Royal Pain: An Alpha Bad Boy Billionaire Romance (2 page)

Fiona glanced out the window, hoping to hide her apprehensive expression from the no-nonsense Mrs. Blair. She had seemed innocent enough at first, but the facade quickly dropped and Fiona saw exactly what lay beneath the older woman's exterior – a cool and aloof woman with very rigid values. She told Fiona that she expected her to be firm and quick to discipline the students; something that seemed absurd to ask of a student not even fully out of college on her first day of experience with troubled pupils. She hadn't expected to discover that the Spencer Dalton Academy was the dumping grounds for the problematic elite, and now that she knew she had a very bad feeling about the whole situation.

Mrs. Blair was writing on the chalk board, principles for her to remember. The students had a difficult time understanding their expectations, she had mentioned, and many of them tried to exert their control over every situation. This is what they were used to, Mrs. Blair decided, and it was something they were going to work hard to maintain. However, at the Academy, they were also dealing with a very primitive mindset, survival of the fittest. Each of them wanted to show their strengths to the rest of the peer group to avoid being targeted. They were all used to being the top of the food chain, and in this new place it was difficult to determine the pecking order. Certain personalities were able to shine brightly from day one and maintain some level of respect from the rest of the peers, while others floundered and became extra disruptive to attempt to stand out and bring attention to themselves and their own attributes.

All in all, they were going to be doing some very serious work in shaping the course of the future for these young men and women, and their extremely rich families were paying well to see to it that they thrive in the Spencer Dalton environment. They expected completely new children when they came back, and continued spending money and spreading the word because that was exactly what the Academy would deliver. And now Fiona was going to be involved with the shaping of these young men and women, who would ultimately have a lot of power over her life, whether she knew it or not, and that meant she would have to learn to be respectable and play to the strengths of the students at Spencer Dalton.

All of this seemed very intimidating, and she looked down at her briefcase, embarrassed and humiliated by the fact that she had been planning for a much more low-key type of educational experience. Although the briefcase looked great, the materials inside would definitely not be appropriate for her career as a teacher's assistant at the Academy.

Suddenly, the door burst open and Mrs. Blair's eyes shot to the door. Fiona's heart thudded in her chest as she gazed upon the most ridiculously handsome man she had ever seen. He looked like he had just walked out of a magazine about the rich and the famous, people who seemed to radiate a glow of charisma and attractiveness wherever they go. His dazzling brown eyes looked into hers and he gave her a grin. Something about him looked familiar, and she squinted at him, hoping to bring the light of recognition to her eyes. Unfortunately, she couldn't place him, and was startled out of her thoughts by Mrs. Blair's voice, which had been speaking at a normal volume, barking out at the man.

“What the hell are you doing in here this time, Henrik?” Mrs. Blair asked.

Henrik smiled politely at her and pulled a pink slip from his back pocket. He handed it to her and she rolled her eyes, sighing loudly as she read it.

“Have a seat, young man,” she said, nodding toward the desks where only Fiona was sitting.

“You're so kind, Mrs. B,” Henrik said, plopping down next to Fiona. He gave her a sidelong glance and a smooth smile. It was gone before Mrs. Blair laid eyes on him again and Fiona felt goosebumps trailing throughout her body.

“Ms. Blake, this is Prince Henrik. Denmark's very own pain in the ass.”

Henrik grinned and faced her, a light in his dark eyes that brought an attractive glow out on his face.

“What are you in for?” he asked in a sultry accent. Fiona had never met anybody from Europe country before, and was immediately intoxicated by the lilt coming from his lips like honey.

She wished she knew what she was in for, Fiona thought, because this certainly did feel like a punishment to her. What had she done wrong enough to deserve such a terrible first internship? If she couldn't handle it, she could kiss her degree good bye. All of her hard work would have been for nothing. If she blew a chance like Spencer Dalton, she would never have another shot anywhere else. This could make or break her teaching career.

Before she knew how to respond to the charming prince, Mrs. Blair spoke for her.

“She isn't a pupil here, if that's what you think,” she said, tucking her hands behind her back and shifting onto the balls of her feet and down again. It made her look like an owl, especially since she had put on round glasses to help her see the chalkboard better.

“Are you kidding me? What is she?” Henrik asked. “Nurse I hope.”

He winked at Fiona and she cringed.

“Actually she is going to be a teacher's assistant at the academy.”

“What? This is a joke right?” Henrik's warmth suddenly turned to ice, and he gave her a judgmental glare. “You can't teach here! Who would let such a commoner into the Academy?”

He stood from the desk, his voice raising.

“Her suit is less than designer,” he exclaimed, throwing his hand in the air. He gestured to her briefcase. “And she probably got that at a thrift store on the way here, I'd imagine.”

She knew she should feel hurt by the accusation, but instead, Fiona felt anger. Who did this man think he was, judging her based on such superficial things? She'd earned her place there and he had no right to comment on it.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” she asked him levelly. “Did you wake up and find that the silver spoon in your mouth was actually lead?”

“This is outrageous!” Henrik exclaimed.

“Sit down,” Mrs. Blair commanded coolly. He nearly spoke again, opening his mouth, but he thought better of it for some reason and took his seat.

“You might be able to keep me here under your thumb,” he said to Mrs. Blair, “but all of you teachers are the same.”

He turned to Fiona, who was still staring at him in disbelief.

“You're all just my enemy.”

“Ms. Blake, you're dismissed for the day,” Mrs. Blair said. “I'll deal with Henrik.”

“All right,” Fiona said reluctantly, picking up her briefcase and glaring down at Henrik. “Good luck with that.”

She left the classroom, clutching her briefcase tightly. She was furious and exhausted. She suddenly knew what Dr. James had meant when he said that she might want to take the day off after lunch time. This wasn't turning out to be the dream job that she had been expecting. How was she going to reconcile herself with that?

Fiona sighed. Sometimes life threw one too many curve balls.

Fiona woke up tired after tossing and turning the entire night, her mind unable to get off of Prince Henrik and his temper tantrum. Were all the pupils in the Academy going to act like him, or was he a special case? She knew they would probably all be judging her based on her clothes, and the boys who wanted to sleep with her would probably be extra harsh because they saw her as untouchable. She wasn't looking forward to her first class.

She had been assigned to work with Mr. Adams, starting at 12:00. The morning routine of the pupils was already meticulously planned and carried out by the Spencer Dalton staff, and if anybody were to drop by, a donor, for example, with a large pocketbook, it would be in the morning. Should they see their heirs making contact with a commoner, they may be very likely to throw a fit.

So the Academy had made the quick decision to only work the new teacher's assistant in the afternoon, which worked well for Fiona, considering her apprehension. Unfortunately, it was this same schedule that allowed her to spend all morning feeling nervous and sick to her stomach. The lack of sleep didn't help either. She nearly skipped breakfast, but imagining an encounter with somebody like Prince Henrik on an empty stomach sounded like a nightmare and brought some sense to her.

“Good afternoon,” Mr. Adams said kindly. The class was one of the closest to a normal class that the Academy offered – Life Sciences. “Welcome to our classroom. Class, this is Ms. Blake. She will be your new TA. You must treat her with respect and courtesy at all –”

“Hey baby, ever been bent over a desk?” a shrill male's voice asked. “I'd be glad to...you know...”

“Enough Bobby! Mrs. Blair’s, Now.”

Fiona scanned the room for the source of the commotion, narrowing her eyes when she realized that Henrik was there. She knew he hadn't said it, but he had an infuriating smirk on his face. An impish redhead, who was blushing furiously, rose from his seat and took a pink slip of paper from Mr. Adams. “You're losing outside privileges for that one. Which I personally find more funny than your crude remark.”

Fiona sighed. She should have expected as much. Although she'd dressed as conservatively as possible, she knew how men acted around women like her. Even if she was from a small town, none of them would have guessed as much. And likewise, none of them would be likely to give her the respect she deserved. It didn't matter if she dressed like a librarian, they would find a way to harass her.

“My apologies, Ms. Blake. These kids are animals.”

“Hey!” one called out in protest. Mr. Adams smiled out at them and shook his head. “You know it's true, Jackie. Now let's all introduce ourselves to Ms. Blake. I'd like you to tell her your names and why you're here at the Spencer Dalton Academy. It's only fair to warn her beforehand, and if you lie I will write you up. We don't have time for that today.”

The many students perked up at the opportunity to flaunt themselves, though many seemed to feel embarrassed when they were asked to explain why they were there. Mr. Adams appeared to thrive on this, saying to her later in private that the shame helped them to maintain a drive to reform. He had a duty to help shape future world leaders, and was determined to uphold that.

She was introduced to a variety of students, and sometimes shocked by their reasons for being there. Many of them had spent more money on shoes they hadn't been authorized to buy than she would ever earn in her entire lifetime. She was already having a hard time when it became Henrik's turn, and he stared intently into her eyes when he stood up to speak.

“I'm Prince Henrik of Denmark,” he said, his brown eyes flashing. “And I'm here because my friend leaked images of me at an orgy to the tabloids.”

She was trapped in his gaze, nowhere to go, and they stared at each other until Mr. Adams thanked him and told him to sit down. Fiona blushed furiously but held his gaze, and Henrik gave her a mischievous grin. The classroom erupted in raucous laughter, and a few boys began to whoop approvingly. Henrik smiled angelically, folding his hands on his desk as Mr. Adams banged a gavel and ordered everybody to shut up.

Fiona's mind drifted as Mr. Adams began his lesson. Of course, she realized. That's why she had remembered him in Mrs. Blair's room. He was national news, although of the variety she tended to turn off before she absorbed any of it. She didn't care about any of the latest trends or the royal families. In fact, the interest most people showed in them really got on her nerves and made her wish for something better to talk about. It was probably because she was sick of small town thinking, people content to live through the lives of celebrities rather than paving their own way and following their own dreams. The elite defined success to them and that's what they wanted. If they couldn't have it, they were content to gossip about those who did.

Prince Henrik had been in the middle of a scandal, the handsome devil being blasted left and right by media all over the world. People had punch lines for him and jokes on the radio, but she knew it would be over with almost as soon as it began and people would forget all about his royal indecency as soon as something new and newsworthy happened..

He was much more attractive than she'd pictured he would be in person, although he was already gorgeous in the photos she'd seen of him as well. It was difficult to avoid them, and the large censor bar over his genitals gave her a distinct impression of how well endowed he might be. Stumbling upon the picture had secretly aroused her, though she had forced herself to look quickly away from it and scoffed. Remembering all of this brought an unwanted tingle to her body, and she sighed, glancing at the clock.

When the bell finally rang, she rushed out of the room as quickly as she could, turning the corner and taking a deep breath. She shouldn't think about Henrik anymore. He was nothing but trouble.

Fiona started walking again, and bumped hard into someone. She realized with dismay that it was Prince Henrik. He gave her a knowing grin that made her heart flutter and strutted away, leaving her alone in the hallway with thoughts she didn't want to have.

A few weeks later, Fiona was asked to help Spencer Dalton organize a dance for their pupils. It was a reward for good behavior, and those who had earned their merit were going to be allowed to attend. Those who had not, however, would be forced to spend the evening alone, listening to mandatory lectures on the human body and all its biological wonders.

Needless to say, the pupils were excited for the upcoming event, and tried to be on their best behavior. It was something they could all relate to and anticipate – a chance to dress themselves up, flaunt whatever they had, and get up close and personal with the opposite sex. Fiona was hoping that her task would be a simple one, and that she wouldn't encounter the same type of nonsense that went on in the classroom. Since it was more fun than work, or so she imagined, she decided it would probably be fine.

She wasn't counting on Prince Henrik to be on her committee, and definitely wasn't thrilled to find that he was more interested in hanging all over Tiffany LeBough than he was about hanging up decorations or painting. She gently reminded him that it was a good opportunity for him and she didn't want to get him in trouble, but he had scoffed.

“I don't feel like it, this is stupid,” he whined. “And Tiffany doesn't want to either.”

Tiffany, another unbelievably attractive person - Spencer Dalton was crawling with them, gave her a pointed look and wove her arm through Henrik's.

“It's all right, my prince,” she said in her heavy French accent. “Let the lower ones do the work here. She isn't even a real teacher, she can't tell us what to do.”

Fiona watched helplessly as Tiffany led him away and he plopped down on a folding chair. The French heiress walked behind him and began to kiss and nibble on his ear and he laughed obnoxiously. Fiona sighed to herself, irritated. Maybe if she could figure out how to play to his strengths, she would be able to get some real work done. She was nervous about being left alone with any of these rambunctious students, and Prince Henrik was the worst.

“What do you like to do, Henrik?” she asked. “How does painting sound?”

“Painting can suck my royal dic-”

“All right, maybe building something? Do you like to work with your hands?”

“You betcha,” he said, gripping Tiffany by the waist and pulling her onto his lap. She squealed and giggled, and before she had a chance to protest, they were making out raunchily on the folding chair, grunting like animals.

“Henrik, that's enough,” she said. But Henrik wouldn't listen. The other students had stopped what they were doing and were laughing obnoxiously, some of them taking their phones out to take pictures or record free time with Prince H.

“I'm serious, stop it!” she exclaimed.

But he wouldn't.

“All right, you all need to get back to your usual classes. Free time is over,” Fiona commanded.

“What?”

“Bitch,”

“Fuck this!”

A menagerie of insults reached her ears, but she didn't care. She couldn't stand another second of Prince Henrik.