Shh.. Secret Princess ;) (Under Major Heavy Re-Construction)

Part 27 - I Could Save You

**Chancey's POV**

"I love you," I heard her mumble, almost to herself.

My eyes widened, and I thought I heard her wrong.

"I love you. And, yes, you heard it right," she said as she looked up at me, her brown eyes moistened and wide.

My arms were still around her, and I fought the urge to hide the tears that were forming in her eyes. My stomach was in knots--and, yes, a male can also feel knots in his stomach.

When she was about to say those three words again to reassure me, I put one of my pointing finger on her lip and grinned down at her.

"What's with the mind change?" I said, my face serious.

She shook her head slowly and looked down, playing with her fingers behind my back.

"I don't know," she said, almost inaudible.

I used my right hand to tilt her head up to look me in the eyes.

"Are you sure, Nie?" I said softly.

She nodded, her eyes sparkling.

"I am so stubborn," she said and laughed.

I shook my head and smiled a her.

"No, you're just dense."

She scowled and hit my chest then smiled.

"Oh, being touchy now I see," I said.

She stuck her tongue out at me and tried to push me away, but I held her tight.

"Let me go," she said, squirming and laughing.

"No," I said.

She rolled her eyes and stopped squirming.

"Please," she said with her puppy dog face.

My words were caught in my throat, and I placed her hair behind her ear. Her face was mere inches away from mine, and my heart thudded in my chest. I bent my head closer to hers, and her breathing deepened. I sighed and looked away, letting go of her. Too soon, dude. Too soon.

I scratched my neck and looked around the room.

"I think we should call your parents. Since we couldn't get in touch with them, they don't know it was James yet," I said, looking back at her.

She nodded and gave me a grateful smile, which I knew was for not making that awkward and partially for keeping my tone of voice in check.

" 'Kay, I'll call them. Mom should've arrived by now," she said and thought for a moment.

"What happened with Auntie and Jamie?" she said, tilting her head.

I shrugged.

"Mom wouldn't tell me. Dad, too. But, he's grounded for sure. No exceptions," I said.

She nodded and went out of the room to call to her parents. I lied down on the bed and took my shoes off, sighing. I put both my hands beneath my head and stared at the ceiling.

She was so close. So close. But, I've waited for years; I could add another if that's what she needs. I hope my brother gets what he deserves. Too bad I can't be the one to sentence him. As I thought of that, anger rose in me again.

***Anna's POV***

Thank bread crumbs Chancey didn't kiss me. That would've been so awkward. I just realized I loved him. It didn't mean I was going to kiss him, not that I didn't want to. The moment was just there, but it still scared me.

What if we argue a lot now? What if I lose him somehow? What if whatever we feel disappears? What if I realize I never really loved him? What then?

I sighed and banished all those thoughts. I sat on the sofa in the living room and called Mom, but her phone wasn't on. I tried Dad, but he didn't answer, so I called his PA.

"Good evening, Miss Caprione," he said.

"Good evening, Phil. Dad's not answering his phone," I said.

"He's in a meeting with the board right now, Miss. I'm not sure when it's ending though. Would you like me to tell him you're calling?" he said.

I thought about it and was going to say no, but Dad would be mad if he didn't know as soon as possible.

"Sure. Tell him it's important," I said.

"Okay then. Hold on a sec., Miss. I'll have him call you back," he said and hung up.

A few moments later, my phone rang. I answered it and held it to my ear.

"Hey, baby. What's wrong? What happened? Are you alright?" he said.

"Hi, Dad. I'm fine," I said, and he sighed.

"Good. What was so important?" he said.

"Dad, we know who leaked all of those photos," I said and winced.

3. 2. 1.

"Who the f*** did it?" he said, almost shouting.

I winced again.

I hesitated but eventually said, "Jamie."

And again, I winced. A few seconds passed in silence, and I wondered if Dad was still there.

"Dad?"

"Dad?"

"Phil, have Vice President Flinn fill in for me in the meeting. I have to go somewhere," I heard Dad say in the background.

I inflated my cheeks and screwed my face up.

"Dad? Don't go there, please," I said into the phone.

"Please, please, please don't go," I said.

"Baby, I gotta go. I'll call you later, 'kay?" he said.

My teeth chattered, and I bit my lip.

"Dad, no. It's alright. I'm fine. Please don't go there," I said.

"I'll check on you later. Love you," he said.

"Love you, too," I whispered when he had already hung up.

I sighed and went back into my room and saw Chancey lying down. But he sat up when I came in.

"Dad's going over there," I said.

Chancey's eyes widened, and he blinked up at me.

"Dead," he said.

I shrugged.

"Probably not. Dad might just talk to him or something," I said and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Your dad, talking to him after what he did, really?" he said.

My lips twitched, and I said, "You never know."

I rolled my eyes at my own words and heard him sigh.

"So, what're we going to do?" he said.

"I don't know. Wait for Dad to call?" I said

"Aren't you sleepy, Nie?" he said.

Right on cue, I yawned. I looked at him, and he smirked at me.

"Shut up," I said and smiled.

"Well then, I'm going home," he said.

I narrowed my eyes at him.

"You are not going anywhere near home," I said.

"Come on. I won't do any--" he said, but I cut him off.

"No. We both know that's not true if you see him. And, my dad's going there, too. No, C," I said, my voice matching my glare.

He sighed and lied back down.

"I guess I'm staying here then," he said and smirked.

I rolled my eyes and hit him with a pillow, laughing. His smirk deepened, and my eyes widened.

"No, no, no, no, no. Please no," I said, backing away as he came nearer.

"No. Please, C, no. No no," I said as my back hit the wall.

Then, he was already near me, and his hands neared my stomach. I stupidly tried to cover my ticklish stomach from him by covering it with my arms. He laughed and tickled my sides.

I laughed and laughed. It was too tickly that I bent over, laughing. His laugh was mixing with mine, and I wanted to stop laughing, but I couldn't.

"Please, stop," I said in between fits of laughter.

He just laughed it off and tickled me 'til I was down on the carpeted floor, thrashing around.

"Come on, please," I said between laughter.

He just shook his head as I gasped for air between. Finally, he was a good enough guy to stop tickling me and let me breathe. I lied down on the floor with my hand over my stomach, trying to breathe normally as he lied next to me.

"You jerk," I said as I slapped his chest.

He chuckled.

"I will have my revenge," I said and laughed.

"Sure you will," he said.

~~~~~~

I opened one eye and saw Chancey still asleep a few inches from me, his head buried in his pillow. I stifled a laugh and closed my eyes again, wanting to sleep more.

"Go fix your bedhead," he said into his pillow.

I rolled my eyes mentally.

"You go fix your bedhead," I said, my voice groggy.

I heard his muffled laugh and mentally shook him. I opened my eyes and rubbed them, wiping away the sleepy dust.

He lifted his head slightly and looked at me, half smiling.

"Good morning, monster," he said.

I rolled my eyes, smiling.

"Good morning, hobo," I said and got up from bed.

"Where are you going? Was kidding 'bout the bedhead thing," he said, hugging the pillow.

"I want milk," I said, and he chuckled.

After drinking a tasty glass of milk, I went to the bathroom to wash my face. When I looked at the mirror, my hair in a ponytail was messed up, my eyes were narrower, and my lips were slightly dry.

I laughed at my reflection and splashed cold water on my face, effectively waking me up fully. I heard the elevator ding, and I went out to see who it was.

"Dad," I said as he entered wearing his suit, his body guards following behind.

"Good morning, baby," he said and hugged me.

I looked up at him, my eyebrows high.

"What did you do?" I said.

"Nothing," he said, smiling at me.

I rolled my eyes and got out of his hold.

"Really, Dad. What did you do to Jamie?" I said, arms crossed.

"Just had a talk with him," he said, but I wasn't convinced.

I shrugged it off though, knowing he wasn't telling anyway.

"So, aren't you needed at work?" I said.

He shook his head and took his tie off, lying down on the couch.

"That reminds me. I think I should teach Jase the ropes in the business," he said, mostly to himself.

I raised an eyebrow and said, "Why?"

He shrugged.

"You know, if ever you won't have time for the company. Or if you.." he said, trailing off.

My eyebrows scrunched just as I heard a door open. I saw Chancey come out from the hall, boxers and t-shirt on. Good that he had the right mind to where a shirt before going out of the room.

"Good morning, Uncle," he said, stretching.

"Good morning, Chance. You stayed the night?" Dad said, sitting up on the couch.

C nodded and went to the fridge.

~~~~

"Hey, what's bothering you?" Chancey said from beside me.

The tv was on, and we were watching a rerun of HIMYM.

I shrugged. I really wasn't sure.

"Come on," he said and groaned.

I looked at him sideways, lying down.

"You snoopy little dog," I said and laughed.

He half smiled and shook his head slightly. When the show ended, he was switching channels, and I told him to stop on the news.

"They really can't get enough of us," I joked when Chancey was on the edge.

"No, they can't get enough of you," he said in a low voice.

I sighed. Yep, they were still asking about who I was really with.

"How 'bout we go out in public. C'mon, it won't hurt all this anymore. Plus, I can tell them what's really going on with Thane and Jamie," I said.

His forehead scrunched, and he frowned.

"I won't let you go out there," he said.

I sighed.

"C'mon. We have our body guards. No one can get near us. We can go out for dinner. We'll tell our parents anyway," I said.

Though he didn't want to, he had no say in it cause he'd give in to me every time.

~~~~

I was all dressed and ready for dinner, and our parents had agreed.

"17 and the world is keeping an eye on us," Chancey said as he drove his lambo.

"Well, you were born into it. You rock the suit by the way," I said.

He smiled slightly and said,"Well, you're the most beautiful girl in the world."

I rolled my eyes and laughed lightly.

"8th compliment tonight. You're on a roll, C," I said.

I turned the music on and awfully sang along the whole way to the restaurant.

As expected, there were reporters outside Rellante, one of the top restaurants in the city. This was a celebrity-loved restaurant for its service and most importantly its food.

Chancey's door was opened by a valet and took his keys. Then Chancey came up to my side and opened the door, taking my hand. Manners for the whole night, fun.

Everyone we passed gave nods as we passed in reverence to Chancey. I had silk, white gloves on and a simple black dress with ruffled sleeves and a turtle neck. I also had a small black bag for my cellphone. And as much as I hated make up, I had to put some on in public. (pic at side>>)

We decided we'd only talk to the reporters after dinner, so they'd stick around. Once we got inside, people were going to bow, but C made a hand gesture, so they wouldn't need to stand. Instead they just nodded their heads.

We were seated at a table slightly near the window, for show, of course. After ordering, we sat in our chairs and talked. The ambiance in the restaurant was vivid in the air, and the music just set the mood right. It was a Friday night, so there were a lot of people there.

"Did you know Neil Harris is married to David Burtka?" he said, surprising me as I drank water.

Luckily, I didn't spit any out and managed to swallow.

"Really?" I said, dumbfounded.

He nodded. I smiled and shook my head slightly.

"I don't really get into the personal lives of celebrities. So much I don't know," I said.

He chuckled.

"You've been watching the show for years and you know nothing about the actors?" he said with a raised eyebrow.

We never really talk about shows, but we need to talk about something here that's not personal.

"Not one. I don't even know most of the characters. The only reason that I know who Neil Harris is is because Sammy mentioned him," I said.

"Oh. I just remembered that there's a charity event next week. I'll remind Jonathan to tell Holly to include it in your schedule," he said, and I nodded.

"What's this one about?" I said just as the food arrived.

After dinner, Chancey took my hand again and went out. We stopped in front of a major news reporter and allowed him to ask us a few questions as our guards had already told them about.

"Good evening, Your Royal Highness and Miss Caprione. If we may take a few moments of His Highness' and his date's time, we would appreciate it greatly," the man said.

Chancey nodded.

"I would like to ask first, sir, how long has the royal couple actually been together?" he said.

Chancey looked at me and half smiled, debating his answer.

"It would depend on what you mean," C said.

"How so?" he said.

"We have known each other our whole lives, you see. Betrothed to each other for almost 9 years. But we've actually only recently discovered our feelings," he said, looking at me.

I wanted to roll my eyes but refrained from doing so and settled with a smile.

"Amazing, sir. If we may ask Miss Caprione, pictures of you and His Highness James and Sethaniel Masters have been spread. What is your relation to these men?" he said to me.

"Strictly friends, sir. Nothing more, nothing less," I said.

He nodded.

"As we had discussed with your body guards earlier, we were only allowed two questions. Is there anything His Royal Highness and Miss Caprione would like to add?" he said.

Chancey and I looked at each other, and we both said, "No."

"Very good then. I am grateful for His Royal Highness and Miss Caprione's time," he said and took his leave.

We were staying at the condo still, seeing as Chancey still had issues with his brother.

"How are we going by with this whole thing?" I said to him as we went into my room.

He shrugged.

"We can take it slow, Nie. Don't worry," he said.

I smiled gratefully at him, and he kissed my forehead.

"You're the best," I said and hugged him.

"Not hard to be when you're the counterpart," he said and smiled at me.

I rolled my eyes and felt contented.

___________________________________________________________

I am ending it there, but this will have an epilogue.

As for book two, I am not sure when I'm writing it cause I'm rewriting SSP. And I still have to write Only Love is Left. :/

Music video is save you by Simple Plan. :D

External link is the SSP fb page. :D