Page 27 of The Prince (Spy Girl 1)
"So go talk to him now."
He sighs like he's about to tell me a big secret. Like I wore him down, but I know better. One of his documented abilities was recruitment--his ability to get normal citizens to help him in the name of The Crown. I also read that his bullshit meter is high--that he can spot a lie from a mile away. I'm going to have to be totally on my game whenever he's around.
"I'm going to tell you the truth," he says. "I'm not here for the race. I work for a government that's worried about the Prince's safety."
"So why don't you have your government call their government and set up a meeting?"
"Because his government isn't throwing your party."
"Do you think someone is going to try to kill the Prince at my party?"
"I don't know."
"Uh, huh. And exactly which government do you work for?"
"British."
"So you're a real-life James Bond? Wow." I laugh in his face. "You know, if you're trying to seduce me, you're working way too hard. The purse was a good start. You should have followed it up with a kiss, not some ridiculously crazy story."
"I believe the Prince is in danger, and so are you."
"And how do I know he's not in danger from you?" I kiss his cheek. "Thanks for the bag."
Take that, Intrepid.
The rest of the evening continues with exquisite food and flowing drinks. The Prince and I take to the dance floor for a couple of hours until he asks if I'd like to go somewhere more private.
He takes my hand and leads me off the boat and toward the water, not back to his car like I expected.
"Where are you going?" the Prince's security asks.
"I'd like to show the lovely Miss Von Allister the gorgeous view of our great city at night."
"I don't think that's a good idea."
"I'm not asking for permission, Juan. This is a completely unplanned whim. Common sense tells us that anyone out to get me would have done so at the party. They couldn't scramble fast enough to plan anything right now. We'll be quick and perfectly safe."
He leads me to the end of the dock then turns me around to take in the view of Cap. The lights go up the hillside, showing off beautiful homes and a few sleek high-rises.
"It's gorgeous," I say, turning to face him.
He puts his lips on mine. "I think I'm falling for you, Huntley."
"You're standing next to the water at the end of a dock. One little push and you'd literally be falling," I tease, gently putting my hand against his chest and pretending to push.
He grabs my hand and flops backwards, taking us both into the water.
I take a deep breath just as we hit but still come up sputter-choking.
"You are totally insane! I love it. Even though you probably just ruined my dress."
"I'll buy you ten new ones." He pulls me close, kissing me.
"Your Royal Highness!" his bodyguard yells as a flashlight beams down on us.
He doesn't reply, just threads his hands through my hair and deepens our kiss with a dart of his tongue. The Prince is polite and well-mannered, asking for permission rather than assuming. It's sweet.
And fun to play along. Although, it's a little difficult to concentrate on kissing someone and feeling super sexy when your beaded cocktail dress suddenly feels like it weighs about two hundred thousand pounds, and even though you float in the salt water, you find yourself needing to tread water every so often so that you don't ruin your mission by drowning the Prince yourself, who is too busy caressing your back to worry about those pesky details.
It's also hard to kiss a prince who you are supposed to be protecting. Especially when you should have your eyes open to scan the area for danger--from assassins, sharks, whatever--and you're seriously considering using the knife blade in your shoe to cut yourself free of your dress.
I wiggle my toes. Shit. My shoes have drowned.
His hands move to cup my ass and give it a little squeeze.
I pull out of his embrace. "You know, it would be a pity if the newspapers reported tomorrow that our cause of death was that we were drowned by a beaded party dress."
He chuckles. "You, Lee, make me laugh."
"What did you just call me?" I ask as a memory flashes though my brain--fast and painful. But I have to ignore it.
"Lee, like short for Huntley. I didn't think anyone probably called you Hunt. I'm sorry if that's too forward of me."
"You just had your tongue in my mouth and your hands on my ass, I'd say you've already been forward."
"And?"
"I like it. On both accounts."
He snaps his fingers, and two guards appear at the top of the dock. He helps the guards hoist all six hundred pounds of me out of the water.
The top of my silk chiffon dress has become transparent, allowing everyone in the vicinity--including two photographers who start snapping photos of me--to see my braless boobs, which are at attention from both the make-out session and the cool night air. The Prince's bodyguard graciously slips his jacket on me while the Prince comes up the ladder--which would have been my preference instead of looking like a damsel in distress being hoisted out.
"Prince Lorenzo! Prince Lorenzo, what happened?" the paparazzi yell.
"I got fresh, and Miss Von Allister threatened to push me in the water. Being the cad I am, I pulled her in with me."
I'm about to give a witty comeback when a red dot skitters across the Prince's head.
And I know what that means.
My heart races--adrenaline pumping through me.
I react immediately by leaping on top of him and knocking him to the deck just as a bullet hits one of the yachts behind us, quickly followed by the sound of a gun's retort.
The weapon is silenced but still makes a sound that you can't miss.
I know it won't take long for the shooter to align the next shot.
I grab the Prince around the waist and quickly roll us back off the dock and into the water. Based on the trajectory of the shot, the shooter is higher than us and that puts us at a big disadvantage.
Another shot hits the dock right where we were just lying and whizzes into the water.
I grab the Prince and pull him toward a boat, so we can use it as cover. Although a shot to one of the boat's fuel cells could cause us a lot of damage, I try not to think about that. Staying in the darkened water and with our heads low, I drag the Prince to safety.
The reporters scream. The Prince's guards yell for them to take cover while shouting orders to each other. They radio for backup and send men to search for the shooter.
But another shot rings out. This one hits the water where we rolled in, but is not
close to where we are now.
I take a deep breath. I just saved the Prince.
Again.
What I need to do right now is capture the shooter and interrogate him, but it would probably look a tad suspicious if I took off running.
Maybe the guards will find and arrest him.
In the meantime, I need to keep the handsome man in front of me safe.
"We almost got shot," he states numbly.
"Yes, I think someone just tried to kill you again," I whisper. "Let's climb up onto this boat." I point at the ladder on a small yacht. The boat is dark and appears to be empty. I lost my clutch and shoes earlier. No way to get in touch with Ari for back up.
"You're shivering," the Prince says, wrapping his arms around me.
"So are you. It's the adrenaline rush. We're coming down. And we're wet."
He holds me close. "Did you just save my life again?"
"Maybe."
"How did you know?"
Before I can answer, twenty guards board the yacht, and I'm pulled away from the Prince.
"Stop it," he tells them. "Let her go."
"Your Highness, you narrowly escaped another assassination attempt."
"Only because she jumped on me."
"Don't you think that's a little convenient?"
"I'd say so, otherwise I'd be dead. No thanks to you lot."
"How did she know a shot was about to be fired, when your elite force did not?"
They all turn to me in question.
"There was a little red dot." I point to a spot on my own forehead.
"And you just happened to know that red light was from the scope of a sniper's rifle?"
"I like action movies. I just reacted." I shrug and try to look bewildered by it all.
The Prince marches through the guards and takes my face in his hands.
"Thank you." He shows his gratitude by giving me another sweet but epic kiss. Then he wraps an arm around me and turns to the guards. "You should be out looking for the shooter."
"We are, sir."
"Then get us home."
Once at the castle and in the privacy of his bedroom, Lorenzo pulls me into a frantic kiss, then we strip each other out of our cold, wet clothes. We're naked and tightly pressed against each other, the heat warming us both.
It's clear that he wants to sleep with me.
