Home > Princess Ballot (Royals of Arbon Academy #1)(29)

Princess Ballot (Royals of Arbon Academy #1)(29)
Author: Tate James

A rumble rocked Alex’s chest, but he didn’t seem too upset. “Friendly warning is all,” he told Drake, and then the pair of them fist-bumped. Again I was at a loss about what the fuck men even were. Their shit didn’t make any sense to me.

“Want me to order for you?” Alex asked.

I tilted my head in his direction, letting my feelings about that show clearly on my face. “I think I can manage,” I said softly. “I’m pretty used to being independent.” He had no idea how used to it I was.

A hint of pink tinted his cheeks, and he dipped his head. “Of course you are. Sorry, I didn’t mean to…” He cleared his throat, his gaze darting quickly around the table as if he’d just noticed the less-than-subtle attention of his friends. “I just meant the duck is really good. If you’re into duck. Do you like duck?” He was rambling, and based on the panicked way his eyes widened, I didn’t think that was a carefully planned move—like so many of his actions were.

Taking pity on him, I gave a small smile. “I’ve never had it, but that sounds like a good choice.”

Alex nodded with visible relief and placed our orders with the waiter, who’d materialized out of nowhere. I figured duck was just another bird, so it should taste like chicken. Right?

Wrong.

Duck was gross as fuck.

The other two students at the table who’d ordered it seemed to be enjoying it immensely, though, so I choked down a few bites and pasted on a false smile when asked what I thought of it.

Part of me wondered if this was a hazing ritual for the new kid, but it was on the menu for everyone to order… Must be an acquired taste.

Somewhere between main and dessert, Alex’s hand found mine under the table. While he continued an animated conversation with Drake about the upcoming match against Oxford, his fingers intertwined with mine, and little fizzy bubbles of excitement tickled my belly.

“So, Violet, right?” the girl opposite me asked, tilting her head to the side.

“Yeah, that’s right,” I replied with a nod. “Sorry, I didn’t catch your name?” Because no one had actually bothered introducing themselves, aside from Drake.

Her eyes widened slightly, then she covered her surprise with a smile. “Oh, sorry. Gosh, we’re so not used to new students we forget not everyone knows who we are. I’m Princess Victoria-Anne. My older sister is going to be the next queen of the Switzerlands.”

Against my better judgement, my gaze shot across the room to where my new friends sat. Sure enough, there was Claudette, basically sitting in Rafe’s lap with her sharply pointed fingernails stroking his chest. Fucking hell, what did she think he was? A cat?

I tried to wrench my eyes away, but I wasn’t quick enough. Rafe’s stormy gaze snapped onto me like a homing missile, and I shivered at the cold hatred there.

Dude had fucking issues.

“Cool,” I murmured in response to Victoria-Anne. I fixed my gaze firmly on the tablecloth in front of me, but I could still feel Rafe’s glare. Talk about putting a damper on my mood. But then Alex’s fingers tightened on mine, and a wash of warmth flooded back through me.

Why did I keep wasting my time thinking about Rafe when Alex was so clearly into me? He was nice. So much nicer than… ugh. He was nice. Full stop. And yeah, he was a bit of an arrogant, entitled brat. But we were all the products of our upbringings, weren’t we? Maybe I’d be the same if I’d been raised with a silver spoon in my mouth.

“You okay?” Alex murmured in my ear, even as Victoria-Anne chatted away about something. She clearly didn’t care if I was paying attention; she must just like to hear herself speak.

Touched that he’d noticed my deteriorated mood, I gave Alex a small smile and wrinkled my nose. “Actually, I was thinking I might skip dessert. All that schoolwork is kind of catching up to me.”

A concerned frown touched his brow, and he stroked some hair away from my face with his free hand. “Yeah, okay. No worries.” He didn’t let go of my hand, but pushed back from the table and stood up, taking me with him. “We’re done. See you.” He didn’t wait to hear his friends replies, just started out of the dining room. Seeing as how he still had my hand in his, I followed quickly, then tugged my fingers free once we were outside the room.

“Uh, Alex?” I frowned, glancing back to the dining room behind us. “You didn’t have to leave too. I’m just going back to my room.”

He tilted his head to the side, confused. “Violet, if this counts as a date, then you’d better believe I’ll escort you home. I was raised with manners.” His cocked brow implied a silent “unlike the boys you’re used to dating,” which kind of stung.

I shook my head. “You don’t need to. Seriously, go back and enjoy the rest of the meal with your friends. I’ll be just fine.”

Alex stepped closer to me, crowding me against the wall where a large poster advertised some school dance coming up. “Violet,” he said, his voice gentle but firm, “the only place I want to be right now is with you. Even if it's only for a few more moments while we walk to your room, I just want to be around you. Is that okay?” He reached up with one hand and placed his palm against my cheek. My breath was coming in quick gasps, and my whole body thrummed with the anticipation of another kiss. But… right here? What if a teacher saw us?

My mind recalled Nurse Reller’s casual attitude toward fraternization between students, and I immediately dismissed that concern. Teachers clearly didn’t care.

“Um, yep. Yeah. That’s okay.” My reply was breathy, and I couldn’t seem to catch hold of my galloping heart to save myself. I was so fucked.

A smile curled Alex’s lips as he stepped closer, leaving barely an inch of space between our bodies. “You’re so beautiful, Violet.”

Words escaped me as I lost myself in the crystal blue of his eyes. Holy shit, Alex was laying it on thick, and I was pretty sure I’d totally lost track of my plan to refuse him. My crush on the Australasian prince had grown into something way bigger and impossible to run from. How had this happened in a week?

This time it was me who initiated the kiss. I couldn’t help it. He was right there, his lush lips so close, and the way he looked at me… it was like I really was a princess. Deep down, every girl wanted to be looked at like that. No matter how staunchly feminist.

A small groan slipped from Alex’s throat as my lips pressed to his, and a surge of satisfaction rushed through me. I fucking loved how I was affecting him.

Our lips parted seemingly at the same time, our tongues meeting in an unhurried exploration that warmed me all the way to my toes. Actually… warmed somewhere a bit higher than my toes too.

This kiss. This was the butterfly-inducing, pussy-clenching, heart-racing kiss I’d been imagining. Alex was seriously wearing down my defenses in record time.

“Violet,” he groaned, pulling back from me just a couple of inches. His hands cupped my face, and his hips crushed into mine, not hiding a thing about how turned on he was. “Can I—”

Whatever he was about to ask got cut off.

“Guess the rumors are true after all,” Rafe’s dark, nasty voice snapped, and I sucked in a sharp gasp. Alex made no move to step away from me, but his face turned cold and hard. Over his shoulder I could see Rafe and Jordan had just come through the dining room doors and were staring at us—at me—with open hostility.

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