Page 61 of Scandal Queen

“Isn’t that what girlfriends to the future king are supposed to do? I spoke to your father and he told me that’s basically what was expected of your mum.”

He shifted up, cradling me in his arms as he met my gaze. “Possibly, but I don’t want to be like that. I told you when I met you that I’d been sleeping until you woke me up. I couldn’t see us from the outside if that makes sense.”

“I think so.” I brushed my fingers through the tangles of his hair, breathing in the smell of him, us, together.

“One day, Leia, I’m going to have to go and live in the palace. I will be king. There’s no avoiding my destiny because it’s been written for me as long as I’ve been alive.”

My palm cradled his cheek, my gaze unwavering from his.

“What man I am when I walk in that palace as king is the only thing I can change. You are right, you’ve always been right. My family don’t have a place in society the way we used to.”

“I told you, I talk ninety-eight percent nonsense.” He smiled slowly and pecked a kiss on the side of my mouth.

“Then it’s the two percent that I’m listening to.”

“And what do you want me to do in my office? I’m never going to be the sort of woman who will happy to design a clothing range or be happy lunching and having facials.”

Next to our new bedroom, which had elements of the room we’d slept in at the palace with its grey and white theme and the big four-poster—I couldn’t lie, I’d remain grateful Oliver had moved the bed with us—sat an office for me. It contained a desk and a chair. A blank canvas for me to do with as I wanted. “I think the office should be purple and white.”

He looked at me closer. “The colours of Dream Free?”

My stomach tightened as I recalled the marketing campaign we’d all come up with when Oliver first visited us at Bright Futures. I remembered all too well what he looked like that day down by the river when we’d been wearing the white and purple T-shirt and he’d touched my hair in front of the press; ensuring that Dream Free went viral.

“Do you think Janine would be happy for me to run with it? I mean I’ve never done anything vaguely useful before.”

He snorted and buried his head into my neck. “You mean the marketing manager of Bright Futures didn’t know what she was doing?”

“Well I didn’t say that exactly. But I can honestly say I’d rather be meeting people, helping them, than working out how to get people to click on a Facebook page.”

He paused for a moment. “I think Janine has probably been waiting for you to suggest that.”

“She was pretty cross with me the other day. So was Molly.”

“Leia, no one is cross with you. This is a huge adjustment, and everyone knows it.”

“Molly said she was going to proposition you herself.”

He laughed again, rocking our bodies together, kindling a warm lick of heat in the pit of my stomach. “I’m already spoken for.”

“Yeah?”

“I told you. You’ve blinded me to everyone else.”

I grinned, so stupid, but I couldn’t keep it off my face.

“So how about we combine our efforts?”

“What do you mean?” I couldn’t see how much longer this naked conversation could last for. I mean there’s only a certain limit of rational conversation one can have when there’s a growing hard-on pushing against the inside of your thigh.

“So I want to prove to everyone the royal family can be current.”

“Yes.”

“And you want to drive Dream Free to reach more people.”

“Yes.”

“Then I say it’s high time we get onto social media.”