Tess was wakened Monday morning by her cell phone ringing. The weekend had been a busy one of seeing a band play at the bar, getting mani/pedis with Paige and Jenna, followed by a girls' movie night, where Paige gushed about Kevin walking her home after the fireworks, and then spending Sunday helping her uncle with yard work. Since she didn't have anything planned until she was going to meet Griff that evening, she hadn't bothered with setting an alarm.

She grabbed her phone, seeing it was already 10:00. "Hello?"

"Are you really a princess?"

"What?"

"Are you really a princess?"

It took a moment for Tess's mind to wake enough to recognize Paige's voice. "What are you talking about?"

"Word on the street is that you're a princess from Arus and your dad is a Voltron pilot. Is that true?"

"Who said that?"

"Lorri Nausbaum was in, she said everyone is talking about it."

"Shit!"

"So, it's true? Why didn't you tell me?" Paige sounded hurt.

"Did Griff hear?"

"You didn't tell him either?"

Tess ran around the room, grabbing clean clothes. "Look, it's not what you think. I just…when I got here and no one knew who I was I just went with it. I liked being anonymous, not having to worry about the media or wondering if people were being nice to me because of my title. I didn't mean to mislead anyone."

"Do you have crown?"

Tess froze, thrown off by the question. "What?"

"I was just wondering."

"I have a couple of tiaras and, no, I didn't bring them with me. I have to go talk to Griff."

"You're not off the hook with me," Paige said. "I want the whole story."

"I'll tell you everything, I promise."

"All right. I'm going to hold you to that. Hi, Mrs. Landen! I'll call you later." Paige hung up.

Tess showered, dressed, and ran downstairs. "Aunt Dana, can I borrow your car?"

"Of course, is everything all right?"

"I don't know. I'll be back later." Tess grabbed the keys and ran out the front door.

It was 10:47 when she pulled up in front of the bar, it was not yet open but there would be people inside preparing for lunch. She knocked on the front door, hopping from one foot to the other, hoping against hope that Griff hadn't heard anything yet, she wanted to be the one to tell him.

Jenna unlocked and opened the door. "Your highness," she teased, dropping into a bad impression of a curtsy.

Tess scowled at her. "I take it everyone has heard."

"So, it's true?"

"Yes, but it doesn't really mean anything. Where's Griff?"

"He took off today."

"What? He never takes off."

Jenna gave her a pitying look. "I heard he was here early this morning, working in the office. Then he told Iona he was taking off for the day and left."

"Does he know?"

"I didn't talk to him. Why did you keep it a secret?"

Tess sighed and ran her hand through her hair. "I just wanted to be normal, to have a normal vacation, have a normal life. I'm the same person I was yesterday, but now everyone is treating me differently."

"You're royalty."

"I'm Tess, just Tess."

"Try upstairs."

"Thanks."

Hurrying through the restaurant and out the back door, Tess started up the back stairs, but stopped. She knew he wasn't up there. Instead, she turned and walked across the parking lot, her stride slowing as she approached the large stone house. What was she going to say? What was he going to say? Would he even talk to her?

The door to the kitchen was open and music came floating out into the humid morning. Classic rock played loudly over uneven pounding. Through the screen door, she saw him swing a sledge hammer into the outdated cabinets on the far wall. The hammer slammed into the old wood, splintering it and sending shards flying. He set the hammer against the bottom cabinets and reached up to rip the loosened cabinet off the wall.

Tess knocked on the door, but he didn't hear her. She pulled open the screen door and stepped into the musty, hot, humid room.

"Griff?"

He either didn't hear her or was ignoring her.

She turned to the MP3 player on the counter and turned it off.

Griff had just leaned over to pick up the hammer again. He turned and saw her standing by the door. "Oh, good morning, Your Highness." He bent deeply at the waist in an exaggerated bow.

"Griff…"

"Let me tell you about the morning I had," he said, his voice full of false cheer. "I was wakened at 8:30 this morning by my phone ringing, it was the local television station. They asked me for a comment about the woman who had recently started working at the bar. They told me she was the daughter of two of the most powerful people in Intergalactic Defense, a Princess. I told them they had the wrong number."

"Griff…"

"I'm not done." He took off the safety goggles he was wearing and set them on the counter. "They assured me they didn't. They were interested in interviewing Princess Tess Whitaker and asked if I could get them in contact with her. I told them I had no comment. What else was I supposed to say? That this woman I had hired, this woman I had fallen in love with hadn't told me who she really was?"

Tess looked away, unable to answer his questions.

"Then I got to thinking," he continued. "All the times we were together and we talked about our families, I told you all about my mother and father, my uncle, but all of your answers were pretty vague. I knew you came from a large family, but that was really all. I tried to not think too much about it, I figured you had some family issues and would open up when you were ready. But the more I thought about it, the more nagging questions started to come up. Everyone knew Dana's brother was some kind of military genius, I didn't know the details, but she was proud of him. So, I got up, went down to the office and started looking things up online. Know what I found?"

When Tess didn't answer, he went on. "I found thousands of pictures of Princess Tess Whitaker, the sixth in line to the throne, a member of the famous Arusian royal family. You're from a very powerful, wealthy family. You had a 'Coming Of Age Ball' when you turned eighteen and have been dating non-stop since then. Did you really break off an engagement with a prince from some place called Baedervood?"

"We were never engaged," Tess protested.

He ripped his work gloves off and threw them on the counter. "Are you sure? Because you haven't been too honest with me so far."

"Griff, we went on one date. If you'll let me explain…"

"Oh, you'll get a chance to explain, I just want to get a few things off my chest. It seems that somebody at the block party recognized you and word spread like wildfire. I was one of the last people to know. Do you have any idea how humiliating that is?"

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"Oh, you're sorry? Well, then, that fixes everything now, doesn't it? So, what was your plan here? Was this trip just some way to sow some wild, royal oats? Bed a commoner before heading back to your castle and marrying some prince from some other powerful, wealthy family?"

"How can you say that?" Tess protested angrily.

"How can I say that? How can you lie to me? How can you tell me you love me, sleep with me, spend all that time with me, and not tell me who you are?"

"That was not my intention. I didn't mean for any of this to happen, I was going to tell you everything…"

"But it did happen and you didn't tell me," he snapped, whirling around and grabbing the hammer.

"Griff, will you let me explain?" She asked quietly.

He stood with his back to her, twisting the hammer's handle in his hands. After a moment he turned to her. "Yes. Please. I'd like to know what was going through your head."

Tess took a deep breath and tried to decide where she was going to start. "When…when I planned this trip, I was just looking for a chance to get away. I…we, my brothers and sisters and I, live in, what I call, a protective bubble. My parents can be pretty strict and overprotective. They have their reasons, they endured a lot, fighting Doom and rebuilding Arus. My sister, Cady, was first taken when she was just six months old. Even years later, Cady was taken again on Christmas Eve, and I was…I was taken…" she trailed off.

"I read about that," he said quietly.

"I never had a normal life. I was always followed by guards, the media were everywhere. It seemed like everything about my life had to be shared with the public. I hated it. Going to and from school, they were there taking pictures. I never liked being the center of attention. I didn't have a lot of friends outside of my family. Cady told me once that people were intimidated by us. And then there were the people who tried to get close because of who we were, kids who wanted to be friends so they could visit the castle or try and see the lions. That was an awful feeling. You never really knew who you could trust and who you couldn't. Dating was even worse. You said you found pictures of me online, did you see pictures of the rest of my family?"

He nodded.

"Then you saw Cady. Have you ever seen a more beautiful woman?"

"Yes," he said simply, looking at her.

Tess fell a little bit more in love with him. "I'm not jealous of her. I love Cady, she is the greatest big sister anyone could ask for. She is next in line to rule Arus, she's gorgeous, she's smart and sweet. When she had her 'Coming of Age' ball, the number of men interested in her was incalculable. But they didn't really want her, they wanted her title, her fortune, her connection to Voltron. And I remember thinking that if she couldn't find a man to love her for her, then none of us have a chance. And then Tristan came along. She told me she fell in love with him at first sight, but they didn't think they could be together. He was a soldier on a mission and he wasn't going to be on Arus for long. But he did fall in love with her, for who she was, it was meant to be. He is the best man for her, they married and have two amazing little boys. And that made me think that, maybe, there was hope for all of us.

"Dating was not something easy for us. Before my 'Coming of Age' Ball, I could only go on a date if I had a chaperone. That didn't go over well. I went on a total of two dates before I turned eighteen. As my eighteenth birthday approached, the requests started coming in. "

Tess stopped, feeling embarrassed. She hated talking about this, all those years when she thought she'd never find someone because she wasn't as pretty as Cady or that the only thing a man could possibly love about her was her inheritance.

She cleared her throat and continued. "I am currently sixth in line to rule Arus, but that will change. I have no doubt Cady and Tristan will have at least one more baby, she wants to try for a little girl. Gideon is married and his wife is pregnant, and if Declan ever makes an honest woman out of Brina, they'll have kids someday. All this means I will never rule, and I'm fine with that. I don't want to rule. But my title, my connections, and my inheritance were still appealing. Correspondence came from all over, princes who would never rule, Dukes, Knights, all looking for a wife of good breeding. I went on a few of those arranged dates and they were awful. My parents would never force me to marry someone I didn't love, but they encouraged me to try a few, see if maybe I'd find the love of my life. But how can I love someone who wasn't interested in me for me? I tried, but those types of dates didn't work out, I stopped accepting them. There was once this guy I really liked, a commoner I went to school with. When he finally got up the nerve to ask me out, we went to a café for dinner and had a wonderful time. The next morning, pictures of us filled all the local gossip websites, speculating who he was, discussing if I was engaged. He never spoke to me again. I gave up on dating for awhile and threw myself into my schoolwork."

"You were valedictorian," Griff said, when she paused.

Tess nodded. "I loved school. I love learning and writing research papers. It was the best time of my life. I made some friends who were just good friends. I dated one guy for about a month, but when it was found out, he couldn't handle the media calling him and snapping his picture when he went out for a run. He was the last guy I dated, just over a year ago.

"When I planned this trip, I had no intention of meeting someone and falling in love. I just wanted to get away from Arus and think. I'm not going to rule, I'm not interested in pursuing a career in the military, and I don't want to marry some man out of convenience, so what am I going to do with my life? I had planned to travel some, do a little writing, some sketching. I had no ulterior motive. Then I walked into Page Turners. Paige wasn't familiar with Arus and I decided to just let it go at that. I liked her right away and we seemed to click. I wanted a friend who liked me for me. And I found that in Paige. Then…then I met you." She stopped, wiping the back of her hand over her cheek as a tear slid down. "I know now what Cady meant when she said she fell in love at first sight."

Griff took a step toward her, but stopped himself. "I know."

"And..and you didn't recognize Arus either, so I just let it go. I was enjoying being Tess, just Tess. Not Her Royal Highness, Princess Tess. None of you cared about my title or my fortune or my connections to Voltron. It was a new, amazing, freeing feeling. I made some wonderful friends, I fell in love. I got to do things I had never done before: see bands perform in a bar, laying on top of a dugout watching fireworks, just sitting at a bar sharing a drink with friends, going shopping with a friend and not having paparazzi waiting for us when we came out. I got to just be me and I…I was really, truly happy. I was afraid of ruining it, so I kept my mouth shut. I was going to tell you, really I was. I never wanted to hurt you or humiliate you, ever. I realize now how selfish and immature I was being by not telling you and I'm sorry."

Griff set the hammer on the counter and scrubbed his hands over his face. "I just…I just don't understand why, after you knew how I felt, you couldn't tell me. Don't you trust me?"

"Of course I trust you. I just didn't want to ruin what we have. When people find out you're royalty or famous, they treat you differently, I never wanted you to treat me differently."

"I wouldn't have."

"If you had known I was a Princess, would you have offered me the position of part-time office manager?"

"Probably not," he admitted.

"Would you have asked me out on our first date?"

"I'd like to think I would."

She shook her head, sadly. "For every guy who wanted to date me because of my title, there was a man who was intimidated by my title."

"I'm not easily intimidated."

She took a step closer. "I am still the same Tess, I just now have a title, some money, and a famous family. I love you, Griff, can you still love me now that you know?"

"This is a lot to process all of a sudden," he replied, picking up the safety goggles. "I need some time to think and hit stuff."

"There's something else."

"Of course there is."

"My family, the Arusian royal family, has magic in them."

Griff looked up at her, skeptically. "What?"

"There is magic in our bloodline, it is strongest in twins. My brothers, Declan has a second sight that allows him to sense when someone close to him might be in danger, and Gideon is an empath. He has the power to empathize strongly with others, he can make anyone feel better. And I am the one who received the Love Knot."

"The what?"

With trembling fingers, Tess undid her watchband and took it off, stretching her arm toward him.

Griff stepped closer and looked down. "What is that? Is that a tattoo?"

"It's my birthmark. My mother has one too, on the back of her neck. It all began with a necklace my grandfather gave my grandmother, it was based on an old Arusian tale. The knot represents the unexpected twists and turns of life, but it is continuous, neverending, like the bond of two people truly in love. My father went to face Lotor, their biggest enemy, and while there, my dad was attacked by a creature that knocked him down, leaving him with a scar in the shape of the Love Knot over his heart. My mother said it was the spirit of her father giving my father his blessing. It bonded my parents as true soul mates." Tess circled her birthmark with her fingertip. "My mother told me it would lead me to my one true love. I didn't believe her. I thought it was just a fairy tale. Then, my first day on Terra, my aunt and uncle took me to Flynn's and I saw your sign."

"You came in and asked me the meaning of it."

She nodded. "I couldn't believe that I would come all the way here and find the knot, find you, in a bar in a small town."

"No. I made that up, it doesn't mean anything."

"It means everything."

Griff lifted his gaze from her wrist to her eyes. "The day I offered you the job, I held your hand and I touched your wrist?"

"You thought it was a static shock."

"What was it?"

"I don't really know, I had never experienced it before."

He whirled away and stormed to the other side of the room. "Are you saying you put some kind of spell on me?"

"No. It doesn't work that way. There is nothing sinister about it, it is just supposed to lead me to the man I'm supposed to be with."

"So, you're a famous, rich, magical Princess?"

"I'm just Tess."

Griff put his hands on the wall before slowly leaning forward and resting his forehead against the wall. When he spoke, it was so quietly, Tess couldn't hear what he said. "What?"

Without turning, he said a little louder. "I was going to ask you to stay."

Tess felt her heart drop to her stomach. She wanted to stay, she had hoped he would ask. "You were?"

"But can you really be happy here?" His voice cracked. "You grew up in a castle, you're a fucking Princess! Could you really be happy living in a small town, in a small apartment above a bar?"

"I could be happy here because I am happy here," she insisted.

He pulled back a fist and punched the wall, leaving a small dent in the drywall, before turning to face her, his eyes shining. "Can you really? It'll be a couple of years before I can afford a proper home."

"I have money…"

"I don't want your money."

"I know that, Griff, you have nothing to prove to me."

His eyes narrowed. "It is very important to me that both of my restaurants make it on their own."

She nodded. "I understand. But I don't care where I live as long as I can be with you. I want to stay here. For the first time in my life, I am truly happy. I have friends, a job I love…"

"Doing data entry at a bar? Really?"

"I enjoy working with computers and, even more than that, I love the people I work with. They make the job worthwhile. I love the bar and what you've built and I can't wait to help with the brewpub."

"Tess, I want to believe that, really I do."

"Then believe it. Come here."

He slowly crossed the old kitchen to stand in front of her.

She held her left hand out to him, palm side up. "Take my hand."

Griff hesitantly laid his hand on top of her's.

"Touch it," she whispered.

Very slowly, he slid his fingers down until the tip of his middle finger touched her birthmark.

The jolt was electrifying. But it was replaced by a pleasant warmth that Tess felt start at her wrist and spread up her arm until her entire body felt enveloped in his feelings for her.

"What…what is that?" Griff asked.

"I'm feeling your love for me," she whispered. "Can you feel mine?"

He nodded, his eyes widening.

"We are meant to be together, Griffin, I love you more than I could ever tell you and I know, without a doubt, that you feel the same way about me."

He swallowed hard and looked from their joined hands to her face.

"Ask me," she requested gently.

"Will you stay?" He asked, his voice hoarse.

"Yes."

"This is forever, you can't just say yes now and then decide in a few years that you want to go back to Arus. I need you in my life."

"This is forever," she repeated. "Arus is, and will always be, my birthplace, my first home, and the home of my family, but my home is now wherever you are. I want to help with Flynn's and Griffin's Irish Rose Brewing, LLC. I want that room upstairs for my office, with filing cabinets, no more banker's boxes. I want…you."

He grasped her hand tightly and pulled her to him. "I love you, Tess."

Since he still held her left hand in his, Tess wound her right arm around his neck and brought his mouth down to her. "I love you, too."

When they broke apart, Griff brought their hands up and he pressed a kiss to her birthmark. Tess gripped his shoulder tightly as she felt her knees weaken. He quickly wrapped his other arm around her to hold her steady.

"You okay?" He asked

She looked up into his eyes, which darkened as his breath quickened. "I'm fantastic. Um, wow, that, uh, that was amazing."

"You felt that too?"

"Oh my God, Griff, that uh, that did something to me."

"Me too."

"Do it again."

He grinned at her before pressing another kiss to her birthmark.

"Stop!" Her knees once again buckled as her entire body buzzed like a live wire.

"I am feeling the overwhelming urge to throw you on the floor and have my way with you, right here."

"And I'm feeling the overwhelming urge to let you."

He pressed kisses up the inside of her arm. "I took the day off. Spend it with me."

"Tearing up the kitchen?"

"If you'd like. Or back at my apartment, tearing something else up."

She laughed and pulled her arm from his grip, throwing it around his neck and hugging him tightly. "I am crazy about you, Griffin McManus!"

He lowered his forehead to rest against her's. "I'm crazy about you, Princess Tess."

She scowled. "Don't call me that."

"Pretty Tess from Arus?"

"Much better. Are we…are we okay?"

"I think so. As long as you promise to be totally honest with me from now on."

"I promise. You're too important to me. I will never again do anything so stupid that could cost me the most important thing in the world to me."

"I'm no longer comping your drinks."

"I never asked you to."

"But I thought you were some poor, unemployed college graduate with no money."

"No, you thought it would make it easier to get in my pants."

He slid his hands down to rest on her waist. "And it did."

"It wasn't all bad, was it?"

"Hm?" Tess barely registered Griff's question. They were laying in his bed, she rested her head against his shoulder. He had his arm around her shoulders and she had reached up to play with his fingers. It was the hand he had punched the wall with and bruises were surrounding small scraps on his knuckles.

"Growing up a princess, it wasn't all bad, was it?"

She tilted her head back to look at him. "Is that the impression I gave you?"

"You sounded very unhappy."

"No, it wasn't all bad, it was mostly all great. I have the most amazing, supportive family you could ever imagine, I can't wait for you to meet them and I can't wait for them to meet you. I have had amazing opportunities and experiences. And Arus is the most beautiful planet you'll ever see."

"How…how difficult will it be for you to move here?"

Tess rolled unto her side and propped her head on her fist. "They won't be happy about me moving, but they'll support me. They just want me to be happy and you make me very happy."

He ran his hand over her hair before cupping the back of her head and bringing her down for a kiss.

"Will you be able to take some time off next month?" She asked when they broke apart.

"Why?"

"I want you to come to Arus with me. I still have to go back when I originally planned, I want you to meet the family."

"I can probably work something out. I'll talk to Iona and Mike."

Thunder rumbled outside as a summer storm rolled in.

Tess sighed and laid her head down on his chest. "And we will be getting a bigger place. I'm not raising children in an apartment above a bar."

He gently stroked her back. "Children?"

"Don't you want kids?"

"I do."

"I want little red-headed babies."

Griff chuckled. "Maybe in a couple of years."

"Yeah. We have to get married first, get a bigger place."

"Is there anything special I need to know about marrying a princess?"

Lightning lit up the sky and the rain began to fall.

"They'll want us to marry on Arus."

"I don't care where we marry, as long as it happens."

"After we get married, my money becomes our money."

"I think I can live with that. How much are we talking?"

"I could pay off the mortgage of the stone house, buy you all new brewing equipment, buy us a very large home, and still have enough to send our children, no matter how many we have, to college and we'd still be able to retire comfortably."

"Hm. I think I could handle that."

"I'll become your sugar mama."

Griff laughed. "Yes you will. But I was serious, I want the businesses to pay for themselves."

"I know. And I want to help your restaurants thrive."

"My restaurants are now our restaurants."

A loud clap of thunder shook the building and the lights flickered.

Griff kissed the top of her head. "I have to go downstairs."

"No, you took the day off."

"I know," he said, pushing back the covers and getting up. "But we just took a power hit. I need to make sure everything is all right."

"It was just a quick…" Tess broke off when another rumble of thunder was followed by the lights going off for a few seconds before coming back on.

"I'm going to grab a quick shower and head down. I won't be long, I'll bring back food."

Tess stayed curled up in his bed until she heard the door close behind him. It was time to do what she had been dreading since the morning. Getting up, she showered and dressed before settling onto the couch with her cell phone. Turning it on, she discovered she had missed over a dozen calls and more than twice as many text messages.

Somehow, the three local television stations and the paper had gotten her phone number and they all wanted interviews. She ignored those voicemails.

Most of the text messages were from Paige asking random princess themed questions, her favorite one being: Do woodland animals help you dress every morning?

She sent her friend a text promising to answer all her questions tomorrow.

And there was one text from Declan: You're staying, aren't you?

On Arus, Declan was in the rec room with his fiancee, his brothers, and Erik watching a movie. He had a realization that morning. What he had been feeling about Tess wasn't that she was in danger, it was that there was going to be a great distance between her and the family, permanently.

He had been out for a run with Gideon when he finally understood what was happening. Without realizing it, his feet had stopped moving and he was standing on the path in the woods, looking around as though he expected Tess to appear.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Gideon asked, jogging back to where his brother stood.

"I don't think Tess is coming home," he said, slowly.

"Why? What's wrong?" Gideon grabbed his shoulders. "Concentrate, Dec, what's going to happen?"

"She's fallen in love."

"Seriously?"

"Yes. She's going to stay…for him."

"But she's safe?"

Declan nodded. "She'll be fine."

When he finished his run and returned to his bedroom, Declan texted his sister. Hours later, she responded with a single word text: Yes

He stared at the screen. It was a bittersweet moment. He was relieved to know she was going to be okay, but still disappointed to know his little sister was going to be so far away. Before he could respond, his phone beeped, signaling another message.

Don't tell mom and dad yet, I want to be the one to tell them. I'm bringing Griff home with me next month to meet them.

He texted back: Griff?

The reason I'm staying.