PRINCE CHARMING: A Secret Baby Stepbrother Romance (10 page)

She asked a few times where they were going once they passed through the other side of the courtyard and walked to the outer edge of the palace walls. He stopped at a statue of some ancestor or other, glanced around to make sure the coast was clear, and pulled on the statue’s arm.

“Holy crap,” Olivia muttered as a part of the stone wall pulled itself in and slid to the side. “This place has secret passages?”

“If you spend enough time looking, you’ll find everything this palace has to offer,” he teased. He ducked under the low doorway, and Olivia followed close on his heels. The corridor was dark, but he’d walked it enough times he knew exactly where he was going.

The air became fresh instead of dank and musty as they walked. They were close to the beach, and the sound of the waves echoed back to them, reverberating against the stones. After a few more yards, they stepped out onto a sandy path. Quincy spread his arms wide.

“Welcome to my sanctuary.”

She took a few more steps, and her mouth fell open. “Incredible.”

Behind them, the palace stretched up on the cliff face, standing sentinel along the coast. The waves and wind, over time, had carved out sections of stone around and beneath it, creating stone columns that disappeared beneath the waves. Stones rose up in other places, jutting out from the sandy shore covered in bright green palm leaves, with coral in shades of blues and oranges so vibrant they could be seen beneath the waves rolling in. Birds with bright red and yellow feathers called overhead and flew from one opening to another.

“When did you find this place?”

He moved beside her and looked up and around at the stones he’d stared at for so long. “I think I was twelve when I found the passage. Had to lose Pascal long enough to explore.”

“He was your servant back then, too? He’s not that old now.”

“No, just the son of my personal servant so he followed me around.”

“This is amazing. I’d stay here all the time… Paint here,” she said as she turned again to take in the view with wide eyes. “These are the types of views I wish we had in Nebraska.”

Quincy smiled at her happiness. He walked over to a large stone covered in moss and ferns and dug around in the sand at its base. There was a plastic bin to keep the sand out buried underneath, and he pulled it up on top of the sand. Inside was a blanket and at least two bottles of wine for him to drink whenever he came here. A few other random odds and ends littered the bottom, stones and shells he’d found over the years. While he laid out the blanket, Olivia crouched and picked up a dried starfish out of the bin.

“This really is your special place, isn’t it?”

He flattened out the corners of the old, blue and grey blanket. “Yes, it is. Come here any time I need to think or get away from the palace. Or if I just want to drink alone and listen to the waves roll in.”

“Why did you bring me here if it’s so special?” she asked and set the starfish down. Worry flashed across her face and she stood, looking towards the corridor.

“Because, for the time being, you can use this place to escape. I know this life isn’t always easy, and hiding in your room is never actually hiding in your room.” He glanced around and leaned back on his elbows as he laid on the blanket. “This is what it takes to really disappear for a few hours.”

He patted the blanket beside him, and she sat down beside him as he dragged the bin over and pulled out a bottle of wine. The file folders sat nearby, and he caught her glancing at them before quickly looking away.

“Are you sure you want to drink while you look through those?”

“Helps soften my mood so I’m not as critical.”

“You should be critical if you’re going to marry one of them.”

“Alright then,” he said and picked up the folders. “You be the critical one and I’ll drink.” He tossed them on her lap and grinned as she glared at him.

“That’s not what I meant.”

He popped the cork off the wine, a bottle he’d opened only yesterday, and took a swig before passing it to her. “You know you’re curious. I can see it in your twitchy fingers.”

Olivia’s tongue pushed against her cheek as she tapped her nails on the top folder. With a sigh, she flipped it open and he laughed, taking the bottle of wine back from her. “Just so you know, I am a very blunt person.”

He tilted the bottle of wine towards her in toast. “Be my guest.”

“Is Gigi in here?”

“Why?” he asked, his gut clenching painfully around the wine he just swallowed.

“She seems to have quite the attraction to you,” Olivia said lightly as her eyebrows raised. “I wanted to do some well-deserved snooping to see how well-matched you would be.”

“Who said I want anything to do with her?”

“She does, quite frequently and loudly,” Olivia said as she flipped through the folders. “Ah! There she is. Let’s take a gander, shall we?” She ran her finger down the page and clicked her tongue. “Wow, she does have an impressive family lineage.”

Quincy snorted and laid back on the blanket. “That’s about all she has.”

“Not all. Says here she graduated top of her class from Oxford University with a degree in… What is that?” she said as she squinted down at the page. “Fashion? Really? They have a degree for that at Oxford?”

“You’d be surprised what’s offered nowadays.”

“Not really, I’m an art major,” she mused as her eyes skimmed the rest of the page. Quincy watched her face scrunch in disgust at something, and she turned the page again. “Hmm, interesting. Says here she does volunteer work.”

“No, she doesn’t, unless you count volunteering to drink to support the local economy.”

Olivia pursed her lips. “Isn’t that what you do?”

Quincy shrugged and closed his eyes, enjoying the cool breeze blowing off the water. It rushed over his skin, making his hair stand on end. “I have my moments. Are you done with her yet?”

“Nope. What else do we know about Gigi? Ah, that’s great information.”

“What is?”

“It appears the women were told to write letters to you in order to help you decide which one would make a better queen.”

Quincy reached out to snatch it, but she yanked it away and held it out of reach. “I really don’t want to hear it. Give me the folders.” He sat up all the way and scooted closer, but Olivia moved out of reach again.

“You really need to hear this.”

But he didn’t want to. Quincy didn’t mind Gigi when she was with other people, and granted, she was the most suited to be a queen, but he really did not like the woman. There were too many negative things about her, too many snobby things she said about others at court that made even Quincy want to shut her up.

“Hand it over, Olivia,” he said and lunged for it again.

“Oh, come on,” she said with a laugh as she scooted out of the way just in time.

Quincy grunted as he decided enough was enough. Olivia smirked at him until he made a final grab for the folder and tackled Olivia to the ground in the process. The folders went flying everywhere in the sand, and he looked down, ready to apologize until he saw the look on her face. Her eyes had narrowed, but not in an angry look. His body lay full length on hers. Every curve pressed against him, fitting perfectly like a tailored glove. Her eyes stayed on his, her breathing suddenly deeper, and her chest pushed against him. He realized she was thinking the same thing he was. His skin against hers in a most intimate, delicate fashion.

“Quincy.”

That one breath with his name on it ended his resolve. He didn’t stop to think as he leaned down and pressed his lips against hers.

Chapter 8

Olivia didn’t know what to do. Quincy’s lips moved against hers, and her arms wrapped around his back, pulling him tighter against her body. The kiss was warm, and his lips were softer than any others she’d kissed before. Her heart thudded in her chest, and her whole body was starting to come alive. A sudden longing bloomed to life between her legs, and she squirmed as the kiss deepened and his tongue licked lightly at her lips.

She should have stopped. Every voice in her head screamed that she shouldn’t do this, but no matter how hard she tried to tell her body to stop, it didn’t.

Her mouth opened on a sigh, and Quincy groaned as their tongues met. He tasted of the sweet red wine mixed with tropical fruits of the island. She wanted to drink him in for the rest of the evening while the sun set over the water. Quincy’s hands moved down to her shirt and slid underneath. They massaged her sides, and she itched for them to go higher so she could feel his touch on her breast again. She hadn’t been able to get it out of her mind since it happened. His fingers teased her at the edge of her bra, and she pushed her chest up, wanting them to be closer.

Quincy smiled against her lips and moved his hands lower again. She pushed her chest up against him in protest, wanting his hands back where they belonged.
Wait, where they belonged?
What the hell are we doing?

“Quincy… Quincy wait,” she said, breaking her lips away from his.

“What?” He stared down at her, worried. “Olivia?”

“We can’t do this,” she whispered. “Oh my God… What are we doing?”

In a panic, she shoved him off and scrambled to her feet, yanking her shirt back down in the process. She ran her hands through her hair and shook her head, trying to understand what the hell was going on. How could she be such an idiot?

“Olivia, calm down,” he said. “It’s not that bad.”

“Not that bad? We’re going to be step-siblings. Royal step-siblings! We can’t do this.”

The words sounded half-hearted. She could still feel his lips on hers and his hands running up her sides. Just the thought of it made her have to press her legs together to stop the sudden throbbing there. Why did he have to be such a damned good kisser? The way his tongue had moved with hers like they were meant to be together…

“No,” she snapped at herself and paced down the sand. “No, this isn’t happening.”

“It already happened,” he said and pushed himself to his feet. “Olivia, please calm down. No one knows anything. If you feel that badly about it, we won’t say a word. No one will know.”

She froze as she stared at his face, his swollen lips, and the light in his eyes. Olivia wondered why he wasn’t worried when a horrible thought crept across her mind, one that made her hands tighten into jealous fists. “Am I the first woman you’ve brought here?”

His eye twitched, and he rubbed the back of his head. “Yes, you are. Why would you ask that?”

“You seem extremely calm, that’s why.”

“I have never brought anyone else here, Olivia.”

“And I don’t believe you because—?”

He threw his arms in the air. “I have no idea. Maybe because you are crazy. It was just a kiss, that was all. One extremely incredible kiss that will never happen again.”

Her heart sank, like the wind had been knocked out of her. “Oh, well… If that’s all it was, then I guess there’s no need for me to uh… to uh… worry about it. I’ll find my way back to my room.”

Heart pounding and nerves on edge to the point that her hands shook, Olivia trudged up the sand and to the open corridor. Quincy called after her, but she’d heard enough. Whether or not he told the truth, they still shouldn’t have done that. It was too much, and there was no way anything would ever happen between them. Could happen between them. Tears stung her eyes, but she didn’t let them fall until she was in her room with the door closed and locked. Allete wasn’t there, thankfully, and she was able to slide to the floor and let it all out. This wasn’t supposed to happen.

How could she fall for a man who was going to be her stepbrother?

All his dropped hints and innuendos… he knew now they meant nothing. He probably did that to every girl and took them to his special place to have his way with them. He and Gigi would be perfect for each other. She’d never been this stupid before, so why had she let her guard down around him and let herself be taken for a ride? She would have to put a stop to it and only deal with him when it was absolutely necessary. When the summer ended and the wedding was over, she’d go back to Nebraska and forget Quincy.

Too bad the feeling of his lips tasting hers lingered, along with the touch of his fingers so close to where he could steal her heart away.

***

Quincy downed the rest of the wine, alone on the blanket, and tried to understand what had happened. One minute, they’d been talking, and he hoped she would give him her honest opinion about the woman who might eventually become her sister-in-law. And the next… the next…

You were lying on top of her, feeling every curve while you tasted her lips
.

He cursed, her touch lingering on his body and the sweet taste of her in his mouth. She’d just eaten something sweet… berries, maybe? Or a mango, he couldn’t quite tell. Didn’t matter. He was a fool for acting like that and not realizing he had crossed a dangerous line. The accidental boob grope had been one thing, but kissing her like he wanted her beneath him, in his bed, wet and ready for him?

Quincy straightened as the truth punched him hard in the gut. He did want her. He wanted every last inch of that damn woman, but he couldn’t have her. Shouldn’t have her. She was correct that it was wrong. As royals, they couldn’t afford this type of scandal.