Page 64 of A Royal Promise
“Bri,” he whispered, and she started to stir.
Her eyelids fluttered a few times before they slowly opened. When her chocolate-brown eyes landed on his, they widened, and she sat up with a renewed burst of energy.
“What happened?” Her eyes darted around the living room like she was trying to remember where she was.
“Everything’s okay. We fell asleep during the movie. I’m sorry to wake you, but I need to get going. My agenda is full today before we leave to visit your family this evening.”
Bri yawned, making Drew feel even worse for waking her. “I’m sorry for keeping you.”
Drew got to his feet and helped pull her up from the couch. He slipped on his shoes and carried their empty bowl of popcorn over to the sink before meeting her at the door.
They stepped outside together, and he watched Bri as she looked around at the guards he had watching over Hillside Cottage. She might think it was excessive that he’d assigned ten palace guards to protect her home, but no amount of protection would ever be excessive in his eyes when it came to Bri’s safety.
She turned back to face him. “Isn’t this a little…overkill?”
“Nothingis overkill for you.”
She opened her mouth like she was going to say something, but he cut her off.
“I should go. I’ll see you for dinner.”
He leaned in and kissed her temple. It was the briefest of touches, barely a whisper of his lips pressed to her skin, but it affected his entire body, filling him with an electric buzz. It felt like a sweet sugar-induced hangover that could only be cured by her hand in his, her lips on his. Bri was the cause and the cure.
His body tensed as he pulled back, already missing the nearness of her. Drew started the ten-minute walk to the palace without a glance back.
He went through the motions of the day, but his mind always wandered back to Bri. When he’d finished his final meeting, Drew was tired, but the realization that it was finally time to see Bri again filled him with a new bout of energy.
With hurried steps, he approached the family dining room, but he stopped in his tracks when he saw Clarissa standing in the hallway, blocking his path.
“Andy,” she cooed, sauntering over to him the moment she spotted him.
He instantly clenched his teeth. She was like the human embodiment of getting a cavity filled. Being around her made him feel tense and grated on his nerves.
“It’s been far too long since we’ve seen each other. I’ve missed you.” Clarissa pouted and swatted his arm. She moved closer and closer to him until he was cornered up against the wall.
“I hope you’ve been well, Clarissa,” he gritted out as he moved to the side, trying to keep his distance.
“Come on, Andy. You don’t have to keep up this little charade around me. I know it’smeyou want.” She draped herself on his arm like cheap curtains.
He took a step away, and she had to catch herself to keep from falling. Drew didn’t even care. All his royal training went out the window. Pure determination and honesty took over as he said, “Let me be very,veryclear. I. Love. Bri. I always have. I always will.”
Love had always felt like a big word…but with Bri, it didn’t feel big enough. It didn’t encompass the depth of his feelings for her.
His face must’ve had the truth written all over it because Clarissa’s flirtatious smile faltered slightly before she put on a confident grin. “You don’t have to put on a show just because she can hear you. I know none of this is real.”
Drew whipped his head around. He spotted Bri standing a few feet behind him. Her arms were crossed in front of her chest, likely frustrated with how Clarissa acted around him even though they were engaged. But her eyes… Her chocolate-brown eyes were focused solely on him, looking into his in a way that made him feel naked.
He was sure she could see straight into his heart—that she would realize it beat only for her. Drew dropped his gaze, still unwilling to share the depths of his soul with her when he wasn’t sure his feelings would be reciprocated.
Except. Had she been standing there when he’d told Clarissa he always had and always would love Bri? He shuffled his feet, feeling completely vulnerable in front of the woman he loved and the woman he was desperately trying to get away from. When he peered back up at Bri, she was taking unwavering, deliberate steps toward him with a look on her face he’d never seen in all the years he’d known her.
She stopped right in front of him, wrapped her arms around his neck, and pressed her lips to his. Drew was utterly shocked, but he wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity to kiss her like he’d been wanting to for weeks, months,years.
Without an ounce of hesitation, he placed one hand on her waist and tangled the other in her silky hair. While their first kiss had been tentative and short, this one was unrestrained and full of confidence. He kissed her with all the passion of a man fully in love. While he may not be able to tell her that yet, Drew could show her—so he did.
I love you.His lips explored hers slowly and then more fervently as he tried to learn this side of her—a side he’d never been able to explore before.
You’re the most precious thing in the world to me.Drew pulled his lips back so he could kiss her cheek, her nose, her temple, her forehead, her jaw, the soft spot beneath her ear.
