Promise - A My Sweet Prince Novel (1)

Kings and Queens

I swallow hard and nod my head weakly. "Y-yes..." I say.

Jun smiles cautiously. "May I come in?"

I'm not sure I can move from where I stand. Thankfully, Lina saves me. She walks up and grabs my shoulders. "You have to move, honey," she says. "Let the man in."

She helps me move and Jun steps into the small apartment, closing the door behind him. I feel embarrassment flare up in my chest. It must seem so small compared to the palace. But he doesn't look around; his eyes stay trained on me. Lina pats my shoulder and disappears, though if I know her at all, she won't be far.

"Um..." I say. "Do you want to sit?"

Jun shakes his head. His look is so intense it gives me chills. "No," he says. He moves a step closer to me. "Asaka..."

"J-jun..." I murmur, heat flooding my cheeks. He read the letter. He knows. I can't believe this is happening to me.

"You're an idiot," he tells me.

I blink. "What?" I ask, uncomprehending.

And then he is closing the space between us, his arms sliding around me. "I said," he begins, our bodies pressed tightly together. There is no space between us and my face turns brilliantly red. "You're an idiot." He presses his forehead to mine. "Stop running."

"I'm not r-running," I say weakly.

"Shut up," he says before his lips claim mine. A startled sound escapes my lips as his move over mine, his hands holding me tightly. I return the kiss without thinking, eagerly accepting as his tongue seeks entrance. I moan quietly, too caught up in the moment to be embarrassed. He pulls back slightly, his breathing ragged. "I hate you," he tells me. I blink, opening my mouth to speak, but he kisses me again, gently. "Let me finish..."

I nod. "Go ahead," I say, dazed.

"I got your letter," he says slowly. "I must have read it a million times." He laughs softly. "It was strange," he continued. "Reading those three words written by your hand." He grabs my hand and kisses my fingers. "So strange to see those words written by your hand," he repeats. "When I wanted to say those very same words."

"What?" I whisper, eyes huge.

"I love you, Asaka, you infuriating woman." His cheeks heat slightly. "I wanted to tell you that after the ceremony when we were alone."

"I...didn't know," I say weakly.

He chuckles. "I should hope not. If you had known...you leaving would have killed me that much more. I was angry at first," he says. "When I found out you had left without even saying goodbye or hearing me out...I was angry. But that anger gave way to sorrow very quickly. My brothers started avoiding me, Ivan even did the same. For two days I was a mess. And then I got a strange phone call."

I frown, tilting my head to the side. "A phone call?"

"I don't know how she managed it, but a spirited young woman by the name of Lina managed to get a message to me. She called – an international number mind you – the police."

I gaped and heard a snicker from the other room. Lina was listening. "She did what?"

"She called the police and somehow convinced one of them to contact me. And they did. He was a bit young, probably a romantic. In any case, Lina got the message to me that you were a complete wreck." He threads his fingers through my hair. "And together we devised this plan."

"What plan?" I ask numbly.

"The press conference...those reporters were staged. I figured out the timing of when it would air so I could be here the day it happened. Lina was in charge of making sure you saw the press conference. If it hadn't of been for Lina...I don't know how long I would have waited before coming for you, Asaka." He presses his lips to mine once, gently. "I love you." I look up at him, fresh tears spilling down my cheeks. He brushes them away with his thumb. "What?" he asks. "What did I do?"