7
Piper’s sudden kiss threw Aldon for a loop, but he found that he enjoyed kissing Piper more than he’d enjoyed anything in a long time. As he pulled her close, letting his lips explore hers, a passion kindled in him that was stronger than anything he’d ever felt for Carrie. It didn’t make sense, but for once, she decided not to overthink. Not to think at all. He tangled his fingers into Piper’s red hair and continued to kiss her hungrily until Willa’s voice broke the moment.
“You can’t catch me!” she called, causing Aldon to pull back, feeling like a teenager, caught in the act.
Piper smiled sheepishly at him. “I’m sure she didn’t see anything. If she had, she would have teased—or asked a million questions.”
“Okay,” he said and returned Piper’s smile. He couldn’t ignore the warmth that coursed through him after having shared a kiss with her.
As they walked toward Willa, he felt the urge to touch Piper, and took her hand in his. She gave a squeeze, and he knew she approved. They walked in quiet, hand in hand, for a minute, until Aldon noticed a couple walking toward them and unlaced his fingers from Piper’s. He couldn’t risk being seen holding hands with another woman—not when the status of his relationship with Carrie was not yet public information.
“Let’s go out for dinner somewhere,” he said as Willa approached. He patted her on the head. “Willa’s choice.”
The little girl jumped up and down in a show of joy. “Yay!”
“Where will it be, Willa?”
“Nadia’s café,” Willa proclaimed.
“I don’t know, Willa,” Piper said, an unsure look on her face. “It’s not really fancy.”
“‘Not fancy’ sounds perfect,” Aldon replied. Piper had shown him in the span of a day that simplicity was what he needed. That and a double dose of her lips.
He led the way back to the car and followed Piper’s directions to the restaurant. The corner café was tucked behind an ivy-covered gate. White twinkle lights were strung from tree to tree, dancing above the outside space in a glowing canopy. They slid into a cozy booth, Aldon on one side and Piper and Willa on the other.
“Willa, this place is so great!” he said. “It reminds me of a fairy tale.”
“Well, you’re a prince, right?” she said and took a big gulp of water.
Aldon had to laugh. He looked at Piper, and a warmth fell over him. Being with the two of them felt so right. It didn’t seem real that he’d only just met them days ago.
“Let’s take a look at this menu,” he said and glanced at the parchment paper list in front of him.
“Fairy Fries?” he read aloud. “Wonderburger, made with unicorn horn dust and magic? Willa, this is one silly menu!”
Willa giggled, and the sound was sweet music. He couldn’t believe he was enjoying this kid so much. It wasn’t like him.
The waitress approached.
“Can I take your order?”
Aldon tapped on his chin dramatically. “I’ll definitely have the Wonderburger,” he said. “I’ve got a major craving for unicorn horn dust.”
The waitress grinned. “And just so you know,” she said, obviously playing along, “no unicorns were harmed in the making of this burger.”
“Of course they weren’t!” he said. “The Kingdom of Sovalon would never stand for it!”
The waitress’s eyes grew suddenly. “Wait! You’re the other prince, aren’t you?”
Ahhh, yes, that was him. The other prince—not the heir, not the playboy, just the one that always got lost in the shuffle. The word sliced through his mood, tripping him up, but only for a moment until Willa came to the rescue.
“This prince would never hurt a unicorn. He helps people,” she said.
“I heard what you did at the homeless shelter,” the waitress said, and Aldon shrugged.
“This prince is a hero,” Willa said.
“Well, thank you, Willa,” he said. “Now what will it be?”
“I’ll have the Magic Macaroni and the Fairy Fries,” Willa said.
“Mmmm, sounds carby,” Piper said. “I’ll have the same.” She looked at Aldon. “I love comfort food.”
“I’m a carnivore,” he said. “Nothing more comforting to me than a good burger.”
“Especially when it has unicorn horn dust in it,” Willa said, making both Aldon and Piper laugh.
Again, the desire to touch Piper grew in him. He so wanted to hold her hand across the table, but he knew he had to be careful. So many people were watching, and word of his presence here had obviously started to spread in town. He dared to let his eyes rest in hers for a moment, and her smile grew.
“What are you smiling about?” he teased.
“Just you,” she said, her words melting his doubts.
Aldon knew his father wouldn’t be happy to catch wind of his budding romance with Piper, but in that moment, he no longer cared. He reached for Piper’s hand and folded it into his.
This was a life he could get used to.
It felt so good to have Aldon holding her hand. Piper could feel the growing number of eyes in the restaurant flickering towards her. She didn’t like the attention, but it felt right to be closer to Aldon.
“Here comes our food,” Willa announced and rubbed her hands together eagerly.
The waitress placed their orders on the table and left them to dig in.
“How’s your Wonderburger?” Piper asked Aldon.
“Delicious,” he said. “The unicorn dust really hits the spot.”
Willa giggled, and Piper found herself drifting into a daydream of what life would be like if it were her, Willa, and Aldon, sharing meals like this all the time. Aldon and Willa were really warming up to each other, and, surprisingly, it turned out that he was good with kids. Maybe he just had never been given the chance to spend time with a little one before.
As Piper crunched on a fry, she noticed a couple standing up from their chairs and looking toward her. The man was tall and lanky, dressed in khaki shorts and a T-shirt. His shoes had holes in them. The blond-haired woman next to him had deep circles under her eyes. She looked like she hadn’t slept well for a long time.
“Uh, Aldon?” Piper nodded toward the couple.
“Do you know them?” he asked, and Piper shook her head as the couple cautiously approached. She was used to there being very few people in town she didn’t know, but since she’d started living in the castle, she’d missed getting to meet some of the more recent arrivals.
The man cleared his throat and spoke.
“Excuse me, Prince Aldon,” he said. “I apologize for interrupting your dinner.”
“It’s okay,” Aldon said and held a hand out for the man to shake. “Please just call me Aldon.”
The man gave the woman a surprised look and then turned back to Aldon.
“Sir, I’m Justin Young, and this is my wife, Mindy. We just wanted to thank you for what you did at the shelter today and for the promises you made.”
“We’ve struggled for the past few years,” Mindy said. “We owned a pizza shop in town. Best pizza in Thistledown!” She looked at her husband and he smiled in obvious agreement. “With the water problems, we were forced to shut down.”