Libby carefully tied an apron around her cream-colored lace dress, then loaded the dishwasher and started it running. Good thing her dress had short sleeves. She squirted soap into the sink and grabbed a scrub brush. Maybe this hadn't been such a great idea, even with the apron. Cream wasn't exactly a forgiving color, and the food was crusted on the metal sink more than Libby had thought. She put her muscles into it, trying to scrape off the dried-on spaghetti noodles that caked one side.
The noodles abruptly came loose, splashing water and suds everywhere. Libby jumped back, feeling droplets hit her apron. Crap. Had any gotten on her dress?
Her foot hit something wet and slid. Libby flung her arms out, flailing wildly as her feet grappled for a solid surface. Both feet slipped and slid beneath her. The stockings-bare legs were apparently against palace protocol-weren't helping matters at all. She yelped as her feet slid again.
Her butt hit the floor hard and wet soapy water seeped into the fabric of her dress. A puddle surrounded her, soaking her stockings. Libby shook her head, stunned by what had just happened. Why was water pouring from the dishwasher and covering the kitchen floor?
She sprang to her feet with a yell and yanked the dishwasher open. A tidal wave of water flowed onto the new solid wood floor. What on earth? She pulled the small pile of dirty burp rags and dish towels from the counter and tried to sop up the water.
And that's when the doorbell rang.
Alex. The garden party. She looked down at her wet dress. Awesome. Water continued to pour from the dishwasher, like someone had turned on a faucet. Where was it all coming from?
She sprang across the flat and threw open the door, her chest heaving. Alex stood there, looking positively delicious in a tan suit with a blue silk pocket square peeking out from his left breast pocket.
"Are you ready?" He trailed off as he stared at her. "What happened?"
She sprinted back to the kitchen, grabbing for more towels. "Floor," she spit out. "Water everywhere."
Alex could be mad at her later. Right now, she had to stop the water. She flung open the cabinet under the sink, her stupid fascinator hitting the top. She found the water valve and jerked it to the off position.
Loud crying filled the kitchen. Connie stood in the doorway with a hungry Kenzie, her eyes wide as she took in the flood. "What happened?"
"No idea," Libby said. The water had slowed to a trickle now at least, but the kitchen floor was covered in a half-inch of soap and bubbles, all slowly making its way toward the carpet in the living room. The carpet! Libby jumped to her feet, grabbing dish towels from a drawer. Maybe they could make some sort of water break and at least save the carpet. The wood floor was probably a total loss. That and her dress. She felt a panicked laugh bubbling from her throat. They probably cost about the same.
Alex crouched down beside her, taking the towels from her shaking hands. She blinked up at him in surprise. He'd taken off his suit jacket and rolled his sleeves up past his elbows.
"I've got this," he said. "Go get the bathroom towels. This isn't going to be enough."
Libby nodded, not stopping to analyze Alex's behavior. She ran down the hallway and grabbed the stack of towels from the linen closet. The screaming grew louder from a very angry Kenzie. Connie must've set the baby down to help.
"Is something wrong with her?" Alex asked, his tone polite and concerned.
"Oh, she's just hungry." Connie's voice was tight with stress and anxiety. "I just had these wood floors installed a couple of months ago. Right before I had Kenzie, actually. I can't believe this. I knew the dishwasher was getting old but never thought it'd flood."
"Go feed your daughter," Alex said. The soft tone of his voice washed over Libby like a caress. "Libby and I will clean up the water."
Libby paused, her hands on the linen closet door, not quite closed.
"What about the garden party?" Connie asked.
"We can arrive a little late," Alex said. "We're not leaving you to clean up this mess alone. I'll call the palace and get someone over her to assess for repairs."
"That's not necessary," Connie said, and Libby could hear the tears in her voice. "I can submit a claim to my insurance."
"It most certainly is necessary," Alex said. "You're allowing Libby to spend time with me, even when it's inconvenient. I would be a very inconsiderate man if I didn't show my appreciation by helping you now."
Libby shut the closet door, her heart leaping in her chest. She'd thought Alex would be upset about the delay. Furious, even. Instead, he was insisting they stay and help.
She hurried back into the kitchen with the stack of towels. "Go feed Kenzie," Libby said. "We've got this."
Connie nodded, her eyes filled with tears. "I'll hurry." She tiptoed over the flooded floor and quickly fixed Kenzie a bottle, then disappeared into the nursery. The crying stopped as abruptly as it had begun, and the flat grew quiet.
Libby reached up to brush away a strand of hair, but her hand hit the fascinator. She glanced again at her dress. The apron had mostly protected the front, but she could feel the back clinging to her rear end and legs. She didn't want to even think about what dishwasher soap had done to hand-knit lace.
Libby knelt down beside Alex, adding another lay of towels to help keep the carpet dry. "Thank you for not being upset about this."
He looked up, startled. "Why would I be? It's not like you purposefully flooded the kitchen."
"I know, but now we'll be late to the party."
"It can't be helped. What happened?"
Libby grabbed another towel, using this one to soak up water from the wood floor. "I have no idea. I started the dishwasher, and the next thing I knew, I slipped on a puddle of water and was sitting in a mess on the floor."
His hand rested on her arm and she looked up into his green eyes. "Are you okay?"
She blinked, forcing herself to look away. She couldn't let herself be caught in his spell. "It was nothing. I might be a little sore tomorrow, but I'm fine."
"Are you sure?"
She nodded.
"Well, if you're certain. I'm glad you're okay. I'll call someone to come and look at the dishwasher, and to see about repairing the floor."
"That's very generous." Way above and beyond what she'd expected.
"Well, we can't leave Connie to clean everything up herself."
Libby's heart warmed and she blinked rapidly. Why was she fighting the urge to cry?
Cedric never would've helped her clean up a flooded flat. But here Alex was, a crown prince with a literal palace of servants at his beck and call, and he still had rolled up his sleeves and got to work.
"I'm really sorry about this," Libby said. "You're being so nice and I've made us late."
"It's not a big deal, Libby. We do need to put in an appearance at the garden party, but no one will care if we're late."
She nodded, standing to wring out the wet towel in the sink. "I can't leave Connie to clean everything up herself."
"Of course not." Alex smiled and she found herself dazed by the warmth of it. "You wouldn't be the Liberty Claybourne I know if you weren't willing to rearrange plans to help a friend. We'll make sure repairmen are on their way before we leave. Let me make the calls."
Libby nodded. "I'm going to change so I don't ruin the dress any more than I already have."
Alex nodded, the phone already to his ear. Libby slipped into her bedroom and quickly changed into a pair of leggings and a loose-fitting shirt with a wide neckline that she could easily slip over her hair without disturbing the fascinator. She stared at the back of her soaked dress. The detergent had left the white lace and creamy satin fabric spotted and discolored. What would she wear to the party now?
She slowly made her way back to the kitchen, fighting tears. That dress had been hand-picked by Maggie for today's event. It was from some super-famous Durham designer and had probably cost a fortune. And now it was ruined.
Alex stood in the middle of the kitchen, his pant legs rolled up to just below his knee and bare feet exposed. He held a soaked towel over the sink, squeezing out the water.
Libby burst out laughing, tears rolling down her cheeks. She quickly swiped them away, but the laughter wouldn't stop. The release of tension was exactly what she'd needed. "What the paparazzi wouldn't pay for a picture of this."
He glared up at her with an expression of mock outrage. "Princes can clean up messes, you know."
She grabbed a fresh towel, bringing her within touching distance of Alex. "Well, I know that now. A month ago I never would've believed it."
"Believe it. An appliance repairman is on his way now to look at the dishwasher, and someone will come by first thing in the morning to see about refinishing the wood floors. It might take a couple of days for them to get it done, but I'll arrange for takeout to be delivered while the kitchen is out of commission. A cleaning crew should be here any minute to finish clearing away this mess."