A Royal Entanglement: The Young Royals Book 2 (16 page)

He chuckled softly, “I would hardly characterise you as suffering from hubris, Alex.
 
You are the most sensible and humble person I know.”

I smiled at him and sipped my wine.
 
“Then you don’t know me all that well, do you Lord Bingham.”

He cocked an eyebrow at me and the side of his mouth quirked up in a crooked smile, “Oh?” he said, “Enlighten me please, Lady Alexandra.
 
Let me know of your folly.”

“I have a tattoo,” I said in a rush and then took a gulp of my wine.

His eyes widened and his eyebrows climbed his forehead in surprise.
 
“And can I see this tattoo?” he asked after clearing his throat.

I laughed and shook my head, “No,” I said, “It’s not in a place that is appropriate for polite company.”

He coughed and sat forward in his chair and I laughed again.
 
It must be the wine, but I felt light in a way I hadn’t felt in so long.
 
It was the wine and Freddie, I realised.
 
Being around him always lifted me.

“You have to show me now,” he said, “Or I can’t believe that you actually have one.”

I shook my head and stood, swaying a bit.
 
He was there at my elbow instantly, holding me steady.
 
I smiled up into his beautiful face and wondered, not for the first time, what it would be like to be in a relationship with this man for real.

“How much have you had to drink,” he asked softly, his warm breath tickling my ear.

I couldn’t answer.
 
My mouth was suddenly dry and my body felt overheated with his touch.
 
I closed my eyes and inhaled his scent, I knew it so well.

“Did you just sniff me, Alex?” he asked, a hint of laughter in his voice.

“I did,” I said without opening my eyes.
 
I turned into his arms and rested my head on his chest with a sigh.
 
“You always smell so good,” I murmured.

“So do you,” he whispered in return and we stood like that in an easy embrace for a while.

It was nice, he made me feel safe, safer than I had ever felt.
 
Being the eldest child and the responsible one was so tiring.
 
It would be nice to just rest for a while and have someone stronger than me handle all the details.
 
Just for a moment.
 
I began to sway in his arms to imagined music and he followed my lead.
 
We danced slowly, lightly, to the music in my head and it just felt so perfect I didn’t want it to end.

“My mother called me today,” I told him.

“Oh,” he said.

“Hence the drinking,” I said with a giggle.

“It didn’t go well?”

“No,” I replied with a sigh, “She told me you were out of my league and that I should go back to the States with Bradley.”

He stilled and then tipped my face up to his.
 
I opened my eyes sleepily and looked into his concerned ones.
 
“What did you say?” he asked.

“I thanked her for her opinion and kindly reminded her that I was twenty-six years old and more than capable of making my own decisions about my love life.”

“And then what did she say?”

“She told me I was kidding myself if I thought I could hold on to a man like you and that I would only end up hurt in the end.”
 
I pulled away from him and walked back over to where I had placed my wine glass and took a fortifying mouthful.
 
“Apparently men of the world like you don’t stick with plain girls like me and I was merely a distraction for you or a way to mollify your mother while you continued your tom-catting ways.”
 
I took another sip of wine, wishing for something stronger.

He stepped up behind me and placed his hands on my upper arms, pulling me back towards his body.
 
His warmth seeped into me and seemed to calm my raging emotions.

“Alex, you don’t believe that do you?” he said.

I laughed wryly, “But she’s right, isn’t she,” I said, “You are only with me to keep your mother happy.”

He turned me around so I faced him and searched my eyes. “Alex,” he said, his voice soft, “You are far from plain and if I were in a position to be in a real relationship, you would be my first choice and not just because it would make my mother happy.” He brushed a piece of my hair back behind my ear, his touch tender.
 
“You are beautiful and smart and witty.
 
I love spending time with you and I count you as one of my closest friends.
 
Any man would be a fool to walk away from you.”

I smiled up at him, warmed by his words.
 
Freddie was one of the good guys and I began to suspect that his reputation was wildly exaggerated.

“Ah, Freddie—“ I began but was cut off as he lowered his lips to mine and kissed me.
 
Gone was the awkwardness of the kiss we had shared this morning and I was swept away by the press of his lips on mine.

“Good night Alex,” he said when he broke the kiss and before I could gain my wits to answer, he was gone.

There was a decidedly jaunty bounce to my step as I made my way into my office the next day.
 
I hadn’t planned on kissing Alex, but I was glad that I had.
 
I couldn’t resist the pull of her lips as she had looked up at me with her soft sleepy eyes and her intoxicating scent surrounding me.
 
The kiss we’d shared at the press conference had been ungainly and forced, the kiss last night was anything but.
 
It had been just about perfect.

I had kissed women before, probably not as many as the media made out, but I was no slouch.
 
I had even enjoyed most of the experiences, but kissing Alex was something else.
 
We had been flirting for months now but it had been innocent, a way for me to get under her skin.
 
I may have fantasised about kissing her, but I’d never actually thought it would really happen.
 
Last night had been full of surprises.
 
Not the least of which had been that kiss.

And she had a tattoo.

I smiled to myself as I worked through the documents on my desk.
 
I had always suspected that there was a hidden side to Alex, a hint of barely restrained wildness under that very controlled exterior.
 
I was dying to know what the tattoo was of and where it was.
 
She said it was in a place that wasn’t appropriate for polite company, but what did that mean, really?
 
It could be anywhere, it could be a tramp stamp, but I would have to see it to believe it, she just didn’t seem the type.
 
Alex may have a touch of
 
temerariousness about her, although tightly restrained, but I doubted that she could ever be trashy, it just wasn’t in her nature.

Seeing her last night, away from the formalities of her job, had shown me another layer of her that I had only ever suspected was there.
 
I had never seen her hair down and hadn’t realised how long it was.
 
I had only ever seen her in power suits or formal attire, so seeing her in a more relaxed outfit was like a prize.
 
She wore her suits like armour and for months I had been trying to find a chink in it.
 
Not to weaken her, never that, just to get a glimpse of the woman beneath, the real Alex.
 
For a moment last night, I thought I might have seen her.
 
Like a twitcher having heard rumours of a rare bird, I was determined to see if the hint I had seen was real.
 
I wanted to see the rare bird that was Lady Alexandra Fornette, not the mask, not the face she showed the world, but the one she hid, the one that would go out and get a tattoo on a part of her body that wasn’t appropriate to show in polite company.
 
I really wanted to know what that tattoo was.

The computer beeped with an incoming email and I clicked the notification to open it.
 
It was from Alex and as I read it, I chuckled.

Dear Lord Bingham,

After thinking through our recent agreement, I thought it prudent to set up some sort of schedule in order to facilitate the achievement of our shared goals.
 
I have attached a timetable for you to peruse.
 
If you could please let me know of any changes as soon as possible, I would be appreciative.

Yours sincerely,

Lady Alexandra Fornette

I clicked open the attachment and couldn’t help but laugh.
 
Filling my screen was an impressive spreadsheet detailing our time together and colour-coded as to how each segment of time would be portrayed to the press.
 
Here I was thinking about finding out where her tattoo was and she was thinking about how to control me or contain me might be a better way of putting it.
 
That kiss hadn’t just affected me, it had affected her too and now she was running scared.
 
I knew this about Alex, I’d been studying her long enough to pick up on her tells.
 
When things started to feel out of her control, she retreated behind a wall of organisation and lists, anything so she could feel in control again.

I checked out the schedule again.
 
There was nothing planned for today.
 
Well that would have to change.
 
I checked the time, eleven am, the perfect time for an impromptu lunch with my girlfriend.
 
I smiled as I stood and pulled on my suit coat.

“Dayne,” I called through the open door to the outer office, “Notify the Palace that I am on my way.”

Dayne stuck his head in the doorway and looked at me quizzically.
 
“I wasn’t aware you had an appointment at the Palace today.”

“I don’t,” I said easily, “I want to have lunch with my girlfriend.”

He frowned, “That’s not on the schedule she sent you,” he said.

I raised an eyebrow at him, “And how would you know that?”

“Because we consulted on it,” he said with a shrug, “I approved it before she sent it to you.”

I couldn’t stop the chuckle and I shook my head, “Are you managing me Dayne?”

“Of course I am,” he said with a sniff, “It’s what you pay me for.”

“Even my private life?”