by J. S. Cooper
Keeping My Prince Charming
J. S. Cooper
Thank you for reading Keeping My Prince Charming. Please join my mailing list to receive updates on new books.
Copyright © 2015 by J.S. Cooper
All rights reserved.
This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is entirely coincidental. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
Keeping My Prince Charming should be read after Finding My Prince Charming and Taming My Prince Charming. It is the final book in the Prince Charming series.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Epilogue
Note From the Author
Prologue
Sex. Love. Lies. Secrets. Money. That’s my world now. That’s the world I’ve found myself in. I feel a bit like Alice in Wonderland, spinning around and discombobulated. Up is down and down is up. Nothing makes sense and yet it all makes absolute sense. I never would have believed that I, Lola Franklin, would have found myself in a world of fairytales. Maybe that’s because I didn’t believe they existed. And I wasn’t wrong. At least, not the fairytales that Disney spins us. They don’t exist completely. However, one thing is true: I did meet my Prince Charming. My very own imperfect Prince Charming.
Every woman wants to meet her Prince Charming. She wants a man who will sweep her off of her feet. She wants a man who will love her above everyone else. She wants a man who will love her as if he couldn’t live without her. She wants a man who can think of no one but her. Yes, every woman wants a Prince Charming. The real question is: how do you find, tame and keep him? That is the question that we all want answered. Finding a great guy is only part of the battle. It’s the taming and the keeping of the guy that’re the real challenge. And it’s an even bigger challenge if that man is Xavier Van Romerius.
Chapter One
Lola
“Let me touch you. Let me stir the passions in your soul until they became a storm of desire. I want your waves to crash down all over me. I want your rain to pour in my mouth. I want to feel your body move to the earthquake inside. I want to make your volcano erupt on top of me so that I don’t even remember where I end and you begin.” Casper stepped toward me with a threatening smile, his hands outstretched,and I blanched at his gaze. What was I doing here, in this room, with this man—this man whose words made a mockery of the beauty of lovemaking?
There was a stirring in my stomach as I stood in the cold, poorly lit room. I could hear the sounds of music playing in other parts of the palace. There were bursts of laughter, and all I could wonder was if they were laughing at me. Lola Franklin, the American slut fiancée of Prince Xavier of Romerius. My cheeks burned in shame as I stared at Casper, his handsome face gazing at me as if I were his Sunday dinner and he was very, very hungry.
There’s always a moment in life that makes you question your sanity. Sometimes it lasts longer than others. Sometimes it’s gone in a blip of time. Often, that moment seems to stop time. Like now. I felt like time had stopped as I stood there with Casper and the traitor.
“So, what do you say?” Casper looked at me with dark eyes full of desire. “I promise we can give you more pleasure than you’ve ever experienced.” His voice was melodic and sensual, as if trying to seduce me with its sound alone. The sound was calming to my body and I felt a tingling between my legs as I stared at his virile body, so obviously wanting me. His arms were strong and muscular and, for a brief second, I imagined him on top of me, pinning my arms back as he took me roughly. Casper was a man who would dominate me and take what he wanted with precision. “Are you thinking of how much pleasure I can give you, Lola?” He stepped forward again, his fingers lightly brushing my hair off of my shoulder as he bent down and kissed the skin next to my collarbone softly. His lips were warm and firm, and I froze. Everything about this moment was so wrong, but my body was expectant, waiting, and defiant. My body wanted to let him take me so I could get back at Xavier. I felt like this was my chance to make him hurt as he had hurt me.
“We can make this the best night of your life.” Casper gazed into my eyes expectantly and then leaned toward my ear and blew gently. His breath tickled my ear and I felt a thrill of excitement run through my body unexpectedly. My body was reacting to him, even though my brain wanted nothing to do with him. Then I felt the tip of his tongue running down my neck. He licked back up and I felt his tongue on my lips. I gasped as he smirked at me, his eyes sparkling into mine as he dared me to let him continue. “I can give you more pleasure than you believed possible. Let me take you on a journey. Let us take you on a journey,” he said huskily and I jumped back suddenly. His words broke me out of my reverie and I looked past him to the figure by the door.
“No, no, and no.” My voice was loud as I answered his questions, but faced right. “And you, Tarquin, how could you?” My voice caught as I stared at Xavier’s cousin. “I thought we were friends?”
“We are friends. I want to be more than friends, though.” He licked his lips and I shivered as he stepped toward me with a glint in his eyes. “Don’t you think I’m handsome?”
“Tarquin!” I chastised him. “Where is this coming from? You know I’m engaged to Xavier.”
“Yeah, right.” He laughed and then looked at Casper uncertainly. I looked at Casper, whose face had changed to a grimace and I knew he was responsible for Tarquin’s entrance into the room.
“What game are you playing?” My voice was tight as I stared at him. “Why are you here, Tarquin?”
“My brother asked me to—”
“Your brother?” My jaw dropped. “Casper is your brother?”
“Yes.” He nodded, looking more and more unsure of himself.
“So Casper is Xavier’s cousin as well?”
“You’re smarter than you look.” Casper gazed at me with a sneer.
“Excuse me?” I frowned at his tone.
“Casper.” Tarquin spoke up. “That was rude. Lola doesn’t deserve to be talked to like that.”
“Tarquin,” Casper said, turning to him, “you’re lucky that you’re even here. You know, technically, it’s against the rules for you to be here.”
“You’re the one that told me to come.” Tarquin looked annoyed but unsure of himself.
“Didn’t you tell me that you liked her?” Casper looked me up and down. “Didn’t you tell me you wished that you had a chance with her?”
“Casper.” Tarquin blushed. “Why are you saying all of this?”
“Isn’t it true? Isn’t this what you wanted?” Casper’s lip curled. “Isn’t this the girl?”
“Casper.” Tarquin’s eyes flashed at his brother murderously and I wondered what Casper was talking about. Had Tarquin talked about me to his brother? What had he said? I hadn’t gotten any vibes from Tarquin that he’d been interested in me. He couldn’t possibly be interested in me, could he?
“So what’re you going to do, Lola?” Casper turned toward me. “Stick with the prince you know wants you? Or wait around for Xavier? Xavi
er, the man that’s probably fucking Violeta as we speak.”
“You’re disgusting.” I shook my head, finally coming out of my shock and haze. “How could you do this to me?” I turned to Tarquin. “After everything...I thought we were friends.” I looked into his eyes and let him see my unveiled hurt and pain. He deserved to see how much he’d hurt me.
“Lola.” Xavier’s voice was loud as he shouted down the corridor. “Lola, where are you?”
“I’m in here, Xavier,” I cried out and ran to the door. “I’m in here.” I opened the door and Xavier stood there in front of me, his eyes distraught as he looked me over.
“What’s going on in here?” He looked behind me at Casper and Tarquin and then at my ashen face. “Are you okay, Lola?”
“I’d like to go home, please,” I whispered, my voice shaking. I didn’t want him to ask me what had happened or what was going to happen. I didn’t want him to know that for one split second, I had been considering going along with Casper. Not because I liked Casper or wanted him, but because I was hurt and confused and jealous. I closed my eyes for a second, wishing that I was back home in Florida. All of a sudden, my mundane life didn’t seem so trite and boring. I’d give anything for boring right now. I’d give anything to be away from here and these men. All of whom were looking at me with a mixture of lust, distaste, worry, concern and anger. This wasn’t what my experience in Europe was meant to be like. This wasn’t meant to be my love story: stripping in front of a group of men, swinging my hips, touching my breasts. My face reddened at the memories. I just wanted to die. Or be magically swept away from this place.
“Let’s go.” Xavier grabbed my arm, his eyes bleak as he turned towards Casper. “I expected better from you.”
“Better from me?” Casper laughed, his voice unashamed and arrogant. “Who do you think you are? Prince Charming come to rescue his Cinderella or Sleeping Beauty?”
“I don’t think Sleeping Beauty here gets much sleep,” Tarquin joked, and Xavier turned toward him.
“You were like a brother to me, Tarquin. I’m so disappointed in you.” Xavier’s voice dropped to a low murmur, and Tarquin’s face twisted in confusion and pain.
“I wasn’t doing anything to hurt you,” he whispered, unsure of himself now. He looked towards his brother for backup, but all Casper could do was stand there and smirk.
“Stop being all high and mighty, Xavier.” Violeta suddenly appeared at the door and her face looked hurt. “Why don’t you tell Lola who you really are?”
“Who I really am?”
“Why don’t you tell her about us?”
“She knows that we dated and that you mean nothing to me.”
“Does she know about the baby you made me give up? Does she know why you went to London?”
“Baby?” I gasped, all color fleeing my face as I took in her words and looked at Xavier’s darkening expression.
“She’s lying,” Xavier said, his voice tight.
“Does this look like I’m lying?” Violeta walked over to me and I watched as she flipped through her phone and showed me a photo of her in what appeared to be a hospital bed with a baby. A newborn baby. Violeta’s face looked stressed and loving as she gazed at the baby. It was evident from her expression in the photo that she’d loved the baby.
“Xavier?” I looked at him with wide eyes.
“Lola.” He blinked at me, his face looking angry.
“Is that your son?”
“It’s his.” Violeta grabbed my arm. “Do you really want to be with a man that would so callously leave the mother of his child? He made me give my son away. That is why I’m bitter. That is why I want to take him down. That is why I want to expose him for who he is. He’s not a prince of the people. He’s a prince that …” Violeta’s voice trailed off at Xavier’s expression.
“Do you really want to play this game?” Xavier looked at Violeta. “Do you want to go down this road, with me?”
“Don’t threaten Violeta.” Casper stepped forward. “We will expose you, Xavier.”
“I wouldn’t throw stones, Casper.” Xavier’s voice was soft. “You know what they say about people who live in glass houses. I wouldn’t want everything to come crashing down on top of you.”
“Who do you think you are?” Casper’s face contorted as he stared at Xavier, and all of his charm and good looks disappeared in an instant.
“Let’s go, Lola.” Xavier sighed deeply and we exited the room in silence. He stopped briefly in the corridor, pulled his jacket off and handed it to me. “Wear this,” he said stiffly, and he watched as I pulled it on and buttoned it up quickly. We continued walking in silence until we made our way outside and a valet pulled up to the front with a car. “Get in,” he said, his tone still low and his eyes dark. I knew that he was upset with me, and was probably questioning what I’d been doing in the room. I felt like it was a double standard. Why was he allowed to be mad at me when he had been with Violeta? Why was he the one who was acting like he was wronged when Violeta had just dropped a bomb on me?
The car pulled away and I sat back, shivering in the seat, feeling more alone than I’d ever felt in my life. And then something snapped in me. This wasn’t my fault. I wasn’t the bad person here.
“So you’re just going to ignore me?” I turned towards Xavier, fuming in my anger. “Don’t you think you owe me an explanation?”
“I don’t think I’m ignoring you.” His lips curled up as he stared at me. “I’m taking you home, aren’t I?”
“In silence,” I huffed. “And when you do talk to me it’s with an attitude.”
“Att-i-tude?” he said slowly and deliberately. “I have an attitude?”
“Yes, you do. Stop acting like I’m some whore or plaything.” I turned away from him. “I didn’t ask for this.”
“What do you want from me, Lola?” He asked so softly that I barely heard him.
“I want you to be a prince.” I shrugged, suddenly embarrassed to tell him everything I was thinking. I wanted him to tell me that he was sorry for this whole mess and that he wanted to start again. I wanted him to tell me that this was all a dream or some weird test or anything other than what it was.
“I am a prince,” he said simply. He gazed at me then, his eyes traveling down my body, noticing my uncomfortable slouch and tense shoulders. “I’m not a Prince Charming, though, Lola. They don’t exist. At least I don’t know any princes that would fit into fairytales.” His fingers caressed the top of my head. “Real life isn’t a Disney cartoon.”
“I never said it was.” I bit my lower lip to stop it from trembling.
“I’m not going to ride up on my white horse and whisk you away to a castle.” He rolled his eyes. “This isn’t some magical ride, and the world of royalty isn’t something to be envied and fantasized about. I mean, there is a ride I can take you on, but it will be very bumpy, if you know what I mean.” He paused and licked his lips as he stared at me. “Though, I’ve heard bumpy rides are the most enjoyable.”
“I never fantasized about being royalty.” I moved away from him, annoyed at his assumption. It was true that I’d never been someone that had any aspirations to become a part of the aristocracy, but I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that a small part of me had dreamed of being swept away and wooed by a prince. Who didn’t want a man to love and cherish them? Who didn’t want to be taken on a magical ride of love?
“This world—my world—is dark and deep and sinister. There are no happy endings. No fairytales. No knights in shining armor. There are just men that have titles and men that have money. And there are some men, like me, that have both, money and titles. We’re all just human. We’re not gods. We’re just like regular people, but we play more dangerous games. I am not the father of Violeta’s baby. This is part of her game to intimidate you to leave me. This is just the start of the games that we will find ourselves in.”
“What games?”
“You really want to know, Lola? You really want to
be exposed to that darkness?”
“You’ve already exposed me to it,” I said softly, hugging his jacket around me tighter. “You already exposed me to Casper and I can’t imagine it gets much darker than him.”
“Then you can’t imagine much.” His eyes searched mine, and for a few seconds we just stared at each other in the darkness. “How do you think most of the royal families got into power, Lola? Do you think God came down and said, ‘I think you and you and you should rule the others’?”
“No.”
“Have you seen Game of Thrones?”
“A few episodes.” I nodded.
“That show is like my real life, Lola. Families fight and lie and backstab to get into power. That is how all the royal families in the world have gotten into power. Our history is deep and dark.” He sat back. “And that is why I love art. I need color in my life. I need life. I need beauty. I need something that hasn’t been spoiled by greed.”
“That’s why you love art so much?”
“Yes, that’s why I love art. And that’s why I’m an art professor.” He sighed. “I want to know that, for at least part of my life, I lived for me.”
“And the rest of your life...?” My voice trailed off as I stared at him, my brain ticking a hundred miles a minute. “The rest of your life you become a part of the darkness?”
“This is who I am, Lola.” He turned to me and grabbed my hand. “I was so worried when I walked into that room. So worried that something had happened to you. I made a mistake by bringing you here. It was unfair to subject you to this life.”
“What are you saying?” I frowned at the look in his eyes.
“I’m saying that I think you should go home.”
“But what about the engagement?”
“It was fake. We both know that. It was a stupid idea. I shouldn’t have taken advantage of your good nature. I just wanted to be with you. I wanted to see what we...” His voice trailed off and he looked away. “It’s not important now.”
