Up for Heir - Stella Starling Page 0,54

immediately replaced by a scowl. “Oh,” he said, striding across the room and digging something out of the pillow mountain. “You found Treble.”

“I… what?” Edvin asked as Leo cradled the “something” in his hands and let out an exasperated and highly put-upon sigh as he tucked it against his chest. But then Edvin realized exactly what that “something” was, and his feet were moving all on their own before he had a say in the matter, inexorably pulled toward him because Edvin was not and had no interest in ever being the kind of man who could resist that level of cuteness.

“You have a cat,” he breathed out reverently, forgetting all about the books he’d just been gushing about as his attention zeroed in on the most precious little ball of fluff in all of creation. The tiny bundle of sweetness twisted her head around, paws kneading Leo’s shoulder as she purred, and when she blinked big amber eyes at Edvin, he instantly and irrevocably fell in love with another member of the royal family.

He reached out cautiously, not quite sure what the proper way to approach a cat was since he’d never had one, but when she butted her head against his hand and increased the volume of her purring, he decided he was on the right track.

“She belongs to Ben,” Leo said, referring to Prince Benedict, Edvin assumed. “And she’s not a cat, she’s a menace.”

Edvin grinned, rubbing behind her ears. Her fur was impossibly soft. “Awww, but she’s t-t-tiny.”

Leo’s lips twitched. “Don’t let that fool you.”

“She’s adorable.”

“Oh God,” Leo said with a long-suffering sigh, carefully detaching her from his shirt and holding her out to Edvin. “Don’t be fooled, darling. She’s a con artist and a pest. Her claws are tipped with titanium razors. No ankle is safe. I’m thinking of having her banished to Thedes.”

“B-B-But wouldn’t your brother be… be upset if she were to s-s-suddenly disappear?” Edvin asked, a little bit giddy when she let him take her and snuggled up against his neck.

Leo snorted, crossing his arms. “Ben is never around, which is why the furry little scourge keeps sneaking in here. She’s constantly underfoot, and I’m on the verge of having Hugo call in animal control to finally be rid of her. The palace staff knows that she’s not allowed in my suite, but it’s useless. She’s far more cunning than she looks.”

Edvin giggled, hugging the sweet little thing even closer. Leo was definitely protesting too much, and looking around the room, a few things Edvin hadn’t really paid that much attention to before seemed to confirm it.

“So part of your plan to banish her from your r-r-room is… is to scare her away with a fancy cat b-b-bed?” he asked, nodding toward where a plush circle of pink faux-fur sat on top of a gilded pedestal in the corner of the suite. The stand was embossed with golden cat paws and little music notes, and if Edvin wasn’t mistaken, appeared to have temperature controls built into it, possibly for heating the thing on chilly nights. It was gaudy and girly and over-the-top and utterly ridiculous in the absolute most precious way, the kind of thing that only could have been chosen by someone who wanted to spoil his little princess.

Leo’s cheeks turned a little pink. “That? Ah, no. That’s just a… family heirloom.” He cleared his throat. “A gift from the Grechzen ambassador. A display stand for my, erm, dress coronet. Are you ready for dessert, darling?”

Edvin grinned. Oh Lord, Leo lying was almost as adorable as Treble was. No way was he letting him get away with changing the subject yet, though. Not even if “dessert” sounded tempting.

“And what about the, erm, c-c-contraption over by the window?” he teased, pointing to it. “Isn’t it one of those jungle gym things for cats to scratch and c-c-climb on?”

Treble twisted around in his arms, giving a meow of approval when Edvin walked over to check it out.

“Hugo’s fault,” Leo said, clearing his throat behind Edvin. “I’ll have to talk to him about cluttering the suite with unnecessary items.”

“Like that tray of cat toys?” Edvin asked, making an educated guess as to what the brightly-colored collection of feathered balls and plush rodents on Leo’s dresser was for. Treble wiggled out of his arms before Leo could answer, jumping down and proving Edvin right about the elaborate structure’s purpose when she stretched up on her hind legs and proceeded to claw at one of the