step back when faced with a frowning Prince Leo on the other side.
“Your Highness.” I nodded and straightened my shoulders.
“May I have a word?” Without waiting for an answer, he squeezed past me into the office and helped himself to a seat in one of the two chairs by the desk.
My eyes closed as I begged for this to go well before I closed the door again and turned. The prince was clearly troubled, and I had a good guess as to the source of his worry, as much as I hoped for it not to be true. His shoulders slumped and he was in need of a shave, I noted. It had always amazed me how a man identical to Malcolm in every physical aspect could do absolutely nothing to speed the rhythm of my heart. Leo shared the same dark hair, strong jawline, and perfectly shaped nose, and even had the same expressive eyebrows as his brother. But the sight of him in my office stirred not a single loin.
“How can I be of assistance, sir?”
He shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. “I apologize. That was rude of me just then.” He gestured distractedly to the door, but I waved off his concern. “It’s strange to see you here again, Alice.” He managed to muster a small smile. “In a good way, I assure you.”
“Thank you, sir.” I decided to take a seat myself, thinking perhaps it would disarm him.
Adjusting his position to lean forward and rest his elbows on his knees, he eyed me with more focus. “I have a feeling you know why I’m here.”
“Why don’t you tell me so I can either confirm or deny?” Well done, me.
This caused the corner of his mouth to quirk. “All right. I’ve just come from the public health conference.”
I failed miserably at holding my expression and my toes curled in my shoes.
Leo pointed at me and straightened. “I knew it! He’s told you about his trouble with speaking.”
Panic coursed through my veins. What was I supposed to do now? “Exactly what has he told you?” I countered.
“You first.” His eyes remained firm.
Damn. It wasn’t as if I could simply refuse to cooperate and kick him out of my office.
I inhaled deeply and squared my shoulders. “I’m not at liberty to discuss private conversations with Prince Malcolm.”
Leo sighed and lost his temporary sternness. “Come on, Alice. We both only want to help.”
This was true, I was certain. Leo always had everyone’s best interest at heart, often to the detriment of his own interests. And having an ally could only make things easier. It wasn’t as if Leo would breathe a word of the secret to anyone else.
My mind filled with the image of a frozen Malcolm standing before an audience in sheer terror. I could almost feel the sweat form along my spine and my own vision begin to narrow with panic. I’d give anything to ease his pain and worry, and I would do anything to make this nothing but a bad memory he could tuck away and never give thought to again. So I met Leo’s gaze and broke my promise to the man I loved. “What happened?”
“Oh, God. I just realized this makes me Colin Firth.” Malcolm lay supine on his sofa, one limp arm draped over his eyes.
“I don’t follow.” I worried my lip as I took in a defeated Malcolm.
“King George IV of England. With the stutter. You know, The King’s Speech. Oh, God, this is a bloody disaster. I may as well hijack the jet and lose myself in the Amazon after all. Let the pythons swallow me whole while I gasp for my dying breaths.”
He was losing it, wasn’t he?
“I believe they squeeze you to death before they eat you,” I offered from my spot standing beside him.
He lifted his arm to scowl at me. “Thank you for that very helpful piece of nature trivia.”
“You’re most welcome.” I moved closer and sat down on the edge of the sofa, forcing him to adjust his position to allow me access. “This is just a minor setback. You’ll see.”
“I nearly fainted in front of a room full of strangers and then invented a ridiculous excuse about being needed across town.” His arm fell back down.
“You said they believed you.”
He moaned. “How many people do you know who would call out the crown prince on a lie?”
“I can think of quite a few actually. There’s Queen Elsie for one, Prince Leo,