“... and did you see what the American was wearing?”I cringed as a photo of me popped up on the TV screen. It was from the garden party. My shoulders were bare and I wore the stupidest smile.“We here at “Royalty Watch” can not believe that the Queen Mother finds this appropriate. It is an affront to Paradisian values,” the commentator continued. “Add in her lewd behavior toward the prince, and I'm not sure that this American is going to be welcome in the royal household. Kissing before a Stair Walk? The scandal!”The screen flashed to a video of me kissing Freddie's cheek and holding the door open.I stuck out my tongue at the TV. “It wasn't lewd,” I said.“Lewd would have at least included tongue,” Freddie agreed, settling into the couch next to me. He put his arm over my shoulder and handed me a bowl of popcorn. “Want to get lewd now?”I looked over at him and grinned. We sat in a comfortable sitting room with a huge TV. In any other house, I would have called it a living room, bu
“You did well today,” Sophie said, picking up her purse and carefully tucking it over her shoulder. “Well, other than the whole walking in high-heels part.”“I did warn you,” I replied. I sat demurely on a high-backed chair in my room. I was waiting for her to leave so that I could slouch and flop into bed. I was exhausted.Princess training was hard work.“I thought you were kidding,” Sophie said. She shook her head. “Well, it's something for us to work on tomorrow.”“But tomorrow we're going to the hospital.” A small ripple of fear went through me. I wasn't ready for our hospital visit, but Sophie and Liam both wanted it done as soon as possible. They wanted the good stories about me coming out instead of just more pictures of my scandalously bare shoulders.“Yes. We're going to practice in the morning before we leave,” Sophie replied. She looked over at me. “Don't worry. You'll be wearing flats to the hospital. I want this to go well, remember?”I wanted to stick my tongue out at
“It's too bad no one needed CPR,” Sophie lamented as we walked down a corridor of the hospital. She wore a pristine cream dress with matching heels. I wore a light blue pant suit that made me think of super fancy scrubs. I was fairly sure that had been Sophie's intent when dressing me this morning.“Right... too bad,” I agreed, sarcasm dripping off my voice.“Oh, I didn't mean...” Sophie went a pretty pink. She even blushed prettily. “I meant, it would have been some great press to have you save someone's life.”I smiled and nodded politely. I knew she meant well, but it just showed me the disconnect between our worlds. I would never wish for someone to have an injury, especially one requiring CPR, just so I could get a good photo.It probably made me a terrible celebrity, but a good person.Overall, the day was going well. I had followed all of the rules the royal family sent out and I had even gone above and beyond what they expected. Everyone was happy with me. I was happy with m
I hid in my room for as long as I could. I didn't want to come out and go to dinner, but I didn't really have a choice. Dinner was already scheduled to be a celebratory meal in the dining room. The king and queen mother were to be there.Except we didn't have anything to celebrate. I'd failed my job today.I put on clean clothes. Sophie had laid out a tea length dark blue dress with lace overlay and long sleeves this morning. I wore it with stockings, as per her instructions. I put my hair up in a neat bun, hoping that the simple style would be acceptable. My makeup was light and natural, just the way Sophie had taught me.At least I could do that right.A knock on my door summoned me to dinner.“It's time, Ms. Miller,” Mr. Irson's voice called through the door.I hurried over and opened it.“Thank you,” I told him. “I'm mostly ready.”He smiled and looked me over. “You look lovely,” he said. He frowned slightly at my feet. “No heels?”I shook my head. “Not if I don't want to embarras
Dinner was a quiet and terse affair.Liam pointedly never looked at me. The Queen Mother watched her sons with sad eyes. She attempted small talk twice, but when no one helped her continue the conversations, she quickly stopped.Freddie tried to answer his mother, but Liam shot him such deadly looks that he quickly stopped talking at all.I had nothing to say. What could I possibly have to say?“I'm so sorry I went to a kegger once in college. If I had known those pictures would come back to haunt me, I would have stayed in my dorm room and never left.”It wouldn't have fixed anything.So, we ate our delicious food in the awkward silence of silverware and chewing.“Freddie, I would speak with you,” Liam announced, setting down his knife and fork on the empty plate.“I'm actually rather tired,” Freddie tried to say, but Liam cut him off.“We have things to discuss.” There was no arguing with the King.Freddie nodded, his face pale. He carefully placed his silverware and waited for Liam
Wind shook the windows and promised rain when I found Freddie leaning against the wall next to the door to my room. His back was pressed against the wall, his long lean legs angled into the middle of the hallway. His shoulders slumped and he had his head leaned back against the wall with his eyes closed. He looked as exhausted as I felt.“Hey.” I took the spot on the wall next to him, close enough to touch. The hallway was dark with the incoming storm. The lights hadn’t yet been turned on, giving us the illusion of privacy in the gloom.“Hey.” He didn't move his head off the wall or open his eyes.“You okay?” I asked, moving my hand to find his. All happy thoughts of my Stair Walk vanished. He looked so pale and exhausted. Sad and overwhelmed.“We should run away,” he said. He opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling. “We should just leave. Just get in the car and go.”I had to admit that I liked the idea, but I knew it wouldn't work. The trade deal, Liam, and his responsibilities he
I was glad for that stolen night. I didn't care that we'd broken the rules. I'd held onto him, feeling his warmth seep into me and give me strength. Strength to get through this. Strength to know that we loved one another enough to get through this.I didn't get to have five minutes alone with Freddie for the rest of the week.The Duke pulled him into every meeting, every information gathering session, every new change no matter how small, everything. Suddenly, Freddie was integral to everything. He had no spare time. Not even in the evenings when he was supposed to be with me.Freddie ate dinner with the Duke so they could plan their negotiations. Those first few nights where we'd eaten in his rooms felt far away and long ago.The few times he ate meals with his family, he looked tired and worn. The conversations were never personal, especially not with Liam at the table. I'd look across the table and he'd smile, but we'd never get more. He'd kiss my cheek and disappear back to the o
Freddie kissed me before the door had even clicked shut. His kiss was hungry.“God, I could just take you here,” Freddie groaned, his hands tightening on my waist again.“We only have five minutes. You're not that fast,” I told him. I pressed my half naked body into him, feeling the heat of his desire against my bare hip. “Although I am really tempted to try.”He chuckled, the sound low and rumbling. He sighed, not letting me go, but not instigating further.“You should put your skirt on or I'm never going to be able to stop,” he said after a moment. He kissed me again before forcing himself to take a step back.I slid on my skirt and he sighed as I settled it around my waist.“I never would have caught anyone but you like that,” he said, looking at me wistfully.Something about his words pricked at me.“What? What do you mean?”He shrugged. “I don't know anyone that would let themselves be caught without a skirt.”“What?” I asked, going still.“It's just that no Paradisian royal woul