Page 83 of Rogue Royal
“Hey! I didn’t do anything!”
Douglas pulled Mav closer on the sofa, and Mav sank into his embrace, closed his eyes and felt the sense of rightness settle into his body. He turned his head to the side and rubbed his cheek against Douglas’s shoulder. Douglas kissed his forehead and continued chatting with Zara and Tex. They’d spent the evening talking about everything and anything while they ate takeaway.
“—security guard or bodyguard or something?”
Mav refocused on the conversation, wondering why Zara was asking about security.
“I have a bodyguard, for want of a better word. When I’m here, he sits outside because they have already checked this building out. When I go to other places, he’s by my side or a step behind. Around other people, like say you guys, he would be a little further away to give some semblance of privacy.”
“I expected them to need you to be in their eyesight all the time,” Tex said.
Douglas shrugged. “When we’re out in public or at an event, he is more prominent, and there is usually more than one. Otherwise, I’m not wasting resources by having more than one person around me. It’s not fair to others who need it more than I do.”
Mav’s gaze followed the contour of Douglas’s face as he spoke, a small smile making its way onto his own face. Despite Douglas’s assurances that he wasn’t important enough to warrant extra protection, Mav knew otherwise. Douglas was more than capable of looking after himself in certain situations and wanted to ensure those who couldn’t had more people for them. It was another hidden factor in his personality, though Mav was beginning to believe Douglas’s family wasn’t as in the dark as Douglas thought they were.
“Which reminds me, Mav,” Douglas continued, “Would you like to come to the charity event with me this weekend?”
“I don’t…I…What?” Mav couldn’t fathom how he could be on the other side of the coin for royal events like this one. This event was for a children’s charity Douglas’s mother supported. It was an auction-style event with dinner and dancing.
Douglas grinned and cupped his cheek. “You’re so cute when you’re flustered.” He pressed several chaste kisses to Mav’s lips before releasing him.
“You don’t need me there, do you?”
“Need you there? No. Want you there? Yes. I don’t want to hide our relationship anymore. Not now that we have Mother’s and Father’s blessings.”
Those beautiful words were how he found himself fussing with a tuxedo bow tie an hour before the event started, several days later. Douglas had wanted him to get ready in his rooms, but Mav wasn’t ready for that yet, not on Windsor grounds. If they had been getting ready at Douglas’s apartment, it would have been a different matter, but at the castle, where there were so many people, Mav felt weird.
A knock sounded, and Mav abandoned his tie and raked his fingers through his hair as he stalked to the door. Opening it, his mouth dropped open. “Holy hell,” he whispered.
Douglas grinned and slipped past him into the room. Mav’s eyes followed, and he barely remembered to close the door behind him.
“I don’t think we should go anywhere tonight. Not with you looking like that. I won’t stand a chance against all those other people.” Mav wasn’t joking either, but some of his insecurities reared up. How could Douglas be happy with him?
Douglas stepped closer, bringing his hands to Mav’s cheeks. “You’re all I need. You make me whole. You don’t expect me to change who I am. You’re not after the fame and glory of being with a prince. You want me because I’m me. In my books, it makes you worth a hundred times more than anyone else out there.”
Mav rested his hands on Douglas’s wrists and closed his eyes as tears leaked out. How could Douglas so easily express what he thought and felt?
“I loveyou, Mav. No one else. Never have, never will.”
Douglas brushed their lips together, and Mav swooned—full-on swooned—into his arms. He had his own prince charming. No matter how long it lasted, Mav was going to enjoy every minute.
“I love you, too.” He opened his eyes and blinked a few times to clear the tears. “Sorry, I thought I’d got through all the issues I had with the others.”
“Don’t be sorry. You’re worth everything, and I will remind you every day. You’ll have no cause to forget.”
Mav smiled and closed his eyes again. “Thank you. Now, stop saying nice things like that; otherwise, I will never be ready in time.”
Douglas pressed a kiss to Mav’s lips once more, then pulled away. “Have you spoken to your dad?”
Mav headed into the bathroom to attempt the bow tie again. “I’ve spoken to him, but I’m going to visit him tomorrow afternoon. Although, I should’ve been to see him before this event. He’ll read the paper and find out about us before I can tell him.”
Hands came around his shoulders and took hold of the tie. Douglas nimbly tied it and rested his hands on Mav’s shoulders. “Regardless, I’m sure he’ll be fine about it.”
“Oh, I’m not worried about that. I know he’ll be happy. I’m not looking forward to telling him about Bert.”
Douglas slid his hands further around his chest and rested his chin on Mav’s shoulder. “You should tell him the truth. I doubt he’d be friends with someone willing to do that to his son.”
Mav sighed. “I know. I don’t want him to lose his job.”
