Chapter 29 Chapter twenty nine
The first touch of her lips was soft, tentative, a question. She answered by pressing closer, one hand sliding up my back. I deepened the kiss, and she made a small sound that went straight through me. Her mouth opened under mine, and suddenly tentative became something else entirely.
She tasted like the tea she had been drinking, sweet and warm. Her body fit against mine like it had been designed for this. When I slid my hand into her hair, she pressed even closer, and I forgot entirely why I had thought this was a terrible idea.
I had been right about one thing. Once I started, I did not want to stop.
We broke apart only when breathing became necessary. I rested my forehead against hers, both of us breathing hard.
"Well," she said, voice unsteady. "I think we can confirm the chemistry is real."
"Very real."
"And probably not just circumstance."
"Definitely not just circumstance."
She smiled, and I kissed her again because I could now. Because she wanted me to. Because the feeling of her mouth on mine was rapidly becoming my new favorite thing.
This time when we broke apart, she stayed in my arms, her head against my chest. I could feel her heartbeat, rapid and strong.
"Sarah is going to be back soon," she said.
"I know."
"We should probably come up with an answer to her question."
"What is the question again?"
She laughed, and the sound vibrated through both of us. "What our relationship status is."
"Right. That." I ran my hand down her back, felt her shiver slightly in response. "What do you want to tell her?"
"The truth. That we are together. That this is new and uncertain but real. That yes, it complicates the lawsuit, but no, you did not manipulate me into my statements at the forum because this started after that. That we are prepared to testify to that under oath."
"Together," I said, testing the word. "I like the sound of that."
"Me too." She pulled back enough to look at me. "Though I should warn you: I have no idea how to be in a relationship. I have never had one. Every interaction I have had with men was orchestrated by palace staff or monitored by security or part of the performance of being a princess. I do not know the rules for normal dating."
"That works out well because I have not had time for a relationship in approximately five years and have no idea what I am doing either. We can figure it out together."
"What if we are terrible at it?"
"Then we will be terrible at it together while fighting a lawsuit and learning how to survive on inadequate salaries and figuring out how to exist in the world as actual people instead of the roles we were playing. What is one more complicated thing?"
She kissed me again, and this time it was slower, deeper, the kind of kiss that suggested we were both very much on the same page about wanting this despite the terrible timing.
A knock on the door made us spring apart like guilty teenagers.
"Are you two decent?" Sarah's voice, amused. "Because I am coming in regardless, but I thought I should check."
Aanya and I looked at each other. Her hair was messed up from my hands. My shirt was untucked where she had grabbed it. We both looked thoroughly kissed.
"Come in," Aanya called, trying to smooth her hair.
Sarah entered, took one look at us, and smiled. "I see you resolved the relationship question."
"We are together," I said. "As of approximately ten minutes ago."
"Good. That makes the legal strategy simpler. We can be honest about the timeline. No relationship before the forum. Attraction developed after. Relationship formalized this week. You will both testify to that truthfully, which means Crown Estate cannot prove manipulation because the facts do not support their narrative." She sat down at her desk. "Now that we have that settled, let us discuss what happens next. The palace released a statement an hour ago. You should both read it before we proceed."
She handed us a printed copy. Aanya and I sat next to each other on the small sofa, our thighs touching. I was acutely aware of the warmth of her beside me, the way her hand found mine as we read.
The palace statement was exactly what I expected. Cold, formal, devastating.
"The Royal Family regrets to confirm that Ms. Aanya Windsor has refused all attempts at reconciliation and has chosen to proceed with legal action against Crown Estate despite having no basis for her defamatory claims. Ms. Windsor's statements at the Brixton Community Forum were made without proper consultation or understanding of the complex regulatory frameworks governing Crown Estate operations. Her subsequent relationship with Dr. Dev Marchetti, whose research formed the basis of her allegations, raises serious questions about whether her judgment was compromised by personal feelings rather than factual assessment. The family wishes Ms. Windsor well but cannot continue to support decisions that bring the institution into disrepute."
"They are essentially saying I was manipulated by you," Aanya said quietly. "That my judgment was compromised by romantic feelings."
"Which is what we expected," Sarah said. "The good news is that the timeline does not support their narrative. You made your statements on Tuesday. Your relationship started on Sunday. That is five days between the forum and the relationship. Hard to argue you were manipulated by romantic feelings that did not exist yet."
"But they will argue I was attracted to him even if we were not formally together," Aanya said. "That my judgment was clouded."
"They can argue that. But attraction is not manipulation. And more importantly, Dr. Marchetti's research is independently verifiable. Crown Estate's attempt to discredit your statements by pointing to your relationship only works if his research is flawed. And it is not. We have documentation, expert witnesses, and community testimony that supports every claim you made. Your relationship is a distraction, not a legitimate legal argument."
"What do we do now?" I asked.
"Now you both go live your lives as normally as possible while I coordinate with the advocacy coalition on legal strategy. Dev, you have teaching responsibilities, yes?"
"Office hours this afternoon. TA session tomorrow."
"Good. Do those. Maintain your normal schedule. Aanya, you start your job at the community centre today?"
"Yes. Nine AM. I am already late."
"Then go. Do the work. Be seen doing real community engagement. The best response to palace accusations is living your life authentically." Sarah stood. "And both of you should be prepared for intense media attention. They will follow you. Photograph you. Try to provoke reactions. Do not engage. Do not comment. Live your lives and let me handle the legal response."
We stood to leave. At the door, Sarah called after us.
"One more thing. The relationship complicates things, but it also humanizes you. The palace wants to paint you as manipulated and naive. A genuine relationship built on shared values makes you sympathetic. So do not hide it. Do not apologize for it. Own it. You are two people who found each other in the middle of a crisis and chose to build something real. That is not a weakness. That is a strength."