CHAPTER 12. WATER AND STAIRS

the dance floor, laughing and giggling, as Prince Louis watched her from the side.

"Whatever did you do to that girl, Louis?" Queen Amelia asks, coming to stand next to him.

"I do not know what you speak of Mother." Prince Louis replies, a longing look on his face, as he watches Diana get spun around.

"Do you truly believe you can lie to your Mother?" She asks him, with a smile, and he sighs turning to her.

"I lied about who I was." Louis answers, and Queen Amelia turns to him, a sad smile on her face. "But that is not why she is upset. I do not even know why she feels she doesn't know me."

"Oh, my poor boy, she feels that way because when you did not tell her the truth even after getting to know her, she felt you did not trust trust her." The Queen tells him. "She is upset because she is afraid that you will lie to her again."

"But, I will not lie to her, and I do trust her." Louis replies. "Why else would I want to marry her."

"Well, how is she going to know that?" She asks him. "Did you tell her?"

"No, I did not." Louis answers.

"Then, how, pray tell, my sweet son, will she know that?" The Queen tells him, as she walks away, leaving him with his thoughts.

He turns to see Diana, who now randomly spinning in her spot, and sighs, making his way towards her.

"I believe it is time to get you to rest." He tells her, as she guides her towards Lady Danbury.

"Lady Danbury!" Diana greets, loudly, with a huge grin, as she hugs the women. "You..." She continues, holding Lady Danbury's shoulder, as she points a finger at her. "Are my favorite..."

Louis awkwardly balances her.

"Lady Danbury, can you take Diana to you home?" He asks her. "As, you can see, she is quite..." He pauses, as Diana bops his nose. "...indisposed."

"Yes, I noticed." Lady Danbury replies.

"I am afraid if her family might see her in this condition, she will be in a great deal of trouble." Louis tells her. "So, I had hoped, you could take care of her."

"Oh, I certainly will, You Highness." Lady Danbury says, smiling. "But, I do have some business left to attend. Could you do me the favor, and take her to my house, I will be there shortly."

"I do believe, that would not be appropriate, Lady Danbury..." Louis tries to say, but Lady Danbury shakes her head.

"I have known you since birth. I do believe you to be a proper respectful gentleman, who your Mother is proud to have raised." Lady Danbury tells him, raising her eyebrow. "Now, go. I shall tell Lady Bridgerton that Diana will be staying with me tonight."

"Very well." Louis replies, with a sigh. "I shall bring Miss Bridgerton back to your house."

amo te maxime?" Diana asks, in Latin as she sits beside him in the carriage, and Louis looks at her, in confusion. Do you know what I like about you the most?

"I con not understand you." He tells her, with furrowed eyebrows. "Is that Latin?"

"Tu as les plus beaux yeux." She continues, not hearing him, as she leans over, and rests her head on his shoulder. "Sic oculis dreamy." You have the most beautiful eyes. Such dreamy eyes.

"Why are you speaking Latin?" Louis asks, a grin on his face. "I can not understand anything you say."

"Brunneis!" She says, excitedly. "Color tam mirabilis." Brown. Such a wonderful color.

"You are entirely drunk." Louis tells her, laughing.

"Non solum qui biberint non blurry." She replies, as Louis just gives her an amused look. I am not drunk you are just blurry.

"You should close your eyes and rest, Miss Bridgerton." He tells her, smiling as she nuzzles into his neck.

"You should start calling me, Diana." She mumbles, making a beaming smile form on his face.

"Come on, you can do this."

"It is too difficult." She whines.

"It is not that bad." He tells her.

"They are scary!" She tells him.

"They are stairs!" He replies, sighing.

Right now, Diana was sitting on the first few steps of the huge staircase at Danbury House, while Louis stood in front of her.

"Diana, come now, you just need to climb the stairs and then you can go to bed." He tells her, but she shakes her head.

"How about, I sleep right here?" She asks him, going to lay down completely on the steps, but Louis stops her, holding her so she could not sleep on the stairs.

"You can not sleep here, Diana." He tells her, as she grabs his arms, making herself comfortable, and closing her eyes.

"Of course I can." She replies, sleepily, and after a moment, Louis sighs.

He pulls her up, and picks her in his arms, carrying her. He starts to walk up the stairs, making Diana open her eyes a little, a small smile on her face.

"You are pretty." She tells Louis, closing her eyes once again, and leaning on his shoulder.

bed, slowly opening her eyes, as she puts one of her hands to her head, groaning painfully. She tries to pick her other hand, but finds it to be tangled with another. She averts her eyes a little upwards, to find the person, who's hand she was holding, only to find him sleeping on the chair beside the bed.

She jolts up, dropping his hand, making him wake up with a shock.

"What?" He asks, in his morning voice, groaning. "What happened?"

"What are you doing in my room?!" She asks him.

"This is not your room, Miss Bridgerton." He answers, closing his eyes again, and going back to sleep. "This is Lady Danbury's guestroom."

Diana looks at him in disbelief, as he rests peacefully. She looks around, and sees a bottle of water. Picking up the bottle, she walks around the bed, making her way over to the sleeping Prince. She open the cap, and turns it upside down on top of his head, as he jumps awake.

"Diana!" He yells, and she throws the bottle on the bed.

"Oh, now I'm Diana?" She asks.

"You told me to call you that last night." He tells her, wiping water off of his face, giving her an unimpressed look.

"Well, if you are going to call me Diana, I will call you Louis." She tells him, making an amused smile break out on his face.

"Please do." He tells her, grinning, and she looks at him with a glare.

"Now, you said that, I will not." Diana tells him, as Louis falls back onto the bed.

"You know, you were speaking Latin last night." He says, and she looks at him.

"I regret nothing." She tells him.

"That is because, you do not remember the things you should regret." He replies, as she sits down on the chair, and he leans up on his elbows.

"What else did I do?" She asks, sighing, as she pulls her legs, up to her chest, and resting her head on them.

"You danced all night." Louis tells her, smiling as she groans. "Well, it was less dancing, and more spinning. You called Lady Danbury your favorite, and you called me pretty."

"I called you pretty?" She asks, uncertain.

"Why would I lie?" He asks, smiling.

"Are you sure, I didn't call you petty?"

LAUREN GRAHAM │

I USED THE GOOGLE TRANSLATOR FOR LATIN, SO IT MIGHT NOT BE ACCURATE

BUT! TELL ME, DID YOU LIKE DRUNK DIANA? AND ARE YOUR HOPES AND DREAMS COMING BACK? I PROMISE THIS TIME I WON'T CRUSH THEM.

GUYS, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHOWING THIS BOOK SO MUCH LOVE, I WANT TO THANK ALL THE PEOPLE WHO MESSAGE ME TO TELL ME NICE THINGS ABOUT MY BOOKS!

I LOVE YOU GUYS!!!