With a small dip of his head, Elias said formally, “That was my duty and my privilege. Just as it is my duty to stand back and let her find happiness with a suitable man. Of which I am not.”
“Damn it, I was an ass when I said that. Of course your lack of royal blood doesn’t make you any less.”
“Technically, it does precisely that.”
“Hell, you’ve been my best friend my whole life. Being a”—Christian cleared his throat and put his hand beneath his lapel in a Napoleon pose—“most worthy and trusted confidante of the heir to the throne gives you plenty of street cred.”
Right. Because that was all it took. “I don’t think street cred is on the list of desired qualities in prospective partners for the princess.”
“It makes you not just good enough, but more than acceptable in my eyes. So screw what anyone else says. Including your own antiquated notions of worthiness. I refuse to let you distance yourself based on some archaic title, or lack thereof.”
Didn’t Christian see that, while kind and good for clearing the air between them, this attitude only emphasized the painful finality of his break with Kelsey? “I’m relieved my place at your side is secure. But I’m a commoner. No matter how you try and spin it, our country would not accept me by the princess’s side.”
“True, undeniably so.” Christian rose swiftly, walking to the fireplace to rest his elbow on the mantel. “I haven’t thanked you properly for saving Kelsey’s life.”
“No need. All in a day’s work.” The guilt that had been eating at him needed to be released. Wincing, Elias said, “A better man would’ve saved Mallory from losing a few pints of blood. I’m already designing a new training regimen to deal with large crowd identification.”
“That’s excellent news. And don’t let me catch you beating yourself up about Miss Wishner again. You had one job, and you executed it flawlessly. We failed Miss Wishner by not providing her solo protection.” His brows drew together into a fierce scowl. Especially fierce with the dark circles under his eyes from doing double duty for the king. “It was an oversight that was quite…costly.”
The Royal Protection Service had already implemented her new bodyguard rotation. It stretched their ranks, so Elias was headed out to the training facility in a few days to test who was ready to be cycled up to full royal duty. And if his request to the head of the RPS for permanent reassignment was granted, he’d stay out there.
“We’ve worked out the schedule to give her full coverage. There’s going to be some long shifts as we compensate for the extra assignments on the duty roster.”
“Then why did you ask to be cycled out of active rotation?”
Damn it. He’d been hoping the prince wouldn’t find out until it was a fait accompli. Unfortunately, their deep friendship had probably prompted a check-in with the prince about his unusual request.
“I think I can do more good elsewhere, training others, focusing on how to prevent another assassination attempt, rather than just react to one.”
“You don’t want to lay your life down for me anymore?”
“No, I don’t.” Elias had worried it’d be impossible to say that to Christian. But now, in the moment, his mind was clear and calm. This was the right choice. Now. Finally.
For Kelsey, and himself.
Eyes wide, Christian gave a low whistle. “That’s harsh.”
“I will—as your best friend—do everything to protect you. But not as a job. Because”—Elias paused, wanting to tread carefully—“my life is as valuable, as worthy as yours.”
An odd, secretive smile played over Christian’s face. “I agree. My thanking you for saving my sister comes with a reward. A promotion.”
Not again. Elias waved off the suggestion. “Enough with this. I don’t want a promotion for doing my job.”
“I let you slough me off last time, when you found Kelsey. You’re not allowed to reject my largesse a second time.” Christian lifted down his ceremonial sword. He held it out, flat, pointing at Elias. “So you’re getting that knighthood. No argument. As of today, you’re no longer a commoner. You’re Sir Elias, Duke of Arcalia. Comes with a nice income, too.”
His head was spinning. No longer a commoner? “I…I don’t—”
Christian sliced the sword through the air. “Don’t you dare finish that sentence with the words ‘want’ or ‘deserve.’ You’ll take the damned dukedom. And you’ll move off of protection duty to head-up the training program for the royal bodyguards.”
Even though it was what he’d requested, Christian’s description of the job was odd. That would only be a promotion on paper, to the outside world. What was Christian up to? “That’s a lateral move, not a vertical one,” Elias pointed out.
“That’s one interpretation, but it has the added benefit of keeping you out of danger, which is what I believe Kelsey would want.” Smiling broadly, the prince tapped a finger against his temple. “I promised to figure out what you truly want. The favor you need but are afraid to request. This is me coming through, repaying you for, well, everything.”
It sounded like Christian had stacked the deck so that Elias could date his sister. And gave him the change of career that was exactly what Elias had realized he needed after his brush with death. Unexpected didn’t begin to describe these moves. Still, he needed confirmation. Yanking loose his own suddenly too-tight tie, he asked slowly, “What are you saying?”
Christian put the tip of the sword on the floor and stood hip-shot. “Look, I know you’re brave enough to sacrifice your life for the good of our country. Nobody asked you, however, to sacrifice your heart.”
“You did, actually.”
“I recanted, apologized. Acknowledged I was an ass. Can we move on?”
A wave of hope surged through Elias, knotting his stomach up again, but in a good way. “Please do.”
“The only thing standing in your way now is you. And that boulder of honor and duty that your father’s weighed you down with all these years. Are you brave enough to follow your heart? Brave enough to, like Kelsey, let go of your old life plan? Take a different path?”
He’d take that leap in an instant. These last few days without Kelsey had been torture. He’d made a mistake giving her up, and he’d do anything to fix that mistake. There was only one problem… “What if she doesn’t want to stay?”
“Give her good enough reason to.” Christian leaned his sword against the desk and crossed his arms. Then he lowered the boom with that annoying, princely “do my bidding” look that was only ever a joke to Elias. “Didn’t I give you that order a week ago?”