Page 25 of Falling for the King

‘Would you like a cup of tea like I’m having or something stronger?’ she asked keeping her gaze fixed on the tea set.

‘I’ll get it. Take a seat, you’ve been on your feet for hours.’

She swung around to face him.

‘So have you.’

‘But I haven’t been wearing those.’ He pointed to her shoes, a look of amazement on his face as he took in the extremely high and pointy heels visible beneath her long dress.

She laughed as some of the tension drained out of her.

‘They’re surprisingly comfortable,’ she assured him even as she sat down and bit back a sigh of relief.

‘That is surprising.’ He smiled and her stomach flipped.

He turned to make her tea without having to ask how she had it and she struggled to get her heart beat back to normal while she took off her gloves.

‘Thank you,’ she said as he handed her the cup and sat across from her. She settled back and concentrated on her tea, the end-of-day ritual she always had without any distractions. Tonight there was a distraction, a big one, sitting close by. It was something she’d always yearned for, the companionship of a partner to unwind with after a long gruelling day, to mull over what’d happened.

She took a sip of the hot liquid and closed her eyes on a sigh.

‘Perfect.’ It was exactly the way she liked it, super strong with two slices of lemon. Taking another sip she opened her eyes to find Xavier’s fixed on hers. For a moment she could only stare before she looked down into her half-full cup.

‘Okay, about Edgar,’ she said and placed her cup and saucer on the table when it became apparent Xavier wasn’t going to break the silence.

‘What exactly did he say?’

‘That he was doing me a favour. That I was from inferior breeding stock and a whole lot more along that vein. He was pretentious and insulting but not threatening. I do think the proposal and everything attached to it is ancient history.’

‘Pompous ass. I should’ve decked him.’

Katerina laughed at the un-Xavier like wording yet the look in his eyes showed he meant it.

‘So should have I, more than once. Instead I repeated the mantra, constantly. And he certainly wasted no time in showing me how unimportant my rejection was, he barely left the side of that singer all night.’

‘You managed it extremely well. You handled him like a true diplomat.’

‘Thank you, and for taking me into your confidence. He did reveal that Serena attending last night made him think that now I would agree and was completely mystified when I didn’t.’

Xavier vaulted out of his chair.

‘Kat, I didn’t think … I should have known better than to put you in that position.’ He massaged a hand across the back of his neck. ‘That you’d be impacted by the ramifications of my actions.’

She paused liking his recent use of her shortened name. She’d always been Katerina officially and Rina to most of her friends, rarely Kat. Being so to Xavier she liked, maybe more than she should.

‘I handled it, Xavier.’ She had. ‘And you have every right to invite a woman.’ She tried to sound convincing, he did. Automatically her fingers went to her necklace which had been weighing her down physically and metaphorically all night. She wanted to rip it off but instead she toyed with the rubies trying to hide her unease as she fiddled with the clasp to take them off.

Dropping her hand she stood, it was time to wrap up this night as her fingers went back to the necklace clasp.

‘Let me do that.’ Surprise held her still while tracking his movements in the large gilt mirror on the opposite wall. Moving to stand behind her he was a full head taller and spot lit under the chandelier, his hooded eyes staring down at her.

‘Oh I—’

‘Don’t move,’ he said.

Holding herself rigid his fingers brushed her nape and she shivered all the way to her fingertips. One clasp then the other of her necklace gave way as he edged it forward rattling the heavy centrepiece pendant and additional four similar sized rubies. Strung together on a web of gold chains and inter-placed with large diamonds it exposed, for the first time that night, the pale skin of her décolletage to someone other than herself. Yet he didn’t appear to notice as he reached to his side dropping the precious jewels onto a small table.

She jerked, unable to prevent it when his fingers moved to her ear easing out the square ruby. Surrounded by diamonds it connected to an even bigger stone catching the light and spinning like a kaleidoscope around the room, washing the cream walls with a magical glow. Resting his palm against her tell-tale pounding pulse she marvelled, instead of protesting, at how gentle and deft his movements were. After the slightest of pauses he moved to the other earring, repeating his silent work before placing it on the table next to its twin.