Page 72 of Royal Trouble
Besides, she was determined not to do anything that would embarrass Xander or give the press a reason to focus their attention on him.
She shook off the thought. For now, she was just going to relax and enjoy one day—and one orgasm—at a time.
As much as she could, anyway.
She glanced at the passenger seat where a giant white envelope with the NexGen Labs logo protruded from her bag. While she was shopping, the lab had called to let her know the results were in, and she’d stopped by to pick them up, certain Xander would want to see them as soon as possible. She’d texted him, and he’d confirmed her suspicions, inviting her to join him at the cottage for dinner.
Thankfully the envelope and the results inside were sealed up like Fort Knox, so there was zero temptation to peek, although she couldn’t stop worrying about how Xander would handle it if the results weren’t a match. She wasn’t even sure he’d open them today, but at least he had a choice now. If he chose to put the results away and never look at them, it was his decision to make, and she’d support him in it.
She reduced her speed as she approached the rear gate of the palace, eventually rolling to a stop at the stone security gate and lowering her window. Tony approached, and she gave him a wide smile, greeting him like an old friend.
“Hi, Tony. It’s nice to see you again,” she said, hoping Xander had remembered to call ahead and let the guards know she was coming. “I’m meeting His Royal Highness Prince Alexander at the cottage for dinner.”
Using Xander’s formal title felt strange, but she knew it was proper etiquette, and since her new mission was not to cause him additional grief, she figured she’d better get used to it. In mixed company, anyway. Behind closed doors would be another story, though, because no way was she going to refer to him as HRH in bed.
His ego was big enough already.
“Miss Wilson,” Tony said, nodding a polite greeting as he rested his hands on his belt. “It’s nice to see you again, too. His Royal Highness Prince Alexander has given standing orders that you are to be admitted to the cottage at any time.”
Her heart stuttered.
He did what? She was sure her mouth was hanging open like a Venus flytrap, but she couldn’t bring herself to close it. Xander hadn’t mentioned giving her unlimited access to the cottage, but the fact that he’d done it implied he had complete trust in her. She glanced at the envelope again and bit her lip.
Access to his home was a small thing compared to the results in her bag.
“You’re welcome to go on up to the cottage,” Tony said, lifting a brow as if to suggest she was only allowed to visit the cottage, “but he’s not on property at the moment.”
Everly said her thanks and waved a quick goodbye as the gate slowly swung open. When she arrived at the cottage, it was just as lovely as she remembered. She grabbed her bag and let herself in through the front door, which, as usual, was unlocked.
The house was quiet, and being in Xander’s space when he wasn’t home felt intrusive. Still, it wasn’t enough to quell her curiosity. She ventured down the hall, peeking into a formal sitting room that was so finely appointed she had a hard time imagining him ever using it. The only redeeming quality, as far as she could tell, was a traditional wood-burning fireplace that had to be lovely on cold winter nights.
Just the thought of curling up naked with Xander before the flames had her fanning her cheeks and moving on to the kitchen.
It was neater than her last visit, and she couldn’t help but wonder if he’d done the hard work of cleaning the place or if he had a staff that came out to the cottage to take care of such things. A glance out the window showed the garden was in full bloom. It would be the perfect place to write: private, quiet, serene.
She dismissed the thought and turned to survey the kitchen. Aside from the hall, there were two other doors. One led to the dining room, but what about the other?
At the end of the short hall, she discovered an office that looked far more lived in than the sitting room at the front of the cottage. It seemed a strange location for an office, but the space was bright and airy, the walls painted a light shade of gray, and a large antique desk took up most of the room. It was cozy, suggesting it had perhaps once been servant quarters, but when she turned to the French doors leading outside, she knew instantly why he’d chosen this space. In addition to an abundance of light, the office had an incredible view of the gardens.
Everly opened one of the doors and ventured out onto the stone patio, where a couple of chairs and a small table had been set up. It was easy to imagine Xander watching the sun set with a glass of wine in his hand. And despite her lifelong protests that she wanted nothing to do with this world, she desperately wanted to be part of those quiet moments in the future.
Her phone buzzed, and she pulled it from her purse to find a text from Xander.
Xander: Sorry, love. These meetings are going to run much longer than I expected. Rain check on dinner?
The news was disappointing, but it wasn’t the end of the world. If the meetings were running long, it probably meant things were going well, right? And how could she be disappointed when the Blue and Gold Foundation brought him such joy and purpose?
She tapped out a quick reply and managed to stop herself just short of putting a smiley emoji.
Everly: No worries. I’ll leave the file on your desk. Feel free to stop by the apartment later if you want to talk. I’ll be up late working.
She headed back inside and placed the envelope on his desk, dead center where it couldn’t be missed. As she did, she noticed the collection of family photos that ringed the back of the desk. She picked up one of the antique silver frames, careful not to leave fingerprints on the glass. The picture was of the royal family standing on a snow-covered mountain, bundled up in ski gear. Xander couldn’t have been more than twelve or thirteen in the picture. His blond hair was windblown and hung messily over the top of his goggles, but he was smiling broadly.
It was the same unfettered smile he wore when he looked at her, and the realization made her heart melt.
She replaced the picture and bent low to study the others. There were several of his time in the military, including one of him in his dress uniform and one of his unit in their fatigues, but most were of his family, which surprised her given how strained their relationships seemed to be.
It just went to show that no matter how dysfunctional the family, there could still be love. Because if she knew anything from looking at these pictures, it was that Xander loved his family and that perhaps things between them hadn’t always been so tense. She hoped for his sake they could find their way back to being a family, regardless of the test results.