A Prince on Paper by Alyssa Cole

Author:Alyssa Cole
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2019-03-02T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 13

ONE TRUE PRINCE, MESSAGE FROM: HANJO

I can’t stop thinking of you, even while plotting the downfall of the monarchy. I have to be careful, so as not to raise suspicions, or else I would come to you right now. Are you thinking of me, too? Give me a sign!

Nya sighed and closed out of the game without responding. Hanjo was annoying her with his neediness, in part because Johan was annoying her with his Johan-ness.

They were faking this engagement. They’d told the people most important to them that they were faking it, and that was part of the fun for her—it was a virtual dating game come to life. That was what she had wanted! But did he have to be so cavalier about it?

It hadn’t felt fake, the way he’d kissed her, touched her . . . she was inexperienced, not insensible. The way he’d leaned into her caress, the desire to please her in his eyes before he’d pulled her into his lap—that had been real. But so had his talk of playing roles, and his dismay at the idea of appearing at the opera with her. The truth was she’d only had one bad kiss before him. Maybe Johan kissed everyone like that.

Johan lies all the time and doesn’t care about anything but appearances, Lukas had warned her. Johan had admitted as much to her himself. Still, her inner compass that had always pointed away from Thesolo and toward a place that would make her happy had stopped spinning wildly and was pointed at an annoying playboy prince. Because she was a dreamer, and a fool.

Why did being foolish feel so good?

She dropped back onto her bed in the guest room attached to Johan’s suite, which was as hard as the bed in Njaza had been soft, probably something to do with the country’s obsession with toughing things out. She unlocked her phone to check the messages from her friends.

INTERNATIONAL FRIEND EMPORIUM CHAT

Portia: Nya! Welcome to Europe! How is Liechtienbourg?!

Nya: It’s cold. The king said I have knife legs and the crown prince dyed his hair pink.

Portia: O . . . kay? Sounds legit. Anything else?

Nya: Johan is a good kisser.

Ledi:

Portia:

Nya: I may have fallen victim to one of the classic blunders.

Ledi: I’m assuming you didn’t start a land war in Asia or cross a Sicilian. Nya, are you catching real feels? It’s only been a few days!

Nya: I know. But Johan is so . . . nice.

Ledi: Nice?! Are we talking about the same Johan?

Nya: It’s hard to explain. I can feel that he is, even when he tells me he isn’t.

Portia: I warned you. Fuckboy with a heart of gold. She didn’t stand a chance, really.

Ledi: Look, I like Johan a lot. He’s great, he’s funny, and he helped me when I was setting up my STEM nonprofit. But he doesn’t exactly have a sterling track record when it comes to dating.

Nya: Right. I have to remember that this situation is like my games. I’ve been training for this! We’re just playing through a romance.

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