Page 23 of Powerful Prince
How dare that jerk hurt Stephanie? I’d slap him if he ever came near.
Stephanie said, “It’s okay. I’m still living my first dream. I have a job in London, a flat, friends. I’m doing great.”
There she was. Ever the optimist. Spinning gold out of her tears. If we were together, I’d treat her to something fun, but I simply said, “We still miss you being around.”
She let out a sigh. “I am so mad at myself for missing so much. I haven’t even met Georgie’s, Ridley’s or Indigo’s husbands. Y’all are my family. Can you get me at the airport on Friday night?”
Change the topic before anyone offers sympathy. Stephanie’s style. But I bounced and said, “Absolutely.”
“I can’t wait to meet your prince,” she said.
This time, I paused. My heart thumped. This marriage wasn’t about romance. How did I tell Stephanie that? But then, I heard footsteps and my pulse quickened. I quickly said, “Ryder’s coming back. Talk to you later.”
The door opened and a shirtless, sweaty, tanned prince stole my breath away with those muscles of his.
Seriously, he could block mountains. And hold me tight. My lips tingled as I wished he’d kiss me, but he seemed distracted and maybe tired. “Were you on the phone?”
I bounced on my feet toward him and said, “You look sweaty.”
He shrugged like I spoke the obvious. And I had, but my heart thundered and I needed a moment to recover my sanity. He said, “I needed a workout. Then my father joined me.”
I stood in front of him. The smell of his adrenaline almost matched the sweet smell of the fresh air outside I’d been soaking up. I almost melted as I said, “You’re super tense near him.”
He closed the door behind him and the idea of reaching for his hand and tugging him to the bed hit me. It wasn’t part of the deal, though. He glanced at my bag that was still near the closet door like he was surprised, and then at my open windows, but he didn’t ask anything. Instead, he said, “We don’t see eye-to-eye on much, but he’s a good king.”
I hadn’t said yes to Ryder just because of the magnetic attraction in my veins. Part of the reason was also that we’d talked and ironed out a misunderstanding so easily. That had been the draft topic I’d been considering for my blog. For now I listened to my heartbeat as I narrowed my gaze, “How is he as a father?”
He walked around my room like we were sharing, and I swallowed. Then he headed toward the white doors on the side wall and said, “He’s fine, I guess. I came to check you were settled in okay.”
“I’m good.” I followed my instinct and kissed his cheek. Ryder instantly relaxed, but I ignored the adrenaline in my veins and said in an upbeat tone, “My dad was amazing. He was the glue of my family, really. He ensured we were all taken care of and he tucked us in every night.”
He opened the doors with a gold key I hadn’t seen him holding as he said, “My father checked on my progress at breakfast every day, and berated me at dinner for whatever I’d failed to do.”
I reached out and hugged him. “Sounds hard.”
He rested his forehead on mine and his eyes closed.
Damn, my lips tingled for an actual kiss. His skin was like an appetizer that just made me hungry for the main course. And my body had a zap in it.
But then he opened his eyes and said, “My mother was the one who read us stories, and told us our father loved us in his own way.”
He ran his hand through my hair and I said, “That sounds sweet. My mom tried, but she never trusted her own voice, so she let my dad do the work.”
He let me go. My body ached like I’d been abandoned and my nipples were hard.
“We were opposites then,” he said.
He rubbed his arm like it itched, so I backed up and said, “Go and shower. I want you to show me the grounds.”
He opened the door and then said, “I’ll be back soon.”
I reached out for his wrist. I didn’t want him to go yet. “Wait.”
He turned toward me. “What?”
I pointed through the doors to the dark room. “Is this your room?”
He opened the door fully, so I saw the white and gold with pops of red version of my own room, with a gorgeous view of the blue ocean in the distance. Seriously, this place took my breath away.
