𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐁𝐈𝐃𝐃𝐄𝐍 𝐃𝐄𝐒𝐈𝐑𝐄 | ✎

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟓

I walk through the hallways of the palace, keeping an eye out for any threats or people who don't belong. The princess is in her room, sulking as she has for the past week. There's no point in trying to talk her into the whole situation. If I were in her place, I'd react the same way.

"Pssst!" a voice whispers, snapping me out of my thoughts.

I stop in my tracks, quickly turning towards the source of the voice. I'm immediately on high alert, ready to fight anyone at any moment. As a bodyguard, I can't be too careful, and I have to be quick to make decisions.

No one is supposed to be here at this time. I reach for my gun and silently sneak in that direction, trying to be as light on my feet as possible. "Who's there?"

"Jesus, Alexander, it's just me."

Camille emerges from the shadows, rolling her eyes. Her blonde hair is pulled back into a tight ponytail, and she's dressed in a stylish and expensive outfit, with her designer wardrobe clearly evident in her overall appearance.

I put my gun away, a wave of relief washing over me as I realized she wasn't an intruder.

She shouldn't be here at all, though.

"Cami? What the hell are you doing here?" I ask in a hushed voice, gripping my girlfriend's arm and pulling her into a corner. "I could get in real trouble for you being here," I whisper in her ear.

She sighs and rolls her eyes. "You're no fun these days. Why do you need to follow the rules so strictly?"

I glared at her. "Need I remind you that you're currently trespassing on royal property? You could get thrown in jail."

"Won't be there for long thanks to my father," she replies, twirling her hair around with a smile on her face.

Camille is a bratty, spoiled girl who loves to do whatever she wants with no consequences. She's an entitled snob who thinks she owns the world. She has no respect for authority, nor does she care about anyone but herself. But despite all of this, I love her. She's my only weakness.

She, on the other hand, doesn't feel the same way. My girlfriend thinks I'm an uptight prick who's too serious about his job. It's true, I am, but who wouldn't be when they're a bodyguard for a princess who's constantly trying to get into trouble? The King would have my head if something happened to Princess Elena on my watch.

"You really need to leave."

Camille scoffs. "And here I thought you'd be happy to see me."

I'm silent for a second, hesitating to respond. Of course I'm happy to see her, but I've got to set a clear boundary. If she keeps doing stuff like this, I'm going to get into trouble. And I can't exactly make exceptions for Camille, no matter how much I love her.

"I am happy to see you," I say, looking her in the eye and trying to be as serious as possible. "But you need to listen to me. You can't always go where you want to go whenever you want to go."

"Says who?" she retorts, laughing. "You used to be fun. Now you're boring. I'm getting bored of you, Alexander."

Ouch. I try to keep my composure, but her words sting. I can't deny it; she's right. I've been neglecting her and being so distant, and it's starting to take a toll on our relationship. I know I need to do something to fix this, or else I'll lose her.

I sigh. "What can I do to make it up to you?"

Camille's eyes sparkle with delight, and she tilts her head to the side. "A new Coach purse wouldn't hurt. Throw some Chanel perfume in there, while you're at it."

My eyes widen in disbelief. Such expensive gifts. "But Cam—"

She interrupts me and shakes her head. "Ah! Do you want my forgiveness or not?"

I'm taken aback and surprised at my girlfriend's blatant entitlement and selfishness. But she has a point; if I want to make things work with her, then I'll have to make a compromise. I love her, but she makes it really hard not to snap at her.

"Fine," I concede, sighing, "but you have to leave now."

Camille is already halfway to the door by the time I finish speaking, her phone in her hand. She's not paying attention to me at all, barely even acknowledging the conversation we just had.

"Yeah, sure," she says, not looking up from her phone. "See you later." With that, she slips out of the shadows, heading for the door and out into the night.

I groan, feeling frustrated and defeated. Camille never takes things seriously. She always acts like she's too good for everyone and can get whatever she wants without having to work for it.

I'm fucking sick of it.

"She seems like a piece of work," a voice behind me says, almost making me jump. Almost.

I turn around to see Princess Elena leaning back against the wall. What the hell is she doing up and out of her room at this hour? And more importantly, how much did she hear?

I straighten up and narrow my eyes at the princess. "How long have you been standing there?"

"How long have you been talking to her?"

I groan in annoyance. She's such a royal pain. "Shouldn't you be asleep, Princess?"

She nods. "I should. Too bad I don't want to."

"I don't have time for your games," I say sternly. "I am supposed to be keeping you out of trouble, not getting involved with it myself." I sigh, rubbing my temples in frustration.

The princess shrugs nonchalantly. "I'm just trying to give you relationship advice," she retorts. "Seems like you're in desperate need of it."

Clenching my jaw, I decide to give in to her games. "Alright, I'll bite. What do you know about relationships?"

Princess Elena frowns and glares at me. "First of all, what's that supposed to mean?"

"What it means, Princess, is that you're young and have probably never been in a serious relationship. So what on earth makes you think your advice is worth anything to me?" I ask through gritted teeth, glaring back at her.

"Seriously? You're only two years older than me. You need a serious reality check."

"Age isn't everything, Princess." I roll my eyes at her response. "I've been through things in my life that you could never even imagine. I grew up in a rough neighborhood and learned to take care of myself. You, on the other hand, have lived a sheltered, privileged life where everything has been handed to you on a silver platter. So don't you even dare try to compare us."

For a moment, it seems like she's about to throw a fit. But then she smiles. She fucking smiles.

"Respect. Anyway," she says, "Blondie isn't good enough for you."

I calm down and raise an eyebrow. "Blondie? Do you mean Camille?"

"Yeah, whatever her name is. She's clearly using you."

A look of shock and pure confusion registers across my face in response to her words. "Excuse me, what?" I shout. "What makes you think you have the slightest idea of my relationship with Camille? And furthermore, what gives you the right to insult and belittle her, especially when I happen to really care about her?"

"Wow." Princess Elena clicks her tongue and runs a hand through her long, honey-brown hair. "I pity you."

At this point, I'm absolutely livid inside. On the outside, I just glare at her. "What did you just say?" I ask, my voice dripping with warning.

"I pity you," the girl repeats. "You're so blinded by your feelings for her that you don't even realize she's playing with you. She's using you because you're hot and have a good job."

"That's enough ou—wait a minute, did you just call me hot?" I was about to speak my mind again, but her sudden and completely unprofessional comment threw me off guard.

Princess Elena tilts her head up and arches an eyebrow. "When did I say that?" she asks, clearly playing dumb. Her faint grin is a dead giveaway.

I glare at her once more, breathing in and out deeply, before engaging in conversation with her again. "You're stalling. Go to bed."

"What happens if I don't listen to you?" she queries, her smile widening.

I start to grind my teeth together and shake my head in disbelief. How the hell does someone this frustrating even exist?

"How about this? If you listen, I'll get you out of dinner with Prince Marco tomorrow."

The girl's eyes light up in the dark, and she nods her head eagerly. "Deal." The princess then scurries back to her room, looking very happy.

Thank God. I watch closely as she goes back into her bedroom and shuts the door behind her. One thing's for sure: she's a huge pain in my ass. But if I'm being honest?

Her sassy personality is starting to intrigue me.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.・。.・゜✭・.・

authors note: finally getting somewhereee. have a nice day/night lovely people 🤍