Page 32 of Royally Drawn (Resplendent Royals #3)
Being Honest
KEIR
I enjoyed my weekend with Ingrid well beyond expectations. What started rocky ended in us playing house and palling around with Duncan. Duncan and I struggled to get on sometimes. Ingrid held us accountable and acted as a calming force to her absolute credit. She fit in well when it was just a small crowd. I adored how quiet and introspective she could be one moment and—in significant contrast—how outspoken and assertive she could be in another. Her dry wit only improved things.
I longed for her already in ways I didn’t anticipate. Was it a fling? Unlikely. Was it more? I wasn’t sure what that meant. I would be off again at the end of the summer, but if I played my cards correctly, I’d have more time to spend with Ingrid. I’d do what I could to make that possible.
“I wanted to clear the air,” Ingrid said on our return.
“Yes?” I was nervous about what she might say. Her face was pulled tight. She was nervous.
“I… I enjoy this… what we do,” Ingrid said. “And I have so much fun with you. ”
But…
“But I don’t want you to think… after Duncan’s comment…”
“Duncan’s comment?”
“He said I was your girlfriend?”
At that moment, the remark flew over my head. “Oh, I didn’t take it to mean anything.”
Relief washed over her. “Oh, okay. I wanted to clarify that I don’t think of myself as your girlfriend. I think we are friends who sometimes end up in bed together. I like that very much, but I know we’re both in different places, and I don’t think we need that pressure. Never mind that there is the whole Lars thing. We haven’t even talked about that, and I will see you again in what? A week? We need to figure out how we do this.”
I needed to deal with it.
“I will manage Lars,” I said. “I have a plan.”
I had no plan but knew I needed one.
Ingrid squeezed my knee. “Okay.”
“Ingrid, I like you so much. You are witty and adorable. You are wonderful. I’d love to have you all to myself at times, but… I know that isn’t fair. You’re right. What we have right now is fun. I want to keep seeing you but without the pressure.”
She beamed. “Really? So, we’re on the same page?”
“Yeah,” I said. “But even with that said, I must come clean to my family. It affects them—and you. I am not worried about me. Duncan pointed out that if I try to cover it up and it comes out, you’ll be much more uncomfortable than I will be.”
“But if we did cover it up?—”
I cut her off, shaking my head. “We cannot.”
“How do you know?”
“Because I look at you like you are the only person in the room,” I admitted. “And I want to touch you all the time. I cannot help it. I cannot ignore you. You’re fucking beautiful—perfect.”
She blushed, turning towards the window.
I squeezed her hand, “Ingrid, I have feelings for you. I’m a dreadful liar. If we try to lie, I will fail you. ”
Ingrid took my hand to her mouth, kissing it. “Okay. If I can trust you won’t kill me in this flying tin can, I believe you.”
“Good,” I said, satisfied for now.
When we landed, I had to part ways for her. The airstrip was quiet on a Sunday. So, I had no audience. I wanted to say something remarkably sexy or memorable but had nothing. It was hard to be so articulate with her big blue eyes staring up at me like I’d hung the bloody moon. Wrapped up in this cocoon of new lust and discovery, neither of us was too articulate.
“So, until next time?” Ingrid asked.
“Until next week,” I answered. “I will see you then. Wear something sexy.”
She snickered. “I spent the entire weekend in your t-shirts, and you never complained once.”
“I noticed you also stole one,” I said. “You’re a little thief, Ingrid.”
She bit her lip. I melted.
“I hope you don’t mind.”
I leaned down, our noses almost grazing. “Not too much. I will punish you for it later.”
“I will take my punishment like a good girl,” Ingrid said.
The mouth on her never ceased. Even after hours spent in bed with her—hours of dirty talk and basking in the afterglow—she still knew how to wind me up.
I kissed her, unable to think of anything too sexy to say in response. It was slow and longing, then hot and intense. Finally, I let her go back on a sweet, gentle note. She nuzzled my nose with hers and pulled away.
“I’ll miss you,” Ingrid said. “Try not to die in that bucket of bolts, okay?”
“I will try to stay in the air,” I promised. “If you will try not to fall off one of your beasties.”
“I promise to be equally reckless for all my days,” Ingrid giggled.
Ingrid climbed into the waiting car and sped away. I couldn’t shake the feeling that I wanted more than this but couldn’t commit right now. I looked around at the planes in every direction. Having someone like Astrid meant giving up my vagabond life for something more straightforward. I wasn’t prepared to be that guy—not yet. So, much as I wanted to lock her down and call her mine, I would settle for friends who had white-hot sex.
How long would that be enough?