The Prince in the Royal Suite

There was one big problem. Libby’s underwear was hanging on the washing line over the bath, and Lucinda’s selection of skimpy thongs would cut her in two, while her boobs stood no chance of being safely contained within the scraps of ribbon and lace that constituted a bra in Lucinda-land.

Go commando?

Yes, it had been that, or stay in her room. And what had she promised Lucinda?

The dress Lucinda had suggested slithered out of its folds of tissue paper like a ready-made promise of glamour and excitement and she had hardly dared to put it on, imagining she was bound to stick a heel through the hem, or spill something sticky down it –

But as there was no alternative…

She would just have to be careful, Libby had assured herself, breathless with excitement, as she had stepped carefully into the whisper of silk.

And it felt wonderful. She even stood taller, held her stomach in and put her shoulders back, as Lucinda was always telling her to do. It was impossible to wear a dress like this and hide in a corner, Libby reflected as she smoothed the night-dark silk. She had to act the part. She had to have confidence. The dress gave her no option. She’d pinned up her long, glossy black hair in her version of a messy up-do, slicked on some lip balm and a spritz of scent, and then braced herself to look in the full-length mirror in her bedroom, hoping for a change for the better.

There had been a change.

She had turned from a mouse to, well, a guinea pig, maybe. You couldn’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear, as dear old granny used to say.

She had decided that was quite enough procrastination for one night, but just in case this new version of Libby Lancaster failed to make the grade in the public part of the hotel, she had stuffed one of the complimentary hotel magazines into her bag so she had something to hide behind. Then, fingering the four-leaf clover she always wore on a slim chain round her neck, she drew in a deep, steadying breath, silently promising both her mother, who had given her the four-leaf clover, and Lucinda, who had lent her the clothes, that she wouldn’t let either of them down.

Once she was down in the lobby, the shadowy interior of the bar called to her. And, surprise, surprise, she was drawn to a shadowy corner, which was her usual cop-out when Lucinda and friends were living it large. But tonight something crazy had happened. Maybe it was the shoes? Libby reflected, sticking one foot out to take a look. They certainly made her walk differently. They made her feel confident. Lucinda was right about the heels, they were gorgeous, and they deserved a proper outing, so instead of heading for that shadowy corner, she had sashayed right up to the bar and plonked herself down there, on the only unoccupied stool.

No problem, she told herself for the umpteenth time as her heart pounded with anxiety. She would soon calm down. No-one here knew her from Adam, so she had a completely clean sheet and a fabulous wardrobe of clothes, so why not act as if she had all the confidence in the world? She could be Lucinda for the night.

‘Would you like a drink madam?’

‘Um… Er…’ So much for confidence! She had fallen at the first hurdle. Heating up under the barman’s patient stare, she scanned the ranks of bottles, searching for inspiration. Half of the drinks she’d never heard of, and the rest looked more like food colouring than something she’d want to ingest in a gulp.

‘Lemonade please? With a dash of lime?’

Great start. Lucinda would have asked for champagne – and not by the glass, either. As it turned out, positive thinking wasn’t enough to stop her heating up with embarrassment, and she couldn’t risk perspiring in this dress –

‘Your drink, madam…’

‘Thank you.’ It was in a fancy glass. She downed it in one. She needed something to do with her hands to stop wringing them.

‘You look agitated,’ a deep, faintly accented voice observed. ‘Can I buy you a top up?’

‘Agitated?’

Spinning round on her bar stool, Libby promptly snapped the cocktail stick she’d been torturing in half. Confident and in charge, she reminded herself firmly, swallowing deep as she took her first look at the owner of the chilli chocolate voice.

‘Was that a white wine spritzer?’ he asked.

Her mouth was still open, she realised, shutting it quickly. The man was devastating – off the scale attractive. His smile alone lit up the room, but in a sultry, candlelit way. And he towered over her.

She was sitting down, Libby reminded herself sensibly. Of course he was towering over her. But he was one big, powerful-looking man…

‘Yes…? No?’ he prompted. ‘The drink?’ he said pleasantly.

He was a couple of years older than she was – maybe thirty. And he was still angling that bad-boy smile. And, no, she wasn’t going to look over her shoulder to see if he was talking to someone else. She had to have more confidence than that.

‘White wine spritzer, wasn’t it?’

‘No. Sorry – what I mean to say is, I’m drinking lemonade with a dash of lime.’

‘Lemonade and lime, please,’ he asked the barman, ‘and a Scotch for me, please.’

Nice manners. But had she agreed to this?

Libby rapidly rejigged her brain cells to take in the dark, flashing eyes, thick, wavy black hair, and totally disreputable stubble of the man who was wearing snug-fitting jeans, highly polished boots, and a beautifully tailored jacket that clung lovingly to his lean frame. Sensing her interest, he turned his head to look at her with amusement in his eyes.

‘Are you trying to pick me up?’ shot out of her mouth without any assistance from her brain at all. ‘Sorry – I don’t know what made me say that.’

‘Maybe you’re unusually intuitive?’ he suggested, trying not to smile.

She’d forgive him this once for mocking her, just for being so easy on the eyes. She couldn’t blame him for getting the wrong idea about her, when she had set out tonight to look the part of confident city girl, and here she was sitting alone at the bar – something she’d never done in her life before. ‘Libby…’ She proffered her hand.

‘Lucaj.’

His grip was warm and firm, and as they shook hands, she realised that while she would normally let go of a stranger’s hand as fast as possible, she was quite happy to hold on to Lucaj. There was something about him that reassured her – which went against all the evidence. Anyone with such a wicked smile, and a mouth like his, spelled danger in any language.

‘So, you’re English, Libby?’

‘Yes, I am.’ She met the clear, intelligent gaze with interest. There was more to Lucaj than met the eyes, she sensed, and what met the eyes was a heart-racing quiver of possibilities. ‘You?’ she prompted before she had chance to consider any of these dangerous possibilities.

‘Let’s just say I’m a citizen of the world – 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.