A Royal Mess and Her Knight To Remember

6

NATALIA WENT FOR cool and calm when she turned to Sally, who had apparently come into the kitchen and walked right up behind her while she’d been staring at Tim. “I’m-” What had she been doing? Blindly, she stared at the knife in her hand. “Um…”

Sally’s brow disappeared into her hair.

“Making lunch.”

“You mean you’re starving the men again.”

“No, I’m-” Natalia blinked. “What?”

“Oh, nothing, for God’s sake.” Sally leaned against the counter and crossed her arms. “You might want to wipe your chin.”

“Why?”

“You were watching my brother’s ass and drooling.”

Natalia managed a laugh that didn’t fool either of them. “Don’t be ridiculous. That would be…” A definite spectator sport. “Insulting.”

“You were.”

Natalia busied herself fixing the large tray in front of her. “Is everyone ready to eat?”

“Oh, yeah.”

She sounded so sarcastic Natalia turned, but Sally just sent her an innocent look. She grabbed a stuffed mushroom off the tray, turned it this way and that, carefully inspecting it, then finally took a tentative bite. “Hmm,” she said in lieu of a thank you.

Okay, that was it. Natalia crossed her arms. “Is that ‘hmm’ good or ‘hmm’ bad?”

“No comment.”

“You can do better than that.”

“No, really. I can’t.”

“You know, I’m trying here.” She watched Sally wolf six more down in half as many bites.

“Yeah.” Sally swallowed and brushed her hands over her thighs. “Which brings me to another point. Why?”

“Why am I trying?”

“Why don’t you just go on welfare, or hit a shelter, or better yet, get a job you’re equipped for, like cooking for a bunch of people who like weird food.”

“First of all, I do not need welfare.”

“Uh-huh.”

Carefully, Natalia set down her knife. No need to tempt herself. “And second of all, I’m not even a citizen. I’m a princess, which I know your brother already told you. I suppose, as it does sound outlandish way out here in the middle of nowhere, I can forgive you not believing it. But as far as why I’m here and what I’m doing…” No. She couldn’t share it, because the need to be a woman first for once, and a princess a distant second was strong. How could a woman like Sally, who did what she wanted, when she wanted, without a care to her duties, understand? “I’m afraid it’s none of your business.”

“Fine. But if you’re here to snag my brother, think again. He’s not into body piercings or spiked hair.”

No, but he’d been into the leather. “Snag your brother? What does that even mean?”

Sally uttered a one-word adjective that perfectly conveyed what she meant. It was a word people didn’t often utter in front of a princess.

“And,” Sally continued, “if you harm one little hair on his head, I’ll rip out your fingernails, one by one. So stop staring at his ass.”

Natalia actually gaped. Was this woman for real? Knowing it was rude to respond to her host in such a manner didn’t stop her. She hadn’t been raised with sisters for nothing. Thanks to Annie being so tough and forward, she knew how to fight back. “You’re kidding me, right?”

Sally didn’t so much as blink.

“Wow.” Natalia shook her head. “It’s clear the American reputation of being crass and rude is completely undeserving. Because really, you’re all so sweet and caring.”

“Just remember what I said,” Sally said.

“Tim is a big boy.”

“Yes, but he’s also a softie, with a heart just waiting to be stomped all over.” Sally took another mushroom and headed toward the door. “I’ll be watching you. Waiting for an excuse to kick your pretty little butt.” The door slammed.

“I guess this means we won’t be polishing each other’s fingernails tonight at the slumber party, right?” Natalia called out after her, then kicked the refrigerator.

TIM FORCED himself to take another bite of dinner, but only because Natalia was watching, her forehead puckered in a line of worry. He swallowed, hard, and managed a smile. “What is it?”

“An old family recipe.” She clasped her fingers together. “Do you like it?”

“Uh…” Everyone looked at him. “Well…I’ve never tasted anything quite like it.”

Sally snorted.

Natalia bit her lip.

Sally pushed her plate away. “Nick would have made chili.”

“Sally-”

“And looked damn good while doing it.”

“Nick?” Natalia asked.

“The guy I would have hired for the job,” Sally said.

Natalia looked down at her plate. “Chili. I hadn’t thought of that. Or that I’d taken a job from someone who needed it.”

“Nick has another job already,” Tim said.

“Oh, okay then.”

Seth leaned forward eagerly. “You know, chili is really easy, Natalia. I bet you could do it.”

Pete nodded hopefully.

“Well, it’s not really a gourmet thing, chili.” Natalia tilted her head and considered. “But…”

Tim poked at whatever was on his plate. “Is that what this is? Gourmet?”

“Of course.” Natalia set down her fork. “What did you think it was?”

He looked into her eyes. What did he think? That she looked very anxious, and not very tough, as she clearly wanted to be. That she was incredibly appealing looking at him like that.

That he couldn’t tell her everything she touched was inedible. “I…”

She pushed her plate away, looked aghast. “You didn’t know.” When he winced, she shook her head.

“Oh my God. You didn’t know. You thought I couldn’t cook.”

“Well-”

“No.” She stood up, looking mortified. “You thought…you just chalked it up to my craziness. Right? Oh, let poor Natalia alone. She thinks she’s a princess, she thinks she can cook, she thinks…” She shook her head again, covered her mouth. “Excuse me.”

She rose and stalked from the room in her denim and combat boots.

At the table, the men all turned accusing gazes on him. “Now you did it,” Pete whispered. “You hurt her feelings.”

“Yeah. Go fix it.” Red pointed to the door. “Go tell her it’s only you. Tell her we love everything she made.”

Sally rolled her eyes. “Oh, jeez. You guys are as pathetic as she is.”

“Hey, now, she never did anything to you,” Pete said. “Except maybe try hard.”

Tim sighed, tossed aside his napkin and stood. “I’ll talk to her.”

“Yeah, you’d better,” Pete said. “Go make it right.”

Everyone but Sally nodded, and Tim might have laughed if it wasn’t so damn touching. Every one of them was willing to eat the inedible, just to save Natalia’s feelings.

“Bunch of softies,” Sally muttered.

Tim had to agree. And with the exception of a certain of part of his anatomy that was rarely “soft” around Natalia, he was the biggest softie of all.

HE FOUND HER on the back deck, watching the moon. She leaned back against one of the wood posts, her hands behind her on the wood, her face hidden by shadows. But not her body, which was illuminated by the glow of the moon, appearing all long and curved and gorgeous.

It made no sense. In the jeans and T-shirt, covered now with an old opened flannel shirt of his, she should have looked ordinary. Plain.

But she took his breath. “You okay?”

“Sure. For a crazy lady.”

“Natalia-”

She didn’t look at him. “I know what you guys think of me.”

He moved into her line of vision, standing in front of her so that she had no choice but to take her gaze from the moon and look at him. “They care about you,” he said. “And so do I.”

“Like you’d care about a blind goat.”

“I don’t think you’re a blind goat, Natalia.”

She let out a rough breath and turned away, but not before he caught the glimmer of a sheen of tears in her eyes.

“I don’t,” he said softly. “I just-”

“-think I’m a three-legged pig who needs a stable.”

She moved fast, and might have gotten away if he hadn’t grabbed her hand, might have fought him if he hadn’t held on.

“I have to go,” she whispered.

“Hold on.” Her breath sounded funny as she struggled for control, and his heart slipped. “No, don’t…” He took her shoulders and gently pulled her resisting body close. For comfort, nothing more, but he realized the mistake instantly, as there was far more than comfort at work here. She was soft against him, so soft, and she burrowed close, burying her face in his shoulder as she struggled with composure.

So strong. So alone. To soothe, he stroked a hand over her hair, down her slim spine.

You’re asking for trouble, man, in a big way.

It didn’t seem to matter, not when she sniffed and burrowed a little closer, pressing her face into the crook of his neck.

“I was trying too hard.” Her words whispered against his skin. “You’d probably would have rather been eating peanut butter and jelly.”

“No.” Her soft, warm lips against his flesh were killing him slowly. “We just didn’t know what you were dishing out, that’s all.”

What she was dishing out now, with just this one embrace, was going to give him a king-size heart attack any second now.

“I’m sorry,” she said on a sigh. “I’m just ever so tired of making a fool of myself.” But she snuggled closer, heating his body. “I was just having so much fun being needed for a change. At home, I’m important, but not needed.” She sighed again, still against his skin, and he nearly went to his knees. “You have no idea how nice it is. To be needed.”

Needed.

Whoa. Big mental step back.

When had it gone from her needing him to him needing her?

With a good amount of shock, he lifted his head.

She lifted hers, too, and for one moment they hovered like that, their lips a fraction of an inch apart, until one of them-he had no idea which one-closed the gap.

Then they were kissing as if their lives depended on it. And in that moment, his did.