I pretended not to hear her enter the office beyond my own, the soft whispering sounds that her low heels made as she moved across the carpet, the dropping down of her purse onto her desk, then shaking out her umbrella, followed by the rustle of her coat as she removed it. I followed her around the room in my mind’s eye while I stared at a stack of documents before me. My door was open only a crack but even so it was hard not to notice her and the way she instantly warmed up the space.

The words on the page blurred; I was seeing past them, not taking them in. Instead I was pondering what new outfit she’d chosen that day. Earlier in the week Charlotte had been a dear and managed to convince Sophie she deserved to have new clothes, and deserved to spend more time on herself, and a whole new wardrobe had been acquired. Resulting in a more confident Sophie. I just wished when I’d originally broached the subject that I hadn’t been so harsh. I’d come off like such an ass, and it had all come out wrong. But I was glad Charlotte had been able to help.

I pondered if Sophie would she have her hair down today or if it would be up in a bun, one that I could tousle and tangle up later on when the day ended and we were left alone… to our own devices.

My cock stirred and I was glad I was sitting behind a desk for once. It had been beyond difficult to leave her that morning. Even more so because she’d been wrapped around me tightly. It had taken me a while to extricate myself from her and her cosy bed without waking her up. I knew though I needed to leave before she woke, to give us both the time and space we needed to process what had happened. I had taken her virginity and she had damn near taken my heart in its place.

Not a bad exchange, I thought with a wry smile. One that would no doubt cost me though. One way or the other.

“Good morning, Sir.”

I looked up and gave her a cursory glance, followed by a cautious smile. I was in danger of jumping up from my desk like a jack-in-a-box and taking her by surprise right there and then in the office.

“Good morning, Miss Mortimer. I trust you had a restful night?”

She blushed and I couldn’t help but warm to the fact she was thinking about what we had done only mere hours ago. “I can’t say it was very restful, Sir. But it was one I will never forget.”

A thick hard lump formed in my throat, and I tried to swallow it away. She was going to be the death of me. It took every ounce of restraint not to pull her over the desk, bottoms up, and give her good going over.

I cleared my throat again and struggled to find an appropriate response. You never knew who was listening in. Mother’s spies were everywhere. “Good, I’m glad. Perhaps we should discuss… erm…”

“Business, Sir?”

“Yes, precisely. Do you have the calendar?”

She handed it to me, and as per usual it was all neatly colour-coded though surprisingly sparse. Outstanding. That meant more time with Sophie later on. I’d barely had one taste of her and I was already addicted. I wasn’t going to let her far from my sight. “Thank you. Sophie, I—”

The phone rang and she hurried out to answer it, leaving me mid-sentence, high and dry, with unfinished thoughts that had been on the brink of bursting free.

What foolish thing was I about to say? How much I fucking enjoyed myself last night? How I’d replayed every single moment? How I’d not been able to sleep and instead had gazed upon her like the sleeping beauty that she was.

I almost groaned at myself. What the fuck was happening to me? It was like she’d turned me to putty, soft and mouldable. Vulnerable.

I wanted to take her even now, to let her really know what this meant to me, what she meant to me. During the quiet dawning hours I’d had plenty of time to think about my predicament and what I was going to do about it. How I wasn’t going to bend to my family’s wishes anymore. Let alone be forced to marry the Princess of Monaco. Of course, I’d have to placate them since I’d already bargained with them. Play by their rules for a short while, be the model dutiful son and royal heir and just then perhaps they would leave off this forced antiquated arranged marriage thing. This wasn’t the 1800’s anymore.

Or better yet, if only Princess Annabelle would have a scandal all of her own. A little fall from grace. Then the wedding would surely be off.

Sophie came back into the office, twisting her hands together. This time I took in her attire, instead of merely gazing at her body… now knowing full well what lay underneath. She was wearing a simple sheath of a dress, the hemline below the knee but not a ruffle in sight, and her hair was pulled back in that naughty bun of hers. But it was the sparkle in her eye that held my attention.

“That was His Majesty’s page on the phone. Your father wants to see you right now. Without delay,” she added softly, concern crossing her face.

I swore and pushed away from the desk. “I should just move into his office at this bloody rate!”

No doubt it would be another lecture. It wasn’t enough that my mother had scolded me, my father had to have his say, too. I rounded the desk approaching the door, meaning to keep my distance from Sophie, but then she reached out and touched my arm.

“Good luck,” she whispered, giving me a squeeze.

That wasn’t enough and instinct and lust took over.

I leaned down and brushed my lips over hers once, pushing her up against the wall behind the door, so no one had the chance of seeing us. She moaned under my touch, a little kitten-like mewl that had me throbbing again and reaching to pull up the hem of her dress, wanting to delve my fingers into her sweet pussy. Breathless, she placed a hand on my chest and stopped my momentum.

“No, you should go. You can’t keep him waiting.”

“It’ll be fine Sophie… a few minutes won’t kill him,” I whispered against her lips, diving in again. “And that’s a proper good morning.”

She sighed. “William, fuck I mean, Sir…”

“It’s okay. I doubt anyone else is in yet to hear us. Let me make you cum again, right here.”

“It’s still not right.”

“Shh, don’t you worry that gorgeous head of yours.”

“William, stop. You have to go.”

“Fine, you know best. I probably shouldn’t piss him off anymore.” I straightened and reluctantly released her. She reached up, wiping the trace of her dusky rose lipstick off my lips.

“We still need to talk, too.”

“No more worrying. I mean it. And the next time I see you I will have you again and nothing you will say will stop me.”

She stayed quiet as I exited the office and headed up to the main part of the palace where my father would be finishing his breakfast in his rooms. I hoped Sophie wasn’t expecting this to be over with. I had no plans to let her go now that I had her. It went deeper than just shagging her. She was the only one that I thought about all the time, the person that I was striving to be a better man for. It was the fucking scariest thing I was going through right now but I knew the payoff was going to be huge.

A footman standing outside father’s rooms saw me coming and had the door open, perfectly timed, for my entrance. I didn’t even have to break my stride. Father sat with a paper in front of him as he sipped his morning coffee. Never tea. Each member of the royal family had their quirks, and that was his.

“Good morning,” I said, taking a seat at the table before him. “You wanted to see me?”

He lowered the paper, folded it with meticulous care then set it down in front of me. “Explain this.”

His long finger pointed at a black and white photograph of me and Sophie twirling about on the dance floor, the look on my face unmistakable. Shit.

“What do you want to know? You were there. If you think I leaked this you must really think I’m stupid… There wasn’t even supposed to be cameras allowed.”

“That’s beside the point. Your mum told me she discussed your future with you last night,” he continued, his voice giving no indication of what he felt about the article and the accompanying incriminating photo. “Now we have to do damage control, William. This has overshadowed all that was supposed to happen, everything that was planned. Bloody hell son, what were you thinking?”

I looked up at him, my eyes narrowing. “Who the hell dictates who we can and cannot dance with?”

My father narrowed his own eyes, glaring right back. “This goes far beyond the dancing, William. It’s written all over your face in the bloody picture. I know that look! You’re walking a dangerous line.”

“Yeah, how would you even know?”

“Trust me,” he sighed, resting his fingertips against the side of his temple.

I looked back at the picture, a little surprised myself at how my emotions were captured so vividly. Maybe he had a point. I was looking at her like I wanted to devour her.

“She’s a pretty woman,” I forced out with a shrug, trying to bluff my way out a sticky situation. “What bloke wouldn’t look at her like that?”

“Well like I said, damage control has to happen now.” He cleared his throat. “You have to understand how it all looks. So, you will be heading off to visit your fiancée tonight. Your man has already packed your bags.”

“What?” I asked, that sinking feeling coming back. “I haven’t even proposed…”

My father looked at me over the rim of his coffee cup. “You will be visiting Princess Annabelle tonight, staying for the rest of the week, with a full team in attendance assisting you. The press secretary has it all arranged and a publicist will conveniently leak happy pictures of you spending time with her to stir up national interest and get this scandal buried. I’m told Annabelle is looking forward to your visit.”

“No,” I stated firmly, crossing my arms over my chest. “I’m not going to do it. This charade has gone on long enough but I’m done. I understand the need to get the media to move onto to something else but forcing me to spend time with a woman I have no desire of talking to let alone bedding or marrying is crossing a line. So, no.”

The King’s face coloured. I think it may have been a long time since he’d heard the word no uttered in his presence. He rose from his chair abruptly. His coffee cup clinked on its saucer as he put both down too quickly, and a wave of brown liquid sloshed over the side soaking into the crisp white cloth beneath.

“Are you refusing to obey me? Your father and king? Need I remind you that you are in no position to tell me no, William. You will do this. You will do it with a smile on your face the entire time or I will, so help me God, cut you off, fire your little secretary without so much as a letter of recommendation, and strip her mother of her honorary order. You wouldn’t want that, would you?”

Fuck him for throwing Sophie and her mother into the mix. He knew my weakness, constantly threatening to banish the one person in my life that gave a fuck about me, and there was nothing I could do to stop him. But I couldn’t be the reason Sophie lost her position or the order her mother had received years ago. I would lose her and any chance I had to be with her.

“Fuck you,” I growled under my breath.

My father chuckled. “Yeah well, it’s not the first time you have told me that and I doubt it will be the last so I think I will live.”

“Did you treat Frederick the same way? If you did, he’s better off dead.”

A normally silent footman standing rigid on the periphery sucked in an audible breath, and my father glared at me.

“You’re scheduled to leave in two hours. Do not disappoint me, William. You wouldn’t like me when I’m disappointed.” His words were sharp and encased in a thick layer of ice.

“If you’re not careful you’re going to lose another son.” I pushed away from the table and walked out without waiting to be dismissed. He was lucky there were others in the room, his footmen and a member of his royal guard hovering close by, otherwise I would’ve throttled him. But I hear regicide is still considered a bit of a no-no these days. They were painting me into a corner yet again—it was almost like a sport for them—and I did not want to play. They might be my family, but I hated both of the people who’d given me life right then.

When I arrived back at the office, Sophie was on the phone, no doubt being informed of the new arrangements, and getting all the details on my impromptu trip, given the look on her face.

“No, I understand. Yes, that’s not a problem. I will rearrange his calendar for the rest of the week.”

She hung up and paused, taking a moment before she looked up at me. “So, you’re going on your first official trip abroad, Sir… Exciting times.” The smile on her face didn’t match her despondent tone.

I shut the door with a slam and threw the lock, not caring who noticed, before I approached her, bracing my forearms on her chair, trapping her in.

“Say what you really want to say.”

She wet her lips and I felt my body respond in kind, my cock hardening.

“There’s nothing I want to say,” she replied and then a second later swallowed hard.

“Do you know why they are sending me there?” I asked, grating out each word. I wanted to tell her it was because they knew how I felt about her, how I would do anything to keep her close beside me, in a position she so loved so much.

She faltered and looked away then, the muscles at her jawline twitching. “I do.”

“And you’re fine with that?” I said, willing her to give me any indication that it was killing her too. That she still wanted me. “Are you fine with them pushing me into the arms of another woman?”

Unfortunately I got my wish, and she looked at me, tears filling her eyes.

“What do you want me to say? That I hate it? Of course I do.” Drawing in a breath, she wiped at her eyes. “But what can we do? What we did last night… Can’t ever happen—”

I shook my head. “Last night was the single most important thing that has happened to me in quite some time. And I know you feel the same,” I finished for her. Why didn’t she understand what I was trying to tell her? Why couldn’t I find the right words? “And I want a repeat performance, again and again, Sophie. Numerous times. For the rest of my life. Tell me you don’t want to do the same.”

“Sir,” she whispered, sadness in her eyes.

“Cut that crap out, too.”

“But you told me—”

“My name is William.”

She tried to duck my gaze but I held onto her chin.

“Say my name, Sophie.”

Her mouth parted, then closed again. Her eyes followed suit, closing then reopening after a beat. She sighed.

“William, we can’t do this. It was a mistake. I see that now. You have… you have your obligations and I have a job to do. We live in totally different worlds and we have to come to terms with that. Last night was wonderful, but it can’t ever be repeated. One night has to be enough.”

I pushed away from her, fists clenched, then ran my hands through my hair roughly, trying to grab onto some semblance of control.

“Are you just giving up then? Are you going to let them fucking win?” Speaking mostly to myself than her.

I was losing her. Like sand, she was slipping through my fingers faster than I could catch her.

I heard a sob but she didn’t try to tell me any differently. I had my answer and it felt like she had just ripped my damn heart out of my chest.

“Damn you for making me feel this way,” I said angrily, throwing the lock on the door and stormed out.

How had everything fallen apart so damn quickly? I couldn’t deal with this. I couldn’t do this without Sophie but it seemed that even she had a limit and I had crossed it. Now I had to go do a song and dance that I would be performing for the rest of my life.