Chapter 5

5

ISAAC

It's been three days since our encounter with the cute-but-probably-delusional-prince-wannabe and Simon will not let it go. My plan to find the man lost steam immediately. If he is unstable—the most likely scenario, not that he's a runaway prince—then I can't put Simon through that. Or myself. Things with Jane had been amazing in the beginning. She was my first love. But after Simon was born, things went downhill fast. The depression. The pills. I tried to help her. But nothing I did…I'm not putting myself through that again. I need to let this go.

"Prince Adrian said I was his friend."

Simon needs to let this go.

"Yes, he did." I wave my hand at the stack of untouched books. "Do you want to read?"

"No," he says and then proceeds to pout.

I straighten the inbox Zye refuses to use, move the stapler next to the giraffe pen holder…and then move it back again. My mind struggles to focus on anything but this encounter, and I feel silly. Was it even real? Had this prince been a dream? A fever dream from too much work and not enough sleep. Or sex. Definitely not enough sex.

I've replayed the kiss on my hand over and over so many times it's pathetic. And when Simon is asleep in his bed, I don't stop at his lips on my palm. I imagine so much more. Kisses to my wrist. That sensitive crease in my elbow. My shoulder. His lips brushing kisses down my neck, across my jaw, and then when the ache is too much, he presses his lips against mine. It's sweet and then not sweet as we kiss frantically. Desperately. Prince Adrian—because, in my fantasies, he is a real prince—slips his hand under my shirt, touching my back, my chest, my stomach, and then lower as he gasps my name. I don't last after that.

It's been a long damn time. Is being touch-starved a thing?

I haven't dated since Paul-the-asswipe. His focus was always on himself and his needs. He barely tolerated Simon—and the feeling was mutual. Simon ignored him completely. I hate that I put my son through that. Having a boyfriend isn't worth it. And after Paul, I swore to never date again. But never is a long time.

Simon likes Adrian.

That is an even bigger problem. Because when he leaves—and they always leave—it will devastate my son.

"Daddy?" Simon asks, tugging my arm. "Can we call Prince Adrian to see if he wants to play hide and seek?"

"No, sweetie. Daddy has to work." I hold back a snort. As if that's the only thing stopping me. Although, I do have a lot of work now that Zye's business has taken off. But again, concentrating on anything other than this guy seems impossible. "Do you want to color?"

He tilts his head, considering it. "Can I draw a picture?"

"Sure," I say in relief. I really do have tons of work to do. I hand him a piece of paper and the crayons I keep in my desk. He scoots his chair up so he's sitting across from me and gets right to work.

If he can focus on his task, so can I. Pushing away all thoughts of Adrian, I work on scheduling and ordering and making sure Zye doesn't have another wedding disaster. I'm at the end of an intake call with a potential client when Zye walks in dressed in a gorgeous teal short-sleeved button-down and dark chinos. The shimmery gray eyeshadow highlights his blue eyes.

"Am I running a wedding business or a daycare?" he asks with his usual snark.

"Daycare," Simon says with a giggle. I've had to bring Simon to work for the last few days due to an outbreak of pinkeye at his actual daycare, and this has been their standard routine.

I say goodbye to the bride-to-be and hang up, adding my notes to the intake form.

Zye gives Simon a pat on his head. "What are you drawing?"

He hands him the picture, and Zye studies it for a minute, raising his brows. He holds it up so I can see. There are four stick figures in the picture—all different colors. Three of them are wearing a crown.

Chewing on my bottom lip, I ignore Zye's curious look and study my stapler again. I haven't told him about what happened at Burger King. What would I say?

Zye gives up on me and turns to Simon, pointing at the only figure not crowned. "Who's this?"

"Duh, Daddy."

"And that's you?" He points to the smallest stick figure.

Simon lets out a huff. God, the attitude on this child. Then, not waiting for Zye to insult his picture further, he runs through the rest. "That's me. And this is Prince Adrian."

Zye darts a glance at me, his eyes wide. "Prince Adrian?"

I shrug with a kids-say-the-darndest-things look and a silent apology to my son.

"And this guy?"

"King Burger King."

"Of course." His eyes dance with amusement, and I know we'll be talking about this later. I need to come up with something plausible before then. "So you and Daddy were hanging out in Burger King with Prince Adrian. The Prince Adrian or…just someone who looks like him?"

What does that mean? Before I can ask, Simon forges on. "We weren't hanging out," he says, shaking his head in disappointment that someone could be so clueless. I've gotten this look before. "We were eating."

"That's so sweet. You and Daddy and Prince Charming having lunch at Burger King."

"Prince Adrian," Simon corrects. "And then Reginald?—"

"Reginald?" He crosses his arms, his eyes on me.

Simon scrunches his face. "I think he's a guard. He took the prince away. But Prince Adrian gave me a hug goodbye. And kissed Daddy?—"

"Oh my. Now it's getting interesting. Chime in here anytime, Isaac."

All the heat in my body rushes to my face, giving me away, and Zye's mouth drops open. I point at the computer. "This woman wants her wedding on the side of a cliff. And the bride and groom will take a zipline away after the ceremony. I told her?—"

"That can wait." He waves both hands at me. "Tell me about this prince."

"There's nothing to tell." I almost choke on the words. Grabbing the picture out of Zye's hand, I focus on my son. "I love this, Simon. Thank you."

Simon snatches it back. "It's not for you. It's for Prince Adrian."

"Isaac?" Zye taps his foot, his eyes questioning. He isn't letting this go. Not that I blame him. Zye has been pushing me to find my prince or someone to make me happy.

Taking Simon's tablet and headphones out of his backpack, I set him up far enough away that he can't hear us. Then I sit behind my desk and gesture at Zye. "Go ahead."

"What's going on? Did you really let a prince kiss you? In front of King Burger King?" He's grinning, and I'm not sure if I'm annoyed or amused.

"He kissed my hand. And obviously, he's not a prince. All the talk at the diner about finding me a prince charming went to his head." God. I'm a horrible parent.

"Are you going to see him again?"

I slump in the chair, my body heavy. "No. He had to leave suddenly?—"

"The guard?"

"Shut up. It's nothing, okay?"

"But you like him?—"

"No," I say, my voice a little too harsh. I take it down a notch. "I'm not putting Simon through that again. Okay?"

"You don't have to choose between your happiness or Simon's. You deserve to be happy, Isaac."

I shake my head, my throat choked with emotion.

He sighs. "Okay, fine. For now. But I'm not giving up on this." He plops in the chair Simon vacated and scrolls absently on his phone. "Cliffs and ziplines, huh? It's not the craziest—" He stops, almost dropping the phone, and stares at the screen.

"What?"

"We're no longer trending."

"It's been weeks, Zye. It was bound to die down."

He shakes his head as he taps on his phone. "No. It's because of the royal wedding."

"The royal wedding?" I repeat his words, but I can't stop staring at Simon's picture. He let me hold it for safekeeping until he could give it to Adrian. Something that would never happen. Simon drew us all together. Like we're one big happy family. Is that something Simon wants? I know he misses his mom. Maybe?—

"Isaac." I glance up at his sharp tone. He's glaring at me. "It's like you don't even listen. I've been talking about this wedding for months."

I shrug. "You know I don't care about that stuff."

He waves his hand dramatically. "They postponed the wedding last week because the prince came down with the flu or something. But now—" He lets out a heavy sigh. "They've called it off."

"So?"

His eyebrows reach the top of his head, and he waves his hands like he's directing traffic. "So? After years—years of planning, Isaac—they canceled the royal wedding ." He thrusts the phone in my face so I can see. Not that I care, but this is my boss. Weddings are our business. And he's been obsessed with royal weddings since before he was Simon's age.

I grab the phone from him before he gets out his whiteboard and spells out the reasons this wedding is so important. A video titled Royal Wedding Canceled is silently playing, and the man being interviewed catches my attention. He's dressed in regal clothes with green eyes and carefully styled brown hair. Then, the video shifts to a wide shot of the prince being escorted by a slew of guards. The man next to him whispers something in his ear, and the prince nods. Is that…?

No. This can't be right. I push back the panic burning through my chest. Adrian just looks like this prince. A homeless-messy version. I swallow the lump in my throat. But the man resembling Reginald is too much of a coincidence, even for me.

Zye takes his phone from my hands. "I wonder what happened." I barely hear him as I sink back into my chair. None of this makes sense.

My boss doesn't seem to notice how quiet I've gone. He sighs. "Jasella? What are you thinking, girl? I know if I had Prince Adrian in my bed, I'd never let the man go. He's dreamy and gorgeous."

Prince Adrian. I stare at him as everything plays like a movie in my head. Adrian running away from his wedding. Jasella his bride. Reginald standing in front of the onlookers with their cameras in their hands. And Adrian, no Prince Adrian, kissing my palm, not wanting to go. His words. I can't marry Jasella—or any woman. I think I'm into guys. Or at least a certain guy.

Zye snaps his fingers in my face. "Hello? Are you okay?"

I shake my head, feeling lightheaded. My stomach twists in knots. The rest of my body feels numb. And I'm not sure what's freaking me out more. The fact that I was kissed on the hand by an honest-to-God prince? Or that the royal wedding was called off.

And it might somehow be all my fault.