Beautiful Sins: Leigha Lowery (6 page)

"Please… I didn't know. Please! Have mercy on me!" The man yelled. His loud pleading was suddenly muffled by screams of pain. I winced as I heard the cracking of bones, and what sounded like the tearing of flesh, being removed from his body.

I tried to sit up; my body ached so horribly. A pair of black eyes struck fear in me and I began to scream.

"Help! Help!" I screamed.

"Shh love, I'm not going to hurt you." He crooned. The voice was familiar, my handsome knight and shining armor from the café.

"You…" I sighed.

"Are you alright? Are you hurt?" He asked curiously.

"I'm okay. Help me up please." He sighed and with one swift movement, I was on my feet. I looked up into his midnight eyes, and they were glowing. I looked around for my attacker, but he was nowhere to be found.

"Where did he go? We have to catch him before he hurts someone else!" I complained. I winced, my side was sore from his tight grip. My savior quickly hurried to my aid, pulling me to his side.

"Maybe I should get you to a hospital." He offered.

"NO!" I roared. My mother would freak. And I don't even want to think about how Randy would react.

"But you're hurt." He countered.

"My stepfather is a doctor. Just help me to my car." He frowned.

"I'm not letting you drive in your condition. I'll take you home. Now where do you live?"

"Leigha! Oh my god!" Tiffany yelled as he hurried over to us. Tiffany, Jenny, and Naomi began beating my savior with their expensive purses.

"Get off of her you pervert!" Tiffany roared.

"Tiffany stop! He's not the guy you're looking for!" I yelled, shielding myself from the current attack he was receiving. The girls froze, staring at us as my savior tried fixing himself.

"Ladies." He crowed, fixing his clothing. His hood fell from his head, and the girls gasped in shock, dropping to their knees.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry your highness." Tiffany and the girls murmured in unison.

"Your highness?" I stared at him blankly.

* * * * *

Prince Alexander

I fainted. The most handsome, popular Prince in the entire world rescued me, and I fainted. My eyes fluttered open to see the most beautiful deep chocolate brown eyes boring into mine.

"Are you okay?" He murmured. I looked away from him, wincing from the pain on my side. My goodness, just how hard was that guy gripping onto me. I was stunned to find myself in a bright white room. Was I in heaven? Did I die? My questions were answered as my hysterical mother entered the room.

"Oh god, my baby!" She shouted as she hurried over to my side. I groaned, staring into my savior's eyes once more before my mother pulled me into a tight hug.

"Ouch mother ow." I complained. She pulled away. My handsome chocolate-eyed savior stared at me warily.

"Maybe you should let her rest." He suggested. My mother scowled at my bandaged hand.

"How did this happen?" My mother scolded. I flinched. Here comes the torrent.

Randy entered the room in his perfect white lab coat, holding my chart on a clipboard.

"How are you Leigha?" He asked. He flashed a bright light in between my eyes and I frowned.

"I'm fine. What happened to me? Why am I in a hospital bed?" I grumbled. Randy turned to my savior and bowed.

"Your highness… I am not sure where to begin expressing my gratitude." He murmured. My savior pursed his lips as he met my gaze, and then turned his attention to Randy.

"You should be more careful if you plan to have her around court. No one will want her if she's all bruised up." He grumbled.

"Of course, you're highness." Randy quickly replied. My savior nodded for Randy and my Mother to rise, and then he left the room. Randy sighed in relief.

"He's royalty? I don't understand…" I complained.

"Shh… You should be thankful. We are new residents, and you haven't even been introduced to court. We could have gotten into a lot of trouble for this." My mother explained. Ahh, the rules—the rules that my "parents" neglected to inform me of. The Coast was no longer apart of the Americas. I had to remember that. But it was so damn difficult. In a world that seemed free, I had to be conscious that my freedom had its limitations.

I looked over to Randy to find him glaring at me. I frowned, and held my head down in shame. I did not want to put a wedge in my mother's relationship, yet I was already causing problems in the family. Randy sighed and turned to my mother.

"Could you give us a moment alone love?" He crooned to my mother. She nodded and kissed my forehead once more before leaving. I was not looking forward to this conversation.

"Randy I never meant…" I didn't get the chance to finish. He gently pressed his cool finger to my lips, silencing me from any further pleading.

"I'm not angry with you Leigha. I was just worried about you. Do you have any idea how important you are to me?" He asked, tucking a lock of my wild hair behind my ear. I sighed, turning my head away from him.

"I meant to have a talk with you about your social standing but, I've been so busy. I didn't realize that you would make friends so quickly. Your mother said that you were more of an outcast in school, and I shouldn't worry." He chuckled.

"Oh Leigha, my beloved daughter; you are a very special child in the Kings court. You are now the daughter of his personal physician. You'll be in the company of the King, and his royal family more than most. Do you understand what that means?" He asked. I took in a deep breath as I began to process this information.

"Well yes—so long as you don't try to marry me off to someone." I joked. Randy chuckled.

"I have a feeling that's something I won't ever have to worry about." He laughed. Randy sat down beside me on the small white bed.

"Randy, you all said the guy that saved me was royalty? Who is he and what was he doing away from the Island?" I asked.

"That was Prince Alexander Sommers." He's the son of King Royce and heir to his throne."

"Oh." I said stupidly. Well that would explain my strong attraction to him. I was always attracted to what I couldn't have. Take handsome savior off your list Leigha. I rolled my eyes and a loud "huff" escaped my lips.

"Are you alright sweet heart?" He asked as he lifted my wrapped hand to inspect it.

"I'm not in any pain." I groaned. He laughed.

"Well, I should let you rest. Your mother and I will be back to pick you up in the morning." My face twisted between horror and chagrin.

"What? Why can't I just go home with you and mom tonight?" I whined. Randy chuckled and buried his lips into my hair.

"I knew you bring prosperity into this family. I just didn't realize that it would be so soon." He murmured into my hair. Just what the hell was he talking about? He planted one final kiss on my forehead and moved to turn off the light.

"Wait!" I yelled out in the darkness. But he was gone. I pouted and let my head fall back down onto the bed.

The next morning, I awoke heavily bewildered, I couldn’t fathom the dream I had last night. All I could remember was the dark figure in my dream. Randy graciously pushed me in my wheelchair through the lobby as my mother signed the discharge forms.

"So, when do I get to go back to school?" I only fainted—sure enough, that wasn't grounds for a week off from school.

"I think maybe a few days of rest may just suit you. Besides, there's a surprise waiting for you at home." I frowned. I hated missing school and I hated surprises.

"Honey, you look like you could use a day at the spa." My mother chanted as she ran her slender fingers through my hair. I glared at my mother. Who was this woman? It was as if she had transferred from "Cinderella" to "Upper Class" within a matter of hours. She looked so… different. I leaned back in my chair as Randy guided me through the sliding doors while valet pulled the SUV up front.

Wait… hospitals have valet? I groaned. The Coast was giving me a headache.

"Are you alright sweet heart?" Randy asked. He seemed anxious. I sighed.

"Yeah, I'm just getting a light headache." I murmured. Randy eased my pain, placing his cool hand over my forehead. There was something different about him that I didn't notice. In the grey gloomy light—what was assumed as daylight, Randy seemed to look "normal". Back home in Michigan, he seemed so pale—out of place. It was so odd.

"How does that feel?" He asked. His hand felt so good against my forehead. The best answer I could give I was a stupid nod. Randy smiled. During the drive home, I noticed Randy holding my mother's hand. He seemed so happy with her. Randy seemed so happy with the both of us.

As we pulled into the garage of our "Mansion", my mother seemed anxious. She turned in her seat to give me the most joyful smile. She was so eager to exit the truck, which Randy frowned upon her ignorance of him. She hopped out of the SUV without a turning glance and hurried through the kitchen door from the garage. Randy was still frowning as he assisted me out of the truck.

"Alright, this must be a big surprise. Because my mom is acting like a crazy person." I laughed. She was behaving strangely. She was not one to keep a secret. I suppose I should have warned Randy of that.

As I entered the door, I was startled by the loud sound off of "SURPRISE!" and the screams of my friends. Randy turned on the light, and I was nearly in tears as I saw, Tiffany, Naomi, Jenny, and… oh my god, Prince Alexander Sommers.

I could see nothing but this wondrous man. He had to be at least four years older than me. But those beautiful dark chocolate brown eyes consumed me. It was like he was purposely freezing me in place. As if I held no more will over my own body. I took in a deep breath to try and pace my heart. I looked over to Randy who was glowing. What was he so happy about? Tiffany hurried over to my side to give me a huge welcoming hug.

"Welcome home Leigha!" She yelled. Yes, this girl was entirely way too bubbly for me. She held no better position than a cheerleader. I patted her back gently. Naomi and Jenny both greeted me as well, and then Prince Alexander stood before me. I had seen this very act done in a hundred plays, movies and yet I still could not perform it with perfection.

As I began to kneel to bow before the royal figure, he quickly brought his cool finger to my chin and I froze.

"Please, don't bow for me. I am nothing more than a man." He stated. I stared at him, bewildered. Oh great—another royal figure in denial. The young ones were always like that.

"But you're high…" He lifted his finger from my chin and placed it over my lips. I could taste the sweet honey scent of him on my tongue. Whoa, his charms were effortless.

"I'm simply Alexander. That goes for all of you." He instructed. Everyone nodded in unison.

"Umm, may I speak with you alone?" I asked him, my face turning ten shades of red. He smiled that perfect smile of his and it made my heart skip a beat.

"Certainly." He answered softly. My mother was practically fighting the urge to explode. She was more ecstatic than I had ever seen her.

The Prince followed me into my living room. I was so nervous; I mostly paced around the fireplace, contemplating what I was going to ask him.

"Thank you." Was all that escaped my lips. It was a timid offer of gratitude, he deserved far more however, it was all I could give him. He was simply too beautiful for words. He smiled, and it almost seemed as if he were fighting the urge to reach out to me.

"You're welcome." He answered. His voice was so sultry. I bet he didn't even realize it.

"You didn't have to go through all the trouble for all of this. I'm fine, really." He shook his head and his smile widened. He skimmed his fingers along the white sofa, never taking his eyes off of me.

"There was no trouble at all." He murmured, moving closer to me. My body lost its will again and I actually frowned this time. He chuckled. He reached out to me, and his perfect fingers played in my long wavy hair.

"No trouble at all." He whispered, moving closer to me. I closed my eyes and drew in a deep breath. Was this Prince going to kiss me?

"Honey? Oh!" My mother said, and before I could open my eyes, she was already out of the room. I looked over to the Prince, and his face was just inches from mine.

"Your mother said that you favored chocolate." He crooned, his cool sweet breath blew in my face as he spoke again. It nearly knocked me unconscious.

"I brought a cake. I heard, it's customary for parties." I shook my head, trying to remove the stupor, but it didn't work. I frowned. He stared at me, his expression bewildered.

"I'm sorry, maybe I was mistaken."

"No!" I shouted stupidly. I instinctively placed hand over my mouth, shielding any other stupid verbal expressions from escaping my lips. He laughed. He laughed so hard that he had to hold the sofa to regain his balance. Damn, was my stupidity that funny? I frowned at him.