Page 91 of Royally Benevolent

“Well, even we’re not?—”

“You’re my girlfriend, Odette.” I don’t know why I said it. “Right?”

“Uh… are we… you’re… okay with that?”

“Why not?” I laughed. “I could only be so lucky, Odette.”

“Okay, well, yeah. I didn’t think we would put a name to it.”

“We will.”

“Are you interested in coming to the wedding?”

I agreed. “Yes, baby. Of course. The only thing I’d ask is… can we not make a big public deal of it? It’s not about you. It’s about… Theo. The public outcry. I worry about it. I want to attend the reception with you and support you. I know you’re in the wedding, so we wouldn’t sit together?—”

“We wouldn’t sit together anyhow. Non-royal attendees don’t sit with royals. No ring, no bring.”

I cocked my head.

“One of the million rules.”

“Ah.”

Despite acknowledging that much, Odette seemed down. She understood, but she wanted more. I wanted to give her the world, but I had to protect Theo. I wanted her to bemine. I wasn’t willing to share her.

“You deserve commitment and respect. I want to make it abundantly clear, Odette,” I explained. “But I also must manage Theo and his media exposure.”

“I get it,” I said. “And if you don’t want to come?—”

I squeezed her hand. “I care about you so much. I want to be there with you. I want to dance with the most beautiful woman in the room until my feet no longer take it.”

52

A ROYAL PAIN

ODETTE

Losing my virginity felt like magic—regardless of what Astrid said. It was wonderful. I was fulfilled and loved up. I also now had aboyfriend,which hadn’t been the case for a long time. My boyfriend adored me and treated me like a queen—one willing to attend the wedding with me. He did what he said he would.

For that, I was grateful. However, there was still trouble in paradise. While the pain was temporary at the moment—and well worth the release—I had pressed the limits of what my body was comfortable with. Sex was off the table for a bit. Did it worry me about him not wanting to go public? A little, but his reasoning made sense. Theo had to come first. My protective streak with the niblings let me relax. He wanted to dance with me—to bemine.

With Theo gone that evening, we sat on the living room couch before a roaring fire. I wasn’t sure how to communicate that my body was only up for cuddling. And would that be acceptable? Was putting out one and pulling back going to make me a tease? And if I explainedwhyI couldn’t have sex again this soon, would he freak out? I worried I’d be stranded in Belgium with nowhere to go.

Wyatt brought me another glass of wine and set out a box of chocolates his mother picked up.

I took the glass. “Dinner was nice, thanks. And this is lovely.”

“You’re welcome as always.”

“You’ll have to teach me how to cook something,” I said.

“Ah, yes. I can. You’ll have to come over. Do you all even have a kitchen to cook in? Is that a weird question?”

“We don’t,” I said. “No one inourhouse cooks. The Brits do, and they have a ‘family’ sort of kitchen in their family living quarters—the part you don’t see on the tour. I love that idea. The idea of normalcy is fundamental. But I’d be glad to come over more often… as long as it won’t bother anyone.”

“Theo will be overjoyed—especially if you bring Grieg.”

“I’m sorry he couldn’t come with me. It was all a lot of work. And Alexandra and the kids agreed to keep him. I wasn’t sure what to do without staff to watch him when we were gone. He won’t go on a hike with us in the cold.”

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