The Prince in the Royal Suite. Susan Stephens

always on the move.’

      He was certainly charismatic – eastern European, possibly, she guessed, with those amazing cheekbones – but the humour in his eyes was all his own. And this was all very nice, but she really should have more sense than to talk to a strange man in a bar. ‘I really shouldn’t be doing this,’ she admitted in her usual forthright manner.

      ‘Shouldn’t be doing what?’ Lucaj demanded as the barman served their drinks.

      ‘Talking to you – allowing you buy me a drink, when I don’t even know you.’

      ‘I don’t know you.’ Lucaj flashed a smile that proved his strong white teeth were just as impressive as the rest of him. ‘Am I in danger? If I am, you should do the decent thing and tell me now.’

      She laughed to cover for her burning cheeks. Indecent things were uppermost in her mind where Lucaj was concerned.

      Shooting into an upright position, she pulled herself together. Acting confident was one thing, but taking it to the next level was something else altogether. ‘I don’t normally do things like this.’

      ‘But we’re both alone in alone in London. At least, I presume you’re alone?’

      ‘Yes I am.’ Should she have admitted that? She might be playing a role, but she got the feeling that Lucaj was playing himself.

      ‘Then, let’s break the rules, Libby. There’s no-one here to see us.’

      He gave her that smile again, and it was bone-melting. He smelled amazing too – sandalwood and spice. And they were just two strangers chatting in a bar. Where was the harm in that?

      Harm lay in the fact that for the first time in her life, this good girl wished she were bad.

       Chapter Two

      ‘Penny for them? That is what you say over here, isn’t it?’

      Lucaj must have known it was. His English was perfect. He had probably been to school down the road.

      Why was she still here with a dangerous-looking man she didn’t know anything about? Picking up her bag, she hopped down from the stool. ‘Thanks for the drink, Lucaj, but I’d better make a move –’

      ‘Whoah!’

      She had made a move. She’d sent her glass of lemonade flying all over him, drenching Lucaj from the top of his crisp white shirt, to the crotch of his well-packed jeans. ‘Oh, good grief! I’m so sorry –’ Snatching up the cloth the barman quickly proffered, she offered to mop him up.

      ‘No – really,’ Lucaj exclaimed. ‘That really isn’t necessary –’

      What exactly was she doing on her knees in front of him? ‘Sorry – sorry.’ Red-faced, she pulled back. No way was she going near that zone. She set about mopping up the floor instead.

      ‘There are people here who do that,’ Lucaj pointed out.

      ‘I’m fine.’ She was. She’d made the mess. She’d clear it up.

      ‘So, now you can’t leave,’ Lucaj observed when she stood up again, the wicked smile firmly back in place on his mouth.

      ‘Why can’t I leave?’ she demanded suspiciously as she returned the soaking cloth to the barman with her thanks.

      ‘You have to buy me a drink,’ Lucaj explained. ‘Champagne for you, to calm your nerves – and another scotch for me.’

      ‘No. I’ll have a scotch too,’ Libby insisted, firming her jaw as she sat down again. She needed something stronger than a few bubbles and a squished grape. The choice of lemonade had been a lack of confidence blip, but she was back playing the role now.

      ‘I have a confession to make,’ Lucaj admitted as they sat waiting for their drinks.

      ‘Oh?’ Her gaze flicked to his wedding finger.

      He laughed. ‘Nothing like that, Libby.’

      She took in the navy blue eyes, fringed with thick black lashes, and for some crazy reason, she believed him.

      ‘I overheard you at the front desk,’ he explained, ‘and I’m curious to find out how you got on with sorting out a room.’

      ‘I accepted the last room they had. I didn’t realise you were at the front desk at the same time as me. Is that why you started talking to me just now?’

      Pulling his head back to stare down at her, Lucaj frowned. ‘No. I wanted to talk to you. That’s it –’

      As he opened his arms in a disarming shrug, she melted a little more. ‘I didn’t sound rude to you at the front desk, did I?’

      ‘Not a bit, considering the room they gave you. All hotels have a last-resort room, and it sounded to me as if that’s what you got.’

      ‘That’s a relief – that I didn’t sound rude, I mean.’

      ‘You’re not a troglodyte, nor are you an infectious disease, so I think it’s quite reasonable to request a noise-free, light-filled room that isn't cut off from the rest of the hotel by the service lift and the night porter's luggage store. To be honest, I thought you were extremely restrained. Cheers!’ Lucaj raised his glass of amber liquid. ‘Here’s to you…’

      ‘I was happy with the emergency room, honestly –’

      ‘You deserve something better, that’s all. In my humble opinion,’ Lucaj added with a mock bow.

      She was still staring at him, still absorbing his evaluation of her, and the fact that, however improbable it seemed, Lucaj was definitely interested in her. Maybe all it took was a pair of sassy heels.

      ‘Something wrong with your drink?’ he demanded.

      She loved the way his sexy lips pressed down when he asked a question, while his eyes lit with amusement. It took her a moment to drag her gaze away so she could juggle her brain cells into some sort of order. ‘Would you mind if I changed the scotch for lemonade?’ Lucaj was a real distraction, and what she needed right now was a clear head.