“The king could learn the truth from Roman.”
The man at my side stood and exhaled.
“What is it?” I asked, standing and reaching for his arm. “Is Roman safe?”
He reached for my shoulders and lifted his eyebrows. “I’m being honest with you, Lucille. I don’t know. I suggested the same thing, and the king said it was my responsibility.”
“Your responsibility,” I repeated. “To fix what Roman broke? He’s testing you.”
Roman nodded.
“How do you want me to help?” I asked.
“Calm the waters with your father.”
“Roman, he won’t tell me anything about the deal. He never discussed senate affairs with me, even when I was attending Columbia. If I had a particular question, he would answer. This is different.”
My husband’s smile returned. “I have a plan.”
Oliver
“The king knows you’re involving me?” Lucille asked, her blue eyes wide.
“The king doesn’t know that you’re aware of the plan the Firm has in place.”
“The plan being you.” She didn’t ask as much as confirm.
I nodded. “However, as I promised you, I want to help you take on more as princess.” My cheeks rose as I smiled. “You are much more than an accessory. Here is a chance to prove it.”
“And he agreed?”
“He agreed to allow you to return and to see your father. I told him of your disappointment with the trip to the US being held off. He agreed. The particulars were not discussed.”
Lucille took a deep breath, the color draining from her cheeks as she sat back down on the sofa, crossed her ankles. When her gaze met mine, she nodded. “Tell me your plan.”
For the next thirty minutes, I explained what I knew and how I thought it would work for her to take part. In a nutshell, I’d give Senator Sutton some bullshit story about the princess wanting to be involved in state affairs and how I didn’t agree; however, I acquiesced in this instance because he as her father wouldn’t tell the world if she failed.
“You think I’ll fail?”
“No, Princess, I think you’re more than capable. Your father is a safe audience. Utilize whatever technique you must. Blame me. Tell him how important it is to you to be involved. Speak of this after I’m called away. If my plan works, you will have the details before I return. Give me clues. I can improvise enough to take us to intermission.”
Lucille’s smile took my breath away. “Acting.”
“Acting. The only problem with this gig is if we don’t succeed, we’ll face more than a lousy review.”
She reached for my hand. “Then we will succeed.”
I looked down at our union, feeling the warmth from her soft skin and back up to her sensational smile. “I think this is the first time you reached out to me.”
“You reached out to me, Roman. You called and I came. If I can help keep you safe, in King Theo’s good graces, and help Molave at the same time, I will. Helping you is all I’ve ever wanted to do.”
Taking a deep breath, I leaned forward, kissing her cheek. “We’ve already spent too much time alone. Lady Buckingham will be suspicious.”
“I have a plan.”
My curiosity grew as Lucille led me back to the bedchamber. Her smile glistened as she reached for the buttons on my suit coat. “You said you take clues. If you leave clues, it won’t be suspicious.”
Tugging the jacket from my shoulders, she let it drop to the floor and reached for my tie.
“Fuck, Lucille.”
“Shh. You forgot your accent.”
“We can’t…You said…” So much for being an extraordinary orator. As the princess slid the tie from around my neck, my accent was back, yet I was nothing more than a stuttering fraud.
Next, she pulled back the bedclothes and messed the pillows. It was after she’d removed her boots and reached for the buttons on her sweater that she looked up. With pink-filled cheeks, she said, “Turn around.”
My heart raced and my mouth dried as I imagined that she was about to undress. “Not that I’m not one hundred percent in favor of you stripping before me, but surely, Lady Buckingham won’t believe…”
“That you called me here for sex?” Her smile grew. “That she will believe. That you called me here to help you with matters of state, she’ll tell you that I’ve officially gone mad and have me committed before dinner.”
Lucille twirled her finger, gesturing for me to turn.
Pivoting, I faced the wall.
It didn’t matter how many Molavian facts I tried to recite, with each passing moment as a sweater, slacks, socks…dear Lord above, a bra, and lastly, white lace panties littered the carpet, my body was inappropriately coming to life.
“You may turn.”
I sucked in a breath as Lucille leaned against the headboard, her body covered with blankets to above her breasts. Her long hair was loose and mussed.
“You’re fucking beautiful.”
“Thank you, Your Highness.” Her head tilted. “Perhaps you could untuck your shirt. And when you exit the room, be upset.”
“Why the hell would I be upset?”
“We had an argument.”
Pulling the shirt tails from my trousers, I met her gaze. “You don’t exactly look like we had an argument.”
“Yes,” she said, looking down at her arms and shoulders. “I could use a bit of help.”
“I mean, if you want to make this real…”
She shook her head. “Not real. Believable. If you’d kiss me as you did when I arrived. And my neck and shoulders…your whiskers. My skin reddens easily.”
“If the king…” I said.
“He won’t. If there is anything that you need to know about this life, it’s that I’m invisible.”
“No, Lucille. I’m standing here looking at you, and you are about as far from invisible as possible. Honestly, if we’re being real. I want to help you, but damn, I’m hard and…” I stepped closer.
She patted the bed beside her. “Acting.”
“Acting,” I repeated, sitting at her side.
Hell, I’d never had an erection like this while filming sex scenes. Of course, there had been twenty-five people, cameras, and hot lights. This was a bit different.
I leaned forward, my lips meeting hers. Lucille met me with equal force as I tugged on her long hair. Pushing me away, Lucille directed my attention lower. As she held my head, I delivered kisses and nips to her neck and shoulders.
“Rougher.”
I looked up, meeting her gaze. “I hate him.”
“This isn’t about him. It’s about you and acting.”
“Acting,” I repeated again.
As Princess Lucille writhed in my grasp, I continued my ministrations. Beneath my touch her soft, sensitive flesh reddened in splotches. By some grace of God, I didn’t come in my slacks. That didn’t mean I wasn’t painfully hard. As I stood, I couldn’t help but adjust myself.
Lucille laughed.
“You think this is funny?”
“No. Yes. Come here.”