Read Christmas in His Royal Bed Online
Authors: Heidi Betts
Tags: #Contemporary, #Fiction, #Romance, #General, #Love Stories, #Category, #Western
Christmas in His Royal Bed (10 page)
His hand moved from her arm to her back. The light stroking lulled her and made her want to curl up beside him once again.
“Is that what you’re doing here, in Glendovia?” Nicolas asked softly. “Lying low?”
She snuggled down again, draping herself cozily along his hard length. Resting her head on the curve of his shoulder, she asked, “Is this low enough for you?”
He gave a chuckle, then shifted slightly and pulled her tighter against him, readjusting the cool sheets so that they were both covered from the waist down.
Silence surrounded them, heavy but comfortable. It gave her the chance to listen to Nicolas’s breathing and the sound of his heart pumping rhythmically beneath her ear.
“That explains the scandal that surrounds you back in the States,” he said at last, his fingers drawing random circles on her upper body. “It doesn’t, however, tell me how you managed to remain untouched for so long.”
Her mouth twisted wryly, even though she knew he couldn’t see her expression. “I’m a good girl. What do you think?”
“I think you’re a very good girl,” he murmured, his words edged with innuendo. “But no one who looks at you would ever believe you were a virgin.”
She cocked her head back to glower at him. “Why? Because I forgot to wear my sweater with the big red
V
on the front?”
V
on the front?”
“No,” he responded calmly. “Because you’re one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever met, and sexuality trickles from your every pore. No heterosexual man could be in the same room with you without wanting you, and I find it hard to believe that one hadn’t convinced you to sleep with him before now.”
Sighing, she relaxed and settled back against Nicolas. “I don’t know how to explain it, except to say that no man has truly enticed me enough. I’ve dated a lot of men, yes. Wealthy, attractive men. And there were a few times I came close, a few I thought I might be falling in love with. But something always stopped me.”
“Until now.”
Beneath her ear, his heart seemed to jump against his rib cage and double its beat. Her eyelids, already half-closed, drifted all the way shut, his pulse acting like a lullaby.
“Until now,” she agreed, her voice growing faint as sleep began to tug at her. “I guess you could say that your invitation came at a very beneficial time. For a number of reasons.”
“One of those reasons being that it gave me a chance to finally get you exactly where I wanted you.” With one sinewy arm around her waist, he dragged her up so he could see her face, jarring her into full wakefulness.
Alandra wanted to argue the point or chastise herself for falling so effortlessly into his trap. But right now, in the darkest part of the night, with him lying warm and solid beneath her, she couldn’t find it in her to be angry.
Later, maybe, but not now.
Ten
R
ays of warm sunlight slanted through the French doors, crossing the carpeted floor and part of the bed, and pulling Alandra slowly awake.
ays of warm sunlight slanted through the French doors, crossing the carpeted floor and part of the bed, and pulling Alandra slowly awake.
She stretched and yawned and reached out an arm, expecting to find Nicolas asleep beside her. When her hand met nothing but cool, bare sheets, she opened her eyes and blinked until her vision focused.
She was naked and alone in a tangle of pale, wrinkled bedclothes.
Sitting up, she glanced around the room, but didn’t find him there.
A sliver of disappointment snaked through her belly. Maybe it had been too much to hope that she’d be able to wake up in his arms. It wouldn’t do, after all, for him to be caught sleeping with the hired help.
With a sigh, she rolled out of bed and reached for her robe. Knotting the belt at her waist, she glanced at the clock, her heart pitching when she saw that it was well past 10:00 a.m.
Good Lord, how could she have slept so late?
Not looking forward to the greeting she would receive when she finally made her way downstairs, Alandra showered and brushed her teeth, then started to dress. She wore a simple white sheath with a silver-bangle belt, and white platform sandals. Nothing too provocative, but nothing too dowdy, either.
She wanted to appear cool and confident when she next ran into Nicolas.
Sleeping with Nicolas—a prince, her employer and the man who had propositioned her at their first meeting—wasn’t the smartest move she’d ever made. She should have been stronger, more resilient.
Because there was no way she was about to become his mistress for the rest of her time in Glendovia.
Resolve firmly in place, she strolled along the palace corridors and down the wide, curved, marble staircase. There was no one around, not even a servant, making her feel even more awkward about sleeping in so late.
She made her way to the dining room, where she’d spent the majority of her time with the royal family thus far, but the room was empty, long ago cleared of any traces of breakfast. From there, she drifted back across the foyer and down the opposite hallway toward Nicolas’s office. She wasn’t in a particular hurry to run into him, but he was her primary employer and she was already late getting to work.
The door was closed and she rapped softly, half hoping he wouldn’t be there. But he called for her to enter after the first knock.
She schooled her breathing and stepped inside, closing the door at her back. He was seated behind his desk, working, but raised his head to greet her.
Scorching familiarity flashed in his eyes. The look made her heart hitch in her chest.
“Good morning,” he murmured, setting down his pen and rising to his feet. “I trust you slept well.”
His tone was formal, more formal than she would have expected from the man who’d shared her bed only hours before, with no hint of teasing or double entendre. Yet his gaze consumed her, sliding over her like warm honey, and making her want to do nothing more than relax into it, surrendering her body and her will to him once again.
“Very well, thank you.” If he could be this decorous, then so could she. “I’m sorry to be running late this morning. Just because the children’s Christmas event was a success doesn’t mean I should be allowed to dawdle on the other causes you brought me here to deal with.”
She purposely avoided any mention of how they’d spent their time after the Santa gift giveaway, sticking to a professional mode. It was better that way and would help her remain on an even keel.
One side of his mouth lifted, as though he knew exactly what she was trying to do. “I don’t think sleeping in a few hours can be considered shirking your duties. However, if you have ideas for other fund-raising events, I’d love to hear them.”
He waved a hand at one of the chairs in front of his desk, motioning for her to sit down. As soon as she did, he returned to his seat.
“Actually, I do have another idea,” she said, feeling some of the tension seep from her body. Talking business was much better than discussing last night. “Not for a fund-raiser per se, but for the development of an organization.”
“Really?” His brows rose and he leaned back in his chair, propping his fingertips together as he listened intently.
“Yes. Back in the States, we have a nationwide organization that works to fulfill the wishes of terminally ill children. I’ve noticed that you don’t have anything like that set up here in Glendovia, and I think it would be a wonderful project for the royal family to undertake. It would bring you some outstanding press, and also fill a very real need for kids who are sick in the hospital or even at home, with no hope of recovery. I thought we could call it Dream a Little Dream.”
After considering her proposal for several long seconds, he asked, “And what kind of dreams would we be fulfilling for these children?”
“Whatever they wanted. Their dearest wish, if it’s at all feasible. At home, the organization arranges for children to meet their favorite celebrities, spend an entire day at an amusement park that’s been rented out just for them and their friends, go for a hot-air-balloon ride or learn to fly a plane. Things that the kids have always wanted to do, but otherwise wouldn’t get the chance to because of their condition.”
Nicolas returned her grin. “I suppose that could be arranged.”
“So it’s something you’d consider?” She leaned forward eagerly. “There would be much more involved than simply planning a fund-raising event. We’re talking about renting office space, hiring employees, enormous national and possibly international publicity, probably even a press conference or two. And the organization would need continued support long after I return to America.”
She thought she saw a flicker of unease cross his face at the mention of her leaving, but it was gone in an instant.
“It’s a noble endeavor,” he said, shifting so that his elbows once again rested on the desktop. “A good cause, and something that would bolster Glendovia’s reputation and its citizens’ esteem. I’ll have to discuss it with the rest of the family, of course, but I would certainly be in favor of getting the ball rolling.”
“Excellent.” She grinned broadly, pleased that he was in favor of a project she’d begun to feel very passionate about.
“You have only a little over a week left of your stay,” he pointed out.
His mouth was a flat line and his words were curt, as though he found that fact distasteful. The ripple of unease low in her belly told her that she wasn’t entirely comfortable with it, either.
When she’d first arrived and discovered exactly who Prince Nicolas Braedon was, she’d threatened to turn around and fly back to Texas, even if it meant breaking her employment contract with the royal family. But now that she’d been here for a while and had really begun to dig into the work, she was enjoying her visit. Enjoying the palace and the country and its people.
She missed her family and was eager to return to Texas to be with them again, but she was no longer looking forward to leaving, as she had been only a couple of weeks before.
“Do you think that’s enough time to establish this organization and get it to the point where it can be turned over to others and still run smoothly?” Nicolas asked.
“I do.”
“Even with Christmas coming up?”
“I’ll work through the holiday. I was planning to do that, anyway.”
Without her family to share in the festivities, and with a multitude of servants who had already decorated the palace from top to bottom, she suspected Christmas this year would end up passing much like any other day.
She’d been prepared all along to spend that time alone in her room rather than intruding upon the royal family’s celebrations. At least this way she would have a nice, meaty project to work on and keep herself occupied.
She thought she heard him mutter, “We’ll see about that” beneath his breath. But then he pushed himself away from his desk and stood, and in a firmer voice said, “All right. I’ll bring it up with the family and see how they feel about it, then get back to you with a decision.”
Nodding, she rose to her feet as he crossed the office to hold the door for her. She took a couple of steps in his direction, then stopped.
“Is there anything else?” he asked, noticing her hesitation.
She curled her fingers into fists at her sides, then released them, fidgeting anxiously while she tried to decide whether or not to voice the concerns circling through her brain.
“Alandra,” he murmured softly, and started in her direction.
Straightening her shoulders, she met his eyes, stopping him in his tracks. “About last night…” she began, steeling her nerves for a conversation that filled her with dread.
“Yes?” he asked without inflection of any kind.
Obviously, he was in no mood to make this easier on her.
“It can’t happen again,” she told him quickly and succinctly, as if pulling off a bandage before the pain or aftereffects sank in.
“Oh?” Again his voice lacked inflection, but this time he raised an eyebrow, the only hint that he had any interest in what she was saying.
“No. I realize it’s exactly what you wanted, your whole reason for inviting me here to begin with, but it was a mistake and it’s not going to happen again.”
For a long minute, Nicolas studied Alandra, taking in her rigid stance and stern countenance. He wondered how annoyed she would be if he told her how attractive she looked when she tried to be authoritative.
Deciding not to risk her wrath over that, when he was about to commit a much worse offense to her sensibilities, he pushed the door shut with a quiet click and slowly closed the short distance between them.
“I’m afraid that’s unacceptable to me,” he replied, raising a hand to touch her hair, which hung straight and silky around her shoulders.
He watched her head tip just a bit away from his hand, as though trying to move away from his touch. And then the tendons of her throat tightened and released as she swallowed, her gaze not quite meeting his.
“It doesn’t matter whether you agree or not,” she said. “I’m simply telling you the way things are going to be. What happened last night isn’t going to happen again.”
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