Disclaimer: All characters are owned by Pixelberry and I claim no ownership of them. Enjoy!
That evening Riley and Drake went up to their room to watch the news and wind down for the night. Drake laid on the bed, hand resting behind his head as usual as he flipped through channels while Riley read her book.
“You think we’ll get boring once we get married? Doing stuff like this? Once all the excitement and newness wears off?” Drake kept flipping through channels.
“No. I think it’ll be nice to have a normal quiet life.” Riley looked up over her book at him. “I’m sure we’ll have kids eventually, if that’s something you wanted.”
Drake stopped and muted the TV.
“I guess we never really talked about it, huh?”
“Not really. Do you want to have a family some day?” Riley sat her book beside her.
“I always imagined having a few, yeah.”
“How many is a few?”
“I don’t know. Two? Three? Maybe four?”
“Four?!” Riley raised her eyebrows. “I could do three. Four is a lot!”
“I said maybe four. I wouldn’t be the one carrying them, though. So, I’m at your mercy a bit.”
“I think having little boys and girls with your grumpy face would make me the luckiest girl in the world.” She took his chin in her hand and placed a quick kiss on his lips.
“And I think they’d be lucky to have you as a mom.” The corner of his mouth turned up.
Drake continued going through channels when he found the news. A red banner ran across the bottom of the screen, “Breaking News: Multiple explosions reported at the Cordonian Royal Palace. One fatality, multiple injuries confirmed. Stay with UBN for the latest in what’s being called a “domestic terror attack.”
Riley and Drake sat in stunned silence as pictures of Liam, Queen Mother Regina, King Father Constantine and Olivia flashed across the screen. The voice coming through the TV was muffled as blood pumped loud and fast through her ears, drowning out the sounds around her.
“Oh my God.” Riley said quietly as a tear fell down her cheek. She reached out to grab Drake’s hand. She slipped hers under it, but he didn’t move. She looked over to see him pale, his mouth open and his eyes wide. His chest heaved in short, panicked movements.
“Liam.” He said under his breath. He turned to look at her. “Do you think…?”
Riley shook her head.
“I…I don’t know.” Despite trying to remain calm, her voice betrayed her as her tone grew frantic.
She picked up her phone.
“Maxwell!” She yelled into her phone with relief when he answered. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m-,” he took a shaky breath, “I’m okay. I’m with Bertrand, Liam, Liv and Hana at a safe house.”
“Oh my God.” She looked over at Drake. “Max, Bertrand, Liam, Olivia and Hana are okay. They’re okay.” She swallowed. A wave of relief washed over his face. Riley put them on speaker.
“What the hell happened?” Drake leaned closer to the phone.
“Here, let me put you guys on speaker. Okay.” Maxwell took a deep breath as Liam walked over to the phone.
“There was a bombing at the palace. They blew up a wall next to me and Leo. The ceiling started to cave after a second explosion went off.” Liam stopped for a beat. “My father pushed me out of the way and it landed on him. He… he didn’t survive.” He drew out the last sentence, not yet able to wrap his mind around it.
Riley placed a hand on her chest and stared down at the phone.
“Hold on guys. I need to see you.”
Riley hit the video chat button and soon the group popped up on the screen. Liam was standing next to Maxwell as Olivia and Hana sat on a couch under a blanket. Hana was sipping tea, the clinking of porcelain on porcelain barely audible as she sat the cup down with a trembling hand. Olivia sat stone faced, ignoring the call completely. A fire burned in her eyes that Riley had never seen before. Bertrand sat across from them in an armchair, his hair uncharacteristically disheveled. His elbow perched on the arm rest, his hand resting over his mouth. The other arm laid half-hazardly off the other side, his knee nervously bouncing up and down. Though Liam and Bertrand had both been royalty their whole lives, Bertrand had been in a place of power much longer than the current reigning king. Seeing the turmoil shaking him jarred Riley more than it did seeing all the others upset, save for Olivia who was more than likely just mad that she didn’t get the opportunity to kill whoever was trying to kill her. Bertrand had always been the epitome of calm and poise but sitting in the chair, he looked like he was moments from coming undone.
“Hey Blossom.” Maxwell said, deflated. He looked older, more weathered. Liam had a thumb resting on his chin, his other arm crossed over his chest as he came into frame. His expression was unreadable, but his body was tense. His shoulders squared as his gaze fell upon her.
“Hey guys. Liam…” She looked at him with miserable eyes. She didn’t realize she’d been holding her breath until she inhaled deeply to avoid crying. “Liam, I’m so sorry.” Her voice cracked against her wishes.
Liam simply closed his eyes and nodded. He knew this was only the beginning of the condolences that would soon be pouring in. He hated hearing the words, because that meant he had to accept what had happened and he wasn’t ready yet, despite him having held his father’s lifeless body in his arms as Constantine took his last breath just a few hours ago.
They sat with the rest of the group. Maxwell turned his back to them as to fit them all in frame.
“How’d you all get out? Were any of you hurt?” Liam looked up at the phone when he heard Drake’s voice. It was a look of longing. Of needing. He needed his best friend. Liam wished he were there.
“I was standing with Hana towards the back,” Maxwell started, “we were two of the first out.”
“I was also near the back. I slipped out of a side exit into the courtyard. I managed to take a few others out with me.” Bertrand added.
“Olivia was standing right next to me. A member of the Kings Guard escorted her out after the first explosion. I stayed with my father until he…” Liam stopped and looked down at the floor.
“God, Liam.” Drake shook his head.
“I know.” He face went from anguish to anger. His fingers curled into fists as his jaw clenched. “I need to find out who did this.” The command in his voice sent a chill through Riley. She’d focused on so much of him as her lover, she nearly forgot he was a king, except for times like this.
“We will.” Olivia placed a comforting hand on his arm.
“I know you and your dad have had your differences, but that was the bravest thing he could have done. He saved your life.” Drake said to his friend.
“He did. The ultimate sacrifice for his country.” Liam replied solemnly.
“I just had to see you guys. I’m so glad you’re all okay.” Riley sighed. Olivia looked up at her with a raised brow, finally acknowledging her existence. “Yes, even you Olivia.”
Olivia gave a small grateful smile.
“You guys get some rest. If there’s anything we can do, please don’t hesitate to call us. We love you guys.” Riley nodded at them.
“We love you guys, too. We’ll talk to you soon.” Maxwell attempted to smile, but the corners of hips lips barely moved.
“Bye guys.”
The rest of the group gave a small wave and Riley ended the call.
“Holy shit.” Drake fell back onto the bed and ran shaky hands through his hair. Riley fell next to him. “What…” Drake paused and turned to her, “what should we do? What can we do?” His voice grew desperate.
“I don’t know, Drake.”
“Should we go back?”
“We should for the funeral. It’ll be a national event. It can’t look like we’ve just deserted them.”
“Right.” Drake exhaled. Except they had. They had deserted them. He clenched his jaw. Walker, you selfish fucking coward.
“We’ll wait until Maxwell lets us know they’ve all been able to go home and then we’ll go from there.”
“I should have been there, Riley.” Drake stared blankly at the ceiling, his voice emotionless.
“What could you have done? Sacrificed yourself for Liam? How many times do you need to be hurt in the name of Cordonia? You know, Constantine was sick. He probably figured he’d go out a hero than from cancer. I think he’s proud of what he did. He saved his son and his country.”
“I guess.” Drake laid still. Riley laid her head on his chest, running a hand over his stomach. His heart was beating so hard and so fast that her head bobbed with the pumping of it. He wrapped her tight in his arms, nearly suffocating her.
“Let’s go take a shower and get ready for bed.” She sat up and threw her legs over the edge of the bed.
“I doubt I’ll be able to sleep after this.”
“I know. But showers always make you feel better.”
“That’s true.” He ran a shaking hand over his face.
“Come on.”
Riley grabbed him by the wrist and lead him into the bathroom. She turned on the shower and soon thick steam started to fill the air. She spun around to see Drake sitting on the toilet, his head in his hands.
“You okay?” She rubbed the back of his neck.
Drake dropped his hands between his knees and curled into himself.
“There’s something you should know.” He managed to straighten himself but didn’t look at her.
“What?” She said nervously.
“When you came to Cordonia, it wasn’t… I wasn’t who you thought I was.”
Riley’s face scrunched in confusion.
“What do you mean?”
“Remember how my dad was a member of the Kings Guard?” Drake looked up at her, his eyes filled with pain and regret.
“Yes?”
“When he died for the crown, I was destroyed. Liam was the only one that really paid attention to me besides Bastien. He was the one who convinced me to stay at the palace. I decided when I got older that I was going to follow in my old man’s footsteps. I became a Kings Guard right after I turned 21, after I left college, to protect Liam. I wanted to do whatever I could to make sure he never had to go through what I went through, losing someone. I guess losing someone again.” Riley nodded, knowing he meant Liam’s mom. “And I didn’t want to lose anyone else either. So, I figured the best way to protect them… him… was to become a Guard. I figured if I died protecting him, at least I wouldn’t have to suffer through another funeral.”
“Oh.” Riley swallowed hard. All the sudden she felt like she couldn’t breathe. Every puff of air she tried to take in was a struggle and every exhale left her too quickly. Why would he keep this from her?
“When you came to Cordonia, I was put on orders to protect you. When Liam saw you, he knew you were going to have a rough go of it. He didn’t think Bastien would approve of the task, seeing as he was still under the king’s thumb, so he asked me. He trusted me more than him anyways, so it was pretty cut and dry. He wanted to keep you out of trouble. And he wanted me by your side in case…” He stopped.
“In case what happened today happened while I was there.”
“Exactly. He wanted me to protect you. I broke all sorts of protocol when you and I became an item. Or whatever we were before we became what we are now. I put you and Liam both in harm’s way because I got emotionally invested in my charge. If something happened and I had to pick between you and him, I don’t know what I would have done. I had the obligation to protect Liam, but I couldn’t let you get hurt either. When I told Liam about it, he hired your body guard Mara.”
“Well I guess it makes sense why you were around me literally all the time.” She paused as she rethought his last sentence. “Wait, so Liam knew? About us?”
“He knew I had feelings for you, yes. He didn’t know they were reciprocated. He approached me after his bachelor party at the speakeasy, and I told him the truth. I couldn’t lie to him. He wasn’t happy about it, but I reassured him I wasn’t pursuing you, and that was true. But god damn it, Johnson, every time I tried to push you away you just pulled me closer. Finally, I couldn’t ignore it anymore.”
“So that’s what you meant when you told me things were more complicated than I realized.” She looked at him apologetically. “Oh, Drake. This is all my fault.” Riley dropped down onto her knees next to him. He took her face carefully into his hands.
“There’s not one second of it I regret. Not one second with you I’d ever give back. But you have to understand why this is killing me. Because if I had been there, Constantine might still be alive, and Liam wouldn’t be hurting like he is. As a man, losing your father is… it’s earth shattering. Even more so when he know it’s his fault, I’m sure. I can’t imagine how he’s feeling right now in that respect. But in a way, I kept you safe, right? I did my job. By leaving you weren’t there when the bomb went off. You were safe with me.”
Riley sat in shock, the information still sinking in.
“That’s why you were always with me…” She said again softly.
“Yes.” His voiced strained. “I was keeping you safe. For him, and then for me.”
“And when you got shot?”
“Partially for duty, partially because I’d be damned if I’d let you get hurt. I figured if I died, Liam was going to choose you. He had already told me he was. You’d be safe either way. He’d never let anything happen to you if he could help it, and neither would I.” He paused. “When my dad died, I locked it away. I didn’t talk about it, I didn’t cry about it. Outside of you, my mom and sister, and occasionally Liam, I avoid it as much as possible. I guess I still haven’t dealt with it, but fuck, seeing Liam today was like looking in a mirror.”
Riley pulled Drake into a tight embrace. He buried his face into her neck, clinging to her like his existence depended on it. He let out a shaky breath, quietly sobbing into her for a long few moments. She stroked the back of his head and let him grieve. Grieve for his dad, grieve for Liam, and grieve for what he failed to do.
“Shhhh,” She whispered into his ear, “It’ll be alright.”
Drake pulled back from her.
“Sorry about your shirt.” He pointed to the large wet spot on it, sniffling loudly.
“Don’t worry about it, Walker.” She smiled warmly at him as she stroked his face with her thumb.
“You think the waters cold by now?”
Riley stuck her hand in the shower. It wasn’t as scalding as it had been, but it was still hot.
“No, it’s still hot. Come on, let’s get you cleaned up.”
Riley stood Drake up and helped him out of his shirt. She unfastened his belt, undoing his pants and dropping them to the floor. She took off his boxers and threw them into the rest of the pile. She quickly peeled off her own clothes and tossed them to join his. They stepped into the shower and Drake turned his back to the showerhead and water cascaded over his body as he hung his head. Riley put shampoo in her hand and worked it into his thick, dark hair. He stepped back and rinsed it out before wrapping her in his arms to fit her body to his. They held each other closely, the water bouncing off ceramic and echoing around them. He ran a hand up her back and gently turned her face towards his, kissing her soundly. His tongue separated her lips and they danced together. The water started to grow cold when Drake turned it off. He took her face in his hands and looked deep into her eyes. She rested her hands on his wrists, rolling her thumbs over his damp skin.
“I love you.”
“I love you, too, Drake. Thank you. For everything.” She moved her hand to his shoulder, her fingers razing the rough scar from the bullet wound.
“I just want you to know it was all worth it. Everything that got us here. I’d do it all over again. I don’t ever want you to feel like this is your fault. You made your choice and I made mine. My choice is you. Forever.”
He leaned in and kissed her once again, his hand tangling in the back of her hair. He tugged it gently and planted soft kisses down her neck and shoulder.
“Are you sure?” Riley said quietly.
“I need to feel you, Johnson. You’re the only thing that makes sense anymore. I just need to feel you here, with me.”
Drake pulled her out of the shower and into their room. He laid down on the bed and brought her on top of him. He kissed across her chest, down her breasts, grabbing her backside in his hands. He tried to soak in every ounce of her, knowing that it would never be enough. Each touch brought him out of his head, and soon he was totally immersed in her. The way she smelled. The way she tasted. Having her near him was the only way he knew how to momentarily let go of the guilt he was carrying on his broad shoulders. He sat her up in his lap and kissed her stomach. She ran a hand through his still wet hair, pulling him closer to her. He rolled her onto her back and lowered himself down on top of her, his member pressed between their bodies.
“I love you.” He whispered into her ear.
In one fluid motion he slipped himself into her. He rocked his hips slowly against hers, savoring every inch of her beautiful body that was finally all his. Riley wrapper her arms around his back and hooked her legs around his as she enjoyed the feeling of having him close, the weight of his body on top of hers a reminder that he was still here with her, even if his mind was thousands of miles away. The heat radiated off of him and his muscles tensed under her arms. He wrapped a strong hand around the back of her thigh, letting the other slip underneath her back. He had an overwhelming need of her. All of her. Riley anticipated the movements becoming quicker, but they never did. Not that she minded. He stroked her skin gently, running his hand over her breasts and down to her hip. He had waited so long to love her the way he wanted to. The way he’d never loved another woman before. He made love to her until the middle of the night, showering her body with enough kisses and attention to last a lifetime. When they finally succumbed to the slow burning heat that built between them, they laid in bed looking at each other.
“I hope you didn’t mind me going easy on ya tonight.” A genuine smile played across Drakes face for the first time all night.
“Never. It was really nice.” She crooned.
Drake rolled onto his back and pulled her to his chest, placing a kiss on top of her head.
“Don’t get used to it, though. It was perfect, but it’s not the best way I know how.”
“Yeah? What’s the best way you know how?”
“I much prefer you on your knees staring up at me.” He tilted her chin to look up at him. “Or the view of your perfect ass from behind. Or watching you move on top of me.” He tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. “But tonight? Tonight wasn’t about those things. It wasn’t about pleasure. Not to say I didn’t enjoy it, because I very much did.” He quickly corrected himself. “I just wanted to be with you.”
“I know what you mean. I’m glad I could help. No matter what, every time with you is perfect.”
“Thanks, Johnson.”
Riley closed her eyes and tried to will herself to sleep for the better part of an hour. Their earlier conversation began making itself replay in her thoughts, keeping her awake. When she opened her eyes again, she looked up to see Drake, awake as ever with moonlight dancing across his dark features.
“Why didn’t you tell me about the Kings Guard sooner?” She said, startling him.
Drake looked straight ahead and rested a thumb on his lips, mulling over her words.
“There were a few reasons. None of them mattered once you showed up in my hotel room after Liam purposed and you said no. But it was mostly because I couldn’t tell you out of obligation. Part of me was still worried you’d end up with him, and I didn’t want to blow my cover. I also didn’t want you thinking the only reason I hung around was because I had to, and not because I wanted to. Eventually the line between business and pleasure became blurred. But before we left New York, I met up with Liam in his room. He relieved me of my position. He looked miserable. He didn’t really elaborate. He didn’t need to. He knew it’d be messy if the press got a hold of it and forced him to make the choice. Could you imagine? A headline reading ‘Commoner Best Friend Turned Royal Security Betrays King Liam With Twice Disgraced Lady Johnson.’ He decided to make it as discreet as possible for everyone’s sake. It was all very professional. He didn’t give any inkling that he was angry. Not until he punched me in the face, that is. That guy hits hard, let me tell you.”
“It was all a mess, huh?”
“Was? It still is. An even bigger one, at that. Not because of me or you. It just is. Cordonia has had a lot of enemies in the past. None of this is new. For instance, the Nevrakis house has always been a point of unrest. Liv’s parents weren’t the first in that house to try and form a coup to overthrow the king. There was talk of ousting them from the kingdom, but they thought it was smart to keep your friends close and your enemies closer. We’ve kept track of them for a long time, and all other threats, too. There’s been numerous assassination attempts. I can count three just from when I lived at the palace before the last two more recent ones. Plus, when Liam’s mom was poisoned. So technically six, I guess.”
“What were the other three?”
“Let’s see.” He sighed. “One time a sniper tried to shoot the royal motorcade. The second time was at a press conference outside the palace. Tried to detonate a bomb but failed. The third time someone tried to blow up a yacht they were on. That third one was done by a member of the crew, who also happened to be a member of an anti-monarchist group called Sons of Earth. They had a hard time after the last one because it was someone they thought they trusted. My dad died getting them all out of the water. Got caught under the boat after he was knocked out by a loose boom that sent him overboard. By the time they got into the water to get him, he was…” Drake paused, “I stopped sailing for a while after that,” his face grew somber. “You know, besides the royal family, the only people I’ve ever talked to about it were Bertrand and Maxwell. It was sometime after they lost their dad. Normally with them I’d never share anything like that, but they were taking it really hard so I thought it might help them out,” he stared off for a little while before lightly shaking his head and continuing. “Anyways, security got even tighter after the boat incident, which I didn’t think was humanly possible. I couldn’t even go out into the courtyard without Bastien for a while after that. It shook me up. I took off for a while when I turned 19. Went to college with Liam’s blessing. Leo came a few months later and said Liam was in a deep depression. He wouldn’t eat. He wouldn’t sleep. He didn’t leave his room unless it was absolutely necessary and then he’d go right back in as soon as he got back home. Everyone was really worried about him. Leo had told me then he was thinking about abdicating. He didn’t actually do it for a few more years, until he met Katie and ran off with her. But after I had seen him at college, I decided to come back and join the Guard when I was of age. I wanted to help however I could. Liam had done so much for me, I felt like I owed him.”
“I don’t think Liam keeps a tally, Drake.”
“I know. But I do.”
“All that matters right now is that Liam and our friends are safe. The country must be a little freaked out, though. I’m sure the people are worried what comes next.”
“Liam will figure out how to calm their fears. He speaks from the heart, and people listen. They have a king with compassion and loyalty. They can tell he means it when he says they’ll be safe.”
“I sure hope so.”
“Anyways, there’s nothing we can do about it tonight. Let’s get some sleep. That killer rooster will be crowing in a few hours and I’m spent.”
Riley kissed his cheek and sank back onto his chest. They fell asleep as dawn quickly approached.