Miracle's POV
"What a beautiful name for a beautiful girl."
He was holding something in his hand. A small photograph.
"What's that?" I asked, pointing.
"Oh, nothing… just the most beautiful thing I've ever seen." He smiled and handed it to me.
It was a picture of me. He had taken my photo without me knowing. My heart did a little flip.
He was staring right at me. He looked at me like I was magic, like he couldn't look away even if he wanted to.
"Sorry," he said, his voice soft. "I hope it's not too weird. I just… couldn't help myself."
I blinked, totally surprised. "Really?"
"Yeah. Are you a model or something?"
I felt my face get super hot. I was blushing! A real, proper blush. My heart started dancing in my chest, and I felt my first-ever butterfly in my stomach.
"God, no. I'm just a student. I don't have time for anything else."
"Oh, college?" he asked, taking a small step closer.
I said a quick prayer in my head. Please don't let my secret service agent think he's a threat. Please don't shoot the cute boy. It would be such a waste. He was so handsome.
"Um, no. High school," I blurted out, feeling awkward.
"Oh." He took a step back. "You're still a teenager."
I could feel him pulling away. The chemistry between us was too strong; I couldn't let him go.
"I'll be eighteen next week!" I said, way too fast. "I'm basically an adult."
He ran a hand through his hair, his eyes suddenly shy. "You are the most beautiful person I've seen in this whole city. But I think I'm too old for you."
"You don't look that old—"
He smiled. A perfect, tortured smile, like it was painful for him to walk away. From me. He was enchanted by me!
"It was really nice to meet you, Miracle. An absolute pleasure."
My heart sank. I was so disappointed. The first boy to ever make me feel this way was leaving. A wave of sadness washed over me. This wasn't how my fairytale moment was supposed to go.
But then he turned back.
"Catch you later, Sweetness."
He flashed the most adorable smile I'd ever seen. And there they were again—the butterflies! The whole amazing, scary, wonderful feeling.
Woah.
I felt everything.
I watched him go.
For the next three days, I went back to the bookstore, hoping to see him. But he was gone.
Damn.
Suddenly, every cheesy romance novel I'd ever read made sense. The butterflies, the racing heart, the little squeeze of pain when I didn't see him… it was all real. It was all happening to me.
Just when I thought he was gone forever, I saw him.
He was at the little coffee shop across the street—Rosemary Cafe. He wore a cute blue turtleneck and white pants, sipping coffee and reading a book.
My heart instantly started beating faster. I crossed the street, my agent, Jed, watching from a distance. I hoped he remembered me. I hoped the moment that changed my life wasn't just a normal day for him. That would be worse than being kidnapped as a kid—and I'd know!
I walked right up to his table.
"Hey. I don't know if you remember me… we met a few days ago," I said.
He looked up at me, his eyes intense. Then he smiled.
"Of course I remember you. Hi, Miracle."
Oh, wow. He remembered my name.
"Hi, Stevie."
It was the happiest day of my life.
After that, Rosemary Cafe became our spot. Every day after school, I raced there, hoping to see him. We talked for hours about everything. He was a college senior, studying to be a diplomat like his father. He was supposed to go home and become Prime Minister one day.
He said it like it was a script he'd memorized. It made me wonder what he really wanted.
"What are you passionate about, Steve?" I asked him one day. "Do you even want to be Prime Minister?"
He relaxed into his chair, thinking hard. "I'm passionate about serving my country. My family is royalty, but we're far from the throne. It would take a tragedy for me to become king." He leaned forward. "I would have been a great king, Miracle. What about you? Is your family interesting?"
I wanted to tell him everything. I wanted to say my grandfather was a king, my dad was a prince, and I was a princess. But I couldn't. It was a big secret. We weren't supposed to tell.
"Not really," I said instead. "My dad is an engineer. My mom is a blogger. I have a twin brother, Xavier. He's a genius!"
"Oh, not so humble, are we?" he asked with a smile.
"No, really! His IQ is crazy high. He's the captain of, like, every team except football. He's horrible with balls."
Steve laughed at my joke. A real, genuine laugh. "Good one."
"Thank you. I also have a baby sister. She's a future basketball star."
There was a comfortable silence. Then he looked at me, really looked at me.
"What about you? You hardly ever talk about yourself."
I shrugged, playing with my coffee cup. "I'm not very impressive."
He smiled, his eyes warm. "I have a feeling that's the furthest thing from the truth."
**
I should have run then. I wish I did. But Steve was a force I wasn't prepared for...and he cost me everything