Book 3 || Taming Prince Charming || Harry Styles

Chapter 14

Her view.

The chiffon dress fits me perfectly and I stare at my reflection in amazement. My hair is being obedient for once and looks silky and smooth. My makeup looks perfect, and I grin as I spin around the room. I feel like a princess. Even if I am a fake one. My heart beats fast as I wonder what Harry's going to say. He's never seen me dressed up like this. I hope he'll be impressed, though I'm sure he's been with plenty of beautiful women in his life. I hear the door opening and I pause as he walks in. He stops as he gazes at me. His eyes narrow as he looks me over, and I can't tell what he's thinking from the expression on his face.
"Are you ready?" he says finally and turns away from me.
"Yes." I answer him, feeling disappointed. Does he think I look bad?

"Okay, we need to go down in a few minutes." His voice sounds angry. "There are a lot of people you'll be meeting tonight. Do not worry if you don't remember their names, these are not people you'll be meeting many times."
"Okay, that's good to know," I mumble and stare at him.
"Do you need anything before we go down?" He gives me another quick glance and I shake my head.
Why is he acting like this?
"Good, dinner won't be too long."
"And then we're going out afterwards?"
"I'm not sure." He looks at me again and purses his lips as he studies my face. His green eyes look annoyed and slightly dazed, and I wonder if he's okay.
"Are you okay?" I ask him softly.
"I'm fine," he snaps and turns away from me. "Are you ready?"
"Yes." I run my hands down my thighs and take a deep breath. "Let's do this. Is there anything I should know?"
"Anything like what?" He turns back at me and frowns.
"I don't know. Things your fiancé should know that I don't."
"You know everything you need to know." He opens the door.
"We haven't even discussed the engagement or anything." I hurry out as we walk down the grand corridor. "How did you propose?"
"Figure something out." He shrugs and then laughs. "What a mess this is."
"We don't have to go through with it," I whisper, feeling extremely self-conscious.
"Go through with what?" He stops at the top of the stairs. "We're not actually getting married, you do know that, right?" His eyes narrow as he stares at me. "Or were you hoping for something else?"
"Excuse me? What's that supposed to mean? Am I hoping for something else?" My voice rises. "You're the one who made me come here to be a part of this farce."
"Fine, as long as you don't think this is going to end in a big wedding with you becoming a queen."
"I wouldn't want to marry a jerk like you," I hiss, annoyed. "In fact, I want to go home tomorrow. I'm done with this and with you. You can't just speak to me like I'm some sort of-"
"You look very beautiful tonight, Cassidy." His voice drops as he interrupts me. "Very, very beautiful. I'm happy you're here with me. Fake engagement or not."
"I, uh..." I stare at him in shock. Did he really just say that? He thinks I'm beautiful? He is happy I'm here? What?
"Let's go do this thing, yeah?" He grabs my hand. "Let's go make our grand entrance. Everyone is waiting to meet you."
"That's what I'm afraid of," I mumble under my breath as we make our way down the stairs.

I can hear the sounds of violins and a piano playing. There are hundreds of people milling around the palace and I feel my stomach rumbling from nerves. We are so not prepared for this. Everyone is going to know the engagement is a sham.
"It'll be okay, Cassidy, breathe," Harry whispers as we step into the hallway. He gives me his first real smile of the night. "Now, let's go and have some fun."

***

His view.

I watch Tarquin's eyes widen as he stares at Cassidy in her dress. His expression holds the admiration and appreciation I felt when I saw her. I wasn't prepared for the gamut of emotions that hit me when I saw her in her dress, and her small, hopeful smile frightened me. I am not interested in falling for Cassidy. I am not interested in love. I don't want my heart to tighten when I stare at her. Like now. She is smiling at Tarquin as if he's her fiancé. It irritates me. Doesn't she realize that Tarquin might take her smile the wrong way? He might think she's interested in him. I grow angry just thinking about it.
"Cassidy, come." I grab her arm. "We need to talk."

"Hi, Harry." Tarquin grins at me and I ignore him.
"Where are you taking me?" Cassidy gasps as I pull her out of the room with me.
"We need to talk." I hiss, annoyed at her. "You can't keep flirting with every man you see."
"What are you talking about? I've not been flirting with anyone."
"You will receive a lot of attention tonight." I pull her into a small bathroom and close the door. "You can't let it get to your head."
"Harry, I was just talking to Tarquin. No one has been flirting with me. In fact, no one has even smiled at me aside from him."
"Trust me, the men are doing a lot more than flirting."
"What are you talking about?" She rolls her eyes.
"I'm talking about this."