Royalty Exposed

Chapter 12

When we got back to the house, I found that Emma was there. I really hoped that she wasn't going to think anything of Carter and I going off by ourselves, but I was probably hoping too much when it came to my best friend. Because after all she had changed her plan of being the one to fall in love with the prince and marry him to getting me to be that person. So any time that Carter and I were alone, Emma was probably thrilled because she knew it was time that Carter and I could really bond and get to know each other as well.

Emma would take any chance she could get if it meant that Carter and I could get to know each other more and have the chance to fall in love with each other. So she was probably going to notice that Carter and I had gone off together, but she wouldn't know what had happened or what we talked about. And she certainly wasn't going to know any time soon that Carter and I had kissed. Emma would freak out if she knew that Carter and I had kissed each other.

She would probably take that as a sign that Carter and I were moving forward in our relationship and it was time to plan our wedding. But Carter and I would never get there. There would eventually be an end to our relationship. One that wasn't going to be a happy one the more Carter and I got to know each other, but I was willing to go through it all because there was something about Carter that made me want him and want to get to know him more than not taking the risk. Maybe it was the way he kissed me. Or maybe how different he is than I thought he'd actually be.

Whatever it was, it made me want to be in this in between relationship that Carter and I have got going on. I just hoped that I wasn't going to end up wanting to be his girlfriend because I knew that was never going to happen. Well maybe it could happen, but it would just have to be a secret and we were kind of already keeping what was going on between us a secret right now. And that was hard.

"Finally you guys come back!" Emma said running into the family room as we were coming into the same room at the same time after entering the house through the back door that led out onto the porch and into the backyard.

"How long have you been here?" I asked her, hoping that I could keep her from asking me and Carter too many questions. Carter and I had never rehearsed what we were going to say to keep our stories straight and keep anyone from finding out that there was something more than just being friends going on between me and him.

"Too long," Zach said as he came into the family room with Sammy following right behind him.

"Shut up!" Emma responded as she looked over her shoulder at Zach.

I was surprised to see Sammy here. Not because she and Zach were off, which they weren't, I think. But because she didn't know about Carter being here and I wasn't exactly sure if she was going to be able to keep that a secret. Sammy was looking really starry eyed right now since her green eyes had landed on Carter. It was unclear if Zach had even given his girlfriend a heads up that the guy she freaked out over on many occasions was standing just a few feet away from her or if she had no idea that Carter was in our house at all and staying with us.

She was oddly silent at the moment though. I thought that she'd be jumping up and down and screaming that Prince Carter was in her boyfriend's house, but she was just standing there looking shocked that she was seeing him so close to her. I looked over at my brother and gave him a look, asking him why she was here without even having to say the words.

"Don't worry, Sammy won't say anything, right?" Zach said looking from me to Sammy. He had to nudge her a couple times before she snapped out of it and then looked over at her boyfriend and said, "Oh yeah. Of course, I won't say anything. It'd be a shame for the king and queen to take him back home so soon when I've just met him!"

"Is that Zach's girlfriend?" Carter asked leaning close to me and whispering his question into my ear. I looked over at him as he pulled himself away from me before saying, "Yes. She might be starting to freak out, just to give you a fair warning."