Chapter Text
Ricky insisted they play innocent, pretending they were none the wiser, in a frantic whisper while he burnt the fabric in the firepit that was crackling in her rooms. He said he had a plan, but that he couldn’t tell her what it was until he was absolutely certain they were alone and no one would suspect them.
So, there Gina was, in her rooms while her maidservants fawned over her, babbling about how scary it was that she had very nearly almost died, whispering amongst each other as if the news was some scandalous affair instead of an attack on her life. Gina only felt numb while they wiped her down with a warm, damp cloth and massaged soothing oils into her skin in an attempt to calm her.
Before she had left her own kingdom, her mother had sat her down, a solemn expression to her face. She had reached out her hand and gripped one of Gina’s – the first time her mother had given her an affectionate touch in years – and for the first time in Gina’s memory, she watched her mother cry.
“My darling girl,” she had said, gripping her daughter’s hand tightly, “You are braver than most. You always do what’s right for your people, even at your own personal cost. I am so proud of you.”
I am so proud of you. The words had felt like a blow to her stomach. Why hadn’t her mother uttered those words when she had mastered her pirouettes, or when she had successfully implemented new legislation that allowed struggling families to collect seed from the castle to provide for themselves? So, she was proud of Gina. For what? For marrying a foreign prince? It felt shallow. It felt meaningless.
That afternoon, Gina understood her mother’s tears. She finally understood that by accepting Prince EJ’s marriage proposal, Gina was accepting her death. Perhaps it was for the betterment of her country, as her mother had insisted. But, Gina had a sour taste in her mouth at the thought that her mother had never properly prepared her for what to expect – that there would be snakes and vipers within the foreign kingdom that would never accept her, that would prefer to make a warning out of her than accept her as their future queen.
Her mother knew. That is why she wept.
Gina no longer wanted her tears.
What was the point of her accepting the arrangement if it was never going to work? Why did she have to uproot her own life for a plan that was doomed before she had even set foot in the country? Was she selfish to think it? Did she care? Her brother never thought of her when he abandoned their family. Her mother never thought of her when she proposed the arrangement to King Cash.
Gina thought of the life she left behind, and for the first time since she had stepped onto foreign soil, she felt tears for her home prick behind her eyes. She missed it. She wanted to go home. She wanted to be free.
When her maids finally stopped fussing over her and asked if she wanted their company, Gina decidedly refused, insisting she wanted to be alone – although she knew she wasn’t truly alone. The guards outside her door were louder than Ricky was when he was on duty, chatting amongst themselves as if it were a regular day.
Gina picked up a quill and dipped it in ink, perched it over a letter addressed to her mother on her desk. She thought for a while about what she wanted to say, for so long that a dollop of ink splattered onto the page. Then, finally, she wrote.
How could you do this to me?
She stared at the trembling script for longer than she knew. Then, she picked up the parchment and screwed it in her hands, throwing it into the fire, letting evidence of it disintegrate along with the fabric that would prove the royal family wanted her dead.
Both kingdoms had blood on their hands as far as she was concerned.
*
It was so quiet that Gina was almost afraid to breathe for fear of disrupting the silence. The night was still a bit muggy, a thin layer of perspiration glistening over Gina’s skin, but she couldn’t be sure whether that was from the humidity or from her own nerves. She hadn’t seen Ricky since earlier that day when he had saved her life, and she was growing worried.
Had they figured out that Ricky had discovered their conspiracy? Had they taken him away? Who were they?
She had been trying to sleep, but all Gina could do was stare listlessly at the ceiling, counting the ticking of the grandfather clock that stood dauntingly by her balcony doors.
Her skin was itching, her mind bursting at the seams with emotion. There was so much she needed to talk to Ricky about. She needed to ask him what his plan was, before she drove herself insane thinking of all the possibilities. She needed to cry about her mother with him, knowing that if anyone could understand feeling abandoned by their mother, it would be him.
Most pressingly, she needed to talk to him about the kiss.
A fizzing sensation tickled at her fingers as she thought about Ricky’s lips on hers, so soft and achingly sweet. She remembered the press of him against her, the way his warm breath warded away the chills that were trembling through were over what had transpired. She wondered if he would’ve kept kissing her if she hadn’t accidentally touched his injury – though she was glad she did; it needed to be tended to immediately.
Her thoughts whirled through her mind and her heart pounded a millisecond faster each time she thought of it – which was often.
Would he think it was a mistake?
Dread filled her stomach at the thought, and not because she wanted to kiss him again – although she wouldn’t mind if she could.
She meant it when she told Ricky that he was the one person she felt she could trust. She had been betrayed by EJ’s family, by her brother, and now she was suspecting even her mother knew to an extent exactly what she was pushing her daughter into. The only person who had ever been honest in his dealings with her was Ricky.
Had their kiss driven the nail into the coffin of their already precarious relationship? Would he feel that his position was in danger the more he spent with her and abandon her the way everyone else already had?
She had a hard time believing he would – it seemed so out of character for him. But, one could never be certain. He had been trying so hard to remain professional. Had she ruined everything?
Her thoughts were interrupted by chatter outside her door. Her heart leapt to her throat, the break in the pattern of silence releasing a surge of nervous energy through her, and she picked up a weighted ornament from her bedside table, tiptoeing toward the noise.
The tension in her shoulders loosened when she recognized Ricky’s voice, but she still remained quiet behind her door, straining her ears to hear the conversation.
“I know the recommended number of guards is three per door in emergency circumstances. I created that rule,” Ricky spoke, his voice coated in exasperation, “And as head guard, I’m telling you that she only needs one right now. You can take a break.”
“Alright, Rick,” one of the guards replied noncommittally, “If something happens to the princess, it’s your funeral.”
“Thanks, man,” Ricky intoned with mock appreciation.
A few moments passed, and Gina could hear the sound of footfalls gradually diminish. Then, her door creaked open. Gina lifted the weighted ornament in her hand just in case, but when she caught sight of those expressive brown eyes she’d come to adore so much, she lowered it immediately.
“Were you going to hit me with that thing?” Ricky asked, and Gina couldn’t help the rush of air that passed her lips at the sight of the man in front of her, despite the ridiculous sentence he had just uttered.
“Ricky,” she exhaled, dropping the item and rushing forward, throwing her arms around the guard and burying her face into his neck. His arms instantly tightened around her waist, pulling her closer into him, kicking the door shut behind him in case any of the guards decided to come back prematurely.
“Gina,” Ricky whispered into her ear, and the sound of her name on his tongue, spoken so gently and with so much reverence, almost made her weak at the knees, the sound sparking through her veins down to her fingers and she tightened her grip into his shirt.
“Where have you been?” Gina finally asked, stepping back once she felt thoroughly warmed by his embrace.
Ricky’s eyes quickly swept over her, ever diligent, looking for signs of distress. A warm pulse emitted through her, an ache of want, her mind whispering that he was the perfect man, that he was always looking for ways to care for her.
He nodded absently when he seemed to find nothing wrong, answering quietly, “I had to get my wound properly dressed and report the incident to the crown.”
“You reported this to King Cash?” Gina responded with shock, “I thought the Caswells were the last people we should tell. Then they’ll know their plan failed and they’ll try again.”
Ricky shook his head, taking both of her hands in his and guided her to the nearest couch. Gina clutched at his hands, worried he might pull away as he had done so many times before, but surprisingly he seemed in no rush to move away from her that night, his thumbs swiping comforting brushes over her knuckles.
“They would’ve found out soon enough when the assassin reported back. Plus, the guards here would be suspicious of me if I didn’t inform the king. It’s protocol,” Ricky explained, and Gina nodded her understanding.
Ricky looked at their joined hands for a beat, biting his lip with a furrow to his brow, as if he wasn’t sure how to proceed. Then, he looked up at Gina with those beautiful eyes she adored so much, an almost pleading quality to them, as he spoke his next words. “Gina, I’m about to suggest something that is going to sound insane. But, I need you to hear me out before you knock me down.”
Gina furrowed her eyebrows, unsure where Ricky could possibly be going with this, but nodded her assent anyway.
“Gina, so long as you are under the crown’s protection, you are going to be unsafe,” Ricky began his explanation, and Gina nodded in agreement. She had already surmised as much herself. Ricky continued, “No matter how much I want to protect you, I can’t be watching you around the clock. They wouldn’t want me to be; they would try to separate me from you.”
“I could insist I stay with you,” Gina suggested, but she knew it would be impossible. Her requests had no weight.
“It wouldn’t work,” Ricky shook his head, gripping her hands a little tighter, “The only way to keep you safe is to get you out of here. You need to go home.”
Gina blanched at the words, unsure what Ricky was even suggesting.
“You heard King Cash. He is insisting the wedding goes through as planned. He will never allow me to go home.”
“No, he won’t. Which is why I’m going to take you home, and I’m not going to tell them.”
Gina’s mind spun at Ricky’s suggestion, trying to wrap her head around what he was saying.
In her stunned silence, he rushed out the rest of his plan. “My correspondence to the castle was sent this afternoon, which gives us a four day head start. If we sneak away tonight, my letter won’t arrive until tomorrow. News of our disappearance won’t reach them until the day after, and it will take them two days to arrive here. That’s plenty of time for us to cover our tracks.”
“You’re – you’re suggesting that we run away?” Gina whispered in shock, worried that they might be overhead, “Ricky, they’ll catch us.”
“No, they won’t,” Ricky shook his head, shifting closer to her and ensuring she was looking into his eyes, observing the surety in them, “Like I said, we will have a head start, and we’ll disguise ourselves. It normally takes two weeks to make it to the border from here, but I can do it in nine days. My father is a travelling merchant after all – I know all the shortcuts.”
Ricky’s mouth lifted on one side, a half hearted smile. Gina took another moment to comprehend what she was hearing.
She could go home. If she followed through with Ricky’s plan, she could be back on home soil in less than two weeks.
And then… What of Ricky?
She shook her head with vehemence, tightening her grip on Ricky to an uncomfortable degree.
“No. Ricky, what you’re suggesting is treason. If you do this, they will hunt you down and imprison you, or – or kill you. I can’t let you do that for me. There has to be another way.”
“Gina, they’re going to kill you if you stay,” Ricky insisted, but Gina kept shaking her head. Ricky released her hands and cupped her cheeks, forcing her to look into his eyes, to see how resolved he was in doing this. “I would rather die than have that happen. If they try to kill you, they will have to kill me first. Whether I help you or not, I’m dead anyway. I might as well ensure that you stay safe. It’s the only option.”
Gina was stunned to say the least at Ricky’s determination. Tears she had been holding back all day sprung forth, spilling over her cheeks, her chest aching with affection for the man in front of her who was willing to put his own life at risk if it meant saving hers. She clutched at Ricky’s elbows, her bottom lip wobbling.
“There has to be another way,” she repeated.
Ricky chuckled sadly, his thumbs on her cheeks gently brushing away her stray tears, but his tenderness only made her tears well over at a more rapid pace. “Can you think of one? Because I can’t. Trust me. I’ve been thinking all day.”
Gina’s glistening eyes flickered back and forth between both of Ricky’s. He looked tired. He looked sad. But he looked resolved. He wasn’t going to change his mind.
“When we get back to my country, you will come with me,” Gina stated, not willing to take no for an answer.
Ricky scoffed in self deprecating amusement, “They will kill me also.”
“Not if I tell my mother what you have done for me,” Gina insisted, clutching his arms harder, willing him to listen, “She is the queen. She can do whatever she wants.”
“Gina–”
“I will not go with you now if you don’t swear you will cross the border with me.”
Ricky looked stumped at her words, but she was determined to win. She could not allow Ricky to essentially kill himself to save her. They would either die together, or live together. It sounded extreme, but Gina knew deep in the confines of her trembling heart that it was the only way she would move forward.
She loved him too much to let him die. She was more sure of it with each passing minute, with each tremulous breath that escaped her lips. She knew it by the way her skin sang under Ricky’s touch, by the way her ears pricked to attention whenever she heard his voice, how the thought of him leaving her made her feel so devastatingly ill that she didn’t know if she’d be able to bear living without him.
After a heavy silence, where Ricky’s jaw ticked in thought, his hands trailing from her cheeks to settle onto her shoulders, he finally responded, “Okay.”
“Okay,” Gina nodded with finality, “Then where do we start?”
“We will pack some essentials, but not much. We can’t have a heavy load holding us back,” Ricky explained, before sliding a finger over the neckline of her sleeping gown, eliciting a hazy shiver down Gina’s spine, “And you’ll have to change. I stole a maidservant’s uniform – your usual dresses will be too conspicuous.”
“Should I carry a weapon?” Gina asked with all seriousness, despite Ricky’s surprised expression upon hearing her question.
“Would you feel safer if you did?”
“Yes,” Gina decided. She would not be caught unaware again.
Ricky shifted his position to reveal his dagger that was tucked into his belt. He placed it gently into her hands and said, “I will teach you how to properly use it when we get away from the castle. For now, remain close to me.”
Ricky began to stand, assumingly to begin packing some things for Gina, but Gina stopped him for a moment, clutching at his sleeve and pulling him next to her once again. She didn’t exactly know what she wanted to say, but she knew it was important.
Eventually, she settled with, “You have always protected me. Don’t forget that I want to protect you too. We are in this together.”
Ricky looked mildly surprised by her words, and eventually nodded, softly squeezing her knee beside him in acknowledgement. He still seemed tense, though, and his stiffness made Gina nervous. So, to punctuate her statement, and because she needed to know if what transpired between them earlier that day was as important to him as it was to her, Gina leaned forward and pressed a chaste kiss to Ricky’s lips.
Her chest fluttered, her skin breaking into a fever at the brush of his lips upon hers. He stiffened further for a moment…but he didn’t pull away. Eventually, he softened into the touch, his hand on her knee sliding up toward her thigh ever so slightly, sighing against her lips. He didn’t deepen the kiss, he simply remained connected to her, and Gina relished in their closeness, their breaths intermingling.
When she pulled away, she saw Ricky’s cheeks were flushed red, his eyes trembling as they uncertainly glanced from her eyes to her lips and back again.
“Should we start packing?” Gina whispered, keenly aware that they didn’t have much time.
“Yes,” Ricky replied breathlessly, raising his hand on her thigh and hovering over the curve of her neck, not quite resting his palm there, his fingers softly teasing along the underside of her jaw. Then, seemingly breaking out of his trance, he cleared his throat and stood, making for a makeshift pack he had brought along with him.
“The dress is in here,” he said in a rush, “You’d better get changed.”
Gina’s lips tingled pleasantly as she took the dress, and her mind remained hazy as they rushed through the packing process. Though her vision wasn’t obscured enough by her daze that she didn’t notice the way Ricky would intermittently touch his own lips with a tiny smile.
It seemed strange for the circumstance they were in, but Gina was grateful for the touch of lightness in the dark mess that was their escape.
They were in it together. That was all they needed.