Her Mountain Prince Read online

  My senses were heightened now. Years of training with the Askovian High Guard had prepared me for these types of situations. As a member of the royal family, I was never expected to defend my country in battle, but my father had instilled in me from an early age that I must never ask a man to do something that I wouldn’t do myself.

  I’d spent countless hours in the Askovian wilderness, on mountains not unlike this one, training. Learning how to protect my loved ones, should the need ever arise.

  Just then another voice spoke, and this time it was in English, not Askovian:

  “I told you, I recognised him! He’s one dirty fucker. He sucker punched me!”

  There was an American with them! I recognised the voice. Though he had only spoken momentarily, it was a voice seared into my memory. It was that toothless man that I’d punch in the alley. That drunkard who’d dared lay a hand on Ruby!

  “Shhh!” one of Luka’s men hissed, “Be quiet or you won’t see a penny of the reward money!”

  “Don’t you threaten me, boy. You’re in America now! You can’t talk to me like that! I was the one that recognised him. I’m the one that heard the rumors about strangers living on Arrowhead Mountain! I called you because I knew you boys would be mighty grateful if I could tell you where your Prince was and this is how you repay me?”

  I edged closer towards them and heard one of Luka’s men mutter in Askovian, so that the American wouldn’t understand him:

  “We should just kill this whining American and take King Luka’s reward for ourselves, we could split it three ways.”

  I sneered. Just like Luka, his men were cowards and traitors, ready to turn on their allies over a few dollars.

  I flexed, preparing myself. I wanted to deal with this quickly. My first target was the soldier guarding the rear. I got the drop on him, knocking him out and feeling him go lax underneath me before he could let out a yell of warning to the other intruders.

  “Did you hear something?” the American asked.

  “No,” one of the soldiers grunted in heavily-accented English, “What did I tell you about shutting the hell up?”

  “I thought I heard something,” said the other soldier, speaking in Askovian.

  “An animal.” Came the reply, also in Askovian, “Let’s get this done. You and Karl go through the front, I’ll go around the back. Kill anyone you find in there. Make sure the American stays out here, I don’t want him interfering.”

  The soldier who had given the commands, the leader, half stood up and started heading towards the back of the cabin - he was coming in my direction, straight for me.

  I crouched down, staying hidden until he was just about to walk past me and then I grabbed him, knocking him out just as he realized what was happening and reached for his gun.

  “Hands up! Don’t move!”

  I turned, slowly raising my hands. The one remaining Askovian was pointing a gun at me, with the toothless American staring at us both in open-mouthed shock.

  “Karl?” the Askovian soldier yelled, but Karl was lying behind a tree, unconscious. The soldier waved his gun at me pointedly, demanding answers “Where’s Karl? Tell me!”

  “Karl isn’t going to answer you, he’s over there,” I said, jutting my chin in the direction of Karl’s unconscious body. Instinctively he turned to look, and I took full use of the opportunity. I rushed towards him, his gun dipping slightly as he turned away from me. I was on him before he even realized his mistake.

  But I couldn’t get the gun out of his hands.

  We struggled, wrestling for control, I was the stronger one but he kept a wiry grip on his gun.

  In the background, I heard the toothless American yelling and cursing. I would deal with him later.

  I felt the muzzle of the gun press against me and I pushed with all my strength, forcing it away, just as Luka’s henchman realized that he had me. He squeezed the trigger.

  BANG!

  The gun shot rang out, loud through the trees.

  The gun had been close to me and I felt the kick of it, but that was all. He had missed me!

  With a burst of adrenaline I headbutted Luka’s man, driving my forehead into the bridge of his nose with a sickening crunch. The man fell to the ground in a heap. I wouldn’t have to worry about him for a while.

  I picked up his gun, and looked round to see what had happened to the American. He was lying on the ground close to where he had been standing when I last saw him, the bullet that had missed me had hit him right in the middle of his forehead. His lifeless eyes stared up at me. I had no sympathy for him.

  I checked on the Askovians, making sure to take their guns and to tie them up. They weren’t going to be waking up any time soon, but I needed to make sure that I got Ruby away before they saw her.

  I hurried back into the cabin and down into the basement. She was waiting for me and as soon as she saw me she ran out of her hiding place and put her arms around my neck. I lifted her up, squeezing her to me. This time with her had been a blessing. I would always love her, I knew that with every fiber of my being.

  It might seem crazy to an outsider, but I knew that she was the only woman I would ever love. I held onto her, lifting her off her feet as I memorized the feel of her, the smell of her as I buried my nose in her hair.

  Suddenly it dawned on me. Now that the toothless man, the only witness who had seen me with Ruby, was dead, it was safe for her to go back to her life in Beauville. I didn’t want it to be true, I wanted another excuse to keep her by my side. But my immediate future was going to be too dangerous to have her with me.

  Luka knew where my hideout was now, Arrowhead Mountain was no longer safe. I had to leave, I had to warn my brothers and I had to get the hell away from this mountain.

  I had planned to enact my plan to reclaim my father’s throne in a few weeks time. But this attack changed things. I couldn’t afford to wait any longer.

  I would travel to Askovia now and kill Luka. As much as it hurt to be parted from Ruby, I couldn’t take her with me. It was too much of a risk, it wasn’t worth doing anything that could harm a hair on her head.

  She would be safest staying in the US, keeping her distance from me.

  I gently set her down, already missing the feel of her.

  “Go and get dressed. We’re leaving.”

  She hesitated only momentarily, frowning slightly as if she was about to ask me for an explanation. Then her face smoothed, and I knew that she saw this was an emergency and that there was no time to lose. She nodded at me, and hurried up to go and get dressed.

  I gathered a few things, contacted my younger brother and told him what had happened. I knew that he would pass on the message to my other brothers that it was time to leave Arrowhead. I said goodbye to him, telling I would next see him in Askovia.

  I hurried Ruby out of the cabin, making sure that she kept quiet when we were outside, just in case any of the Askovian soldiers had regained consciousness already. I didn’t want them to hear a woman’s voice and know that I wasn’t alone.

  I got on the motorbike, Ruby right behind me, wearing my helmet and took off. I was leaving the cabin that had been my home for the last two years but I didn’t have any time for nostalgia. Or rather, I had more important things to think about. I was remembering how we had biked out to the cabin, how it felt to have Ruby pressing her tits against my back as she felt up my abs.

  Now, as she pressed up against me again, I wanted her even more. My blood was still running hot from the fight and the beautiful woman sitting behind me.

  Her hands held onto me, no longer timid about touching me.

  I had been so struck by Ruby, from the second I first saw her. And now, even though we were fleeing the cabin, all I could think about was how much she had changed my life.

  My moment of revenge on Luka was near and I should be excited, instead of thinking about how much I was going to miss her while we were apart. Her gorgeous body, her large trusting eyes as she gazed at me, the hot clen
ch of her pussy around me.

  The wind roared past us, making it impossible to communicate. I couldn’t tell her what I was thinking and there was so little time left for us.

  Finally we got to Beauville and I pulled over at the start of Main Street, just a few blocks down from the bar where she worked.

  “What’s going on? Why, why -” she started asking as soon as I cut the engine and she jumped down off the bike.

  “Look,” I said, interrupting her. “My uncle’s men were outside the cabin. They’d found my hideout and it’s not safe to go back there. I can’t stay here.”

  “Where are we going to go?”

  I’ve never loved anyone as much as I loved her in that second. She took my word on what had happened at the cabin, no questions asked, just getting ready to follow me into whatever was waiting for me. It was a shame that it couldn’t be like that.

  “You’re staying here.”

  “No!”

  “Yes, the guy that saw us, that drunk, he was the one that called my uncle. He got shot in the fight with Luka’s soldiers. Unfortunate for him, but it’s lucky for us. It means that no-one alive saw us together, and you can stay in Beauville, where you’ll be SAFE.”

  “You’re leaving me behind?!”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Ruby

  I stood on the sidewalk, seething with anger. I was angry at Gabriel - that he hadn’t told me what was going on sooner, I was angry at him for deciding to leave me behind, even though I knew it was for my own safety. What made me spitting mad was hearing that his uncle’s men had been there, outside Gabriel’s cabin, the place that I’d felt safest in the world!

  That terrible man had killed Gabriel’s parents! And he now he was hunting Gabriel down!

  I wanted to go to Askovia with Gabriel and help bring this jerk down! I didn’t want to get left behind! How could I go back to my life in Beauville?

  Now I knew that Gabriel was out there in the world, and that he was putting his life in danger, I needed to be with him!

  “You’re leaving me behind?!” I yelled, that sounded like a stupid idea!

  “You should leave town too. It should be ok. But...I don’t know what that toothless guy told Luka. It’d be better if you left Beauville.”

  “OK,” I said, watching his relieved expression, “I’ll leave town with you.”

  Gabriel shook his head in exasperation.

  “I can’t risk you getting involved. I’ll come back for you. Ruby, you’re mine, those aren’t empty words. That is the promise of a prince. Just because we aren’t side-by-side, that doesn’t mean you’re free of me, do you understand?”

  He took my hand in his, my smaller hand engulfed in his massive one.

  “I will find you again, whether you stay in Beauville or if you leave, I would never let you go.”

  He kissed the back of my hand and I knew this was goodbye.

  “Don’t…” I whispered. I didn’t want him to leave me, I didn’t want this dream to end. No matter how much he promised that he’d come back for me, I didn’t want us to ever part.

  He put his hand on my cheek, brushing my lips with his heavy thumb as he looked at me intently.

  “Be strong, you are the future Queen of Askovia.”

  His hand left my face and I knew that I couldn’t change his mind. I took off his bike helmet and handed it to him. He put it on and, with one last earnest gaze, he started the bike and rode away.

  I stood, watching him ride away. It felt like he was taking my heart with him.

  I wished that he really was the criminal I had first thought he was. At least then we’d still be together, there would be no evil uncle hunting him down.

  He’d dropped me off close to the Corral.

  Buddy would just be opening it up about now and I owed him an explanation. I started walking to the bar, Gabriel’s last words to me running through my head. Be strong, you are the future Queen of Askovia.

  Remembering my life from before, it now felt empty and grey. Gabriel made everything seem brighter and more fun.

  When I’d first arrived in Beauville, I’d wanted my life to be empty and grey. That was what I wanted back then. It was what I needed as I got over my ex and the end of my shitty career. Now I knew what it was to truly fall in love and I couldn’t go back to that emptiness.

  “Ruby?” Buddy exclaimed as soon as I entered the Corral. “Where the hell have you been! I was worried sick about you!”

  He hurried out from behind the bar and, surprising for such a usually gruff man, gave me a hug and sat me down, wanting to hear the whole story of what I’d been up to.

  “Well,” I began. Gabriel would probably say that, for my own safety, I shouldn’t tell anyone about meeting him. But, I knew that Buddy was trustworthy and he deserved to know the truth.

  The bar door swung open, and I stopped talking. I’d have to tell Buddy about Gabriel later.

  “Hi there!” Buddy called out, turning around to greet the newcomers, “Sit anywhere, I’ll be right over.”

  The men that came into the bar weren’t regulars, I didn’t recognise them at all. One of them muttered something in a language that definitely wasn’t English. I didn’t know what Askovian sounded like, but I had a terrible suspicion that it sounded exactly like that.

  A chill ran up my spine, were these men here for me?

  I wished, even more, that I was on the back of Gabriel’s motorcycle again.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Gabriel

  Leaving Ruby was one of the hardest things I’d ever done in my life.

  I could do it because I knew that we’d be together again soon and that she was safest staying behind. I got onto the highway, checking my mirror to look back at Beauville with Arrowhead Mountain looming behind the town.

  I saw, to my horror, that there was something wrong. Instead of the tranquil rural town that I’d expected to see, there was a plume of dark smoke coming right from the center of Beauville.

  There was a fire!

  What were the chances that the fire was totally unrelated to Luka’s men?

  I slammed on the brakes, my bike skidding as I turned sharply.

  Within seconds, I was headed straight back into town, praying that Ruby wasn’t in that fire.

  I raced back, following the smoke to the Corral bar. This was where Ruby worked! My horror doubled. I thought that she’d be safe here!

  A small crowd had gathered in front of the bar. Although I couldn’t see any actual flames, black smoke was billowing out of the shattered windows.

  This was my fault. Why had I left her behind? Why had I assumed that she would be safe? I would never forgive myself if anything had happened to her. Maybe all this was just a coincidence. Maybe Ruby was still on the sidewalk where I left her.

  I heard, in the distance, the sirens of the fire engine.

  An older man was doubled over, wheezing loudly and most of the crowd had gathered around him. Suddenly he stood upright, pushing back the young man that was trying to tell him to take it easy and started to yell.

  “Ruby! Ruby is still in there!” the older man screamed, stepping forward as if he were about to go back into the bar. A few of the crowd grabbed hold of him, keeping him back. “No! I’ve got to help Ruby!!”

  I didn’t need to hear anymore! I knew what I had to do!

  I started for the bar, pushing through the crowd.

  When they realized what I was about to do, a few men tried to hold me back, grabbing at my arms to try and keep me out of danger.

  I shook them off easily.

  The inside of the burning bar was dark with smoke. I had to cover my mouth with my hand just to be able to breath. I could see some flames, but the air itself was searing hot, making my skin burn just standing there.

  There was a loud BANG and I ducked instinctively. Glass and flames spewed forth from behind the bar. The liquor bottles were exploding. I turned my face away, shielding myself from any more exploding glass.

&nbs
p; There! There was Ruby, lying on the ground near the back of the bar. I hurried over to her, through the smoke and the heat. There was no time to check to see what was wrong with her. All I could do was pick her up and carry her out of that hellish nightmare.

  I carried her, bridal style, as the flames spread out around us.

  I was never going to leave her behind again. The only place she was safe was with me.

  Stumbling, my legs seemed to give way under me. I pushed forward. I had to get her out of here. That was all that mattered to me now. I stumbled again, lifting one foot and then the other, trudging forward blindly. The only thing keeping me going was my determination and my refusal to give up.

  The air suddenly cooled and the world brightened. I was out of the bar. Ruby was safe!

  But, I realized with horror, she was a dead weight in my arms. She wasn’t moving at all!

  I slowly collapsed onto the ground, my knees buckling as the crowd swarmed around me. I held up Ruby’s body as I fell, making sure she wouldn’t be hurt. She groaned. She was alive! She was going to be ok! I knew it.

  Her head was in my lap, her eyes shut and her body sprawled along the road.

  There was a fireman trying to put an oxygen mask on my face. I pushed him away. It was Ruby that needed help. The fireman saw the determined look in my eye and knew to leave me alone.

  The older man who had tried to go back for Ruby sat down on the road next to me. I glared at him, as the firemen finally started helping Ruby.

  “I don’t understand why any of this happened,” the man muttered. What had Ruby said her boss was called? Oh, yes, Buddy. “These, these men came into the bar, foreigners. They kept on asking Ruby all these questions that didn’t make any sense. They were pressing her to tell them about where some Prince was. They were...they were just crazy!”