The Crown Affair

by Lucy King

Springing to her feet, Laura gave herself a quick shake and forced herself to calm down. ‘You can turn round now,’ she said lightly. ‘I’m decent.’

  More than decent, actually. Her nipples might be annoyingly as hard as pebbles, but the shapelessness of her overalls revealed nothing of the way her body responded to him, thank goodness.

  Now all she had to do was sidle off, bury herself in work and find somewhere else to have lunch because, judging by the hamper hanging from his hand and banging against his knees, Matt had decided to appropriate this spot and frankly, with thousands of other heavenly spots in the grounds of the palace it wasn’t really worth arguing over.

  ‘Right. Well. I’ll—er—leave you to it.’

  ‘Don’t go.’ Matt flashed her a smile and her stomach flipped. Awareness whizzed through the entire length of her as, unable to help herself, she ran her gaze over every gorgeous inch of him, from the top of his thick dark hair right the way down, past the T-shirt and jeans down to the flip-flops.

  She paused and blinked, not sure she’d heard him correctly. ‘What?’

  ‘My being here isn’t exactly a coincidence.’

  Laura frowned. ‘Did you want something?’

  ‘I came to see if you’d like some lunch.’ He strode towards her and set the hamper beside the table.

  ‘I’ve already had it.’

  ‘Have some more.’

  ‘I’m not hungry.’

  ‘Fine, you can keep me company while I have lunch,’ he said, folding himself into the chair on the other side of the table and waving that she do the same.

  Hmm. ‘I need to get back to work.’

  ‘Later.’ He gave her a quick smile. ‘Indulge me.’

  Her stomach swooped. ‘Do I have any option?’

  ‘Not a lot,’ he said, his eyes glinting with amusement and turning her head inside out. ‘According to the records, disobeying the king used to result being thrown in the dungeon.’

  ‘Charming.’

  ‘Not in the least,’ he said cheerfully. ‘It’s damp and crawling with vermin. You wouldn’t like it.’

  Probably not. Although she was pretty sure it would be less uncomfortable than having lunch with Matt when her common sense had gone AWOL. ‘Wow,’ she said, arching an eyebrow and crossing her arms. ‘Absolute power and blackmail. That’s quite a combination.’

  ‘I like to think so.’

  Laura tilted her head. ‘I thought I was supposed to be staying out of your way.’

  He glanced at her for a second and then grinned. ‘That was one of the things I wanted to chat about.’

  Now he wanted to chat? She narrowed her eyes. ‘Don’t you have better things to do? Like a country to run?’

  ‘Even kings need to eat. And I thought we could get round to some of that small talk you mentioned.’

  The small talk they’d been too busy getting horizontal and naked to bother with…

  Laura’s insides tangled into a mass of longing and frustration. Why was she always on the back foot with this man? What was it about him that had her feeling totally at sea? And more importantly why hadn’t the two weeks she’d spent staying out of his way done anything to reduce the effect he had on her?

  She nibbled on her lip. Maybe small talk was the way forward. If she could get him to reveal a bit about himself, maybe he’d turn out to be hideously arrogant, irritatingly patronising and possibly insanely boring. If she was really lucky, he’d also expose a couple of nasty habits. Like interrupting her. Or dismissing her opinions as if batting away a fly. As her ex had had a tendency to do. Hah. That would certainly put her off.

  Laura sat down and gave him a cool smile. ‘What would you like to talk about?’

  Matt leaned down and took a bottle and a couple of glasses out of the hamper. ‘It’s occurred to me that the apologies I owe you are beginning to stack up.’

  Oh. Damn. Not that hideously arrogant, then. She lifted a shoulder. ‘Are they?’

  He pulled the cork out, filled the glasses and slid one across the table to her. ‘First of all, I never apologised for jumping to the conclusion you were a journalist.’

  He’d made up for it in other ways, Laura thought, drawing the glass towards her, and then wished she hadn’t as her cheeks went red.

  ‘And then when you turned up here, I overreacted.’

  She took a sip of wine and felt the alcohol slide into her stomach. ‘Why?’

  Matt frowned. ‘I’m not sure.’

  Hah. As if. She’d never met anyone less unsure of themselves. ‘Let me guess,’ she said with a flash of perception. ‘You thought I was here to see you.’ He stiffened and she felt a jolt of triumph. ‘And I bet you thought the worst.’

  ‘Possibly.’

  ‘You really ought to do something about that suspicious nature of yours.’

  ‘Perhaps.’

  ‘Have lots of people crawled out of the woodwork now that you’re king?’

  His face tightened. ‘Some.’

  ‘Well, I don’t know what sort of people you usually hang out with but you should look at getting a new set of friends.’

  ‘You’re probably right.’ Matt sighed and then snapped back from wherever he’d been. ‘So how am I doing?’

  ‘Not bad.’

  ‘Not bad?’

  ‘Well, you haven’t actually apologised yet.’

  ‘Good point.’ He frowned and shifted in the seat. ‘I’m sorry.’

  Laura couldn’t help grinning at his obvious discomfort. ‘Not a fan of apologising?’

  Matt grimaced. ‘I haven’t had a huge amount of practice.’

  Lucky him. She’d had years of practice. Often apologising for things that hadn’t been her fault. God, she’d been pathetic. ‘I dare say you’ll get better at it.’

  He winced. ‘I don’t plan on having to.’

  ‘No, well, I doubt kings generally have much to apologise for.’

  Didn’t they? Any more of those sexy little smiles, thought Matt, and he’d be apologising for a whole lot more than a misunderstanding and an overreaction.

  Because despite the shapeless mass of beige cotton covering Laura from head to toe, the imprint of her lying there on the grass in just her bra burned in his head and she might as well be naked. Every time she tucked her hair behind her ears or reached for her glass and lifted it to her mouth the thick cotton rustled and reminded him of exactly what lay beneath.

  His head swam for a second and his hands curled into fists. Oh, for God’s sake. He really had to get a grip.

  Right. Conversation. That had been the plan. Food might not be a bad idea, either, he thought, taking out a couple of plates, cutlery and a number of small plastic boxes. He pushed a plate across the table to Laura but she shook her head. He opened the boxes and piled a selection of things on his plate.

  ‘So how’s the accommodation?’ he asked.

  See. He could do conversation.

  ‘Very comfortable, thank you. Who could complain about a four-poster bed and marble en-suite?’

  The image of Laura hot and naked and wet in the shower slammed into his head and his mouth went dry as the heavy beat of desire began to pound through him. Perhaps best to steer clear of accommodation as a conversational avenue in the future.

  ‘And the work?’

  ‘Really great,’ she said, giving him a dazzling smile that nearly blinded him.

  ‘You’re very dedicated.’ Neither his culture minister nor his secretary could stop singing her praises. It had been driving him insane.

  ‘I love my job.’

  ‘So why the sabbatical?’

  Her glass froze halfway to her mouth and she carefully set it back down on the table. ‘What do you mean?’ she said warily.

  ‘Well, you’re clearly good at your job, and you said yourself you love it. So why the sabbatical?’

  ‘Oh, well, you know.’ She shrugged and nibbled on her lip in that way that he was discovering meant that she was nervous. Excellent. When he’d thought t
hat something didn’t add up he’d been right.

  ‘I needed some time out. Stress. Boredom. That sort of thing.’

  Matt didn’t believe that for a second. Her whole demeanour had changed and if pushed he’d have said she looked downright shifty. ‘You don’t seem the type to suffer from stress or boredom.’

  ‘Then I guess it’s working.’

  Hmm. Never mind. He’d get to the bottom of her sabbatical soon enough. ‘How long have you lived in Little Somerford?’

  She visibly relaxed. ‘A couple of months.’

  ‘And before that?’

  ‘London. Born and bred.’

  ‘Do you miss it?’

  ‘Bits.’

  ‘Which bits?’

  ‘The theatres. My friends.’

  Matt tilted his head. ‘You must be what…late twenties?’

  ‘Early thirties,’ she said cagily, her eyes narrowing.

  ‘And you move from the bright lights of London and a good job to hole up in a remote village in the country. Why?’

  Laura studied her feet. ‘I fancied a change of scenery.’

  ‘During your sabbatical?’ he said dryly.

  ‘Exactly.’

  ‘Aren’t you quite young to take a sabbatical?’

  Her head shot up and her eyes flashed. ‘What’s with this obsession with my sabbatical?’

  Matt lifted his shoulders and gave her a smile. ‘I’m just interested.’

  Laura frowned. ‘You should meet my friend Kate.’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘You both have persistence in spades,’ she said darkly. ‘You’d get on like a house on fire.’

  Matt grinned. ‘Persistence is useful in my line of work.’

  ‘I’d call it nosiness.’

  ‘That’s useful, too. Bit risky, though, I’d have thought, to take a sabbatical at such a relatively early stage in your career.’

  Laura let out an exasperated sigh and then threw her hands up. ‘Fine,’ she said, glaring at him. ‘I didn’t exactly choose to take a sabbatical. I was made redundant.’

  ‘Ah,’ Matt said, his mouth curving into a triumphant smile.

  ‘There were cutbacks in government spending. Projects were axed. Heads rolled. Mine was one of them.’

  ‘Ouch.’ Whoever had employed her had been idiots for letting her go. But their loss, his gain. Or rather Sassania’s gain, he amended swiftly.

  She stared at him for a second, then blinked. ‘Well, yes,’ she said. ‘But actually, not as ouch now as it was at the time.’ She gave him a quick smile. ‘In fact with the benefit of hindsight I ought to have sent them a big bunch of flowers to say thank you.’

  ‘Why?’ Matt wished she wouldn’t do that blinking thing. It made him lose his train of thought. The colour of her eyes was so deep, so intense that when the blue disappeared he thought it a shame, yet when it reappeared his head swam and he wished she’d kept her eyes shut.

  ‘If I hadn’t been made redundant, I wouldn’t have been free to take on this.’ She waved an arm in the direction of the palace. ‘I have ex-colleagues who would give their eye teeth to be here.’

  Matt dragged his attention back to the conversation and hmmed. He doubted any of them would have her dedication or enthusiasm. ‘That explains the “sabbatical”,’ he said, ‘but why leave London?’

  The wince was tiny but he caught it and something stabbed him in the chest. ‘London gets a trifle dull after a while, don’t you find?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Oh.’ She frowned. And then shrugged. ‘Well, each to their own.’

  Barriers were springing up all around her telling him to back off. But as she’d pointed out, he was persistent.

  ‘I don’t buy it,’ he said, deceptively mildly.

  ‘Tough.’

  Matt leaned forwards. ‘Tell me.’

  ‘No.’

  But she was wavering.

  ‘Maybe I can help.’

  ‘You already did,’ she said, and then went bright red.

  ‘How?’

  ‘Doesn’t matter.’

  ‘If it involves me it does matter.’

  ‘Let’s just say I met you at a time when my self-esteem wasn’t exactly sky-high.’

  ‘And I boosted it?’

  ‘Something like that,’ she muttered.

  ‘You used me.’ Matt sat back and wondered whether he was hurt or amused.

  Her gaze flew to his. ‘No. Of course not.’

  Oh, she was terrible at lying. He didn’t say anything, just lifted an eyebrow and stared at her until her cheeks went even redder.

  ‘Well, maybe just a little bit.’ She screwed up her eyes as if not wanting to see his reaction.

  She needn’t have worried. He had no complaints. ‘Charming,’ he said mildly, folding his arms over his chest and grinning. ‘I’m devastated.’

  Her eyes flew open in shock and then she relaxed and returned his grin. ‘I can tell.’

  ‘Nevertheless, I think you owe me an explanation.’

  ‘I don’t see why. Can you honestly say you didn’t use me?’

  ‘This isn’t about me.’

  Laura nodded and took a deep breath. ‘OK, fine. The day I was made redundant I got home early to find my boyfriend at the time with his secretary. In our bed.’

  ‘Ah.’

  ‘I know. Tacky, or what? They’d been having an affair for three months, would you believe, and I hadn’t a clue. I’d rented my flat out when I moved in with him and, what with three being a bit of a crowd, I couldn’t exactly stick around. So I trawled through the websites of a number of rental agencies and found the cottage in Little Somerford and I left.’

  ‘What a jerk.’ The hammering urge to hunt her ex-boyfriend down and pummel the living daylights out of him thumped Matt in the chest, taking him completely by surprise.

  She blinked. ‘Well, yes. But I guess he wasn’t wholly to blame.’

  ‘Seems to me that that kind of behaviour is inexcusable,’ he muttered, wondering exactly where such a violent reaction had come from.

  She bit her lip. ‘True, but I was too easy-going, too easy to please. Too afraid of confrontation. I let him get away with too much. I let him walk all over me.’ She shrugged.

  Easy-going? Afraid of confrontation? Matt nearly fell off his chair. That didn’t sound like the Laura he knew. Since the moment he’d met her she’d been feisty, fearless and determined.

  Snapshots flew around his head. Of Laura on the path, batting her eyelids and pouting. Arching her back on his sofa and staring up at him with that come-hither look. Sitting in his office, limbs crossed, chin up as she told him she wasn’t leaving.

  His stomach churned with a weird combination of lust, admiration and something that felt suspiciously like jealousy.

  ‘Which has kind of been the story of my life,’ she was saying. ‘Much as it pains me to admit it, I have been a bit of a doormat.’

  Matt dragged himself back to the conversation. ‘You could have fooled me,’ he muttered, his voice not betraying any hint of the confusion battering his brain.

  Laura grinned. ‘Ah, well, that’s because after the double whammy of losing my job and my boyfriend I went on an assertiveness course.’

  ‘That sounds dangerous.’

  ‘It was. Very. Module One was entitled “How to Embrace Confrontation”. Module Two covered learning how to say no. And Module Three focused on how to get what you want.’

  ‘You must be a fast learner.’

  Laura nodded. ‘Like lightning.’

  ‘For someone allegedly afraid of confrontation,’ he said dryly, ‘you’re pretty good at it.’

  She grinned and his stomach swooped. ‘It’s turned out to be surprisingly liberating. As has going for what I want and saying no.’

  Sometimes saying no wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. Sometimes the only word a man wanted to hear was yes. In exactly the breathy pleading way she’d said all those little yeses that afternoon.

  ‘Anyway
. Change is good, don’t you think?’

  ‘Depends on the change,’ Matt muttered, struggling to keep his focus on reconciling the Laura he knew to the one she described and not on the yeses. ‘Where did the pushover tendencies come from?’

  ‘My parents’ divorce when I was thirteen, I suppose.’

  ‘Tricky.’

  ‘Very.’

  ‘Amicable?’

  She winced. ‘Hideous.’

  ‘I’m sorry.’

  Laura shrugged. ‘Things had been bad for years, even though at the time it all seemed so sudden. I think I probably compensated by trying not to put a foot wrong, in the childish hope that if I was good enough they’d stay together. Which was nuts, of course,’ she said. ‘I know it had nothing to do with me and they’re far happier apart, but I guess old habits die hard.’

  ‘If ever.’

  Laura shook her head. ‘Ah, you see, that’s where you’re wrong. My people-pleasing days are well and truly over.’

  That was a shame.

  The thought slammed into Matt’s head before he could stop it and stayed there flashing in neon, reminding him just how well she’d pleased him.

  ‘Anyway why the sudden interest?’

  Matt shrugged and shoved the thought aside. ‘I’m interested in all my members of staff.’

  For a second there was an odd sort of stunned silence. Laura’s face paled and Matt felt a chill suddenly run through him as if the sun had disappeared behind a cloud.

  She blinked. Bit on her lip. Nodded slowly. ‘Of course,’ she said in a strangely soft voice, getting to her feet a little jerkily. ‘Right.’ She nodded again. Ran her hands over her hips, pulled her shoulders back and flashed him an overly bright smile. ‘Well, as a member of staff, and a brand-new one at that, I ought to be getting back to work. Thank you for the wine.’

  Before Matt could ask her what the matter was, Laura had spun on her heel and was stalking off in the direction of the hedge as if she couldn’t get away fast enough.

  He watched her disappear through the gate, bewilderment pummelling at his brain. What the hell was all that about? Matt rubbed his face. He’d thought their conversation had been going swimmingly. He’d got to the bottom of her sabbatical and was just beginning to discover what made her tick. And even more surprisingly, he’d found himself enjoying her company.

  So what had happened? Had he said something? Done something?