close by and motioned Matt down another hall. “Listen, I’ve known Daphne for years. I grew up here. My dad was a bodyguard. Never, in all the years I’ve been around her, have I seen a single real smile cross her face. Not until you showed up.” He grinned and shrugged. “If you’re the reason for the smile, I don’t care what you two are doing as long as she’s able to find some happiness in her life.”
“She means a lot to you, doesn’t she?” Matt asked as a strange sense of pride filled him.
Princess Daphne was known for her radiant smile amongst the people but considered a shut-in. Agnes had been right in her words earlier. Yet here was a man loyal to a fault to the real princess no one knew outside the palace walls.
“One day, everything will change for her,” Jeremiah said. “The people will see her and know what she did to change this kingdom, but until that day, she’s trapped. Just make sure, whatever you do—or don’t do,” he added with a wink, “keep it secret.”
Matt nodded. “Understood.”
“I hope so. If anyone catches wind of this, you’d be out on your ass and she’ll have handed Agnes a reason for her parents not to give her the throne.” He wished Matt a good night and walked down the corridor, tucking his com back in his ear.
Matt did the same and walked slowly to his room. If they were caught doing anything, it would be over for them both. This job was better than the one he had before, but that wasn’t what he worried about losing. He didn’t want to lose Daphne. As he told himself he needed to keep his distance, he was constantly drawn to her. Hearing Agnes yell at her earlier brought out the old anger he used to cling to during his days abroad.
And since he’d left her alone, his chest was tight and his hands twitched against his thighs. He couldn’t get them to stop, but he knew the instant he was with Daphne again, he’d find the control she managed to grant him. As he entered his room and changed out of his suit, he realized no matter what happened between him and Daphne in the future, it would be worth it.
Every last second would be well worth it, no matter the consequences.
***
Daphne told herself to slow down as she rushed from her room a little before midnight, darted through the palace, and climbed up the trellis to the rooftop. The second the sea breeze hit her face and she inhaled the salty tang of it, her body relaxed, muscle by muscle. She tugged her light cardigan around her body and stared out over the city streets, absorbing the lights and the music echoing up to her.
Agnes’s words hit her again, and she took a step away from the edge of the roof and the city, the people she held so high in regard. Did they really think so little of her after all these years? Her rule hadn’t even officially started, and they doubted her.
“Daphne,” Matt said from the other end of the roof.
She turned slowly to look at him, enjoying how his t-shirt clung to his muscled arms and shoulders, giving a clear view of his chest as well. His jeans hung low on his hips, and her dreams of him holding her, kissing her, snuck into her mind. She licked her lips and watched his heated gaze slip to them. He stepped towards her and reached for her hands slowly as if expecting her to pull away, but she didn’t want to pull away. Not from him.
At first, she wasn’t sure what to say. So much had happened that day that finding the right place to start seemed too hard, but she wanted to know who he was. That was the first order of business. His hands warm in hers, she tugged him to her usual spot and they sat down, their legs hanging over the edge of the stone roof.
“Your hands,” she said quietly after a while. “They twitch a lot.”
He frowned down at her. “And? You tug on your ear more than any woman I’ve ever seen. Careful, it might come off one of these days.”
She smirked. “Did you just make a joke?”
“I can make jokes,” he muttered.
“She means a lot to you, doesn’t she?” Matt asked as a strange sense of pride filled him.
Princess Daphne was known for her radiant smile amongst the people but considered a shut-in. Agnes had been right in her words earlier. Yet here was a man loyal to a fault to the real princess no one knew outside the palace walls.
“One day, everything will change for her,” Jeremiah said. “The people will see her and know what she did to change this kingdom, but until that day, she’s trapped. Just make sure, whatever you do—or don’t do,” he added with a wink, “keep it secret.”
Matt nodded. “Understood.”
“I hope so. If anyone catches wind of this, you’d be out on your ass and she’ll have handed Agnes a reason for her parents not to give her the throne.” He wished Matt a good night and walked down the corridor, tucking his com back in his ear.
Matt did the same and walked slowly to his room. If they were caught doing anything, it would be over for them both. This job was better than the one he had before, but that wasn’t what he worried about losing. He didn’t want to lose Daphne. As he told himself he needed to keep his distance, he was constantly drawn to her. Hearing Agnes yell at her earlier brought out the old anger he used to cling to during his days abroad.
And since he’d left her alone, his chest was tight and his hands twitched against his thighs. He couldn’t get them to stop, but he knew the instant he was with Daphne again, he’d find the control she managed to grant him. As he entered his room and changed out of his suit, he realized no matter what happened between him and Daphne in the future, it would be worth it.
Every last second would be well worth it, no matter the consequences.
***
Daphne told herself to slow down as she rushed from her room a little before midnight, darted through the palace, and climbed up the trellis to the rooftop. The second the sea breeze hit her face and she inhaled the salty tang of it, her body relaxed, muscle by muscle. She tugged her light cardigan around her body and stared out over the city streets, absorbing the lights and the music echoing up to her.
Agnes’s words hit her again, and she took a step away from the edge of the roof and the city, the people she held so high in regard. Did they really think so little of her after all these years? Her rule hadn’t even officially started, and they doubted her.
“Daphne,” Matt said from the other end of the roof.
She turned slowly to look at him, enjoying how his t-shirt clung to his muscled arms and shoulders, giving a clear view of his chest as well. His jeans hung low on his hips, and her dreams of him holding her, kissing her, snuck into her mind. She licked her lips and watched his heated gaze slip to them. He stepped towards her and reached for her hands slowly as if expecting her to pull away, but she didn’t want to pull away. Not from him.
At first, she wasn’t sure what to say. So much had happened that day that finding the right place to start seemed too hard, but she wanted to know who he was. That was the first order of business. His hands warm in hers, she tugged him to her usual spot and they sat down, their legs hanging over the edge of the stone roof.
“Your hands,” she said quietly after a while. “They twitch a lot.”
He frowned down at her. “And? You tug on your ear more than any woman I’ve ever seen. Careful, it might come off one of these days.”
She smirked. “Did you just make a joke?”
“I can make jokes,” he muttered.
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