The Prince's Bodyguard Read online

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Epilogue

  More From Jena Wade

  About Jena Wade

  The Prince’s Bodyguard

  Royals of Swena

  Book Two

  Jena Wade

  Copyright © 2021 by Jena Wade

  All rights reserved. This copy is intended for the original purchaser of this e-book ONLY. No part of this e-book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without prior written permission from the author. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

  Image/art disclaimer: Licensed material is being used for illustrative purposes only. Any person depicted in the licensed material is a model.

  Published in the United States of America

  This e-book is a work of fiction. While reference might be made to actual historical events or existing locations, the names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  www.thejenawade.com

  Warning

  This e-book contains sexually explicit scenes and adult language and may be considered offensive to some readers. Jena Wade’s e-books are for sale to adults ONLY, as defined by the laws of the country in which you made your purchase. Please store your files wisely, where they cannot be accessed by under-aged readers.

  Chapter One

  Iain

  I relaxed into the plush leather seat of the limousine that drove me from the private airport to our home. The distance was short enough that I could walk but, safety first, as my omega dad always said.

  “Happy to be home?” Jerome asked. He was one of the newer security guards, I hadn’t met him before today. The two guards who had returned home from Esmour with me had been picked up at the airport by their families. Parents who were so excited for their arrival that they waited on the tarmac for them.

  I had been met by a huge stretch limo and a single photographer meant to capture my return for the newspapers and online media. I doubted the story would garner many hits. No family waited anxiously for me to arrive home.

  “Yeah, I am,” I said. It had been over a year since I’d set foot in my home country of Swena. After spending a year in Esmour, helping build and set up schools for an underdeveloped country I was ready to see my family again. Though, it didn’t appear that they were as excited to see me.

  For the past year it had been just me, two bodyguards, and a whole village of people who’d had no idea that I was a prince.

  It’d been easy for me to forget that I was one as well. Being the only omega in a five-child family, and the youngest at that, I was easily forgotten. I had been left out of several tabloid printings over the years. Which didn’t bother me most of the time. The press pretty much left me alone. Being forgotten about does have its advantages. My brothers, especially the oldest and the heir apparent Cort, didn’t have the same luxury.

  “Your fathers want to meet with you as soon as we arrive home,” Jerome said.

  I nodded my head. I had spoken to them just a few hours ago to let them know I was almost home. They had been distracted by royal wedding planning, and my homecoming felt like more a nuisance than anything else.

  I sighed and stared out the window at the streets of the capital city of Swena. Shop windows were filled with royal wedding specials and merchandise. I bit back a grin. I bet Cort was loving all of the attention–not.

  My eldest brother Cort Sentjohn Genthner, the heir apparent to the kingdom was set to wed an omega prince from the neighboring country of Asach. It was an arranged marriage, born out of a treaty nearly twenty years ago. Cort’s marriage would be one of convenience rather than love. Cort assured me and the family that he was fine with it, that it was his duty to the crown, but I had my doubts.

  I couldn’t imagine not pursuing my own desire because our titles wouldn’t allow it. Being last born did have its advantages: I could marry whoever I wanted.

  Immediately my mind pulled up an image of Xavier Alington, second lieutenant of the Royal Guard. Although, it had been a year since I’d last seen him, perhaps he was a first lieutenant now. I’d once heard him say that his biggest goal in life was to be head of the Royal Guard. It was a prestigious position, and I could see it happening.

  Of course, he hadn’t said that to me. I’d just overheard it one time at an event. Xavier was never assigned to my detail. His skills were too sharp to be wasted on the youngest brother. But for a time, he was assigned to my twin, who was an alpha and a member of the King’s council, and I’d gotten to spend time with him. Not that he’d noticed.

  My infatuation with Xavier needed to stop. Now that I was home again, and for the foreseeable future, I needed to avoid him. It would not do well for a prince to have a crush on a bodyguard, and if anyone found out, he’d likely not be promoted ever again. Though he had done nothing to fuel my crush. The man hadn’t ever even looked at me. I just managed to get all starry eyed when he was around.

  When we arrived at the palace, nothing had changed from the last time I’d seen it. The sight took my breath away, just as it had since I was a young child. The castle had stood for hundreds of years, renovated and kept in pristine condition. It was magnificent. A tribute to our nation of Swena.

  Stepping inside was like walking back into my childhood. Although the place was a bustle of activity, which was new. Our staff ran in every direction, none paused long enough to glance at me. I was invisible, which was how it normally was.

  “What's going on?” I asked Beatrice, the head management for the household. She stood, clipboard in hand, checking things off as people hustled around her.

  “Preparations for the royal wedding.”

  “That's weeks away,” I said.

  “Yes, and the preparations have been going on for way longer than that. Plus, with the new royal baby—”

  I raised an eyebrow. “Baby?”

  She raised a brow and gave me a wide smile. “Surely you know of your brother's child?”

  Clearly I needed to be caught up.

  “Iain!” My alpha father's voice boomed down the stairs. He held out his arms in a grand gesture. “It's so good to see you.”

  Beatrice put a hand on my shoulder. “Welcome home, Your Highness. Do come see me when you get settled. We had chef put together some of your favorites. We even managed to get those chocolate truffles you’re so fond of.”

  “Thank you.” I smiled and put my hand over hers. My heart leapt in my chest. I realized just then how much I’d missed this. The palace, the people that cared about me, my dads, my brothers. Everyone. In the year that I had been gone I hadn’t missed them when I was busy working each and every day to meet our objectives, but being here now, it was as if every ounce of longing hit me at once. I raced up the stairs, in a very unprincely manner.

  My omega father laughed as I threw myself into my alpha father's arms. He wore a suit that, prior to my assault, had been pressed perfectly.

  “I missed you,” I said. I took a de
ep breath, inhaling the cologne he still used. Some things never changed.

  “We missed you, son. It's good to have you home. We wish we could stay to chat and catch up on everything, but we have to get going. We are off to meet with the catering team about the engagement dinner.” The king had his arms around me, he rubbed my back like he had done many times when I was a young child.

  “Sure, of course.” I stepped back, out of his arms. I was a grown man after all, not a young boy.

  “We’re so proud of you, son,” my omega father said and wrapped an arm around me. “You accomplished so much on your trip.”

  I grinned, the words filling me with pride. “Thanks.”

  Reluctantly, I stepped back even farther to allow them to pass down the stairs. An attendee of my father’s stepped forward and straightened their suits.

  “Set up a meeting for tomorrow, please. We need to discuss a few things,” my alpha father said.

  I nodded. “Of course. Is there anything I need to prepare for?”

  “No, go on and get settled. We will schedule a dinner to celebrate your return and we can all catch up then.”

  After they left it seemed as if the bustle of activity slowed down. “Well, I guess I can go to my room, then?” I looked to Jerome. “I still have a room, right?”

  He handed me one of my smaller bags. “We'll have your luggage delivered there, sir.”

  “Thank you,” I said.

  I took the three flights to my room, which was actually a suite of rooms, or at least it had been the last time I’d been there. I had no reason to think otherwise, but I also had no reason to think my brother had a baby while I was gone. What else had I missed and how much had changed since I’d been away? If there had been a way for me to stay better updated, I would have. But the entire time I was away, I’d only called home once a month when we went to the larger village for supplies. Even then, the communication had been hit or miss.

  In the hallway, I met my twin brother.

  “Iain! Is it really you?” he asked. “Or am I looking in a mirror?”

  I grinned. Even though my twin was an alpha, we were identical in looks. He had slightly more muscle mass than I did likely due to the fact that I'd been living off not the best food for the past year.

  “It's really me.” I hugged him, taking a moment to squeeze him tight and draw in his scent.

  “What is this about a baby?” I asked.

  “Oh, you're never going to believe it. Augustus ran off to America and got married. He had a baby with an American named Wendell.”

  “What?” Of all the news, that was not what I’d expected to hear. “Honestly, I assumed you or Erich had knocked up some omega.”

  Kalwin put a hand to his chest. “How dare you. I’m smarter than that. Anyway, the dads did it to themselves. They enforced the law. You know what I’m talking about. The law.”

  I raised a brow. The law was well known to all of us. It stated that in order to keep our titles, the princes all had to be married by their thirtieth birthday. We never expected them to actually enforce it. “Oh really, how will that affect us? Erich’s next then, yes?”

  “He is. We’ve got several years before I'm going to worry about any of that. But just so you know, now that Cort is getting married, they're insisting on all of us settling down. If I were you, I’d steer clear of any meetings with them. And do not attend dinners if you can avoid them, that is when they pounce. So many questions.” Kalwin shook his head. “When are you going to settle down, Kalwin? Why haven’t you found a nice omega to court, Kalwin? Who was that omega that snuck out of your room in the middle of the night Kalwin? It’s awful.”

  I choked back a laugh. Clearly, Kalwin was taking the settling down idea seriously. “They want me to set up a meeting with them for tomorrow.”

  “Skip it,” Kalwin said. “If you do go, just tell them you are still finding yourself. It’s worked for me for all these years. It's good to see you, brother. I really missed you.”

  “I missed you, too. I appreciated your letters.” Each month there was a stack of mail for me at the village where we picked up supplies. It was as if Kalwin sat down each night and wrote me a little something.

  “Hey, man. It's the least I could do. It looked like you had a really good time and did some good work.”

  “I did,” I said. “I'm happy to be home though.”

  “We're happy to have you. Now go take a shower, we can catch up later. You’ve got some stink on you.”

  I laughed. “Thanks.”

  Chapter Two

  Xavier

  The ticking of the clock radiated throughout the room. I held back a sigh and forced my eyes to stay open. I was coming off a long shift of preparation and planning for all the royal family to be under one roof. As second in command of the Royal Guard, I took my responsibility of the royal family’s safety seriously. As their family expanded, my job got harder.

  The only thing that stood between me and a full day off was this meeting.

  We sat in our lavish conference room. The mahogany table had a person at every seat, as well as some of the staff standing against the wall. Each of us had the binder in front of us that outlined all the protocols we put in place in anticipation of the royal wedding.

  Max, our chief of security, in charge of coordinating schedules, droned on and on about things we already knew, plans we had already put in place. It was important, and most days I appreciated the reminder regarding our protocols, but today I just wanted to go to my room and crash for a few hours.

  “As of fourteen hundred hours, the entire royal family is under this roof and I expect them to remain safe, happy, and healthy the entire time.”

  I perked up with that, sitting up straighter in my seat. Prince Iain was here now? He was the last of the siblings to arrive home. I hadn't realized it happening that soon. I snuck a glance out the window across the courtyard and looked three floors up to the window of his bedroom, a bedroom that had remained empty and quiet for nearly a year now while he was on his trip to Esmour. As if by magic the light flickered on. I leaned forward, my eyes locked on the window. Maybe I could just catch a—

  There was a nudge on my shoulder. “Pay attention, man,” Nicolas said. He was my closest friend on the guard and one who knew better than anyone how much I was dreading, and anticipating, Prince Iain’s return.

  I turned my attention back to the boss.

  “Xavier, I know you are coming off a long shift. I want you to be back on duty tomorrow morning, though.”

  “Sir, I was hoping—”

  “I know you need more time, but Prince Iain’s security detail is not the size I want it to be. His guards that returned home with him need time to recuperate and spend time with family.”

  “Of course, sir.” I'd be stuck on duty then because I didn't have a family. Hopefully, I wouldn't be assigned to the young prince specifically. Maybe I’d just manage his schedule and assign individuals as needed. The omega had just returned home from Esmour after a year abroad, surely he just wanted to stay home and relax? It wasn’t like he was going to go out and socialize, right?

  “Ooh,” Nicolas whispered to me. “Looks like you're going to be watching Loverboy.”

  “Cut it out,” I growled.

  He nudged my shoulder again, only this time he was indicating toward the window. “Oh, there he is.”

  I should have stopped myself from looking. I should have been stronger, but I wasn’t. My head turned, my gaze seeking the man who haunted my dreams despite my best attempts to keep him out of them. I wanted to catch a glimpse of him. How had he changed in the past year?

  Prince Kalwin, despite their similar looks, did nothing to me on an intimate level. Prince Iain shouldn’t have either, but ever since the first moment I’d seen him he’d stirred up feelings in me that I should never have had for a member of the royal family. There he was. An exact copy of his twin, Kalwin, who I’d been assigned to guard numerous times, but there were slight differenc
es.

  Iain had a tiny scar above his left eyebrow, where he had been hit with a swing as a teenager. He’d been playing with a group of young kids that were visiting the palace. I had been assigned to that event, and I’d been there as Iain had nearly been knocked out by the wayward swing. He’d laughed it off, but inside I was a mess. No matter how small the injury, it killed me to see Iain hurt.

  With Prince Iain out of the country for the past year it had been easy to hide my infatuation with him. I didn't admit it to anyone, but Nicolas, who had been with me since the academy, ribbed me about it enough that I knew he knew.

  There was something about this omega. I wanted to protect him. Not because it was my job, but because it was something he wanted me to do, expected of me as… what? His alpha? That could never happen.

  The shades on Prince Iain’s windows were pulled closed and I turned my attention back to my boss.

  Things had to be professional between me and the prince, just like the relationship I had with his brothers. The prince had no reason to look my way, had never looked my way as far as I could tell, and I never gave him a second glance, at least not when anyone was around to see it.

  Professionalism was key, and I wasn't going to break the rules by fraternizing with my charge. No matter how tempted I was.

  Chapter Three

  Iain

  Some of my omega friends enjoyed their heats. They'd find another omega, or a beta to hunker down with for the weekend and have a grand time. But not me. I dreaded them. My first one hit when I was seventeen, I was a late-bloomer apparently, and since then I had never enjoyed the twice-yearly occurrence.

  So, when my heat came on suddenly only hours after arriving home as I was sitting in my room beginning to unpack, I groaned in dismay. I wanted to flop on the floor and have a fit like a toddler, thanks to the hormones raging through my system.

  I knew it was due to the travel, my circadian rhythms were messed up and causing my body to do wonky things.