Purely because Mel preferred to understand the people she dealt with!
‘We’ll treat tonight as an evening off,’ he declared. ‘If the remainder of this month is very busy, we can remember that we at least had a few hours to—how do you say it? “Veg out and do nothing.”‘
‘Why, yes.’ A delighted laugh escaped Mel. She couldn’t help it. The sound just flew out. Mel also couldn’t drag her gaze from that crease in his cheek, or from the sparkle in his deep blue eyes.
So she gave in and let herself enjoy the moment. It wasn’t as though Rik would want to spend the entire night kissing her senseless just because they were alone.
Just because he’d kissed her once already. Just because he was the best kisser she’d ever been kissed by and there would be times in the public eye, at least, when he would kiss her again. Just because he made her want to don sparkly shoes and leap into a rabbit hole.
‘If we’re having a night in,’ a night of not kissing each other, ‘then I guess we just need to work out how we want to spend our time.’
‘Not reading about truffles.’ This too was said with a smile.
Oh, she could fall heavily for that smile. She wouldn’t, though. Not when she’d reminded herself that she was doing this to help him, and help the people of Braston, and because she’d ended up here by mistake and there weren’t a lot of other options for him now, like none at all really, and she could afford the time and effort to help. Did it really make any difference whether she started her new life in Sydney this week or four months from now?
‘I think I’ve taken in as much information about truffles as I can manage for one day, but I’m pleased to know more about the industry. It’s obviously really important—to—to people here.’ She’d almost said that it was important to Rik, and that was why she’d wanted to understand.
That wouldn’t be the key reason, of course. She wanted to be supportive of Rik’s efforts. She’d made the commitment to marry him for that reason. But she wasn’t obsessing over learning all about his life and work or anything like that.
Are you sure about that, Melanie? Because you seem mightily interested in him, really.
Yes, she was sure! And no she was not ridiculously interested! She was helping to fix a problem that she was partially responsible for creating in the first place. She was no more interested than she should be.
‘It’s a fascinating industry,’ she said in the most dampening tone she could muster. ‘The truffle industry. But perhaps we could pass the time this evening some other way?’
Like snuggling on the sofa?
No. Like … well, she didn’t know. Cooking? Playing on the Internet?
‘How do you feel about television?’ Rik indicated the large screen in the corner of the room. ‘I have a selection of DVDs I’ve not yet got around to watching.’
‘Watching DVDs would be …‘ Smart. Sensible. Safe? Better than thinking about kissing the whole night? ‘A good idea. I don’t mind a good comedy, but I’ll watch most things.’
They sat on the floor in front of the DVD cabinet going through choices until she found episodes of an Australian comedy show she hadn’t yet watched. ‘Oh, you have this series! I’ve only ever seen a few episodes but it’s supposed to be brilliant!’
So they sat side by side on the sofa with popcorn that Rik made in the microwave, and sodas from his fridge, and watched comedy episodes until Mel had giggled so many times that she’d forgotten to feel self-conscious at all in Rik’s presence. Instead she had become totally enamoured of the rich, deep rumble that accounted for his laughter.
And she forgot to guard against letting herself be aware of him as an attractive appealing man and not a prince who should be held at arm’s length because she was only here for a few months and he was marrying her so he could avoid any kind of commitment to a woman, even if Mel didn’t know why he seemed to need to do that as much as he needed to. They were almost through the evening, anyway.
So why are you almost holding your breath, Mel, as though waiting for something to happen?
‘Goodnight, Mel.’ Rik walked Melanie to the opened doorway of her bedroom.
They’d watched their comedy episodes. Mel had paid more attention than he had. Did she feel it the way that he did? This compulsion that ate at him to draw closer, know her, use every avenue and every moment to learn more of her and to let her learn more of him? And a coinciding physical consciousness that seemed to fill the air around them with a charge of electricity just waiting for one small spark to set it ablaze?
Why did this woman make him feel this way more than any other had? Rik didn’t want to admit that to himself, but he forced the acknowledgement.
Then admit that you desire her, and that the desire is as much about her personality as it is about her physical appeal.
He’d spent this evening with her and he’d thought about how different their lives were and mad thoughts had come through his mind about bridging the gaps.
Look how well longevity and sticking together had worked for his father and mother. The queen had walked out, had done the one thing Rik and his brothers had never expected. She had turned her back on what she had treated as the core of her duty. And now neither parent would discuss the matter with their sons.
Rik turned his thoughts back to the present.
At times today Mel seemed to have almost forgotten that Rik was a prince. He’d … liked that. But now was not a good time for him to forget the arrangement they’d made. He needed this to work. To be distracted by her beauty and appeal was not the right thing for him to do, to be distracted mentally and in liking her so much, even less smart because it spoke of an emotional awareness that couldn’t happen. Rik could never trust …
‘Good—goodnight, Rik.’ She said the words quietly, almost tentatively.
With a question in their depths?
Her small hand came to rest on his forearm and she reached up and briefly kissed his cheek. ‘I’ll see you in the morning and I’ll be ready for whatever needs to be done to help get your temporary marriage plans started, or just to keep out of the way if you need to work in the truffle groves tomorrow.’
Rik searched her face and saw the determination to do the right thing, to dismiss him and her awareness of him at one and the same time. To remain Melanie here and Rikardo there and never the two should cross over their lines.
He saw all that, and he felt what was inside her. A very different compulsion that he felt, too, that made him want to lean in and replace that pseudo-kiss with the real thing. To know for himself if the last kiss had been some kind of strange fluke. If her lips would taste as good a second time.
‘Sleep well.’ He turned and started for his room at the end of the short corridor. ‘I will see you in the morning. Thank you for your company this evening. I … really enjoyed it.’
And with that, Prince Rikardo Eduard Ettonbierre of Braston went to his room, stepped inside and shut the door firmly behind him.
Only then did he lift his hand to allow his fingertips to lightly trace where her lips had pressed to his cheek.
It was perfectly fine for him to find Melanie likeable, and to still marry her, end the marriage short months later, and get on with the single life that he wanted, and needed to maintain.
He would not be marrying for real.
Rik sighed and dropped his hand. For now he needed to prepare for bed.
Tomorrow was a new day and no doubt a new set of challenges.