“I forgot how big your cock is,” she said, smiling slyly.
“I must not be fucking you right for you to forget such a thing.”
I rooted around in my pocket for a condom. I always carried one with me. I never knew when I might find use for one and the last thing I needed was a royal bastard scandal.
“Well,” she said. “I suppose you can make up for that now.”
I slid the condom down the length of me and brought my lips to Kat’s ear.
“Oh, Kitty Kat, this will be a fuck you’ll never forget,” I hissed, plunging my cock in to the hilt.
Kat moaned and her fingers scraped down the wall. It was music to my ears. I let her adjust for a moment and then pulled out, shoving back in again with even more force.
She gripped me perfectly. Her molten heat was heaven.
I groped her fiercely, squashing her tits in my hands, then slipping one hand down to her sex to rub her clit as I sawed in and out. Kat moaned my name, but not my real name. How I wished it could be my real name she was moaning. I would kill to hear it fall from those pretty lips in pleasure.
I kissed her neck, grunting and groaning as pleasure flooded my balls. I wouldn’t be able to last much longer. I’d been on edge all night with her, tingling from the very thought of her touch. Having her was overwhelming.
Her moans grew higher, more frantic.
“Oh, fuck,” she moaned. “Dennis, I’m cumming. Oh god, I’m cumming.”
I bit her neck. “Fuck yes, Kitty Kat. Cum on my cock.”
The next time I slammed in she came apart, gripping my cock with each pulse of her muscles. My eyes rolled to the back of my head and I released. The orgasm was intense, fire shooting straight from my cock into her. I fell forward against her, forehead bent into her shoulder as I tried to catch my breath.
A second later, Kat chuckled and turned. I lifted my head, feeling my mask jiggle on my face. I realized a moment too late the sensation was because the thing was loose.
I tried to stop it from falling but I was too slow, too drained from the sex. I managed to catch it as it fell toward the floor, but that didn’t stop her from seeing my face.
Kat’s eyes grew wide. She slapped a hand over her mouth.
“Oh my god!” she hissed in horror. “You’re...”
She didn’t finish her sentence. Before I could say a word, Kat pulled up her panties, pulled down her skirt, and pushed past me.
I hurriedly adjusted my pants. “Kat, wait!”
She didn’t reply, darting from the room like it was on fire.
Only moments before it had been.
Chapter 4
Tamara
My hands shook so much that the text I sent to my sister came out garbled, but the message was clear. We need to go. Now.
I didn’t linger in the hall in case Dennis came down after me. No, not Dennis. Alexander. Prince freaking Alexander.
What had I done?
The fresh air felt like heaven on my feverish skin. I hung behind a group of people still milling outside until I caught a glimpse of Jo’s auburn head bobbing out the door, then grabbed her and leapt into a taxi.
“What’s the rush?” Jo asked, settling into the backseat.
“Nothing,” I said, slamming the door shut. I let out a relieved sigh and gave the driver my address.
Jo’s cheeks were flushed with drink and a dreamy smile eclipsed her face. Apparently satisfied with my answer, she started telling me about her night.
“You would not believe how amazing this guy is, sis,” she said, sighing. “Tall, handsome, incredibly smart. He’s a little geeky even, which I love. His name’s Tristan and he’s the son of a duke. Can you believe that?”
“I can,” I said, tasting the irony.
“I can’t wait to see him again. He said he’s going to take me on his boat down the river to see the sights. Don’t you think that’s the most romantic thing?”
I grunted in acknowledgement, mind whirring. How was I supposed to process the fact that I’d just had sex with a prince? Amazing sex. Phenomenal sex. The kind of sex you know you’re going to be thinking about when you’re old and gray.
No wonder he looked familiar. How had I not seen it earlier? Prince Alexander’s face was plastered on almost every tabloid in the country. His exploits with partying and women were so well-documented that someone who was a complete stranger moments before became somebody I knew an awful lot about. And now, I was just another of his conquests.
“Hey!” Jo waved her hand in front of my face. “I’m talking to you.”
I shook myself out of it. “Sorry. I’m distracted.”
“What happened in there? Is everything okay?”
I sighed and looked anxiously at the taxi driver. “I can’t tell you here,” I said. “Once we get home we’ll talk about it. I’m okay though.”
“Okay...” A troubled expression darkened her face, but we were close to my flat.
I wondered how Jo would react. She would probably think it was the best thing since sliced bread and demand to know why I left in such a hurry. But she’d never had her life unstitched and examined, thread by thread, by the public. She didn’t know how it felt to have her personal business broadcast to the world, or how it felt to be made a fool of. I’d been run over by the media circus before and I wasn’t keen for a repeat. If anybody found out that Prince Alexander and I had sex, the resulting explosion of news would knock me out. I couldn’t handle that. Not again.
The cabbie stopped at my flat and after I paid him, I darted toward my front door. I knew we hadn’t been followed but I still felt antsy and wouldn’t calm until I reached the safety of my home.
Inside, I dropped my stuff by the door and bee-lined for the kitchen. Jo followed me, stumbling a little.
“What happened, Tam-tam? You’re starting to freak me out.”
I grabbed a bottle of wine from the fridge and two glasses, pouring us each one. She waited patiently until I handed her a glass.
I took a gulp of mine. How to say it? Best just to get it out.
“What I’m about to say, you can’t tell anyone Jo.” I leveled my gaze with hers. “I mean it. Not a single soul.”
She crossed her heart. “Your secret’s safe with me.”
I believed her. She might be an annoying little sister at times, but I could always rely on her not to break my confidence.
“That guy tonight, the one I was with,” I said. I stopped and took another drink. “Well, I had sex with him.”
“And that’s why you’re so freaked out?”
I shook my head.
“I’m freaked out because I found out afterward that he wasn’t just any guy. He was Prince Alexander.”
Jo’s face fell flat for a minute as she processed, then her eyes grew wide as saucers. “The Prince Alexander?”
I nodded grimly. “He said he wasn’t supposed to be there so we used fake names. I had no idea.”
“Nope. Can’t be.” Jo shook her head, jogging toward her bedroom and coming back a second later with her laptop. “That’s impossible. What are the chances of running into a prince in disguise and having sex with him?”
“It doesn’t matter what the odds are,” I replied. “It happened.”
Jo tapped on her keyboard and then turned the screen toward me. She’d Googled images of the prince.
He looked different in the pictures from the way I’d last seen him—a curl of hair over his brow, face so close I could see the shadow of stubble on his chin, eyes glinting. Still, it was him.
“No doubt in my mind.” I poked the screen. “I just had sex with that guy.”
I gulped another mouthful of wine. Jo put her laptop down and did the same.
“Let’s go to the couch,” she suggested.
I nodded and followed her, and we both plunked down on the couch.
“I wish I could live your life,” Jo said.
“This isn’t a good thing, Jo.” I stared blankly ahead, grinding my teeth
. “One false move and I could have had my face splashed all over the tabloids and nasty things written about me.”
“But you didn’t make any false moves. You screwed a prince and got away scot free.” She patted my arm. “And all I got was the son of a duke.”
I chuckled and went to take another sip of wine, when a flash of gold caught my eye.
Oh. Fuck.
I stared at the ring on my left hand with an expression of horror.
“I didn’t get away scot free,” I said. “I stole his ring! Oh God, Jo, I stole from the prince!”
I jumped up from the couch and started pacing the room, pulling the ring off like it was burning me. Jo got up and tried to stop me, but when I started to pace there was no stopping me.
“I’m going to get deported,” I said. “They’re going to catch me, arrest me, and deport me, and everyone’s going to think I’m some sort of nasty thief. I didn’t mean to take it.” I looked to the door like somebody might knock it down at any moment. “What am I going to do, Jo?”
Jo leaned against the wall, smirking. I stopped and glared at her.
“This is serious, Jo!”
“No, this is awesome,” she corrected. “You’re serious. Too serious.” She pushed off from the wall and came to stand in front of me, taking the ring and examining it.
“Looks expensive.” She grinned. “You got to have sex with a prince and you got free jewelry out of it. That’s a win-win as far as I’m concerned.”
“Of course you’d think that,” I said, snatching the band back. “It didn’t happen to you.”
Her smile softened and she rubbed my shoulder affectionately. “I know that what happened with Michael sucked and it’s stuck with you, but you’ve got to relax a little. Whatever happens is going to happen. Worrying about it won’t help.”
The last thing I wanted to think about when I was already stressed to high hell was my asshole ex. It was hard enough that I still had to see him on set every day.
“I’m going to bed,” I announced. “I think I’ve had enough excitement for the evening. I just want to get some sleep.”
Jo nodded. “Fair enough. You’ll feel better in the morning.”
I doubted that.
I bid Jo goodnight and went into my room, changing out of my gown into a pair of comfy pjs and hopping into bed. Since I didn’t know what else to do with it, I placed the ring on my bedside table.
I turned on my side in bed and stared at it.
Tonight was amazing. Spectacular. I wished I could live it over and over again, even with the way it ended. I hadn’t had sex like that since...well, ever. I hadn’t connected with someone like that in a long time either. That was one of the things that made this all so hard.
I wished Alex wasn’t a prince. Specifically, I wished he wasn’t a prince with a playboy reputation and an intense media following.
It was just my luck to have one of the best nights of my life ruined because the man I’d felt a profound connection to was the least appropriate match for me on the planet.
I decided I would try to see the events of the evening in a good light, not a bad one. Jo was right in her way. Apart from the ring, which I would deal with another time, I’d gotten away scot free. Alexander had no idea who I was, where I lived, anything. I got to have an amazing night and I could just take it at face value.
I just wished it wouldn’t have to be just that. I hadn’t felt that amazing for a long time, and knowing that I wouldn’t again for a long time was a tough pill to swallow. I’d had a taste of the prince and now I craved him.
I just hoped the cravings wouldn’t last.
Chapter 5
Alexander
The door slammed closed. I swore.
I couldn’t run back out into the party until my mask was on, so I hurriedly affixed it and then bolted after Kat. Could I still call her Kat if the illusion was broken? Now wasn’t the time to wonder.
I jogged down the stairs, scouring the crowd of people heading toward the door. I didn’t recognize the familiar crown of dark hair anywhere. Where was she?
I pushed my way onto the front steps and stood, breathless, scanning the faces of everyone out there smoking or getting into cabs. Nothing. She was gone.
Teddy’s face swam into my vision, mouth lolling open in a drunken smile. His mask, red with little devil horns that were typically Teddy, was askew, just like his bow tie.
“There’s my little princeling,” Teddy crooned, hooking his arm through mine and dragging me down the steps. “I don’t know about you, but tonight has been a resounding success for me. I’ve got at least two new clients and three new boyfriends.”
I chuckled bitterly. “I’ve got a wife, but I can’t find her anywhere.”
We stopped at the bottom of the steps and Teddy lit up a smoke, sucking in with a lazy smile. “A wife, eh? Didn’t figure you for the marrying type.”
“Me neither.”
“What happened?”
I frowned. “I don’t know.”
“Well I’ve got just the thing to lift your spirits.” He patted me heartily on the shoulder. “We’re going to an after party. Real hush-hush scene, won’t even need the mask. There’s a couple girls going to be there who are very keen to meet you.” He winked, as if his meaning was in any way covert.
I shook my head. “Not tonight, Teddy. I just want to go home.”
“Home? That’s dull of you.”
“Married life will do that to a man.”
Teddy let out a barking laugh. He took another drag of his smoke.
“If you must go back to your gilded cage, fly free my birdie,” he said. “I’ll be around the next time you need someone to break you out.”
He hailed a cab and got inside, then was gone. I got in the next one, giving the driver directions to a place not far from my “gilded cage”.
Teddy loathed everything to do with the class system, including the concept of royalty. He was a new age bohemian, the son of an earl who threw off the shackles of family duty and went out into the world to cut hair and make his own way. He was blind to his own hypocrisy, but I didn’t fault him for it. If Teddy wanted to pretend he had no use for a title while still using his status and that of his best friend to get into the best clubs and parties, that was fine with me. I knew his aversion to class came more from his family’s aversion to his sexuality than anything else, and he was a good man. If he wanted to have the best of both worlds, more power to him. Unfortunately, it wasn’t so easy for me.
I snuck back into the palace without incident, going straight up to my room. I wouldn’t risk being caught tonight. Not when I’d already been exposed once.
Hank pounced on me when I came through the door, excitedly sniffling up all the strange scents on my clothes. I scratched behind his ears and we got into bed.
Hank fell asleep right away, snoring like he always did. It was like sleeping next to a cement mixer.
I didn’t fall asleep. I couldn’t. I lay awake for hours, thinking about the beautiful girl who’d enchanted me all evening. The beautiful girl who’d run from me.
Who was she? If my mask hadn’t come off, if I’d had some time to explain, maybe I would know right now. Maybe I would get to see her again. As it stood, however, my Cinderella left no slipper. I had no idea how I would find her in the churning pool of the city’s elite, and I doubted she would be reaching out to me anytime soon.
I had to find her, though. I needed to see her again. She might have been shocked by my identity, but I knew she felt everything that happened between us tonight. It was special. It was right.
I woke early in the morning. Rather, Sir Hank woke me. I took him out for a pee and headed to the staff kitchen for a cup of tea. I wasn’t the only one who had such an idea.
“Do you ever do anything but drink tea and watch your show?” I asked Nana, who was perched at her spot at the end of the island.
It had always been her spot. It was where she stood when we made cookies, wher
e she sat with me over a warm cup of hot chocolate as a kid and talked me through the heartbreak of my mom’s death.
Mom had a spot too, one nobody sat in to this day. Right next to Nana. If ever I couldn’t find Mom when I was little, I’d come down here and find her and Nana engrossed in conversation, steaming mugs in their hands. I could almost see them there still.
“I do a great deal other than drinking tea and watching my show,” Nana said impetuously. “Not that you’d know. You’re never around.”
“Words hurt, Nana.” I flicked on the kettle and rested against the counter, waiting for it to boil.
She continued staring at her laptop screen. Nana liked to focus on one thing at a time, and conversation never ranked high early in the morning.
I found a mug and a tea bag, and was rooting through the fridge for a piece of ham to offer Hank when I heard it.
A voice. Not just any voice—her voice.
It was Kat. She wasn’t using her American accent, but there was no mistaking it. I’d heard her voice enough last night to recognize it anywhere.
I dropped the slice of ham and Hank launched himself at it. Nana didn’t notice my alarm until I rounded the island and leaned close to the screen, pointing at the figure of a beautiful woman. Kat.
“Who’s that?”
Nana looked at me skeptically. “The actress?”
“Yes.”
“Tamara Callahan,” she said.
I knew it. My heart fluttered and a shot of adrenaline kicked me in the head. The kettle boiled but I ignored it, entranced by the action on screen.
“Tell me more about this show,” I said.
Nana chuckled. “Oh, now you want to talk about my show.”
“Nana. Please.”
“It’s called Princess of Nowhere,” she told me. “It’s set just after the dissolution of the Austrian nobility in 1919, and Miss Callahan plays an Austrian princess raised here who finds herself suddenly a commoner. They’re filming the second season now if I’m not mistaken.”
That made sense why Tamara would be in the country. I couldn’t believe my stroke of luck.
“Nana,” I said, kissing her on the top of the head. “You are the sun to my sky.”
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