Growing up, we had nothing but love. My parents worked all the time to provide what little we had, and now it’s my turn to give back. I set my parents up with whatever they wanted. Right now, they are traveling Europe, doing things they never thought they’d be able to afford. I am happy to do it. They sacrificed everything in such a way that Wendy and I didn’t notice we didn’t have anything.
Throughout the night, we dance several times before going out onto the balcony for some fresh air. We drink champagne and talk. I feel like I’ve known her my whole life. We keep finding excuses to touch each other. If this woman isn’t in my bed
“Ma’am, we have to leave now,” a man says, stepping into our space. At first, I’m pissed until I realize that she knows him. He looks like your basic bodyguard to me.
“Renault, what’s going on?” she asks, clearly concerned. She doesn’t step out of my arms, though.
“It is your father, your highness. We must leave for home at once.”
“Your highness?” I blurt out. Fuck, I’ve got to get that under control.
“This is Irina, the crown pri…,” the man begins, but Irina cuts him off with a wave of her fingerless gloved hand.
“That will be all Renault. I will be ready to go in a moment,” she says. The man bows before walking away.”
“What’s happening?” I ask as soon as we are alone again.
“I am Irina, the crown princess of Solaria,” she says, shocking the hell out of me. That’s why she looks so familiar.
It’s crazy, but I’m half in love with her already. Can I really just let her go home without me?
Hell no.
Chapter Two
Irina
I watch his gorgeous face for a response, but there is none. I guess that’s better than some I’ve seen. I don’t usually go around telling the world my business, but he was standing in front of me when Renault showed up. How do you explain Renault’s presence without talking about it? Therefore, a few people in the college president’s office and Wendy know who I really am. Other than that, I’ve kept my mouth shut.
Being in America has afforded me the luxury of privacy, something I didn’t have at home. Being the crown princess of Solaria, my every move was watched. No one knows who I am here, mainly because Solaria has eleven total princesses, all more scandalous than the last. My cousins and I are what the Solarian media refers to as “rapturous royals” and the “sinful sisters.” Americans can’t tell us apart, and for that, I am grateful. As the oldest child of the king, I am next in line to rule. Solaria is a small nation carved out of Spain and France, right on the southern tip about a hundred miles from Andorra. We may be small, only a hundred thousand people live there, but we are rich. Right on the Mediterranean, Solaria is a tourist destination for the rich and famous, mainly because we don’t have many laws. The only ones we do have involve the welfare and safety of children, but anything else, drugs, consenting sex, you name it, we have something that will treat you right. We are also known for our polyamorous lifestyle. Most everyone has several spouses.
Personally, I had five mothers. My father treated all of his wives like the queens they were until, sadly, only he remains alive. I was the only child that any of his wives bore that lived past infancy. By rights, I should have three younger brothers and six sisters, but it was not meant to be. He’s at home all alone, and I don’t like that. I’ve begged my younger cousins to check on him, but they are always conveniently busy. Most have moved on to be queens or princesses of other nations, but Château les Collès will always be home to the lot of us. As the future queen, I have no desire to carry on the polyamorous tradition. I’m a one-man woman. I may not know anything about sex, at least not yet, but I know more than one dick is too many dicks. I want to be so consumed with love that I can’t breathe, but where will I find that? The dating pool is small in Solaria. Being a royal family member, I am pretty much related to most families, so going abroad to find my husband is a must. Finishing my master’s degree at Hixson University has been the best thing to happen in my life thus far. I speak perfect English, Spanish, French, and Catalan. I also speak passable German, but I don’t have a chance to use that language very often. I ride horses, play the piano, cello, and flute. I can ballroom dance, ice skate. I do needlepoint, cross-stitch, knit, read, and watch movies —pretty much anything an accomplished Jane Auste-esque young lady should do. I spent most of my youth in one lesson or another. So continuing with a master’s program was the next logical step for me, but honestly, I’m tired of all the schooling. Of all the proper lessons. I think I have a dark side that needs to be taught, nurtured, and allowed to flourish. At twenty-two, I am just an ordinary girl with a voracious sexual appetite. I feel the need to be satisfied, but I haven’t found the man to do it yet. It’s no wonder I feel this way, though; Solaria reminds me of what a child of Amsterdam and Las Vegas would be like. All sin, debauchery, and decadence. We dwell in opulence and freedoms most people never get a chance to experience. We may be selfish, self-satisfying people that don’t contribute much to the rest of the world except the export of several minerals, but we are happy. In the five hundred years we’ve been a nation, we’ve never so much as had a land dispute, let alone a war of any kind. Our court system mainly deals with traffic tickets and divorces. In a hundred years, we’ve had one murder, and it was a lover’s quarrel.