Page 19 of Princess Bride Swap

So she went and got dressed for bed. Just as he’d told her to do. And if she felt a bit like crying, she doubted it would be the last time.

Lyon did not allow himself mistakes. If one crept on him, he immediately corrected it.

Which was why he’d ended things where he’d ended them. To prove he could. To correct the mistake of thinking he could somehow wield this thing inside of him in a productive way.

If he spent another uncomfortable, sleepless night in bed with his wife, this was punishment for allowing himself to step too close to that edge. Where he focused more onwantthan right.

And, oh, how he’dwanted. She was beautiful. Soft and golden. Like some kind of angel. Celestially made just for him. For him to want. For him to have.

But no. That was not his lot in life. His one and only job was to protect Divio. To stabilize it. Tofixit. The men who’d come before him had hurt Divio over and over again—financially, in worldly reputation and most importantly in breaking the trust between the monarchy and the citizens.

The princes who’d come before had put their own selfish desires first and their citizens last. His grandmother had always made sure he understood that, and that it was his role to be their opposite. Toearnandkeeptheir trust. To pay the debt her family had carved deep.

So he had ended things without touching Beau, though it had felt a bit like cutting off his own limbs in the moment. But he’d done it.Hewas in control. Not desire, no matter how big and hot and uncontrollable the flame inside had seemed,hehad stopped it.

He was not like his cousins, his uncles, his great-uncles, letting his wants rule the day and ruining the reputation and good standing of the monarchy. He was everything his grandmother and mother had built him to be. A crown prince. The last hope of his family and country.

When he finally took Beau to bed, he would be in control, not desperate. There would be no sordid stories, no pictures, nowhispers.

He had a certain amount of privacy and freedom at the royal chalet. Particularly if he did not bring any staff. He would work out any...control issues there. When they returned to the castle, he would know how to handle his alluring bride. In all the ways his grandmother’s oldest brother never had.Hehad scandalized a country with sordid stories about the wild life he’d led with his wife, the princess.

It had been the beginning of a long line of men who’d behaved worse and more selfishly with each pass of the baton.

Beau tossed and turned next to him, sometimes asleep, sometimes not. He dared not think about what she might be feeling, wanting. It didn’t matter. He lay there and watched the gap in the curtains, until dark became light and he could feasibly get up and prepare for the day ahead.

He showered, dressed, then made his way down to his office where he called on a variety of staff members to determine the next steps. Alice assured him the video was well received, which allowed him to make arrangements for a weekend trip to the chalet.

Once he was satisfied everything would run well without him, he began to gather the things he’d want to bring with him in case of emergency. Including the romance novel Beau had picked out yesterday morning.

Which was when his mother walked in. Unannounced.

He didn’t bother to chastise her for it. “I am on my way out, Mother. Did you need anything from me before Beau and I leave for the chalet?”

“That is what I came to speak to you about. I’m not sure jetting off on a honeymoon is best.”

“I am hardly jetting off, Mother. We are simply going to the chalet. I’m even going to drive.” He slid his laptop into his bag next to Beau’s book. “A short, cozy honeymoon. It is what the people expect of a happily married couple.”

“Are you sure you want time away when people could be conjuring up all sorts of stories abouther?”

Lyon stopped what he was doing and looked up at his mother. Her expression was uncharacteristically pinched, and there was no missing the disdainful way she had saidher.

He considered what Beau had said last night. That his mother did not like her. She had not been wrong. And what a good quality for a princess, to know when she wasn’t liked, and not react much to it.

But he didn’t know what to do with his mother. They had almost always got on. Their goals had always been aligned. Grandmother had passed that goal down to them. It had always been a family tie, and it had always been held with accord.

Perhaps if he thought hard on it, there’d been times as a boy he had felt...chained to his grandmother and mother’s vision for him, but he’d been but a child. He could hardly remember those times. Didn’t like to. Wouldn’t have if his mother wasn’t standing here concerned with Beau andstories.

When if there was any real concern, his staff would have informedhim, not his mother.

“If someone finds something that I did not, then I suppose we will deal with it as we can. But I find that eventuality nearly impossible as I was very thorough in investigating the Rendalls.”

“The Rendalls. Not her specifically.”

“Mother.”

“I don’t trust her.”

While he often listened to his mother’s opinions of people, he found he could not take this one on board. She was good at understanding motivations, particularly of the political set. She knew how to handle threats, but Beau was not a threat. She was...

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