Something about it propelled me to move forward. My heart pounded hard as I walked past him, and just when I thought I was going to leave him behind, he grabbed my arm and pulled me toward him. I stopped breathing. My heart was suddenly pumping in my ears, throbbing as relentlessly as the spot between my legs, because despite me thinking he was mean, there was no denying that I wanted him. My body wanted him. I pressed myself against him, taunting, tempting, and when he lowered his face to mine and bit my lower lip, I gasped into his mouth and threw my arms around him, deepening the kiss. It was unlike anything I’d ever experienced. The way my body moved into his hands as they explored my body was purely erotic. Purely carnal. The music stopped as it switched into another song, that started off low, and the sound of heavy footsteps rang out in the hall. It was then that I snapped out of it and pushed away from him, my chest heaving as I struggled to catch my breath. His hand held mine for a second, as if he didn’t want to let me go, but I tugged and walked away.
I walked by a man going the opposite direction, my face burning beneath my mask. I wondered if he’d seen anything and if so, how much. When I got upstairs, I idled around, watching the people on the dance floor having fun dancing while others started hooking up around them. I took that as my cue to leave. I made an effort to find Pierre to say goodbye, but it was no use. Everyone looked the same in there and the darkness wasn’t helping. I made my way to the door.
Once the door was shut behind me, I let out a long, deep breath. Normally, I liked parties because I felt like I could get lost in them. At a party, I could drink and dance and be wild without judgment. After the whole thing happened with Thomas, I was hesitant to let others see me like that. I didn’t want to be known as the wild child of London, despite the papers and their headlines. I chanced another glance inside, where the strobe lights were whirling and the people were whooping and laughing. Maybe I’d had my fill of parties after all. I started walking toward my villa, but upon hearing the waves crashing the rocks below, I decided to take the stairs between the villas and go down there. I hadn’t visited the water since I’d arrived and the ocean felt like it was calling me now.
I slipped off the mask on my face, and the wig, as well as my shoes as I reached the bottom of the stairs and walked on the lukewarm sand. It had been hot today, the sun blazing and seeping into the sand beneath me. I knew from experience that if I’d walked out here during the day, my feet would’ve burned. Now, with the cooler temperature, the warmth the sun left behind was a mere memory. I sat down and inhaled the calming scent of the ocean, closing my eyes as the first wave crashed. How many times had I sat out here and pretended I was a mermaid and my prince was going to come save me? This town had been entirely too small for me when we lived here. It had been my father’s way of ensuring I stayed humble during my teenage years, despite the boarding schools and trips around the world.
“Did my party bore you?”
My heart stopped beating as my eyes popped open. I turned my face and looked up. Prince Elias seemed impossibly tall from this angle, like a giant who could touch the sky. Maybe he could. He sat down beside me, slipping the mask from his face and tossing it on the sand. Glancing over my shoulder, I could see his security detail standing by the steps. Near, yet far enough to give him privacy. I wondered if he’d bring up what just happened inside. I wondered if I would. No. Forget about it. It was a mistake. A one-time thing that happened at a sexy party. Nothing else.
“Did it bore you?” I asked after a beat.
“I’m here, aren’t I?”
“You make it sound like this may not be that much better.” My lip tilted at that. “You really are an asshole, you know that?”
“So you’ve said.”
“I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s brought that to your attention.” I glanced at him. He had his long arms set on his knees, his hands dangling as he looked out into the ocean.
“Outside of my siblings and maybe a few cousins, you are the only one who’s said it to me.” He met my gaze after a moment. “To my face, anyway.”
“Interesting.”
“It is interesting.” He inched closer. “Do you know why they won’t say it to my face?”
“They’re afraid of the consequences?”
“I guess so. I could end them. Easily.”
“Perks of being the future king.”
“There aren’t many perks to that job.” He made a sound that sounded between a snort and a scoff as he looked away from me. I stared at his profile. He had pretty features. Rugged yet pretty.
“There might be if your family wasn’t dead set on keeping things so traditional.”
“You think I haven’t had this conversation countless times?” He looked at me again. “Do you think I haven’t tried to figure out ways to keep the Crown happy and the people happy? It’s not as simple as you may think it is.”
“You’re right. I don’t imagine it is.”
“It’s a lot of pressure. The king dying.”
“Your father, you mean.”
“My father, the king.” His eyes searched mine. “I don’t expect you see him as a father or a husband. Just as a strict ruler who wants the last say in everything and the reason a lot of people are suffering.”
This time, I glanced away and looked back at the ocean. The turmoil in it matched his eyes, and I couldn’t seem to find solace in it. He wasn’t wrong. A lot of people were waiting for his father’s demise. There were hungry people in the street. People losing their houses, their jobs, their families. It wasn’t something the king could possibly understand and up until tonight, something I didn’t think Prince Elias could understand either. Maybe I’d been wrong in my judgment. He seemed like a man who carried loss well, but felt the burden of it nonetheless. The sound of sand swishing behind us made us turn our heads as one of his security detail approached.
“The Princess of Austria is looking for you,” he said.
Prince Elias sighed heavily, throwing his head back as if to ask the universe for patience. It was yet another glimpse of the person he hid beneath his stoicism. He stood up slowly, the sand on his pants falling on the skirt of my dress with the movement. The security detail walked away and Prince Elias stood there for a long moment in silence, watching the ocean, with only the sound of the waves to disturb his thoughts.
“I’ll see you another time, Miss Adeline,” he said. “Thank you for indulging me and attending the party, as short-lived as it was.”
“Thank you for inviting me as a guest.” I smiled slightly, looking up at him. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry your father is dying.”
His smile was small and pained just before he turned around and walked away.
Chapter 10
I went to the second floor of my villa and sat out on the balcony with my coffee. The sun had risen an hour ago according to the weather forecast, and I was sad to have missed it. It was always the one thing that stood out about this place to me. The sunrise hadn’t been like this anywhere else I’d been. As I sat there, I noticed someone walking out of the ocean. A man. I was close enough to the water that I could make out his toned torso and that damn V that disappeared into his board shorts. His hair was covering his face, but he suddenly reached down, wet his hand, and combed it back with his fingers. My heart skipped a beat. Elias. Fuck. Of course. He was so damn gorgeous. He tilted his head up and I could swear his eyes met mine. My heart stopped beating entirely. I held my breath. Would he walk this way or disappear into his villa? My answer came when a man walked out and said something to him. I made the decision for him and stood and went back inside my own villa. The last thing I needed was to look for trouble right now and Prince Elias, soon to be King, would definitely be trouble.