Ways To Ruin A Royal Reputation (Mills & Boon Modern) (Signed, Sealed…Seduced, Book 1) Dani Collins (lightest ebook reader txt) 📖

“It was covered up by his mother and mine. The gossip hadn’t really got around anyway. Bea and Clare were the only two people who stood by me. They wanted to quit school in solidarity, but I didn’t want them to throw away their futures just because I had. They helped with rent here and there, but I eventually found my feet with the online promotions and I was so...touched. So proud when Clare asked me to start London Connection with her. I felt like I was bringing value when I’d been such a mess in those early years. And now... Now I’ve stuffed it up anyway.”

“Why did you take my assignment when you had something like this in your past?”

“I didn’t expect to relive it. You’re the one who decided to use me for your own ends because the opportunity was too good to pass up,” she reminded him.

His head jerked back. “I would have made other decisions if I had known.”

“Would you?” she scoffed.

“You didn’t give me a chance to prove otherwise, did you? I came to you to manufacture a scandal so I wouldn’t cause anyone else to be hurt. I told you that. But you didn’t warn me that something like this was possible. You said this is a circle of trust, but you didn’t trust me, did you?”

“Don’t lecture me on honesty. Not when you—” She leaned forward in accusation, then abruptly had to catch her armrest as she realized the tablet was destroying her sense of balance. “When you were so convinced of your own perfection you had to hire someone to make you look bad. You want to talk about respecting a relationship? You hired me so that when you made your one mistake—” she showed him her single finger for emphasis “—it wouldn’t really be yours. You wanted to be able to tell yourself that whatever happened wouldn’t really be your fault. You want to believe this image—” she gestured to encompass his aura “—of being completely flawless, is real. Here’s news, Luca. We all make mistakes. That’s why my job exists! I’m your mistake. And now you’ll have to live with that. So suck it.”

She dropped back into her seat, feeling like a sack of bruised apples. The entire world was upon her, crushing her. She propped her cement-filled head on the weak joint of her wrist, growing too tired to cry, even though sobs were thickening her throat and sinuses.

“My mistake was believing the scarlet harlot of Upper Swell was going to live happily ever after with the Golden Prince.”

“I never promised you that.” He didn’t shout it, but it struck like a sonic boom she felt with her heart.

“No,” she agreed with growing drowsiness. “No, you said it was only going to be an affair and I believed you. But you made me fall in love with you.” She blinked heavy lids over wet eyes. “That’s on you, Luca.”

Amy woke in Luca’s stateroom several hours later. She wondered if he had carried her here or had one of his bodyguards do it. Whoever it was had removed her shoes and draped a light blanket over her.

She finger-combed her hair and used the toothbrush that had been designated hers when they’d embarked from Vallia, back when she and Luca had been in perfect sync and she’d believed...

She clenched her eyes. Had she really believed they had a chance at a future? Come on, Amy. You’re smarter than that.

Wrinkled and fuzzy-headed, she crept back to her seat.

Luca was reclined in his seat and fast asleep. Her heart wrenched to see him there when he could have slept beside her in his own bed. If he had wanted to send the message that she would no longer wake to the sight of him sleeping beside her, this was it.

A flight attendant started to approach, and Amy waved her off. She should eat something so she didn’t get air sick, but she was too anguished.

She turned on her phone and was tempted to turn it right back off again, but made herself go through some of the messages, looking for...

Her heart lurched as she picked up a reply to her SOS. One of her clients, Baz Rivets, was sober a year now, but had had addiction problems from the time she’d met him at one of his early pub gigs through to the international fame he and his rock band enjoyed today. She’d been beside him every time he’d gone in or come out of a program and regarded him as a friend, but she would never have expected him to go out of his way for her.

I thought I’d have to go back to rehab to see you again. We’re detouring to Athens from Berlin. Will wait for you there, ducky.

It was enormously heartening, but also like hearing she could have lifesaving surgery on condition half her heart be removed.

With her throat aching, she replied with a heartfelt, “Thank you,” and set aside her phone. Then she stared at the flight tracker, taking way too long to comprehend that they were above Turkey. Only a few hours to go before she would have to say goodbye to Luca.

He woke as they began their descent into Athens.

For one millisecond, as he glanced at her with disorientation, she saw a flash of the complex hello he usually wore when he woke next to her. It was discovery and pleasure and something magnetic and welcoming that always warmed her deep in her center.

This time, it was gone before it fully formed. She saw memory strike him so hard, he flinched. His expression blanked into steely, unreadable lines.

Whatever spark of hope still flickered within her died, leaving her more bereft than she’d ever felt. She looked to the window, teeth clenched against making apologies. Was this her fault? Not really. Everyone had a past, and she hadn’t aired hers on purpose.

Did that matter when it was impacting him anyway? Her parents hadn’t cared who