Tristan relaxed. “Oh, I’ve heard of him. If you find her before me, can you tell her I’m looking for her?”
“Will do.” I patted him on the arm and he left.
“That was awkward,” Alex commented.
“Yeah.” My thoughts slipped back over to the pink lemonade tent and the walking travesty next to it. “Let’s just hope it doesn’t get any more awkward than that.”
We continued walking around and making conversation, and I could tell when we reached the people Alex would have preferred to avoid.
“Finally settling down, eh?” asked an MP with a greasy mustache.
A woman wearing the entirety of her jewelry collection cocked her lip in what I suppose was a smile and sniffed, “Your family do have a taste for American actresses, don’t they?”
I didn’t understand what that meant until Alex explained afterward that there had been a scandal decades ago involving an American actress and a prince, though our relationship was on a whole other level than their affair. I wanted to go sock the woman afterward but Alex led me to the bar with an amused tilt of his lip.
Despite the few nasties, most people were pleasant to talk to, and I almost felt comfortable around them. There were a few people I knew through work too, so I wasn’t completely outnumbered.
Alex left me for a few minutes just before the speeches began to finish preparing with his brother. I hadn’t seen Jo since I caught a glimpse of her and Teddy running toward the far copse of trees with a silver tea tray piled with mini sausage rolls, so I decided to look for her and see if she’d spoken to Tristan yet.
I didn’t even move three steps before Michael stepped into my path. “Got your sights set on becoming a real princess, I see.” His lips formed a grim line. “Now I understand why you rejected me.”
I didn’t take the bait. As calmly as possible, I turned and headed off in the opposite direction. Someone jogged up to me from the side and I readied myself to turn and berate Michael, but it was Tristan.
“I still haven’t found her,” he said. “Have you?”
“I’ve been busy doing the rounds with Alex. Sorry Tristan.”
He sighed. “Is she upset with me? This isn’t like her.”
“No, of course not.” I stopped and rested a hand on his arm. “She’s just caught up in the delights of the royal garden party. This is all new for her.”
He nodded, though he didn’t look like he believed me. Tristan left, and I cursed my sister. Wherever she was.
I caught a glimpse of Michael loping toward me out of the corner of my eye and made a speedy exit, sequestering myself behind a gigantic hedge in the shape of a bear on its hind legs.
“Ladies and gentlemen...If you could please make your way to the main stage, the royal family would like to welcome you to the Fourteenth Annual Royal Midsummer Garden Party.”
Everyone started spilling over the lawn toward the large stage just beyond the last tent, and I joined the current. I spotted Jo and Teddy and made my way over to them.
“Where the hell have you been,” I hissed, grabbing Jo’s elbow.
She snickered. “Teddy and I spent the last half hour trying to see how many daisies we can toss in the brim of Lady Hamilton’s hat without her noticing.”
Teddy leaned over. “So far we’re at sixteen.”
I rolled my eyes. “Tristan’s been looking for you. He’s worried that he’s done something to offend you.”
She waved a dismissive hand. “He’s fine. Shh, the speeches are starting.”
I glowered at her but she was right. We sat down just as the MC came onstage to introduce the king. When the man himself came out, the party erupted into polite but exuberant applause.
After the king welcomed everyone with a short but succinct speech, he welcomed Alex and Edward to the stage.
Alongside each other, the two brothers looked like they could accomplish anything. I saw Clarissa beaming from backstage, resting a hand on her barely visible baby bump, and felt a stab of jealousy. This was never the kind of life I pictured for myself, but something about the moment hit me over the head like a croquet mallet.
I shook it off and listened as Alexander and Edward announced the rebranding and relaunch of their mother’s charities, peeking around to gauge the reaction of the guests. Most people were smiling or nodding along. I figured many of them had positive memories of Noelle, which hopefully would work in Alex and Edward’s favor.
When they finished, the crowd applauded and a final speaker came onstage to make a toast to the royal family and thank them for their hospitality.
Before I could talk to Jo again, Alex found me and spun me off to introduce me to even more people. The duties of the royal family were never-ending.
* * *
The sun hovered low in the sky, casting the ground in orange light. I sat with my legs splayed in front of me, watching staff stack the chairs and dismantle the tents. Alex and his family were saying goodbye to the few remaining guests, but I was too exhausted to do anything other than sit and try to process all the faces I’d seen over the past few hours.
Jo caught my eye across the lawn and tromped toward me, a sour look on her face.
“Hey,” I said.
“Hey.” She slumped down next to me on the grass and fell backward, lying with her arms straight and her eyes closed. “I screwed up.”
I glanced down at her. “What happened?”
“I saw Tristan. He was alone, so I tried to talk to him.” Her lips curled into a frown. “He didn’t want to talk to me.”
I lay down next to her, watching a bird circle in the air above our heads. I wondered what kind it was. I bet Alex would know.
“I shouldn’t have avoided him all day,” Jo continued. “I just completely freaked out, you know? Do you ever feel like that?”
“Like what?”
“Like you’re in over your head with these royals.”
The breeze picked up the hem of my dress and it tickled my thighs. I took a breath. “All the time.”
Just because I felt like I was in over my head, didn’t mean I was, did it? Then why did I feel like I was drowning?
Chapter 24
Alexander
My pen tapped a staccato rhythm on the glass table. I tried focusing on the paper in front of me, but my mind was somewhere else. Based on the angry tilt of Edward’s eyebrow, he knew it.
“Just go,” he growled finally.
My tapping halted. “Go where?”
Edward’s lip tugged at the corner. “To do whatever it is you would rather be doing right now.” He gestured to the spread of documents on the table. “We were basically done anyway. I can finish up from here.”
I grinned. “You’re serious?”
“Have you ever known me to be anything else?”
“Good point.” I rose from my chair. “I feel like we’ve been submerged in charity work all week. I’ve barely seen Tamara.”
“Then get out of here.” He drained the dregs of his tea and set the mug aside.
I finished my tea too, then saluted to my brother and left the cottage with a giant smile, brimming with happiness at the thought of seeing Tamara soon. We hadn’t made any plans today, but I knew she had the day off. They would be finished shooting soon, and most of the filming henceforth would be reshoots and odds and ends.
I jogged over to the main house and up to my apartment, stirring Hank from his nap in the middle of a sunbeam. “Come on, buddy. Time to go.”
He jumped to his feet and followed me to the garage, tail wagging harder by the second. He loved car rides, especially since they always seemed to take him to his favorite places.
The ride out to Tamara’s flat could not have taken longer. I got stuck in traffic at least three times, and I could’ve sworn one of the traffic lights got jammed on red. I made it, though, and called Tamara from inside the car.
“Alex,” she answered. “What’s up?”
“I’m parked outside your front door.”
>
“What? Why?” She added hurriedly, “Not that I don’t want to see you.”
I laughed. “Just come down. We’re going for a car ride.”
Hank barked into my ear and Tamara laughed. “Okay. I’ll be down in a minute.”
I hung up the phone and waited. Ever since the garden party, my life had been a whirlwind. Several high-profile businesses had lined up to back our charity efforts before we even made the first calls, and it seemed every TV and radio show in the country wanted to interview me. I’d been trying to spend as much time with Tamara as possible, but the dates we squeezed in were often interrupted by the press. We couldn’t grab an ice cream without a photographer leaping out from the bushes.
Normally this wouldn’t worry me. I’d been the subject of paparazzi fascination for years, and I knew that once the novelty wore off their attention would die down. Tamara had been distant though, and I figured the excessive press coverage must be the cause. What we both needed was a day away from it all—which was exactly what I had planned.
Tamara came down in a breezy sundress that hugged her chest and waist sinfully. She hopped into the passenger seat and Hank launched himself at her.
“Off with you!” she laughed, pushing him into the backseat. “I swear this dog would be more civilized if it weren’t for his owner. You’re a bad influence.”
I laughed and pulled onto the road. “At least we’re both handsome.”
By the time we were halfway to our destination, Tamara had it figured out.
“We’re going to Springfield!” she exclaimed.
I nodded. “Our home away from home.”
“That is exactly what I need,” she said, leaning back into her seat with a sigh. “I’m going to sprawl out in the yard and soak in some sun while it lasts. It’s supposed to rain all this week.”
“Such is the weather here, I’m afraid.”
She smiled at me. “At least we’ve got today.”
We reached Springfield Manor just as the cleaning staff were finishing up for the day. They greeted us politely and we promised to stay out of their way, shooting straight around to the back garden.
Hank went wild, zooming back and forth across the lawn, smelling all the new smells and investigating any changes in the shrubbery. Tamara sprawled onto the grass with a dreamy smile, resting her arm over her eyes.
I lay down next to her. “I concur.”
We lay there for some time, watching the clouds march across the sky. She seemed more relaxed than I’d seen her in weeks and I knew it wouldn’t last. Something was bothering Tamara and I needed to find out what.
“Tamara,” I said, looking over at her.
She dropped her head to the side and our noses nearly touched. “Yeah?”
“What’s on your mind?”
She looked back up. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Don’t be like that.” I bumped her shoulder with mine. “You’ve been distant lately. You’ve laughed more today than on our last three dates combined. I want to help you.”
She swiped her tongue over her bottom lip thoughtfully.
“Is it the media?” I prompted.
Tamara let out a bitter laugh. “The constant babbling about whether I’m wife material or not isn’t fun to deal with,” she acknowledged. “Do I wear the right clothes? Do I do the right things? Blah, blah, blah.” She rolled her eyes.
“You shouldn’t listen to them.”
“I know I shouldn’t. I’ve been telling myself that daily and I don’t want you to think I’m crumbling under pressure or anything. All that’s annoying but it’s not the be all and end all in my life right now.” She looked at me again. “I’ve got some other things going on too. I’m sorry if that’s made me distant.”
“Let’s talk about it,” I said, entwining our fingers.
Tamara sat up, a few pieces of grass sticking to her hair. I sat up too and picked them out, and neither of us talked until I tossed the grass behind us.
“Things with Jo haven’t been ideal,” Tamara said. “She has to make her decision about school soon and she knows it, but she refuses to talk about it if I bring it up and clearly isn’t doing anything to prepare. To make matters worse, she fought with Tristan after the garden party and hasn’t spoken to him since, which has made everything worse. She’s been a mess.”
“I don’t understand what could cause them to fight like that,” I said. “They were all about each other.”
Tamara let out a hefty sigh. “Jo’s self-conscious about her lack of status and she doesn’t feel worthy of Tristan. She should have apologized for avoiding him at the garden party, but instead she’s taken a leap down this hole of self-destruction so all they did was fight.”
“Self-destruction? That doesn’t sound good.”
“Maybe I’m being overdramatic. That’s what Jo seems to think whenever I try to talk to her about it.” Tamara curled her lip in distaste and plucked a daisy from the lawn, picking at the petals. “She’s been partying with Teddy a bit. I know he’s your friend and I shouldn’t worry, but Jo’s not thinking about her future right now and that worries me.”
“The future is a scary place,” I said.
I didn’t blame Jo for not wanting to think about it. I didn’t want to think about it either. If I did I would remember that my relationship with Tamara had an expiry date, and I couldn’t process that I’d be losing her soon. So I pushed the thought somewhere deep inside and covered it, where it would stay until the moment I couldn’t ignore it anymore.
Tamara disagreed with my sentiment. She frowned and shook her head. “That’s no excuse. Right now, the only one worrying about Jo is me and it’s eating me up inside. I’m the one who has to make excuses to my parents every time they call. I always clean up the mess.”
I could practically see the stress radiating from her and it killed me. I shot to my feet, extending a hand to help Tamara up.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“You need a distraction.”
She took my hand but eyed me skeptically.
“Just trust me,” I told her. “You’ll feel better.”
She nodded, even if she didn’t look completely sold on the idea. I led her back to the house, navigating through the ground floor rooms until we reached one she’d never seen before.
I gave the double doors a shove and they creaked open, revealing a wide, airy room with teak floorboards polished to a glass-like sheen.
Tamara’s mouth fell open. “What the...?”
“A ballroom,” I filled in. “A modest one, but a ballroom nonetheless.”
“This is a ballroom?”
I grinned and stepped to a small door at the back of the room that opened to a closet with the audiovisual controls. I hooked up my phone, searched for the perfect song, and hit play.
Groovy electronic beats bumped through the speakers, filling the room with iconic Swedish pop. I turned to Tamara and took stock of her expression. Her eyes blazed with delight.
“Isn’t there some royal rule against using the ballroom to play ABBA?” she called over the music.
I laughed and pulled her into my arms. “When have I ever played by the rules?”
“You’re a scamp.”
“I’m your scamp.” I kissed the tip of her nose. “Will you dance with me?”
She smirked. “I guess so. Since there’s nobody else to dance with...”
“Cheeky.”
We began to circle the room in a modified waltz, keeping pace with music. I spun Tamara under my arm and she shrieked with laughter, so I did it several more times in a row until she begged for me to stop.
We tangoed up and down the floor, then broke apart to throw down some classic disco moves. It was silly—ridiculous, even—but a lifetime of starched poise had taught me that letting loose sometimes is necessity. By the third song, Tamara’s face was permanently etched with a smile. Her eyes were degrees lighter, just as bright as the night we first met.
�
��I don’t know how you do it,” Tamara said as I dipped her back.
I pulled her back up. “Believe it or not, royalty get trained in the art of the dance.”
She rolled her eyes. “You know that’s not what I meant.”
“But I love to piss you off. Your mouth gets deliciously pouty.”
“I was about to give you a compliment, but just for that I’ve changed my mind.”
I pulled her tight to my body, leaning down until our eyes were level. “I bet that you like when I tease you too.” My mouth hovered over hers, a mere centimeter away from touching. “It’s our little game of cat and mouse.”
Her pupils spilled wide. “Cat and mouse, huh?” She glanced toward the closed ballroom door. “Do you think the maids are gone by now?”
“Undoubtedly.” I glided my hands down her back, cupping her firm ass. “Why do you ask?”
“If it’s a game of cat and mouse you want, then let’s play.” She pushed up and kissed me, holding the front of my shirt in her delicate hands. Her mouth moved feverishly against mine. A stab of white-hot pleasure worked through my balls and I deepened the kiss, laying claim to every inch of her mouth.
Out of nowhere, Tamara slammed her weight into her palms and pushed me back. I stumbled, breathing heavily, my brows crossed in confusion.
My temptress smiled seductively and winked. And then she was gone.
It took until Tamara reached the door for me to process her intent, and the second I did my cock stiffened in anticipation. I ran after her but she slipped through the door before me and bolted down the hall.
The chase was on.
Chapter 25
Tamara
Anticipation nearly jellified my legs but I kept running, core blazing with heat. I wanted Alex to catch me with every fiber of my being but I knew the payoff would be greater for both of us if I did my best not to let him. So I sprinted through the deserted hallways, listening for his heavy footfalls behind me. I made an abrupt right turn into a music room, dashing behind the piano and through to the next room, doubling back toward the ballroom. I didn’t know the house nearly as well as Alex, but I knew that most of the rooms had more than one way in or out. It would make for an interesting hunt.
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