Page 46 of Princessa
Chapter 27
Right before dinner with King Matteo and Queen Isadora, I’d never been more nervous about anything in my life, except the time I stood in front of Mrs. Wilson’s first grade class to recite my first oral book report. Unbeknownst to me, that was also the first time I had a near panic attack.
Thankfully, as soon as I sat down to dinner with Grayson’s parents, their charm and humble spirit put me right at ease.
King Matteo and Queen Isadora were magnificent.
Regal. Kind.
And sure enough, the apple didn’t fall far from the tree. Prince Grayson, panty-melter extraordinaire, turned out to be quite the charmer, winning me over in more ways than one.
On our jaunt back to the cottage, Grayson revealed his parents simply adored me—the sensation in my chest that followed, had to be my heart doing somersaults.
Once at his cottage, Grayson walked me to my bedroom door then kissed me goodnight. I understood why it stopped there. He didn’t want to put me in a situation where I could be coerced into making a decision about us being intimate.
So, to take my mind off him, I spent quality time with Diamond, playing with her, petting her until she lay purring, fast asleep on my bed.
Then, I sunk into a warm bubble bath, hoping that would be a surefire way to help me fall fast asleep once my head hit the pillow.
It didn’t.
I was dying to feel Grayson’s arms wrapped around me. Dying to feelhiminside me. Especially after I overheard him share how he felt about me.
See, while at dinner with his parents our dessert arrived. I excused myself to the restroom because before we’d left the cottage, I’d downed a bunch of water. The full-bladder feeling became unbearable.
As I returned from the restroom, Grayson and his parents were at the tail-end of a conversation. King Matteo had just asked Grayson if he loved me, if I was the one.
I couldn’t just stroll in on that, break up their family chat. So, I stood there, out of sight and around the corner, stomach churning, shaking in my heels, as I unashamedly eavesdropped.
When Grayson replied to his father, I stopped breathing.
I am, without a doubt, so very much in love with her.
No words ever spoken could have been as equally exhilarating as they were terrifying.
Grayson was in love with me. Truthfully, I was in love with him too.
Hauling myself out of bed, I smoothed down my tank top, dismissing the fact I was wearing nothing else at the bottom but a pair of panties.
Plodding to the door, I stood there, forehead against the wood, hand on the knob, heart beating out of my chest.
The last time I had sex on the brain and presented myself to a man, he turned me down. Sure, Parker wasn’t into women, but still. Rejection, no matter the magnitude, can rattle a person’s self-confidence for life.
You’ve got this, girl. Woman up. Go get your man.
For the first time ever, I listened to Santana.
Twisting the knob, I opened the door, then tread down the hall toward Grayson’s room, steps light as a feather, somewhat guarded.
I felt my pulse racing, palms sweating, panties melting.
Please, don’t turn me down.
Once I rounded the corner, his door was right there in front of me.
Closed.
Breathing in, breathing out, I knocked two times and waited, hands at my sides, fidgeting almost out of control.
