She’d been so involved in her dramas that she hadn’t taken note of his flat, dull eyes. But she recognized the look. Jamie was the crown prince. He was wealthy, handsome, charming. But more than that, he was the heart of their family and nation. He possessed that quality that was so difficult to articulate, but you knew it when you were near it. Some X factor that made great men extraordinary. And yet, he wasn’t lit up from within.
She couldn’t predict the future—unfortunately—so she had no idea what would happen with Tristan, but she would forever be grateful to him for showing her what she could feel by opening the door just a little bit. She didn’t know what kind of person could love a man, knowing they would always come second to his greatest love—his country. But she hoped, for her brother, for her nation, there was someone who could unlock Jamie’s heart.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“When am I not?” came his pithy reply. “Will Jules come watch the game with you?”
“I suppose.”
Ele tried to give Jules the same consideration as she gave Jamie, but her sister was a mystery to her. It wasn’t fair, but Jules had been caught in the vortex of Ele’s personal tragedy. Ele loved baby Juliana with everything she had. Then, their parents had died, and Ele had shut off that part of her heart, always keeping Juliana at a safe distance.
Like a switch being flicked, a thought occurred to her. “Is it my fault?” she asked quite suddenly.
“What’s that?”
“All the crazy schemes and … Jules’s stuff?”
Jamie glanced away. “It’s no one’s fault but Jules’s. But I do think many of her stunts are her way of trying to get your … no, not just you. Me too. Trying to get our attention. It has to be difficult for her too, you know?” He met Ele’s concerned gaze. “You and I have always had each other.”
“Bloody hell.”
“Yes, that.”
“Why didn’t you say something?”
“Haven’t you learned by now, Ele? We all have to reach our own conclusions.”
“This phone call has been depressing as hell, Jamie.”
Jamie laughed, a real one, and Ele was better.
But the conversation stuck with her. Ele was so used to being the one everyone focused on with their worry and their machinations. She’d been self-absorbed for the better part of her adult life. Like a lens cap had been removed, when Ele looked through the viewfinder, instead of a dark spot, she saw her brother’s loneliness and her sister’s desperation.
“Millie, can you get with Noah and find out what Juliana likes?”
Millie’s questioning look shouldn’t have bothered Ele. It was an odd request. She’d never tried to please Juliana before.
“Um, can you be more specific?”
“For the match, I thought we’d get snacks and drinks.” She smoothed her hands down her slacks. “But I honestly have no idea what Juliana likes. I don’t know much about her,” she admitted.
This time, Millie hid her surprise better. In fact, if Ele hadn’t known her, she would have appeared completely unfazed.
But with Millie’s ever-efficient ways, by the time Juliana and Ele sat with Harry, Noah, Robert, Millie, and Matthew, the place was stocked with what Ele found out were her sister’s favorites: wings—who knew?—some dips, and beer. Juliana didn’t look at her funny or question the change in the dynamic. Rather, she lapped up the attention and spoiling, feasting on the scraps of Ele’s interest.
“You’ve been Americanized,” Ele teased her.
“I have,” Juliana admitted. “If we make it to round eight though, I think we need to go traditional.”
“Can’t mess with the precedent,” Harry, Juliana’s assistant, interjected. “If we win today, eating wings, you’ll have to eat them all the way through.”
Ele’s nose wrinkled inadvertently.
Robert must have seen her face because he bit off a smile.
“We’ll be at the match, so we won’t have a choice,” Ele reminded the assembled.
“Here they come,” Juliana said.
Everyone in the room turned to the television to watch the players take the field. The camera panned up, like someone was on their knees with it, over the faces of the team. Ele waited for the shot of Tristan. When he flashed across the screen, she grinned.
She hadn’t seen him since they left each other on the beach. But with her new phone, she’d been able to talk to him almost every night. It was reverse dating. The phone conversations helped with the intimacy. She could say things to him and ask him questions they hadn’t actually had time for yet. The basics really. Questions about his family, his friends. He’d told her about the day he signed with Hartesfield United, and even though she hadn’t been with him, she’d enjoyed every emotion he expressed. His surprise, his complete joy, the realization of his dream.
She knew him better today than she had last week. Not just because of the conversations either. As much as it bothered her, she’d gathered little pieces of him from his social media posts too. And while she could appreciate the knowledge she’d gained, she hated that he’d shared it with the entire world. When over one hundred thousand people knew something about you, it was no longer special. For Ele, with fortified walls and security locks around her heart, the desire to put it all out there bewildered her.
They all stood when the national anthem played, and then the team took to the pitch. Ele, the least knowledgeable in the room, wanted to ask questions, but she didn’t want to interrupt anyone. So, she sat in silence, eyes glued to Tristan.
It was the forty-third minute when it happened. A loud bang sounded discordantly on the TV, reminiscent of a cannon’s boom. Ele jumped, as if a skeleton had popped out at her in a haunted house, with surprise more than fear. As she continued to watch, some people ran onto the pitch. But not familiar enough with the workings of the match, it took her longer than the rest of the spectators in the room to understand that something wasn’t right.
Ele’s focus was solely on Tristan until the camera cut away to the unobstructed side of the field. It was then Ele tuned into the low-level commotion around her. Michael stood to the right of her chair, and Robert stepped out of the room. Noah ducked out after Robert. Ele looked up at Michael, but his gaze remained fixed on the TV, and she knew she wouldn’t get any information out of him.
Juliana met Ele’s gaze when she turned to her. She shrugged. “It’s probably nothing. I mean, the announcers aren’t talking about it.”
“I’m not sure what just happened.”
“Sounded like some kind of explosion or something. Then, some people ran on the field.”
“How …” Ele swung her head back to the TV, but the game had gone to the break. Commercials ran instead of the game or halftime show. “I hardly noticed anything was wrong.”
Juliana tossed her ponytail before grabbing her bottle of beer and taking a long swig. “I’m sure Jamie is fine.”
Ele leaped to her feet. She’d forgotten about Jamie’s attendance at the game. Rushing from the room, she scanned the foyer for Robert. When she didn’t see him, she moved quickly to the door. Before she could open it, Michael stepped in front of her.