Page 20 of A Royal Temptation

“Yes. I can make it to the other shacks now.”

He nodded and led the way.

* * *

“Here.” Juan Carlos set a glass of whiskey into her hand. “Take a few sips and drink slowly.” She sat on the sofa near the fireplace and kept her eyes focused on the jumping blue-orange flames. They sizzled and popped and brought warmth to the cool evening. “You’ll need it to calm down.”

“I’m calm.” She wasn’t really. Her body still quaked inside even as she sipped the numbing whiskey. The thought of that snake wrapped around her made her stomach curl. Yuck, it was disgusting. And frightening. Juan Carlos had been wonderful. He’d stayed by her side and comforted her, and hadn’t balked when she’d insisted on continuing on their search. Though he’d made a thorough check of the next two buildings for creatures before he allowed her to step foot inside. He’d told her he was proud of her. It hadn’t been courage on her part, but rather sheer stubborn determination that made her put one foot in front of the other and kept her from running back to the house for refuge. They hadn’t found a thing in those other sheds, not one clue as to the whereabouts of the treasure, and she’d been ridiculously happy to return to the house after they’d exhausted their foot search.

“How’s that going down?” he asked.

“Smooth. I’m not usually a hard drinker.”

“But you needed something tonight.”

“I’m not usually such a wimp, either,” she said, smiling awkwardly. She’d felt like an idiot for panicking after Juan Carlos explained that the snake probably wasn’t poisonous or deadly, but her fear was real, and he’d understood that. Rather than take a chance, he’d done the manly thing. He’d killed the culprit. Her knight.

“You were very brave. You kept your cool.”

“You mean I froze in panic?”

He stared at her from his perch atop the sofa arm. “I’m sorry you had to go through that. I promise nothing like that will ever happen to you again. I’m very cautious. I’ll take care to secure the site before you go pouncing.”

“I don’t pounce,” she said.

“Don’t you?” He smiled over his glass and sipped whiskey. “I had to stop you from going inside by yourself.”

“I didn’t know there would be snakes.”

He arched his brows. “All the more reason for us to stick closer together.”

“Can’t get much closer than this,” she said, chuckling. Oh, but yes, they could, and Juan Carlos’s arched brow, the amusement in his eyes, said he was thinking the same thing. The thought of sleeping just down the hall from him tonight killed her laughter. The alcohol was already affecting her brain, and her rational thinking. She set her glass down, looking into the amber liquid that remained. She needed her wits about her. It would be too easy to fall into lust with the king. “I think I’ll be okay now. What’s the plan for tomorrow?”

He thought about it a few seconds. “Tomorrow, we go out on horseback. There’s some terrain I want to explore that we can’t get to with the Jeep.”

“Are the horses here?”

He nodded. “They arrived this afternoon. Eduardo and Luis have stabled them.”

“You’ve thought of everything, Your Highness.”

“Juan Carlos.”

She grinned. “I’m sorry. Still can’t get there.”

He shrugged, and it dawned on her that she needed that wall of separation in order to remind herself who he was. She’d do better to think of him as a monarch, rather than a man.

“Are you getting hungry?” he asked, and she was glad he didn’t press the issue.

“A little.” It was after six and up until now, she hadn’t thought about food.

“Wait here, I’ll be right back.”

He rose and entered the kitchen. She heard him rustling around in there, opening the refrigerator door and banging shut the cupboards. The dance of lights in the fireplace mesmerized her for the few minutes he was gone.

Juan Carlos returned with a plate of delicacy cheeses, a bunch of deep red grapes and a loaf of bread. “I hope this will satisfy your hunger. If not, I can cook a few steaks and bake some potatoes.”

“No, this is perfect. I don’t think I could eat much more.”

“Want to sit in front of the fire?”

“Sure.” She grabbed a fringy knit throw blanket hanging over the sofa and fanned it out in front of the fireplace. Juan Carlos waited for her to sit, and then handed her the plates before taking his seat facing her.

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