The Silver Eyed Prince (Highest Royal Coven of Europe) (25 page)

Elizabeth drew a long breath and yielded. No amount of denial could dispute the evident mutual affe
ction that she and the Prince displayed in class for all to see. “Okay, I admit it. You guys are right. There's something between me and Prince William, but I'm not exactly sure what.”

“What do you mean you're not sure?” Ben asked. “It's either a yea or a nay.”

“Did he tell you he likes you?” Lela asked.

“Or asked you to be his gir
lfriend?” Carlos added.

“No, no.” Elizabeth waved her hand. “But he did kiss me once.”

“He did?” Ben gasped.

“On the lips?” Lela's eyes pract
ically popped out.

Elizabeth felt the blood rush to her cheeks and nodded.

“Did he stick his tongue in your mouth?” Carlos butted in.

“Carlos!” Ben elbowed him sharply.

Elizabeth groaned and covered her face.

“Yoodeleheehaww!” Carlos clapped triumphantly. “I knew it!”

“Did you guys go out on a date yet?” Lela asked.

“No, but he came by my house yesterday,” Eliz
abeth replied.

“Really?” Ben exclaimed. “Can you imagine the heir to the throne coming to your house? Did your pa
rents die from Royal shock?”

“Uh, my mom wasn't home. It was just me.”

“I bet you guys made out—, aw!” Carlos rubbed the part where Ben had swiped him on the head.

“Of course not!” Elizabeth replied indignantly. “He just came to apol
ogize and gave me a white rose.”

“Apologize?” Lela asked. “What for?”

“Well, we had a few, um—, misunderstandings.”

“And he gave you a white rose?” Ben laid his palm over his heart. “How romantic!”

“He's courting you,” Chad said.

Elizabeth swung around and met his eyes. Chad had a peculiar expression that she couldn't quite read.

Lela jiggled her arm to catch her attention. “What sort of misunderstandings?”

Elizabeth hesitated. Honestly, she'd rather not share that part with her friends. “Nothing worth talking about.” She stared at her shoes.

“Did he try to get in your pants?” Lela asked.

“Oh, no
!” Ben framed his face with both hands. “Did you slap him?”

“And kicked him in the nuts?”
Carlos gasped.

“No, no, and no!” Elizabeth shook her head in re
signation.

“Okay guys,” Chad interrupted. “I think we should give Elizabeth some space and continue this tomorrow.” He placed an arm around her shoulders and steered her towards his SUV, waving goodbye at Ben, Carlos, and Lela.

“Thanks for rescuing me,” Elizabeth mumbled as he opened the passenger door for her.

“Just doing my job,” he said, and then at her que
stioning gaze added, “as your Knight in shining blue jeans.” 

A Hug and an Innocent Kiss

       Elizabeth rode in silence with Chad through the labyrinth of trees in the dark woods. He kept his eyes on the road and didn't bother to use the headlights, in spite of the pitch-black darkness outside. She discreetly peered at his profile, illuminated by the soft glow of the vehicle's navigation screen on the dashboard. He seemed unusually preoccupied and was hardly surprised about the details regarding the Prince and her.

“Okay, Hamilton. Out with it.” He flicked his eyes in her direction, catching her staring.

“Out with what?” Elizabeth asked, feigning innocence.

“You've been watching me for the past few minutes. Did you want to say something or were you just admiring how good-looking I am?”

“Ha-ha. Very funny, Chad. Actually, I wanted to know if you're okay. You've been kind of distant lately.”

“Have I?” Chad turned his attention back to the tree-shrouded path.

“Are you going to tell me what's bothering you?” Elizabeth persisted.

Chad kept his gaze straight ahead and didn't reply right away. “I'm fine,” he said after a short pause. “Ma
ybe just a little worried.”

“About what?”

“You.”

“Me?” Elizabeth exclaimed. “Why?”

“Nothing worth mentioning.” He threw her a sideways glance.

“Alistair!” Elizabeth punched him on the arm, “You're just as bad at sharing as I am!”

“Glad we have something in common.”

“Stop dodging the subject,” Eliz
abeth admonished. “Come on, spit it out.”

Chad sighed and shook his head. “I just don't want to see you get hurt, that's all.”

Elizabeth stared at him. “Is this about Prince William?”

Chad skipped a response and pursed his lips, his eyes glued on the road.

“Oh, Chad . . .” Elizabeth reached out to place a hand on top of his hand resting on the stick shift. “We're just getting to know each other, that's all. There's nothing to worry about.” 

He darted his gaze to where she'd touched him. “Just be careful,” he mumbled.

“I will.” Elizabeth smiled and squeezed his hand before releasing it. “I promise.” She unbuckled and picked up her bag as Chad parked in front of her house. “Well, thanks for the ride. See you tomorrow!”

He stepped out and went around to open her door. She alighted from the SUV and turned to him. “I really a
ppreciate your concern.” She gave him a hug and stood on her tiptoes, dropping a chaste kiss on his cheek. “You're so sweet. I'm so glad you're my friend,” she added with genuine gratitude, before sauntering towards the cottage.

Chad watched her go into the porch and unlock the front door, turning to wave at him before entering the house. He waved back, but didn't leave. He stood tran
sfixed, still holding the passenger door with one hand. Her kiss had caught him completely off guard.

What kind of screwed up muddle had he gotten himself into? How could he keep his distance—, or more specif
ically his hands off her, if she was showering him with physical affection? It was hard enough to concentrate and ignore his attraction to her, but hugs and kisses?

He'd almost returned the favor with a hotter ve
rsion, if she hadn't mentioned how glad she was that they were friends.
Damn it! Didn't she know how sexually charged Alpha Deimons were?

He slammed the passenger door just as a black Lamborghini with heavily tinted windows pulled up in front of his SUV. The door opened and Prince William stepped out.

“As you were, Colonel Gunter.” The Prince acknowledged his prompt salute with a single nod. “I trust you had an uneventful drive?” His silver eyes bored into him.

“Yes, sir,” he replied evenly, blanking his mind just the way he'd been trained to do, to keep a highly perce
ptive interrogator from delving into his thoughts.

“Excellent. You may resume surveillance,” the Prince said in dismi
ssal.

Chad made another salutation and started towards his vehicle.

“Colonel Gunter?” the Prince called after him.

“Sir?”

“Thank you for keeping my Elizabeth safe.”

“My pleasure, Sir.”

“Very well. That's all.” The Prince strode towards the cottage.

My
Elizabeth?
Chad muttered as he drove to park a block down the street.
Since when did she become
his
Elizabeth?
Chad cursed under his breath, suddenly unsure if the Prince intended Elizabeth to be just another conquest. He turned off the engine, frowning at the sleek Lamborghini in front of Elizabeth's house.
Why was the Prince breaking the rules and earnestly pursuing her? And why did the school administrators request protection for her? Was it because of Lady Catherine, the Danish Marchioness' daughter, who was staring at Elizabeth with murder in her eyes?Something very odd was going on.
He flicked his gaze to his side mirror to observe an unmarked vehicle he'd noticed trailing the Prince, days ago. His gut instincts were rarely mistaken. 

Inside the cottage, Elizabeth had just undressed and was reading her mom's note saying she went to pick up some toiletries at the twenty-four-hour drugstore, when the doorbell rang. She glanced at the clock. Four-thirty in the morning.
Did she forget something in Chad’s SUV?
She threw a robe on and ran down the stairs at the second doorbell. “Coming!” she hollered as she reached for the doorknob, yanking the door wide open.

“Do you always answer the door undressed?” Prince William combed his eyes from her face to her toes.

“Your Highness! You're early!” she blurted, and then reddened when she realized her rude remark. “I-I'm sorry—, I didn't mean to say that, but I just got in and haven't had time to change.”

“Don't apologize,” he replied with a rakish smile. “I really don't mind. Your attire, that is.”  

Elizabeth bit a retort to his risqué comment. He definitely was not some young, wholesome, fairy- tale Prince. His language and actions, even his teasing, were too grown up for her. Of course, it didn't help that he emitted sex appeal from every pore and she wasn't so ignorant that she didn't know about a man's needs. She may be a virgin, but she didn't survive four different high schools unscathed without knowing a thing or two about—
Oh, stop!
Who was she kidding anyways?

The truth was she was clueless. She didn't have an iota of experience to boot and couldn't care less about the birds and the bees until now. The Prince was her first
real kiss
; the first guy she'd embraced in
more than
a friendly way, and the
only one
who touched her the way a guy touches a girl. And she was seventeen—, almost an old maid, for goodness sake!
How on Earth could she handle this blue-blooded male, who at this very moment was gazing at her with bedroom eyes?

“Well? Are you going to let me in?” he drawled in that accent that made her insides curl.

“Oh—, right.” She gestured for him to come in.

“Is your mom here?” He looked around the small foyer.

“No, she went to the drugstore.” She stole a glance at the way his jeans clung to his long legs before ending in a slight flare over his boots. He had a blue high-necked sweater and a black leather riding jacket that gave him a rugged look.

“Call her. I'd like to take you home and introduce you to my cousins.”

How odd,
Elizabeth thought.
Why didn't he ask if her dad was here instead?
”She left her cell phone.” She pointed at her mom’s phone on the kitchen table.

“Then leave a note for her. Now, Elizabeth.” He raised her chin with his forefinger. “I despise driving during the daytime and I‘d like to make it there before sunrise. Write to her that you'll stay with me until it's time to go to school. We shall ride together to Darian from there.”

“What?” she exclaimed. “I can't do that! She'll ground me until I'm sixty!”

Prince William concealed his di
sbelief.
Did she just turn him down? What girl would refuse an invitation from the Prince of the Highest Royal Coven of Europe?

He gazed at Elizabeth, who looked so distressed, as if he’d just ordered her to get naked. She was obviously uneasy about spending time alone with him, but he had to expedite their courtship away from prying eyes. The longer they stayed exposed in America without the sec
urity of their headquarters in England, the riskier it was for them to be discovered. Elizabeth was a prime target for their enemies.

“Trust me, she wouldn’t,” he replied with nonch
alance, but when her mortified expression didn’t change, he sighed. “I'll write the note, then.” He pulled out a gold pen from the inside pocket of his jacket. “Be a love and get me some stationary.”

“Stationary?” She raised her eyebrows. “Can’t you just use Post-its?”

“Yes. That will do,” he concurred quickly before she caught his clever distraction that had led her to agree without realizing it. 

An hour later, they were driving in terrifying speed down the freeway. Elizabeth fidgeted in her seat.

“Am I making you nervous?” Prince William cast a sideways look at her.

“N-no.” She frantically shook her head. “Watch the road, please.”

He chuckled, releasing the shift that he had been working like a joystick and took her hand. “Don’t worry, I can drive even with my eyes closed.” He shut his eyes.

“Oh, my God!” Elizabeth immediately lunged for the steering wheel with her other hand, but he had it in a tight grip. “William, watch the road! This isn’t funny!”

“Car, ten meters ahead and approaching.” He moved to the right lane and passed it. “Truck, fifteen meters ahead on this lane. Another car, twelve meters ahead on the right.” He eased the car back to the left lane and opened his eyes.

“How did you do that?” Elizabeth gaped.

“Instinct. By using your keen senses to listen to your surroundings, you will learn how to identify everything around you without the use of eyesight. Of course—, it’s still safer to drive with your eyes open.” He grinned and exited the freeway.