The Prince's Bride (Part 1) - J.J. McAvoy Page 0,84

her.

“Is everything—”

“Oh, my God!” two random women nearly screamed, one pointing directly at me.

“You are here!”

Oh no...Panic rose in me, and I could see Iskandar coming around to block them from us when they brought out their phones. I grabbed Odette’s hand, already rushing to the door.

“Wait, can we please get a picture, Odette!”

I froze. Odette?

I looked to them again to make sure, but they weren’t looking at me. Instead, they were looking at Odette like she was the only person here.

“We are huge fans! We wanted to come to your show in San Francisco, but it was sold out. Can we please get a picture?” the other asked, stepping forward.

Iskandar looked to me with a question on his face about what to do. But Odette ignored us both, letting go of my hand.

“Of course,” she said to them and turned back to me, tossing me her purse. “Hold that for me.”

They all tried to take selfies at first before she directed them to give the camera to Iskandar. I watched in shock and awe as he bent over and took their photos while I stood there doing the exact thing I was worried about doing a few minutes ago, standing on the sidelines, holding her bag. This was definitely a new experience.

“Thank you so much!”

“No problem. Thank you for loving my work,” Odette said to them, smiling back. She waved to them, then rushed to get into the car to escape the cold air. With us sitting back inside, Iskandar closed the door.

“Your bag,” I said, handing it to her.

“Thank you.” She didn’t take it. Instead, she put her hands up to the vents of the car.

“For someone who loves the winter, you are always looking to escape the cold,” I said.

“I’d rather be cold than hot. I can keep putting on clothes. In the summer, there is no way to beat the heat,” she replied and looked up to me. “Is everything okay back home?”

“Yes and no,” I whispered, reaching over and taking her hands into mine. They were freezing.

“Ah, I get it. It’s one of those if you tell me you’d have to kill me, royal family secrets?” she teased.

I leaned forward, my lips by her ear. “Yes, but as you are going to be part of that royal family, you may know.”

“We are not taking it slow anymore, are we?”

“You do not want to know? Even if it concerns you?”

She looked at me for a long time and then nodded. “Okay, tell me.”

“Once we get home.”

Chapter 20

I would be lying to myself if I said I didn’t feel anything when he said, “Once we get home.”

It was my home. But knowing he considered it part his—not in a bad way, but a place for us both—was kind of nice. However, when we walked inside, and Iskandar and Wolfgang excused themselves, I figured whatever he was going to tell me was serious. He didn’t say anything at first, taking off his jacket and tossing it onto the couch. I was just beginning to get anxious when he turned back to me.

“Before we speak, do you mind helping me get this thing off?” He pointed to the wig on his head. “Your mother glued it down, and it itches like mad.”

How was it that he always made me laugh even when he was not trying to?

“Come on. The oil for it is in my room,” I said, going up the stairs.

“Thank God! I was just thinking of yanking it off,” he said, following me.

It was only when I was outside my door that I remembered I was inviting him inside of my room.

“What? Is your underwear lying on the bed or something? Believe me, I will not mind,” he teased, and I felt the urge to kick him.

“Saying something like that is not very prince-like,” I replied, opening the door for him.

“I will be prince-like back in Ersovia, but here with you, I just want to be a man,” he said as he stepped inside my deep-pink bedroom. Behind my bed was a mural of a garden with flowers and wild peacocks. There were books and song sheets all over the place, but other than that, there was nothing really special.

“Strangely, it is exactly as I thought it would be,” he said, turning back to me.

“Why is that strange?”

“Because I am never correct on what to expect from you.”

“Expect nothing then,” I said, taking my vanity chair and bringing it into the bathroom. “Come in here. It’s going