Paris and the Prince: A BWWM Billionaire Romance (Royal Weddings Book 1) (3 page)

T
he sound of glasses clattering
, falling over the side of the table, and shattering all over the floor, drew every eye in the bar to the table in the back corner. There were almost no lights in
Poison et Pain
, the ridiculously trendy Paris watering hole—only the faint illumination provided by a handful of candles scattered across occupied tables. Yet, despite the dark, and despite the fact that absolutely no one could care which famous drunk was currently scowling at the back table of the Poison et Pain, Whitney Bishop-St.Claire of Estia was wearing an impossibly large pair of sunglasses. She had a stupidly expensive Hermes scarf wrapped around her head to hide her mountains of highlighted blonde hair. And no one was bothering to keep track of the fact that Whitney was now on her sixth straight vodka. But now that she had taken to just dropping the empty glasses on the floor like they were paper cups, people were paying attention.

I
t was almost midnight
. Alexander was supposed to have met Whitney at that pretentious little bar two hours ago, after he had dinner with her parents, which according to her mother, he hadn’t shown up for either. With every half hour that ticked by, Whitney got a little angrier, and the angrier Whitney got, the drunker she got.

I
t wasn't
like she asked Alexander for much; he just had to show up at the bar so they could be photographed together, and then he could go be boring at the hotel and she could go get hammered with the new friends she'd made scoring coke the night before.
How complicated was that?
Whitney thought scornfully.

S
he'd spent
her entire day in Paris with her new best friends... whose names she couldn't quite remember at the moment. Paris was a fabulous place to make contacts for the future, when she was the Queen of Dalvana and Alexander was off doing whatever it was that he did to make the world a better place. If she would be forced to accompany him on diplomatic missions, no one said she had to put on an old-lady suit and shake hands with boring people and kiss ugly babies. Today's party girls and cocaine dealers were tomorrow's captains of industry and fashion designers, and they'd be the perfect high-society friends for photo ops. So what if she had to do a little blow off a stranger's stomach? It was all for the greater good.

W
hitney waved a perfectly
-manicured hand in the direction of the bar, signaling that she wanted another drink. She hoped that the bartender understood, because she wasn't sure she could verbalize her request at the moment. Just as Whitney pulled out her phone to send Alexander another pissed-off text, the six-foot-four bartender walked over with a new vodka. Distracted by his plebeian good looks, she dropped her phone back in her purse, pulled off her sunglasses and scarf, and smiled coyly up at him.

M
aybe the rest
of the night wouldn't be a total wash after all...

P
aris couldn't stop staring
at Alex; she felt like a total fool. But as they stood in that alley, his hands still gently resting on her shoulders, trying to keep her calm, she felt like her whole body was putty in his hands. What was it about this stranger that drew her in so deep, that made her feel so safe, and so at home? Finally, she shook her head, trying to break free from the cobwebs.

“Listen, thank you again, so much, for saving me from those guys. I feel like such an idiot, but I got lost, I have no idea where my hotel is, I don't speak French, I used the last of my money on this map that I don't understand and holy shit... I basically just gave you enough information to murder me and drop my body in the Seine. Wow. I am a giant idiot.” The words tumbled out quickly, mosh-mashed and jumbled.

Alex laughed, his dimples and perfect lips becoming even more irresistible.

“Well, I have to admit, that was a lot of information. But I promise, I have no intention of murdering you. I'd be happy to try and help you find your lodgings, however. First, please allow me to take you for a late dinner... If you have no money, you must be starving.”

Paris suddenly realized her stomach had been rumbling. She couldn't even remember the last time she'd eaten anything; it very well may have been on the flight in. Normally, she wouldn't accept meals from strange men, but she was in no position to say no.

“I'm going to say yes, but only because I could eat my own arm right now. And you have to promise you'll let me pay you back when I get to my things.”

Alex winked at her, and Paris felt her knees start to buckle.

“We'll just see about that. Now, why don't we start by getting off of this filthy street, hmm? You couldn't have chosen a worse place to be pick-pocketed.”

Paris hesitated slightly, wondering if she might be jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire. But surely if her rescuer had nefarious motives, he could have just had his way with her right then and there—no need to take her out to dinner and fatten her up first. Unless, of course, he was into that…

Paris’ mind was wandering. She looked up and saw Alex waiting for her response.

She smiled up at him, her wide lips parting softly, and she gently put her hand in his outstretched one as he led her out of the grime of the alley.

P
aris couldn't believe
the night she was having. One minute she was terrified, lost, alone, being robbed and possibly seconds from getting murdered in an alley in Paris. Now, she was standing inside a restaurant so posh, so awe-inspiringly grand, that she was kind-of surprised they'd even let her in. She was still in her tourist clothes: jeans, a plain gray t-shirt, and her Converse sneakers. Alex, however, looked positively magnificent. It wasn't until they were out of the darkness of the alley that Paris truly saw how exquisite he looked.

Even in what he probably considered dress-down clothes (a leather jacket, a soft cotton t-shirt, and slacks), he looked like a model. Before they'd walked up to the host podium, Alex had slipped on a pair of thick-rimmed glasses and flipped up his collar, half hiding his face, which rather than making him appear pretentious or like he was trying to “Clark Kent” someone, gave him a further air of sophistication. Paris almost felt silly standing next to him, like she would be found out at any moment as a fraud. But even as she questioned her right to be anywhere near the vision that was her knight in shining armor, she realized she still knew nothing about him, had no idea what is was that made him so... self-assured.

Paris stood back as Alex approached the host and began speaking to him in fluent French. There were dozens of people standing around, all obviously waiting for a table at the elegant little eatery. Paris was ready to bolt, already uncomfortable with all of the dirty looks they were getting from those who had been there a while, when Alex motioned to her to join him at the podium. With an awkward smile, Paris pushed her way through the crowd until she was at Alex's side.

“Bernard, I'd like you to meet my dear friend, Mademoiselle Paris Martell. She's visiting from America, and this is her first night in the City of Lights. She had a bit of a rough start, so I'd be most appreciative if you could make sure the rest of her night goes a little more smoothly?”

Bernard, the host, smiled so widely you could see every tooth in his mouth. With a quick clap of his hands, two waiters in blue tuxedos rushed the podium and took Alex and Paris' coats, then Paris' bag; for a second she was convinced they were going to pick her up and carry her to the table.

Bernard began speaking to Alex in French again, but this time, Alex looked annoyed, and he began gesturing to Bernard furiously, speaking in low whispers. Paris tried to make out what they were saying to each other, but between the French and the hushed tones, she had no idea what was going on. She was able to make out the word
discretion,
and she saw Alex reach into his pocket and then palm something that looked like cash to Bernard. Alex turned to her, finding her eyes, and gave her a huge, warm smile.

Before Paris had time to question him, Alex swooped in and led her to a private table in the very back of the restaurant. Paris could see the jealous and angry faces of all of the people waiting in the lobby, but for once, she didn’t allow herself to worry about what other people were thinking.

She caught one older couple in fancy dress and recognized their particular type of sneer as they looked back and forth between her and Alex. She knew that she and Alex looked mismatched—and it wasn’t only because of their outfits. Paris looked down to where their gaze rested and realized her hand was still in Alex’s—she hadn’t let it go from the time he had rescued her. She shook off their disapproving glare, and followed Bernard to their table.

The couple had barely even sat down before trays of delicious hors d'oeuvres were brought to their table: fresh oysters on a bed of fleur de sel, smoked trout topped with crème fraîche and dill, grilled scallops atop honey carrots, brie and white peaches drizzled with sweet balsamic vinegar. Paris couldn't stop eating. It was as if every new dish they brought to the table was more delicious than the last, and her hunger had finally caught up with her. Apparently, almost dying gave one an incredible appetite.

As Paris ran the last of the peaches through the balsamic, she looked up and saw Alex laughing at her. She suddenly became very self-conscious.

“What? What did I do wrong?”

Alex lifted up the larger fork sitting next to his plate.

“You know we have about five courses still coming, right?”

Paris' jaw dropped.

“What? I thought this was a tapas situation or something. There is more food? How can there be more?”

As if on cue, waiters arrived with bowls of beautiful carrot-colored soup, accompanied by crusty toast and little bowls of garlic sauce. Next, escargot was served, and while Paris would normally never consider eating snails, she'd had enough glasses of rich burgundy wine that she was willing to try anything. Dipped in a delicious garlic butter, the escargot tasted like heaven, and Paris could have eaten a truck-load of them. As she sipped down her second glass of wine, she realized Alex was still staring at her, and she started to feel silly again.

“Do you have some sort of weird fetish involving watching women eat?”

Alex grinned as he poured them both some more wine. “I suppose I don't often have the luxury of enjoying a meal with a woman who actually eats. I wouldn't call it a fetish as much as a curiosity.”

“Who wouldn’t eat all of this!? This is the most amazing meal I’ve ever had in my life!”

Paris raised an intrigued eyebrow at Alex and was just about to push for a longer explanation when the waiters returned with huge plates of coq au vin, accompanied by roasted vegetables. Alex and Paris dug into the food, eating, talking, and drinking, watching as the restaurant cleared out around them, until there was no one left but them and a handful of extremely annoyed waiters who obviously wanted to go home.

He was an avid listener, and seemed intrigued by her—his attention laser-focused on her. It was a heady feeling.

“Tell me about yourself… tell me about where you grew up… tell me about your parents… your siblings… where you went to school… why you are in Paris all by yourself…”

The questions kept coming, she kept talking, and Alex was so charming that Paris
almost
didn’t notice that he managed to deflect every question she returned his way.

When the food was finally all gone, Paris realized it was well after midnight, and she didn't remotely want to go back to trying to find her crappy hotel in the middle of nowhere in the sketchy part of town.

As if he had read her mind, Alex reached out for her hand. “I know it's getting late, and I know you've had a fairly awful day. But would you like to take a walk with me? My hotel is just along the river, and then when we get there, I can have a car take you wherever you'd like to go. I'd just hate for such a lovely evening to end so soon...”

Paris hesitated briefly… all of her defenses kicking in… but then felt herself getting lost in Alex's big aqua eyes, so serene and honest. His interest in her seemed genuine, and she didn't get the impression his intentions were purely physical, yet she couldn't help but feel he was holding something back. But after everything that had happened during the rest of the day, she wasn't ready to push him for details. For now, Alex was a lovely, kind man who had saved her life. Anything more was for another day.

“I think a walk sounds really nice.”

“
Y
our son was supposed
to meet me and my wife for dinner at precisely 1900 hours at
La Belle Epoche
and he never showed up. Do you have any explanation as to why he couldn't be bothered to keep a simple dinner date with his future in-laws?”

King Alexander felt his temples beginning to throb. He looked over at his wife, Queen Catriona, who was sitting at her vanity with her head firmly in her hands. Even from across the room, she could hear Whitney's father shouting. Leonard and Penelope were unpleasant people at the best of times, but when they were drunk and angry? They were unbearable.

Catriona had always felt terrible that their oldest son had been tied to such a crass family, but when they'd made the deal with Estia, the children had been babies, and they knew little about Estia's Royals. As the years had passed, it had become clear Estia needed Dalvana far more than Dalvana needed Estia, and Prince Alexander was just a means to an end for that
nouveau-riche
Whitney and her ladder-climbing parents.

Catriona motioned at Alexander to hang up the phone, but Alexander made it clear he was trapped in yet another of King Leonard's epic tirades. It was going to be a long, one-sided conversation. She watched as Alexander placated and tried to talk Leonard down from his drunken rage; it took an hour and a half, and Catriona had already gone through her bedtime beauty regimen (twice), but Alexander was finally able to convince Leonard that the Prince had been held up at his diplomatic meeting. It was an excuse that wouldn't fly again, and King Alexander knew it.

Once the phone was safely back in the cradle, the weary king collapsed back onto the mountains of pillows that enveloped the bed.

“Cat... What are we going to do with our son? I know he's not happy about this marriage, but he knows as well as we do that none of us have an option anymore. Even if he keeps offending those
drunken idio
... I mean, our delightful future in-laws, they aren't going to call off the engagement. They're just going to make all of our lives miserable indefinitely.”

Catriona got up from her vanity and walked over to the bed, curling up next to Alexander and snuggling her head into his shoulder.

“Al, dearest love, your son has the same independent, fiery streak that you have. We were just lucky enough to have been betrothed to one another. Not every royal has the benefit of being paired with the true love of their life. When Alexander returns from Paris, we will just sit him down and have a talk. He doesn't have to like Whitney. He doesn't even have to spend time with her. He doesn’t even have to have children with her—heaven knows, we can find another heir amongst our other children. He just has to put on appearances for the sake of the treaty, and hope against hope that the liver disease kills Whitney sooner rather than later.”

King Alexander's laugh filled the room with a warmth that mimicked that of his son's. He pulled his wife close and kissed her on the forehead.

“You’re right, my love. He will settle down and do his duty, as all royals must do eventually. But I truly am the luckiest man in all of Dalvana, my darling Cat. No one could ask for a better wife.”

Fifteen-hundred miles away, as King Alexander and Queen Catriona curled together close, another man from Dalvana was counting himself among the luckiest men in all the world...