plans. But seriously, you know we’d all hop on a plane right now and join you. No questions asked.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know.” West shoved a hand through his hair, pushing it back from his eyes. He squinted, checking the landmarks he’d memorized. He was coming up on the spot where he could pull off. “Right now, things are manageable. If I can get him to cancel the contract when I meet with him later, it will take a lot of the danger off the table. From there, it’s just a matter of helping him find a way out of this financial disaster.”
“You know,” Soren drawled and West clenched muscles, waiting for it. “After he closes the contract, there’s nothing else you need to worry about. It’s not your problem anymore.”
“Technically, none of this is my problem, but I still stuck my nose into it. I might as well see it through to the end.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Shut up. Call me if you have any updates. I’ve got to deal with the dead.” West ended the call, but he smirked in the darkness as he continued down the winding road.
Was Soren wrong?
No, not at all.
Crown Prince Jin and Gaoxing’s financial problems were not his to solve. He’d come to this country to possibly keep a prince from being killed, to keep a war from breaking out across the globe.
But how was he supposed to walk away from Jin? He couldn’t do it. For years, he’d prided himself on being a stone-cold killer. When he was a Marine, he’d gotten his orders on who to kill and he’d done it. He’d thought nothing could touch him.
Then Jin smiled at him. And Jin held him tight and wept in his arms for a man who’d tried to kill him, wept for West, who’d killed to protect him. Nothing in this world could make him walk away from this man. Not until he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was safe.
No one could touch Jin Long Wei.
8
JIN LONG WEI
Anxiety was the only thing keeping him conscious and moving.
His body ached and his eyes burned with the need for sleep, but he was too wired.
But that happened every time he stepped inside the hospital to see his father. As he walked down the pristine white and pastel halls, everyone cleared a path for him, their eyes solemn and their heads bowed. No one spoke to him, and even the conversations between the nurses and doctors stopped as he passed by.
He tried to ignore their sad gazes and pasted what he hoped looked to be a reassuring smile. Yes, his people believed in him, but no one wanted to lose their emperor. His father had sat on the throne and ruled Gaoxing for thirty-three years. He’d seen their country through its most prosperous period, and he’d valiantly led through some of their darkest times.
On a more personal level, Jin didn’t want to lose his father. Jin Jiang Yu had been such a warm, strong teacher to him over the years. His and Ming Tao’s mother had died just a couple of years after Ming Tao’s birth. Their father had loved their mother with all of his heart and never even thought to remarry. He’d raised his sons alone as he guided his country forward.
It hadn’t always been easy for him. There were many times when he’d had to be an emperor first and a father second, but Jin never begrudged him for it. He always believed his father did what was best for all their people.
And now, if his father passed, how was Jin supposed to step into his very large shoes?
As they neared the door to his father’s private room, the two royal guards straightened and saluted him. His heart always stumbled to see them here. The guards never appeared anywhere other than the palace. They used more discreet security for members of the royal family traveling around Gaoxing, and that was assuming they brought security at all.
But then, the royal family rarely slept outside of the palace. The presence of the guard made this little room an extension of the royal palace, and part of Jin hated it.
Qin stopped a few steps away and spoke in a low voice, “I was able to schedule a full hour for you today. I have already notified the doctor that you are in the building, and he will be along to give you a full update on the emperor’s condition.”
