Chapter Seven

S he shouldn't be with him anymore, yet Dustin was glad she was. Patients usually left at this stage and returned at a scheduled appointment when he had finished the lab work. They had the inlay fitted, and that was it—except that he didn't want that to be "it." He was glad the curious and sweet woman with her dark curly hair and gorgeous eyes was so close to him in the attic. He was glad he didn't have any other patients waiting.

Felix's lab was well-equipped, and Dustin worked quickly. Still, it was most irregular to have a patient watch him pour the cast of her tooth and build it up in wax, then pour the molten gold. Lexi was most intent on the process, breathing heavily over his shoulder.

"I have to let this cool before I can polish it." Dustin set the buffer aside for later.

"And then?"

"I'll fit it again, and it can be set."

"Set where?"

He tilted his head, and she understood.

"How long does it take to cool?"

"At least an hour."

She picked it up with the tweezers and eyed it curiously. "It doesn't seem so big now; it's like a tiny sculpture."

"It's not big, really."

"And you say it'll be too far back to see?" Her tone was trusting and familiar, as if they'd known one another for a lifetime. Even though the question was vain, Dustin knew that the best compliment for his work would be if it was undetectable. He had to reassure her but he was captivated and unable to speak to the beauty who helped herself to the tools on the workbench. Except that being with her was so easy and comfortable, as if he'd known her far longer than just a few hours. Here, scraping wax onto the fresh gypsum model he'd poured and having her intelligent gaze follow his well-rehearsed moves in the little lab, he could be himself. All the pressure to hide who he was from the world, the shame of his father's scandal, and the need to fix the damage to his inherited title didn't exist. Here, he was just Dustin with the alluring Lexi, and their stations didn't matter. Dustin felt a pinch in his heart because he realized Lexi mattered to him. Her opinion of him as a person, not just her comfort as a patient. He felt something for her, an indescribable familiarity as if his soul knew her in a way he still had to discover.

Before he could formulate a response, he heard footsteps on the wooden ladder.

"There you are!" Nurse Wendy had climbed up to Felix's laboratory and peeked up the attic hatch. "Oh!"

Wendy straightened her crisp white apron and eyed Dustin with the severity of a headmistress who'd caught him with a girl in the attic. It was almost the truth, after all. Except for the headmistress part. But then again, as a nurse, she did hold a sort of authority, especially over the bachelors of the practice. She kept them toeing the line of morality, not that they needed her to—except, perhaps, he did.

Wendy cleared her throat, tucked a stray curl behind her ear, and surveyed the workbench. "Felix doesn't usually invite his patients here."

Dustin wasn't sure what to say. Having Lexi in the lab was irregular but not forbidden, to be exact. Plus, he liked speaking with Lexi. She wasn't like most patients, fearful or demanding. Nor was she looking at his work as Felix did, with a critical eye. Her attitude seemed most unconventional and her curiosity, as far as Dustin was concerned, spoke to her intelligence. Dustin thought that she wanted to know how the world worked and make sure it was all right, and at the same time, he wished to find out more about her.

"Well?" Wendy gave a stern regard as if she expected Lexi to take her leave. But instead of blushing, Lexi gave a cheeky response that met with Dustin's approval.

"I won't be his patient for much longer," Lexi said with all the poise of a lady of the ton. She was graceful and gave a wink. "Once this is…" she cleared her throat, "set, I shall no longer need Dr. Fitzwater's services."

"Aha," Wendy pinched her lips. "And what will you be after that?"

"My guest," Dustin interjected. He turned to Lexi. "Would you like to join us for tea? I am making an Indian chai."

Lexi clapped both hands together and beamed. She had a smile that was contagious, with only bright, white teeth in elegant, feminine curves. Her eyes twinkled and with the corners of her mouth rose, she beamed at him and Dustin's stomach fluttered like a dragonfly woken by the sun, for Lexi's warmth infused him with an energy he hadn't felt in a long time.

Wendy led the way to the kitchen. A small but tidy space at the far back of the building with a wooden table and five chairs around it welcomed Lexi into a less elegant but vastly more welcoming environment than her usual afternoon tea with her mother's haughty friends and their vicious gossip. Luxury and pomp couldn't mask the nasty atmosphere in the high-born ladies' tea, which was usually an ordeal requiring strategy, a battle fought with a sharp mind and sharper words instead of a sharp sword. But the friendly atmosphere in this kitchen immediately gave an air of relaxed comfort. It was a gathering of colleagues.

Lexi found herself alone with Dustin after Wendy and some of their colleagues, who had introduced themselves—they'd all been attracted by the irresistible smell of the chai—had carried their filled cups away. The clock's ticking mingled harmoniously with the crackling from the fire, creating an air of comfort. Lexi held her pottery cup with both hands. Regardless of the delicate flower paintings, the fine china back home never had such a grounding effect as the thick-walled terra-cotta mug with the grey glaze that appeared to be dripping upside down.

Dustin had infused a pot of milk with dry spices he'd crushed with a pestle in a mortar and then mixed the fragrant concoction with milk—a delightful sweetness mixed with an earthy aroma.

"So, which spices did you combine in this?" Lexi asked when Dustin topped off her cup with the last bit from the pot. The rich scents curled delicately into the air and Lexi took a deep breath.

"It's a masala mix I learned in Delhi."

"I can smell the cinnamon and nutmeg, but I don't know the spicy one." Lexi inhaled so much that her nostrils constricted. The aroma was enchanting and she felt like Princess Leela peeking over Prince Jai's shoulder as in her favorite book.

Standing next to the cupboard, Dustin opened it and brought out a brown glass jar with a cork, small enough to fit fully in his hand. He handed it to her.

"Have you ever heard of cardamom?"

Lexi uncorked the small bottle and sniffed carefully. The scents of citrus, mint, and herbal undertones, created a complexity she instantly associated with the bustling bazaars in Princess Leela's story. An inviting fragrance unlike any she'd ever known warmed her from the inside, but the expectant smile on Dustin's face brought her blood to boil.

"It's good in rice, too. I'm afraid I only have some leftovers from yesterday," he said.

"May I please try some?" Lexi clapped her hands together in excitement. Here, in this small kitchen, she felt freer than she'd ever been in the large house where the oppressive rules for an earl's daughter siphoned her spirits. It was most unseemly to be found in a dentist's back kitchen tasting leftovers of elegantly spiced dishes, unbecoming for her station, and absolutely marvelous for her as a girl. She'd never felt more vulnerable than she had in his chair, and never more healed than after his treatment. And right now, taking in the scents of his exotic cuisine in this homely, common kitchen far from the drawing room, Lexi felt more invigorated than ever before.

Dustin paused for a moment. Then an expression washed over him that said he couldn't deny her anything.

"I'm afraid it's nothing much." He retrieved the covered cast-iron skillet from a cupboard and took the lid off. Just as she'd done in the laboratory in the attic, she followed his every movement with her eyes.

He took a piece of butter, dropped the skillet, and heated it again. Then, he drizzled some clove and candied ginger from a porcelain bowl in his spice box onto the melting butter.

"It's nothing much, but—"

"Hmm." Lexi savored the aroma as the skillet gently simmered with fragrant spices, the warm notes of cardamom, cinnamon, and cloves dancing playfully in the air, infusing the room with their enchanting essence. When Lexi bent over the dish and closed her eyes, the tension in her forehead melted away visibly. The rich scents surrounded her, enticing all of her senses to partake in the irresistible allure of the anticipated first bite of the new dish.

She loaded her fork without reservation and brought it to her mouth.

"Careful! It's hot!" Dustin blew on the fork, and she watched him. She was closer than was proper, but he held the plate as if it were a generous offering. Was he trying to impress her?

"I'll have some," Wendy waltzed in, clutching a book. "Is any left for me?"

Lexi exhaled and collapsed. How was it possible that this nurse had such awful timing so as to constantly interrupt the precious moments Lexi enjoyed with the fascinating prince-dentist who had unmatched dexterity and was quite talented in the kitchen, too?

Wendy set her empty cup and a book on the table with a thud.

Lexi wanted to be irritated that Wendy had disturbed her tasting of the new rice dish, but her favorite author's book was right in front of her, and that always brightened her mood. "You are reading Adrienne Sanders?"

"You know her?" Wendy's eyes grew wide, and Lexi saw the same sparkle of excitement she felt whenever her latest books came out.

"I never miss one!" Lexi admitted, turning the book over to see the front cover. " Enchantment of the Tiger-Hearted Prince is still the best."

"You read the previous story, Leela and the Tiger-Hearted Prince ?" Wendy twirled her braid and cast Dustin a bashful glance. Then she leaned forward, "He didn't have the heart of a real tiger, did he?"

Lexi bubbled with excitement.

"A man with the heart of a tiger that wasn't one?" Dustin asked with a boyish twinkle in his eyes.

Wendy pinched her lips and gave Lexi a knowing look. "‘Tiger prince' means he has an appetite like a tiger."

"Not likely as much as I do," Dustin said into the pot he scraped clean. Lexi felt her face grow hot. Prince Jai's appetite wasn't for food.

Dustin came to sit with Lexi and Wendy, serving each a bowl of the fragrant yellow rice. "So, is this prince muscular and strong like a tiger?" He cast a lopsided smile, sending a shiver down Lexi's spine. He was testing her, and she liked it.

Wendy batted her eyelashes primly as she straightened her back. "He's quite strong if you must know. And he has brought back the skin of a white tiger from his quest."

"Oh, but he has to trade it in when he asks for Princess Leela's hand—" Lexi said excitedly, but then she noticed Wendy's raised brow.

"What? When?" She picked up the book and rifled through the pages.

"In book two," Lexi said.

"But book two doesn't come out till—" She put her hand on Lexi's lower arm. "Do you have book two?"

"The author is a friend of the family. My mother and I always read the final drafts to help her eliminate any last errors."

Wendy gasped. "No! Really?"

This was fun.

"What does the Tiger Prince do to woo Leela?" Wendy couldn't hide her excitement.

"You mean, what doesn't he do?" Lexi let a flame wash over her eyes, indicating book two would be even more graphic than book one. She eyed Dustin, and he seemed to catch on.

"You mean, book two is more wicked than The Ruby's Run ?"

"What's The Ruby's Run ?" Dustin asked, with a suppressed chuckle. "These stories are clearly for grown women, and not children."

"It's the finale of the last trilogy. Haven't you read any of Sanders's books?"

"I have to say no, but it sounds like they are quite worthy of my attention." Dustin answered Wendy's question, but Lexi felt his eyes on her.

"There is a particular scene about a kiss that I liked." Lexi considered whether speaking of the love scene before a man was appropriate. She'd often discussed the books with her sister but now, she was among strangers.

She was among strangers. Oh, how refreshing. She could be herself here and not the earl's daughter, the mistress's sister, or the debutante who failed to live up to her potential of making the match of the season.

Wendy sighed. "It was so romantic; I read it a thousand times over."

"A thousand times?" Dustin asked, skepticism coloring his voice.

"Well, a hundred for sure." She opened the book, and it fell to a well-worn page with a bent edge. "Here, in chapter twenty-two."

"Don't show him that," Lexi implored, her face heating.

"I must read it if you think so highly of Princess Leela." Dustin spoke with boyish mischief.

"Here, that's the best part," Wendy turned the book toward him and tapped on the page with her index finger so Dustin could read.

The girls were adorable in their chatter, but he quickly noticed how Lexi blushed and slid back and forth. It was a sign of her discomfort, just like earlier in his chair. Dustin longed to put her mind at ease and could think of just the distraction… Whatever troubled her, he wanted to take it away. There was something about this girl he couldn't describe, though he felt it in his bones.

Wendy pushed the open book toward him and tapped at the first full paragraph's first word on the right page. "Start here. Prince Jai's arrival at the palace."

The indigo night unfurled before me, dotted with the shimmering canvas of stars as I traversed the distance on my trusted camel. The moonlight cascaded over me, illuminating my black attire and the white tiger skin that clung to my shoulders. Even the symbol of my fierce heart paled without my love. All I desired was my princess.

Dustin pinched his lips shut to stifle the smile that would betray his glee. He understood that this was a romance, but this was shaping up to be a rather improper book. And the girls loved it. Lexi imitated the heroine… interesting. He hadn't underestimated her allure, but he hadn't expected such sexual tension to bubble so readily under the prim and proper surface of what he suspected was a debutante. What else was she capable of?

As I neared Leela's palace, the delicate scent of jasmine and the strong scent of marigolds wafted in the breeze, an intoxicating promise of her presence. I dismounted and scaled the trellis, hoping each upward movement would bring me closer to her.

There she was, on her balcony. I paused, drinking in the sight of her. Leela, my love, stood bathed in the glow of the earthen lamp, her saffron sari enhancing her ethereal beauty as she was lit from the back. A gust of wind lifted her long, wavy hair as if kissed by eternal beauty. Her dark eyes, wide and surprised, met mine, sparking a familiar warmth within me.

Dustin sucked his lower lip in as he imagined the scene and what would come next. His body tensed and he was glad it was all hidden under the tabletop.

"Which passage did you get to?" Lexi asked, her cheeks flushed.

Dustin read aloud.

"Leela," I whispered as I climbed off the camel onto her balcony. "Your beauty outshines the moon and stars combined." My voice was barely a murmur against the silent night but spoke with all the force of my being.

Wendy and Lexi responded in unison, dreamily dropping their chins on their hands.

Her soft sigh caressed my senses, "Oh, how I have missed you, my prince."

Dustin's voice failed him when the young women before him batted their lashes dreamily, smitten with the romance in the story. Both the nurse and Lexi were taken with Prince Jai and he was not even real.

But Dustin was real, hiding the evidence of his desire under the wooden table. Although he was real, he wasn't telling the whole truth about who he was. He couldn't tell Lexi that he was an aristocrat and that he could offer her far more than the imaginary prince in the book if he assumed his role as the duke regardless of how much the family had lost. She'd respected his earned title and called him Doctor, but there was more to him he longed to share with her. He wished he could say that he was a Duke but Lexi's dreamy gaze made him swallow hard. She'd cried upstairs and told him how much she wished to be kissed. This wasn't a mere fancy; she had a fiery desire within her, and he wished to meet her fire with his.

For a moment, Dustin feared that she read his thoughts because her smile melted away and she blinked bashfully. He lowered his head and read on about Prince Jai:

I moved closer, the world blurring around us until there was only her. My hand reached out, gently cupping her face, my thumb tracing the soft curve of her cheek, a silent vow etched in my touch. "I've traveled miles under the star-studded sky to declare my love for you," I confessed, my voice a raw whisper against her skin.

Her shocked gasp echoed in the silence, yet her gaze held mine, reflecting a mirror of emotions, a silent acceptance of my declaration. Overwhelmed, I pulled her into my arms, her body molding perfectly against mine. My mouth found hers in a passionate dance, a fervent promise sealed in our shared breaths.

The scent of jasmine and marigold intensified, their sweet aroma filling the room as I lifted Leela into my arms and carried her to her flower-adorned bed. The colorful silks billowing around us danced in the night breeze. Their ruby, emerald, and sapphire hues paled compared to our passion.

In discreet silence, we surrendered to our zeal. Like a tiger claiming his mate, I worshipped her with tender kisses, each a testament to my longing. As the night deepened, we lost ourselves in each other, our surroundings dissolving into insignificance. Our bodies, interwoven in the silent whispers and shared glances, came alive within the fragrant, colorful silks silently witnessing our profound love.

"Oh boy," Dustin said as he turned the page and pulled the book over to keep. This was shaping up to be a good story and he wanted to read all of it, preferably not under the ladies' watchful gazes.

"Stop!" Lexi snatched the book from him. Her eyes cast down, and her face crimson. How adorable.

"You read this?" Dustin didn't even try to hide the admiration and surprise in his gaze.

She gave a faint nod, the redness deepening. Dustin gave her an appreciative once-over. He could certainly show Lexi a thing or two about lovemaking. He'd learned more in India than just dentistry.

Wendy snapped the book shut and hugged it as she withdrew with a dreamy sigh and left the room. Lexi's gaze followed her, but Dustin remained seated.

The story's effect lingered in the air. Could Lexi be his princess? She'd lined her eyes to copy Princess Leela and dreamed of a kiss from someone like Prince Jai. Suddenly, Dustin wished he could tell her his secret. If he held hers safely, would she keep his? The idea of sharing more with her than half of his identity, baring all his secrets to her, put a smile on his face. This curious, charming, and intelligent girl brought hope to a part of his heart that he thought he'd locked up long ago.

"Don't laugh at me," Lexi mumbled.

"Why would I laugh at love?" Dustin asked.

"It's just a story," she mused, rubbing her thumbs together as if to dull her embarrassment with friction. She was so sweet.

"The story might not be real, but the feelings are. Love is real."

"Have you ever been in love?" Lexi asked with the innocence of a young fawn. She didn't look at him initially, but he needed time to formulate an answer.

Not until now, not that I know. Dustin wasn't sure how long he'd made her wait for a response when he finally croaked like a green boy. "Perhaps now."