by Madison Faye
“I’m Cade,” the first one said in a smooth, velvety baritone. “And this is my brother Caspian.”
“The Charming brothers,” I said, nodding politely. “I know you. Well, I know of you. I guess we’ve never met. I’m—”
“Princess Ilana,” Caspian finished for me, his eyes burning right into me and sending a shiver through me. “And how in the world is it that we’ve never met?”
I smiled to hide the eye roll. I mean, what a line, right? That and the first one about “a sad day when a princess frowns.”
I mean, please.
I’d heard it before. I’d heard them all from so many different princes over the years, at functions, or fundraisers, or dinners, or balls like this. Gems like “I didn’t know King Lucian was a thief, but he stole the stars out of heaven and stuck em in your eyes!”
Seriously I knew the lines, and they did nothing for me, even from gorgeous, heart-stoppingly sexy guys like these two.
“Just shook out that way,” I said cordially with another plastic smile.
The two of them were just staring at me, neither saying a word.
My brow furrowed. “I’m sorry, is there…” I trailed off.
“Sorry,” Cade chuckled, shaking his head. “We’re not, uh, we’re not usually tongue tied like this, it’s just that you’re—”
I laughed, cutting him off. “You know what, you can save them, okay?”
The two of them frowned.
“Pardon?” Cade said a brow raised.
“Look, no offense, really, I’m just not...” I shrugged. “I’m just not that girl.”
A smile teased Caspian’s lips as he glanced at his twin before narrowing those eyes on me.
“And what girl might that be?”
“The one that falls for lines like that?”
He laughed, and even his brother seemed to grin a little.
“Well you’re in luck, because we’re not those guys.”
“And which guys would that be?”
“The kind that uses lines like that.”
I rolled my eyes. “I wasn’t born yesterday, and trust me, I’ve heard every one that princes like you can come up with.”
Cade smiled, shaking his head before his eyes met mine. “See, if asked you if it hurt? You know, when you fell out of heaven?”
I had to smile as I rolled my eyes at the cheesy line.
“Now, that’s a line.”
“Good, we’re agreed.”
“But,” I gasped as he suddenly moved towards me, his strong hand boldly and quickly moving to my waist, lingering there and sending heat radiating through me.
“But if I told you that you were the most gorgeous woman I’d ever seen in my entire life, that you take my breath away?”
I melted. I wanted to see it for the line it was, but as I just lost myself in those eyes of his, and let those words melt over me, I wasn’t so sure it was a line.
Maybe he was just drunk?
“I—”
“That’s not a line,” he growled.
I’d barely had time to catch my breath, or even begin to formulate words back, when suddenly, another hand slipped over my other hip, pulling me from Cade and against Caspian. I gasped as I fell into him, and all I could think was how bold of them this was, for this being a formal dance. Not to mention, for my father being less than fifty feet away.
“And if I were to tell you that for the first time literally ever, I had butterflies coming over to talk to you? If I were to tell you no girl has ever gotten my blood pumping so hot or my head all turned around as you have?”
Caspian leaned in, and I shivered as I felt his lips almost touch my ear.
“That’s not a line either.”
And then he was pulling back — both of them were, leaving me breathless and spinning, wondering what in the world had just happened. I knew what lines sounded like. Or at least, I thought I did. And I wasn’t interested in men with lines, that’s for sure. But these two? I was fairly sure they’d meant every single word they’d just said, as insane as that was considering I’d literally just met them.
I paused.
Maybe they were insane? Like, legitimately inane? They weren’t that big in tabloids, after all. Not like Prince Logan or Prince Magnus. They were famous, of course, but they kept distance from the press. And I suddenly wondered what that meant about them. One of my sister’s was currently with a beast, the other with a legendary bad boy. But those two had well-documented stories in the papers and tabloids. These two though? Well these two I realized didn’t really have any “reps” I knew about.
They could be anything.
I took a shaky breath, trying to calm my nerves. Line or not, man had those words hit me deep inside. I could feel my pulse still racing, my head spinning, and heat teasing through parts of me I was embarrassed to admit even to myself.
“I should,” I swallowed. “I should be going. Wonderful to meet you both. Enjoy the ball,” I finished quickly, whirling to start to march away and hoping my voice hadn’t quavered like I thought it had. But I only made it three steps before two hands grabbed me — two, a hand on each arm — stopping me.
“Hang on.”
I turned, the heat flushing back into my face as two sets of gorgeous blue eyes lanced into me.
“You really still think we’re giving you lines?”
I bit my lip, studying both of them. “Your Highnesses, no offense, but of course you are.”
They both frowned.
Oh what, liked I’d wounded them. They were really rolling with this act.
But at the same time, I could feel the little thrill shiver through me. I mean, they were gorgeous, and it wasn’t every day a girl had two crazy handsome princes — twins, nonetheless — fighting for her attention, lines or not.
“You’re both princes, and I know the crowd you run in. And while I’m a little flattered, I’m sorry but I’m just not interested.”
“Yes you are.”
My eyes snapped to Cade, my jaw dropping.
“Excuse me?”
“You are,” he said plainly, grinning. “Interested, that is.”
“I beg your pardon!”
“Have a drink with us, Princess,” Caspian growled.
I shook my head. “I don’t think that’s—”
“One drink,” he murmured, stepping close again. “A drink, and if you still think we’re just feeding you bullshit, you can walk away. Hell, you can kick us out of the ball.”
I raised a brow. “High stakes.”
“You haven’t heard ours yet.”
A grin teased my lip as I bit it slowly.
“Yours?”
“Our terms,” Cade growled with a quiet smile. “If you don’t enjoy yourself and still think that we’re giving you lines after a drink, you can kick us out of your father’s ball. But if you do enjoy yourself,” he grinned as he moved closer, and I could feel my breath catch, a salacious tease tickling down my spine and deep between my legs.
“If you do enjoy yourself, well…”
Cade just smiled as he trailed off.
“Well what?”
Caspian chuckled. “Why don’t we get that drink, and we’ll cross that bridge after.”
I felt that forbidden heat creep back into places it shouldn’t have as I caught my lip between my teeth and darted my eyes between them.
Yeah, it certainly wasn’t every day a girl had two handsome princes fighting over her.
They both turned, putting a hand out.
I hesitated.
This was becoming scandalous. Two princes who wanted to whisk me away and get drinks with me? This wasn’t exactly suitors ball etiquette, that’s for sure. Far from it.
Powerful hands enveloped mine as they turned and led me towards the bar, my heart pounding and my body tingling in a weird anticipation that I’d never felt before.
It was just a drink, after all, why was I getting so tingly?
And besides, I thought to myself. W
hat happened if one of them did end up being as charming as his name suggested? These two seemed close — best friends besides being twin brothers. I knew it wasn’t going to happen — of course. But say I did find my prince charming in one of the Charmings that night. How could I find whatever I was looking for in one and send the other one away?
How could I choose?
Funny to think now how I didn’t have to worry about that at all.
Chapter 4
Caspian
She looked nervous as she sipped her champagne, the three of us lingering near one of the bars around the ballroom.
Nervous wasn’t good.
Fuck, I didn’t know what was good, I guess. I doubted either of us knew what would happen when we’d approached her. What, that she’d instantly look at us and proclaim she had the same insane feelings we’d had with one look at her? What, that the crazy-person lightning that’d hit us had hit her too?
No, clearly Cade and I were fucked in the head. Clearly, going up to a princess like her, together, and telling her she was our dream girl or whatever verbal vomit we’d spit up before wasn’t the smoothest move.
The thing was though, we weren’t trying to be smooth. We weren’t trying to game her or give her lines like she thought.
We were just fucking captivated by her.
So no, we didn’t know what we were going to say when we went over to her, or what would happen, because it was all secondary. The primal need to just be near her had taken over. And now here we were, probably weirding her out in a major way.
Wonderful.
“So, you two are here looking for soulmates?”
She said it sarcastically, but I could barely concentrate on her words. My eyes were still lost in those eyes, in the dimples at her cheeks, at the soft skin of her neck. The way her hair twirled and twisted up on her head like it was held in place by magic.
I was trying to ignore the darker, fiercer side in me that wanted to pull that hair loose and wrap it around my fist. The side of me that wanted to bruise those lips with mine, and claim that soft neck with my teeth.
The part of me that was dying to know what those lips would feel like sliding down my cock.
I shook my head, blinking and realizing neither of us had said a thing to her question.
Jesus we were fucking this up.
“Perhaps?” I said with a smile, shrugging.
She rolled her eyes. “Soulmates, huh? Really?”
Cade laughed. “Is it so hard to imagine?”
“For you two?” She barked out a laugh. “Yes.”
“Humor us. Why?”
“Why?” She grinned, taking a sip of her champagne and shaking her head at Cade and then me.
“Because you’re both princes.”
“And?”
“And rich, gorgeous, sexy princes have a tendency to be looking for one thing, and it's not soulmates.”
I grinned, my eye catching hers. “So we’re gorgeous and sexy?”
Her face went bright red, her eyes dropping. “That’s not what I meant.”
Cade chuckled, sipping his drink.
“I’m not wrong and you know it,” she said quickly. “I know all about your reputations. And I’m sure you’re here at a suitors’ ball looking for desperate, pathetic princesses who think being around the promise of true love is an excuse to give it up to men like you.”
I smirked. Damn she was sharp. I liked that, a lot.
“Our reputations?” Cade raised a brow.
Truth be told, we didn’t really have the reps our friends did, because we’d always kept our personal lives out of the papers.
“Our reps or our friends’?”
She shrugged. “Isn’t it the same thing?”
I shook my head. “I don’t think so.”
She glanced at me. “Company you keep.”
“Touché.”
“Anyways...” She quickly looked away, a wisp of her long blonde hair coming loose and floating near her ear. Damn I wanted to run my finger through that hair. Maybe tangle in it. Maybe pull her into me and claim that mouth.
I cleared my throat.
Jesus what the fuck was coming over me?
“Anyways, I should go find my sisters, or something.”
“Or something?” My brother smirked at her. “C’mon, can’t even come up with a good excuse why you don’t want to be hanging around with us?”
I elbowed him sharp in the ribs but he ignored me.
Ilana didn’t bat an eye.
“Should I? Come up with an excuse I mean? It’s not like there’s any needed. I just shouldn’t be seen at a suitors’ ball like this hanging around the bar with two princes like yourselves, with your reputations.”
“You forgot ‘sexy and gorgeous’ this time,” I added with a smirk.
Her face bloomed crimson as she quickly took a sip of her champagne.
“Good luck with…whatever you’re looking for tonight.”
“I think we were perfectly clear what we’re looking for,” I said, my voice tight. “We’re looking for you and only you.”
Her eyes met mine for a second, her cheeks tinging that pink shade again before she looked away.
Damn I could’ve gotten lost in those eyes.
“You keep saying that.”
“It keeps being true,” Cade growled.
“And I told you, I’m not that girl.”
“Which girl is that then?”
“The one that gets caught up in your little lines like this?”
I wanted to fucking murder whoever had messed with her. Because I could see it then that that’s what this was. This wasn’t just a woman wise to men like us, even if that’s not what we were after. This was someone who’d been burned by someone like us. And I fucking hated whoever that asshole was.
And suddenly it made sense. Through that lens, I suddenly understood the reason she was so standoffish Hell, even if she did feel what we were feeling, I knew she was guarded.
She shook her head before either of us could respond.
“Anyways, I’m not that girl so, enjoy your nigh—”
“So prove it.”
She whirled back, frowning at me.
“Pardon me?”
Cade swung his gaze to me, scowling at me.
“Then prove it,” I said again, bolder this time. “You say you’re not ‘that girl’? Well, wouldn’t ‘that girl’ do exactly this? Walk away before things get real? Off to go waltz around with someone much safer?”
Her eyes locked onto mine.
“Lines didn’t work, and neither will reverse psychology.”
I grinned.
“Look, I’m done creating scandal with anyone watching me over here drinking with you two. Enjoy your night.”
She turned to walk away again, but I caught her arm. I don’t know why, or what the fuck I was thinking. This was pushing it, and I knew it. I knew pushing her again to stay could’ve backfired so hard, but I wasn’t about to let her walk away. Not then, not ever.
“You’re worried about scandal? Fine, let's go somewhere else for a drink.”
I watched the heat creep through her face and neck, down to the top swell of her breast in the neckline of that dress.
“Excuse me?” she almost whispered it, like this really was scandalizing.
Cade glared dangers at me, but I couldn’t shut my mouth.
“Look, you’re not ‘that girl’ and we’re not ‘those guys’. Seems none of us are the type to actually go to balls like this, and since we’re causing some a scandal just having a casual drink over here, I suggest we ditch the limelight and go have a drink somewhere where we won’t create scandal.”
“Are you seriously asking me to ditch my own suitors ball?”
“Do you seriously want to stay?”
Her lips snapped shut, her eyes darting between us.
“Fine.”
Wait, what? My jaw almost dropped at her words before I forced myself to keep cool.
&
nbsp; “Fine. You’re right,” she sighed. “I’m very much over this ball. The pretense is stupid anyways, and I’m tired of the duchess of Lisandria glaring at me from across the room like I’m creating a scene.”
I followed her nod to a sour looking, prissy-faced girl who was, sure enough, shooting dagger looks at us from across the ballroom.
Shit, and I knew why. So did Cade, judging by the stifled snort next to me.
Ilana’s brow perked up. “What’s so funny?”
“Nothing,” I said quickly.
Cade just kept trying to hide the laugh.
“Okay, please tell, I can’t stand that girl. She’s the most obnoxious gossip I know, and she once started a rumor in high school that I was sleeping with the headmaster. Not freaking true, by the way.”
Cade glanced at me before grinning. “Well she, uh, she tried to make a play for us at a gala a few months back and we turned her down. She was very drunk, and sort of made a scene when we declined her invitation. I think that's why she’s glaring at you.”
Ilana frowned. “Wait, she made a play for you?”
I grinned. She didn’t get it.
“She made a play for us,” I said, stressing the word.
Ilana’s brows suddenly shot up. “Wait, to both of you?” she said incredulously, her face going pink at what I hoped was her mind coming up with what that implied.
I nodded, and her eyes grew a little wider as she swallowed thickly.
“Well, now we’re certainly going off and getting that drink, if just to ruffle her feathers.”
I grinned. “Done.”
“But just so we’re clear...” Her face turned red. “I am not making a ‘play’ at either and certainly not both of you.”
“Of course not. You’re not that girl, as you’ve been saying.” I grinned.
She shivered, her lip catching between her teeth before she knocked back the rest of her drink.
“We should bring champagne.”
It was all she said before she whirled, her gown and her hair twirling as she made her way from the room.
Chapter 5
Ilana
Oh my God, what was I doing? What on earth had come over me? I felt tingly, and alive, and if I was being honest, sort of naughty in a way that sent a shiver through me.
