THEIR_VIRGIN_PRINCESS (2 page)

“I don’t know why I have to wear this monkey suit. It was
made for me, but it still feels too tight,” Lan said with a bit of a Texas
drawl.

She couldn’t help herself. He was far too endearing to
ignore. Months and months of trying had just proven she wasn’t capable.

Alea closed the space between them. “The suit fits you
perfectly, but the tie is too tight.”

He looked up, his eyes flaring briefly as she neared. “I’m
not much good with clothes like this. I have to admit, I liked the uniforms in
the Army better. Uncle Sam’s dress code made it easy.”

And she’d bet he’d looked good. Of course, he looked
devastatingly handsome in a tux, too.

Dangerous train of
thought. Stop now.
After hesitating for an instant, she forced herself to
buck up and do what she’d crossed the room to accomplish.

“May I?” she asked before reaching for his tie.

Lan nodded, and she quickly undid the black scrap of silk.
The Armani tuxedo had been perfectly fitted, but she knew very well that his
normal wardrobe choices ran more toward sweat pants and loose fitting T-shirts.
It was a crime against women everywhere that the man didn’t just walk around
shirtless.

Don’t go there, Alea.
He can’t handle your damage. None of them can. And you can’t handle them.

Her inner voice was way more practical than she was, but it
was also right. Landon Nix was a gorgeous god of a man who wouldn’t look at her
twice if her cousins weren’t paying him to. None of them would. She’d seen a
picture of Dane’s ex-wife once. She’d been blonde and stacked and gorgeous. She
wasn’t sure why they’d divorced, but it couldn’t have had anything to do with a
lack of desire. Any heterosexual man would want that woman.

No one would want Alea if she wasn’t tied to the fabulously
wealthy, royal al Mussads.

Landon didn’t move a muscle as she knotted his tie again,
this time much looser. No wonder he’d been uncomfortable. He’d practically
strangled himself. She smoothed down the lapels of his jacket, feeling his hard
chest beneath. He was so close and he smelled incredible. The heat of his skin
penetrated her senses. His gorgeously sculpted lips lingered just above her
own. His eyes, which had always seemed so cold, were now a warm blue and
focused intently on her. A flash of heat passed through her body.

If he knew what she was thinking, she would undoubtedly make
a complete fool of herself because he was her cousins’ employee.

Quickly, Alea retreated, needing some distance between them.
“There you go. That should be more comfortable.”

He nodded, clearing his throat. “Yeah. Thanks. It is. You’re
really good with that. I mean with men’s clothes.” His eyes closed briefly. “I
didn’t mean it like that. And you were putting them on, not taking them off.
God, I’m just going to shut up now.”

This was another reason she felt more comfortable with Lan.
Looks aside, he wasn’t anywhere near perfect. In fact, he could be a charmingly
inept conversationalist. “It’s okay. I only know how to tie a bowtie because
Kadir was so bad at it. When Rafiq would try to help him, they would get into
fistfights. When I was a girl, they broke my Barbie house. To avoid future
disasters, I took care of their ties from that point on.”

Right up until they had married Piper, and she’d taken over the
duty. Tal, Rafe, and Kade were now happy men.

Alea was still alone. And standing too near Landon wasn’t
helping. She crossed back to the stone railing and tried to find some peace.
This was one of the few places she felt even a vague connection to her life
before her abduction. When it was very quiet, she could almost hear her younger
self running among the trees, her head thrown back in laughter.

Why had she ever left this place? Why did she feel like she
didn’t belong here anymore?

Why could she not focus on anything but Landon right now?
“Is there any way you could wait inside, even for five minutes?”

No matter how quiet he was, she knew he was there. He was
staring, possibly even thinking how boring it was to watch the little
downtrodden royal brat.

“No.”

She turned, frowning his way. “I’m not going to climb down
the trellis and run away.”

He shrugged. “You might.”

“Landon, don’t be ridiculous. It’s impossible in this dress.
You can stand in front of the door,” she tried to bargain with him.

He didn’t move, simply stood rooted in place, a mass of
muscle in a thousand dollar tux. “No.”

“What do you honestly think is going to happen? It’s not as
if there are assassins hanging out in the palm trees, waiting for that one
moment you turn your back.”

“You never know. Assassins could lay in wait anywhere. I
haven’t checked the palm trees, but that wouldn’t shock me.”

“So you’re just going to follow me everywhere?”

“Yes.”

“What happens if you have to go to the bathroom?”

He didn’t even crack a smile. “I hold it or you get real
well acquainted with the men’s urinal.”

“I’m not going into the men’s room.”

“Then it’s good I didn’t drink a bunch earlier.”

“This is ridiculous.” She rolled her eyes. “I’m going to
talk to Tal.”

He sent her a single, firm nod. “I’ll take you to him.”

Because Landon knew damn well that Tal would agree with him.
“I scarcely think someone has come to Her Highness’s coronation ball to try to
kill
me
. If they’ve come to hurt
someone, it’s most likely the others in the royal family. Really, Landon, study
a little more history.”

He stiffened, his whole body tightening. His eyes turned
cold again. A sickening feeling slid through her, and she knew that she’d just
hurt him. “I wasn’t very good at history, Princess. You’ll have to forgive me.
I’m just a dumb grunt following the orders of my CO. If you have a problem with
it, you should take it up with Dane.”

Alea winced and looked away. What had she done? An apology
sat right on the tip of her tongue. Why? This wasn’t her fault….but it wasn’t
his either. He was just doing his job. But damn it, she was being followed
twenty-four seven. The only place she was allowed to be alone was her bedroom,
and even then, the minute she opened the door, one of them waited outside. She
felt like a prisoner in so many ways, and it was wearing her out.

As he stared a hole right through her, Alea felt her resolve
weakening. She yearned for those blue eyes to glow with the warmth they had
just minutes ago.

The door to the balcony opened, and a lean figure slid
through. This man didn’t have a problem with his tuxedo. She was fairly certain
that Oliver Thurston-Hughes had been born in a tux. The very noble Brit
wouldn’t have done anything so common as to have been born naked.

“Alea? Darling, are you out here?” He nearly bumped into
Landon. “Bloody hell, who are you?”

“I’m over here, Oliver,” she said before Landon could reply.

A broad smile came over the handsome Brit’s face, and he
stepped around the guard, utterly ignoring him, then walked toward her. “I’ve
been looking all over for you. That receiving line was complete hell. I’ve
never seen so many people.”

Oliver had been at the last British royal wedding, so Alea
doubted that, but he was always polite. Oliver would never say a social
function wasn’t the greatest event he’d ever attended. “I was happy when it was
over. My face hurts from smiling. Where’s Yasmin?”

He shrugged an elegant shoulder. “Last I saw, she was
dancing with the Prime Minister. She’s been looking for you, though. Alea, it’s
so good to see you.” He smiled warmly. “You’ve been a virtual stranger ever
since…”

His words trailed off, and she could see the way he paled
when he realized what he’d nearly said.

“Since she was taken hostage and forced to endure something
most people wouldn’t survive?” A sarcastic voice with a low Texas accent cut
through the awkward silence.
Now
Landon decided to get chatty? “I’m sure she’s sorry she didn’t just pause her
recovery to call you up the second she got home.”

“No one asked you,” Oliver shot back. “Why is he here?
You’re not seeing him, I hope?”

She saw far too much of Lan. And far too little. “He’s my
bodyguard. I’m sorry I haven’t called.”

“You don’t owe him an apology,” Landon ground out.

“Stay out of this.” She couldn’t handle him getting involved
in her personal life. She could barely handle him being her constant watchman.
She turned back to Oliver. “I am sorry. It’s been hard to get back into the
real world.”

Oliver was everything that Landon wasn’t. He was perfectly
charming as he stared at her with a pitying little frown. “Of course it is,
darling. I apologize. It’s terribly selfish of me. It’s simply that Yasmin and
I have missed you.”

“I’ve missed you, too.”

They hadn’t missed her enough to put off their wedding while
she’d been kidnapped. She guessed she couldn’t really blame them. She’d been
gone for months. They’d assumed she’d been killed, her body buried somewhere in
an unmarked grave. Yasmin hadn’t had any idea that she’d been found until
months after the fact. Yas still didn’t know about all the rehab she’d had to
go through. The last thing Alea wanted the world to know about was her drug
addiction.

She wondered if Landon knew, if one of the reasons he, Dane,
and Coop were so zealous in their guardianship was that they had been tasked to
ensure she didn’t hit the streets looking for a fix.

“I think you should come home with us in a few weeks. We’re
going to spend the winter at the country estate. I know my brothers would love
to see you again.”

Oliver’s brothers were outrageous flirts. She didn’t need
that. But it did point out a problem. Lately, she been thinking that she
couldn’t stay in Bezakistan, aimless and lonely, for the rest of her life. She
hadn’t really left the palace. Instead, she’d been hiding here, taking classes online.
Sure, she could get a degree that way, but what would happen when she
graduated?

The door opened again. Yasmin glided through the door. She
looked gorgeous in her designer gown, her pale hair in a perfect upswept do.
“Oliver? Oh, you’re out here with Alea. I thought you had gone back to your
room, dear.”

Yasmin utterly ignored Landon, moving around him like he was
just a piece of furniture. Her perfectly manicured hands reached for Alea’s.

“Hello, Yas.”

Yasmin had been her childhood playmate. Their fathers had
both been connected to the Bezakistani royal line maternally. Alea’s parents
had drowned when she was very young, so her aunt and uncle, the sheikh and
shaykhah
, had taken her in, given her
the al Mussad name, and raised her at the palace. But Alea had always looked
forward to the weeks when Yasmin would visit. It had been the only time she’d
had another female playmate.

Yasmin hugged her briefly. “Alea, it’s so nice to see you. I
tried calling for ages, but no one would put me through. I rather thought you
were ducking my calls, dear.”

Alea groaned inwardly. Yasmin seemed to know how to make her
feel guilty, even when she didn’t mean to. “Sorry. I really haven’t felt up to
socializing.”

“Talib has allowed you to hide away for far too long. You’re
never going to feel better if you don’t get back to normal.” Yasmin frowned,
her perfect face forming a mask of disapproval.

“Yas, let it be. We talked about this.” Oliver reached for
his wife’s hand.

“I know, but seeing her has made me more certain than ever
that she can’t recover by languishing here. She hasn’t truly smiled once. And
what is Tal thinking putting those guards on her?”

“They’re here for my protection.” Despite her own problems
with the guys, she felt an urge to defend them.

“You don’t need a constant shadow reminding you of danger,
Lea. Come to England with us. You can enroll at university and take up your
schooling again. Or you can work with me at the foundation.”

Ah, yes. Reaching Across Cultures. One of the surprises
she’d been faced with when she’d been rescued was the fact that Yasmin had
taken over the European offices of this al Mussad charity, a job that had been
earmarked for Alea.

But it wasn’t like she could do the job now, endure all
those glittering fundraisers and public speaking engagements. How would that
work when she could barely manage to leave the palace?

“I just mentioned that myself,” Oliver said with a long
sigh. “I thought we were going to do this with a little subtlety. I’m sorry
about the hard sell, love. I’m afraid Yasmin has done nothing but plot and plan
to take you back with us.”

Yasmin pouted prettily. “I miss my cousin. I was beside
myself when we thought you were gone forever. It was like losing my sister.”
She sniffled a little, a tear sliding down her face. “Lea, I miss you. Please
think about coming back with us. I want you to be there when—”

“You weren’t going to tell her that, either,” Oliver
muttered under his breath.

“I can’t keep it from her. She’s my closest relative. Oh, Lea.
You weren’t there when we got married. You have to be there when I have my
first baby. Please say you’ll come.”

Yasmin was pregnant? Silly, superficial Yasmin was married
and now having a child. A little kernel of jealousy weighed in her gut. Yas had
been the prankster when they were young. She’d nearly dropped out of school.
She hadn’t even thought of going to university. So how was Yas the one with a
husband and a career that should have been Alea’s, and a baby on the way?

She struggled to find something to say. She looked down at
Yasmin, who was perfectly slender in her Marchesa gown. “You don’t look
pregnant.”

Yasmin’s smile lit up the night. She ran a hand down her
flat stomach. “I assure you I am. I’m almost three months along. You have to
come. It will be just like our childhoods when we spent summers together. And
you can start over in England. The palace is too insular. You need to be out in
the world.”