Royal Master

by Emilia Beaumont

  My door knocker thudded and I froze in bed before quietly throwing off the covers. I grabbed the cricket bat from under the bed, my dad’s from years ago that I’d kept so my mum couldn’t give it away to charity, then eased as quietly as I could to the window.

  Word about the dance must’ve gotten out quick and I was fully expecting to see paparazzi on my doorstep at this late hour. Even if there hadn’t been cameras allowed at the ball, that didn’t mean no one would blab or sneak a camera phone in. As soon as it leaked the vermin would come out in full force and I fully intended to defend myself if they got rowdy out there. I would scare them off, and maybe looking like a crazy woman wielding a cricket bat would change the narrative and maybe even quash the story and rumours.

  I pulled back the net curtain an inch and found the inky-black pavement empty. The road glistened with recent rainfall but it was clear of news vans, so at least that was a good sign. I couldn’t see the front door from my elevated position, only the shadowed porch, so there could still very well be a reporter on my doorstep.

  Trying to make as little noise as possible I made my way downstairs and peered through the spy-hole.

  Definitely not a reporter.

  Taking a breath, I tripped the locks and opened the door. “William?”

  It had started raining while I had been closeted in my apartment but it had eased up to a drizzle now. A veil of grey shadows masked his profile but I could clearly see that he was soaked from head to toe, his hair darker than ever with the accumulation of rain. The collar on his suit jacket was also popped up but it looked like it hadn’t helped much. In actual fact he looked like he’d been out, walking around, for hours.

  “What on earth are you doing here? It’s the middle of the night.”

  His clear blue eyes shone, never leaving me. There was something different about him, some of his cockiness gone from his stance tonight and I was instantly concerned.

  “Can I come in or do you intend on whacking me with your bat?”

  For a split second I thought about telling him to bugger off, to leave me alone. Hadn’t he already done enough damage for an entire lifetime? But I couldn’t. I knew I couldn’t turn him away. Besides, I’d already tried that and he hadn’t taken the hint.

  Eventually I’d come to my senses, the oxygen returning to my brain as we had come up for air after our long kiss in the gardens. I could tell he had wanted to take it further, and he even leaned in again for round two, but my resolve had bolstered itself. Thankfully it had been helped along by a call in the distance, coming from the palace, which had interrupted the moment. Charlotte had called for her brother as the clatter of her heels echoed towards us.

  Managing to move my arm, I had pushed my palm against William’s chest. “You better go. It sounds like you’re needed.”

  His eyes had narrowed, a flicker of defiance swept across them. A look that almost made me think he would ignore his sister’s calls and drag me off deeper into the gardens and proceed to rip my gown from my body. A part of me had wished he had, and I blushed remembering the thought. But the calls had become insistent and increasingly closer in proximity.

  Will had signalled for me to be quiet, his finger pressed against his lips. “I’ll be right back. Don’t go anywhere,” he had whispered.

  I had faked a smile and with a shooing motion encouraged him to go. And as soon as he was out of sight I had disobeyed him and made like a scared white rabbit towards my car.

  “Sophie?”

  “Oh yeah, right,” I replied, his voice slamming me back into the present. I propped the bat against the wall and stepped aside. I heard the door shut behind me as I walked into the living room and reached for the laundry basket of freshly folded towels I hadn’t put away yet, and grabbed two fluffy pink ones from the stack. “Here,” I said softly, handing them over to him. “The bathroom is right over there. Go dry yourself off.”

  For a second he hesitated, then nodded, taking the towels from me. The tips of his fingers, whether accidentally or not, made contact with mine for a dazzling moment, causing me to suck in a much needed breath and I stepped away from him. Everything was telling me to keep my distance. A tiny smirk appeared at the corner of his mouth but he turned and walked away, shutting the bathroom door behind him.

  I blew out the tension, my lungs deflating as I tried to get myself together again. I was already regretting letting him in.

  Distracting myself I straightened up the living room and then stood as far away from the bathroom as I could without it looking peculiar. Who was I kidding? I stuck out like a sore thumb.

  The clock ticked loudly as I waited for William to reappear. It was well past two in the morning and I couldn’t help but wonder why William had decided to turn up now. Heck, we should both probably be asleep. I needed my rest in order to start the long and odious process of looking for a new job. There was no point dilly-dallying. I would prepare an updated resume and get a head start. Monday morning I would be packing up my things at the office and walking out of the palace for the last time.

  The door opened and I turned to see his bare chest, the pink towel wrapped around his waist that stopped short at mid-thigh.

  Oh. My. God.

  I hadn’t meant to give him one of the small towels, but then I hadn’t meant for him to strip off and come out of there practically naked. In other words, I wasn’t thinking.

  My cheeks went aflame as my eyes travelled down from his thick ropey arms, over his firm pecs, then further down to his rippled abdomen. The need to swallow was overwhelming but I bit my tongue and resisted the urge. But then my gaze lingered on a faint trail of dark hair that disappeared under the fluff of my faded towel. There was no denying a monster lay beneath. My blush grew deeper and I forced my gaze away, wringing my hands.

  “I, uh, I can throw your clothes in the dryer.”

  “Thanks,” he said, his bare feet drawing nearer to me. Instead of letting him get close I darted the opposite way towards the bathroom and scooped up his sodden clothes that he’d left draped on the shower rail.

  Back out in the living room I barely glanced at him, leaving him alone while I busied myself in the kitchen. I lingered for a few moments after setting the dryer on its cycle, but I knew I couldn’t hide out in the there forever.

  “I’ll go see if I have a baggy t-shirt that’ll fit you,” I said when I reappeared, fully intending on spending as little time as possible in the same room as him. Especially when he was practically naked.

  “Sophie, wait,” he said in that low commanding tone he liked to use when he wanted something. I halted my forward motion as if he’d just pressed pause. “We need to talk.”

  I bit the inside of my lip and kept my gaze on my task, knowing if I looked up, I would be nearly eye level with his gorgeous, naked self. I couldn’t handle that right now. The spell on my immobile legs thawed and I went to walk past him. He reached out, grabbing my arm, and forced me to look up at him. His jaw was clenched so tightly that I wondered if he was giving himself a headache. But there was something in his eyes, something vulnerable lingering beneath the surface, and I couldn’t pull away from him.

  “I told you to stay. Why did you leave the garden?”

  “You know exactly why I left, William. Or should I still be calling you Sir?”

  “You disobeyed me.” His grip tightened upon my forearm, and he tugged me closer.

  Steeling myself, I stood my ground. “I’m not yours to order around!”

  He frowned and his nostrils flared but I couldn’t stop myself from continuing.

  “I can never be yours. Whatever you think is happening here, between us, has to stop. I certainly won’t be a party to it. I’m not going to be some secret mistress on the side, William. You may think this is all fun and games but—”

  “But what?”

  “I won’t let you toy with me!”

  “Are you quite finished?” he said quietly. He was still dangerously close.

  I narrowed my e
yes at him, fuming. “Yes. Now let me go,” I said, not believing I could trust myself with his hands still on me. “I think you should leave.”

  He chuckled and released me and I felt like I could finally breathe again. “Sit down, Sophie.”

  I crossed my arms. “This is my house!”

  “Don’t make me ask you again. I told you we need to talk. And that’s what we’re going to do.”

  I drew in a ragged breath. “I’ve said my piece, you really should just go.”

  “Not gonna happen. You’re perfectly welcome to call the police and have them try and chuck me out though. I’m sure nothing bad or scandalous would come from that.” He smirked again as he clutched the towel around his lean waist and sat defiantly at one end of the sofa. His rigid position telling me he was settling in for the night if need be.

  There was an irritable scream inside me wanting to burst free. How could one man be so annoying and yet so delicious all at the same time? With a coy smile he patted the sofa cushion next to him, wanting me to join him. I let out a grumble and flopped down as far as way as possible from him, crammed into the corner of the sofa. However, the distance didn’t prevent myself from watching him. And the position he’d taken up on the sofa had made the towel rise up his thighs, barely covering… dear lord.

  It was too early to be going through menopause but a sudden hot flash crackled all over my skin. I wasn’t going to be able to survive much longer if I didn’t get some clothes on this man. There was only so much willpower in me, and my reserves were already so goddamn low.

  I crossed my arms and legs again, and angled my body in the opposite direction to his. I pinned my gaze on the peeling paint directly ahead of me. William was to my left.

  “So get on with it. What did you want to talk to me about?”

  “I fucked up tonight,” he said a moment later, and I caught myself looking at him full of surprise. It wasn’t exactly like Will to admit his faults.

  “Oh yeah? Care to elaborate? Cause if this is supposed to be an apology for forcing me onto that dance floor, in front of all those people, and making a fool out of me, then I’m not hearing it.”

  “Well, if you give me half a bloody chance!”

  I sat silent and waited.

  “Sophie, look at me.”

  “No.”

  “Oh for heaven’s sake,” he muttered and shuffled along the sofa. The cushions dipped and I felt his warmth radiate off of him. His bare leg brushed up against my pyjama covered thigh. I could even smell him. The earthy tang of the streets after it’d been raining mixed in with a undeniable mouth-watering spicy note that was pure William. Eau de Prince.

  “Look. I get it. I shouldn’t have put you in that position. But didn’t you at least enjoy it? Don’t lie to me.”

  I ignored his question; nothing good would come from entering that particular minefield.

  “Are you here to sack me?” I asked softly, wrapping my arms around my waist to protect me from the words I was sure I was about to hear.

  He gave me a half smile. “Why on earth would I fire you? You know things that can never be spoken—”

  “Oh I see,” I interrupted. “I get it. You can’t let me go cause I know too much.”

  “No, that’s not what I’m trying to say at all—”

  “You’re not here to let me go but to put me in my place, is that it?”

  “Jesus, woman. I’m trying to tell you that I trust you!”

  “What’s next, a bribe?” I continued, only registering his words a second too late.

  “Would you like me to offer you a bribe?” he asked, his voice growing cold and hard, with only the barest hint of playfulness.

  “No…” I replied cautiously, finally meeting his stare. “I just mean—”

  “I know exactly what you were thinking, Sophie. But I am not here to sack you or bribe you. And neither will anyone else, at least not if I have any say in it.”

  “Ok then…” I breathed out a steady and controlled sigh of relief. At least that was one thing I didn’t have to worry about, and some of the burden that had settled down upon my shoulders began to lift. I wasn’t going to lose my job, my livelihood; I’d probably lose something else though if I continued to stare into those panty-melting blues. “So?”

  “So… I dunno, I just needed to talk to someone.”

  I kept my mouth shut, my body rigidly still and waited for him to elaborate, half petrified about what he was about to say.

  “I cut them a deal,” he laughed harshly, a dark expression appearing on his face as he broke eye contact. “They’re forcing me to get married. As if we’re in the dark ages or something.”

  My brows shot up and I struggled to contain the stabbing pain that shot through my chest.

  “Who?” I asked, not liking the feeling that was welling up inside my body. It suspiciously felt like jealousy, which did not bode well. Before he said her name I already knew. The question had been redundant, more out of shock than anything.

  “Annabelle,” he ground out, looking none too pleased about the idea. “I’m a fucking grown ass man perfectly capable of picking out my own damn wife and then they do this shit. I have no choice.”

  “Congratulations?” I said bitterly, swallowing hard. He was going to marry that beautiful woman, the Princess of Monaco. In a flash I saw their whole lives ahead of them, the glorious regal wedding where no detail was overlooked and money wasn’t an issue. Then of course the perfect children would come next. They would have a boy and a girl, each with rose-coloured chubby cheeks and fat stubby legs. They would be a gorgeous couple, embraced by the entire country if not the world.

  So why did it feel like I wanted to go all Fatal Attraction on the Princess? Rip her golden locks out of her head? Or push her down a flight of stairs? Why was I so horribly jealous that she would have him for the rest of her life, able to touch him whenever she wanted, to kiss him every moment of every day when she felt the need…

  “I mean, I’m sorry,” I added, and gazed down at my hands twisting together in my lap.

  He leaned back on the couch, the towel riding dangerously high to the part of him I had yet to see. That I so desperately wanted to see.

  “I don’t want to do it, Sophie,” he said softly, a hint of dejection in his voice.

  “Then don’t? Wait…” I said as a distant echo of his earlier words came rushing back. “What deal? What did you do?”

  He shrugged. “I cut them a deal. I don’t want to get married to Annabelle, but I’ll do it for you.”

  “What? I don’t understand.”

  “I’ll marry her to save you. To save your job.”

  “Oh, God. No, no, no.” I buried my head in my hands and grasped ahold of my hair, pulling at the root. “Why on earth would you do that, you fool? You can’t.”

  “It’s a small price to pay to keep you close. They were going to end your contract.”

  “You can’t do this, William,” I said, repeating my objections. He couldn’t give up his freedom and end up shackled to someone he didn’t want to be attached to for the rest of his life all for me.

  “Sophie, stop. I can and I will. It’s done. Don’t you understand? I can’t be the prince they want me to be. I can’t be Frederick…” He trailed off and took my hand. “I can’t be the prince they want me to be unless you’re with me, by my side. I need you. So I can’t let them fire you, and there’s only one way to prevent that.”

  His words seem to stop time itself. And all the blood went rushing to my head, so much so I thought it would explode, that or come shooting out of my ears as if I were a cartoon and create an awful mess of the room.

  William’s voice came back into focus, battling its way through the white noise that had smothered my ears, like a pillow had been pressed up against them.

  “I don’t want to conform to their rules or allow to be made a complete fool for the sake of the country. But I think I can do it, dance to their tune, if you’re there to help me… to be my da
nce partner.”

  I heard the anguish in his voice and my heart and head might as well have imploded. I was totally and utterly destroyed, rocked to the core, by his sincere words. But I tried to push past what he was saying and instead focused on what he wasn’t admitting.

  “Can I ask you a question?”

  He nodded and turned towards me.

  “You say you don’t want to do it… but then what exactly do you want?” I asked as I risked staring at him for a beat too long. It was like looking into the sun and I quickly had to avert my gaze again as my eyes began to water.

  But before I’d saved myself from his stare I’d seen something flicker across his face. His pupils dilated and the silver flecks of his irises amongst the wash of blue sparkled with something very dangerous.

  He didn’t hesitate. “I want to be the man that kisses the hell out of you right now, Sophie.”

  All of my thoughts fled, good and bad, as I found the courage to look at him again. The fiery warmth that I had been desperately trying to ignore down below ignited into an uncontrollable blaze.

  “You know that’s not a good idea,” I forced out, my words barely a whisper.

  There was no longer any space between us; he’d seen to that by leaning towards me and I had nowhere else to go. No means of escaping.

  “Kiss me, Sophie,” he said in a low demanding voice.

  I wanted to. Oh how I wanted to. I wanted to throw caution to the wind and crush my lips against him, roam my hands over his naked body and allow him to bend me to his will. The need to do all of those things were simmering perilously below the surface and with one move, I could make it all happen.

  “Don’t think, just feel,” he urged, his eyes darkening. “I won’t hurt you… unless you want me to.”

  Oh, but he was going to hurt me, over and over again.

  He was going to hurt me in way he couldn’t ever comprehend. To the point where I would gladly rip out my own heart to stop the pain and inevitable loss. The damage would be much more severe than that of Frederick’s death or finding out that he’d orchestrated his own demise.