
      Dreams & Deceptions


      Author: aria


      Rated: NC17



      Chapter 4
      At Seiyas urging, Serena returned to work the following week. He promised 
      to dig up some information about the prince just as long as she went back 
      to work. He was right. She couldnt let Darien ruin her life.
      Things were pretty much routine then. Got to work, have lunch with Lita 
      and sometimes with Nephlite as well, whenever he was in town, go home do 
      research and write. With the occasional shopping trip with Lita, that was 
      pretty much her life for a couple of months.
      Serena sat at her computer one night rereading her latest article when she 
      heard a knock at the door. It was probably Lita. Sighing, Serena padded to 
      the door in her socks.
      "Hey." On the other side was Seiya dripping wet in a soaked suede jacket.
      "Seiya! Come in!" she grabbed his freezing hands and pulled him in by the 
      fire. "What are you doing here?"
      "Ive been calling you for hours." He searched for her phone, picked it up 
      and scowled then shoved it in her face. "The flaps open." He flipped it 
      closed and took off his jacket. "Havent you gotten any of my emails?"
      "No. I havent checked it in a while." Serena walked into the kitchen and 
      made him a coffee. "Still like it black?"
      "Yeah." Seiya moved closer to the fire trying to get some feeling back 
      into his body. "Well check it! Ive got some info on your prince."
      "Joy." Serena wasnt all that enthused. She handed him the coffee and sat 
      back down at her computer. "Anything interesting?"
      He took a sip. "You tell me."
      Serena sighed and clicked on the icon to check her mail. Sure enough 
      several came through from Seiya.
      "Go to the third one. Its got pictures and articles I found on him."
      Serena did as she was told and scrolled through. What she found stopped 
      her breathing altogether. "Darien." In the email was picture after article 
      after picture of Darien and Nephlite. "This is the prince of Illaria?" 
      Serena tore her eyes from the computer to scrutinize her friend. "Youre 
      joking right?"
      "Why would I be?" he peeked over Serenas shoulder. "I think hes pretty 
      cute. Dont you think so?"
      Serena was having a minor fit next to Seiya. Darien was Prince of Illaria. 
      She knew he was hiding something from her. Then the anger set in. he had 
      the gall to say that she was using him! What about what he was doing? He 
      was obviously not ready to settle down anymore than she was. In the midst 
      of her pondering, Serena became aware that someone was thumping her on the 
      back.
      "Are you ok? Or do I have to call the paramedics?" he gave her an odd 
      look. "So would you marry him or what?"
      "Remember that guy I told you about?"
      "Who? That one you fell for in St. Moritz? What about him?"
      Serena pointed at the screen. "Thats him."
      Seiya took a look at her and then at the screen. "Youre joking right? You 
      and him got together?" he started laughing. "You are in love with the man 
      you refuse to marry!" He was near hysterics now.
      Serena punched him in the shoulder. "Its not funny." She turned her 
      burning face toward the computer and started reading the articles. 
      Apparently he and Nephlite had quite the reputation as heartbreakers and 
      for their penchant for risking life and limb. It seemed that the tabloids 
      were quite fond of printing their exploits and even dubbed them the 
      Daredevil Princes. According to one article they were named the most 
      eligible and the most out of control men of the year.
      This proved to be too much for Serenas stomach to handle. Nausea gripped 
      Serena in its clutches and heaved her stomach into her throat. Clapping a 
      hand over her mouth, Serena practically barrelled Seiya over in her 
      attempt to get to the toilet before humiliating herself in front of him.
      After ridding herself of everything shed eaten that day, Serena clung to 
      the white porcelain of her toilet trying to get a grip on herself. She 
      felt a cool hand brush the damp wisps of hair out of her face.
      "Are you ok?" Seiya got on his knees next to her and handed her a glass of 
      water.
      She took it gratefully. "I think so. Thanks."
      "Not a prob." He sat up against the wall and drew his knees up to rest his 
      arms on. "So now what are you going to do?"
      "I dont know." Serena had no clue what she was going to do. Darien wanted 
      nothing to do with her. And once he found out the truth he would be even 
      more adamant. Of course there was always the fact that he lied to her, she 
      wasnt going to forget that anytime soon. She sat up. She didnt need him. 
      Shed just tell her father that she met him, didnt like him and thatd 
      shed find another eligible suitor. Someone who was better for her than 
      Darien. Serena looked over at Seiya to find him gone. "Seiya?"
      She could hear him in the front room. He had gone to the door and was 
      talking to someone.
      "Serena? Theres someone here claiming to be your best friend."
      Serena the sarcastic tone in his voice wasnt lost on its way to the 
      bathroom. She levered herself up and made her way toward the voices.
      "Serena, who is this guy?" Lita squeezed past Seiya and into the room, 
      eyeing him suspiciously as she did.
      "I am her best friend. At least I thought I was." A dazzling grin took the 
      sharp edge out of his words. "Im Seiya. An old friend of Serenas." he 
      extended his hand and shook Litas.
      "Lita. Nice to meet you." She turned to Serena and gasped at how bad she 
      looked. "Sere? Are you feeling alright?"
      Now that she mentioned it, Serena realized that she didnt. "Not really." 
      She slumped on the sofa and pulled her feet up underneath her. Lita came 
      and sat down beside her while Seiya went to go make another pot of coffee.
      "What happened? You look terrible. It has to be something about Darien. Am 
      I right?" Lita smiled comfortingly. She knew she would be feeling the same 
      way if Nephlite had dumped her.
      "Just take a look." Serena pointed at the computer.
      Lita got up and read the articles that were up on the screen. Shock hit 
      her first, then pleasure. Grinning hugely, she turned to Serena. "You mean 
      their royalty?"
      "Yes. And why are you smiling? He lied to you just like Darien lied to 
me."
      Lita wasnt listening. "This is perfect! You can take him back to your 
      father! Hes a prince and hes sure to like that. And I can be royalty 
      just like you! This is great!"
      "No its not. Darien is the Crown Prince of Illaria."
      Serena showed Lita all the articles that Seiya had sent her. Lita was 
      stunned to say the least.
      "You mean that they are actually royalty?" she gasped with excitement. 
      "And that Darien is the guy youre engaged to? Oh man! I cant say that 
      Im surprised though. There was just something regal about those two. 
      Youd have to be blind not to see it."
      Serena couldnt believe that Lita had such a huge grin on her face. "What 
      are you smiling about? He lied to you. They lied to us!"
      "Not exactly lied. And besides you did the same thing." Lita cocked a brow 
      at Serena. "Am I right?"
      Serena sighed. "Yes, but its not the same thing."
      "How is it different? I think we should find them and clear things up."
      "I agree." Seiya wandered into the living room with a steaming pot of 
      coffee.
      "How do we find them? For all we know they could be in the Himalayas 
      chasing Yetis."
      They all knew that Serena was right. Even the articles attested to the 
      fact that those two could be anywhere doing just about anything. 
      Miserable, Serena flopped back on the sofa.
      "Lita, you spend a lot of time with Neph. Didnt he say anything about 
      where they would be going or what they would be doing?"
      "I dont know. We talked about so many things. I think I remember them 
      saying something about a race coming up in Monte Carlo or something."
      "Ive got an idea." Serena didnt know why she didnt think of this 
      earlier. Shed just call up Peter, the sports writer she met through 
      Audrey a while back in her ill-fated attempts at matchmaking. She dialled 
      up Audreys number and waited until she heard her editor pick up. "Audrey? 
      Have you got Peter Mayfields number? No, Im not reconsidering him. I 
      just need to ask him something. Right. "She quickly scribbled the number 
      down on a pad. "Thanks. Talk to you later."
      She gave her two buddies a grin and dialled again. "Hi Peter. Its Serena 
      Stanton. How are you? I was just wondering if youve heard of either 
      Darien van Beelen or Nephlite Giancarlo? You have, huh?" she gave Lita and 
      Seiya a look that said of course he has. What was she thinking? She was 
      the only person besides Lita who had no clue who they were. "I was just 
      wondering where theyd be." She waited a moment writing down what he said. 
      "Ok thanks. Keep in touch." She hung up and turned to her friends who 
      waited for the information.
      "Well, Peter says that there are some races coming up in a couple of 
      months, one in Monte Carlo and on right here in Vancouver. He says that 
      theyll probably be here before going over to Monaco."
      Lita clapped her hands together, looking like a little girl on Christmas 
      morning. "Great! Well just get tickets and then talk to them after the 
      race!"
      "Good luck ladies." Seiya stood up and guzzled the rest of his coffee. 
      "Ive got to run." He shook Litas hand then bent to give Serena a kiss on 
      the cheek. "Give me a call if you need me alright?"
      "I will Seiya. Thanks for everything." Serena gave him a hug then walked 
      him to the door. "Come see me again soon."
      "I will. Now go find that prince of yours and live happily ever after, ok? 
      Or youll have to answer to me." He ruffled her hair then disappeared down 
      the hall. "Salut!"
      "Salut!" Laughing, Serena shut the door and sat back down on the couch. 
      She laughed at the incredulous look on Litas face. "What?"
      "Youve got guys crawling out of the woodwork dont you?" she rolled her 
      eyes. "Whats the story with him?"
      "Its not like that. Seiya was...is still one of my best friends." Serena 
      smiled remembering some of the things theyd gotten up to in university.
      "Sure."
      "Seriously, theres never been anything between us other than a 
      sibling-type relationship."
      "And how is that? Hes absolutely gorgeous. Id go for him if I didnt 
      have a certain gorgeous prince."
      "For your information, Seiya is royalty as well, in a really longwinded 
      way. And to answer the other question, Im not his type."
      "And what type would that be?"
      "Male."
      Litas eyes widened. "Hes..."
      "Yup. He and his boyfriend have been together for ages. Ill have to 
      introduce you someday."
      "Lucky guy." Lita took a sip of the coffee then shook her head. "So what 
      about our princes? Weve got to find them."
      "Well get tickets to the race and go from there. I have the feeling that 
      Darien doesnt exactly want to see me still."
      ----
      Darien and Nephlite sat in a club in Ibiza drinking and listening to the 
      music. Darien had been in such a morose mood since St. Moritz that Neph 
      was doing just about everything humanly possible to cheer him up. The week 
      before they had been ice climbing and the week before that they were 
      diving in the Great Barrier Reef. Nothing brought him out. Neph was really 
      beginning to worry. He obviously cared for Serena a great deal. He and 
      Lita had discussed getting them back together but decided against it. 
      Because knowing their two friends, they were both too stubborn to listen 
      to reason. Theyd just have to get back together on their own.
      Several scantily clad girls walked up to the table. "Hi! Wanna dance?" the 
      pretty dark one in two small scraps of clothing took Dariens hand and 
      attempted to drag him onto the dance floor.
      He shook his head and leaned back in his chair, taking his hand out of 
      hers none too gently.
      She didnt take no for an answer and tried again. While she was doing 
      this, another girl who could have been her twin tried on Nephlite. Neph 
      tried to politely turn her down but alcohol gave her courage and she tried 
      to tug him with her.
      Darien exploded. "I said no! Now get out of here!" his roar brought tears 
      to her eyes and sent her scurrying away, her friend in tow.
      Neph had had enough. Darien never behaved this way and it wasnt the 
      alcohol talking either. "Darien. Weve got to talk."
      "About what?" he took another swig of beer.
      "You and this mood youre in. Youve been like this ever since St. Moritz. 
      Why dont you give her a call?"
      "Give who a call?" he acted like he didnt remember her even though he 
      couldnt stop thinking about her. He saw her everywhere. Every time he saw 
      a pale blond hed rush over only to find some other woman. Two months now, 
      he hadnt heard anything from her or about her. He was dying to call her 
      but every time he picked up the phone, he could see her leaving the lodge 
      with that man. Who was he? Was he her boyfriend? Simply a lover? No, she 
      was innocent that first time theyd made love. So who was he then? What 
      the hell was going on? The longing to see her was growing by the hour. An 
      angry voice broke through the haze the pain in his heart created.
      "Serena you idiot!" Neph shoved his phone in Darien face. "Call her!"
      "No. I wont. Shes got someone else now." Saying the words out loud 
      caused a rippling effect in his gut, envy and anger at whoever that man 
      was pooled there, slowly gnawing away at his insides. He was so easily 
      replaced and why not. Serena was very attractive. It was a surprise to 
      find someone like her so innocent in the ways of love. But less than two 
      hours to replace him? That was more than he could bear!
      "What are you talking about? Why would she go to another man? Ive seen 
      her with you. She glows with happiness, with love. Youre an idiot if you 
      dont call her."
      The truth in his friends words struck a chord in Darien and he took the 
      phone, pressing the buttons he wouldnt allow himself to press before. 
      Feeling more nervous than her cared to be, Darien brought the phone to his 
      ear and waited. It rang a few times before her heard her voice.
      "Hi..."
      "Serena?" it was the only thing he could croak out past his tight throat.
      "...Im not in right now. But if you leave youre name and number, Ill 
      get right back to you."
      The machine beeped and Darien hung up. "Shes not there." He dropped the 
      phone into Nephlites hand.
      "Keep trying. Im sure youll get her soon enough." He slapped Darien on 
      the back and they walked out of the club.
      Serena decided it was best to go visit her father and try to get an 
      extension on his ultimatum, although she knew it was near impossible to 
      get him to change his mind. Lita had been convinced to tag along as an 
      excuse to leave whenever Serena felt the need became prevalent. Plus she 
      would get to see what it was like to be a royal.
      They arrived late in the afternoon and the setting sun set the scene in 
      warm yellows and oranges. Serena sighed at the sight of the palace. It 
      almost looked welcoming, if only she wasnt quaking at the thought of 
      facing her fathers wrath.
      "This is your home?" the excited squeal came from the other side of the 
      car. Lita jumped out before the butler had a chance to open the door for 
      her. "Oops! Was I supposed to let him open it for me?"
      Her excitement was definitely a welcome diversion. Serena laughed. "Yeah, 
      but thats alright. Hell just have to hurry to your door first next 
time."
      Lita didnt even stop to blush. She was already part way to the main 
      entrance.
      "Lita, calm down!" Serena watched Lita practically bounce with enthusiasm. 
      "Were going to be here for a while so just relax ok?" she led the way 
      into the enormous building.
      Reginald Stansberg was waiting for them in his study. He smiled warmly 
      when he saw the two women walk into the darkly coloured room. "Serena, 
      dear! How wonderful to see you!" he walked over and kissed her on the 
      cheeks. "And who is this?" he smiled at Lita.
      "Father, this is my friend Lita. You remember Ive spoken about her on 
      several occasions." Serena looked over at Lita, who had turned as white as 
      a ghost.
      Lita curtsied stiffly and smiled. "Your majesty."
      Reginald laughed. "Come now! You don't have to be so formal." he waved at 
      the leather chairs. "Sit sit. So what do I owe the pleasure of your visit 
      Serena?"
      "I need to talk to you about my betrothal father."
      The warm smile instantly disappeared. "What about it?"
      "I wish to have it extended."
      "And why is that?" his disapproval was barely held in check and Serena 
      could see it.
      "Please, father. I don't ask for much--"
      "Don't ask for much! You run off to another country! You get a...a...job! 
      Your turn your back on your country and you say you don't ask for much!" 
      he stood up and started pacing in front of Serena and trembling Lita. "You 
      will get married next month! Thats final!" he stormed out of the room, 
      leaving the two women in the wake of his anger.
      "Sere, I don't know how you do it. Id be terrified if I was you." Lita 
      gave Serena a shaky smile. "Why don't you just tell him the truth?"
      Serena's stomach was turning somersaults. "I would have if he gave me the 
      chance." she ran a clammy hand through her hair. All this stress was 
      taking a toll on her. For about a month now she'd been feeling absolutely 
      strung out. Nausea, sleeplessness, and headaches plagued her at the 
      strangest moments. And now was one of them. Temples pounding, Serena stood 
      up to go to the window for fresh air. She took one shaky step and 
      everything went black.