Page 30 of The Duke's Virgin
“This isyourfault,” I told him, pointing a red silk high-heeled shoe at him. It had a delicate row of crystals running across the diagonal strap that twinkled and flashed, catching the light and splintering into thousands of fractals. “I told you I didn’t need to spend a day shopping in Milan.”
“I didn’t see you arguing too hard when you dragged me into the store where you found those shoes.” He studied the heel pointedly before looking at the chaos around my room. “Would you like me to send Gustave up? He’s a genius at packing.”
I scowled at him. “I don’t need help packing, unlikeyou, Your Highness.” With a sniff, I turned back to assess the madness. I wasn’t about to tell him that the household’s majordomo intimidated me more than a little. He was like a mix of Batman’s Alfred, the Addam’s Family’s Lurch, and a nightmare amalgam of some of TV’sorganizational experts—the kind who went into a family’s homes under the guise ofstreamlining and organizingand tossed out anything that interfered with theminimalist lifestyle. Okay, maybe that was exaggerating, but he still unnerved me.
“You’re not exactly making a lot of progress standing there, my dear.”
I flipped him off, and he laughed.
“You’ve been in amoodthis week, Stacia,” Aeric said, coming over to hug me. He dropped a kiss onto my temple before circling around to the side of my bed and picking up a dress I’d bought on our trip to Milan. “Are you just ready to get back home? Missing Mummy and Daddy?”
I stuck my tongue out at him. “Don’t be an asshole.”
He gave an unrepentant grin, still holding the pretty cocktail dress.
It was a simple sheath with cap sleeves and a modest neckline, but the black, scalloped lace overlay and the sheer design of the back gave it a modern edge.
“This would be perfect for the dinner I’m attending tonight,” he said, displaying the dress in much the same manner used by the woman who’d sold it to me at the boutique. “Why don’t you leave it out?”
I frowned at him. “What dinner?”
“In Luxembourg.” He rolled his eyes. “My parents mentioned it a few days ago, and I forgot about it until they reminded me this morning. Why don’t you come with me? I can’t get out of it because we’re discussing trade partnerships and such, but I hate for you to spend your final night here alone.”
“So you’d rather me go with you so I can sit and listen to you talk trade partnerships.” I gave him a dry look. “That’s so sweet of you.”
“I know.” He winked. “Prince Geraint’s fiancée, Katrina, will be there. You never had a chance to meet her. I think you’d like her. And trade partnerships will probably bore her to tears. She does a lot of charity work, and…oh, and her brother is married to an American actress. She’s doing charity work that involves the theatre. You love the theatre, and you’re always trying to find ways to get Uncle Wade and Aunt Willa more involved in more philanthropic causes.”
I scrunched up my brow as I folded a scarf, a memory working free. “An actress…wait, you mean the Broadway Princess…Regan Elson?”
“You’re just now making that connection?” he teased.
I grabbed the red silk shoe and threw it at him.
He caught it easily. “Hey…careful. You’d hate to have Blanche work you over for assaulting the prince.”
“She’d probably slip me fifty and high-five me behind your back.” Rolling my eyes at him, I held out my hand for the shoe and looked it over.
“If you were worried about damaging it, you shouldn’t have thrown it,” he said.
“Hush.” Satisfied, I tucked it back in the box and closed it, removing it from temptation. The other pair of shoes I’d picked up that day sat next to it, and I tugged the lid off, looking at the Manolo Blahnik satin pumps with the jeweled asymmetrical strap. I really did like things that sparkled.
“You even have the perfect pair of shoes.”
Flipping the lid back over the pumps, I met his eyes. “No purse. No jewelry.”
“Oh, I’m sure my mother wouldn’t mind helping you there.”
I gulped at that idea. I had no doubt Princess Valentina would be happy to help, but the idea of wearing jewels from Monaco’s royal collection made me a little sick to my stomach. “Ah…I don’t know…”
“Relax.” Aeric came around the bed and pushed the dress into my arms. “I’ll let her know. Come on. You know you don’t want to spend the night alone, and besides, for all we know, it could be several years before our schedules work out for us to visit again.”
“Okay.” I leaned against him with a sigh. “You have a point.”
* * *
Princess Valentina Nicolai,my mother’s older sister, swept into my room an hour later. A solid woman with a tight cap of gray curls followed behind her, carrying a silver tray with several wooden boxes on top.
I recognized Ana, one of her personal assistants.
