“I’ll pick you up here at seven.”
Clem hadn’t expected him to be this rich.
But Edward was a prince. Maybe she should have anticipated it.
His penthouse was stocked with every bell and whistle from its smart-home capabilities that seemed to anticipate a person’s every need to its state-of-the-art appliances and sound system. Clem knew the kitchen itself must have cost millions.
Edward had no photos on his walls, only art.
“I’ve been collecting art for the last few years,” he explained.
His idea of art wasn’t exactly in accordance with hers, but to each their own. The splashy, brightly-colored piece looked like someone had spilled vats of primary school art supplies onto canvases then used a rake to spread it around. She couldn’t imagine what he’d paid for them.
“They’re… interesting,” she said. She had to admit they did seem to fit with the style of his home—all sleek stainless steel with track lighting and solid white walls. He was a minimalist, with no decoration except for the art. She could never live here. His home felt cold and devoid of feeling. His aesthetics were just so different from hers.
But.
The man could cook.
“This pasta is to die for,” she said.
“When I was a kid, I hung around the palace kitchens. A chef there taught me to cook,” he said. “Killer, isn’t it?”
“Delicious,” she said and took a sip of an equally luscious Cabernet that he’d opened.
“Thanks for coming over,” he said.
“Thanks for inviting me.”
They cleared the table together and sat on the white leather couch in Edward’s sunken living room.
“Reese, light the fire.” He spoke the words to the air, and the fireplace turned on.
“Why Reese?” Clem asked.
“It was the name of a tabby cat I had as a child,” he said. “She was my favorite pet.”
Clem nodded and Edward placed a hand over hers. His fingertips were warm and solid. She felt the strong desire to place them to her lips.
Even though this man was such the opposite of her, she could not help but want him.
In a bold move, she moved into him and placed her lips on his. He responded to her kiss and pulled her onto his lap. As she straddled him, and her clothes fell away, she allowed herself to be carried to ecstasy in his arms. He knew just where to touch her to light her up, exactly how to kiss her to make her want him more and more.
The man may have crap taste in art.
But he knew how to make Clem feel like a masterpiece.
She fell asleep tangled in silver silk sheets, amidst stark white walls, wrapped in the warmth of his arms and fully content.
11
A few days later, Edward was stuck in his office, pacing and angry with both James and Luther, his trusted aides.
“So, things have been going missing for weeks, and you’re just now making me aware of this?” Edward’s voice boomed.
“We thought there had to be a reasonable explanation for the missing items,” James said. “Everything was moving around all the time to accommodate the restorations. We thought we’d find them somewhere—that they’d been misplaced, not taken.”
“It’s easy for things to get lost during renovation, Prince Ashton,” Luther said calmly. “But the missing china was a red flag. Someone has sticky fingers.”
James and Luther eyed each other as if they shared a secret.
“Any ideas who might be responsible?” Edward asked.
Neither spoke for a moment. The air in Edward’s office hung heavy with tension.
“Speak freely,” he said and noticed James nodding to Luther.
“Well,” Luther began, “with all due respect, things started disappearing right around the time you hired Miss Wicke.”
“And,” James added, “her family does own a salvage business, right? Don’t they deal with reselling valuable old things?”
Edward’s first instinct was to defend Clem, but he knew that his aides were justified in their suspicions. Clem was the only one around here that he knew to be interested in heirlooms like the ones that were missing. Add to that the fact that he knew her to be in the habit of “rescuing” items that weren’t being sufficiently appreciated. That was, after all, exactly what she’d been doing when he’d first met her.
“Leave this to me,” he told James and Luther, effectively dismissing them. “I’ll take care of it.”
“Yes, sir,” James said and began walking backward towards the office door.
“Thank you, sir,” echoed Luther, as the two left the room.
Acid pooled in Edward’s stomach as he walked firmly toward the library where he knew Clem would be. How dare she steal from him? After everything