King of My Heart

7. Space is a Bad Plan

Lucy was feeling restless. Her first date with Chris had been...fine, but what she wanted...she could not have what she wanted, so she settled for tip toeing into the kitchen for a warm cup of tea.

She entered the kitchen and found Tim pouring boiling water into a mug.

"Tim?" She asked in a quiet voice.

"Hey," he replied softly and dropped a tea bag into the mug he was holding. Then, he held the drink out for her to accept.

"You like the tea, huh?" Lucy felt her lips twitch into the slightest smile.

"Whiskey is better," he lied and poured hot water into a second mug. He found he was growing quite accustomed to sipping on Lucy's favorite tea, especially when he was having a particularly difficult time getting a few hours of decent sleep. "What's keeping you up?"

"Nothing really."

"So this has nothing to do with your first date with Chris?"

"What do you mean?"

"You left to go on a date with him earlier today, right?"

"Yup."

"Was he as boring as I suspected?"

She rolled her eyes and jumped onto the counter. "He's not THAT boring."

"Now that Chris is out of the picture, who's your next option?"

"I didn't say he's out of the picture. Chris is...safe, and he's nice enough to spend time with. Parliament hold outs are probably big fans of him, since he's a prince, so for now, we'll date until the law is repealed."

"That's romantic," Tim mocked.

"I'm not trying to be romantic. I'm trying to be practical," she explained.

"And once the law is repealed?"

"Freedom...to love whoever I want, whenever I want."

"I can't promise it'll be easy to get a unanimous vote, which is what you'll need."

"Don't tell me you're giving up," she raised an eyebrow at him.

"Of course not. I'll help however I can."

"Well, it takes a backseat to the police reform bill. We're presenting it at the meeting on Monday, so we have to get it done."

"Yes, ma'am," he smirked, and she felt her heart stutter at the sight.

"It's late, and we'll need our rest to finish everything in time."

Tim nodded.

"Good night, Tim," she added and took the mug with her when she left the kitchen.

He stayed leaning against the counter until he finished his tea. He knew he might actually sleep thanks to her.

♔ ♕ ♔ ♕ ♔ ♕ ♔ ♕ ♔ ♕ ♔ ♕ ♔ ♕

Tim watched in barely concealed awe as Lucy made a stirring presentation to advocate for police reform. The proposal required deliberation, so no vote was taken immediately, but he could tell that she likely reached enough people to get the newly proposed bill passed.

Knowing she would appreciate the sentiment, he waited outside of the Parliament Chamber for her and complimented, "You did good."

Her face changed to shock quickly.

The queen's stunned silence made him a little happy, especially when he noticed her cheeks blush at the praise. "What's the next big idea you've got?"

"Oh, you don't have to worry about it. I'll take care of it on my own," she answered. Lucy hated that she was going to spend long hours in the library alone without Tim sitting across from her, but she realized that she needed some space from him. As long as she had to date Chris, she had to avoid the risk of feeling anything more strongly for Tim. There was no denying the way her heart would race or her cheeks would flush when he smiled at her, and the sparks from any chance physical contact could never be ignored.