A Royal Heartbreak

Table of Contents

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Epilogue

One month after the ending of The Werewolf Prince and I

“Mama.” Little Dylan beamed at Misty before gurgling out the same word.

The others laughed as Misty’s eyes widened in shock at what her baby brother said. “Did you guys teach him that?”

Kelly opened her mouth to answer but closed it quickly at the warning look sent by her twin. Kevin was probably right. It just wasn’t the time yet to talk about Domenico. Misty might not appreciate learning that Dylan spent every night in their brother-in-law’s bedroom, with a freaking prince as his nanny.

And a few nights ago, Kelly herself had overheard Domenico teaching Dylan to say that very word. She had also forgotten how extraordinarily strong a Lyccan’s ability to pick out scents was, which allowed Domenico to catch her red-faced at the doorway.

Instead of giving her his infamous tight-lipped look – like the one he had when he discovered Kelly sneaking out of the Moretti compound to date the quarterback in her school – Domenico had simply given her a heartbreakingly wry smile and said, “It might help keep the other men away from Misty while I’m…not around.”

The memory made Kelly bite her lip very hard.

As she adjusted the yawning Dylan on her lap, Misty caught the look of worry in her sister’s face. “Hey. Is everything all right?”

Kelly bit her lip harder. To prevent herself from crying, she busied herself playing with her hair and fiddling with the sunglasses perched on her nose. The words “shiny, shimmery, splendid” from the
Little Mermaid
song had immediately come to mind on her first sight of the realm of the Faeries. Even though it was a late Sunday afternoon and sunlight never able to penetrate the realm’s protective shield, everything was still so glaringly…bright. Here, the grass shone like emeralds, the skies were the color of sapphires, and the lilies that floated on a nearby pond sparkled like diamonds.

She watched her sister smile and laugh with her other siblings. She so badly wanted to ask if Misty truly didn’t want Domenico back anymore. But Kelly couldn’t make herself say the words, not when the answer frightened her. She had never believed in true love until she had seen Misty and Domenico together. She needed a little more time to cling to her hopes…even if they’d one day prove false.

“I’m just worried about school,” Kelly finally mumbled when Misty kept glancing at her worriedly.

“Oh.” Concern darkened Misty’s gray eyes. “Is it anything I can help you with?”

Kelly forced a grin. “If you can teach me the latest routine for cheerleading---”

“Forget I even asked,” Misty answered hastily, making everyone laugh again.

A Faerie guard came then, his sudden appearance making Kelly start in surprise. She just couldn’t get used to how
stealthy
these Faeries were. And they got to be invisible outside their realm, too! Those were very cool abilities, and she didn’t want them to be cool. More to the point, Kelly didn’t want Misty to think they were cooler than Lyccans.

Misty nodded and when the uniformed Faerie retreated, she said in a very casual tone, “Your Lyccan escort’s here.”

Kevin shook their other siblings awake. The younger ones had fallen asleep after gorging themselves with fruit pies, candies made of dried fruits and just about all other dishes that could be made from fruits. One thing Kelly could say about the Faeries’ realm: it was without a doubt a dieting cheerleader’s paradise.

Nicole was awake now. She rubbed her eyes, opened them, and yelped. “Shiny!” Nicole gasped, quickly looking down. Her eyes scanned the array of dishes spread on the blanket for their impromptu picnic and she sighed in relief as she found her shades between the milkshakes and cheese platter.

“I don’t understand how you can stand to live here, Misty,” Nicole mumbled as she grabbed her shades. “And without sunglasses! Everything’s so…
sparkly.
It’s like living in the belly of Edward Cullen.”

Misty raised a brow. “I thought you’re never going to read
Twilight.
”

Nicole turned red. “That was before I learned stuff like vampires and werewolves were real.”

Kelly paid close attention to her Misty’s face when Nicole mentioned the word ‘werewolves’, hoping for a reaction – anything that would make her feel more hopeful.

But Misty only smiled. “Don’t forget Faeries. You should also check out books about Faeries and see if they have any inkling of truth in them.”

A little while later, when it was truly time to go, Misty asked the twins to stay behind. “We didn’t get to talk much about…what’s happening…because of the kids.” Misty took a deep breath. “I’m hoping you all could move in here with me.”

Before Kevin could say anything, Kelly blurted out, “I…don’t think it’s possible.”

Her twin gave her a questioning look.
What are you doing?
Kelly didn’t need ESP to read what that look meant. She gave him a look back, one that said just two words:
Trust me.

“I heard Lyccan guards talking. They say the vampires are all around. If we move here, it’s going to be a big thing…they could know about it and we could be ambushed.” Kelly felt extremely guilty at the sad and appalled look in her sister’s eyes.

“Shick,” Misty whispered, seemingly more to herself than anyone else. Her shoulders slumped. “I never even considered what kind of trouble I’d brought you guys into---”

Kelly shook her head quickly. “No, no, don’t blame yourself, Misty. None of us would trade our lives now for anything in this world. Even with all the threats…we’ve never been happier. You know that, right?” She ignored Kevin’s look and continued, almost desperately, “You remember how we felt so much more complete with Domenico around?”

Misty froze.

Shit. Shick. Shit. Kelly was so torn apart by the look on her sister’s face she was completely confused about which bad word to use.

“Misty---”

Her sister squeezed her hand, and Kelly fell silent, understanding everything that Misty was telling her without words. Misty was the kindest person Kelly had ever known. The strongest, too, and it was that steely spine of Misty that told her not to talk anymore about Domenico Moretti. Most people thought her older sister was a wimp, a crybaby, but most people were stupid. They couldn’t see the real Misty, the one who had singlehandedly brought them up and made sure their selfish cold-hearted foster mother didn’t turn them into screw-ups.

“I just want to be sure you’re all okay there.”

“You do not have to worry about us anymore, Misty.” Kevin’s voice was quiet and firm, a far cry from how young he had sounded before he turned Lyccan. “We just want you to be okay, too. To be happy.”

“I am happy
here,
Kevin.”

Kelly looked away, not wanting anyone to see how Misty’s words scared her. She got that Domenico did something unforgivable to Misty, but she also believed with all her heart that every person deserved a chance for atonement. Misty herself had taught her that. She used to teach Kelly that every morning, telling her over breakfast – which was basically just cereal and water in those days – how Kelly should take the higher ground whenever other girls in school posted nasty comments about her online.

“We’ll visit you every weekend,” Kelly promised. “But for now, is it okay if we just stay where we are?” The hurt in Misty’s eyes made Kelly want to take her words back but she managed to stay silent. She had to do this. With every day that her family stayed with the Morettis, Misty would also be forced to remember that she had once loved a man named Domenico Moretti. 

After, Misty kept her smile in place as she continued waving goodbye at her siblings. When they disappeared completely from view, Misty immediately broke into a run, gasping when she reached the beautiful brick house that Daryl shared with his lover Milo.

She raised her fist to pound on the door heavily, but with Daryl opening the door right away Misty almost ended up pounding his face.

“Whoa!” Daryl grimaced. “That bad?”

“Please” was all Misty could say.

Daryl stepped aside and locked the door behind them without a word. The silence persisted as they walked to a small room kept hidden at the back of the house, away from prying eyes, its doors hidden behind a full-length gilded mirror.

It was dark inside the room, Daryl lighting only a lantern that created a tiny halo of golden light. She sat on one armchair while Daryl sat next to her. “Are you sure?” he asked, worry lining his voice.

“I need this, Daryl. Please.” Misty didn’t like how desperate and needy she sounded but knew it was exactly how she felt. It had taken all of her control not to cover her ears every time her siblings talked about Domenico.

“Open your hand then,” Daryl said quietly.

Her fingers uncurled. She closed her eyes. She had done this every night and had memorized every step of the routine. Her heart started to hammer in a horribly twisted mix of fear and excitement as Daryl placed a burning-hot crystal on her palm. Her fingers closed around it, tearing out a gasp from her throat.