The Royalty (Prince Harry Fanfic #4)

Chapter Thirty-One

"Remember," Lucy said, smoothing down Harry's jacket, "if you get prostitutes tonight, any money you give them will have your granny's face on it. You're paying with Granny."

Harry bit his lower lip. "I'm not getting prostitutes or anything, but thank you."

"It's other people that get prostitutes, Harry. You don't get them yourself."

"How do you know?"

Lucy smiled at him. "One week."

Harry laughed. "You're the one who has to make it down the aisle."

"You're the one who has to be waiting there."

Kissing her one last time, he promised, "I'll see you tomorrow morning."

She shook her head. "I'll see you tomorrow after noon."

"What are you planning on doing tonight for your party?"

"Don't think about me tonight, would you?"

"Not possible."

Lucy smirked. "Remember, Granny's face."

Harry smiled. "I'll see you tomorrow." He headed off to his stag party, with the car waiting out front. William waited inside along with some of Harry's friends.

Lucy waved good-bye.

Heading upstairs, Lucy dressed, alas being able to wear jeans and a long-sleeved shirt. The chills had come in finally, thus allowing long-sleeved shirts to be worn. Lucy also had the bandages on. Though the stitches had been taken out, scars still marked her, not that she minded. Catherine was going to throw Lucy a hen night, or bachelorette party, but with the attack a week ago, Catherine called it off for Lucy's health. Lucy thanked her but she hadn't really wanted a hen night to begin with. Lucy didn't need the frills of it or the attention.

"Please tell me we're drinking tonight," Sydney said as she walked into the room, wearing jeans and a jacket too. Lucy had mentioned about wearing nothing fancy.

"No."

"You take the fun out of everything." Sydney pouted. "It's just us tonight, right? No royals or fluff?"

"Nope. Just us."

"How boring it is." Sydney rolled her eyes. "Where we off to?" Once Sydney's eyes hit Lucy, she knew. "Booze are really out of the question, aren't they?" She groaned. "I'm not going to have any fun at all."

The two women left the apartment. Tony followed, with two other bodyguards. Her original bodyguard, Tony, would stay with her, but the other two bodyguards would be with her for the next few months for extra protection. Instead of a car, Lucy convinced the bodyguards to let her take the Tube one last time. Tony eventually obliged. On the Tube, no one looked at them; Lucy didn't exist as almost royal.

Hopping off the train, Lucy stood outside in a dingy part of London. Her eyes glanced over to her old friend, who was actually smiling. Though Sydney tended to refuse sometimes, here she knew it was for the best. The old pair of gal pals walked down the street, as Lucy glanced at the closed up shoppes.

Lucy stopped outside the old building, where she worked four years ago, and then it was firebombed by racists. One of her coworkers died that day, which still wasn't the worst day of her life. The office had been repaired, after a generous donation from some large names. The royal family never gave money toward the refugee center but Lucy knew Harry had got other large names to donate to the cause.

"A trip down memory lane?" Sydney asked.

Lucy led her friend down the street.

Outside of London, Harry's car along with a few other cars pulled into a muddy pit of an old army barracks. The thing was more than small and had been turned into a paint ball facility that had been rented out to the royals for a night. Alcohol awaited the males as they crashed forward, with no women in sight. If call girls had been on the schedule, they weren't here yet, not that Harry wanted them.

The males changed from looking fashionable to about to destroy each other. A red and a blue teams were made, the only indication of a difference. Usually, it would be a game of capture the flag, but no flags were put out. It was a good battle between teams, all in the hope of shooting each other.

If Lucy was here, Harry couldn't imagine what she would say as he loaded up his paintball gun. The neon pink balls squished between his fingertips. She had survived an actual mass shooting, and it made him sick to his stomach. Yet he wished to have the energy he once had. When he was in the Armed Forces, fighting on the front lines, there wasn't a doubt in his mind about what he was doing. Now, his only doubt was on Lucy. There was a lot of doubt recently, always had been with Lucy. He knew he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her; there wasn't doubt there. The doubt lied with the life she would have within Palace walls. He didn't want to give her a life that she would end up hating.

"Let's go, Lover Boy," called one of Harry's old friends.

Harry finished up and slung the gun on his shoulders. He breathed deeply but didn't feel alive until the real battle happened. It wasn't until the shooting with the paintball gun happened that he felt hyped. And then the hype ended. The paint splattered against a few of his opponents, but it wasn't until he hid behind a barrier for protection that he stopped to think about what he did.

In war, there was little choice. People shot at you; you shot back at them. This was a game, he reminded himself, but Harry's mind stayed on Lucy. If she was here, he knew she wouldn't end up caring. He decided that; she would let him have his fun. But Harry couldn't stop thinking about this. When he was younger, he loved to go play paintball, but now, he couldn't stand it. The gun didn't feel right in his hands and his mind didn't think like it used to.

Harry had one more week of "freedom" before the wedding but all he thought about was Lucy. He would have the rest of his life with her but he wanted every day with her.