Page 11 of Royal Extra After

Ned laughed. “You killed it. This was some of your best work so far.”

“Thank you,” Simone said, stepping closer to him until they were almost toe to toe. “And about…Izzy. You need to be careful. Everyone can see you have a thing for her…”

“Simone, I…”

Simone put up a hand to stop him. “Don’t. We both know you’re a horrible liar. I’m just warning you, Ned. You’re not thinking with your head right now and that could hurt the movie.”

“Simone, do you honestly think I would do anything to jeopardize this project?”

“Normally, no. But what I saw today between you two wasn’t normal. It’s like a romcom movie playing out right in front of us. We all have a lot at stake for this movie to be a success. I don’t want to see you get hurt professionally or personally.”

Ned knew from experience Simone was upset because she didn’t like knowing he could fall for someone else. He also knew she could be dangerous if she told anyone else about her suspicions of him falling for the princess. He needed to fix this. Now. He put his arm around her and leaned in closer. “Can you keep a secret?”

Simone nodded eagerly. “You know I can. You can trust me with anything.”

“I know,” Ned said. “You’ve always had my back, and I appreciate that. The reason the princess was here all day and I’m meeting her tonight has nothing to do with any feelings I have for her. It’s all part of our plan.”

“Your plan?” Simone asked with growing interest.

“Yes,” Ned said as he looked around to make sure no one else could hear them. “Think about it. Having a princess on the payroll can only help sell our movie. I’m only spending time with her, so she thinks we’re using her suggestions, but we’re only really using her for the PR.”

Simone’s face lit up. “That’s brilliant.”

“I know,” Ned laughed. “Now, can we get back to focusing on you. You are my star. I need you to get some rest tonight because we have a big day tomorrow, okay?”

Simone beamed back at him. “Don’t worry, I’ll dazzle you like always.”

“I know you will,” Ned said before giving her a friendly kiss on the cheek and walking away. He let out a sigh of relief. Thankfully he’d put out the fire with Simone by telling her the original plan he’d had for the princess, the plan he’d just told Gary was canceled. But Simone didn’t need to know that.

Still, he couldn’t help thinking about what Gary and Simone had said about how it was obvious he was falling for the princess. He couldn’t deny he was drawn to her. She stirred up feelings he hadn’t felt in a very long time. He took a deep breath and told himself what he was experiencing could also just be the adrenalin rush of working together on a movie he felt so passionate about.

One thing he did know, he already felt protective of the princess, and there was no way he was going to let Gary exploit her to help market their movie. When she’d agreed to do the film, she had shared with him how bloodthirsty the paparazzi could be if they smelled a story. He had promised to protect her identity, and a promise was a promise.

He smiled, thinking about their upcoming dinner. He knew he could have emailed the princess the pictures and videos of the castle to get her thoughts, but he genuinely wanted to spend more time with her for reasons that went far beyond just the movie.

The princess couldn’t remember a time she’d enjoyed herself more as she finished her dinner with Ned in her hotel suite.

Ned not only answered all her questions about what it took to become a director, he’d also entertained her with his hilarious stories about some of his mishaps on his first jobs. Even Benson, faithfully standing by in the background, had chuckled. The princess was delighted to learn that beyond being a talented director, Ned was also a fantastic storyteller. When he confessed to writing several movies of his own that he hoped to someday direct, she was quick to offer to read them.

“If you let me read your scripts, I could give you my notes,” the princess said rubbing her hands together in anticipation. “Free of charge, of course. I am quite good at notes.”

Ned laughed. “Oh, I know you are, but these aren’t royal stories.”

The princess shrugged. “That’s okay. I could give you my opinion as a viewer. The female perspective. What are they about?”

“One’s a comedy. The other is an action-adventure movie,” Ned answered.

“And I love both!” said the princess. “So, that’s settled. I’ll read them. Have you written any romantic comedies?”

Ned laughed a little. “No. That’s not my lane.”

“I’ve written one,” the princess said proudly. Then covered her mouth with her hand. “I can’t believe I just told you that. I haven’t told anyone.”

Ned leaned in. “So, what is this romcom about? One of the great loves of your life?”

The princess sighed. “No, I haven’t found any great love yet, but I still have hope.”

When their eyes met, the princess blushed, looked away, and started folding the napkin on her lap. “I think it will help my writing when I actually do fall in love. Right now, I’m just writing about what I think love should be, using my imagination.”

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