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If he didn’t want her around then she couldn’t argue. And the truth was . . . coffee sounded like heaven right now.
“If you’re sure.”
“I am.”
“Shall I bring you back anything?” she asked.
“No. I doubt that any café here serves a good cup of English breakfast. I’ll be fine until we get back and you can make me a pot.”
They’d brought their own teapot and loose leaf tea with them. She’d never gotten into drinking tea. Give her a good coffee any day.
She stood and gathered her things.
“I’ll call you when I leave. Make sure to take a guard with you. We wouldn’t want you to get hurt.”
“Oh, I’m sure that’s not necessary.”
His gaze turned hard. “I insist.”
Right. Okay. She stepped out of the office into the reception room.
Jonathan was certainly working hard to get Mr. Fical onboard with what he wanted. But wasn’t it all moot unless the Princes agreed? Their word was law, right? No one could go behind their backs or against them. But maybe that was making the people who lived here angry? What if they wanted open trade? To have tourism?
She just didn’t know enough about what was going on to hazard an educated guess.
Her unease made her feel even queasier. And her ankle throbbed as she walked on it.
“Chloe? You all right?”
She glanced up with a small smile to find Hux watching her closely.
“Of course. Never better.”
Sometimes the lies came so easily that it was scary.
“Jonathan doesn’t need me for this meeting, so I thought I would go grab a cup of coffee. Can I get either of you anything?”
“You can’t go alone,” Judd barked.
Right. Too much to ask for some time alone.
“I’ll be glad to come with you,” Hux said smoothly. “It will be a date.” He winked at her and to her embarrassment she could feel herself blushing.
He doesn’t mean it.
He bowed, then swept his arm out. “Come, milady. I shall wine and dine you and you shall fall at my feet in gratitude.”
Fall at his feet, huh?
Do not think about that. Do not.
“I think she might like the idea of that,” Judd said, shocking her.
What the heck?
“Yeah?” Hux stared down at her, that wide smile of his slowly disappearing.
To make way for a heated stare.
Oh hell.
She was in trouble here. Because that look on his face . . . it was melting her insides. Making her want more than she could ever have.
“Do you, little darlin’?” he asked, stepping closer. “Do you like the idea of me ordering you onto your knees in front of me? Of me telling you to—”
“Here I made you both some coffee. I thought you would both be getting thirsty.” The personal assistant came in pushing a tray with a coffee carafe, two mugs, and some milk and sugar.
Chloe immediately took a step away from Hux. She should be thankful to the other woman for interrupting them.
That was getting far too heated.
What had Hux been about to say? And why hadn’t Judd tried to stop him? If anything, it had felt like Judd was egging him on.
Ridiculous.
Judd didn’t like her.
But maybe they didn’t need to like her to want to fuck her.
“Little darlin’?” Hux moved closer to her, wrapping his arm around her.
She couldn’t help but stiffen.
Don’t show any emotion.
Ice.
Nothing can hurt you.
Well, that wasn’t quite true, was it?
“I’m going out. You’ve got coffee already, I see. I’ll be fine on my own.” She slid free of Hux’s hold and moved to the door.
What was wrong with her?
Why was she feeling so hurt? It was just a bit of flirting. It didn’t matter. And so what if another woman was bringing them coffee . . . and trying to flirt with them. Chloe couldn’t blame her.
“Not on your own, you don’t.” Judd slid in front of her.
She sighed. “Why not? I’m hardly a threat to anyone. I’m not exactly a secret kung-fu master.”
“No one said you were a threat.” He eyed her like he thought she was a bomb about to detonate.
Rein it in.
“We’re here to protect you, Chloe,” Judd told her.
She stared at him. She didn’t exactly believe that. Sure, that’s what they said, but she knew they were keeping an eye on her and Jonathan. There was absolutely no threat, so she thought it kind of ridiculous that they escorted them everywhere outside the palace.
However, it made more sense if they were worried about them doing something wrong.
“I’m just going to the closest coffee shop. I’m not going to do anything else.”
“Pretty sure it wouldn’t take you long to get into trouble,” Judd replied.
Her mouth dropped at that.
“I never get into trouble.”
“Hmm, you’ve been here three days and you’ve already fainted, fallen over, and given me a whole lot of sass. You’re totally trouble.”
“Sass? Sass?” She couldn’t believe what he was saying. She never gave anyone sass.
