“Listen, if you sleep with a prince,” Theo said in the most uppity tone I’d ever heard, “then you have to answer to the Crown.”
I snorted. “Does that include getting me on my knees, Your Highness?”
“YourSereneHighness.” He grinned up at me, and I stole the kretek from his fingers and took a drag. I hadn’t smoked since dabbling in college, but this situation was driving me to.
The clove cigarette was sweet and spicy and familiar from tasting it on Theo’s tongue. It made me crave more of his mouth, but now wasn’t the time or place, not when Amaya, the royal family’s manager, stuck her head out the door.
“Do you two think you could join us to wrap this up soon?”
I appreciated the fact that she didn’t seem to sugarcoat things, which meant maybe we’d all come to an agreement before Theo and I decided to strangle everyone instead.
I put the kretek back between Theo’s full lips, and he took a long drag before stamping it out.
As we headed back inside, I quickly checked the phone in my pocket, since it’d been vibrating nonstop and I needed to set it to silent.
“Oh Jesus,” I muttered as I opened the home screen. The message thread with our brothers had over fifty unread texts, something that was unusual if there wasn’t a crisis.
Once I clicked on them, though, I immediately regretted it.
Did Shep get the “Royal Approval”?
Were you given the key to Theo’s chastity belt?
Will you be given a chaperone now that you’re dating an actual prince?
Did they assign you Secret Service yet?
The questions were obnoxious as hell, and while I wasn’t about to feed their nosiness with a reply, I was going to ask about that last one. It was one thing for our families to be concerned for our public image and welfare, but if my father thought for one second he was going to have me tailed like he did back when he was in office, he could forget it.
“Oh good, there you are.”Speak of the devil.
Shepard O’Neil Winchester the second came over to where Theo and I had just stepped back inside his study that overlooked the lake. The wood paneling on the walls gave the room a warm, rich, masculine feel, and with the whiskey flowing and the wine being poured, it was the perfect backdrop to discuss my future—not.
“Listen, Dad?—”
“I know that tone,” my father said as he came over to clap me on the shoulder. “But no need to worry yourself. We all think this relationship is…wonderful.”
“We weren’t worried,” I said, a frown pulling between my brows. There was nothing I hated more than being treated like a child. “But we do think it’s important you’re all aware of it.”
“How magnanimous of you, son.”
“I thought so.”
Theo’s mother, Jacqueline, offered up a smile as she took a sip of her wine. “I think what your father meant to say, Shep, is that we’re thrilled the two of you have found one another. We always knew you were friends, but this? This is just lovely.”
Theo turned a saccharine-sweet smile my way. “Oui, c'est tellement adorable.”
It took everything I had not to roll my eyes, because the last word I’d ever use to describe either one of us was that. But, not about to offend Theo’s mother, I aimed my friendliest smile in her direction.
“It was a surprise to us too,” I said, as Theo took my hand in his.
“Why don’t you tell them how it all started?” he said, a mischievous light twinkling in his eyes. “It was at Jean’s wedding.”
I was going to kill him.
“Really?” Jacqueline sat forward on the couch. “Wait a second? Did I…? Was it because I asked you to check on him? Did I play a part in this?”
“Oui.” Theo nodded and cozied up into my side. “That was the exact moment I realized how much I enjoyed Shep’s…company.”
