Recklessly Royal(24)

There would be cleanup from the wedding, media attention to deal with, and the tasks I’d taken on while Sam and Alex would be gone. I answered e-mails, forwarded things to Selene, and uploaded some of the pictures I had taken from the night. I even sent a message to Selene to see if she could schedule a lunch with Meredith and Marty while they were in town. It would be nice to make them feel a bit more involved with the family. Especially since they spent the majority of their time in another country.

I’m not sure when I fell asleep, but I woke to the soft shuffling of feet in my room, and the stream of sunlight coming through the windows. I wiped at the drool on my cheek and turned to see who was in my apartment. Selene was straightening my bed and had David’s jacket draped over her arm.

“Um.” I sat up and blinked the crust out of my eyes. I hadn’t realized he had left it the night before.

“Good morning.” Selene smiled at me. “I got your e-mails first thing and will see if Meredith has any free time. I believe she and her son are staying for a little while to tour the capital.”

“Oh, thank you.” Scrubbing at my face I watched her and tried to figure out how to explain the jacket. “David must have left that last night after we finished talking.”

“Of course.” She leaned over and picked up my dress from the ground and laid it on my bed. “I’ll be sure to get it back to him and see to it that your dress is cleaned.”

“Yes, I’d like to be able to wear that one again.” It had been very flattering. Of course, it would also always be linked in my mind to the night a man ran screaming from my bed.

“Certainly. It looked lovely on you.” She gave me a gentle smile. “I’m glad to see you’ve made a new friend. You haven’t had much time to relax. Is there anything you’d like to talk about?”

“Er—no.” I frowned. Well, she knew. Or at least thought she knew what must have happened last night. And in all honesty, I still wasn’t sure what had happened. Well, some parts were crystal clear: David’s kisses, the way his mouth felt against my skin, and his laughter. Then there were other parts that were clear, like the disdain on his face when he realized I was a virgin or the shame I had felt when he backed away from me. If I never saw him again, it would be too soon.

“Okay. Well, your morning is pretty empty. If you have something you’d like to do, let me know and we’ll get it taken care of. Or if you’d rather just relax, that’s a good plan too.” Selene smiled.

“I think I’d like to read for a little while. I can’t remember the last time I read for fun.” Samantha had given me several books that she thought I would enjoy. Getting up, I walked over to my bedside table and pulled the drawer open. Vain by Fisher Amelie looked up at me and I touched the pretty cover. A distraction would be a welcome thing this morning. “Would you let me know an hour before our next appointment?”

“Of course,” Selene said. “I’ll be back in a little while.”

“Thank you.” I took the book back to my little sofa and curled up under a blanket. I read the intriguing synopsis, opened the book, and got down to business. By the time two hours had rolled around, I was so engrossed I could barely think of anything else. I hated Sophie, the main character, before pitying her. Then I fell in love with her and the hero just as quickly.

There was a knock at my door, but I was in the middle of a particularly gripping paragraph and didn’t want to get up. “Come in!”

I didn’t look up until I was finished and that was when I realized that David had entered my room, not Selene. He was wearing jeans and another of his damn flannel shirts and had tucked his hands into his pockets. He looked determined and frustrated. Maybe even a little nervous.

I stared at him, wondering why he was here. What could he possibly have to say that hadn’t been already said? My virginity freaked him out and he’d apologized. Yeah, that pretty much summed up everything we had to say to each other.

However, my mouth was apparently not on the same wavelength as my brain. “You left your jacket. Selene said she would get it back to you.” I shifted in my seat so that my feet were touching the floor. That’s when I remembered I was wearing an old pair of pajamas.

“She brought it to me.” He rocked back on his feet. “How are you—”

“What do you—” I shook my head as our words overlapped. He smiled, and I’ll be damned if it didn’t do that funny thing to my heart. “Did you need something?”

His mouth twitched and I could tell he was doing that thing where he tried to decide what to say. “I think we should go out on a date.”