Erin stood awkwardly outside one of the hundreds of bathrooms she figured they had in this place. She scrunched up her face in an attempt to block out the sound of Jay peeing: gross. He, on the other hand, apparently couldn't care less whether she heard or not, having left the door ajar.
Without even looking, Erin could tell that the regal appearance of her new home continued still inside the bathrooms- one glance and she would discover that yes, the tiles were so shiny you could recongize your face reflected in it.
Moments later, the younger Prince had appeared, still rearranging himself as he approached. Erin noticed that she'd never heard the chain flush and she watched as Jay stumbled into the same room as her, leaving the door ajar once more.
"Bathroom number four," he mumbled quietly then set off a step ahead of her, his sock-clad feet shuffling loudly along the floor.
Erin walked along in his shadow, scowling. Not even she had imagined how wired she'd be on her first week here. Then again, it was only this particular member of the Royal Family that was showing her a hostile side: it seemed his father, brother and grandparents expressed the nicer traits.
It took her a minute to realize that Jay was shouting random rooms at her, accompanied by half-hearted hand gestures pointing in their direction; "piano room", "Dad's study", "Downstairs cinema", "These are the maids and servants quarters," with this one, he scoffed and turned his back, instead of facing Erin. He yawned.
They'd come to the opposite side of the downstairs corridor to where they'd met in the breakfast room. "I don't suppose you'll be spending a lot of time in this part of the floor," he smirked. "…because I don't. And, well, if you're here to be watching out for me then you won't be here," he pointed behind him. "They shouldn't be staying here anyway, it's not like they can afford it. But the Queen insists on it so whatever."
So he's making his feelings towards the workers here quite clear Erin thought. She gulped. It was no surprise really.
"I'll show you outside next because fuck… I need a cigarette." He let out a breath of air, nodding. "And I also can't be bothered to use the usual garden entrance so we'll go this way."
Erin watched as the Prince looked as though he was helping himself into the maids' bedrooms when he came to a sudden halt. She continued staring as he leaned against a certain section of the wall and pressed his weight against it. For a quick second she was confused, wondered what he was doing until a sudden gust of wind told her it was a disguised door. Before he disappeared, Erin followed him outside.
He led the way along a pebbled walkway, heavily decorated on either side with oversized greenery. Erin was temporarily overwhelmed with the scene but Jay apparently didn't have the time to dwell on the scenery and was walking three large steps ahead of her. She jogged to catch up with him- quietly though, not wanting him to turn around and see.
"The public garden," he still spoke with his back to her, one of his hands shoved in the back of his jeans. The scene surrounding them changed as they walked further- the plants replaced with colorful flowers and ceramic statues twice the size of her.
"Grandma's pride and joy," it sounded like the first thing the Prince had said with feeling this morning. He'd taken the hand from his jeans and touched two fingers against a red petal that hung from one of the tall stems. As he did so, Erin swore she saw something cross his features that resembled emotion, before it suddenly disappeared and his face looked cold. She heard him curse under his breath before he reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigarette packet, taking one out and balancing it between his lips.
Erin's eyes widened: a nicotine fix. She hadn't had one of those in a fucking long time.
"I need this," unbeknown to him, Jay spoke words that both of them were feeling before moving again, this time rearing away from the walkway and ducking out of sight. Reluctantly, Erin followed.
"Where are you going?" she asked, wanting to know.
"This place is riddled with security cameras," he stood at normal height again and faced her. The two of them stood in a makeshift circle: somebody had flattened the shrubs and a tree stump was positioned in the centre which somebody had clearly been using as a seat. Perhaps she didn't have to look far for the culprit…
"Obviously the Queen would have a heart attack if she saw me smoking in her precious gardens," Jay imitated his grandmother on the final two words, his voice going several pitches higher and he shook his head. "But when you gotta smoke, you gotta smoke. And there's always a way." He gestured around them at his hiding place, as though he was proud of himself. And he looked to be too, his face automatically in a better mood as he lit the end of his cigarette. He headed towards the log he used as his chair, a huge sigh escaping him as he exhaled a cloud of smoke.
Then he surprised her by offering up the packet. "Have one if you want."
It wasn't exactly an offer but Erin stared at the packet. Yes yes fucking yes I want one. She stepped nearer to him and took one, rolling it around between two fingers. Jay watched her tormented face, laughing at the same time as blowing out another array of smoke.
"I'm not gonna tell them, if that's what you're worried about." He spoke to her but avoided eye contact. "They don't know I come here to do this, and other stuff. So I'm not exactly going to rat you out."
It was enough – for now- for Erin to forget about her job for a minute. The first drag was almost euphoric: she sucked in the nicotine, feeling it travel all the way down to her lungs. She'd almost forgotten how much of a kick she got from such things. Soon she would be craving more than what was available though and that thought wasn't one she wanted to dwell on. She held the cigarette between her fingers, watching the ash as it burned through the skin and dropped to the floor.
Jay's eyes were on her. "Don't tell me you're going to waste it," he seethed and she heard him suck in a breath. "These things are expensive."
She wanted to retaliate (look at him, acting as though money is an issue!) but instead shrugged and let him take the stub to finish after his own. When he was finished with both, he stubbed them against the log but didn't drop them onto the ground but instead back into the packet they'd came from. Showing at least he had some sort of conscience when it came to his grandmother's sacred places.
Erin watched him as he quickly hid the cigarette box from sight again and stretched his arms upwards, yawing. It wasn't that that caught her attention though, but rather the coloring of a faded pink scar that ran from his waistline and stopped somewhere she couldn't see. Erin averted her gaze super quick and Jay stood up, although it was unclear whether it was because he'd caught her staring or not.
"Guess we should get the tour over with then," he shrugged, parting the plants again and heading back through to the walkway. For some reason, he seemed in a rush to get back inside. It took Erin a moment to realize that the Prince had taken her on another detour, again breaking away from the path. He headed in the direction of the palace walls but not towards the hidden door they'd emerged from. Instead, they were headed in the opposite direction, Jay walking two strides ahead of her. Erin knew she could have easily caught up with him- but given his attitude today, she kinda didn't want to.
He led the way around the bend and Erin recognized it as the entrance she'd first used with Robert, the Royal family's aide. She had time to catch up with Jay as he side-shuffled towards the garbage area, lifting the lid on one of the giant crates and dumping his trash.
"I'll show you upstairs," he spoke as he came back to her, pulling the door open and walking inside before her. He led the way again: up one of the many staircases, coming to an abrupt stop in the upper corridor. "This," he rapped a fist loudly against a large wooden door to their left. "…is my father's apartment. The one opposite is where my grandparents sleep." He stepped further along the hallway, his arms swinging at his sides. "Will's apartment is down that hallway but it probably isn't worth showing you."
Erin thought she saw the beginnings of a snigger at the mention of Jay's brother but didn't comment on it. She noticed also that he'd started talking more conversational: a slip in his usual monotone and unbothered face.
He came to an eventual halt outside a door that didn't look dissimilar to Jay's fathers. Except this one had obvious dents and discoloring in the marking which Erin presumed was the younger Prince's doing.
"The most important part of the palace," Jay spoke the words in such a way that Erin found sleazy. She didn't even want to think about what went down in his place, remembering the unwelcoming look she'd received the first time they'd met and a girl came stumbling out of it.
Jay swung open the door and the smell was the first thing that hit her. Obviously he was accustom to the strange aroma but whatever it was made Erin's nose prickle. She could definitely smell weed- but there was something else. An odor that she couldn't put her finger on but one she definitely didn't like.
"What is that-" Erin started to ask but he was already halfway down his corridor.
"I'll be out in a second," he spoke quickly before disappearing behind another door, leaving her alone.
Wary of touching anything, in case he heard, Erin looked around her. It did look like the rest of the palace, only…was that a chip in the wall? Could she make out a stain? She didn't have all that much time to think about it though, noticing that Jay was making his way back towards her.
Erin narrowed her eyes: the Prince had a hand beneath his nostrils, swiping backwards and forwards in a movement she was familiar with. Like he was wiping away residue, evidence of what he'd just done. One of his recreational habits, and something she would have done too if she was at home.
Jay shoved his hands into his pockets and shrugged. "Well that's it I think," he said, staring out of one of the windows that ran all the way from floor to ceiling. "Do you need me to take you back to-"
Erin didn't have the time to respond before the older Prince, Jay's father Patrick, had joined them at the entrance of his son's apartment.
"I hope you haven't forgotten about your visit to the public school this afternoon," Patrick was dressed impeccably compared to his son: a double breasted three-piece suit and slicked back hair. "Erin will be accompanying you," he added with a quick glance in her direction.
"Fuck," Jay had obviously forgotten the fact, probably pissed that he would have to cancel whatever he had planned. "I was supposed to be-"
"I don't care about what you're supposed to be doing, Jay. You have Royal duties to attend to. Now go, you will meet Robert by the parking garage at 3. Make an attempt to look presentable, hmm?"
Jay didn't find his father funny, instead huffing out a breath and sulking away from the other two, slamming his bedroom door shut when he reached it. Patrick looked on after his son for a moment before turning his attention to Erin.
"It's royal protocol that the accompanying bodyguard is required to be armed with a weapon. You are familiar with guns, aren't you?"
Another thing she was gonna have to get used to: how fucking fast they drove here. Erin felt as though she was being thrown around the car used for Royal outings: a Bentley perhaps- and she often thought they were about to crash. Wrong side of the road and wrong side of the car. Not to mention the way they went around rotaries: several times Robert had swerved quickly away from another car, sending Erin into a panic and the younger Prince into a swearing frenzy.
"Watch where you're fucking going Robert!" Jay slammed an open palm against the glass screen that separated him and Erin from their driver. "Fucking moron," he muttered afterwards, under his breath. Not loud enough for the man in the front to hear but Erin did. She sniggered to herself: it was true the Prince was an ass but she couldn't deny his sense of humor.
She snuck a glance in his direction where he sat to her left. He'd actually done a good job of making himself look presentable for an engagement with the public, dressed in a dark pair of suit trousers and clean button-up shirt. His face hadn't changed much though: he hadn't shaved away any stubble and he still wore the permanent scowl on his face.
"Almost there," Robert piped up from the driver's seat, slowing the car as he was talking.
Erin stared out of the one-way window, taking in the surrounding buildings. It didn't look all that different from Chicago given they were both busy cities. But the buildings in London were older, more intricate to detail perhaps.
Robert had pulled into the school grounds and parked up, being the first one to get out of the car. He opened the rear door for her first and Erin swung her legs forward to get out. Her hand automatically fell towards her back pocket, armed with the glock that Patrick had given her this afternoon. A more updated version of the one she'd used in the Intelligence Unit and one that felt as though it was burning the pocket of her jeans.
Why the hell would she need to carry a gun if Jay was only visiting a school? The thought had ran through her mind for the majority of the car journey because Jay clearly hadn't wanted to hold a conversation. She now walked in front of him, like she'd been told to, towards the school grounds that were lined with small children dressed in matching uniforms.
By the time the two of them had reached the entrance, it was as though the Prince had transformed into a different person. He'd suddenly become more animated, bending to the children's level to greet them with a smile. One that didn't reach his eyes though, Erin noted, because they still looked as though they were somewhere far away. But it was like he put on a façade for the public because of who he was.
Erin didn't even feel like she was his bodyguard right now, there was no need for her to do anything. The public acted in an appropriate way with their royal guest and so she felt slightly out of place. Once inside though, Jay made it known why she was needed.
"Jesus," he said to her. "I thought they were never gonna let me come inside." His shoulders slumped as he wandered through the hallway. A quick flick of his index fingers told Erin that he was headed to the bathroom, leaving her in the weirdly empty corridor.
She recalled what went down the last time he was alone in a room, because she wouldn't put it past him to do it again. Even if they were in a kids' school…from the 24 hours she'd known Prince Jay, she knew he was reckless.
He emerged quickly and Erin heard the sound of flushing so gathered he'd actually gone to the bathroom to use the bathroom.
"Let's get this over and done with then," he said, his eyes moving towards the opposite side of the corridor.
Ah there he was: the enthusiasm had disappeared and he was already talking about leaving.
Erin desperately wanted to find out what made him behave like an ass all the time: had something happened to make him this way? She'd been through shit herself but at least she could attempt to hide it and get on with her duties. Instead of asking him anything too personal, Erin turned her attention to finding out what they were doing at the school.
"Why exactly are we here?" she asked.
The Prince made a noise of disenjoyment, slowing their pace as they made it to the door. "They've won an environmental award or some shit," he accompanied his words with hand movements but not enthusiastic ones. "Stuff like this is supposed to be part of my Dad's role but alas… when he doesn't feel like doing it, he palms it off on me!" He looked pissed.
Erin didn't know if that was strictly true but it was the most conversation she'd gotten out of him this far and didn't question it.
He had more to say. "Honestly I think I can just present the bloody award and get the hell out of here." As soon as he'd said it, it was as though he'd plastered on the public mask again and opened the door to a room full of people.
Erin stood at the side, her arms folded across her chest as she watched Jay step onto the podium and raise a hand to silence the crowd. She studied his face and his expression rather than listening to the words that came out of his mouth. He constantly fidgeted with the papers in front of him. His right foot kept tapping continuously against the wooden floor. The words seemed to be falling from his lips at a ridiculous speed of 100 words a minute. No sooner had he given the award to the Principal did he essentially jump down from the podium, gave her a signal with his head and they were heading back to the car where Robert was waiting.
"Oh!" he jumped at the sound of them, having been dozing. "That was quick. Is it over already?"
"It is for me," Jay sneered as he collapsed into the Bentley and closed his eyes.
"Your father is usually at these engagements for well over an hour-"
"Jesus Robert, are you keeping time? If you think you could do a better job then be my fucking guest!" the Prince snapped.
And Erin recognized right away the reason for such behavior…she felt it herself when she was due a fix. Which, come to think of it, was a hella long time ago.
"Your Highness, I was only trying to…" but Robert thought about it and didn't finish his sentence. His words trailed off into the air and Erin saw his attention turn onto the road before he clicked something so the screen came between them.
"Good talk," Jay said sarcastically, looking at Erin as he said it, for a reaction. He got one as she spluttered but played it off as a cough.
A few minutes later, Jay was tapping his knuckles against the glass. Erin could see the strain in the driver's eyes as he struggled to conceal his feelings towards the Prince. That didn't surprise her, considering Jay spoke to Robert like he was dog shit.
"Yes?" he answered anyway but kept his attention on the road.
"I want you to make a detour. Take me to Liberty Street." There was an odd smirk on Jay's face.
"With all due respect, Your Highness, I am under strict instruction to take you and Erin back to the Pal-"
"Look, you can either drive to Liberty Street or I can jump out of the car right now," Jay moved a hand towards the door handle, proving it wasn't only a threat. "I could get you fired, you should know that."
Erin watched Robert in the rear view mirror as he visible shuddered then drove the car down the next side street they came across. She caught sight of Jay, satisfied and relaxing back against the headrest. It was on her mind to ask him- where he demanded to go- but Erin knew she could find out soon enough.
Robert drove slower now, down roads surrounded on both sides by twenty storey office blocks. It was beginning to grow dark and there was nobody walking around in these parts. The scene, as it scarcely changed around her, reminded her of home. Of the eerily quiet streets that were witness to all sorts of danger come nightfall. The violence, the drugs and the gangs. Erin had a strange feeling that this was such an area in London.
Robert brought the Bentley to a complete stop at the end of the next block. There was nothing overly extraordinary about the building but the Prince looked elated when he saw it. He immediately unbuckled the belt and leapt eagerly from the car. Before he walked away, he leaned against the door frame, his face inside the car again.
"Thanks Robert," He said half-heartedly, before turning to Erin. He cleared his throat. "You're my bodyguard. I guess that means you have to come with me."
Everything hurt. Holy fucking shit, everything hurt. Erin rolled onto her side and winced as she was blinded by fresh sunlight. She hadn't closed the curtains, obviously. What the hell happened last night?
The last thing she remembered was getting out of the car and following the Prince through a heavy-looking black door. Then down a dark corridor…and that had led to what? Her brain was hurting even more with trying to remember.
Erin ran a finger across her arms then felt her bare legs. No clothes….except, oh thank fuck, there were her panties. Okay, so nothing had happened in that department at least. And thank God she was in her own bedroom and not somewhere else.
She needed to find Prince Jay and ask him what the hell went down last night. If only she could find the will to get out of bed. Shit. What was the time? She didn't know her schedule yet but Erin was pretty sure she wouldn't have the day off today. Ignoring the pounding in her head, Erin swung her legs from the bed and looked around her bedroom. Her clothes that she'd been wearing yesterday were thrown onto the floor, her new gun on its side next to her jeans.
She stumbled over to her closet and picked out a clean shirt and dress pants. Perhaps she could attempt to look extra presentable for how crap she was feeling. She ran several fingers through her hair- it needed washing but she figured she didn't have time. Erin opened the door to her bedroom and looked down the hallway in both directions before moving.
The palace was quiet, perhaps too quiet. She couldn't see any of the servants or maids that she'd seen regularly occupying the hallways. Her feet took her in the direction of Prince Jay's apartment and she was surprised to find the door wide open rather than closed how he liked it.
"Hello?" She rapped on the door with a knuckle, the word leaving her mouth in a loud whisper. There was no reply but she hadn't expected one. If Jay was there, he'd be at the door as soon as he heard an unwanted visitor on his ground.
The Prince not being in his quarters meant she didn't know where to go. A muffled shouting pulled her attention to the left and she found herself heading in the direction they were coming from. As she reached the door to the room- a one she hadn't been shown- the voices became clear.
"How could you, Jay? Don't you remember what happened the last time you went there?" It was Patrick, his voice stern. "If the papers got word of-"
"It's too late for that," this was Queen Katherine, Erin immediately recognized her soft voice. She jumped as she heard a loud thump like something hitting the table. "It seems they have already got the footage of you."
"You realize what this means, don't you?" Back to Patrick. "Images of the Royal Prince leaving a sex club? Oh, the press is going to have a field day-"
A sex club?! She and Jay had gone to a sex club? Erin cringed: from what Prince Patrick was saying, it seemed they'd been caught by cameras too. There were only a few reasons why people would go to a sex club and Erin couldn't remember signing up for any of them. Shit, she couldn't even piece together the events of last night.
There was even more shouting from inside the room now and Erin even caught the mention of her name but didn't catch the context it was used in. Were they talking about her now? Were they going to put the blame on her?
She was now leaning against the wall in a bid to hear the conversation but it didn't help. She couldn't figure out what they were discussing.
"I don't have to listen to this!" She had no problem hearing Jay now, his angry input into the conversation. One second later- whilst she didn't get the chance to move away from eavesdropping- and the Prince had stormed out of the room in a fury, colliding right into her.
"Watch it," the words left his mouth before he looked up. "Oh!" his voice somewhat softened. "It's you."
Erin froze temporarily and the Prince continued.
"Jesus, you look exactly how I feel."
Erin scoffed but knew he was correct. He didn't look all that well himself, dressed in a crumpled shirt and donning a hairstyle that could only be described as bedhead. He didn't go into detail about what he'd been discussing with his father and grandmother but Erin could just about figure out the matter. Obviously it wasn't the first time Jay had been caught up in his extra-curricular activities. Ones that would give the Royal family a bad name.
Instead, he jolted his head in the opposite direction and rolled his eyes. "I'm hungry," he said, his hands hovering over his stomach. "You look like you could eat," Jay stared at herm waiting for her reaction.
"Yup," when was the last time she'd actually eaten? If she didn't eat anything last night, her last meal was breakfast. Which offered a kind of explanation as to why she felt so shit today.
"Kitchen's this way," Jay reminded her before setting off along the hallway. To begin with, they walked in silence until Erin heard him chuckling quietly to himself.
"What's so funny?" she quizzed him on his laughter.
"I just gotta say…that was quite the performance you put in last night-" another laugh escaped him but this one was louder and he didn't try to hide it.
"Excuse me?!" her jaw fell to the floor in shock. Okay so apparently he could recall the night better than she could.
"I've never seen moves like that from anybody in a while," they'd reached the palace kitchens and Jay leaned against the door. "Especially from a girl."
Erin felt her mouth opening and closing but with no words coming out. Just what the fuck was he talking about? He turned away and pulled open the door so they were met with a sea of voices and the smell of bacon. Jay manoeuvred himself between the cooks, helping himself to their freshly prepared food and completely ignoring their cries of "Hey!", "That's not for you!" and "Your Highness, if we could just-"
Erin would have found his movements funny of they weren't so childish. He stole several slices of bread and emerged from the other side of the kitchen carelessly squashing several rashers of bacon between the slices. He offered one to Erin and she took it. It was nothing compared to the lavish spread she had been offered yesterday morning but right now she could probably eat anything. She hoped he'd be walking away from the kitchen now so there would be a chance to quiz him about last night. He steered them away from the kitchen and to another room that housed a breakfast bar and other tables.
Jay slumped down into one of the stools, shoving the sandwich into his face like he'd never been fed before. Like they hadn't been interrupted, he continued the conversation.
"So I figured that's why they hired you," he said between greasy mouthfuls. "The way you punched that guy who came onto you," he whistled. "Can't deny it turned me on a little bit."
Erin's eyes widened but she bit into the bread first before she said anything. Bacon, huh? That was different here too. But she liked it. "I…I hit a guy?"
"Oh, yeah." Jay stuffed the last of his crust into his mouth and licked his fingers. He was studying her reaction. "Hold on a second…you thought … I meant…" then he was laughing again, his hands clapped together. "You really don't remember?"
Erin shook her head. "Were we drinking?"
"Only every kind of spirit there is," he laughed, motioning for her to sit next to him instead of standing awkwardly beside the table. "I couldn't keep count of how many tequila slammers you were knocking back."
Erin groaned, her head throbbing on cue at the mention of the drink. "You could have got me fired," she said, thinking of her job. She was obviously still in the probation period and failing to complete it meant she'd be flown home to Chicago and admitted to a stupid rehab.
"But I didn't," he shrugged. "…and you know…maybe I was wrong about you."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Erin replied, bracing herself for another one of his sarcastic comments. But then she realized the tone of his voice and his complete demeanour had changed: a side she'd never seen when alone with him.
"Last night, at the club, I saw you when you weren't just being my bodyguard. Like you were capable of actually having fun. I like fun. If that's the case, maybe we're going to get along just fine."
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