Free Claimed: Gowns & Crowns, Book 3 by Jennifer Chance

Nicki. Her gaze lifted from the flask.
    “Do you think it’s possible he’s out there, somewhere?” she asked. “Still alive after all this time?”
    He realized with a start that he didn’t have to lie to her or couch his words in any way, and the awareness was remarkably…refreshing. Nicki didn’t want an answer she could use as a shield or a tool. She simply wanted information to act more intelligently. Information to her was power, but not for playing diplomatic games.
    “No,” he said, honestly. “It’s most likely that he made it the mainland and was ambushed in his weakened state, robbed and killed, his body dumped or buried. The fact that he survived the crash is a victory for the royal family. The fact that his mind was apparently damaged will be a source of endless despair for Queen Catherine. So it’s a trade off, and not necessarily a good trade off.”
    Nicki nodded. “She’ll want to know though.”
    “She’ll want to know. And then she’ll be furious that she knows, and that she’s not doing more to get all the other answers she so desperately desires. So Cyril will hold off on telling King Jasen for as long as possible, at least that part of it. Once the king knows, it’s inevitable that Catherine will find out.”
    Nicki’s expression was wry, and he found himself wondering about her parents, back in the US. The dossier had been scant—they were both alive, and there was a brother, too, he was almost certain.
    He decided to press the point. “You smile as if you know the type,” he said. “Do your parents have a similar relationship?”
    “My parents?” she blinked at him. “Ah—no. They’re good people, but they’re both a little too wrapped up in their own worlds to pay too much attention to each other’s.”
    She spoke the words without heat, or even much sadness. When she noted his surprise, she shrugged. “That’s probably unfair. I haven’t been home for months, between work and the travel for work. But either way, for Mom to see through Dad would involve them talking, and they don’t do a lot of that—or they didn’t used to. With my brother out of the house finally, maybe they do.”
    He remembered a brother from the dossier. “He’s graduated college?”
    “Not yet, but he’s at least in the dorm building there.” She grimaced. “He couldn’t imagine leaving home to go to school, while I couldn’t wait to get out. I guess it’s part of being a girl.”
    “A girl who likes to climb mountains and enter windsurfing competitions.”
    “A very specialized girl, then.” Nicki laughed, and Stefan felt a surge of awareness shiver through him. He stood. Tomorrow they would be in Alaçati, no matter what the stopover at the park would net them. They’d be surrounded by people. Today remained bright and full, filled with possibility, and there was the smallest chance that a man the whole country had mourned was alive and healthy. For this moment, the entire ocean was at their feet.
    “Come,” he said. “We’ll be setting off soon, but there’s time for another swim.”
    “Can’t,” she said ruefully. She pointed to the camera. “I need to cut that video into some vlogs and prepare posts with the images from the camera.” She hesitated. “You could—help, if you wanted?” she asked. “If you’re not too busy?”
    He let his own smile break open wide, the expression still foreign on his face. “I should like that very much.”
    The vlog editing and internet posting process took longer than he anticipated they would, and the yacht was prepared for departure and well underway to the parklands outside of Alaçati before Nicki finally sat back from her computer screen. They had half a dozen posts uploaded to apparently enthusiastic response, and more prepared for uploading overnight and the next day. Others were nearly finished should they have a need for more filler shots of “generic deserted island getaway.”
    Now Nicki’s stomach growled