The Prince's Secret (Prince Harry Fanfic)

Part 54 - Rendezvous

Samantha

It was a cold and rainy evening by the time Simon escorted me into a living room somewhere in the distant suburbs. The escape plan, which began with me calling the cops to clear out the press in front of my flat and then ducking into the Sleeping Lion, only to duck out through the back into a waiting car, worked perfectly, as far as I could tell.

I changed cars, landing at last in the passenger seat of a beat-up Land Rover which I suspected might be Simon's personal ride. He watched the rear-view mirror constantly, but as we pulled into the garage of a modest home and the door glided shut behind us, he seemed pleased.

The house seemed to be suddenly empty, as if its occupants had been hurried out at the last minute. Child's toys and a large plastic ride-on duck were scattered around the edges of the room. Whoever this house belonged to, it was not one of the royal set, or even one of Harry's well-to-do London friends.

The back door opened and Harry entered, shaking the rain off his dark jacket. He removed a knitted cap and his ginger hair sprang out at odd angles as he looked at me and opened his arms.

I went to him and snuggled into his warm embrace, breathing in his scent and the smell of his cologne. We kissed, and his voice was husky as he said, "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too," I said, and then, looking down at his muddy boots, "Did you jump over the fence into the back garden to get here?"

"Not quite, but I did jog a few blocks and duck down a few alleys. Felt a bit like James Bond or something."

"Yeah, me too."

"Sorry I can't offer you a fancy dinner tonight, but I can make you a cup of tea," he said, hanging his wet jacket by the door and ducking into the kitchen. "Might even manage a plate of biscuits, if I can find any."

"Should I ask whose house this is?"

"One of the staff. Someone Duncan trusts. But we can't stay long."

I followed Harry into the kitchen and tugged at his arm. "I don't want any tea. Or biscuits. I just want to be with you...for as long as I can."

He turned and leaned against the kitchen counter, and again I stepped into his embrace. For a few minutes we stood there, hip to hip, our arms around each other, saying nothing. I closed my eyes and let my head rest on his strong chest, feeling the scratchy wool of his sweater against my cheek, and listened to his heartbeat.

"I'm sorry," he said finally.

"For what?"

"For having such a complicated life. For being unable to do what I want to do right now, instead of waiting. I'm not an overly patient person, Sam. And I don't like feeling helpless and unable to change things."

"And if you had the chance...what would you do right now?"

"Right now?" He gave me a wicked grin and tugged me closer, thumbs hooked into the belt loops of my jeans. "Oh, I would do many, many things with you right now...if we had the time and the space to do it."

I slid my arms around his neck and we kissed again. As we parted I said, "You don't need to apologize for your family and your life. You can't change your history."

Harry's face was somber. "I should not have gotten engaged to Meg. I should have broken it off before it got this far. I knew it...and I didn't do it. That much is my fault. If I had been free when I met you—"

I shook my head. "Don't even go there. It's not something we can change now."

"And the things that I can change right now are very limited...because of who I am. What I am." He looked down at me. "The Queen demands to see me, no doubt to talk about all this. But I needed to talk to you first."