Page 40 of By Mistake
Shimari grinned in that devious way of his."Only because impressive draws attention."
"If you say so," Andrus replied, refusing to be flustered by that smile, the wicked glint in his eye."Are you lot going hunting once it gets dark?"
"Much later, yes," Oresti said."I was wondering if you'd like to go to dinner while we wait."
Andrus almost said 'we have food here' purely from reflex, before biting it off because he could afford to eat out now, and anyway, he already knew Oresti wouldn't let him pay for so much as a crust of day-old bread."All right.Let me change."
"That easy?"Oresti grinned."I had a whole battleplan laid out."
"Why am I letting you court me again?"Andrus asked, rolling his eyes as he left the study.
Upstairs, Toli and Erra were already waiting to help him change.Would his new life ever stop feeling surreal?Probably not, and it would only continue to change dramatically, since he was involved with a prince.
Once he was dressed, in black with white and silver accents, he picked out suitable jewelry from the case that had mysteriously appeared in his room one day and finally headed back downstairs.
Oresti waited for him in the hallway, also in formal dress, and Andrus would be lying if he said he didn't want to push the bastard up against the nearest wall and do filthy things to him.His cologne didn't help, something dark and spicy, like ifsultryhad a scent.
"Ready?"he asked softly as Andrus reached him.
"You could have anyone at all," Andrus replied."Anyone in the world."
Smiling crookedly, Oresti replied, "Only one person in the world ever wanted a plain, boring investigator.When you learned my real identity, instead of immediately plotting all you could have and get, you threw me out."He held out his hand, and when Andrus placed his own in it, lifted it to brush a soft, warm kiss across his knuckles."All those would-be suitors either want me to treat them like a doll their whole life, so they never have to lift a finger to do anything ever again, or want me to be the pretty little doll they can show off like the crown jewel of their collection."
"You'd make a terrible doll.You'd boss around all the other toys in the chest and take over the nursery inside of a week.Probably arrest the tin soldiers for destroying the toy block castle."
"Destruction of royal property is a capital offense," Oresti said severely.
Andrus laughed.
"Now is probably not the time to admit I used to pretend my favorite toy soldier with the green jacket was the captain of the guard always defending the dollhouse from evil brigands who hid in their toy block fortress and tried to kidnap the king or queen."
"Did the noble captain woo the king or queen?"
"No, the leader of the brigands who had a change of heart after meeting the captain of the guard," Oresti grumbled, cheeks heating slightly."I think I got the idea from a story my nurse read me a few times."
"You're adorable, and certainly had a goal you more or less stuck to.Though I'm not a brigand, alas."
"I mean you illegally—"
"One more word and you'll be eating dinner alone."
Oresti grinned, mischievous and shameless."Empty threat.Shall we be off?"
"I suppose it's too late to abandon you now."
Outside, however, was not the carriage he was expecting.Instead of his carriage, it was obviously a royal carriage, crest and all, though not one of the flashy ones used for official visits and such."I am never going to get used to this," he said with a groan."My neighbors must bebuzzingwith gossip.They're all going to think I'm wealthy now because I've behaved like an absolute strumpet for you.That I'm just a little toy—"
"Oh, my gods, stop creating the rumors for them," Oresti said with a strangled laugh."You're ridiculous.Come along, strumpet, into the carriage."
Laughing despite the absolute terror trying to overtake him, Andrus obeyed and got settled on the softest, most comfortable bench he'd ever sat on in his entire life.Not that he'd really ever been in carriages before now.Only cheap ones when an odd job required it, and more often he sat on the driver's bench.
"So where are we eating?What brought this on?"
"I want to take you to dinner; do I need more motive than that?"
"Of course not, but you're also clever and always up to something, and why not accomplish several things at once, Your Highness?"
Oresti smiled faintly."You callingmeclever is rich.Not even your personal assistant can compete with your mind."Andrus only lifted his brows."Fine, fine.I knew word of my suit would spread after the garden party, so I figured there was little point in trying to be subtle."
