by Jenny Frame
They heard a knock at the door, and Perri went to see who it was. Roza was delighted when Theo came in carrying two large pizza boxes and ice cream.
“A little birdie told me you didn’t eat supper. I hope you’re hungry,” Theo said.
Perri must have called him. She couldn’t help but smile and feel uplifted by her exuberant cousin. “I could eat a horse.”
After stuffing themselves with pizza, they both sat with their feet up on the coffee table and ate their ice cream out of the tub. They were watching a historical TV show about knights on white chargers, and armies fighting to the death for the throne of their kingdom.
Theo pointed his spoon at the TV. “You know what I don’t understand? Why they fight so hard to steal each other’s throne. I couldn’t think of anything worse than being King.”
“Or Queen,” Roza added before eating another spoonful of her favourite raspberry ripple ice cream.
“Exactly. Imagine waking up every day knowing there’s a diary filled with events for you to do, from now until the day you bloody die. You can’t do what you want, or go where you want, and everyone deferring to you all the time.” Theo shivered.
“It’s bad enough being spare to the heir. Being both so close to the throne, and yet so far away,” Roza said, “without being locked in that gilded cage for the rest of your life.”
Theo laughed. “Yes, it’s not very flattering being a spare anything, far less being the spare heir. I’ve told George often enough, if anything happens to her, I’ll kill her.”
Roza put her ice cream tub on the table as she laughed at Theo. “You’re too funny. It’s strange, isn’t it?”
“What’s strange?”
She took a sip of her drink and sat back on the couch. “It’s strange how things turn out. Both George and Gussy are really similar. They’re serious, responsible, hardworking, and they were born as the heir to the throne. How lucky is that? Can you imagine the chaos if we had been born first?”
“I think Bea and her republicans would have had a case for abolishing the monarchy in that case. God! The thought is terrifying. I keep telling George to hurry up and make some babies. I want to be kicked down the line of succession as quickly as possible.”
“Me too,” Roza agreed. Once Gussy was married, she didn’t think it would be long before he and his fiancée had children. They were a very loving couple, and she envied them that. “Do you think George and Bea will have children soon?”
Theo chuckled. “I think George would have wanted to get Bea in the family way on their wedding night if she could have. She loves children and has always just wanted a family of her own. Bea on the other hand wants time to settle into her role first, and I don’t blame her. She has got one hell of a job to learn everything from scratch, and she’s doing fantastically.”
Roza had to agree wholeheartedly. Bea was doing an astonishingly good job, having not been brought up in royal life. “I can imagine them with lots of kids in tow, just like Gussy. Then we won’t be the centre of attention any more,” Roza said with a smile. “No more spare to the heir.”
Theo lifted his glass. “Let’s drink to that. No more spare to the heir, as soon as possible please.”
They clinked their glasses together and drank a toast. “So,” Theo said, “tell me about Lennox King, and why has she got you so upset tonight?”
Roza knew he would ask sometime, but could she tell him the truth? She was desperate to tell someone, so she just came out with it. “I’m falling for her and she doesn’t want me.” Roza surprised herself at her frankness.
“Bloody hell. I never saw that coming. What about Thea? Do you still…” He looked down at her ring finger, and said, “Ah, you got over her then.”
She pulled her blanket up to her chin, feeling cold and shivery from the ice cream. “I wouldn’t have, if it hadn’t been for Lex. She gave me the strength to let go of the part of her that was inside me.”
“Then that’s good. I can’t imagine Lex wouldn’t return your feelings, Roza. You’re gorgeous.”
“Thank you, but looks aren’t everything. There’s a part of her she’s keeping secret from me, and I don’t think she wants to talk about it.”
“I know what a big deal it was for Bea to walk into this royal life. It’s a huge ask, but this Lennox is an idiot if she doesn’t want you.”
Roza’s phone rang on the arm of the couch. “Yes, Johann?”
“Sorry to disturb you, Your Royal Highness, we have Lennox King downstairs. She would like to see you.”
Roza jumped to her feet and Theo mouthed, “Who is it?”
“Um…okay. Send her up.” Roza dropped the phone on the couch and began to frantically run her fingers through her hair. “It’s Lex. She’s on her way up.”
“That’s good, isn’t it? If you have feelings for her, then you should talk,” Theo said.
Roza sat down with a thud and rested her head in her hands. “I’m a mess. My hair looks like it’s been dragged through a hedge backwards, I’ve no make-up on, and I’ve got big puffy eyes from crying earlier.”
“Oh, shut up.” Theo moved along the couch to Roza and gave her a hug. “You look beautiful. I’ll go and let her in on my way out, and I want you to text or call later with a full report.”
Roza gripped Theo’s hand tightly and kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you, big cousin. You really cheered me up.”
“Good, I’m always here for you. I’ll go and let Lennox in.”
*
Lex was led through the grand entrance to St James’s Palace by Johann. The grand staircase, paintings, and rich furnishing that she saw as she walked in served to remind her how different they were. How could an ex-addict be accepted into this world? But she needed to show Roza the real her, and let her know her feelings, no matter the price.
They came to a halt outside an apartment, and Johann knocked on the door. To Lex’s great surprise, Prince Theo answered. She bowed her head immediately.
“Princess Roza is waiting for you in the living room.”
“Thank you, Your Royal Highness.”
Theo gave her a hard stare for a few moments and said, “The Queen and I love Princess Roza very much, so be careful with her and her feelings, okay?”
That was a warning if ever Lex heard one. “I understand you very clearly, sir. I will try my very best not to do anything that would cause her pain.”
Theo stood back to let her in, and then went to his own apartment. Johann pointed her in the direction of the drawing room.
The door was open but she knocked on the door frame before entering. Roza met her eyes and all the reasons why this was a bad idea drifted away. She is beautiful. “Hi, can I come in?”
“Sure, sit down.”
Lex could tell Roza had been crying and it made her feel even guiltier. She set the wine she’d brought down on the coffee table, then handed Roza flowers. “These are for you.”
“Thank you. They’re beautiful.”
What to say now? This was going to be the hard part. “I called Lali Ramesh to get permission to visit you. I don’t have your new number.”
“I’ll give it to you before you go.”
There was a long silence before Lex took a breath and began. “I wanted to explain why I couldn’t spend time with you tonight.”
“You don’t need to justify yourself to me. You’re free to do what you want or go out with anyone you want.”
Lex could hear the hurt in her voice, and the guilt slithered around in her stomach. “I know I don’t have to, but I want to. I want you to know everything about me.”
She picked up the wine and handed it to Roza. “I thought this might help.”
Roza looked at her quizzically and then read the label. “Non-alcoholic wine? What—?”
“I couldn’t be with you tonight because this is my NA meeting night. Narcotics Anonymous. I’m a recovering drug and alcohol addict.”
Roza’s eyes went wide for a second and then to Lex’s re
lief she took her hand. “But you’re so healthy, with—”
“With what I put into my body. Yes, that’s why. I vowed I’d never abuse my body the way I did when I took drugs and drank.”
Roza put the bottle back down and asked, “Can you tell me about it?”
“I will. It’s important I tell you, but no one at work knows about this, except for the Queen Consort.”
“I promise I will never tell anyone, Lex.”
Lex smiled, then gripped her hand and squeezed it. “I know. It’s just hard to talk about. I feel so guilty about that time in my life. When I graduated from university, I joined a prestigious trading company. I seemed to have a talent for figures and making money, and made a lot of money. I loved the high of trading, it made me feel invincible, and I loved the lavish London life that went with it. Champagne, parties, and women were simply a perk of that lifestyle, but—”
She faltered, but Roza moved closer to her, and held her hand tighter. “But? You can tell me. I’m listening.”
Lex took a deep breath and prayed Roza wouldn’t hate her after she told her this. “Soon I was hungering for that high of making money all the time and fell into the worst excesses of London life. I snorted cocaine, drank to excess, and used sex to try and maintain that high all the time. Soon the cocaine wasn’t having the same effect on me. I couldn’t get that same high, so I started mixing it with alcohol and drinking it. It gives you a bigger high but it’s one of the worst things you can do to your body. My work life was becoming affected and I was getting deeper and deeper in debt.”
Lex stared at the floor as she told her story, unable to meet Roza’s eyes. “My family tried to help, but nothing could stop me. I was so ashamed at bringing this to their door. The stress of the situation, my job, and the effect of the cocaine finally came to a head when I collapsed at work and was taken to hospital. The cocaine abuse was giving me heart problems and I came very close to dying, but I didn’t, and my dad got me on a residential drug and alcohol rehab course.”
If Lex was expecting shock or condemnation she couldn’t have been more wrong. Roza lifted her hand and took off her watch, to reveal her tattoo. She traced her fingertip across the Roman numerals there and said, “This is the date of your sobriety, isn’t it?”
Lex nodded. “Yes, six years now I’ve been clean.”
Then Roza placed a soft kiss on her wrist and said, “I’m so proud of you, Lex.”
Roza gave her a soft smoky look that started the heavy beat of want inside her, but she was terrified of going where her body wanted her to. The last time she gave in to her body’s needs, she’d brought so much pain to so many people.
Roza continued to caress her hand, letting their fingers intertwine, and then moved so close their foreheads were touching, lips inches from each other.
“What are you doing?” Lex asked.
“Caring about you. Is that okay?”
Lex must have shown her terror because Roza whispered, “Why do I frighten you so much? You always try and pull away, or run away, every time we get close.”
Roza parted and licked her lips, making Lex feel like she was being drawn to her like a siren. “My body craves you the way I craved when I was an addict. I could become addicted to you.”
Roza took Lex’s hand and placed it on her heart. “This. What we are starting to feel between us? It isn’t bad. It could never be bad. You don’t have to be afraid of it, of wanting me, Lex.”
She leaned forward and started to place delicate kisses on Lex’s face, and in between kisses whispered, “Not all addictions are bad. They’re only bad if they bring you pain. If you allow yourself to feel what’s in your heart, you would only feel happiness.” Roza moved her lips to Lex’s ear and whispered seductively, “Happiness and pleasure. Kiss me, please?”
There was a desperate need in Roza’s voice that she just couldn’t fight any longer. Lex softly pressed her lips against hers and simply melted into her. Lex heard her moan when she slipped her tongue in to taste her mouth, and Roza climbed onto her lap. Lex grasped a handful of her pert round buttocks and felt Roza’s hips start to rock into her groin.
This was too soon, so she reluctantly pulled her lips away from her. “Princess, we need to stop.”
Roza looked worried and unsure of herself. “Why? Don’t you want me? What did I do wrong?”
Lex cupped her cheek and tried to comfort her. “Hey, hey, you did nothing wrong. Of course I want you, but you deserve more than a quick fumble on a couch. You deserve so much more.”
She saw tears well up in Roza’s eyes. “No one’s ever said that to me before. Everyone always wants something from me.”
Lex took Roza’s hand and kissed her palm gently. “Then no one’s ever treated you the right way before. You are a special, wonderful girl, and despite the fact you are a princess already, you deserve to be treated like one.”
Roza looked emotional and stayed quiet for a few seconds, then slid back into her seat. Lex lifted her arm and she gratefully snuggled into her chest. “My cousins are playing in a charity polo match on Saturday. Would you come with me?”
Lex should have said no, but with the raw emotions they had just shared, and with the nervous shyness Roza had just shown her, she didn’t have the heart to let her down. Roza was right. Her addiction for her didn’t need to be bad, but Lex wasn’t naive. Roza’s family would never accept her, so in the end her addiction would break her heart, but at least Lex could make Roza happy for now.
“I’d love to.”
Chapter Twelve
Lex pulled through the large iron gates at St James’s Palace and saw Major Ravn waiting for her at the front entrance. What a strange way to start what would really be her first date with Roza. Even stranger—when she left the house this morning, she was sure she was being watched. She didn’t know how or why, because no one knew anything about Roza and her, but she had the impression that the blacked-out van she had spotted across the road had something to do with it.
Major Ravn opened the door and said, “Good morning, Ms. King. We need to scan you and the car before Princess Rozala goes with you. I hope you don’t mind?”
Lex got out and left the car open for Ravn. “Of course, Major. Anything that keeps Princess Roza safe. And call me Lex.”
“Thank you.” She signalled over to her second in command. “Johann, sweep the car for me.”
Johann sprang into action and Ravn took Lex over to the side, and started to use a small handheld scanner all over her body.
“If you would prefer to drive us in your state car, I don’t mind.”
“It’s okay,” Ravn replied. “I want the princess to have as normal a day as she can, but there will be some security measures that I’d ask you to cooperate with. A large number of the British royal family will be at the charity polo day, as well as Princess Rozala, so security is tight. Especially after Thea Brandt’s threat to the Denbourg royal house.”
“Whatever I can do to help or make things easier, please tell me.”
Major Ravn finished her scan. “You’re all clear.” She took out an air syringe and held it for Lex’s inspection. “This will place a barcode under your skin, allowing you to move freely around the royal box and other park areas. It will disintegrate harmlessly by this evening. Do you consent to using it?”
Lex took off her suit jacket, and rolled up her shirt sleeve. “Yes, whatever you need. Is there anything else I need to be aware of?”
Ravn administered the painless injection, and checked to see if she could read it. “My team will have cars in front and behind you. If anything untoward happens, follow the car in front and it will lead you to safety. As I said, security will be tight at the polo match. There will be undercover Denbourg security and MI6 agents patrolling the grounds. This is a joint operation, so just be aware if the princess is threatened in any way, there will always be someone nearby to protect her. So please allow them to take you to safety.”
“I will. Thank you.”
Major Ravn looked her dead straight in the eye, and said, “One more thing, Lex. Treat her well. I’m under direct orders from her brother, Prince Augustus, to stand in his stead, and protect her from anything like what Thea Brandt did to her, and I will do that as if she was my own little sister. She’s a lot more vulnerable than people think.”
When someone like Major Ravn gave a thinly veiled warning like that, only a fool would fail to heed it. Lex was well built and extremely confident about protecting herself, but the Major was in another league.
“Message received, Major. You’ll have no worries for me.”
Ravn nodded just as Johann came over with a concerned look on his face. “Major? We found a tracker on Ms. King’s car.”
“What?” Lex said.
To her relief, Ravn was not looking at her in an accusatory way. She simply asked, “Have you noticed anything unusual yesterday or today?”
“Yes, this morning I couldn’t shake the feeling I was being watched, and there was an unusual looking blacked-out van sitting across from my house, but no one knows who I am. The press don’t know who Princess Roza is working with inside Timmy’s.”
“Someone obviously knows something now. Johann, make sure the car is clean and we’ll carry on as normal. Just be extra vigilant. I’ll get Princess Rozala and Lady Linton so we can leave.”
*
Roza looked over at Lex nervously gripping the steering wheel of the car. They were slowly approaching the entrance to the polo grounds, and security was moving the VIPs through as quickly as possible. She had been quiet ever since they’d set off, and Roza had begun to wonder if Lex regretted coming here with her. The security and craziness of royal life were likely to put anyone off.
“Lex? Is everything okay?”
“Hmm? What?”
Lex hadn’t even heard her. Maybe she had read too much into last night.
“You’re quiet, and seem really nervous. If you didn’t want to come today, you should have just told me.”