4. Chapter Four

Chapter Four

Carissa

It was strange enough when my sister started dating someone who once had an interview on my favorite late night talk show. Then I found out she's one of the most hated and respected sports journalists in the nation, admired by her peers and despised by the athletes she ruined by exposing their seedier sides. Now I'm sitting in a literal mansion, gripping a glass of iced tea that tastes like liquid gold, and I'm staring at an actual. Freaking. Princess . Because Darcy has somehow become friends with Bonnie Aiken and managed to get us invited over for brunch with her friends the day after we get to California. And one of those friends is the Princess of Candora.

The craziest part? It's Derek Riley's patio I'm sitting on right now. Derek Riley . Like, the hottest man in Hollywood and quite possibly one of the most famous people in the world right now. He hasn't made an appearance yet, but I am in his backyard . I have pinched myself multiple times because I'm not sure this is real, but every time it has hurt like crazy.

I don't belong here. Yet here I am. What is happening ?

Darcy, who has been deep in conversation with Bonnie—holding her hands, no less, because they're apparently besties even though they both dated the same man—looks over at me for the first time in fifteen minutes and laughs. She says something to Bonnie, who smiles at me and nods, and then my big sister crosses the patio to sit in the chair next to me.

"You okay, Rizzo?"

I nod, the movement making me dizzy. "When you said we were going to brunch with one of your friends, I thought it was going to be, like, a college roommate or something."

She laughs and lowers her voice. "Honestly, I probably wouldn't have reached out to Bonnie, but Cole made me mad on your behalf."

I frown. "We're here because of Cole Evanson?" Granted, I didn't like what he said to me either, but it's not like I can blame him. I didn't exactly make a great first impression. "Is he going to be here?"

"No idea. I hope so, though you have to remember that he doesn't know I'm Tamlin, so I have to pretend I've never met him."

"Right." My frown grows deeper, though I'm so glad she looks like herself right now because she's something familiar to keep me grounded. Blonde curls, brown eyes, easy smile. Just like me. "Your life is a lot more complicated than I realized, Darce."

Laughing, she tucks her arm around me and squeezes. "You have no idea. You should have seen me when I first met Houston. I'm still not sure if I kept everything straight between me and Tamlin, and my poor husband thought he was being a world-class jerk by falling for both sides of me."

"Your husband is a world-class saint for putting up with your crazy."

"He really is." She gets a dreamy look in her eyes, her smile turning so warm that I can practically feel it. I'm so lucky she's here with me for another day or two, before I start my job and have to face real life again. Once she goes back to St. Louis and her perfect husband, I'll be on my own. And I certainly won't be drinking iced tea on Derek Riley's patio once I am.

Her Royal Highness, who introduced herself as simply Freya before answering her phone in a language I couldn't understand, glides across the patio and settles in the chair on my other side. I immediately sit up straighter, nearly dumping my glass into my lap in my panic because I have no idea how to act around royalty. I'm way too likely to say something stupid for me to be comfortable right now.

"Carissa," the princess says, "I am sorry for not properly greeting you when you arrived. I always have someone who needs my attention, but I wanted to tell you that I am so happy to meet you!"

I squeak something that I think is supposed to be words but definitely isn't. I clear my throat and try again. "No apologies necessary! I'm sure you're super busy all the time. I once dreamed about being a princess, but then I grew up and realized that's like politics and stuff and I really don't like politics because…" I clamp my mouth shut. I ramble when I'm nervous, but I don't need to start rambling about the politician I knew in Pennsylvania.

He's already the reason I moved across the country. I don't need him helping me make a fool of myself. Again.

Freya smiles and tucks her thin fingers around my wrist. She looks so delicate. And gorgeous. But there's an intelligence in her eyes that tells me she's probably a force to be reckoned with in that whole political arena I dislike. "I happen to adore politics, but they are not for everyone."

"Your accent is so beautiful."

She laughs, and the sound is…less beautiful. It's a real, hearty laugh that instantly sets me at ease because it makes her feel more human. "So I am told, though I am partial to your American sound," she says with a wink. "Now, Darcy tells me you have just moved to California. What brought you here? "

I look at my sister, who raises her eyebrows as if to say I'm on my own from here on out. She made the introductions, and now I have to look out for myself. I swallow. "I just got a job with the Los Angeles Thunder. Sports medicine."

"Oh!" Freya's grip turns stronger, her excitement clear in her eyes. "With Cole!"

With the ultimate grumpy man who, for some reason, seems to think very little of me. I'm blaming the unicorn tank top, though it could have been any number of things. It's terrible of me, but if I had known I might see Cole today, I probably would have worn the tank top again. Just to spite him. Instead, I'm in a yellow sundress that is adorable but looks extra frumpy next to a princess. "Yep," I squeak. "With Cole."

"They met yesterday," Darcy throws in. "Though I think Tamlin Park might have put him on edge because she was there too."

Freya clucks her tongue. "Oh, I do hope he was not short with you." I can't stop my grimace, and the princess droops. "Oh dear, he was. I will make him apologize."

My eyes go wide. "No!" I wince when the word comes out louder and sharper than I would have liked. "No, you really don't have to do that, Your Highness."

Laughing, Bonnie pulls up a chair to join our group and holds out a tray of veggies. "You can call her Freya," she says to me.

"Yes," Freya agrees. "Please do. I come here to get away from the importance."

"You're still more important than anyone I know," a male voice says right as I'm reaching for a stalk of celery.

I flinch, nearly knocking the veggie tray out of Bonnie's hand, though she manages to hold on to it and save the food. I turn to see who just arrived, my pulse spiking in anticipation .

It's not Derek Riley, like I feared, but that doesn't mean the sight of rockstar Liam Connolly isn't just as discombobulating as my introductions to everyone else this far.

"Oh my gosh," I whisper as blood rushes to my head, making me dizzy. "You're…"

Liam grins as he bends to give Freya a hug from behind. "Glad to see you one more time before you head home, Peach. I see we've made some new friends."

All I can do is squeak.

"This is Houston's wife, Darcy," Bonnie says cheerfully. "And her sister, Carissa. Darcy, Carissa, this is—"

"Liam Connolly," I finish for her. Like an idiot.

Thankfully, he laughs and holds out his hand for a handshake, which I manage with a bit of fumbling and only because I stare at the tattoo of a whale on his inner wrist. It's really him. And he's just as beautiful as he was on stage when I went to his concert a couple of years ago. His blond hair is longer than it was then, and his eyes are bluer in the Malibu sunlight than they were when he was on stage in Philly.

I feel like giggling, which is seriously dumb because the guy isn't even single. Everyone knows he's madly in love with a girl who once delivered his lunch to his house. His initial romance with Kasey was straight out of fanfiction, and I ate the whole story up. According to the tabloids, they never leave each other's sides.

"Where is Kasey?" Freya asks, as if reading my thoughts.

Liam shrugs and snags a handful of carrots before dragging a chair next to Bonnie and widening our circle. "Deep in conversation with your new tank," he says to the princess. "Where'd you dig this one up?"

I have no idea what he's talking about, but Freya groans and shakes her head. "He is abominably dull, but at least he is keen to keep me safe. Perhaps too keen. "

Oh, they must be talking about the bodyguard who frisked Darcy and me when we arrived, though Bonnie tried to stop him.

"Better that than someone who would rather let you get into trouble." Chuckling, Liam turns his attention to Darcy and me. His gaze fills my belly with butterflies, but from what I've heard, he's one of the nicest guys on the planet. That's assuming everything the internet says is true, which I know is not. "Houston's wife, huh?"

Darcy nods, and I have no idea how she looks so relaxed right now. "You met him when he was dating Bonnie, didn't you?"

"Yeah. Nice guy. Congrats on getting married." Liam's eyes flit back to me, and suddenly they're a little less friendly. "What brings you two to California?"

When Darcy doesn't reply, I force myself to answer. She's only here because of me, after all. "I, um, I'm going to be working with the Thunder for a while. Alongside the athletic trainer."

A muttered curse pulls all our attention to the back door, and my stomach drops when I recognize Cole in the doorway. His eyes are locked on me, and his jaw is so tight that I have to assume he's angry. But the rest of his expression is fairly neutral, so other than the word that slipped from his tongue—which is pretty telling, let's be honest—I have no idea what he might be thinking about seeing me here.

I also don't have a clue why my heart rate has skyrocketed over the few seconds we've been staring at each other, so I am extra glad when someone else comes through the door beside him and thoroughly distracts me.

Derek Riley .

I probably shouldn't be even more starstruck by the actor than I was by the literal princess sitting next to me, but Derek Riley is the stuff of teenage fantasy. He's been a huge name in Hollywood for more than a decade and is one of those actors who somehow does it all, from stunts to languages to even singing in one of his movies. And he's beautiful . It's not just his face, which has that ruggedly handsome quality to it that is perfect for the movies, but he is remarkably fit and healthy. The paragon of the human form.

Then again, seeing him in direct juxtaposition with Cole next to him is making me realize Cole is just as well-formed. Maybe even more so. And while Cole doesn't necessarily have a big screen presence, he rivals Derek's looks as well. Cole's eyes are a dark brown, while Derek's are deep blue, but Cole has a strong jaw and a straight nose and an intelligence behind his gaze that—

Someone clears their throat, and I flinch. Just how long was I staring?

"Derek," Liam says, and there's laughter in his voice. "Have you met Houston's wife and sister-in-law?"

Derek smiles, and I swoon a little. "Not yet, but I've heard a lot about you, Darcy." He steps forward and grasps her hand, and my sister finally seems overwhelmed as she gapes at the man. He turns to me next, and his handshake is warm and firm. "It's nice to meet you…"

"Rizzo," I squeak out and then mentally kick myself for saying my silly nickname. "I mean Carissa. I'm Carissa."

Cole poorly covers a scoff. He's still standing by the door, his arms folded and a scowl now darkening his features. He may be handsome, but his personality isn't doing him any favors. When he notices me looking at him again, he nods his head slightly. "Paxton." Oh, he's not happy at all to see me here, and I can't decide if I love or hate his reaction.

On the one hand, I'm glad Darcy came up with this counterattack for his rudeness. On the other, I don't want to have to deal with his antagonism while I work with his teammates. Right now, I'm fully planning to let Mel deal with him whenever he needs help because I don't want to be any closer to him than I am right now.

Then again, I still haven't met my new boss, so there's no telling what choice I'll have, if any.

"Did you meet Carissa's sister as well?" Bonnie asks Cole. She's frowning as she glances between me and him.

Cole shakes his head, his eyes on Darcy. "Pleasure," he grunts.

Darcy looks like she might laugh, and I have to wonder what she makes of this rugby player. She didn't like how he talked to me, but she also couldn't stop talking about how he's an incredible athlete. She's desperate to figure out why he left football, and though she didn't say it, I know she wants me to try to find out. Based on his cool welcome today, I don't think that's going to happen.

Not unless I get the truth from one of his teammates, which feels way more likely.

"What brings you to California?" Derek asks. His eyes shift between me and Cole, though I have no idea what he might be thinking. The man is a blank slate beneath a mask of pleasant civility.

"Carissa just got a job with Cole's team," Bonnie answers.

"Ah."

A woman appears behind Cole, almost as recognizable as Derek because she was all over the internet when she started dating Liam a few months ago. Kasey pats Cole on the arm in greeting and heads straight for Liam, plopping herself onto his lap as she says, "Freya, your latest bodyguard is intense."

The princess sighs. "I am aware. I do not think he will last much longer than the others."

"I'm telling you," Derek says. He moves to the table stocked with brunch delicacies that I've been eyeing since we arrived but haven't been brave enough to approach. "I know a guy."

"You know far too many ‘guys,' Derek Riley."

"Not true. But clearly you're not finding anyone suitable from within Candora, so maybe you need to look outside your country."

"Paxton." Cole's voice, though soft, pulls my attention back to the doorway, where he is still standing apart from his friends as they jump into a discussion about soldiers and bodyguards. He clenches his jaw and then jerks his head toward the far end of the patio, away from the others.

Does he want me to follow? I'm a little too fascinated by Derek's suggestion that Freya hire an American soldier to protect her, and I'm not sure I like the idea of being alone with Cole any more than I was yesterday.

But he narrows his eyes, and the silent challenge pulls me out of my chair like some double-dog dare.

When he reaches the edge of the patio, Cole folds his big arms and leans a hip against the wall that lines the stone-floored space. His eyes are on the glittering ocean below, but I feel his focus entirely on me.

"What's up?" I ask when he stands silent for too long.

"What are you doing here?"

Ah, so he's going to play it that way? I fold my arms to match him, though I know I don't look nearly as impressive as he does. "My sister wanted to see Bonnie again and called her up. Bonnie invited us to brunch, and I didn't know this was Derek's house until we got here."

He grunts, eyes darting over to Bonnie as if he's hoping to get confirmation of my story. "Regardless of how you ended up here, I'm very protective of my friends."

"Okay."

He doesn't like that response, his eyebrows pulling low. "And if I hear a single word out of Tamlin Park's mouth about me or any of them, I'll—"

"She's not like that," I argue.

He lets out a single laugh. "If you think that, you clearly don't know her."

Looking over at Darcy, who is watching us with interest, I have to fight to keep my laughter in. "I know her better than you think."

Cole's eyes jump to Darcy as well, and I realize my mistake .

"I mean, my sister lives in St. Louis like Tamlin," I say quickly, trying to backtrack. "And Houston has done some interviews with her, so they've kind of become friends."

"No sane athlete would be friends with a woman like that."

"Houston isn't an athlete anymore. He retired a year and a half ago." Ugh, I feel like I'm still digging a hole for myself, so I fight for a different topic. Really, I should just go back to my seat next to Darcy and soak in the reality that my sister can claim Derek Riley as a friend, but the look in Cole's eyes has me worried for Darcy's secret. "I'm excited to learn more about rugby. Do you like playing?"

The question seems to catch Cole off guard as he turns his attention back to me, his eyebrows even lower than before. "Do I like playing?"

"Yeah. I mean, I guess you probably don't do it for the money, huh?"

He laughs, but it sounds forced. "No. And yes, I like playing."

"Why?"

"You're not secretly a sports reporter working for Tamlin, are you?"

It's my turn to laugh. Mine, at least, is real humor, and it helps me relax. "Oh, I know next to nothing about sports. Give me back pain or a knee replacement, and I'm your gal, but I have the coordination of a toddler, so I never followed in my sister's footsteps." I cringe. "Like playing baseball, I mean. Anyway, was there something else you needed, or did you just want to threaten me?"

Oof, that's not what I wanted to say, and I almost clap a hand to my face.

The only thing that stops me is Cole's smile, which is so unexpected that it literally takes my breath away. It's only there for half a second, but boy, does the man have a smile . "Threatening was the main goal," he says and stalks across the patio to sit next to Freya, leaving me entirely off balance. I definitely don't have a clue how to interact with this man, and I don't anticipate that changing.

That's going to make things interesting.