I nodded. “Not in this part of the palace. There is a limited route. I try never to intercept them. It causes a security nightmare in the palace if the tourists see me.”
“This place is enormous. What do you do with all the rooms?”
The doors retracted and we stepped into the foyer. Last night’s security had been replaced with two fresh faces. They stared straight ahead as I guided Molly along the corridor.
“You’ve seen the king’s residence.” I winked. “I do share my roof with three princes and a princess. It can get crowded.”
“Your brothers and sister?”
“Yes. We all have apartments. The first two floors are reserved for official state business. Meetings, balls, state dinners, field trips for children. The living quarters for some of the staff and the kitchens. Then there are the art galleries, the gardens, and the recreational areas.”
“Holy shit, this is insane. It’s a city inside a city.”
I laughed at her language. Rules changed outside my residence. Decorum mattered.
“You’ll watch that dirty mouth.” I eyed her. “Save that for my bed, Sapphire.”
Her mouth opened in shock. Her eyes dropped to the floor. “I’m sorry.” She sucked in her bottom lip. “And you can’t call me that,” she scolded playfully. I liked how easily she fell into banter.
“Don’t apologize. Just watch what you say. You’re in a royal household. I’ll call you what I want.”
I saw her back stiffen. Her heels clacked against the marble floor. It took everything in me not to smack her ass firmly and press her up against the wall next to the coat of arms. The knight could watch me fuck her. Watch her come hard as I defiled the family heirlooms.
“Here.” I pressed the small of her back. “The library.”
Her gasp was worth everything. She stood at the entrance. I’d never thought about what this room would look like through the veil of someone else’s eyes. But Molly gave me that glimpse. Her awe was palpable.
She walked toward the shelves, careful not to touch any of the volumes. Her fingers hovered just short of the spines.
“These are amazing. I can’t believe this collection. There are books in here that must be over a hundred years old. I-I’m speechless.”
I stuffed my hands in my pockets. “You can touch the books, Molly.”
She shook her head. “No. I couldn’t. They’re too precious. The history of these texts is priceless.”
I walked toward her. I wrapped my arms around her back, sliding my fingers through hers. She sighed into my chest. “Like this.” I reached our hands forward, gliding over a crumbling hardback.
She gasped slightly when she saw the cover, then giggled. “You would pick Cantar de mio Cid. Such a classic rebel.”
“Not breaking any literary laws I take it?”
“Not with this one. I can’t believe this is real.” She leaned into me as she scanned the shelves upward toward the ceiling. It formed a stained-glass dome.
I couldn’t remember the last time I looked up in this room. I couldn’t remember when I gave a shit about ancient texts or what was in here. How many copies of Shakespeare were there? Did we have Keats and Kipling? How extensive were our American authors?
I straightened her shoulders so that she was standing upright.
“I have lunch with the prime minister.” I don’t know why I felt like I needed to explain my absence. I didn’t share my schedule with anyone. I never had.
“Oh.”
“But stay.” I turned for the door. “And touch the books, Molly.”
She grinned slyly. It was the first glimpse of the girl in my bed this morning. “Maybe. If you think it would be ok.”
“I expect it.”
I closed the door behind me.