This had to be the weirdest day of my life.
What was even more strange? When the minister gave The Princess Bride speech. He imitated the lisp as well as said every single word of that speech that was in the movie. The only difference was that he didn’t call me Buttercup.
I glanced out over the crowd of people in the wood pews. The small white chapel packed tightly with guests. A few had large grins on their faces as I suspected they knew the movie, but most appeared confused.
I glanced up to Nico as he winked at me. He made this happen. I knew at that moment I was meant to marry him.
After the entertainment was over, the real vows started. I focused more on my soon-to-be husband and not so much on the words. Then it hit me—the people in the small chapel on the castle grounds where the ceremony was taking place, were to be my people. I would soon be their princess.
Not only was I marrying Nico, but I was gaining a family, a country full of people, and a kick-ass castle.
Earlier this year, I had been dumped via paper airplane. Well, I’d say my life got a lot better. I was having my own Hollywood movie happy ending.
“I do,” Nico said as he gave me his I’m-going-to-fuck-you-good face.
Heat crawled up my neck and I hoped the people in the chapel couldn’t tell how hard my nipples were in the slinky silk dress.
Cheers went up when Nico kissed me, and I realized they had no idea how turned on I was from my brand-new husband. It was a chaste kiss—something for the cameras I heard clicks all around me. As it sunk in that he would always be with me, I never felt so full of joy.
The kiss had barely ended, and I was being pulled down the aisle and out the door. There we kissed once again for a crowd that had gathered.
It was the end of December in a tiny northern European country. To say it was chilly would be a tremendous understatement. But with the whirlwind of the day, I barely felt the cold.
I smiled and waved and then Nico tugged my hand toward the castle. I was ushered in through a side entrance. Nico, Tiber, and a few other people who I had yet to meet went room to room, up old stone spiral stairs, until we were on a less decorated floor.
“In here.” Tiber opened a door and waved us inside.
The door closed, and to my relief, I discovered Nico and I were alone.
“Well, Duchess, we’re finally alone,” Nico said as the warmth in his voice wrapped around me.
“I thought I was to be a princess?”
“That happens on the first of the new year. There’ll be a whole other ceremony for the crowning. But right now, we get to . . .” His words trailed off as his hand slipped to my side and reached back to cup my ass.
I squeaked as heat bloomed between my thighs.
“Is that a royal scepter in your pants or are you just happy to see me?”
Nico threw his head back in laughter. The smile on his face and the rumble of joy from his throat made any doubt I had coming here today vanish.
His emerald eyes twinkled in happiness as he looked at me. “Why don’t you take off my pants and find out.”
I smirked. “Challenge accepted.”
But it was easier said than done. I had no idea that royal clothes for a wedding, especially for a man, would include so many hooks and buttons. It took a minute, but I had finally pulled down Nico’s pants. That left his black boxer briefs and socks that had their own set of garters.
“My God, someone really didn’t want any skin showing today,” I mumbled.
“Formal attire is a pain. But I like the idea of you taking it off me. Maybe I should make a new law once I’m prince, one where wives should always undress their prince.”
I gazed up and added, “Then there must be a law for the wives.”
“That the prince should undress their princess?”
I shook my head. “No, that he must perform cunnilingus on his wife every day.”
He chuckled again. “I don’t need a law to do that.”
Nico threw his jacket onto a chair. His red sash and shirt were off almost as quick, pooling by the seat. He stood naked and pointed to the small couch that was in the middle of the room.
“I must perform my royal duty, wife.”
Wow. I was really going to like being a royal. I jumped up and scurried to the sofa. It wasn’t as hard to remove my dress and undergarments as it was Nico’s. I was completely naked by the time I sat down.
He kneeled before me but reached up for a kiss. It wasn’t sweet like at the church. It was passionate and hungry, and he was about to eat me up when there was a knock at the door.
“Your Highness, we must head back to the ballroom in fifteen minutes,” Tiber said from the other side of the door.
“We’ll be ready,” Nico answered back as his lips curved and his hands pushed open my legs.
“We’ll have to be quick,” I said, hoping we could do a little more than just kissing.
His fingers slid across my lips and made a trail down my neck and chest until he was circling my clit. I moaned as he said, “We are the future Prince and Princess of Cambria. They’ll wait.”
He pinched and tickled and fucked me with his fingers until I was about to come. Nico lowered his face between my thighs. A few flicks of his tongue and I was falling over the high edge that had been building since he left the diner a month and a half ago.
I cried out his name. He grunted and moved, and I felt the loss of his touch. But it was back before I could open my eyes. His thick cock filled me with a swift thrust.
“Grace. Oh, Grace, I’ve missed you.” His voice was rough and deep. I finally opened my eyes to find him staring at me as if he found nirvana.
I reached for his cheek and he lifted his hand to hold me there.
“Keep your eyes on me,” he said as he rocked into me.
There was nothing but me and him as we moved our bodies together. We had done roleplay and he had used a vibrating butt plug on me, but nothing had ever felt so good as how he worked me as my husband.
My wish from our first time together when we were on the couch in my home back in Chicago for this to last forever came true. This was our forever. I would come with him inside me and he would climax as he groaned my name, but that wouldn’t be the end.
There would be no end for us. There would only be wonderful beginnings.
“I love you, Nico,” I said as I felt him thicken inside me.
“Grace, I could never love anyone but you.”
We came holding each other, and I knew I would never be unhappy again.
EPILOGUE
Nico
Pretty In Pink
I waved with a practiced royal smile firmly held on my face. My cheeks and my arm grew tired, but I endured.
My wife, not so much.
“I missed this French toast,” she mumbled between bites as we sat in the booth we first met in Totally Diner.
We married only days ago. The time had flown by with celebration luncheons, dinners, and festivals. Grace insisted that since we were meeting the Cambrian people as the new Duke and Duchess of Cambria that we should take a day to meet the American people. She wanted to take two days before New Year’s and head back to Chicago.
Reporters and fans packed the diner to learn all about us. I had never been more thankful for Grace’s brother, who acted as our press agent and bodyguard. He answered their questions and kept people from swarming our table.
“Is that the holiday special? I saw it online, but I haven’t tried it.”
“Oh. My. God. Nico.” Grace’s eyes rolled back in her head. “You have to. When I asked the cook to experiment with gingerbread, he came up with the idea of French toast. After one bite, I was hooked. If this could fit into an IV, I’d have it pumped into my veins, it’s so good.”
I was curious. The sweet relief of lowering my hand from waving was worth taking a bite of the super sugary confection. After cutting off a piece and placing it on my tongue, my eyes rolled back into my head.
“Good, huh?”
“I had no idea. Grace, we must bring this recipe back to Cambria.”
She nodded. “Yes. Create a law that people must make the French toast.”
“That’s going a little too far. But you know, I want to start my foundation to help the needy in Cambria. Perhaps we could include in the program to teach them skills such as cooking. Possible cleaning skills, too. I could help with that.”
The corner of Grace’s lips ticked up. “I’m pretty sure most people know how to clean. They don’t need to be taught.”
Right. I forgot. I was the rare person who needed to be taught how to clean.
“Speaking of helping people . . . I would like to take a look at your foster care system. Perhaps, as royals, we could help.”
“Like start a foundation?” I asked.
“That and also foster kids. They all need love. And we can afford to give it.”
I nodded and reached for her hand. When she told me about her foster family when she was a teenager, it broke my heart. I never wanted her to feel that way again.
“I love that idea.”
“You two ready to leave?” Alex came up to the table with an eager expression.
“Wow, you just can’t wait to get rid of your sister.” Grace reluctantly put down her fork.
Alex sighed and leaned closer. “It’s not that. We need to get back to feeding people, not fending them off. I need to get back to business. I’ve been running things since I came back from your wedding a few days ago.”
“I’m sorry, Alex. I hadn’t thought about the diner when I ran off to Cambria. How am I going to run the diner and be princess?”
“You can’t,” I said, keeping my promise of only telling her the truth. “You can only be princess. I’m afraid you have to give up the diner.”
Grace gasped. “It was hard work and I may have wanted to walk away a few times, but I don’t want it to close.”
“Why don’t I run it? Take it off your hands,” Alex commented.
“I don’t know . . .”
“How about we do rock, paper, scissors to decide?” he suggested.
Grace’s face lit up and she held out her fist. I got the impression she wasn’t at all reluctant to give her brother the diner. It was more about wanting to play this childish game.
They shook their fists three times, both chanting the name of the game.
“Rock beats scissors.” Alex grinned and shook his fist in the air.
“Oh darn. I guess I’ll have to go back to the idyllic country of Cambria and play princess while you drudge away at running a greasy diner. I’m so sorry I lost,” Grace said in a monotone voice.
Alex’s smile began to fade. Before he could respond, Tiber came up to the table.
“Your Highness, we must be moving on. Your father wishes to see something called an improv show.”
My parents came with us to Chicago. My father’s doctor gave him clearance to travel and since it was only for two days, we hoped it wouldn’t take too much out of him.
My father did mention that he had wanted to see the world, though that wasn’t his real reason for abdicating. I thought why not. Now was the time in his life where he could do what he really wanted. As long as he was physically capable, I wanted him and Mother to be happy together as long as they could.
“That’s going to be fun. Maybe we can stop and get a Chicago dog on the way. I’m getting hungry.” Grace stood from the booth.
“But you just had the toast.” I pointed to the plate with only syrup left behind.
“I’m eating for two or maybe three or maybe twelve. Who knows what your super royal sperm did to me? I need to eat for health reasons, Nico.”
My eyes widened at the idea of multiple children. Grace walked off, already perfecting the royal smile as she greeted people.
No matter how many children we had or what tribulations we experience on our journey as husband and wife, I couldn’t stop my heart from falling more in love with her every day.
PSST – Make sure you get the BONUS SCENE where Grace gets her crown and lot more from her new prince, when you sign up for my free author newsletter ⇨ https://dl.bookfunnel.com/4xpf55wkvb
THANK YOU for reading! And if you enjoyed Royal Disgrace, you’ll love my recent release, Cabin Fever. It’s about another man keeping his past secret from everyone. He hides in a cabin on the side of a mountain until a spoiled runaway bride crashes into his world, unable to leave.
“I LOVED CABIN FEVER. Carter was such a unique hero and had so many layers. This book had everything. It was sexy, funny, emotional, you name it.”
- Laura Lee, bestselling author of Dealing with Love series
HAVE A DESTINATION wedding, they said. The mountains are so romantic, they said. They’ve obviously never been a runaway bride.
Olivia Love has it all. She’s rich, spoiled, and about to marry the man of her dreams—until she witnesses her fiancée with someone else, sending her on a little run. Down the side of a mountain. In her wedding dress.
When she finds a cabin in the woods, her relief is short-lived at discovering it to be empty. No phone, no heat, and no way back to her perfect little life. That is until a gun-toting mountain man fills the space and sends her heart rate skyrocketing.
Carter Fitzwilliam likes the simple things in life. His sheep farm, his privacy, and man’s best friend are all he needs until a smart-mouthed beauty in a white dress breaks into his cabin and threatens to complicate the hell out of everything.
Will these two opposites attract or push each other over the mountain?
KEEP READING FOR AN excerpt from CABIN FEVER...
I HOPE YOU LOVED MEETING Grace and Nico. Did you get the chance to read the first book in the Cake Love series, Rules of Payne, where Grace first appears? Back when Morgana had a new boss, Henrik Payne, and he lived up to his name as the Payne in the ass.
CLICK HERE TO READ RULES OF PAYNE NOW >
Thank you, dear reader, for taking the time to read Royal Disgrace. It would mean the world to me if you let me know how much you liked the story by leaving a review on Amazon, Goodreads, and BookBub.
Excerpt from CABIN FEVER
"THERE IT IS AGAIN." I pushed my back against the solid and, hopefully, blood-thirsty-animal-proof front door. Despite the thunderous thumping of my heart, I kept my ears perked until I heard a click.
Never had I believed the clank of a doorknob snapping into the frame would sound delicious, calming, and triumphant all at the same time. If I could make out—using tongue, of course—with this door, I would. But there'd be splinters and that wouldn't be fun.
I wasn't what most people would call gutsy. My usual response was to run. If running wasn't an option, then find something to throw. I once encountered a spider. The nearest thing to me was a book of matches. I contemplated burning down the house, but my sister stopped me before the matches were in my hand. That bathroom had been dead to me ever since.
The wild, guttural cries that drove me to hobble with surprising speed into the cabin started back up. They sounded muffled now, farther away.
"Good door." I patted the wood, then attempted to hug the entrance in appreciation.
The air was crisp, despite having a roof over my head. My breath was a lingering fog as I exhaled with relief.
Don't people use heat here in the mountains?
Allowing my legs to give, I slid down the door. For the first time in hours, I sat. My knees creaked, and I winced from a shooting pain in my left leg but sitting my butt on the mud-stained wooden floor felt glorious.
Olivia Jane Holiday Love, you are safe.
I reveled in letting my limbs throb from spending a good part of the day trekking through a mountain. Looks like I won't need to exercise again for at least a decade.
Steam rose from the grimy lace that covered my chest as I tugged at the large pink parka I grabbed before racing out of The Lodge this morning. I rubbed the delicate fabric and gasped. "It's gone."
M
y engagement ring. Hot tears laid a trail down my cheeks as I remembered yanking at the ring in anger and leaving it right next to my purse. I had no money, no cell phone, and no fiancé.
It was all my fault.
"Damn it. What have I done?"
I knew exactly what I had done. There was no lying to myself. I had destroyed my life, possibly ruined my family's lives, and opened a hornets' nest of chaos so big I'd probably become a legend back in DC—and not the good type of legend, either. No. My tale would spread with hushed tones, secretive whispers, and wide eyes.
Did I have a choice? Yes. But I didn't have to run.
I wiped at my tears of shame and anger. My fingers covered in a filthy wetness. Laughter bubbled up from my throat. "Did you really believe Derrick loved you, Olivia? Like attracts like, as my father always said. Derrick was handsome. More than handsome . . . he looked like a runway model."
I hiccupped and lifted two fingers in the air. "And number two. Wait. Was I counting?" I shook my head. "It doesn't matter. Number two. Derrick was smart." My dad told me how he worked his way up from the mailroom to be distribution manager of my father's company, Love Foods.
"That brings me to number three," I lifted my middle finger, "everyone loved Derrick." Well, everyone but my sister, Bea. "He's the life of the party and the friend who would be there when you needed him."
I once saw him cradle a squirrel in his palm. It was in shock from almost being run over. Then with gentle ease, Derrick placed the creature on the grass.
"He's a freaking animal savior for God's sake! How did I react to animals? I ran screaming and hid in some stranger's home. Only to plop my dirty butt on their floor and start a conversation with myself.
"And last, but never least, Olivia, you have a unique ability to pick men that use you and never really love you. Some may call this ability a superpower if superpowers were abominable."
Royal Disgrace (Cake Love Book 5) Page 15
