Page 18 of Royal Trouble
It wasn’t bad enough she’d apparently ruined his life, but she also had to spray him with half-drunk beer. Lovely.
“Are you all right?” he asked, concern lining his face as he rose to his feet.
Gasping for breath, she waved him off. If she could just catch her breath, everything would be fine.
Probably.
For an instant, she was sure Xander was going to argue, but he slid back into his seat without protest.
“Sorry,” she said, mopping up the beer. “I guess it went down the wrong pipe.”
“No need to apologize.”Annnd…his assurances only made her feel like a bigger asshole. “I’m just glad you’re all right.”
That was debatable. Not only had Xander just broached the question of his paternity—which had the potential to be the headline of the century—he’d given her complete and total credit for ruining his life. Nope. Nothing to freak out about at all.
She’d always felt guilty about the damage RGW had inflicted with its salacious headlines, but hearing it confirmed from one of her most prominent targets? It was like a sucker punch to the throat.
One that had been a long time coming.
Why had Xander trusted her with this information anyway? They hardly knew one another. Granted, he hadn’t revealed anything she couldn’t read in the tabloids, but the implication was clear. Evenhewasn’t sure King George was his biological father.
Talk about a bombshell.
It was exactly the kind of storyOn Pointwould pay top dollar to break ahead of the royal wedding. Mr. Larson would probably pee his pants at the prospect. She could secure the job, the bonus, and her future with one savage headline.
Everly banished the thought. No matter how badly she wanted to continue this conversation, she would not exploit Xander that way. A story like that would break him. And if she was being honest, it would probably break her, too.
She’d have to find something else. Something…less damaging.
“I’ll grab some more napkins from the bar.” Xander rose, and she watched as he strode across the room, moving with an air of confidence that surely came from growing up royal. Breeches riding low on his hips, his easy grace was on full display, and Everly drank it in, admiring his flawless ass. It truly was perfection.
And lord help her, she couldn’t stop thinking about his thighs and the way they’d gripped his saddle during the match. Until today, she’d had no idea just how sexy it was to watch a man ride up and down a grassy field hitting a tiny little ball with a mallet.
Xander returned to the table, flashing a devilish grin that made her heart ache. Maybe if things had been different, they could’ve been friends, but that ship had sailed. She’d wrecked his life. There was no coming back from that, which was why he could never know she’d been the brains behind the browser at RGW.
She held out her hand for the napkins as Xander took his seat across from her. “Consider yourself forgiven for all childhood transgressions,” she said, meaning every word. He’d never been unkind to her, and she’d done far worse damage to him than he could’ve ever done to her. “I read somewhere that the human brain isn’t fully developed until age twenty-five, so technically our brains were only half-baked then.” She grinned. “Which probably explains the lack of impulse control and poor decision making.”
That was her story, and she was sticking to it anyway.
Xander chuckled, the low timbre setting her pulse aflutter. “I could’ve used that information ten years ago. Might’ve prevented Their Majesties from shipping me off to the Royal Military Academy.”
She took the napkins from him, striving for nonchalance. “You didn’t want to join the military?”
Xander sipped his beer, face pensive. “Not at the time. I saw it as a punishment. I was never academically inclined,” he said, a flush creeping up his neck. The admission surprised her, and not just because the cocky prince was admitting a shortcoming. Xander was bright and articulate. She’d just assumed he’d done well in school. Well, aside from rumors of cheating, but at the time she’d chalked that up to teenage laziness, not ineptitude. “Uni would’ve been a struggle, and with my face gracing the populars on a regular basis, my parents felt it would be best to teach me discipline.”
“Did it work?” she teased, trying to lighten the mood.
He laughed, a full body laugh that lit up his eyes and made his broad shoulders shake. “I like to think so. Now when I step out of line, it’s by choice, not impulse.”
“That must besoreassuring to Their Majesties.”
Xander raised his glass, signaling the barkeep for another round. “I realized a long time ago that nothing I do will make my parents happy.”
His tone was flippant, but she couldn’t help but wonder what kind of pain he was trying to mask. She knew all too well the sting of feeling inadequate in the eyes of a parent. That shit left invisible scars.
“I’m sorry.” And she was. She’d never imagined they had so much in common.
Yeah, because you were too busy spilling the tea to get to know him.