Stealing Kisses With a King (Kings of Carolina #3)- Sylvie Stewart Page 0,66
“I’ve freed my schedule for the morning.” I tried cutting in, but he kept talking. “I had to agree to tea with my parents to accomplish it, but it’s done.” Again I tried, and again he ignored my attempt. “I have something important to tell you, and I’m asking you to listen.”
I waited before responding, sure he would roll over me again, but he didn’t. He just sat looking at me with his sleep-mussed hair, tired eyes, and morning scruff on his jaw. Even in this unpolished state, he was the sexiest man I’d ever known. My heart thumped in my chest and I didn’t even bother cursing it. “All right.”
His mouth curved in a small smile, as if he’d been prepared for me to refuse him, but he quickly seized the moment and reached across the table to take one of my hands in his. I didn’t pull away as my heart lurched again. Was this what it was like to be addicted to drugs?
“I can see how my behavior led you to think I was manipulating you.” He gripped my hand tighter as if he’d anticipated me trying to pull away. “While I did intentionally do things to ensure your happiness and comfort in the hopes that you’d want to stay, it was all from a place of missing you in my life and wanting you near.” His brow furrowed, making him look younger than his twenty-eight years. My pushover of a heart warmed further. “And I swear on my life, I didn’t kiss you or sleep with you to keep you working for me. I did it because I realized my feelings for you run deeper than simply a partner with whom I work.”
All right, so that was a fairly good speech.
I replayed his words in my head, trying to gauge his sincerity. Everyone knew Malcolm’s tendency to exaggerate, dramatize, and often outright lie. But not in this way. If anything, he played his games to avoid exposing any vulnerabilities, not to open them up.
But he wasn’t finished. “You know me.” He made sure I met his eyes. “When have I ever crossed the line and carried on with someone connected to the palace or the family? I’ve always kept that boundary in place for a reason. Sex complicates things, and I wasn’t going to randomly sleep with someone I’d have to deal with professionally the next day.”
I couldn’t help the sudden feeling of nausea at the thought that I was possibly one of a hundred random girls to be tossed aside.
He seemed to recognize my discomfited state because he scooted his chair closer and squeezed my hand once more. “What I mean is I’ve never wanted to explore a relationship with anyone at the palace enough to put up with the hassle.”
Again, I blanched, this time trying to extract my hand from his grip. The words random and hassle weren’t often key parts of an apology or declaration of love.
“Bloody hell, I’m fucking this up again.” He released my hand and scrubbed at his hair in frustration as he leaned back in his seat.
The thought suddenly occurred to me that I might be the only person in the world to have ever seen Prince Malcolm in such a state—both physically and mentally ruffled. Nothing like the image he was careful to portray of a confident, roguish, well-polished royal with the world at his feet.
My nausea faded and my chest warmed. I loved this man, and seeing him struggle didn’t make me feel vindicated or pleased in any way. I wanted him to be happy. And he’d just said that was what he wanted for me too. I opened my mouth to speak, but he beat me to it.
“What I’m trying to say, Alice, is that I want a relationship with you.”
I bit my lip and tried not to smile. “You do?”
He slumped in relief and reached for my hand again. “Of course I do. It’s you and me.”
That was awfully convincing, especially when accompanied by his warm smile and hand. But he needed to understand my reservations before I gave in and risked even more of my heart.
“What you’re saying is lovely. But you have to understand…” I trailed off, choosing my wording. “I worked for you for four years and you never noticed me.”
“Of course I did. We saw one another a dozen times a day.” He leaned in again. “You’re the most constant person in my life.”