Royal Date (13 page)

“I didn’t know,” I agreed. But that was the point. I was letting my guard down with Nico. Missing him. Wanting to be near him. But this ball, that conversation, proved that I didn’t belong in this world. I had no idea who any of these people were or how to interact with them. Nico and I had nothing in common. His world was so foreign from mine. I didn’t wear dresses that cost more than a car or hang out in ballrooms with the world’s elite.

“She set me up.”

“That Claire is obviously a horrible person. I’ve seen leeches that suck less. Somebody needs to hand that garden gnome a stepladder so she can get over herself.”

That put a bit of a smile on my face.

“My mother always says stick to the weather and everybody’s health.”

I didn’t need the advice because I was never talking to someone I didn’t know ever again.

“I know you don’t normally drink, but tonight might be a good time to start.”

“No.” I shook my head. I didn’t want to, and I needed all my wits about me. I saw Lady Claire Sutherland across the ballroom, and she gave me a pointed smirk. I had a feeling this wasn’t over.

I should have trusted my gut.

Although, that was the same gut that wanted me to jump up on Nico and plant kisses all over his face, so it wasn’t totally trustworthy.

“Come on,” Lemon said. “I’m going to put you someplace safe, and then I’m going to get a drink with some bite.” We went back to where our name cards were, and she told me to sit in my seat. “I’ll be right back.”

I wished I had something to occupy my hands besides my little pink clutch, which only had a keycard and lipstick inside. I set it on the table. I wanted to look for Nico, wondered if he’d made it inside yet. I could tell him what had happened and let him make me feel better. I knew he would. Or maybe he wouldn’t react the way I imagined he would. Maybe he’d be mortified by my blunder. What if I’d just started some kind of international incident?

So instead I settled for listening to the orchestra and tried not to play my encounter with the ambassador on one endless loop in my mind.

A skinny man with enormous ears and bright red hair sat in Nico’s seat, startling me. “Kat MacTaggart, I presume?” He had a thick brogue.

I blinked. “Do I know you?”

“Not yet. But I’m about to become your best mate.”

He reached inside his tuxedo and pulled out an envelope and a phone. “The name’s Seamus O’Brien. I work for the
Daily Sun
as their royalty correspondent.”

He looked at me expectantly, like I should know what that was. I’d never heard of it or him. If he were a reporter, shouldn’t he be outside with everybody else?

“My sources tell me you’re staying with Prince Dominic in his palace. Is that correct?”

How could anyone know that? “I don’t really see how that’s any of your business.”

“Because I have an opportunity for you.” He looked left to right and then handed me the envelope. “Open it.”

Inside was a stack of cash. I took in a sharp breath. “What’s this?”

“Five thousand American dollars. Consider it a down payment. I will give you fifty thousand dollars in cash total if you use this phone”—he held it aloft—“and get me pictures of the entire Monterran royal family inside their home. The king’s been a recluse for years now, and a picture of him post-accident is worth quite a bit.”

Fifty thousand dollars? That was a lot of money. A lot. I could pay off all my student loan debt and start fresh. Buy a car. Get some professional clothes for my new job. Afford food.

Not only that, but every time I had to move a kid to a new family or group home, I hated how little they actually owned. I could buy them clothes. Toys. Books. Stuffed animals. Things that would make the transition just a bit more bearable. The possibilities raced through my head.

But how could I do that to Nico’s family? He hated the paparazzi. And his family had been nothing but kind to me. “I don’t think so.” I held the envelope out to him. He took it back from me.

“What’s the harm? It’s only pictures, and you’d be a lot richer. Prince Dominic is outside right now getting his picture taken by every newspaper in the world. It goes with the position. They expect it.” He must have seen something on my face that told him exactly what I thought of his proposition, because he picked up my clutch and stuffed the envelope and phone inside it.

“I will be in Monterra in a few days with the rest of the money. Just think about it. Nobody has to know. I promise to keep you out of it completely. It’ll be our secret.”

“Wait a second . . .”

He buttoned my clutch back up and put it down on the table. “I’ll be in touch.”

Seamus O’Brien disappeared back into the crowd before I could stop him.

Fifty thousand dollars. Fifty thousand dollars.
Fifty thousand dollars.

In cash. I expelled a shaky breath.

And it was just some pictures, right? How much harm could there be in that?

Lemon returned, sipping on something amber-colored. She handed me a soda, which I put on the table. Next to my clutch. Which made my heart lurch. I should tell her what had happened.

But before I could, there was a bell calling everyone to dinner. I watched the orchestra pack up their instruments. Our table filled up quickly, with Lady Claire Sutherland seated next to Salvatore and Francesco. Right where I could see her. She gave me another smirk, and I suppressed my shakiness. I didn’t know if I could deal with her witchery and a guilty conscience.

Which only got worse when Nico arrived and sat next to me. “
Buonasera
.” Usually, I loved it when he spoke Italian to me, but I could barely look him in the eye.

I wondered if I had a flashing neon sign on my forehead that said, “I considered selling you out.”

He set his napkin on his lap, and the dinner service started. Conversation flowed all around the table, but my attention was fixated on everything that had just happened. Nico kept trying to talk to me, but every time he did, someone else claimed his attention. I could see frustration in the set of his mouth. His very beautiful mouth.

As one course passed into the next, I realized I hadn’t really enjoyed any of it. It all tasted like sawdust in my mouth.

If I felt this bad and I hadn’t done anything yet, then I obviously couldn’t take any pictures and I couldn’t take any money.

I resolved to keep an eye out for Seamus and return both the phone and the money. He shouldn’t be that hard to find with that hair.

But despite trying to covertly observe the ballroom, I didn’t see the reporter anywhere.

I might not have tasted it, but I could still put the food away. It had been hours since our lunch, and I was hungry. Claire leaned across the table at me, and her boobs came up to her chin. I wondered if she could use those things as flotation devices. “If you’re still hungry, Kat, we can contact the kitchen and ask them to bring you out another serving.”

She was all concern and sickly sweet smiles, but the implication was clear. She was delicate and hadn’t touched her food; I was a giant cow who ate too much.

“We can certainly get you more if you’d like,” Nico said to me. He put his arm around the back of my chair. Then he leaned in to whisper, “You know how much I like watching you eat.”

His breath tickled my ear, and a shiver ran up my spine. “I’m good.” I glared at Claire triumphantly. She sat back, angry, and stared at me.

Waiters went back and forth, clearing plates and setting new ones. I hoped I could find Seamus before the evening ended. I reached out for my goblet of water and took a big gulp.

Where something burned its way down my throat. I coughed and sputtered, having already swallowed a quarter of the glass. “What is this?”

Lemon reached across Rafe and grabbed the goblet out of my hand. She took a sip and grimaced. “This is straight vodka.” She looked at Nico. “Kat doesn’t drink.”

He got a murderous expression on his face. He immediately demanded that the head of the waitstaff be brought over to explain how this had happened.

I saw Claire’s reaction. I knew exactly how this had happened. Lemon wasn’t far behind. “Did you do this to her, Claire?”

“The proper way to address me is Lady Claire,” she said with a serene face. “And what a horrible thing to accuse someone of. I’ve never had anyone dare accuse me of something like this.”

“Well, bless your heart.” Which was Lemon-speak for inviting someone to get to know themselves in the biblical sense.

But I noticed Claire didn’t deny it. She leaned in to Francesco, the guy who had been saying rude things about me that morning, and whispered in his ear. He whispered back to her and she laughed, looking at me as she did so. It was high school all over again and I was sitting by myself in the lunchroom while the cool kids laughed at me.

I was starting to develop a deep loathing for anyone who called themselves Nico’s family friend.

Nico didn’t get a satisfactory explanation, only that there had seemed to be some kind of confusion and the drink had been brought to me by mistake. The staff apologized to him and me repeatedly. I didn’t believe it for one second. I had told her I didn’t drink, and she was obviously out to get me. But it seemed like such a stupid and childish thing to do. What was her objective?

Dessert and coffee were served, and the orchestra returned to the stage. They warmed up and then began playing classical music again. Nico stood up from his chair and smiled down at me. “Would you do me the honor of this dance?”

There was no one else on the dance floor. Everyone would be staring at us. And I’d already told him that I had no idea how to do old-timey dancing.

“I can’t. I don’t know how,” I reminded him. He started to say something, but then Lady Claire stood up. “I’ll dance with you, Nico.”

When she stood up, so did all the men at the table. Nico didn’t have much of a choice as he led her out onto the floor, giving me an apologetic look as he went. Once he and that little troll started to dance, other couples joined in.

I scrunched up my napkin in my lap. I had never wanted to do somebody else actual bodily harm, but I was willing to make an exception.

“Ignore that horrible, evil Smurf,” Lemon said as she sat next to me. She waved Dante off, and he went to find another partner.

“I feel light-headed.” Could I get drunk from one small drink of vodka? I also felt a stabbing, throbbing jealousy.

“You’ll be fine. Did you see how quick she jumped up? She practically fell out of her dress. ‘I’ll dance with you, Nico,’” Lemon said, imitating the harpy’s voice. “If I have to roll my eyes one more time tonight, I’m going to make myself dizzy.”

“Are you going to dance?”

“I was waiting for Salvatore to ask me, but he’s dancing with someone else.” She sounded grumpy.

“You know how to dance like that?”

“Darlin’, I was a debutante.”

Right. I’d forgotten. “Dante wanted to dance with you.”

She elegantly raised one shoulder, as if it didn’t matter. “He’s sweet, but right now he’s nothing more than a distraction.”

I watched Nico and Claire dance. I swear she was sticking her chest out on purpose, fluttering her fake lashes at him. Was that all I was to him? A distraction?

The dance ended and the couples clapped. Nico made a beeline for me, causing my heart to go into an arrhythmia.

“Now you must dance with me,” he said, holding out his hand. “I promise to teach you every step.”

No excuse came to mind, so I stood up and followed. Nico took me over to a spot away from all the prying eyes. “This is a waltz. It has a one-two-three step pattern. We’re going to make a box with our feet. Put this hand on my shoulder, and your right goes in my left.” His right hand went around my waist. “Once you understand the steps, I will use my hands to show you which direction we’re going to go. I step forward, and your leg goes back. Over to the side, and then back on the opposite foot. Then we start over.”

It took a few tries before I got the hang of it, but Nico was infinitely patient as I stepped on his feet and crashed into him. We were both laughing as we worked it out. But we got it, and I was dancing. Really dancing.

He used his right hand to draw me in closer so that there was barely any space between us.

“I have been waiting all evening to have you to myself,” he murmured into my ear. The butterflies in my stomach that had set up residence the second he touched me took flight and lodged themselves in my throat.

As he twirled me to the left, I saw Lady Claire Sutherland staring daggers at me from our table. “Did you ever feel like someone was out to get you?”

He pulled his head back to look me in the eye. “Yes. But I have an entire team of people whose only job is to imagine the worst-case scenario and prepare me accordingly. My paranoia is not my fault.”

I laughed again, feeling better than I had all night. The song ended, and immediately a slower, softer one began. Nico pulled me even closer to him, barely moving his feet. His hand splayed against my back, pressing me in. He pulled our hands in, resting my hand right above his heart. I put my head on his shoulder and closed my eyes. This kind of dancing I understood.