“But then I would have to tell Fawn you did so unreasonably,” Noah pointed out, “and she’d be even more terrified of you.”
The prince stared at him stonily.
“She’s a good girl, Fawn. It’s a pity she’s already taken.”
The prince decided it was time to change the subject. “What’s that about her getting her first client?”
“She wants to start an accounting firm when she graduates,” he explained. “You didn’t know?”
“I didn’t care to check.”
Because he was lying to himself, Noah realized.
“What’s that look for?” the prince snapped.
“I was thinking the girl’s right. You’re different from the great Grant Bennett. He’s got balls to say what he feels, and that’s why he’s got the girl, too. Sir.”
ON HER THIRD WEEK IN, Igor announced she was being temporarily promoted, saying she could now work at the third floor, too.
She looked at Igor doubtfully, thinking it seemed more like a fancier way of getting her to fill in for Paula, who had called in sick.
“You’ll get paid extra for it,” Igor hinted.
She brightened. “On my way up.” It should be okay, anyway, she thought. The party had just started for the night, so it should keep the prince out of the way while she worked.
Upstairs, it took her a shorter time than usual to sweep and dust. Unlike the other floors, the third story was the prince’s exclusive territory. As it was off-limits to most guests and employees, there were no cigarette butts or empty bottles to clean out, no vomit or spilled drinks to wipe clean.
Seeing that she had finished half an hour earlier than she should, Fawn headed to the third-floor balcony to enjoy a breath of fresh air. Here, the air smelled clean instead of reeking of smoke and alcohol. It was almost peaceful, if one pretended not to hear the groans and sounds of slapping bodies from below.
She checked her watch. Time’s up, Fawn thought. She was about to emerge from the third-floor balcony when she heard the sound of feminine laughter.
Without thinking, she stepped back from the balcony doors and hid herself behind the curtains, hoping that whoever it was would leave the hallway right away.
Fawn bit her lip. Or maybe she should report it? This was for the prince’s exclusive use, after all.
When she heard the girl start to emit lewd gasps, Fawn cautiously took a peek—-
Oh.
It was the prince, carrying a girl in his arms, her legs locked around his waist while their mouths were fused in an open-mouthed kiss.
Oh.
In the three weeks she had seen couples doing things – well, okay, there were often threesomes, too, and occasionally foursomes as well – Fawn had been more embarrassed than anything else. It wasn’t that she had never dreamed of making love before. She had. But the way they seemed to do it, with more passion than emotion, it made them look more like animals to her.
But right now—-
She shifted on her feet uncomfortably, knowing she should either stop watching or start making noises so the prince would know they weren’t alone. But...she could do neither, couldn’t even peel her gaze from the way the girl was suddenly and frantically tearing the shirt off the prince’s body.
“I’m not going anywhere,” she heard the prince purr in dark amusement. Pulling away, he let the girl slide to her feet while unbuttoning his shirt and throwing it to the floor.
Fawn gulped as she saw the blonde rake her nails down the prince’s naked back, and her throat went dry as she saw the prince’s muscular body ripple in reaction. And then they were kissing again, the prince suddenly pushing the girl against the wall, his mouth slanting open over the girl’s mouth. She saw his tongue slip inside the girl’s mouth, and she thought about Grant kissing her that way.
It had only happened once, Fawn remembered. It was prom night, and he had suddenly pulled her towards him, more aggressive than usual, and she remembered that all she could think at that time was the taste and scent of beer in his kiss and how wet his tongue was.
But then Grant had dug his hands inside her gown—-
Just like what the prince was doing now.
The prince had torn the glittering spaghetti top from the girl and, plumping one breast in his hand, he took the nipple into his mouth and began to suck.
The girl moaned and buckled against him, her hands going to the prince’s hair to clutch his head as she pushed her nipple deeper into the prince’s mouth.
Was that what Grant had wanted to do with her that night?
The girl had her eyes closed, a delirious expression on her face. “Fuck me now.”
Fawn was stunned to hear the note of desperate begging in the girl’s voice.
“Please, Reid. Fuck me.”
The prince’s chuckle made the girl shudder, and so did Fawn.
She couldn’t believe it.
Her gaze went down her body, which felt so...restlessly alive.
What was happening to her?
Fawn whirled around clumsily, no longer wanting to see anything. She covered her ears, but she could still hear them—-
The girl gasping the prince’s name out, over and over—-
The prince’s soft, low growls—-
The sound of their bodies meeting each other—-
She squeezed her eyes shut.
Think of Grant.
Grant, Grant, Grant.
And slowly, his handsome face crystallized in her mind.
Grant.
Her heartbeat started to slow down to a regular pace.
She could see it now, the way his lips would curl in a kind, teasing smile. He was that kind of guy, always smiling, always nice, always ready to help out and make people happy.
Grant.
Behind her, the girl gasped, “I’m c-coming.”
At the same time, her phone rang from her pocket, playing out the chorus of Stonebolt’s I Will Still Love You.
Holy shit! She had forgotten to silence it!
Fawn scrambled to end the call, not even bothering to check who was calling her. She waited tensely for the prince and the girl to appear any moment, but a full minute passed and nothing happened.
Oh, thank God.
Seriously, thank You God.
She fell to her knees, closed
