Page 17 of Duchess Material

“I mean it, baby,” Ed sighed. “I didn’t… I don’t…”

“You don’t get to tell me what to do.” Natalie shook her head and turned back to the wok. “You are truly treading thin ice.”

He hated her tone, but he still loved the grumpy version of Natalie. Ed was sad because she was once more leaving. These days, they spent almost every night together either at hers or his. It was so remarkably normal despite their abnormal lives. The mundane evenings in with Ed scratched some sort of itch. For Ed, it was everything he could have wanted from a relationship—quality time, great sex, and lots of laughing. What he hated was her mad schedule and being gone routinely. He was lucky enough to have a flexible schedule. Yet, Ed couldn’t travel with her. It was a no-no.

She turned back. “I love you, Edwin. Fiercely. I love you. I miss you when I am gone, trust me. But this is my job. And if you can’t handle the job—”

“I can,” Ed insisted. “I’m whinging and joking. That’s all.”

Ed had a remarkable way of putting his foot in his mouth with all women, but especially Natalie. She overpowered him. It was funny. Their dynamic was usually one of her wanting to defer to him. However, if she sensed he would control things, she stamped on the brakes hard. Natalie was strong, she was proud, and she expected respect. He was always trying to make a joke. Sometimes it landed, sometimes he annoyed her.

“You think I am a grump.” She pouted in a way that drove him mad.

Ed kissed her forehead. “I don’t think that. What I think is you take things literally—an inherited trait—and I am shit at jokes.”

She kissed him back, slowly. He had half a mind to turn off the burner and run her to the bedroom. He cupped her bum, and she smacked his hand.

“Down, boy! You’ll get what you want but not until I have eaten. I spent all day out, then at the barn, and I’m bloody well exhausted.”

Horse girls. She made it sound like a job to play with ponies. Ed admitted it looked complicated. Having sat on a horse only a few times and tried to keep up with Natalie at what she described as a “slow jog”, he was humbled. He found the beasts intimidating, but they were everything to most members of her family. From racing to show jumping to polo, the horses reigned supreme. If you wanted to impress a royal, you needed to speak horse.

Ed tapped her on the arse as she turned back to cooking.

“You know, you are lucky I put up with you,” she reminded him.

“Oh, I know. And boy, sometimes I’d love to tell people about it.”

“You don’t?” she laughed, knowing full well he did not.

“No. But… no one would believe me.”

She shook her head and declared the food was done. They had a nice meal, drank a couple of beers, and watched the previous episode of Eight Out of Ten Cats. Natalie would always miss the words, but she would always whoop him in the numbers. She also loved to gloat. Ed was naturally competitive. He was a swimmer. It was all he had known until retirement. He was still a swimmer. Natalie had been a hotshot pilot and the top of her class, though. She was an ace, and she knew it. The two of them could be competitive. It sometimes led to a row.

Natalie got a text. “Hmmm… Winston and Lucy are wondering if we want to meet at that jazz place round the corner. Fancy a drink before you send me off?”

Ed fancied taking her to bed but dared not say it. Upon return, they would have wild sex. He’d touch her ever so slightly in ways she found irresistible over the next couple of hours, ramping her up to the point of no return. It would be worth it. Plus, if he said no, she would whinge. She was adorable when she did. He’d eventually say yes but would have spent political capital he wanted to keep.

“Sure,” Ed agreed.

He pulled on a pair of semi-smart trousers and a different shirt. Natalie, already dressed in jeans and a jumper, didn’t bother. She was so low-key when they went out. On the off chance he was ever somewhere where she was dressed up in an evening gown or nice dress, she took Ed by surprise. In those cases, she didn’t feel like his girlfriend. She felt like Princess Natalie.

“Mmm,” Natalie kissed him before they departed.

“You wanted to get that in?” Ed chuckled.

“I couldn’t help myself.”

They had to be careful in public to avoid possible trouble, walking down the street like friends. All dating took place in groups for plausible deniability. He couldn’t show physical affection in public, no matter how badly he wanted. Ed lived for being able to wrap his arm around her or set his hand on her knee. However, he did so at his own peril. He would settle for lightly grazing her back or squeezing her hand under the table. Any slight sign of possession or true expression of PDA was teetering on the edge. There was a fine line to walk. When he did, Natalie responded.

They took a seat in a booth at the back of a club with laid-back cocktails. There was always a band playing—either local jazz or blues. Winston and Lucy, having walked from just north, arrived shortly after. It must have started raining because they were both bundled up for bad weather.

“It’s pouring?” Natalie asked.

“Yes,” Lucy groaned.

“The American hates our weather,” Winston said, jokingly.

“She’s one of ours now. So, you couldn’t spend eight hours without me, Luce? You’ll see me in the morning bright and early.”

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