Chapter Text
There’s a firm tap at my door super early the next morning. I’m already awake, showered and shaved and ready to investigate the breakfast buffet. I’m guessing this is gonna be Drake or one of the ‘Arrys. So I’m pleasantly surprised to see my good buddy Rick Rys standing in front of me.
“Good morning!” I chirp. “How are you this cold, cold, morning?”
“I am well,” Rick says, earnestly. I see Drake’s hovering in the background, hopefully keeping Olivia at bay. “I have a suggestion for you.”
I’m kind of hoping right now that his suggestion involves his sponsored suitor in some way. I had a wildly inappropriate dream about her last night involving a hell of a lot of whipped cream. Whoo. “Go on..”
He holds up two fingers. Yesss, charades! I freaking love this game!
“Two words.. First word…” He’s indicating a round shape. “Apple?” He’s nodding. And now he’s mimicking firing a gun… ahhhhhhhh… “Oh no it isn’t…..!”
“Oh yes it is,” Rick says, a huge giddy grin on his face.
“It’s an apple shooooooot!” I jump about two feet into the air. This is the best way to start the day ever!
“I know how disappointed you were not to have had the opportunity to celebrate your upcoming engagement in the traditional way. Drake and I knew Bertrand wasn’t in agreement, so we thought this morning presented the perfect opportunity.”
“You. Are. The. Best!” I smack a smooch on both of his cheeks in turn. Drake looks nervous behind me. “Aw, Drake, you needn’t think you’re missing out!” I now move in on him as he starts to protest about it not being his idea. “Mwah, mwah! I love you guys! So, what’s the plan?”
Rick exchanges a glance with Drake. “I assumed you’d want to take breakfast first, and then…”
A man after my own heart. “Yes! Breakfast, and then, my friends…” I pull them both into a huddle. “Then we raid the armoury.”
“Maxwell…” they both protest.
“Shh. I was there last night, remember? There’s no lock on the door! And I saw something down there that would be perfect!” These two don’t look convinced. In fact, they look a little fearful for their lives. Heh. And so they should!
***
“It’s finally time!” I holler, as I line up the massive catapult that Rick, Drake and I somehow managed between us to remove from the Nevrakis armory this morning and wheel it into the heart of this thick, dark Lythikos forest.
“Well, Drake, it’s been nice knowing you,” Rick chuckles.
“How did I end up being in the firing line for this one?” Drake moans, standing the appropriate distance away, a Cordonian Ruby perching proudly on the top of his head.
“Because you were reluctant to be in the firing line for the crossbow, the axe, and the flaming arrows…” Rick points out.
Honestly, Drake would’ve been fine! Those flaming arrows had missed the apple on Rick’s head by some distance and ended up finding their way into a tree, setting fire to some leaves which then dropped onto Rick’s foot, good job he’s wearing sensible shoes today! Throwing the axe had been a little more perilous… but that had hurtled in the completely wrong direction and is now comfortably impaled in a tree some distance behind me! As for the crossbow.. well, we’re still not sure what happened to the bolt that bolted out of that, it went way, way, up in the air before disappearing from sight..
“I hate you,” Drake growls at Rick, who knows he’s had an easy ride.
“Relax, Drake, it wouldn’t be in my interest to kill my sworn protector,” I tell him. “Especially not while Olivia could jump out of the shadows and jump me at any time.”
“What?” Rick grows pale. “What happened?”
I giggle, trying to make light of it. “Let’s just say she’s applying some aggressive and very suggestive forms of persuasion. But my mind’s made up. You and I have an agreement, after all.”
Rick’s expression is a little bit far away, and I’m sensing a teensy bit of tension here. Which is great! Because if he’s jealous of me for having to fend off Olivia with a stick, when he’s got Jen with him pretty much all the time… that says something, right? Maybe he’s not quite as romantically invested in her as I assumed he was..
“C’mon, Maxwell, let’s just get this over with,” Drake shouts.
“Of course.” I smile at Rick. “Over to you, good sir!”
“Ready?” Rick calls to Drake, and Drake nods. “Very well. Ready, Your Highness?”
The rock I’m going to launch is already in the catapult’s bucket, and it’s a case of pushing this wooden beam down, holding it for a few seconds and then booooom! I’m jiggling with excitement as I use both hands and all my might to do so. “Ready!”
“Three. Two. One. SHOOT!”
And I let go and yikes! Perfectly on target, which is good news for me, not such good news for Drake, and really bad news for that apple on his head… as Rick and I watch in slight horror, Drake pelts to his left, causing the apple to fall off his head and roll to the floor in the other direction… where the rock soon crushes it into mush!
“Aw YESSSSS!” I jump into the air. “Success!”
“I’d say,” Drake groans, as he comes to meet us. “We’re all somehow still alive.”
“A point worth celebrating indeed,” says Rick as he comes in for a congratulatory hug. “Tell me, have you enjoyed this morning’s jaunt, Maxwell?”
“Totally! It’s been awesome. Thank you, both of you, for this. After the whole New York thing, you really didn’t need to..” I love these guys. They wouldn’t want me to say it out loud, but I totally do. I know I can trust them, no matter what. And it’s important for a Crown Prince to have people around him that he trusts.
“We wanted to,” Rick said, honestly. “What are friends for?”
I can’t help but glow inside when he says this. I really thought we were drifting apart; with me being Crown Prince and all, things really seemed different between us. And what he’s doing for me.. yeah, I know he’s kind of doing it for himself too, but it means a lot to have the opportunity of a smart, cool, charismatic and beautiful wife who actually seems to like me.
“And this seemed like the perfect opportunity with Bertrand being elsewhere. Although, Barry will soon get onto Bertrand if we don’t get you back to the Keep in time for the ball,” Drake groans.
“And we don’t want Olivia’s staff realising her armoury has been plundered, either,” Rick added.
“Sure, yeah, I get it.” Back to reality. Still, there’s something (well, someone) worth going back to the keep for. I can’t wait until tonight’s ball, I’ll definitely get to see her then. I might even get to dance with her again…
“I better go see if I can find that bolt,” Drake announces, and stomps off into the distance, leaving me and Rick alone.
“While he does that, we should probably try and get that axe out of that tree,” Rick points out.
“Ooh. That sounds like a challenge!”
We head over there, but my thoughts are still consumed with dancing and waltzing and the certain gorgeous lady who I dreamed about last night. Perhaps I’m subconsciously practicing my moves as we move towards the tree?
Because Rick then says, “Will you and Olivia be leading the Cordonian Waltz tonight?”
“Pretty sure I’m lumbered with that, yep.” I’m not relishing seeing Olivia again after our little unresolved rendezvous last night. Still, in a room with a hundred or so people in it, what can she possibly do?
“In that case I’ll ask Jen to dance,” Rick says. “I’ll ensure we’re positioned so as to switch partners with the two of you. So you will have the opportunity to dance with Jen for a short while.”
Yesss. I don’t think I can completely hide the joy that his words just brought me, but I’m determined to play it cool. “You realise that means you’ll have to dance with Olivia for a short while, right?”
“I realise.” He smiles stoically. “Don’t worry. I can handle her.”
I wish I could. “Great. So…” Time to test the water. “Are you still cool with the plan?”
“Of course.” Rick tenses up, a little guarded all of a sudden. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
“Just, uh, well. I dunno. You two getting on well?” I grab the axe and attempt to pull it out of the tree. Yikes, it’s in deep! I did a right number on this!
“I like to think we’re getting on as well as a suitor and her sponsor possibly can.” There’s a faint smile there and I don’t like it. “She’ll make you a fine queen one day, Maxwell. I have every confidence in that. And the two of you seem to get along well too?”
“Yeah…” I still have a bad feeling about how she was with me yesterday. So much more aloof than she has been. “Listen, you haven’t told her about our agreement, have you?”
He looks hurt. “Maxwell, I swore I wouldn’t. I don’t think it would be to my advantage either for her to know about that.”
“True,” I say, he’s got a point. So that’s not why she’s gone cool on me. In that case, maybe…
“So I was wondering. Did Jen go after Drake yesterday evening when he went off? You know, after Olivia laid into him?”
“I… don’t believe so…” He looks thrown. Guess he can’t rule it out. “Why do you ask?”
“It’s just… something Drake said last night. Never mind.”
“What did I say?” And Drake’s standing behind me, holding the catapult bolt. Oops. I hadn’t noticed what with multitasking my continuing attempts to liberate this poor axe and this intense conversation.
Rick’s not tippy toeing around this. “Did Jen follow you out into the storm last night?”
“Yeah.” He’s very matter of fact. “Good to know someone cared enough to, even if it was her.”
What does he mean by that? Rick doesn’t seem too thrilled by this response either.
“Honestly, the two of you are as bad as each other,” Drake said. “If you want to know what’s going through her head, just talk to her. She’ll probably tell you.”
“What did she tell you?” Rick’s very prickly.
“That’s between me and her,” Drake says. “But what I will tell you is, between the two of you, she’s hella confused. And I’m not surprised. I knew this amazing plan of yours was destined for disaster.”
Okay maybe I was paranoid over the Jen and Drake being sweet on each other thing. Maybe she was just letting off some steam to him. But I don’t like the thought of her needing to do that. Are things that bad for her? I muse on this as I have one last heave on the axe.
“This plan is going to work, Drake,” Rick says. “Maxwell is going to select Jen as his bride.”
“Yep,” I confirm, but I’m concerned now. What could I have done to confuse her? All I’ve done is befriend her, have a laugh with her, enjoy every second of the time I’ve spent with her… I haven’t made a move on her or said anything that makes my big feelings clear… because she’s Rick’s girl first and foremost, right?
Drake just laughs and goes back to packing everything up.
“Allow me.” Rick pulls the axe out of the tree on his first attempt. Yeah. Obviously he did that.
***
The afternoon was long and boring, with no opportunity to spend time with the suitors. On the plus side, that did mean no opportunity to spend time with Olivia, so every cloud.
But clouds are forming now. I’m sitting inbetween Rick and Olivia at the top table. We’ve had an amazing meal, and lots of champagne, but right now my attention is right at the back of the room where Jen and Drake look to be having a great time. Hana’s with them, and a few other nobles they don’t know who aren’t really making the effort to integrate with them. Hell, I want to be on that table right now to hear what’s being said.
No prizes for guessing who put tonight’s seating plan together, and it’s no coincidence she’s sitting right next to me. “Maxie,” she says, pushing her chair so that she’s closer to me. “Why are you being weird with me?”
I laugh. “You don’t think you were being weird with me last night?”
“No,” she says. “I was honest with you last night. Now, the first dance is coming up. The Cordonian Waltz, no less. I assume you don’t intend to breach courtly etiquette, because that would not sit well with your brother at all..”
I sigh, knowing what she’s intimating. I have to be on my best behaviour tonight, or I’ll never get Bertrand off my back. “Olivia, would you do me the honour of being my dance partner for the waltz?”
“It would be my honour, Your Highness,” she says with a small smile. She stands up.
“Uh, Olivia, I don’t think everyone’s finished eating yet..” I’ve not even seen any food make it to Jen’s table. Although it looks like they’ve finished off all the table wine…
“That’s irrelevant,” she says. “We’re ready to dance, so it’s time to dance.” And off she goes, to stand in front of the table, and claps to get everyone’s attention.
“Hello, dear guests, and welcome to the Nevrakis family’s chateau,” she announces. “It means so much to me that you would join me in this place that’s so dear to my heart. I hope you enjoy the festivities tonight as much as I will! Now, everyone, please join me and Prince Maxwell up front to begin the Cordonian Waltz!”
There’s a rumble from the tables, it seems like most of them have finished eating.. wait, is it only Jen’s table that hasn’t been served? Oh, you really are something, Olivia.. Now I see Jen and Hana getting up and walking towards the dancefloor. Drake stays where he is. I make brief eye contact with him. He shoots me a look that I know says what’s your problem? I know he’s on hand to protect me if needed. I just don’t know what he’s up to back there.
“Maxie, come on,” Olivia hisses. Rick has already made his way over to the dancefloor, presumably to intercept Jen. I stand up, a little spring in my step as I remember what Rick said earlier. I feel like I really need a moment with Jen, however brief. I may not figure out where I stand with her, but it might give me a little boost.
So now we’re at the head of the dancefloor, and making the first moves of the waltz. Not my favourite dance, obviously, but as waltzes go, it’s quite a fun one. Unless you’re dancing with an ice queen who’s trying to seduce you to forward her own salacious plans to become more powerful, of course.
Olivia knows this waltz as well as I do, and she won’t be seen to be messing anything up. She knows all eyes are on us right now. She’s not said anything to me, which is fine by me; her gaze is fixed on mine, which is not so fine. I look away and I see Rick with Jen; they just look so good together. I decide to look back at Olivia.
She takes my hands at the correct moment and we glide into a flawless spin; I’d like to think the Strictly judges would be throwing up a row of 10s.
“Smooth move,” I say to her, because it just feels rude and wrong not to say anything to your dance partner, right?
“You need a partner who knows exactly what she’s doing,” she says in response as I twirl her, and she draws into me obediently, maybe getting a smidge too close for comfort. But, it probably looks pretty good to the people watching.
“Well that’s you all over,” I say, hoping she’ll get the irony of my comment, as we move to face each other again.
She looks at me, considering that, but says nothing further.
“Well, laters.” My heart starting to beat more rapidly, I let go of her hands and push her gently in Rick’s direction, and I reach out hopefully. Here she comes.
She’s wearing a beautiful blue ballgown, simple and classy and understated. She’s far and away the most stunning person in this room; probably in the whole of Cordonia. And she’s here to dance with me.
And now I remember why I love dancing so much.
I place my hands on her waist, gently, and just get hit by a buzz of adrenaline as our eyes meet.
“Nice, if it isn’t my favourite suitor!” I chirp. I want her to know she’s special.
She’s smiling, and I’m in my happy place too. “Fancy running into you.”
“You mean, on the dance floor at a private ball during a choreographed waltz?” I waggle my eyebrows. She knew this was gonna happen, I’m sure of it. She’s teasing me.
“Well, when you put it that way, it seems inevitable I’d run into you..” It’s clear she’s new to this dance, she pauses seemingly to make sure she’s getting the steps right, and it’s cute, but I’m hoping I can help her out with some cues. “But to be fair, I haven’t seen a lot of you lately.”
Oh. She seems sad about this, and I guess I knew this was coming after the way she was yesterday by the fire. “Oh, I’m sorry. Trust me, I’d have seen more of you if I could. But there’s been a lot going on.” Yeah, I’m gonna tell her. “Last night, Olivia pretty much held me hostage in her room..” She doesn’t really react to that, but at least it’s out there. “Then today, Rick and Drake took me off for the most amazing fun time ever. Hey, how’s about I tell you all about it later tonight?” Because I really really want to spend more time with her. A minute or two just isn’t enough anymore.
She nods, still concentrating on her steps. “Sounds good.”
“I’ll make it up to you, I promise, okay?” Now for the fun bit. “Right, are you ready for this?” I’m not sure I am, but here goes nothing!
I hold her hands firmly in mine, and start to spin her around. She seems to relax into it, her smile growing, eventually developing into soft laughter, and suddenly life doesn’t seem quite as complicated anymore. We’re doing this. We’re really doing this.
“Now here we go, last move…” I twirl her and, knowing she’s not such a pro at this at Olivia, I guide her into my chest. I close my eyes, savouring the moment, breathing in her sweet perfume. Despite Olivia’s comments earlier, this is exactly what I need. I feel an intense dopamine rush from getting to be so close to her, and once I’ve recovered from this, I reluctantly release her, and she turns back to face me, ready for the last few beats before I have to send her back to Rick.
She’s looking at me differently. “You okay?” I ask her.
“Hell yeah,” she gasps, and I chuckle in response.
“I always say this dance is a little scandalous for the ballroom. Although, you and Rick seemed to be having fun a moment ago with it..”
She shakes her head, and moves to whisper something into my ear.
“Maxwell.. there’s no-one else I’d rather be dancing with right now.”
Whoa. Her eyes are sparkling, her smile is true. This isn’t like what Olivia’s doing to me. This feels real.
I mean, the feeling’s mutual, of course. But I panic. I step back a little. I didn’t expect this right now. “Jen…”
And in an instant, I realise how vulnerable she is, how vulnerable we both are. Everyone’s watching us right now. If it becomes obvious that I’m totally and shamefully besotted with her, which I am, the other Houses are going to start playing dirty, and I’m terrified of what that might mean for her. It’s best that I keep playing it cool. I know how devastated Bertrand was at losing Savannah. I don’t want to put either of us in that situation.
“What?” She looks at me with those big gorgeous eyes, all sad now. And I get it. She must feel pretty rejected right now. Crap, I don’t know what to say now.
“You know what,” I say, but even I don’t know what right now. I just savour these last few moments of closeness, and I hope she doesn’t hate me too much to hear me out later when we’re alone.
“Ahem, Lady Jen. I believe he’s my partner again now?”
Time’s up. Jen shoots me a solemn look as, against every instinct, I dutifully nudge her away and back in Rick’s direction. Olivia assumes her place, triumphantly.
You know, there’s one way I could make it less obvious that Jen’s the one I want to, need to choose at the end of all of this.
I grin as Olivia and I fall back into a well-rehearsed and steady rhythm. “What you said just now. You’re right. I do need a wife who knows what she’s doing. A wife who knows what she’s getting into. I wasn’t sure before, but…” I let my fingers brush around her waist gently, and moisten my lips as I stare at her intently; this combination usually has the desired effect on dance partners who I want to become bed partners later on. “I am now.”
We spin dramatically, and there’s a jubilant look of victory on her face. I’m confident now that any curious onlookers will draw the conclusion that I’m happy to be back here with the Scarlet Duchess, after an awkward interaction with the Everywoman. And if they could report that back to Dad, Bertrand, and anyone else who might cause problems for Jen, that would be just great.
But what isn’t just great is when we get to the twirl and instead of backing into me, she comes at me face forward, wraps her arms around me and kisses me forcefully. Like, tongues and everything. She means it, alright. And I’m now in the awkward position of not wanting to totally humiliate her by fighting her off, but not wanting to be doing this at all. I guess my plan just backfired in a huge way.
I manage to edge back just enough to lose her lips.
“I think we need to talk in private, Olivia,” I say to her, and I place an arm on her shoulder to lead her away from the dancefloor. I gaze at my feet as we go, I’m just hopeful that nobody saw that, but then that’s the huge optimist in me.
Once we’re in the hallway, she nods towards an unoccupied room, and we duck into it. I’m pretty sure Drake will have followed us, hopefully he’ll see where we’ve gone.
She raises her eyebrows. “Disappointing. I figured you’d be a better kisser than that, but there’s always room for improvement with plenty of practice..”
I hold my hand up. “What was that, Olivia? I’ll tell you what it was, it was borderline sexual assault!”
She puts her hands on her hips now, and her expression is terrifying. “You can’t have it both ways, Maxie. Do you want me as your future queen or not?”
“Uh, well…” I wish I was man enough to say no. “Look. Last night was awkward enough, just the two of us in a room. But this…”
“Last night was fun,” she says, her expression softening for a moment, then her eyes ignite with rage again. “Until Drake showed up.”
“Listen, I know what you’re up to here, Olivia,” I say, because it’s cards on the table time. “You can’t think that I buy the idea of you having suddenly fallen for me after all this time.”
She laughs, a cruel laugh that just confirms to me that she’s not worthy of my time or affection. “Who said anything about me having fallen for you? I just know what I want, Maxie. And I know what you want, too.” She draws close again, I turn my face away, but she speaks softly into my ear like she did last night. “What you’ve always wanted.”
And yeah. There was a time that I wanted her. She’s always been the hottest woman in court, I’ve always wondered what she’s capable of in the bedroom. Rick never had any complaints, and last night was… yeah. Until she mentioned Jen, I might’ve been all in. But not now.
She steps towards the door. “I’ll find you later, and it will be yours for the taking. And don’t worry, I’ll make sure no-one interrupts us this time.” She arches an eyebrow, then blows me a kiss as she leaves the room.
I sit down on a chair and throw my head into my hands. This is all such a mess. If Jen saw that… after what I said to her… I have to try and talk to her later. But I have to get my shit together first.
***
You know I hate missing a party, even a party as painful as this one. I hope nobody missed me too much at the ball tonight. I bet the other suitors are pissed off. Probably not as pissed off as Jen, though.
I just needed a bit of space to think things through. There’s no wonder Jen’s so confused. I’m so confused. I’m probably throwing out so many confusing signals. Especially just now on the dance floor.
She’s just amazing. I’m not afraid to admit to myself that I could easily fall in love with her. But with this whole agreement – what happens if she doesn’t return my feelings? Highly likely given her interactions with Drake, and her history with Rick. Things could be so awkward. And then there’s the whole thing where if I make it too obvious she’s the one, I put this whole thing at risk.
On the other hand, the temptation to play along with Olivia’s game is real. It would help to protect Jen, and it would totally satisfy my curiosity (and my basic needs, hubba hubba). But it just seems wrong. In a weird way, even though I know there would be nothing wrong with trying before I buy as it were, I’ve already promised to buy someone else. No, not buy! That sounds all kinds of wrong!
This is what it is. And I don’t know for sure if it’s meeting Jen that’s triggered this, or not. But I want to move on from “royal rake” Maxwell and be a faithful, responsible partner to my chosen princess. Who is definitely not going to be Olivia. Because I’ve already made my choice, and although I made it straight away, so far I have no doubt that it’s the right one. And after what happened tonight… I have some serious explaining to do. I just hope she agrees to hear me out. I could totally understand it if she didn’t want to see me.
But I’ve got to play this cool. At least, if she comes, I can try and explain some of this to her. But I have to separate my silly crush from the fact that she’s going to make the best crown princess slash future queen ever. We’ll have a lot of fun. We click together. She seems to enjoy my company as much as I enjoy hers. Let’s not complicate things by bringing feelings into it.
I’m sitting on my bed, looking at my phone and the texts we exchanged the night of the masquerade ball. That was just the best night. I just felt on top of the world after that. I wish more nights could’ve been like that one since Jen has been here.
Time to make another one happen.
I’ve composed and recomposed this message lots, but currently it’s going to be GOT SOMETHING REALLY COOL TO SHOW YOU. WHERE ARE YOU? *emojis* Got to add a little mystery to reel her in, right? She’s less likely to ignore that than CAN WE TALK? I reckon.
Three, two, one… it’s sent.
Eeek! Now I’m nervous. Is she gonna ghost me? Is she having too much of a good time down there with Rick? I know she’s not with Drake because he’s outside at the moment, ready to fend Olivia off if she rocks up. Or has she already gone to bed for some beauty sleep? I could be in for a long, nervous wait for a reply…
Ping!
WAS JUST ABOUT TO HEAD UP TO BED ACTUALLY..
Phew. Just in time! WELL, DON’T. I send this first, then send another. COME FIND ME INSTEAD! TOP CORRIDOR, AT END. DRAKE’S OUTSIDE THE DOOR. SO BE STEALTHY. *emojis*
Oh, crap. Did that come across way too commanding and presumptive? She’s probably gonna say no, right? No more messages come through. I jump up and pace around the room nervously. I check my reflection (looking surprisingly slick given current stress levels), reapply my cologne, final check of the outdoor area (the pretty lights are on, I can sort the tunage out when she arrives… if she arrives…), back to the mirror to check my reflection again…
Then I hear voices outside the door. That’s Drake’s voice.
And, Jen’s voice. Yessssss, thank you ancestors. I owe you one.
There’s a gentle, almost hesitant tap on the door, and I don’t hesitate to answer it. “Jen! Come in, quick.” I usher her in before I really take her in; once I’ve closed the door behind her, I allow myself a second to do that. Her black curls just flow gently down past one of her eyes and I just want to reach out and touch them. I just want to reach out and touch her anywhere, really. It’s like she’s magnetising me and I’m a scrap of metal that’s just about to give up resisting and hurtle towards her.
I pull myself together. “I take it nobody saw you?”
She looks at me sheepishly. “Are we counting Drake?”
“Yeah. He saw you, huh?” You know, that really doesn’t bother me in the slightest.
She’s nodding. “I’m not quite sure I could have achieved that level of stealthiness.”
This girl has a lot to learn. “I reckon I could see you climbing out a window and climbing up the side of the building. That, my friend, is stealthy.”
“You think I’d risk my neck for you like that?” She’s smiling. Fair point. I’d totally do it for her though. But that’s another story.
There’s a pause, and I decide it’s time to show her what she came for. “Anyway. I want to show you something.” While our eyes are locked on each others, my hand finally gives in to temptation and reaches towards hers. And she takes it without argument. And it’s so nice.
Feeling a slight adrenaline rush, I guide her through my room and towards the patio doors. As we head outside and down the steps, I excitedly search her face for a reaction. I’m not disappointed.
“Wow. This view..” She stops to take in the snowy mountains and frozen lakes that are laid out in front of us, ominous in the darkness of night, but strangely calming too.
“Beautiful isn’t it?” I agree. “Now you see why I wanted to share it with someone. It’s wasted on me. All I want to do is put some music on and dive into that hot tub.”
I don’t think she’d even noticed the hot tub yet, and now her eyes flicker towards it and widen. It’s hard to read her face right now, but I think she’s in approval.
Welp, time to get this party started. I pull my phone out of my pocket, and activate my hot-tub party playlist I spent most of the last hour putting together. I had to hazard a guess that she might appreciate some 90s R&B, and who doesn’t love Return of the Mack? Yeah, she’s grinning. “There. Step one complete. Sweet tunage. Fancy joining me for step two?”
She seems a little thrown. “Uh.. well I didn’t think I’d need to bring a swimsuit…”
“No matter! You can just lose the dress, can’t you?” Oh crap. That was waaaaay too forward. I didn’t even think about it until I said it. She doesn’t look very impressed, and I don’t blame her.
Then I realise. Maybe I should level the playing field in this scenario. And also, it’s high time she met Mr Hippo. “Hey. That reminds me. I’ve got something else to show you. Turn around.”
Now I don’t have any qualms in stripping off in front of her, but I need her to know this is a friendly situation, not a sexy situation, even if to me this is sexy as fuck. So only once she’s got her back to me do I start to get my kit off. And there’s plenty of it, so this isn’t going to be subtle, or particularly quick.
“Now you just stay facing that way, until I say you can look..” She’s giggling, she knows what I’m up to. I reckon she’ll be laughing soon enough, but for now I savour the anticipation as I finally free myself from my regal garb. Phew. Feels so liberating to be almost naked. Wait, now she’s got to turn around and actually see me like this… let’s hope she doesn’t run a mile. “Okay!”
Well, she definitely clocked the tattoo straight away. “Aww, that’s the cutest!”
“Oh, thank god you like it, I thought you’d laugh…”
She’s walking towards me now, her gaze is definitely on my chest, and maybe this is wishful thinking but it might not be completely limited to my body art? “You have to tell me now though,” she says, before looking back up into my eyes. “Why a hippo?”
She’s direct, I’ll give her that. She doesn’t mess around with her questions. And I love that about her. “Oh, it’s a bit of a sad story, really. I don’t want to kill the fun.”
“It’s okay,” she says, and I believe her, as she lingers pretty close, looking up at me and down at my body a few times. “Just tell me the short version, and then we can go back to the fun to cheer ourselves up afterwards.”
I’m nervous, but what have I got to lose telling her the truth? “Good plan,” I say, as I start to jump up and down. “It’s gonna have to be the short version because I’m going to freeze to death halfway through otherwise. So, I told you about what happened to my mom.”
“Yeah.” She bites her lip, and her eyes are all big.
“When I was a kid, Rick’s mom was still alive. She’d been my mom’s best friend. She told me once, that when my mom was pregnant with me, she used to joke that she felt like she was carrying a little hippo around, rather than a little human.”
“Oh, that’s so cute..”
“So when I went to college, there was me and some friends all getting tattoos. And I didn’t know what to get. A pal of mine had just lost his mom, and he got a tattoo done to remember her. And the only thing I could really think of from what I knew about my mom was what Eleanor had said to me. So.. the little hippo was finally born!” Hell, I really miss Eleanor. And I can never really make a big deal out of it, because she wasn’t my mom. But she was the closest thing I ever had to one. And this tattoo is as much a tribute to her as it is to my mom.
I look back at Jen. She’s gazing into my eyes now and I gaze back. I just want to keep gazing back forever. I’m getting goosebumps, and I don’t think it’s from the cold. Although it is really, really cold.
Time to get warmed up.
“Right, I’m going in! Geranimo!” And I hear her giggles just before I crash into the shallow water, oooooh it’s so warm! But it could be warmer.
I sit back, sighing dramatically. “Oh… Jen… you have no idea how niiiiice it is in here!” She’s stopped with the giggles now, and is just smiling at me, a little uncertain, as if she’s waiting for an official invitation. “You are gonna join me, yeah?”
“Close your eyes, then,” she teases, and I don’t think I’ve ever closed my eyes so quickly.
I even put my hands over them. “I’m not peeking!” Although I really, really want to peek, I want her to feel comfortable. And it’s only fair, right? What must only be a few seconds feels like minutes, but finally I feel the water ripple more strongly and sense movement and warmth beside me.
“Okay. You can look again now.”
Be cool. Don’t look straight at her straightaway. Wait until she’s distracted. “How nice is it in here?”
“I’m sure there can’t be many things better than sitting in a hot tub, looking out at the snow,” she says.
Well… “There are a few things.” I get my counting finger out. “Tour of a chocolate factory. Apple shoot. Seeing Celine Dion in Las Vegas. Trip to the best zoo ever with all your favourite animals. Road trip to a theme park. Birthday sex. New peacock. Winning a dance-off. Finding new squid memorabilia. Having a whole family of corgis as pets. But, otherwise… yeah.” Sitting in a hot tub, looking out at the snow, with you, is pretty sweet. I let myself have a proper, but very brief look at what was hiding underneath that ballgown. Badda bing. That’s enough!
She looks a little confused. “There’s a lot to unpack there..”
“And that was what I was going to tell you about! The Apple Shoot.” I shoot her a wink. “It’s basically a Cordonian royal tradition, which is performed as part of the pre-nuptial celebrations of the royal family and senior nobles. We went into the woods, and someone holds an apple, and the groom… moi… gets to pick their weapon and shoot the apple!”
“And nobody died?”
Hey! “I figured you’d have a bit more faith in me than that..” This girl’s getting to know me well. I don’t know whether that’s terrifying or the best news ever.
“What weapon did you use?”
“We raided Olivia’s armory,” I admit. “She doesn’t know, so don’t tell her! I had this amazing catapult type weapon. It did the job. Of course, I had to have a go with all the weapons we took with us… with varied results..”
She’s still looking dubious. “I’m assuming the fact that Rick and Drake escaped unscathed means that they were good at getting out of the way of flying missiles?”
“Good assumption. There are now a few trees with chunks taken out of them in that forest.”
More giggles. Officially my new favourite sound. “Sounds like you had fun.”
“I did. Rick’s a good friend.” Because he is. Little things like this morning remind me of that, there’s no need for any awkwardness here, is there? “He knew Bertrand wouldn’t approve, so he thought he’d arrange it for when he wasn’t about.” Keep smiling. Don’t let her see how conflicted you are.
She seems to relax a little, leaning back, and closing her eyes for a moment. I take the opportunity to really take her in now she’s not looking. Holy moly. She’s perfect. I don’t have any sort of predefined perfect specification when it comes to a partner, all shapes and sizes catch my interest. But, just, wow. I think like her shape, her size, best of all.
“Know what, Jen? I feel like I’ve been waiting for this moment the entire trip,” I say, because I totally have. I’m still slightly in shock that I made it happen so easily.
She opens her eyes. “What’s that, us seeing each other half naked?”
Oh crap. She’s onto you. Be chill. Think. “I’d say more than half.” I do some quick maths. Eighty-five percent at least. For you, anyway.”
“Good point,” she giggles, and I think I’m off the hook.
I look down at myself. “Maybe ninety…two for me? Wait. Don’t undersell yourself, Maxwell. Eighty-five works.” Uh, maybe that came across too cocky… hey is she blushing? What… is she thinking about my… oh man, she totally is!
“Good to know,” she says between giggles, and I’m suddenly feeling all kinds of excited. I think we just went from ninety-two to eighty-five.
I nudge away from her slightly, and decide it’s probably best to change the subject. “But yeah. This is the life. This makes all the skating and bowing and waltzing worth it. Just me, a good friend, some tunes, and blissful relaxation.” Because this is bliss. This is the most blissful I’ve felt ever since I first saw Jen in New York. And I just want to feel bliss like this as much as possible.
She sighs, and I get the feeling she doesn’t feel quite as blissful as me.
“Listen, about what happened earlier…”
Oh no. I feel all the bliss drain out of me.
“About what I said to you when we were dancing…”
And while I know the reason she’s here is because I wanted to explain myself, I still have no idea how. But at least I can apologise. So I do. “Oh, Jen. I’m sorry. I completely messed up there. I feel awful.”
She looks really sad now. “You said, I know what. But I didn’t know what. What should I know?”
That is an excellent question.
You should know that I think you’re the smartest, sweetest, coolest person I’ve ever spent time with. You should know that you make my heart race every time I see you. You should know that I’m just so intrigued by you. You should know that this is a done deal and you haven’t got to worry about a thing. You should know I’ve got you.
But you shouldn’t know how crazy about you I am, because I don’t want to scare you off. I need to keep you at a distance for your own safety. I guess you should know that?
“This is what I need you to know,” I eventually say, being very careful what I say. “I’ve got to be very careful where you’re concerned.”
“Why?”
“Because I really like you, Jen. I don’t want to mess you around, or take advantage of you.” I hadn’t planned on being quite this honest, but there we are. I want to be honest with her.
“Hey, I know what I’m getting myself into here,” she protests. But she doesn’t. Even I’m not sure what she’s getting into, if I’m honest. Things could change so quickly. I don’t think my feelings for her will, but there’s a lot of factors I can’t control here.
“I just don’t want to make any false promises to you, Jen. You know I can’t promise you marriage.” Because even though I’ve made my mind up, so much could go wrong. “I can’t promise you love….”
And I look deeply into those green eyes to see what she makes of this. I want to find disappointment in them. And maybe it’s there. But maybe that’s disappointment at my first statement.
“I can promise you my friendship, though,” I say. Because she’ll always have that, whatever happens. I just wish I could promise her all three of those things.
A small smile returns to her captivating lips. “I understand.”
I smile back. I guess she has an answer now. Ask no questions, and I’ll tell no lies.
Regulate fades in, and her smile grows. Man, she’s got good taste in music. “Aw, this is a tune..”
“It’s good chillout music, this,” I agree, closing my eyes and relaxing now the subject has been tackled. We can go back to just chilling now. I listen to her humming along. I’m kind of hoping she’ll break into song for the chorus, but she doesn’t. Maybe one day.
She seems happy now. I open my eyes, and yeah, she looks happy enough. I hope she is. I hope she’s doing this because she wants to, not because Rick wants her to. I might just check.
“If, say, hypothetically, I chose you as my queen, what would you want your life to be like?”
Her answer comes quickly. “I’d just want to be happy. To spend my life with someone who makes me smile, and laugh every day.”
“Really? You wouldn’t want the riches and the power and the jewellery and the shoes and the pile of corgis?”
She laughs. “But you don’t have any corgis!”
“Only because Dad’s allergic. But one day I will. Maybe we will.”
I let that settle. She doesn’t look alarmed. This is progress.
“What about you?” she asks me. “What would you want your life to be like with your hypothetical Queen?”
“The pile of corgis definitely gets my vote. And, yeah. Same. Just someone I can have fun with.”
“What if you had hypothetical feelings for them?”
Oh, baby. My feelings for you are not hypothetical. But I don’t want you knowing that. “Nah. That’s not gonna happen. That’s not how all this works.”
“What if you used to have feelings for them?”
Oh no. There’s me thinking she’s trying to dig out if I want her, and she’s actually trying to dig out if I want Olivia. I sigh. “We’re not talking about Olivia again, are we?”
There’s a strange look in her eyes, and it’s totally hot. “She seems to think she can use the fact that you crushed on her as a teenager to her advantage.”
“Let’s be clear, she was downright cruel to me when I plucked up the courage to tell her how I felt. It put me off that sort of thing for life.” Maybe it’s part of the reason I don’t want to tell Jen now. It’s not the main reason, but it’s definitely part of it. “Now? She just scares me a little bit, to be honest. And that trick she pulled tonight..” Ugh. Worst kiss ever. And I’ve had some terrible ones. The chin one is now promoted to second place in that dubious chart.
Jen sits up, her tone more urgent. “I’ve got to tell you something, Maxwell. She told me she doesn’t want you, she just wants to be queen, but she’s going to make you think she does want you. Did you fall for it tonight?” She raises her eyebrows. She’s concerned, obviously she is. She sees Olivia as a threat when it comes to my choice, not my emotions.
“Nope. I’m totally aware of this, Jen. Don’t worry. And I didn’t fall for it last night either, when I realised the final destination on my little tour of the keep was her boudoir!”
Jen puts her hands to her mouth in shock.
“Don’t worry, I got Drake to send her packing, when he eventually turned up back from his winter expedition or whatever he was up to..”
She’s giggling now. I’m not going to ask her about that, but I can tell it all makes sense to her.
“No. I know Olivia is playing a game. I know that’s what you’re all doing.”
She looks at me, with what I hope is honesty on her face. “I’m not.”
“Well, I won’t be choosing Olivia, whatever happens. Promise. Don’t worry.” She needs to know that.
“So who’s my main competition if it isn’t her?”
I shrug. “I dunno. It’s not like I really know any of the others all that well.. Other than Madeleine of course..” I insert my fingers into my mouth, just to give her the exact impression of what I think of the idea of marrying my ex-sister-in-law, and I think she gets it.
She’s laughing for a while, and I laugh with her once my fingers are out. It’s lovely. Eventually, she manages to form a sentence again. “Are you inviting them all over to your hot tub one by one to get to know them as well?”
“Not tonight,” I joke. “Seriously? No. Although, do you think I should? Am I being fair on the competition, spending all this time with you?” Let’s see what she thinks of that.
She just shakes her head and looks away. “I don’t know.”
“It’s just, you’re the one I want to spend my time with. Like…” No. Careful. Don’t say too much. Don’t tell her you want to spend as much time with her as you possibly can. “I think we have fun together, don’t you?”
She stands up, and I can’t help but let my gaze fall to her waist and below as I get a first proper look at her flawless figure. But then I look up at her and she looks sad. Noo.
“I should go,” she sighs, putting her arms around herself to conceal her body a little. “I don’t want you to feel torn because of me.”
“No, don’t go yet!” I jump to my feet too. “Let’s just have fun for a bit longer.” And I know how to bring the fun. I reach over to where I left my phone with my clothes, and I stick on something more lively. “Anyone for a hot-tub disco?”
She remains standing in place while I back into the middle of the hot tub, and bust a few moves. I think that frown’s turning upside down. And that’s the way I like it.
Eventually I reel her in, and in she comes, and shorty’s getting low, no apple bottom jeans required, just a bra and pants. Ah, she’s loving it! My girl’s got moves!
I think this actually might be the highlight of my life so far. Dancing in a hot tub in my underwear with the hottest person I’ve ever met. I’m feeling so free and happy right now, and it looks like she is too. If I needed confirmation that she’d make the perfect queen, I’ve got it now. I need this woman in my life, whatever happens.
BAM BAM BAM.
We both hear the loud knock at my bedroom door, even above the music and the laughter.
Olivia.
“Oh, crap.” I exchange a nervous look with Jen, as we both freeze in the middle of the dance tub.
“Who do you think it is?” she asks me.
“Drake will have gone for his break by now,” I explain. “I reckon that knock is Olivia.” I reckon she waited until Drake had left his post especially.
She’s not smiling, but her eyes sparkle. She raises her eyebrows. “Then, let’s just hope you’re right.”
I watch her in awe as she climbs out of the hot-tub. She clocks one of the towels I left for her earlier, and all too soon it’s wrapped snugly around her. I expect her to wait for me at this point, but no, she’s off up those stairs and heading for that door… ohhh damn! She’s gonna confront her!
“Wait! Jen…” I jump out too, not so elegantly but no-one’s looking, and grab my robe on my way past as I hear more knocking. Whew, there’s something very hot about this situation.
By the time I catch up, the door’s open and Jen’s smiling smugly out at Olivia. “Were you looking for Maxie?”
Haha, one nil to House Rys!
I roll in behind her. “Olivia, hey, fancy seeing you…. here…” Uhmn. She’s not wearing very much. Arguably less than she was last night… And heels. “..In that…” Now Jen looks pointedly at me, unimpressed, which is both scary and exciting. “Ahem. Jen and I have just been… enjoying the lovely hot tub you have provided! Would you.. uh.. care to join us?”
Olivia looks at me like I’m a bug she wants to squash. “No thank you.” Then she turns tail and stomps off. Wow. That was easy!
“Bye,” Jen shouts, and then she slams the door, and looks at me. I can see she’s trying really hard not to laugh. So am I.
Now we’re laughing. Like, really really laughing. Because telling Olivia where to stick it was just the best feeling for both of us, and slightly ridiculous for the fact that she was wearing nothing but what I’m guessing was her most risque lingerie at the time.
And we’re still laughing. Poor Jen is laughing so much she’s almost falling over and has to lean onto the wall for support. I’m laughing so much I’m almost falling into her and have to lean onto her for support.
Almost falling into her. Okay. Falling into her. Maybe a little bit.
I’m still chuckling to myself as she sighs, and giggles a bit more. I sigh too. More with contentment than trying to stop laughing.
“Her face though,” I say. “That was brilliant.”
Jen’s just glowing. “I don’t think she’ll be troubling you anymore.”
“Ah, thank you Jen. You keep saving me from these incredibly awkward situations. I definitely need to spend as much time as possible with you.” True story.
She’s still smiling, but now she isn’t meeting my eyes. “Aren’t you worried though? What if she tells someone? I mean, this could be seen as quite a scandal, don’t you think?”
“She won’t,” I reassure her. “If Olivia told the world that we were here together, it would effectively be an admission of her defeat. She’s not going to go down without more of a fight. You know it. I know it.”
“Yeah. I guess you’re right.” She looks back up at me now, and there’s a shyness in her expression again, like there was when she first arrived. “I suppose I should go. Let you get your Princely rest.”
“Of course.” And I realise she’s still just wrapped in a towel. “Hey, just pop in the bathroom if you like, I’ll chuck your dress in to you.” I show her where it is.
“Thanks, Maxwell.”
She heads in, and I wander through the suite, still sniggering to myself. I pick up her dress, and her shoes, and the little bag that she left through there which I’m guessing has her phone in it, and wander back through. I figure I probably ought to throw some clothes of my own on before we say goodnight, so I put her stuff down on the bed, and do that quickly. Then I pick up her things again, and knock gently on the bathroom door to let her know I’m there. Wonder she can’t hear my heartbeat.
The door opens slightly and she peeks her head around it. “Why thank you, kind sir.”
“Don’t mention it,” I say, passing her things to her gently. She looks as if she’s in a bit of a daze, I guess she must be tired. It’s been a long day. Then she nods, and closes the door gently.
I wait there for a few moments, I’m not going anywhere. It isn’t long until the door opens again, and she carefully steps out of the bathroom. We stand in front of each other.
So, at this point, past Maxwell would have made his move. I might be reading too much into this, but I’m pretty sure she’s thrown off some positive signals tonight. But, you’re looking at a new man. And my mind’s made up. Keep things friendly. Safer that way. Once she’s got an engagement ring on her finger, then we can see how things go. Of course, the flirting might just be her way of making sure she gets that ring. But you know me. Ever the optimist.
“Jen. It’s been fun,” I tell her.
“Yeah. It has.”
Do I risk a hug? Eh, it’s worth the risk. I hold out my arms.
And now she’s in them. And I hold onto her, feeling dizzy with emotion at first, but just relaxing into it, like it’s the only thing I know how to do. And I just want to hold her forever. And she doesn’t seem to want to go anywhere.
But she has to. Because if she doesn’t go soon I’m gonna kiss her and that’s not a good idea.
I release my arms and step back. “I guess I’ll see you at the next event, which is the Regatta. Hey, you’ll get to meet my Dad properly. It’s his favourite event.”
“Well, I better be on my best behaviour then, I guess.” She raises her eyebrows playfully, as she heads to the door and takes hold of the handle.
“I’m sure you will. And then, in the evening, it’s my favourite event.” And it’s going to be even better this year because my favourite person’s gonna be attending!
“The beach party?”
She knows! I point at her, excited. “Beach party!!! You really do listen, don’t you?”
She’s all smiles again. “I have ears.”
I have to let her go now. “Night, Jen.”
“Night, Maxwell.”
She steps out of the door, and it closes softly. I lock it behind her, just in case Olivia’s still lurking.
And she’s gone.
And my hands are on my head in frustration as I lean against the door. What did I say to myself just before she turned up? No complicating things with feelings? Always the screwup.
Things just got a hell of a lot more complicated. Because I think…
No. If I don’t think it, it’s not true. I’m not in love with Jen Jones. She’s just everything I want out of life. Everything I need as a future queen.
But I’m fucking terrified that she’s gonna break my heart. Either by not returning my feelings, or if something goes wrong that neither of us can control…
No, I still need to play it safe. Focus on the end result, and until then, no letting her know how you feel. It’s safer for everyone that way.
It’s definitely safer for me.