Free Max and the Prince by R. J. Scott

have
fun without drinking if that’s what you are really worried about.”
    “You make it sound so simple.”
    Something snapped inside Max. Lucien really was isolated,
that much was clear. Weighed down with his secrets and now adding the threats
that hung over him, he was stressed. Max made a quick decision that went
against every instinct.
    “We’re going to the party,” he announced.
    Lucien looked shocked, but then that shock morphed into a smile.
“We are?”
    “Why not? Seems to me that if you have a bodyguard, now may
be a good time to feel safe.”
    “You think that having you makes me feel safe?”
    Max shrugged. “I hope it does.”
    Lucien placed a hand over his. Max didn’t move his hand at
all. He’d liked the last PDA too much not to try it again. “Yeah, it kind of
does. It’s what I was used to as a kid.”
    “So, the meet.” Max pulled out his phone. “Have you competed
at this pool a lot of times?”
    “Twice, maybe three. USW has pretty much the same setup as
us. They’re a good team. We’ll be pushed, but we generally come out on top.”
    “Do you know some of the guys in the other team?”
    “Only by reputation for some of the new team members, but the
rest are old hands and I’ve swum against them before.”
    Max began to type a quick note to Ross. He wanted Ross to
know all the details. “And you’re in the 800 freestyle and the 4x400?”
    “And first reserve on the 400 butterfly.”
    With all the relevant information in the phone, Max pressed Send
and waited for confirmation that it had been sent. He knew he was being
overprotective. Up until this morning, he hadn’t even considered another team
being behind this simply because the likelihood of any of them being in
Lucien’s country was fairly minimal. But something about this morning’s note
had pushed his apprehension until it was impossible to ignore.
    Instead of worrying, Max concentrated on the idea of Lucien
swimming in the butterfly. He’d seen him swim the butterfly at every swim practice,
a complicated physical stroke that had to be part of the reason Lucien had such
good muscle definition in his upper arms and chest. In fact, swimming had
sculpted something incredibly beautiful, add in the dark inscrutable eyes, and
Max was losing himself in fantasies he needed to shelve.
    Even allowing himself to think on the good parts of Lucien’s
swimming left him feeling a little sick. Someone out there, in Cardiff, maybe
at this university, was watching Lucien and it was beginning to get out of
hand.
    “I need to make a call. I’ll be back in a minute.”
    He went outside into the street and closed the door behind
him. He hadn’t told Lucien about the latest note, but that didn’t mean he
wasn’t taking it very seriously.
    Ross answered on the first ring. “Hey.”
    “Ross, is there anyone who can do some observation at this
meet?”
    Ross didn’t ask why, and by the sound of it, he was checking
his system. “I could get Ruby out, have her sit in the audience.”
    Relief filled Max. He wanted a second set of eyes tonight,
and Ruby was a good person to have at his back.
    “Thanks, Ross.”
    “While I have you, Max, I finally pinned down what was
worrying me with Tommy.”
    “The boy who left uni?”
    “Turns out he didn’t leave of his own volition. He was encouraged
to leave, and guess how?”
    Ross almost sounded gleeful that he could lay a puzzle at
Max’s feet.
    “How?” He wasn’t in the mood to play.
    “You’re no fun. Tommy said he received a letter saying it
was from Lucien’s family, suggesting he should remove himself from Lucien’s
vicinity as there was information that could be made public should he not
decide to leave voluntarily.”
    “What kind of information?”
    “That he had a father in prison on embezzling charges. Tommy
left, took up another place at York Uni, and in his words, tried not to take
the whole shitfest straight to Lucien.”
    “Poor guy. You think the family did