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“Oh, did you?”
He was full of shit! How he found this out about her, but I did not, was curious. I suspected the old bat of a grandmother had it in for me. She figured if she could insert a handsome ringer, then I might fade away. She’d continue maintaining power over Alexandra. Who would be that crazy? A sociopath, I guessed. This family got weirder and weirder by the moment. What was the plan? To prolong Alexandra’s agony and make it worse? To embarrass me in front of my family? No, the old bitch wouldn’t win this one.
“Do you know anything about the preservation of tapestries?” I asked, trying my damndest to keep up.
“Of course. Well, preservation of all textiles. God, I love talking about this, Rick! Stop me if I bore you.”
She rambled. I was bored immediately. At least she looked sweet as she smiled and explained. Then, she stopped.
“So, that’s how you do it. Well, one process. I love that you both enjoy this stuff. Fascinating, really,” she said.
“For certain.”
The photographer moved us into place. I handed my coffee over. He lined up the shot, then paused to address something.
The photographer called Jacques the Dickhead over. He went. I had one moment to impress Alexandra. She looked up at me again with those big, blue eyes of hers. Damn if they didn’t sell me at this moment! I needed to do something good. Alexandra was distracted by some exceedingly average asshole who was here as a plant. I needed her to fall into my spell—and quickly. Kissing her worked before, so I tried again.
I gambled. And, at first, I thought I’d lost.
Alexandra pulled away, staring. Then, to my surprise, she dove back in. The woman could kiss! She wrapped her arms around my neck as I pulled her closer. And, despite the thirty or more idiots in the room, we kept going. This began with practical, strategic motives but I soon found myself longing to push her up against a wall. What was that about? We were completely wrapped up in whatever this was. As a shutter clicked and clicked, we pulled apart.
“That’s lovely, but won’t do for the official ones,” the photographer said.
“I’m sorry. You didn’t… catch us did you?” Alexandra looked nervous.
“Young love,” he said. “It’s beautiful. I figured I would capture it for you. People usually fear having to kiss and be romantic in front of a camera. But the two of you are naturals.”
Alexandra blushed. I squeezed her hand.
“Perhaps a little less of that then? Focus on the official photos?” Jacques declared.
“I can’t help myself,” I said. “I just… couldn’t fight it.”
Alexandra shook her head and bit her lip, her eyes never dropping my gaze. I realised that here, dressed like a normal young woman, and in a different light, I liked her. She was beautiful like this. I admired her legs and the way the curve of her hips felt in my hands only moments before. I wanted so badly to grab her ass. That would be satisfying.
“Well, shall we get on with it?” Jacques barked.
So, we did. We gave them every bit of a show.
Nineteen
Alexandra
Rick was intent on finding any opportunity to kiss me. He couldn’t keep his hands to himself. While I was flattered and luxuriated in the way his lips met mine and how our tongues felt tangled together, I was clever enough to know this had something to do with the arrival of one new courtier.
Lord Jacques was a tall glass of water. He had hazel eyes, a brilliant smile, and dark brown hair. His eyes complimented his remarkable tan. I immediately thought of the man I had read about in one of Astrid’s tawdry novels. A man who was always shirtless and tanned but kept running into the heroine in the oddest ways. I wondered if he looked good with a shirt off. I suspected he would. Either way, he was far better than my previous Private Secretary who was nearly eighty. She was a sweet woman, but Lord Jacques was about the same age as Rick and much nicer to look at than Louise.
I was convinced Jacques wasn’t interested in me. We could keep it professional. Rick, meanwhile, was upset—even jealous. His ramped-up desire on full display was an act of claiming me. I hated it. I wasn’t a trophy to be won—even by the man who would marry me. Still, the kissing felt so good! I didn’t want it to end. The more we did, the more natural it was to wrap myself up in him and enjoy it.
As the pictures finished, we were assured that the best ones would be retouched and sent over by morning for our approval. The announcement would go out soon. I knew that Celeste would mastermind it all. She’d keep any of the beautiful ones of us kissing and lay it on thick far out of sight. Still, it was nice to know that somewhere they existed. We weren’t in love. We weren’t a real couple. We only played along well.
“You can calm down,” I said as Rick walked me to my side of the house. “He’s not going to edge into your territory. One man is enough, I can assure you.”
“You wouldn’t have two if you could do so no questions asked?”
I flushed.
“What, you wouldn’t want us both to cater to your every need?”
