The Thrill Is Gone

The three women tried apologizing to Paulina. They cornered her when she was walking towards Lady Fellowes, and told her that they were so very sorry for their remarks, that their comments had been made in the heat of the moment and they didn’t mean a word they’d said. That of course was a bunch of bullshit. The truth was that they were afraid that Paulina might tell Harry of their commentary, and that Harry in turn would use his influence to bar them from future events or the exclusive clubs that they frequented. They wanted to make things as right as they could, but unfortunately for them, Paulina wasn’t in the mood to humor people that had insulted her. Her pride refused to let her. So she told them, as politely as she could, to leave her alone because she didn’t care about what they thought about her. They were nothing to her, and they obviously meant nothing to Harry, because if they were important to him. He would’ve briefed Paulina about them.

Despite Paulina’s attempts at ending their conversation, the three of them kept apologizing. They didn’t want to be viewed with contempt, even though they were viewing her with contempt. It was like high school, and Paulina was done with that sort of thing. She didn’t want to have to deal with people that were two faced, that spoke kindly in front of a person and then went behind their back to talk crap. Tired of them, and determined to not be bothered by them for the duration of the event, she just snapped.

“Look, I know you don’t mean you’re sorry.” She told them in a low voice. “When you were in the restroom, you were cackling over the fact that she called me a whale. And don’t say you weren’t, because I heard you laughing. I heard you tell her that she was clever for having come up with that insult, but let me tell you something, there’s nothing clever about it, it’s been used before and it wasn’t clever the first time someone came up with it, and it wasn’t clever when she said it. So please don’t insult my intelligence by saying that you guys didn’t mean it, that you’re sorry, because I know you’re not. You’re only sorry that you got caught talking crap about the Prince’s girlfriend. That’s it. And let me tell you something, I’d have more respect for you, if you stood by your words. That’s not to say that I’d like you. There’s no way I could like someone who so freely insults a person that they’ve never even met, but I’d respect you for not shying away from what you did, but this nonsense about apologizing when you’re clearly not sorry, only makes me dislike you even more. You’re rude. You’re two faced. So please go back to criticizing from a distance, and leave me be, because I don’t have time for this bullshit.”

Without saying anything further, she walked away, leaving them red faced and irritated. She didn’t have time to deal with people that didn’t care for her. They were of no importance to her. So they weren’t worth her wasting her time. Instead she returned back to her seat beside Lady Fellowes, and jumped right back into conversation with the elderly Baronesses and Ladies. She sat with them until the two teams took to the field. She’d promised Harry that she’d be at the very front, cheering him on, and she intended to keep that promise. After excusing herself from the group, she walked towards the front with a glass of champagne in her hands, it was for her nerves. If she was to be in the presence of horses, then she couldn’t be completely sober.

As soon as Harry saw Paulina moving away from the old ladies, he moved towards her, careful not to make Tsunami gallop to quickly out of fear of scaring her. He was glad that she’d been spending time with the older women, they were the ones that often kept his grandmother company, and if they could have favorable opinions of her, it’d make a difference.

“You don’t seem so frightened of Tsunami,” commented Harry when he was a few feet away from her.

She lifted her champagne glass. “With enough of these, nothing’s terrifying.”

“So that’s your strategy then?” he asked, an amused expression on his face.

“That’s my strategy,” she said, taking a sip from the glass. “How’s Tsunami? Has he been – uh, riding well? Is that the right term?”

“Yeah, it is. And she has. Tsunami’s a girl.” Harry tenderly caressed the horse’s face. “She’s very calm, you know, maybe later we can have a ride together.”

“Not happening,” she said quickly. “It’s enough of a challenge to be in her presence. I'm not going to mount.”

“Hmm perhaps not her and not today, but eventually, you’ll mount a horse, it’s only a matter of time.” He planned on helping her conquer her fears by taking her to Highgrove House in the future, and taking her on a ride through the country. “That reminds me, Kate’s arrived if you want to go and have a chat. She’s quite keen to make your acquaintance.”

“I’ll make my way over to her a little later on.”

“Brilliant, yeah,” he smiled. “Well, I should be getting on then. Have a match to play and all that.”

“Try to be careful, and don’t get hurt to badly.”

Harry smiled, touched by her concern. “I’ll try not. How about you give us a kiss?” he looked at her, expectantly.

“In front of everyone?” she asked, her cheeks growing brighter. “Is that allowed?”

Harry dismounted, and stepped towards her, holding onto the reigns the entire time. “Of course it is. Nothing wrong with a kiss,” he said, shooting her a toothy grin. “Or are you scared?” he teased.

“Of course not,” she said, pretending to be offended, but to be honest, she was a big afraid of giving the Queen another reason to dislike her. “Now get over here, güerito.”

Wearing his toothy grin, he moved towards her, stopping only when the barrier between the tent area and field, prohibited him from getting any closer. He tilted his head down, just enough for her to kiss him with ease. She gently pressed her lips against his; not letting them, linger out of fear of seeming vulgar, but the kiss did the trick. His cheeks took on a brighter look, and everyone around them was left to whisper about the public display of affection.

As Harry galloped further onto the field, Paulina redirected her attention to her champagne, staring at the glass with interest so as to not have to acknowledge the fact that everyone was staring at her. She could feel their eyes boring into her. She’s just publically kissed the Prince! He had gotten off his horse in order to steal a kiss from her, and while some thought it was adorable, others thought it was inappropriate, even vulgar, and there were others that looked upon the kiss with envy, wishing that it’d been their lips he’d kissed, instead of hers.

Her gaze eventually lifted from the champagne and settled on Harry. He was towards the middle of the field, right beside his brother, and he wore a grin so massive that even from all those yards away, it made her heart flutter. She knew his smile wasn’t the best smile out there, not traditionally speaking at least. His teeth weren’t pearly white, they were stained from the years of smoking and drinking, and there was a small gap present between his two front teeth, but she didn’t mind their less than pristine color or the gap, in fact she loved that he had a gap like hers, and the curve of his lips was way more important than the color of his teeth. It was the way the corners of his lips hitched upwards, the way his entire face brightened and his naturally pink cheeks became more prominent, that made his smile so hypnotizing to her.

Just seeing him smile was enough to make her heart soar, and whenever she was the reason for his smile, she felt her chest swell with pride, because in her opinion, one of the most important parts of being in love and in a relationship with someone, is being able to make them smile and laugh, because those are true signs of happiness.

She was taken away from his smile when she noticed that more horses had begun to take the field. The massive creatures terrified her, they were majestic, but they were also incredibly powerful and could cause so much damage. If something were to set them off, they could run straight towards the tent, jump over the barrier and cause a ruckus. It was unlikely that such a scenario could come about, but as she stood there, champagne in one hand, a closed fist in the other, she couldn’t help but think that they were looking at her funny, as if they could sense her fear.

Needing something a bit stronger to get her through the match, she turned in direction of the bar, planning on getting herself a scotch, but halfway there, she remembered that Lady Fellowes said it best if ladies kept to the champagne and left the stronger alcohol for the men. Paulina would’ve usually thought such a statement laughable, but given the present company, she thought it best not to garner any more attention to herself, so she turned to return to her previous position, but when she turned, she bumped into a young man with ginger hair that was darker than Harry’s.

“I'm terribly sorry,” she apologized, her cheeks flooding with color. “I should’ve been mindful of my surroundings, but I just turned, thinking no one would be there, but you were there . . . oh, I'm so sorry.”

“S’alright.” He reassured. “No harm done. At least not at the present, though you’ve done loads of harms to me these last few months. I reckon I should list my grievances.”

“Your grievances?” she asked in an amused tone.

He nodded, grinning brightly all the while. “There are quite a few of them, come to think of it, but I reckon they can all be filed under one general topic.”

As he spoke, Paulina took into account his appearance, the messy ginger hair, the mischievous smile that reminded her of Harry’s. And as she took in his appearance, and realized who it was, he was Tom Inskip, Harry’s best mate.

“Are you Tom? Tom Inskip that is?” she asked, staring at him with curious eyes.

“I am indeed, my fair lady.” His grin turned into a sly smile. “And you are the reason why Harry’s not been to see me in ages!” he exclaimed, overdramatically. “Don’t ya know ya have to share? We need joint custody of that ginger, and if you don’t start chucking him my way, then I’ll find myself forced to see you in court.”

“Will we?” she said, going along with his joke. “Because just so you know, I'm fairly well versed in the law and I’ve got a friend that’s a proper lawyer.”

“Do you now?”

She nodded.

“Then I suppose we’ll have to settle this out of court, but you do have to be more considerate of me. Just look at you! I can’t compete with this.” He motioned to her, wiggling his brow suggestively. “So every once in awhile, pretend to be ill and tell him to go visit Tommy. Yes. That’ll do quite well. Don’t you think it’ll do quite well? I think our problem – well, my problems been solved. You’ll go along with it. Won’t you? Because if you don’t, I’ll have to bat these ginger lashes, and you won’t be pleased with what happens.”

“And why not?” she asked. “Will I become a ginger if you do?”

“Ginger lashes are powerful, but not that powerful.” He said in a very serious tone. “In order to become a ginger, one must be bitten by a ginger.”

“Hmm, don’t think that’s true.”

“Why don’t you?” he asked and then took a sip from his whiskey.

“Because I’ve been bit, and I'm still very much a brunette.”

It took everything he had to not burst into laughter. “Then you’ve clearly not been bit on a full moon.”

“Does the transformation only happen on full moons?”

He nodded. “The ancient gingers wanted to put some conditions. Don’t worry though; I’ll have this sorted out. Next full moon, he’ll give you a bite.”

“I think I’ll pass.” She chuckled.

“Really?” he asked, frowning slightly. “Here I thought we were about to add another ginger to the ranks. Such a pity, you would’ve been such a lovely ginger.”

“I know I would’ve, but I think I make a better brunette.”

“You do, but now you won’t be able to play connect the dots with your freckles. And I’ll have you know it’s an immensely entertaining game.”

“I can always do that on Harry.”

Tom burst into a fit of laughter, garnering the attention of everyone around. “Play . . . on . . . Harry . . .” he said in between laughs. “Brilliant, absolutely brilliant, now I'm gonna be waiting for him to pop round my flat with his skin mapped out.”

“It might be awhile, but it’ll eventually happen.”

“It better happen or else I’ll be terribly disappointed.” Tom calmed down and took a sip from his drink. “I’ve just realized we’ve not been properly introduced. You just knew who I was, and I must say I'm touched that Harry told you about me. With the secrecy he kept you under, I thought he wouldn’t have mentioned me. He only mentioned you to me after the pictures of you lot were released. Before that, I’d pester him about where it was that he was running off to, and he’d say not to be such a nosy twat.”

“That does sound like something he’d say.”

“And he said it often.” Tom grinned. “Anyways, as you know, I'm Thomas Inskip. Call me, Skippy. I reckon we’ll be around each other enough for us to get on that basis.”

She smiled brightly, extending her hand to take his. “It’s lovely to meet you, Skippy. I’m Paulina Aureliana Balcázar, but that’s a mouthful so just call me, Paulin or Paula.”

“Ya mind if I call you, Balcázar instead?” he asked. “I fancy how that sounds. Balcázar,” he repeated, butchering her last name. “It’s very . . . don’t know, very fun to say. Does that make any sense?”

“Not really,” she answered honestly. “But you can call me that.”

“Brilliant,” he said, clapping his hands together. “Well I need another drink. Won’t make it through this thing without another few,” he said, staring at the empty glass with a slight frown. “Would you care to join me? We’ll get you a proper drink, not just that champagne.” He lifted his gaze to her face and smiled.

“I think I’ll stick to the champagne, but I’ll accompany you.”

They laughed amongst each other as they grabbed Tom another drink, and then returned to Paulina’s previous spot. He laughed much heartier than her. She was dignified in her laughter, careful to laugh politely and not smile too widely, but Tom; oh Tom didn’t care if his laugh bordered on the inappropriate or completely crossed that line. He was a fixture in Harry’s society, and as such, was quite used to the disapproving looks the older ladies shot him. Not that he minded. Tom didn’t really care for anyone’s opinion outside of his friends. In his mind, strangers weren’t going to make him laugh or stay up late drinking with him. They were the ones that would deny him alcohol and tell him to be sensible, and anyone that demanded him to be sensible was not worth his time. So he laughed heartily, told inappropriate jokes, and worked tirelessly to become better acquainted with Harry’s girlfriend.

Ever since Tom found out about her, he’d wanted nothing more to meet her, because if she had been the reason why Harry was foregoing nights out on the town with beautiful birds, then she had to be nothing short of spectacular. There was no way that Harry would pass up on his nights of debauchery for just anyone, and as Tom spoke to her, as he laughed and joked, he began to understand why Harry was as smitten and protective of her as he was. It was obvious that she had a good heart, the sincerity and kindness in her eyes coupled with the genuine interest that she showed him while they spoke, made that clear to him. Most people would’ve faked smiles and laughs in order to make their boyfriend’s friends like them, but she seemed to genuinely be entertained by him, and Tom appreciated that. She had a good head on her shoulders, and was very easy on the eyes, and if he was perfectly honest – not that he’d tell Harry this of course – she had the sort of bum that made it impossible for a bloke to ever leave their flat. Tom understood why Harry had spent so much time in Oxford at her flat, if he had a girlfriend with a bum that size, he would’ve done the same thing.

Tom was so engrossed in his conversation with her, that when his cell phone started ringing, he nearly ignored the phone call, but then he remembered that his mum was ill, and after a quick phone call, and a scolding by his sick mother, he told Paulina that he had to run. But before he left, he made her promise that she and Harry would join him for a night on the town, didn’t matter if London or Oxford was the town, all that mattered was making a proper time of it. Paulina smiled warmly and promised that as soon as the match ended, she’d talk to Harry about it.

With Tom gone, she grabbed a glass of lemon water from a nearby waiter, and made her way back to Lady Fellowes. Lady Fellowes wasn’t pleased by the fact that Paulina had spent so much time talking to Tom. Of course she understood the fact that Paulina getting on well with Tom, was a big deal because it meant that Harry’s closest friend would approve of her, but she just didn’t like that boy. Whenever her nephew was in trouble, he was always lurking about. Had she been another person, she would’ve thought Harry every bit as much to blame as Tom, but because she wanted to see her nephew through kind eyes, she thought of Tom as the bad influence and that kept her opinion of Harry intact.

“I see you’ve become acquainted with Mr. Inskip,” said Lady Fellowes when Paulina sat beside her. “Such an interesting young man he is.”

“Very interesting,” agreed Paulina. “And very amiable, he was very friendly and polite to me.”

“I am glad to hear it. He’s a favorite of Harry’s so I suppose you’ll be seeing quite a bit of him in the future.” Lady Fellowes took a drink from her own lemon water. “How was your time with Miss Phillips?”

“It was brilliant.” Paulina smiled. “She’s incredibly charming and welcoming.” She paused. “Ma’am, I was wondering if you would care to return to the tent. Harry mentioned that Miss Middleton had arrived, and he expressed his desire for me to become acquainted with her.”

“As much as I would love to see Miss Middleton, I think it best if you venture to the tent on your own. Lady Toulson is set to arrive at any moment now, and I’ve a discussion pending with her, but I should retire to the tent by match’s end.”

“Brilliant, I’ll see you after the match then. Would you care for me to send Miss Middleton your regards?”

“Yes, of course. Thank you, Paulina. Till later, then.”

Paulina politely excused herself from the present company and then made her way back to the tent. There were two security guards standing watch, making sure not to let anyone in that wasn’t meant to be there. For a moment, Paulina thought they were going to deny her access, but that was a foolish little thought, for as soon as they saw her, they stepped aside and bowed their heads slightly in her direction. It was odd to have people bow their heads at her, so very odd. It was unreal, and she wasn’t sure she liked it. It was far too distinguishing a gesture, especially when she hadn’t done anything to deserve it. She was just dating Harry. Had she solved the conflicts in the Middle East then she would’ve understood the bow of the heads, but being treated differently for dating someone was just odd.

When she stepped inside the tent, she saw Kate standing towards the front, just behind the closed fence from which Harry and William had taken the field. She was wearing a soft coral dress that ended just above her knee, and her dark brown hair was blowing gently in the obliging breeze. Kate looked like the part of the princess. There was a soft smile on her face. It looked exactly like the appropriate smile that Lady Fellowes had taught Paulina, and as Paulina stared at Kate, she wondered if Lady Fellowes had also given her lessons on how to behave appropriately in society or if Kate had learned that on her own. She’d have to ask her at some point, she’d also have to ask her for advice on how to deal with the press, but for now, all she had to make her presence known.

“Excuse me?” she called politely to Kate, stopping when she was about a foot away from her.

Kate turned in her direction, taking in her face before her smile brightened. “Miss Balcázar.”

“You know my name.”

“Everyone knows your name,” Kate said, smiling, “Just like everyone knows mine.”

“Oh right, the tabloids.” Paulina chuckled softly. “I’d blanked out on them for a minute there.”

“It’s nice to forget them every once in awhile.”

“Amen to that. It honestly feels like everywhere I turn nowadays, I see my face or hear people talking about me. It’s annoying.”

“Massively annoying,” agreed Kate. “But you’ll get used to it.”

“Really?” asked Paulina, cocking her brow.

“No,” laughed Kate. “I just wanted to say you would, because I thought that was a brilliant thing to say. Sorry. But if it counts, you’ll find ways to deal with it. You know? Makes things easier, and all that,” she said. “And I’ve techniques I use that I can share.”

“I’d love to hear them, because my techniques are me cursing inwardly whenever I'm being swarmed.”

“Well, that’s one of my techniques. It’s nice to call someone a wanker in your mind when they’ve a camera shoved in your face.”

“Exactly!” exclaimed Paulina. “Sometimes I just want to smack it away and tell them to back up a little. I mean, haven’t they heard of personal space.”

“They’ve heard of it, they just don’t care for it.” Kate joked.

“Maybe we should get some cameras and follow them around a week.”

“That’d be fantastic. And when they get mad, we can tell them that they did that to us just last week.”

They kept joking about the press that followed them around. Kate was pleased that there was someone she could talk and joke about that with. Sure, she could have a laugh over it with Wills, but it wasn’t the same. William had spent his entire life with cameras in his face. Kate was normal before her relationship with him became public, as was Paulina before her relationship with Harry became known. With the American, Kate could discuss what it felt to be in the public life after having spent so many years living a normal life, and Kate was glad to see there was someone new she could talk to.

Ever since she became William’s girlfriend, her number of friends had started to dwindle. People that she’d once trusted had sold pictures of her to the media and given interviews about what she used to be like. It was heartbreaking to see people that she’d once trusted, sell her out like that, and as a result, she didn’t really trust any new people, but she knew she could trust Paulina. She was in the same situation as her, there were to normal women that had fallen for princes, and they would be frequently in each other’s company, so Kate was very much open to being pleased, she was willing to form a friendship with the American, and spent the remainder of the match in her company.

Harry was pleased that Paulina was getting on well with Kate. He was a fan of Kate, and knew that Paulina would be spending a lot of time with Kate in the future, at events and dinners, so knowing they got on well was a relief. And when Paulina told him that she’d met Tom, and that she’d like him, he couldn’t help grin brightly.

“What’d Skippy say?” asked Harry, his cheeks bright pink from the exercise, and mud caked onto the left side of his face.

“He said he was gonna talk you into making me a ginger.”

“A what?” he was already on the verge of laughter.

“A ginger,” she replied. “Apparently, if a ginger bites a non-ginger on a full moon, the non-ginger becomes a ginger.”

Harry burst into laughter, his eyes closing as he rested his right hand on his hip. “That wanker,” he said in between laughs. “Can’t believe he said that!” he exclaimed. “Only Skippy would come up with something like that.”

“I thought that was something you two came up with together. It definitely sounds like something you’d do.”

“It does. Doesn’t it? But no, that notions all Skippy’s, but I’ll have him instruct me in the art of ginger making. That way you can become one and ya won’t be able to tease me about this gloriousness.”

“Oh no, you don’t!” she declared, folding her arms across her chest. “There’s no way I'm letting you make me a ginger.”

“But it’ll be brilliant!” He pouted.

“Do you really want me to be a ginger? Just think about it. Think about me in ginger form.”

Harry narrowed his eyes slightly and tilted his head to the side, pretending to contemplate what she’d look like as a ginger. “You’re right. You can’t be a ginger.”

“And you better not make anyone else a ginger.”

“Oh alright,” he huffed. “But only if you let me try to make you one when there’s not a full moon.” He wiggled his brow suggestively.

She dropped her hands from her chest. “You’re so fucking cheeky.”

“That a yes, then?”

“Yes,” grumbled Paulina, her cheeks just as bright as him. “So should we go to the tent then? There is a banquet after all.”

Harry shook his head. “I’ve a better idea.”

“And that is?”

“Let’s go to Oxford today. We'll just grab your things from Alfred's, and then go home.”

Her heart soared in her chest when he referred to her apartment as home.

“Alright then, let’s go home, güerito.”