11

“How can you possibly appear even more flustered than before?” Sutton laughed, leaning back in her chair as she observed the irritation rolling off the Queen in waves.

Belle remained tight lipped as she entered the living room where Sutton, Lottie, Immi, Beau, Rai and Coen had been sat waiting for the last 30 minutes for her and Layke. Amusement danced in her friends’ eyes as they noticed an equally flustered King following closely on Belle’s tail.

“How gracious of you to join us.” Rai commented, receiving a glare that had his lips twitching from the King.

Belle slumped into a chair besides Immi, avoiding Layke’s gaze as he sat across from her. Neither of them quite knew what to do with themselves after that whole ordeal outside, feeling like children being caught with their fingers in the cookie jar.

Unlike Belle, Layke had managed to get changed since their interaction, and now she found herself practically drooling over the way his biceps were straining under the fabric of his