other things to occupy them. Natalia slid into her seat and glanced at the line-up of horses racing. ‘Apparently,’ she told Ben, ‘Autumn Nights is the favourite.’
Ben lounged in his seat, flicking through the program with long, lean fingers. ‘Then we can’t bet on that one.’
‘Why not?’
He gave her a lazy smile. ‘Neither of us is a sure thing, Princess.’
Natalia glanced down at the program, willed herself not to flush. She had a feeling Ben was not talking about horses. ‘Evening Star is considered the underdog,’ she said. ‘It’s his first race. I’ll bet on him.’
‘To win?’
She nodded. ‘And what about you?’
He flicked another glance at the line-up. ‘Wild Wishes.’
She had a few of those. Swallowing, Natalia said, ‘We still haven’t decided just what we’re betting on.’
‘Well,’ Ben said, his voice dropping to a husky murmur, ‘I think we should make it interesting.’
She shifted in her seat. ‘How interesting?’
‘If Evening Star wins, you get to kiss me.’
Desire ran through her like a trail of dynamite, exploding inside of her. ‘And if Wild Wishes wins?’
‘I get to kiss you.’
Natalia let out a little laugh. ‘But that’s the same thing.’
‘No,’ Ben clarified silkily, ‘it’s not. It’s all about who controls the kiss.’
Control. Of course this was about control. Natalia turned away, focusing on the race course beneath them. She fanned herself with her program, and heard Ben chuckle softly.
‘Hot, Princess?’
‘Wild Wishes is a long shot too,’ she informed him, ignoring his little innuendo. ‘It might be that neither of us gets a kiss today.’
Ben leaned back in his seat. ‘And that,’ he said softly, ‘would be a pity.’
Yes, it would. Already Natalia was imagining how his lips would feel on hers, hard and demanding. But if she controlled the kiss … she felt as if she’d swallowed fireworks, everything fizzing inside her. She didn’t know which of them she wanted to win.
The race started, and with it Natalia felt another surge of adrenalin. She felt a fully male energy radiating from Ben’s powerful form as he leaned forward to watch the race. Autumn Nights started out in front, but a quarter of the way through the course Wild Wishes pulled ahead.
‘Ah-ha,’ Ben said softly, and Natalia gave him a knowing smile.
‘Evening Star is known to save the best for last.’
‘You want to win, Princess?’
‘Of course.’
He smiled, and Natalia smiled back, their gazes locking in steely and heated challenge. Natalia had never felt so aware, so alive, or so wanted. After a tense moment she forced herself to turn back to the race.
‘Ah-ha,’ she echoed. ‘Look at Evening Star.’
Sure enough Evening Star had pulled a length ahead of Wild Wishes. They watched for several taut moments as the horses galloped, only half a length between them, dust flying from their hooves. Evening Star was still ahead, and Natalia was already envisioning turning to Ben with a little smile, yanking him over to her by his tie and pulling his mouth down to hers …
Then, out of seemingly nowhere, Autumn Nights pulled ahead of both the horses, crossing the finish line a full two lengths in front of Evening Star.
Around them the crowd burst into cheers at such a close victory, and Natalia sank back in her seat, conscious of the swamping sense of disappointment she felt.
‘Well,’ Ben said with a surprisingly shaky laugh, ‘it looks like we both lost.’
‘Yes.’ Her throat felt absurdly tight. It was just a race; it would have been just a kiss. Yet she felt as if she’d lost out on something wonderful and precious. ‘At least there’s champagne,’ she said lightly, and beckoned a waiter forward to serve them.
The tension between them lessened as they chatted over champagne and strawberries. Natalia forced the thought—and hope—of the kiss back, knowing there was no good dwelling on it now. The moment had passed. Ben would have kissed her for a bet, she realized with a trace of bitterness, but not just to kiss her. Not the way she really wanted to be kissed.
‘Why the frown, Princess?’
She glanced up at him, saw his eyes narrowed in that speculative way she’d come to recognize, and gave him an easy smile. ‘No reason.’
‘Not pining over Evening Star, are you?’
‘That,’ Natalia told him sweetly, ‘would be quite a wild wish.’
He chuckled and leaned back in his seat. ‘So do you go to the races often?’
‘Occasionally. A royal presence is often required. My father owns one of the horses in this race.’
‘Which one?’
‘Abdul Akbar. He came in fifth.’
‘Too bad.’ She just shrugged. ‘Are you close to your parents?’
‘Close?’ Natalia took a sip of champagne, unnerved by the question. ‘Are you?’ she asked.
‘Nope, not going to answer that one. I asked you first.’
‘Then I suppose the short answer is no, not really.’
‘What’s the long answer?’
She stared at him. ‘Why do you want to know?’
‘Well, Princess,’ Ben told her, leaning forward so the male scent of him, aftershave and champagne and even a little bit of strawberry, washed over her, ‘it’s called making conversation.’
She gave him a tiny smile. ‘A talent I didn’t think you were capable of.’
‘I am, on occasion.’
‘So what’s the occasion?’
He held his champagne flute aloft. ‘Isn’t it obvious?’
It had been more comfortable, Natalia thought, when they had been bantering and betting on a kiss. This question—this conversation—felt far more intimate and dangerous than a mere brushing of lips ever could have been. ‘My parents put the kingdom before their family,’ Natalia finally said. ‘In many different ways. It created a distance.’
‘Duty before love?’
‘Something like that.’ She really didn’t feel like going into it, or remembering the years of secrecy and shame. Keep it quiet, Natalia. Don’t let anyone know how slow you are. She smiled, took a sip of her drink. ‘What about you?’
‘Am I close to my parents?’ Ben shrugged. ‘My father likes to think we’re close, but I’m not sure we really are. And I feel very protective of my mother. She’s been through too much already.’ He pressed his lips together, clearly as uncomfortable as she was revealing anything personal, and Natalia laughed softly.
‘You shouldn’t have asked the question, Ben, if you weren’t willing to answer it.’
He acknowledged her point with a wry half-smile. ‘True. Maybe we should stick to talking about films or books. Read anything good lately?’
Definitely not. ‘Nope,’ Natalia said lightly. She reached for a strawberry and tried to ignore the ache in her chest that radiated outwards, seeming to take over her whole body with its pain. Why, she wondered, did it hurt to have secrets when the thought of them