Chapter Text
Alex doesn’t know how the picture was taken. It should have been impossible. They’d rented a private fucking island near Hawaii, expecting complete solitude other than Henry’s PPOs and the secret service, but somehow the photo was real.
They don’t find out until they get home because it’s released the next day and there’s chaos. His ma is more relaxed now she’s halfway through her second term, but their actions still have consequences to the future of the Democratic Party.
When Alex sees the picture on the front of the magazine, he knows there’s going to be trouble, and he’s called into a meeting immediately. Henry doesn’t answer to the White House, and usually he’d come to something like this when it’s about him too, but he has to fly back to England and deal with the royal family.
It’s not an innocent picture. It’s anything but. Henry is lying on his back in the wet sand of the beach, body completely bare and naked in a way that should have only been for Alex’s eyes, and Alex is lying on top of him. Alex’s still wearing his swim trunks, but he’s cradled in Henry’s thighs, his body blanketing Henry’s as he kisses him deeply. His arm is caught between them and Alex remembers exactly what he was doing. In the picture, there’s a peek of his fingers at the bottom of Henry’s thighs, and while it doesn’t show Henry’s cock or asshole, it’s clear where Alex’s fingers are.
Inside of Henry.
They’re enamoured with each other, completely lost in the other’s embrace, and if it wasn’t such a violent breach of privacy, the picture would have been beautiful. No, it is beautiful. Henry’s beautiful and Alex stares at it longer than he should have when his ma throws the magazine on the table.
They’re surrounded by other staff members who are there to help, to come up with a plan to fix this, but Alex’s not sure what’s meant to be fixed. He and Henry are engaged to be married and it’s been two years since they were outted to the world. They’re happy. So fucking happy. How is it on them that someone took something that wasn’t theirs to take? That moment, precious as it was, was between Alex and Henry. Fiancés.
His ma gives him a look and her lips quirk. “What do you suppose we do, hon?”
Zahra’s sitting beside Alex and she looks ropeable. Madder than a rattlesnake. She glares at him. Even after she married Shaan and had their baby, she’s still fierce at work. Alex thinks she’s even worse because she’s like an overprotective mother for all of them, but especially Alex and Henry. She likes Henry a lot, but Shaan thinks of him as a son so it makes sense that she’d take him under her wing too.
“What do you want me to say?” Alex stares around the room at the staff, the corner of his mouth curving up. “Henry’s my fiancé. We’re not virgins.”
Zahra makes a frustrated sound and slaps him hard on the shoulder, and he says “hey!”
“Might I remind you that you want to run for house and senate in your future. These kinds of pictures are forever,” she seethes at him.
“He’s not an affair,” Alex argues with a grin. “He’s my soon to be husband. We have sex. That should have been a private moment between us. Did we find out who took the photo?”
“Not yet.” His ma’s Texan accent always thickens when she’s amused or upset, but she doesn’t appear angry this time. “We have experts working on it and I’m sure the palace does too.”
“You have more to think about than yourself, you selfish asshole.” Zahra’s glare deepens and she crosses her arms over her black dress, as dark as her mood some days. “Henry’s a prince. Sometimes I swear you forget about that. He always has a reputation to uphold and now there’s a photo of him on every magazine of you sticking your fingers in him.”
“It’s a nice picture,” Alex can’t help but comment. He stares at it again because it’s really nice. Strangers can’t see what he’s dragging out of his fiancé. Henry is coming unravelled in his arms, begging for more, for his cock. He’s desperate and needy and makes the perfect sounds when he’s like that. “It’s tasteful. You can’t see me doing that. Not really. Damn, my fiancé has the best ass.”
The thing is, Henry’s ass isn’t muscular like most people would probably expect. It’s soft and deliciously bubbly and Alex loves sticking his face between Henry’s cheeks, eating him out as he listens to Henry’s needy little whimpers. The thought nearly gets him hard here at the table with his ma and Zahra and a team of their staff.
Zahra heaves an irritated sigh and Alex thinks she’s ready to slap him over the back of the head.
“Hon, I imagine the crown won’t be happy about the picture. We’ll need to do damage control.” His ma presses her lips together and he thinks she’s trying not to laugh at him.
“Can I keep this?” He asks, but picks up the magazine and drags it closer to himself before anyone can answer. “Are there other photos?”
He finds out there are. He opens the magazine to the two-page spread that’s dedicated to them. The other pictures are mostly innocent.
Henry and Alex in the water, kissing.
Henry laughing at something Alex said with the kind of laugh that’s real.
Alex with his arms wrapped tightly around Henry with Henry’s cheek resting on his shoulder.
Them lying on lounges on the beach, Alex with his eyes closed and sleeping while Henry has a book open.
It’s all very sweet and Alex loves these photos a lot. It’s domestic. It’s them in their relationship element.
“Have you heard from Henry?” Ma asks.
He shakes his head. “Not since an hour ago when he arrived in Heathrow. I’m sure he’ll fill me in with what the queen has to say.”
He will because Henry always needs to vent after a meetup with his grandmother. She’s a piece of work and even though the world is mostly happy for Alex and Henry, she’s not because the church isn’t.
He runs his finger over the image of Henry reading and smiles. Henry’s entire body is relaxed, his skin sunkissed even though he is still so pale, and the moles on his body bright in the sun. He’s perfect. Beautiful. Fuck, Alex is so in love.
One of the staffers, a woman named Louisa, sighs and holds up her hand as though this was school and she needs permission to speak. She’s got black curls and big blue eyes and doesn’t look much older than Alex. He thinks she might have some Latina in her, too. “Madame President, this won’t be something the media will forget in a day. It’ll be as big, or bigger than cakegate. We need to get a handle on the narrative quickly. We can’t wait around for the crown.”
“Why?” Alex asks seriously. “Henry and I are engaged. We have sex.”
“You can’t have sex on a beach, even if it’s private, when you’re a public figure, Alex.” Zahra throws her hands up.
“Again, why?” Alex falls back in his chair and it squeaks. “Hen and I were on vacation. It was a private beach. It was ours for two weeks. If we wanted to have sex on it, we could. It’s not in public.”
His ma claps her hands together and pulls the attention of everyone in the room. She’s always been good at that. “Alex, hon, you need to think about your future too. We want to see you in the White House as president one day, with Henry as the first man of the United States. We can’t have something like this tarnishing your image so early on.” She holds up her hand when Alex opens his mouth to argue. “I know you and he are soon to be married, but what you were photographed doing was a personal moment that the world didn’t need to see. And that’s not on you. That’s on the person who invaded your privacy. I’m not victim blaming you. I think we do need to make a statement, though. For you and Henry and God forbid, the royal family because ya’ll know the queen won’t be happy. I imagine Henry’s getting an earful right now.” And she looked worried for him. Alex was as well. They both knew what the queen was like.
Alex nods. “What do you want me to do?”
His ma inhales. “We’ll give Henry twenty-four hours to figure out what the palace will do and then we’ll make a plan of attack.” She smooths a hand over his shoulder. “You start making a speech, hon, and we’ll reconvene tomorrow.”
He leaves the room with the magazine in his hand. No one stops him. Zahra smirks at him and shakes her head. He decides to stay in his bedroom at the residence tonight because Henry isn’t home and it’d be lonely without him. Plus he doesn’t want to fly back to New York only to have to come back the next day. One of his ma’s staff flies David from New York and David’s in the bedroom when he gets inside. He kisses David on the head and watches as the beagle’s tail wags happily when he sees Alex.
He tries to call Henry but doesn’t get an answer, and he hates that, but he knows Henry’s probably in all the same meetings, or worse, that Alex was in.
He showers and jerks off at the fantasy his mind conjures up of Henry’s hole wrapped around his cock, and when he’s done, he dries off and goes back to the bed. The magazine is sitting on top of it and with only a towel wrapped around his waist, he stares down at it. He takes in the lines of Henry’s body, all slim and soft and perfect. Then his attention moves to Henry’s sweet ass and thinks about how it felt to have his fingers inside of Henry’s warmth while he listened to his fiancé’s moans, and he’s hard again.
He wonders if he can frame the picture because it’s fucking beautiful. Henry is sexy and Alex can’t get enough of him. When the truth came out about them, in a firestorm of media criticism, Alex was told that his love for Henry would dwindle. First love doesn’t last, they said, and some scared part of Alex replayed the words in his head over and over again, afraid that they may have been right.
But it turns out that he didn’t have to worry because three years later and he’s still so madly in love that the thought of Henry makes his stomach cramp with want. He’s truthfully never looked at another person and thought “they’re hot” because Henry is all he has ever needed. Not Prince Henry, but Henry Fox.
He drops the towel around his feet and gets into bed, naked. He lays on his back and rubs his hand over his hard stomach. He closes his eyes as he thinks about that day on the beach.
___________
“Alex,” Henry moans as Alex slides his hand over his dusky nipples, fingers pinching at the nubs. “We shouldn’t do this here, darling.”
Alex laughs and kisses Henry’s neck, sucking a bruise into the pale column of flesh. He wants to mark Henry all over so when they go back to reality, everyone knows who Henry belongs to. Him. Alexander Gabriel Claremont-Diaz.
“No one can see us, baby. We’re on a private island.” He sucks another kiss where Henry’s sweet neck meets his shoulder as he slides his hand further south, past Henry’s cock and balls and to the precious warm place he wants to bury himself in.
“I need—” Henry shudders against him and lets out a needy whimper as Alex brushes his finger over Henry’s hole. Henry’s naked, but Alex still hasn’t dropped his pants yet. He wants to enjoy this moment and see his fiancé come undone. He proposed to Henry last week and this was their vacation celebrating their engagement. They deserved it after months of hardly seeing each other because of work and law school.
“Tell me what you need,” Alex whispers against the groove of Henry’s neck where it needs his collarbone. “I’ll give you anything you want, baby.”
“You. Always you.” Henry rocks his hips against Alex. “Please. Love you so much.”
Alex groans and grabs a small bottle of lube they brought with them. Henry is always prepared and Alex loves that, even if he laughed his ass off when Henry shoved the bottle into the sand and said “we’ll need this later.” Now he’s glad Henry did.
He pops open the lid and pours some onto his fingers, and then throws it aside. He’s back on Henry and they kiss deeply. Henry’s thighs cradle their hips together and it’s fucking perfect. Alex slides his hand back down between Henry’s legs and past his balls, where he finds Henry’s hole again. He slips one finger past the tight ring and Henry moans.
His head falls back and he exposes his perfect pale neck to Alex, and Alex is only human, so he bites and nibbles at the skin, leaving his claiming marks like a wild, possessive animal. Henry loves it when he leaves hickeys, but they always have to do it somewhere that Henry can hide.
Not today.
Alex doesn’t care. They’re on vacation and he’s leaving marks everywhere.
Alex begins fucking Henry with one finger, gentle at first just so he can listen to the tender moans that slip past Henry’s light pink lips that Alex loves seeing wrapped around his cock, but when he adds a second, the noises that escape Henry are louder and needier. Sinful. Alex wants to record it so he can play it over and over for himself when Henry’s working. It might actually help Alex study too.
Who was he kidding? He’d have a permanent boner at school.
Henry rocks back against his fingers, pleading. “So good. Fuck.”
The swear words that leave Henry are wicked, too. His posh British accent make it more so. Alex’s sweet prince has a filthy mouth and he loves it. The world has no idea what those full, perfectly pink lips can do, especially when they’re against Alex’s or around his cock.
Henry rides out his pleasure on Alex’s fingers and Alex watches him unravel. That hard exterior Henry’s built around himself like a tight knot of ropes comes undone and right now it’s because of Alex’s long fingers in his ass.
“You’re perfect, baby,” Alex whispers, kissing him hard.
___________
Alex comes violently at the memory, fingers wrapped around his cock again as he jerks it along with the memory of last week. His orgasm nearly knocks him unconscious, he’s sure of it, and when his vision stops blurring, he realizes his cum has splattered across the front of the magazine and Henry’s face, as well as across his chest, hand, and belly. He grins. He’s a fucking animal, but he loves the sight, though he’d much prefer to come over the real face of fiancé.
The phone rings and Alex startles. He grabs for it, then winces because his hand is sticky, but it’s the personal tune for Henry, with the words “I can’t help falling in love with you” filling the room.
He answers regardless of the release on his palm. “Baby?”
Henry sighs as soon as Alex answers. “Darling, this is hell.”
Alex nods even though Henry can’t see him. “I know. How did the queen take it?”
He laughs but it’s not in humor. “She’s furious. Says I’m embarrassing the family again. Philip actually tried to defend me, can you believe it? Mum told Granny off too, but that didn’t do much. It’s a bloody disaster.” He exhales loudly again. “I told Granny that the island was ours for the two weeks and it was a breach of privacy. Again. But she told me I shouldn’t have been….” His voice peters out.
Alex’s hold tightens. “Shouldn’t have?”
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you, Alex. I couldn’t believe it when I heard her say it.”
“Tell me,” he whispers.
Henry lets out a shuddery breath. “She said I shouldn’t been acting like a whore.”
Alex stiffens and anger burns hot in his stomach. She’s a bitch, always has been since he met her, but he hates her more now. “Come home, baby. We can sort it out from here.”
“I can’t, darling, not yet. What did your mum say?”
“They want us to put out a statement tomorrow.” Alex huffs. “We’re the victims here.”
“I know, but when it comes to public figures, the people don’t care. They think they have the right to our private life.” Henry knows this better than anyone and Alex now feels guilty for coming all over the photo that’s causing Henry angst. But still…
“Have you seen the photo?” He asks because he’s a horny bastard. “Baby, you look so hot in it, coming undone for me.”
Henry laughs softly. “It’s a beautiful photo. I like it.”
“I just came all over the cover.”
“You did not!” Henry gasps and then laughs harder. “Oh my God, Alex, you horny prick. And without me listening?”
Alex laughs hard now. “I know what you can say to the queen.”
“Hm?” Henry’s tone is amused and loving, and Alex’s heart nearly beats right out of his chest. Fuck, he really is so fucking in love.
“Tell her you are a whore. Alex Claremont-Diaz’s whore. That’s why he’s making an honest man out of you, so he can use your sexy whore ass whenever he wants.”
Henry’s laughing again and it’s louder than before. “I can imagine her face already. She’ll probably die of a heart attack and the new media headline would be ‘spare prince kills the queen with words’.”
“At least your sweet ass would be off the covers and I could keep it to myself again.” Alex leans against the mattress with an arm pillowing the back of his head. “I don’t like other people seeing what belongs to me.”
“I guess I’m lucky they didn’t catch the moment you actually fucked me on the beach, huh? That could have been a lot worse.” Henry sighs. “We can get through this. We always do.”
“Yeah, we do.” Alex wishes he can hold Henry against him and kiss his beautiful face. He misses him. “Shit, my friends at school are going to give me hell. I swear if they make a comment about your sexy body, I might headbutt them.”
Henry chuckles low. “Don’t do anything to get expelled. That’s the last thing we need. Your mum might kill me then.”
“Never, she loves you.”
They stay silent for a moment and finally Henry sighs again. “I miss you, but I should go. It’s early here and I haven’t slept much yet. Shaan warned me it’ll be worse tomorrow. Today.” He groans. “Tell your mum that you all need to do what you must. Don’t wait for Granny or her advisors. I’ll always be a prince, Alex, but this is your chance to grab the narrative while you can.”
“What narrative, baby? We’re engaged and happy and I don’t care what they think. We have sex. It’s natural. I don’t know why they’re making out like it’s dirty.” He runs a hand over his stomach and winces when he realizes some of his drying come is caught in the sparse hair there. “It’s like one of those romance novels you like reading and how uptight assholes act like sex scenes are nothing more than porn, yet they don’t care that there’s two nearly half naked models on billboards in Times Square making out to promote cologne or perfume. It’s a double fucking standard.”
There he goes again, ranting at Henry as though the problem was him. But Henry’s amazing and he always listens and hums in agreement because he’s the supportive fiancé. He understands.
There’s some noise on the other end of the line and Henry sighs. “I need to go, darling. It’s going to be a big day later today and I need sleep. I love you.”
Alex closes his eyes and imagines laying a gentle kiss on Henry’s supple and pliant mouth. Henry’s always so ready to please him and get him off. “Love you too, baby. Sleep well and think of me if you jerk off.”
Henry chuckles. “I always think of you when I wank. Remember what I said. Do what you have to. I’ll be home as soon as I can.”
Then he’s gone and the room is quiet. Alex hates this. He’d rather be home at their brownstone with Henry in his arms. He sighs. He probably should write that speech his mother asked him to.
When he found out who took and leaked the photo, he’d both shake their hand and punch them in the jaw. For now, he’d find another magazine and frame the cover.