Page 50 of Devilish

“Fucker,” I muttered, but made sure to pull Kai in under my arm. I was confident in my draw here, but a prince was enough to make anyone question their appeal.

“I’m not sure if you ate or not, so I had Cook prepare one of Lucien’s favorites—pissaladière.”

I took the seat next to Kai and eyed the tasty flatbread dish in the center of the table made up of caramelized onions, anchovies, and olive oil.

“I’d love to try some,” Kai said, polite as always. “I’ve been loving the food here. The other night we had the…barbagiuan? Am I saying that right?”

“Enough that I understand what you mean,” Theo said with a grin. “Are you enjoying the villa?”

Kai’s eyes shot to mine, and I nodded, answering his unspoken question. “He’s one of the brothers I mentioned.”

“You’re probably wondering why I’d want a villa nearby when I have all this.” Theo swung his arm carelessly at the palace. “Do you have siblings?”

Kai shook his head.

“Well, if you did, you’d want an escape too.” Theo poured himself a glass of red wine and offered one to the two of us. When we declined, he set the bottle back down. “That and the fact that hundreds of tourists roam these halls every damn day. It’s so stifling.”

“Thanks for keeping your ass here this week,” I said. “I’m afraid the house isn’t big enough for the three of us.”

“Not big enough?” Kai asked, incredulous. “I could choose a different room every night for months and still never sleep in the same place twice.”

Oh, he’d be sleeping in the same place twice during this trip, all right. Withme.

“I believe your companion means you two want some privacy.” Theo took a sip of his wine and arched a brow, as if daring me to say differently.

“That’s exactly why.”

Kai smiled shyly at me, and I rested my arm over the back of his chair, keeping him close.

Theo’s gaze darted between the two of us, and he tapped the stem of his wine glass. It’d been a while since I’d brought anyone around, and I could see the many questions he wanted to ask. I’d be getting an earful later, that was for sure.

“So,” he said, then leaned back in his chair, “not to be nosy or anything?—”

I snorted. “Since when?”

He waved my words off. “What the hell happened to your face?”

My face? Oh, shit.

I’d been on such a high since landing in Monaco that I hadn’t even stopped to think about the cuts and bruising from the explosion.

“You haven’t heard?”

“Heard what? The only thing that’s been blowing up my phone lately is annoying relatives and prying reporters. You’d think this was the first wedding to ever take place from the way everyone is carrying on about it.”

Kai put the flag he’d been holding on the table as though it had just burned him, and I reached out and gave it back to him.

“Stop being such a stick in the mud,” I said to Theo. “Your country’s been waiting forever for this. What’s wrong with having a little love floating in the air?”

“I’m allergic. And it’s making me break out in hives.”

“Well, it could be worse. Your place of business could have blown up.”

Theo’s eyes narrowed as he took another look at the gash on my chin. “I assume we’re talking ‘boom’ and not ‘went viral on the internet.’”

“You assume correct.”

“What the fuck?” Theo sat up in his seat, the relaxed monarch now looking me over as if searching for any permanent damage.

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