“I most certainly did not suggest to shower and bath [i]together,[/i] ma’am.” He pulled-off a lopsided grin that was as cocky as it was mischievous. Not that he did not think about it, the prince was just concerned about the impression he would make to her family should he carelessly voice out his wishes. Besides, he was counting on his fiancee to make the offer and she did. “I specifically and politely – mind you – asked permission to use your bathroom so that I may clean myself. It was you who suggested that we do it together.” Which made him a much greater enemy to her brother. 

Truth be told, he had not thought of their recent intimacy the way she did. Her words took him aback that the grin was wiped off his face and his jaw went a little slack. It may be the difference in the maturity between a playboy and a woman. He was all about the fun, while her mind was already preparing for motherhood. If the tables were turned and she was the female in the relationship, he wouldn’t have thought to stop partying on the account of a possible pregnancy. Besides, he was not ready to father a child. There were other consequences of a successful pregnancy which he was not prepared to tackle that night, so he let it go.

When she raised the question about how they ought to disguise themselves, Luke shrugged. “Being a little stealthy is better than announcing our presence in the local bar like superstars. Let your father and brother enter the bar first. We’ll wait a few minutes while the patrons fawn over them asking about you and me and if rumors are true that we are visiting town.” Her face was a face that was difficult to hide in a village that most probably knew each resident’s face. His had been in the broadcast, magazines, papers, and every media platform ever invented. She was correct to point out that the exercise of pretending to be common villagers was futile, except that his plan was more than pretending but redirecting as much attention as possible. “Then we come in and take a seat somewhere in the background. Could you call your friend to tell him that we do not want too much attention, and because of that he should be the one to take our order?”

The more she talked about it, the more excited her voice got due to the prospect of meeting old friends and sweethearts, the more anxious Luke became about their night out. He was good at holding a conversation with the working class. The working class, on the other hand, had opinions about the royals which he was not in agreement with. Some may even be resentful of his presence. All Luke wanted was a drink, good food, a quiet night and none of those ex-lovers she was talking about. 

A soft knock disturbed their conversation. Luke, having nothing else to do, went on to check who it was, saying, “You seem excited to meet those exes. What, to flaunt the guy with the ‘best offer’?”

Sebastian’s face greeted Luke when he cracked the door open. A few of his belongings were bundled on the foreigner’s arms, which he turned-over to Luke. Most were made of a material that was a bit stiffer and rougher than what he was used to wearing. He set the clothes on Rhiane’s desk. The clothes were all the same to him and it did not matter which one he picked so he did the topmost article. It was a plain blue t-shirt.  “Should I just stay behind?” He mumbled into the shirt as he pulled it over his head. His hair was mussed after he emerged from the shirt. “Or maybe drive you to the bar and then pick you up after you’re done rekindling old flames.”