Page 18 of The Prince and the Puck
“Not even a little bit,” I said. Agreeing to pretend to date was not part of my plan. The only reason I hadn’t refused was because there was a good chance that this access to Declan would allow me to begin to gain his confidence. Once he’d told me who he was, I could be honest with him. It would make everything easier. In the meantime, I had to keep trying to figure out how to make him decide to go home while pretending I had no idea who he was. It was impossible.
We’d barely left the curb in front of my building when Declan pulled the car over and looked at me. “Lizzy,” he said, and his voice carried a low, sexy tone that pulled at something inside me. I looked over at him.
“Yeah?”
“We don’t have to do this. I would never make you do something you’re not comfortable with. I really was just trying to help,” he said. “That, and…” he trailed off.
I shook my head lightly. “That and what?” There was something in the way he was looking at me, the way his gaze dropped to my lips for a second and then caught my eyes again. My stomach twisted and heat flashed through me.
“If I’m honest,” he said, his voice so low it had me clenching my thighs together.
Dammit.
He rubbed a hand across the back of his neck, gave a deep, rumbling chuckle. “Well, look. You’re gorgeous, which I’m sureyou know. And maybe I should have just asked you out for real, except I’m really not supposed to get involved with anyone who works for the team, and I was 99 percent sure you’d turn me down.”
“I would,” I said, still struggling to get my reactions to him under control. In the small cab of the truck, the prince suddenly seemed so huge, so overwhelmingly masculine. What would it be like to succumb to all that…man?
“So I went with fake,” he said, nodding as if he’d known I would say that. “But just because I find you attractive doesn’t mean I can’t be a total gentleman.”
I struggled not to blurt out that a gentleman was suddenly the last thing I wanted him to be. “Okay.”
“I’m attracted to you. But I’m not a caveman,” he went on. “I want to help you get the team’s trust. And I can do that without acting on… whatever… this is.” He gestured between us. “Only… do you… am I nuts here? Do you not feel this thing between us?”
I did. I felt it winding through me, pushing me to move closer to him, to press myself against him, to let his heat and his overwhelming masculinity take over. To see what kinds of “fun stuff” the prince might have in mind…
But that was definitely not what I was here for, and I couldn’t tell the king that I’d seduced the prince. Forget my fake PR job, that would have me stripped of every commendation I’d earned.
“I’m sorry, Declan. I just don’t feel anything,” I managed. I thought it was pretty convincing too, if you didn’t notice the grip my fingernails had on the leather of Declan’s car seat.
He blew out a breath. “Okay then. Good thing I went ahead and humiliated myself early. Now that that’s out of the way, let’s get to this dinner, yeah?”
“Yeah,” I said. “But Declan? I don’t know that anyone would believe that I would accompany you to a team event as your dateso soon after meeting. Especially now that I know that would be breaking a rule.“
“Yeah… Of course.” Declan looked sheepish as he turned his eyes back to the windshield. “Then…we’re just friends,” he said, and something in me sagged a bit as he said it. “Nothing wrong with that.”
As he pulled away from the curb and my body began to relax once again, I felt something else—disappointment. I liked being the center of his attention. Not only did it appeal to the woman I had become, but it spoke to the kid I once was, the poor girl who had a prince’s full attention and affection. I missed that feeling, that certainty that someone saw me for who I really was… And I wanted more.
But more was something I couldn’t have.
The atmosphere in the Teakhouse Tavern was very different than it had been the night after the attack when I learned of the prince’s affinity for pink wine. The team was here, gathered around several tables and impossible to miss. The mood was boisterous and fun; teammates laughing heartily, slapping each other on the back, and generally behaving like little boys whose parents were sitting at the grown-ups table and looking the other way.
Declan and I walked in and the noise level dropped significantly. Heads began to turn, each set of eyes taking in the two of us together before each face tried to mask a surprised expression.
“There you are.” One man stood from the head of the table, and I recognized Coach Merritt. He did not look especially happyto see either one of us, and I gathered that Declan was late. “And hello,” he said to me looking confused about my presence at the team dinner. "You’re the PR person, right?" The coach’s face was somewhere between irritated and confused, and I sensed that maybe coming with Declan had been a big mistake.
"Coach, hey," Declan said. "I thought Lizzy here would benefit from getting a real feel for the team dynamic. Maybe pick up some great stuff she can use to help promote us.”
“Yeah,” Sly Remington called out. “She can tell the world about how many cannolis you can put away after an entire tray of lasagna, Deck.”
“Or maybe she can post an Insta reel of Solamentes snarfing Pepsi out his nose again,” John Samuels suggested.
“It was one time,” Mario Solamentes said, looking hurt. “And that was Rock’s fault. He made me laugh.”
“Can’t help that I’m fuckin’ hilarious,” Rock Stevens chimed in, rocking back in his chair until he was at a precarious angle.
“That's enough!" The coach roared. "Well, you're here now. Might as well sit down. And Deck, don't think I didn't notice that you're fifteen minutes late as usual."
I followed Declan to two open spots at the far end of the table, somewhat relieved not to be sitting near the coach.
