Page 93 of Scandal Queen
“Looks like Christmas is in London after all.”
“Really?”
Smiling, he reached for me, his fingers slipping into the collar of my coat, running against my warm throat. “Really.”
“I get to see Nana?”
“Weather allowing?”
“We get to do all the things we planned?”
He chuckled, drawing me closer, his nose brushing my hair. “Weather allowing.”
“Wow. I was excited for a white Christmas, but now it looks like it’s the snow of dreams too.”
I cringed. The snow of dreams… Was I bloody five? Even Daisy wouldn’t say something as shit as that.
He bent at the waist, laughing while one of his hands still gripped the collar of my coat. “You are so incredibly profound.”
“I don’t know what you are laughing at.”
I turned to get my bags out of the car and Oliver managed to stop laughing enough to speak. “There’s a slight catch to Christmas.”
Why did my stomach plummet like that? “Oh yes?”
He pointed back to the way the car had driven from the main palace. “We have to be in there.”
“What? Why?” I sounded like Daisy. Speaking of which, where was Daisy? I knew straightaway. She’d be up there with the King, no doubt in the stables, stomping in mud and horse shit getting freezing cold and probably catching some awful cold that would make her sick.
“Don’t worry, she’s tucked up next to a warm fire watching Christmas movies with Mum.”
Oh. I didn’t think there would ever be a point I’d get used to the royals acting like any other family. It made me all warm inside knowing that Oliver knew the way my worries went. “So why the palace?”
The snow started to blow down harder and I waved my gloved hands to keep it out of my eyes.
“Mum does this thing with a tree. It’s really bloody annoying, but we have to humour her, otherwise she sulks.”
“A thing with a tree?” I pulled a face. “In the palace?”
“Well normally in Wales, but you know.”
“Okay.” I shrugged pointing to the palace. “In there.”
“In there.” His grin made my stomach tingle.
“You better make this worth my while.”
He laughed, pulling me in closer until I could smell spice mingled with the frost of the air. “Oh that’s guaranteed.”
“Come on then.”
He went to open the door to the still waiting car. “Oliver Beaufort!”
“What?”
“I think we can walk.”
“It’s freezing.”
