“Your blue eyes sparkle.” Lifting my chin to look at him, I catch the gleam in his eyes and my insides tighten. “It’s like you have this amazing secret just for me.”
Shaking my head, I do a little laugh. “Your imagination is very vivid.”
“Don’t crush my dream.” He resumes walking, leading me across the smooth wooden deck. As we pass a server holding a tray of champagne flutes, he replaces our empties with two fulls.
“Why are you plying me with alcohol?” I tease.
“I like how champagne affects you.”
He pulls me through a narrow door into an equally narrow passage. It’s dim, with only a few recessed lights scattered around the corners. We reach another door, and he lifts the handle, stepping through it and going down another narrow hallway.
“Where are you taking me?” I hold his arm as I carefully maneuver down the passage, trying not to fall or spill my drink.
Finally, he reaches the last door. “I looked up the boat’s layout. You’ve got to see this.”
Leading us inside, he shuts the door behind us and locks it. I look around the room in wonder. We’re in a plush bedroom with stark white carpeting. All the accents are shiny wood, and most of the space is filled with an enormous king bed. Two padded leather steps lead up to a Jacuzzi tub perched high and surrounded by narrow windows looking out at the night sky.
“It’s beautiful!” I whisper. “Whose room is this?”
“Nobody’s. They rented the yacht for the gala. No one is staying here…”
I don’t miss the way his voice trails off. “I feel like there’s a but coming.”
“Did you see what we have here?” He puts his drink on a small shelf attached to the wall and walks to the enormous Jacuzzi.
“A Jacuzzi in the bedroom?” I do the same and join him at the steps.
Cal’s eyebrows wriggle as he turns the tap. “Let’s test this baby out.”
Everything that happened tonight has me so tense and worried… A relaxing soak would be so nice.
“Again, you know exactly what I need,” I say.
“I’ll take care of you.” He’s back with me, pulling me close.
My insides unclench, and I rest my cheek against him. We’re below the party in this private place. The door is locked, a Jacuzzi tub is filling, and this amazing man, this prince, is holding me so close. Am I in a fairytale?
“The gala will go all night,” he says, running his hands down my hair. “We can sleep here if we want.”
“How do you know?”
Warm teasing is in his voice. “I realize I don’t tell you this enough, but I’m a prince. I tend to get certain privileges.”
Closing my eyes, I only hold him. Ava is safe with the king; I’m here with this prince. It’s almost funny I’ve never thought of him that way. Up to this point, he’s always just been Cal.
“Sexy MacCallam Lockwood Tate,” I say with a sigh.
He chuckles, “What was that?” His hand covers my lower back.
“I was thinking how I never think of you as a prince.”
His cheek rests against the top of my head. “I’m going to take that as a compliment.”
“I’m sorry—I don’t mean it as a bad thing…”
“Don’t apologize.” Stepping back, he lifts my face, looking deep into my eyes. “I like that you see me as a man first. You’re not looking for anything. You don’t have an agenda.”
My voice is quiet, serious. “I couldn’t.”