“Mmmm,” he said as he slowly opened them to look at me. “Good morning.”
I brought my lips to his and softly held them there for a few seconds. He returned the gesture and opened his mouth. We kissed passionately and gently for a while before he pulled back.
“I love you, Eliza.”
I smiled. His warmth touched my very soul. “I love you too.” I caressed his cheek as he looked into my eyes. Drew had a way about him that saw through to my soul, it seemed. It was a bit unnerving because I had never experienced such intense feelings before. But it was magnificent at the same time because he truly understood who I was as a person. He got me. He appreciated the fact that I only wanted him and not his money or status in life. Drew was satisfied with the fact that material things meant nothing to me.
Sliding his hand under the sheet, he began to slowly trace the line of my hip. I felt a tingle at the touch of his gentle hand. Running it up my waist and to my breast caused me to shiver.
“Cold?” he asked with a smile, knowing full well that it wasn't the temperature of the room that had affected me.
“No, I'm actually kind of hot,” I replied with a slight grin.
He realized that my words along with his actions implied what we both wanted. Drew moved atop me and kissed me tenderly. All the while, he moved two fingers inside me until he found my g-spot.
“Mmm,” I moaned in a low voice.
After pulling out his fingers, he pushed my leg aside, opening my body up to him. He slowly moved down on the bed and used his tongue to entice me more. I felt his warm breath against my naked flesh as he blew on me before plunging his tongue into me. Taking a deep breath, my back arched immediately at the touch of his mouth. My hands instinctively grabbed his head as I pulled him to me tighter. Drew continued to work his magic on me until I couldn't stand it any longer. I tried to move my body away from his mouth so that I could please him, but he wouldn't let me. He held me in place until he was finished with me.
“Oh, Drew, I'm gonna come if you don't stop,” I said between breaths.
He shook his head and kept going. It was one of the things I loved about Drew—he gave me his all, uninhibited. He sat up and grabbed a condom. Slipping it on, he moved atop me and slid his hard dick into me.
“Hey, wait, don't you want me to give you oral too?” I asked.
He laughed. “Oh, Eliza, I love how you call it that. You're so innocent.”
“What should I call it?” I asked, a bit embarrassed that I was so childish.
“Well, you can call it blow job, head, or sucking my cock; whatever you want.”
I shrugged. “Okay, would you like for me to suck your cock?” I asked.
Drew chuckled. “Yes, I would. But later. Now I want to feel you wrapped around me. I love it, Eliza. I love how I feel inside of you. There is no time when two people are closer than this right here.”
I let go and enjoyed this moment between us as Drew cradled my body close to his, his thrusts slow and calculated. Sweat dripped from his brow as he made love to me.
My tummy tightened and my knees quivered, the feeling all-consuming as I fell over the edge. As his rhythm increased, I knew he was on the verge of climax too. He moved my hips in a circular motion then stilled, his back rigid and taut as he released.
I was breathless to his touch, in awe of such a sensation between two people. Completely mesmerized by the things he did to me.
“That was ... wonderful.” I kissed him after he fell to his back beside of me.
“You're wonderful,” he replied.
“You know, I could stay like this forever.”
He smiled. “Me too.”
Sitting up in bed, he ran his hands through his thick hair. “What would you like for breakfast?”
“Oh, I don't know. How about some fruit and a bagel?”
“Done,” he said as he got up and put on his pajama pants.
He left the room, and I took a shower. The suite had been stocked with all my favorites. I wondered how anyone knew what I liked, but I figured that Drew had taken inventory of my bedroom and bathroom and had arranged for me to have what I loved most. There was one thing that was there that I had never seen before—a wonderfully sweet smelling lotion that felt glorious on my hands. I had seen it the night before and thought I would sneak a bit. I figured it was either his mum's or Maggie's since they all stayed here on occasion.
“Okay, breakfast will be ready after your shower,” he said as he came into the bathroom.
“Alright.”
“I have something very special planned this evening,” he told me with an excitement that I had never heard out of him.
“Oh?” I replied.
“Yes, but you can't ask for details or where we're going.”
“Okay,” I said with trepidation. I knew it would be wonderful, but I wasn't a fan of surprises.
After breakfast, Drew and I got dressed and spent the day out in the city. He took me shopping then we dropped into a small cafe to eat croissants and drink wine. I must admit that it was odd seeing the city from his point of view because everywhere we went, we had to enter the back and try our best to stay out of the paparazzi's view.
“Look, Eliza, I'm sorry for not being able to walk down the street with you like a regular couple. But this is what comes with being a Royal or a celebrity.”
“Drew, it's okay. I don't care about how we do things; I just want to do them with you.”
I hoped he knew how much just being around him meant to me. I would have agreed to stay indoors all day and night if it meant that I could be with him. “You know that all of this isn’t why I'm with you,” I said as I raised my hands and moved them around.
“I just feel that you're not getting the true Parisian experience when you're with me. I can't just go out and walk around. There's so much I want to see with you, but we have to do things the absolute worst way because of scum like the tabloid reporters.
It was as if he'd suddenly realized what he had said as soon as the words left his mouth.
“Eliza, I'm so sorry. I'm not calling your father scum. It's just that...”
I stopped him before he could go any further. “Hey, shhh. It's okay. I understand where you're coming from. I hate those rag mags too.”
I hoped my words reassured him and made him feel better. I knew what it was like to put your foot in your mouth and say the complete wrong thing. But the truth was, I did get it. I hated the tabloid too, even if my father was one of the paparazzi; maybe more so because he was.
25
Drew
Life was perfect. That was my only thought as I sat and watched Eliza nibble on her croissant in Corentin Cafe. “This is my favorite spot to just drop by and grab a coffee,” I told her as she continued to be lost in the pastry.
“I can certainly see why,” she said. “The food is simply divine.”
I smiled as I looked at her. She had stolen my heart, and I didn't think she realized just how much I truly cared for her.
“Are you ready?” I asked when she had finished the last bite.
“Uh, yeah, are you in a hurry?”
I laughed. “Kind of. I have a huge surprise for you.”
“Oh, Drew, you know that I don't like surprises very much,” she said as she wiped her mouth and stood.
“Well, you've not complained about anything so far, have you?”
She grinned. “No, it's been fabulous. But with you I'm never sure what's next.”
“My dear Ms. Noble, you'll have to wait and see and just be surprised.”
As we walked toward the back of the cafe, I realized that all of this was nonsense. I didn’t care what the tabloids would write about Elizabeth and I. I simply wanted to be with her and for everyone to know that I was head over heels in love with Eliza Noble. I had already denounced my friends for her; I may as well show her off to the world if they wanted to see her.
“Come on,” I said as I took her arm.
Upon turning to the front of the c
afe, my bodyguards moved toward me.
“It's okay, we're going out the front,” I told them.
“Sir, let us make sure that it's all clear first.”
“What's going on?” Eliza asked.
“We're going to do things differently today. We are going to leave by the front door and take a stroll down main street.”
She smiled, telling me that she was pleased. “Only if you're sure you want to do this.”
“I do. I'm ready to tell the world that you're my love,” I replied. I felt a sense of relief knowing that we could finally be open with everyone. Who cared what others thought of her standing in the community or which “class” she came from. I certainly didn't care that she wasn't royalty or some heiress, and neither should anyone else.
When it was clear, my guards surrounded us and out the front we walked. Immediately, things seemed different. I felt free for the first time. Though we were surrounded by huge men whose only job was to keep me guarded, I still felt free. At that moment, I felt as though I could conquer anything, as if our love made us stronger.
People attempted to crowd around us, shoving cameras in our faces and shouting as my bodyguards built a wall of muscle round us. I glanced in Eliza’s direction to see that she had a look of sheer panic on her face. “Are you alright?” I asked her.
“Yes, I'm just not used to all of these people who want your picture,” she said as low as she could so that I could still hear her above the men and women shouting at me.
“Prince Andrew, who is this young lady?” I heard one man ask.
“Andrew, is this your new girlfriend?”
“Does your mum know?”
“What's her name? Where is she from?”
They were all shouting questions amid the clicking of the cameras.
“Just ignore them, Eliza,” I said as I clutched her tightly.
It suddenly dawned on me that this wasn’t going to be an easy afternoon stroll by the Seine. Why did I do this? Why was I subjecting her to all of these cameras and hungry photogs who cared nothing about her but who only wanted a good story. Had I gone too fast by taking her out in public?
For the next ten minutes we tried our best to walk down the sidewalk, but the noise of the cameramen wanting a quote or an answer was just too much. Connor saw the frustration on my face. “Your Highness, Liam is driving alongside us. Anytime you want to get into the car, we can take you back to the hotel.”
I was relieved when he told me that we could be whisked away from it all in a second. “Yes, that would be perfect, thank you.”
I watched them as they formed a large circle around us, clearing the way for us to enter our car.
“Thank you, Liam. It was getting a bit hairy out there.”
“Yes, sir. You may want to rethink things for the next few days.”
“That was more intense than I expected,” I said to Liam and Eliza.
Eliza was visibly shaken. “Hey, you okay?” I asked, worried about her.
“Yeah, I'm fine. Just a bit shocked at how close they get and how loud they scream. Does it always feel as if they are going to just attack you at any moment?”
“Unfortunately, yes it does.” I had to be truthful with her even though her father was a paparazzo.
She hung her head and took deep, calming breaths.
A quick kiss on the lips seemed to calm her down tremendously.
“Oh my gosh, it feels good to be back in the suite,” she said as she collapsed onto the couch.
I went into the kitchen and got us a bottle of wine. “Here, have a glass, it will relax you.”
She took a sip and put the glass on the table. “I appreciate why you did what you did.”
“Why I did what?” I asked.
“You know, why you took me out into the public eye like that. I know that you were trying to prove to me that you're not embarrassed about who I am.”
She was right. I had done it to prove a point to her and to the world. I wanted nothing more than for everyone to see just how much Eliza meant to me and how little their opinion of her mattered.
“I did it for us,” I said.
She smiled, and my heart melted. I loved her smile and the way her eyes twinkled when she looked at me.
“Listen, don't get too comfortable,” I told her.
“Why not?”
“Because I have a romantic evening planned for us.”
I plopped down on the couch next to her and heard my phone ding. “Who is texting me now?”
I looked at the screen and saw that it was Edward.
>>>Brother, you and Eliza have already made the papers and the news. Take a look.
I reached for the remote control. “Prepare yourself,” I told her as I turned on the telly.
“Oh my gosh, they didn't waste any time,” she said when she saw us hand-in-hand leaving the cafe.
“No, they sure don't. Eliza, every move my family makes usually ends up on television and in the papers. I'm sure you know that.”
“Yeah, I mean, I never really followed that type of stuff, but you're right. Apparently we are big news.”
Her phone began to ring.
“And I'll bet that's either your mum or dad,” I said to her as I laughed.
“It's Mum,” she said. “Hello?”
There was a silence, and Eliza rolled her eyes and smiled. “Yes, Mum. I know. We're watching it now.”
More silence followed, and I assumed her mother was giving her some kind of lecture about staying out of public.
“Yes, Mum. I love you too. Bye.”
Eliza laid her phone down and laughed.
My phone rang. It was Clayton. “Shit, it's Clayton.”
“Maybe you shouldn't answer it. He probably only wants to argue with you.”
I turned my ringer off and tossed my phone onto the table. I was happy, and I wasn't about to let Clayton or anyone else take that away with their lectures about who I should or shouldn't date.
I moved closer to her and took her hand in mine. “Thank you for hanging in there with me when things got rough with my friends. I know they can be real pricks at times.”
“Drew, I’m not going anywhere. Let's forget about what happened and just be happy with each other.”
As we kissed again, her phone dinged.
“How to bloody hell did that knob get my number,” she scoffed as she looked at her phone.
“What?”
“Clayton! He texted me.”
“Let me read it,” I said as I took the phone.
>>>Eliza, tell your boyfriend that he needs to surf the net. He's not going to be very happy about what he sees. I told him that I would pay him back.”
“Oh my god,” I said. I had no idea what Clayton was talking about, but knowing him as well as I did, I could tell that it was not good.
“Drew, what's going on?” Eliza asked. She was scared and, quite frankly, so was I. What if he made up some elaborate story about Poppy and took it to the press? What if Poppy agreed to lie to them as well?
After a quick search of my name, over three million articles popped up.
“Prince Andrew Fights Over a Pauper,” one headline read.
“The Prince Beats His Friend Over a Commoner named Eliza Noble,” another printed.
“Drew, what is it?” she asked, her voice full of concern.
“Eliza, don't read it. Stay away from the news and the Internet. Trust me, you can't read everything they print.”
I clicked on the video that went along with the article and saw myself beating Clayton at the stadium.
“Bloody hell!! Some asshole was recording me?” I screamed.
“Drew, what's going on?” Eliza was upset with good reason. She had no idea what was happening. The day had been overwhelming, and now to be followed by this was inexcusable. I was well aware who leaked the fight to the press. It was Clayton. He said he'd see that I paid for what I had done to him. Well, here was something that I didn’t want my mother to see.
/>
“Eliza, look, I have to tell you something before you see it anywhere else.”
The look of terror in her eyes hurt me.
“There is a video out there of me and Clayton fighting. It's pretty brutal, and I don't want you to watch it.”
I realized that I couldn't stop her from seeing it if she wanted to, but I felt it was best if she didn’t view me as a violent person. I didn't want her to see me acting that way.
“Drew, it's going to be hard not watching it, don't you think? It will be everywhere.”
She was right. It would be everywhere for eternity, and she would seeing it eventually. She might as well go ahead and look at it while I was there to explain things.
I watched her face as she watched me beat my friend. The tears that fell from her eyes hurt me to my heart.
“Eliza, I'm so sorry. You know I’m not a violent person. I tried to settle things with Clayton without resorting to violence, but I had so much pent-up anger, and although I had told him I was tired of him disrespecting you, he continued on and one with it. Before I even realized it, Riley was pulling me off Clayton. I must have snapped. Please forgive me for being stupid.”
She wiped her cheek. “Drew, promise me that you'll never allow yourself to get that upset again.”
It was apparent that she was afraid of me at that moment. “Please understand that I would never do that to you or to anyone else. Clayton had me at the end of my rope with all the vile and hateful things he had said about you.”
She took a deep breath and stared at me. “I understand, but please, no more fighting about me. Let them all say what they want to say. I don't care. I only care about us being together.”
“Eliza, I promise, no more fighting. Those people don't matter anymore.”
I meant what I said to her. No one in the world mattered except us.
After the obligatory calls to Mum, Edward, and Abigail, I had finally gotten everyone settled down enough to actually be able to talk to Eliza. She explained that she had called her family, reassuring them that I wasn't some half-crazed monster who went around picking fights.
Royally Loved: The Royal Romances Books 1-5 Page 33