Chapter 9

He couldn’t stop thinking about her. That was the strangest thing of all.

Charming couldn’t stop thinking about Mellie, and that sudden, unexpected kiss. In fact, that kiss had become his refuge, the way her soft skin felt under his hands had become his escape.

And he needed escapes.

Charming pulled his silver Mercedes into the parking lot of the most exclusive private school in Beverly Hills. There were countless other cars already parked, as well as a few limos. Some had drivers. Most of the rest weren’t being driven by parents, but by nannies and au pairs.

He eased down the windows and shut off the engine—not that it made much difference to the interior noise. The car purred when it was on, so soft that it seemed less annoying than a background hum.

Then he rested his head against the back of the leather seat and closed his eyes, just for a moment.

If anyone had asked him how he expected his future to go after that book fair, he would have smiled. He would have said that he had an excuse to call the most beautiful woman he had ever met. He would invite her to his condo, or maybe out for coffee. He would talk books to her, talk writing with her, and gradually, talk about the Kingdoms and how hurt they both were.

Then he would kiss her, instead of pulling away.

He regretted that—his lack of response. He played that kiss over and over in his mind. He had been so stunned that he couldn’t bring his arms up, couldn’t quite lean in. He hadn’t realized she was attracted too, and by the time he understood that one important fact, she had stepped away, acting embarrassed.

No matter what he did, he couldn’t rekindle the moment. So he had exchanged phone numbers with her, and talked to her about writing, and set up their first meeting for the very next day.

Who knew he would have to cancel?

He pulled out his cell phone and looked at the time emblazoned across the screen. Ten minutes. Ten minutes of quiet. Ten minutes before he had to make decisions again.

He got home from the book fair—and his life immediately turned into chaos.

His mother had called him on his other cell phone, the magical one, the one that could contact anyone in the Kingdom at any time. She had snuck away from his father and gave Charming the scoop:

Ella had decided she didn’t want to be a mother any longer. So she dumped the girls on the castle doorstep. Charming’s father, the King, took the girls back in, so long as they remained quiet and didn’t appear in public until it was time to make an “advantageous” marriage. Charming’s mother had contacted him, quietly, without her husband’s knowledge, saying she didn’t like what was happening with the girls.

Neither did Ella’s stepmother, Lavinia. She had called moments later and said (among other things): You have no idea what they’re learning here. With your father’s negative attitudes, the Kingdom’s reaction to the divorce, and the way women are still second-class citizens, your daughters are getting the wrong message.

Lavinia was the one who urged Charming to sue for full custody. She said Ella wouldn’t fight him. She also stressed that things had turned dire.

She wouldn’t say why, and neither would Charming’s mother.

But anything that concerned his girls and the word “dire” made him run to the Kingdoms immediately.

Although he had found a moment to call Mellie. And once again, he had sounded like an idiot.

He’d told her he had an emergency in the Kingdoms with his girls. She had made some kind of protest, but he didn’t hear it all because his Kingdom phone was ringing again. So he had said something stupid about being back within a month and helping her then.

He had no idea why he had chosen a month, but he had been right to do so. It had taken forever to get the new custody decree, even though Ella didn’t fight it. Ella hadn’t even shown up in court, forfeiting her rights to the girls by that move alone.

Charming’s girls were a mess, grateful to see him, but more uncertain of themselves than they had ever been. He had made a decision then and there to bring them back to the Greater World with him. The Kingdoms were destroying them, taking their strong personalities and molding them into simpering things.

He liked strong women, even though his father didn’t. And whenever his father started talking to him about the way he was encouraging the girls toward bad behavior, Charming let his mind wander to Mellie—and that kiss.

That kiss. It had sustained him through the transition to the Greater World. Through the purchase of a house appropriate for raising children, not a condo for bachelors. Through the hiring of staff, particularly since he had left his most trusted valet and his closest friend in charge of the bookstore in the Kingdom. No matter how much Charming’s father pushed, Charming wouldn’t give up the Charming Way.

Although he thought about it. Then he realized he had enough money to start a bookstore in the Greater World. Enough money. He shook his head.

He had money. That wasn’t an issue. He’d learned long ago that gold bought a lot in the Greater World. He wasn’t as rich as he was in the Kingdoms, but he was better off than almost anyone else in the Greater Los Angeles Area, which was saying something.

He could just spend his days managing his money, reading, and parenting his girls, but he knew that wouldn’t be enough. So he was looking for a storefront, and trying to figure out how he could build a place that wouldn’t lose money. Independent bookstores seemed to be an iffy proposition in the Greater World, which was proving to be a shock.

But first, he had had to deal with his daughters and their transition. He had spent most of his time searching for a school, one that would tolerate his daughters’ quirks. He hoped he found it.

Today would tell. They had just experienced their first day at a Greater World School.

And he’d been worried all day. Worried, and thinking of Mellie. Thinking he should call her.

Of course, he had thought that ever since he got back, but he wasn’t sure what he would say. He would need to apologize for failing to call. (He could have called from the Kingdoms, but he kept putting that off. Truth be told, he didn’t like the phone.) He wanted to see her, and he kept making excuses to himself that he wouldn’t call her until he could see her.

Which meant a lot of time went by, more time than he had planned.

He glanced at his phone again. Nine minutes until school ended. Nine minutes to worry about his daughters. Nine minutes to think of a way to approach Mellie.

He scrolled through the contacts list, saw her name, and stared at it, like he had done countless times before. He was scared. Not of women, but of relationships. Things had gotten so bad with Ella that he didn’t even want to try.

That was the bottom of it all. His marriage had left him so badly injured that he—a man who had fought three separate wars—was afraid to contact a woman.

So his thumb did it for him. It pressed her number, and the phone dialed.

His breath caught. He had to hang up. He needed to hang up.

But before he could, Mellie answered.

She said hello.