HeroRising by Anna Alexander Page B

lean over and whisper into Bale’s ear, who
then nodded with a twitch of understanding in his brow and offered Amaryllis a
slight smile. “That sounds lovely.”
    What was that about? Had he never heard of the
orange-juice-and-champagne cocktail before? Granted, she had never heard of it
either until she was fifteen and saw them in a movie, but Bale was surrounded
by people who owned food and beverage outlets. Maybe the drink wasn’t popular
in Sweden.
    Her curiosity was interrupted when Amaryllis hugged her
tight and said, “Good morning, Ariel.”
    The woman might as well have hit her upside the head with
the bottle of champagne. Her heart pounded hard and for several seconds she
couldn’t breathe. When the need for oxygen overrode her surprise she gasped,
“What did you call me?”
    “Ariel. That is your full name, correct?”
    “I—how?”
    “And it is a beautiful name.”
    “Unless you’re a redhead,” she managed to sputter. How in
the hell did Amaryllis know her real name?
    “Why would that be?” The woman blinked with innocence in her
lavender eyes.
    “Ha ha. Funny.” A long silence ensued as three pairs of eyes
stared back at her without comprehension or teasing. “Seriously. Seriously?”
Nothing. “Look, I know y’all aren’t from around here, but you’re from Sweden,
which is like, right next door to Holland, right? I know you’ve heard about The
Little Mermaid .”
    “Ah.” Amaryllis clapped her hands. “That is a cartoon,
correct? One of the girls in the club dressed like the character last year at
Halloween. Is that who you are named after?”
    “Unfortunately, yes. Do you know how many times I’ve been
asked to show my tail? People can be cruel.” As well as the press. The
Naughty Little Mermaid had been a popular headline when the scandal broke
out.
    “Did your mother not suspect this name may cause you strife?”
    “At sixteen my mother wasn’t much older than a child herself
when she had me. She thought it would be cute. She was wrong. Please, just call
me Ari.”
    “As you wish.” Amaryllis handed her a champagne flute.
“Mimosa?”
    Ari ignored the glass. “How do you know my name?”
    “When we retrieved your car, we had the vinny number
researched to make certain it was yours.”
    “You what?”
    “Vin number, alskata ,” Lucian corrected. “Ari, please
have a seat and all will be explained.”
    “Yes, Ari, fill your plate and we will chat.” Amaryllis
thrust a plate into her hands.
    Only because the Kilsgaards were smiling at her and not
emitting malicious intent, she followed the directive and kept quiet.
    “I’m sitting,” she said the moment her butt hit the lushly
upholstered chair.
    “Take a bite.”
    “Amaryllis,” she growled but took an obligatory bite of
fluffy eggs. “Oh, that is good.”
    “Thank you.” Amaryllis dropped onto a chair next to her
husband. “Now, this morning Lucian and Bale located your vehicle and had it
sent to a local repair shop to be taken care of. Once it is in working order,
it will be sent here. In the meantime, you and I will go out and do some
shopping and celebrate new beginnings.”
    “While shopping sounds great, I’ll need every dollar to go
to the car.”
    “Nonsense. Everything is my treat.”
    She froze with a full fork near her lips. “What? That can’t
mean what it sounds like.”
    Lucian chuckled behind his napkin as Amaryllis nodded
enthusiastically. “Yes. I’ve covered the costs.”
    The fork clattered to her plate as she was again struck
dumb. She really needed more rest to keep up with all of these surprises.
“You—why? I-I— How?”
    “Say thank you, Ari.” Amaryllis saluted her with her flute.
    “Yes, yes, thank you, of course. Both of you. It’s more than
I could ask for. But I can’t accept such a generous gift.”
    “Why not?”
    “Because I’m a stranger.”
    “And?”
    “Isn’t that enough?” She looked at Bale, who had inhaled an
entire plate of food and was going back