Page 43 of Troubled Skies (Blue Skies #3)

twenty-one

Ren

Ren was not in a good mood. While he enjoyed catching up with Faisal, and their lunch at Mataam Al Sharq was exquisite, Ren was distracted by thoughts of Adrian alone on the yacht. Faisal teased him about having stowed a woman aboard in defiance of his father’s edict.

“I would not blame you in the least, my friend, if my father had done the same to me,” he said, adding that Ren probably didn’t bring her to lunch because he knew she’d prefer Faisal to him and want to stay in Jeddah.

“And you have not even let Maurice know about her, so I know she must be something if you are greedy enough to keep her for yourself.”

While their usual banter was always in this vein, it irritated Ren. He resisted glancing at his watch at least a dozen times before lunch was over because no matter how much Faisal might annoy him, he was still a member of the royal family and Ren had to play the game and be nice.

The Vacheron Constantin watch had gone over well, and Ren was gratified to have been correct: Faisal did not have it in the blue. When Faisal indicated that Ren be brought his present, Ren was overjoyed to see a large, orange box.

“I originally thought you could give it to Christiana to make things up with her, but…” Faisal shrugged and laughed. “That ship seems to have sailed without you. I’m sure whoever you have tucked away on your ship will enjoy it just as much.”

“I’m sure you’re correct,” Ren told him, more desirous than before to get back to the ship because Ren was pretty sure Adrian was going to love his first Birkin. And Ren couldn’t wait to give it to him.

Ren wasn’t stupid or blind. Though he hadn’t asked and Adrian hadn’t offered much information, he could tell Adrian was from a radically different classes.

After their shopping spree in Ibiza, he’d suspected that the gold Gautier jacket was a one-off piece Adrian had somehow managed to acquire, but once Adrian’s luggage arrived, the lack of designer labels in his wardrobe clinched it.

The remarkable thing, though, was that Ren couldn’t have cared less.

By the time he realized, Ren was already smitten, and once Adrian had forgiven him and taken him back into his bed, Ren was thoroughly captivated by the man with a spirit as vivid as his hair.

Thoughts of Adrian made Ren smile as he got into the car Faisal had sent for him.

Even Rigo’s presence couldn’t dampen Ren’s mood as they pulled away from the Waldorf-Astoria and returned to the marina.

He was eager to get back to sea. They had another four days and two more ports before they hit the open waters of the Indian Ocean, and then a little under a week as they sailed toward their final destination.

Ren was looking forward to all that uninterrupted time with Adrian.

Which was a revelation for him. Faisal, though completely off the mark about Ren’s motivation, had been correct: Adrian was something special.

Ren had never met someone with whom he was so compatible, who was easy-going but not timid about putting Ren in his place, and the sex!

Mon Dieu! Ren was completely enchanted. His offer to give Adrian a tour of Belvaux after this trip was over had been sincere.

Not only was he proud of his country and knew Adrian would love it as much as he did, it would give him more time with the man. Time he desperately wanted.

The Belle was strangely quiet when he stepped onboard, though perhaps not so mysterious since the sun was high overhead and the day extremely warm.

The crew had probably finished up their outside tasks and were enjoying the air-conditioned interior.

He went to the pool first expecting to find Adrian stretched out on one of the chaises, but he wasn’t there.

Nor was the man in any of the lounges Ren passed through on his way to the forward cabin.

When he encountered Veronique, Ren asked if she knew where Adrian was, but she told him Adrian had remained in the cabin all day.

Perhaps he had tired Adrian out, Ren mused as he continued to the cabin they shared, but he couldn’t ignore a spike of anxiety that Adrian had decided to leave without telling anyone and he would find the cabin empty when he stepped inside. But no, Adrian was sound asleep on the couch.

Ren took a moment to admire him. The man was almost ethereally beautiful from the flaming crown of his hair to his sculpted cheekbones, from the graceful curve of his shoulders to the delicious globes of his firm ass, all the way down his exquisite, slender legs to his very toes.

Unmoving as he slept, he almost seemed carved from marble rather than made of flesh, and the tenderness Ren felt in his heart was due to the fact that Adrian was as stunning inside as out.

Although Adrian could be prickly and defensive, Ren knew it was all to protect his generous and forgiving nature.

He was so caring, Ren could not imagine how anyone could have treated him with less than absolute devotion, and Ren wished he could vanquish all Adrian’s previous lovers or at least help heal the wounds they had caused.

That Adrian could trust Ren so completely after what he’d experienced…

Ren prayed he did not become yet another person to hurt Adrian.

The man deserved the world, and Ren found himself hoping to give him at least a small part of it for a little longer.

Setting aside the Hermès bag and its telltale orange box, Ren crept to Adrian and knelt by his side.

He gently pushed a lock of hair aside that had been obscuring Adrian’s left eye and gently kissed his cheek.

Adrian stirred slightly, but didn’t wake, so Ren kissed him on the lips hoping to rouse him like a true Prince Charming.

He was mildly disappointed when Adrian still didn’t open his eyes.

The man’s deep breaths reminded Ren of how deeply asleep Adrian had been when their plane landed in Heathrow, and Ren realized Adrian must have taken one of his pills.

But why? The only reason Ren could come up with was that Adrian must have had a nightmare.

And Ren hadn’t been there to hold and soothe him, so Adrian must have turned to the only comfort he could find.

His heart ached again, and he wished he could do more to soothe the man’s demons than offer him distractions.

With a sigh, Ren stood and headed into the closet where he took off his clothes and padded to the bathroom to shower away the remaining tension from his lunch.

The water soothed him, but he wanted to get back to Adrian, so he cut his shower short.

Ren was wrapping a towel around his waist when Adrian appeared in the doorway, sleep-disheveled and slightly wobbly.

“When did you get back?” Adrian asked.

Ren all but launched himself at the man. Wrapping Adrian in his arms and pulling his warm body close, Ren reveled in the simple pleasure of holding him again.

“Did you miss me that much?” Adrian laughed as Ren kissed his cheeks and neck and then finally his lips.

“Always, poussin. It was torture without you. Even the food lost its flavor.”

Adrian laughed again. “I doubt that.”

“Vraiment, it did.” Ren took hold of Adrian’s hands and pulled him back into the cabin, too excited by his surprise to get dressed. “I have something for you, and I cannot wait another minute to show you.”

Ren made Adrian sit on the bed and close his eyes, then picked up the Hermès bag and placed it at Adrian’s feet. “If you do not like it, if the color or the style is not to your preference, I will be happy to change it for you. Please, open your eyes maintenant.”

The gasp Adrian let out when he saw the bag made Ren smile.

“Is that what I think it is?” Adrian asked.

“I do not know. What do you think it is?”

Adrian’s hands trembled as he lifted the box and placed it on the bed next to him without opening it. “Ren…I can’t accept this.”

“You have not even looked to see what it is, so how do you know you cannot keep it? And what is this? You know if I choose to give you something, it is because I want you to have it.” He knelt in front of Adrian.

“Please, Adrian. When Faisal presented me with this gift, I knew it was parfait pour toi. If you do not like it, I will be happy to find you something different, but you must see it first before you tell me no.”

Shaking his head, Adrian took hold of Ren’s hands and held them between his own. “You are impossible to say no to, you know that, right?”

“But, of course,” Ren gave Adrian what he hoped was his most enchanting smile. “I am your Prince Charming, non?”

“You are my Prince Charming. No.” Adrian leaned down and kissed him. “But I’ll take a look just to make you happy.”

Ren sat back while Adrian undid the ribbons, lifted the lid on the box’s blue interior, and pushed aside the tissue paper to reveal the dust bag sitting inside.

Adrian opened it enough to see the metallic gold handles, and then he placed his hand over his mouth.

For a long minute, Adrian stared at the box’s contents without moving while Ren held his breath.

“It’s perfect,” Adrian finally whispered.

“You can touch it, poussin. It’s yours.”

The Birkin bag was a stunning metallic gold, a match for the jacket that had first caught Ren’s eye, as if it had been made with Adrian in mind.

When Ren had seen it at the restaurant, a polite glance so he could express his appreciation to Faisal, Ren had been shocked speechless, knowing instantly that Adrian was going to adore it.

His gratitude to Faisal had been genuine, as was his happiness at seeing Adrian overcome by this gift.

With a trembling hand, Adrian lifted the bag from its box, turning it so the sheen caught the light. “It’s so beautiful,” he said. “I’d tell you I can’t accept it, but I know you won’t let me refuse even though I have no idea when I’d be brave enough to use it or where.”