The Queen's Impossible Boss (The Christmas Princess Swap, Book 2) Read online

  Alvaro made himself gather the strength to lift away; he’d suffocate her if he stayed where he was. Her long drawn-out sigh in response almost brought him to his knees again. He’d tried to stay gentle, tried to take the time...but she’d come apart around him and he’d charged headlong into the fire with her like a man who’d lost it completely. But now she needed more again. He read it in her eyes and he heard it in her breathlessness.

  ‘I like it when you hold me,’ she whispered. ‘I like it when you surround me so completely.’

  Yeah, he liked that too. He liked the lock of her arms around his back and her thigh hooking over his hip so he could surge deeper. He liked being so close to her that there was no getting closer, but trying anyway with bared skin and salty sweat and sweet pleasure. She’d arched and he’d thrust, over and over until he was drowning in the heated, silky prison of her body, until that pleasure hit, until there was nothing like this satisfied exhaustion in all the world.

  Now her long hair was a tangled mess, knotting them together, and her face was flushed as she gazed up at him. Amazement gleamed from her pleasure-bruised eyes and he had never seen anyone as shockingly beautiful in his life.

  ‘Alvaro.’

  It was a whisper that ricocheted through to his soul. ‘I know.’

  She was tired, but she needed another kind of closeness. And for once, so did he.

  ‘You feel so good,’ he muttered as he rolled onto his back and pulled her limp form to rest over his.

  ‘I’m so tired, but I want—’

  ‘I know. We will. Soon,’ he promised. Because so did he. ‘It’s not even nine o’clock, Jade.’ He chuckled. ‘We can take our time. We have all night.’

  Only it didn’t seem like long enough already.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  JADE SLOWLY WOKE in a relaxed, comfortable heap, tangled in soft cotton sheets, soaking up the heated strength of the man curved behind her. It was her strangest, yet best ever way to wake.

  They’d snatched only a couple of hours’ sleep at most last night. After that first time, Alvaro had run her a bath and revived her with a fistful of cheap chocolate—all the commercial bars and wacky flavours that had been long banned from her diet by that zealous palace physician.

  ‘No royal rules here,’ he’d teased. ‘And it’s treat night, right?’

  The whole night had been a decadent, delicious, pure lustful treat. Now, her pulse lifted, her aching body still seeking more.

  ‘You must be used to getting breakfast in bed,’ he murmured.

  ‘I have a maid who brings me a coffee in the morning.’

  ‘With cream and sugar, right? I’ll get it.’

  His warmth was gone before she had the chance to answer. She sat up. So it was over already?

  For a panicked moment she couldn’t believe what she’d done. What if there were cameras outside? What if she was caught somehow and everyone found out?

  Would it matter?

  Her father wasn’t alive to judge or punish her. It wasn’t an external threat troubling her. It was Alvaro himself. How did she face the man who’d touched her with such profound intimacy? It had felt beyond physical.

  It’s not.

  She was feeling biochemistry—oxytocin, serotonin, dopamine. Her body’s biology was encouraging her to stay and mate again. All animal instinct. And that adrenalin fix? The rush of the unknown and the unexpected?

  That was everything Alvaro had treated her to last night.

  But it was over, and she needed to get out of there. Her composure was suddenly shockingly precarious and she’d never lost her composure before this week. She’d never lost her virginity either. Until Alvaro.

  Memories swept over her, invoking a real, raw response from her body. She shivered. She couldn’t let him distract or delay her departure. Self-preservation insisted she end this now. If she stayed it would soon become a whole other day and a whole other night and that would become too intense. And impossible to walk away from. She couldn’t let that happen. It wasn’t what he wanted. Or what she wanted either.

  She needed this time on her own. Wasn’t that why she was here?

  She quickly hunted about for her panties and pulled on her slip before finding her way from his bedroom back to the kitchen—desperately scooping her black dress up off the floor from where they’d left it last night.

  He’d glanced up as she walked in and put down the cup he was holding. A glint kindled in his eyes as he watched her back away with the crumpled dress in hand. ‘Not staying for coffee?’

  Silently she shook her head. So awkwardly she darted back into the hallway and quickly pulled on her dress over her slip. She was desperate to escape.

  ‘So what now?’ he asked softly when she stepped back into the kitchen. ‘You’ve no more work to worry about. You’re free to do anything. What’s your plan?’

  She didn’t really have one.

  ‘Neon lights?’ he prompted.

  ‘Sure.’ She’d focus on those external adventures. Seize on them as a means of avoiding the awkwardness rippling through her and that ache for intimacy welling inside. ‘Ice skating at the Rockefeller centre. Eating doughnuts or a pastry outside Tiffany’s or something, right? Times Square.’ But her smile slipped, and she scrambled to think of more. ‘Art galleries. All the exciting, fun things a tourist ought to do in New York in December.’

  ‘Sounds like you have quite the list.’

  ‘Yes.’ She was determined to make the most of every one of those iconic experiences too. ‘Christmas in New York—it’s my one and only chance.’

  ‘But isn’t Monrova all snow and sleighs and bells and warmly spiced Christmas baking?’

  ‘In some homes, I’m sure it is.’

  ‘But in the palace?’

  ‘Just another day. Normal lessons continued. There was no extended family gathering. I had dinner with my father in the dining room as I did every night. And received the usual lectures.’

  ‘But last night you told me you were spoilt.’

  ‘I was. Just not especially at any of those kinds of things. So this year, this once, I want the full Christmas.’

  He blinked. ‘The full Christmas? What even is that?’

  ‘I don’t really know.’ She began to smile. ‘Like something from the movies?’

  His jaw dropped. ‘The movies?’

  ‘Yeah, you know. All those good ones where people go the extra mile to find that one perfect present for their child, or they get through the snowstorm against all the odds to be with their loved ones...’

  ‘It’s not really like that, Jade.’

  ‘No?’ She glanced at him.

  ‘Those movies make you think everyone is having the best time. They’re not. I don’t think anyone is.’

  ‘No?’ What had Christmas been like for him?

  ‘Never. People set their expectations way too high. It’s distant family stuck together for too long, drinking too much, and every time it gets so ugly...’ He shuddered.

  ‘You’re cynical.’

  He lifted his hands. ‘It’s how I see it.’

  ‘You mean how it was for you?’

  ‘You know I didn’t have a normal family structure, so Christmas wasn’t any of that for me, either.’

  ‘You never had Christmas with family?’ She was shocked. ‘I’m sorry.’

  ‘Not your fault, Jade.’ He breathed out. ‘Not mine either.’

  But that throwaway comment weighed heavier than it should.

  For the first time she didn’t think he was being honest. Not with her, but with himself. And the tension within his muscular frame now? She shouldn’t pry when she had no right. This was just physical. A one-night stand. She’d forgotten that fact so quickly. Yet she couldn’t stifle her curiosity completely.

  ‘So what did you do on Christmas
Day? How do you know so much if you weren’t with—’

  ‘I worked.’

  ‘You what?’

  ‘Christmas Day is an opportunity, Jade. There are very big tips to be got from large unhappy family parties. Ellen worked it every year, as did I, as soon as I was old enough.’

  She stared at him. ‘Do you still work on it?’

  ‘Absolutely. It’s a strategy day. I plan the year ahead.’

  ‘Christmas is a strategy day?’ She choked with an outrage that she didn’t even need to exaggerate. ‘That’s even worse than my dreary day.’

  He laughed. ‘How is it worse? It’s super productive. I like the peace and quiet. I achieve a lot.’

  As she gaped at him she heard a familiar buzzing sound. It was Juno’s phone. Startled, she whirled to hunt out her bag. But her phone stopped ringing before she could answer it. She glanced at the screen.

  Jade.

  Which meant Juno was trying to phone her—why?

  Jade knew why. She’d seen it yesterday in a newspaper left on a table at a café she’d stopped at for lunch. Juno had been photographed with Leonardo at the Winter Ball in Monrova—and their shared glance wasn’t one of two near-strangers being very proper and polite with each other. The way Leonardo had been looking at Juno? And then there were more photos of the two of them in Severene?

  Jade knew Juno had wanted to talk to him. She’d been unusually concerned that Jade was considering a political union with him. She’d told Jade not to trust him. And yet—from those pictures? The media was salivating over an imminent engagement. Only problem was, they thought Juno was Jade.

  ‘Everything okay?’ Alvaro was watching her intently.

  She grabbed Juno’s leather jacket. ‘I’d better get going. I need to return that call.’

  ‘You could—’

  ‘I need to go.’ She was suddenly desperate to get away from him while she could. Thank heavens for Juno—she’d literally been saved by the bell of her phone.

  ‘Sure.’ He let her go.

  But just as she reached the door he grabbed her arm.

  ‘You’re okay?’ he asked.

  She paused. That one touch was a reconnection that pushed aside her embarrassment to the joy still bubbling below.

  ‘I’m so much better than okay,’ she confessed. It had been amazing. ‘I hope you are too.’

  He stilled, his expression softened, his hold relaxed. And she took her chance to escape.

  She quickly got out of the building into the crisp air. People were going about their daily business. It seemed as if nothing cataclysmic had happened in anyone else’s world. Only hers.

  She couldn’t believe she’d slept with her sister’s boss. No one could ever know. Ever. Not even Juno. It would make things weird for her at work and that was the last thing Jade wanted to happen. So she couldn’t tell her sister. Not ever.

  Drawing in a breath, she returned her sister’s call.

  ‘Juno, it’s so good to hear your voice,’ she whispered as she walked along the pavement, struggling to pull her thoughts together. ‘Sorry I couldn’t get to the phone straight away... It’s... It’s pretty early here.’ And she was wearing the same clothes she’d been wearing last night. And she’d just left Juno’s boss half dressed. And she’d slept with him. She drew in a deep breath of wintry morning air. ‘I thought we agreed we wouldn’t contact each other, just in case?’

  ‘Jade... I... It’s wonderful to hear your voice too.’

  Jade stilled, hearing a tearful breathlessness in Juno’s voice. Had something happened? She paused on the pavement, that press photo she’d glimpsed at the café yesterday popping back into her mind.

  ‘I’m sorry I woke you up,’ Juno added. ‘And I know I’m not supposed to call, but...’

  ‘Juno, what’s wrong?’

  ‘Something, something’s happened, Jade. Something... I really did not expect...’ Her sister’s voice trailed off again.

  Intuition rang loud in Jade’s ears. ‘Is this about Leonardo, and your state visit to Severene?’ Jade tackled it directly. ‘You make a great couple.’

  ‘We’re not a couple,’ Juno answered so instantly that Jade had to smother a smile.

  ‘Are you certain?’ she queried gently. ‘You look really happy together in all the press coverage. And by the way, you’re doing a stunning job impersonating me. Better than I could do myself.’ Juno looked more at ease with people than Jade ever felt.

  ‘That’s not true, Jade. I’m just good at faking it,’ Juno said.

  While Jade didn’t know much about relationships, she didn’t think that obvious chemistry with King Leo could be faked. ‘You’re not faking anything, Ju, you’re a natural,’ Jade said wistfully. And it wasn’t just that sizzle, it was those smiles with those people who’d come to greet them in Severene. ‘I always said Father was wrong not to consider you as his successor, and now I get to say I told you so.’

  There was a moment of silence. ‘Aren’t you angry with me?’ Juno asked.

  ‘Why would I be angry?’ Jade asked, amazed. She was delighted to see her sister in her rightful place.

  ‘Because I’m not supposed to be in Severene? Because this swap was never supposed to get this complicated? Because I could end up completely screwing up Monrova’s relationship with her neighbours.’

  Jade thought for a moment, then answered calmly. ‘No, I’m not angry about any of that.’ Because it had got complicated for her too, so quickly. ‘I’ve come to realise, seeing the press reports of you two, that Leonardo and I were never meant to be together. I’m really glad you persuaded me to come to New York.’

  She’d realised she needed to slow down on that decision making. She was still young. She had time to think things through.

  ‘It’s been an eye-opening experience for me,’ she added. ‘I’ve discovered so much about myself and there’s so much more to learn.’

  There was so much she wished she could learn with Alvaro. But she’d had her one night and it hurt to remember it was over. So instead she focused on her sister. ‘I also think it’s super cute that there seems to be something developing between you two.’

  ‘There’s nothing developing between us. Nothing permanent anyway,’ Juno murmured. ‘It’s just... There’s a lot of chemistry between us and I like him more than I ever expected to.’

  ‘Are you sure there’s nothing more between you?’ Jade asked softly. ‘From the press reports I’ve seen, he looks at you in a way he’s never looked at any of the other women he’s dated.’

  ‘No. There’s nothing more,’ Juno said, but she sounded unsure. ‘Jade, I just... What I need to know, the reason I called, is... If Leo and I jump each other tonight. I mean, he’s asked me and I... I really want to go for it. Because, you know, chemistry.’ Juno drew in a breath.

  Jump each other? Jade chuckled inside at her sister’s choice of words. She guessed she’d ‘jumped’ Alvaro last night.

  ‘We’ve agreed it won’t mean anything beyond the physical. That it won’t have any political implications. That the marriage is a whole separate issue.’ Juno continued her rapid explanation. ‘But if you’d rather we didn’t... I mean, I don’t want to mess things up for you... With Leo.’

  ‘Juno, you’re not serious—what possible claim would I have on Leonardo?’ Jade almost laughed.

  ‘Well, you know, you were considering marrying him a week ago.’

  Jade did laugh then. A cold marriage of convenience now seemed appalling. Now she understood what the sacrifice would be if she were to marry solely for political reasons. She couldn’t believe she’d actively been considering it—why on earth had she? And then she remembered. ‘The marriage was always just about securing a trade relationship and uniting our two kingdoms.’ Her ancient advisors had wanted it as a neat and tidy option. But it had been a way of avoiding perso
nal uncertainty as well. ‘I can’t believe I ever thought that would be okay.’

  ‘Jade, you don’t sound like yourself.’ Juno asked, ‘Are you sure everything is going okay in New York?’

  ‘It’s... Yes, it’s been really transformative in a lot of ways,’ Jade said, trying not to let all her crazy thoughts explode out of her. ‘I’m discovering things about myself I didn’t realise. Not all of which I like.’

  Her naivety. Her recklessness, tolerance, acceptance, her silence...and her selfishness.

  ‘What things?’ Juno asked. ‘There’s nothing about you not to like.’

  ‘I used to think the same thing.’ Jade laughed but she didn’t feel it. She’d thought she’d been so good, so dutiful...whereas really? She was a coward.

  ‘If something’s happened, Jade, you can tell me, or we could swap back. Now.’

  ‘No. I don’t want to swap back, not yet,’ she said swiftly. She didn’t want to end it for Juno already. And she needed to straighten out her own head before she headed home. She needed this time. So much more than she’d realised. ‘I’d really like to stay until New Year’s Eve, like we agreed. Plus, I don’t want you to miss your chance to jump Leo,’ Jade added with a choked laugh. ‘Unless you need to...’

  ‘No, I don’t want to swap back yet either...’ Juno admitted.