Wrong Prince, Right Lover

by Glover, Christine

  “Clearly she needs money,” Ilsa said as Santiago pressed the intercom button to announce their presence. “Makes me wonder if the jewelry she wears is made of paste instead of the actual gems.”

  The gates creaked open and Santiago drove through them toward the white-washed stucco villa located at the top of a bluff overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. Scaffolding with wood planks connecting them surrounded the entire place. Workers stood on them, applying fresh coats of stucco on the exterior while landscapers pulled weeds from the overgrown beds adjacent to the circular drive in front of the villa’s main entrance.

  “Delmar isn’t broke anymore by the look of all the renovations.” Santiago slowed and stopped in a parking area next to the villa’s six-car garage. “She’s refurbishing the entire property.”

  “Agreed. The question is where’d she get the cash to finance her restoration?” Ilsa released her seatbelt and looked at Santiago’s handsome profile. “I thought she was loaded. That’s why she originally objected so strenuously to Pinnacle. Her concern about the company’s impact on her Anolecia’s citrus industry.”

  A muscle jumped in his shadowed jaw. “She changed her mind quickly,” he said. “Tonight we’ll know why.”

  She tasted acid, and her lungs seemed to fill with lead, making it hard to breathe. Nothing good could come out of this encounter. “Maybe we should contact the head of the secret service. You might be in danger,” she said.

  Santiago took her hand. “Querida, we can’t risk her escaping while we wait for Claudio and his team to get here,” he said. “We’ll lose the element of surprise.”

  “But… we don’t have our bodyguards.”

  “I can handle Delmar. And there are too many witnesses here for her to do anything crazy,” he said. “However, if it will make you happy, I’ll bring this with me.” He reached across her lap and opened the glove compartment, then withdrew a gun along with a clip of bullets.

  “Santiago.” She stared at the gun and back into his face. “This only freaks me out more.”

  He concealed the weapon. “I know what I’m doing. Let’s go.”

  “If time weren’t of the utmost importance, I’d beg you to let the authorities take care of this situation,” she said. “But you’re right. We can’t lose the element of surprise. Delmar’s not working alone. I know it.”

  Within minutes, they’d exited the Mercedes sports car and entered the villa. Following the butler who’d let them inside, they held hands until they entered the opulent main living area where Delmar stood beside an architect.

  “Madam,” the butler said after a slight cough. “His Royal Highness and Princess Ilsa request your attention.”

  The statuesque woman straightened her shoulders and dismissed the architect in Spanish who left the room after bowing to Ilsa and Santiago.

  “To what do I owe this pleasure?” Delmar asked after the architect left.

  She spoke with feigned nonchalance, but Ilsa heard a hint of fear in her tone and the aristocrat failed to meet Santiago or Ilsa’s gazes, looking everywhere but at them. “Why did you lie to the Queen about our relationship?” she asked, stepping closer to the woman, fury beating wildly behind her breastbone. How dare Delmar spread salacious rumors about her and Santiago? “Do you want our countries to go to war?”

  “I… I don’t want war, but…” She faltered, her gaze ping-ponging between them. “But your uncle forced me.”

  “What the hell are you talking about?” Santiago demanded.

  “Her uncle. Pieter. I was in trouble. He offered to help, but I didn’t know what he’d ask of me.” Her square chin wobbled and her brown eyes locked onto Ilsa’s. “He’s not who you think he is.”

  Santiago released her hand and crossed his arms. Ilsa slanted her glance his way and his entire body stiffened. He’s pulling away from me. Why?

  A chill traveled through her. More acid pinged into the back of her throat. “Pieter’s my uncle. My mentor,” she said. “He’s part of the solution, not the problem. You’re the reason we’re on the brink of war.” She’d sacrificed everything for this country. For Santiago and Valdoria. For Menkara too. Santiago had offered her freedom, but she’d chosen to be with him.

  And now? Ilsa didn’t know if he wanted to keep her. Or even trusted her. “You’ve given false information, faked stories about our relationship to the queen,” she said. “I have no reason to believe anything you say. I know Uncle Pieter.” He’d never do anything to jeopardize her family or her. He’d assisted her in brokering the final piece of diplomacy to unify their countries.

  “That remains to be seen,” Santiago said coldly. “Tell me, Delmar. Where’d the money come from for all the repairs?”

  “Pieter. He paid me handsomely for my cooperation after he discovered my husband left me with a pile of debt after he’d died.” She gave Ilsa a venomous look. “I was always in favor of your intention to modernize Valdoria. Citrus groves and pristine beaches don’t pay the bills. Technology does. But your idiotic brother refused to budge on his stance because of his misguided loyalty to your mother.”

  Ilsa’s heartbeat slowed and beat one harsh tap at a time against her sternum. She pressed the heel of her palm against her breastbone and willed herself to think rationally. Something was off here. Delmar had fought the technology. Pinnacle. Everything. She’d only acquiesced after brokering a financial incentive package of her own.

  She started to question Delmar when Santiago interrupted her. “What did you do?” he asked, moving to stand toe-to-toe with Delmar. “Javier could have been persuaded, given time.”

  “Pieter didn’t want him persuaded.” Delmar raised her chin. “Which is why I had to do what was necessary to stop the marriage and put Valdoria’s future in Menkara’s hands, as your precious bride Ilsa wanted too.”

  Her heart stopped for a nanosecond, dropping into her stomach. Everything dripping from that woman’s mouth wasn’t true. “Liar,” Ilsa said. “I married Santiago to save Valdoria, not destroy it.”

  “Tell that to the press,” Delmar said, then discreetly popped what looked like a mint into her mouth and chewed slowly until foam bubbled in the seam of her lips. “I killed Javier. I had no choice. I will never forgive… my… self…”

  “Wait.” Santiago caught her in his arms before Delmar crumpled to the floor. He turned a black, angry gaze to Ilsa. “Is this why you wanted Pieter on the council? Did you think you could take over my country by putting him on the inside? I know you didn’t want to marry Javier after what you overheard, but why Ilsa? Why did you assassinate him?”

  Chapter 9

  Ilsa blinked. “Surely you can’t believe her. She’s lied before.” They’d shared the most intimate moments together. She’d given him her virginity. Stood beside him through every accusation despite knowing the truth about his last encounter with Javier.

  But he looked at her as if he’d forgotten everything she’d done for him.

  “The woman is fucking dead. My brother is dead. And your country is responsible.” Santiago released Delmar, lowering her to the marble floor. “When did you plan to kill me? Right after the coronation? That’d have given Valdoria to Menkara without a costly war.” He stood and shoved his hands through his hair, leveling her with a dark glare. “You’re not the woman I lo…” He didn’t finish, shaking his head as if trying to shake her out of his mind.

  Ilsa swayed on unsteady legs and a wave of nausea flowed through her. Hugging herself to anchor her heart, the royal insignia ring Santiago had given her only days ago dug into her skin. “Santiago, I’d never hurt you or Javier. You have to believe me.” The cold steel glinting in his eyes couldn’t compare to the cold locking around her heart, freezing every vein in her body.

  “You asked for Pieter to join the council.” He widened his stance. “Gave him direct access to Pinnacle’s CEO. You brokered the deal with Delmar.”

  “I brokered the deal with you and for you,” she said. “I wanted to help you bring technology to V
aldoria. To realize your dreams. This… our marriage… you offered me the choice to walk away, but I didn’t take the easy way out.”

  “No. Why would you? You could wait for a convenient time to murder me in my sleep then give Menkara total control to my country,” Santiago said. “Dios. I’m a fucking fool to have let you under my skin.”

  “I never manipulated you.”

  “You brought your family onto my council.”

  She struggled to speak, bile rising in her throat. “Our council.”

  “Not anymore.”

  She searched his face, still unreadable, while he whipped his mobile phone out of his pocket and speed-dialed the head of the Valdorian secret service. Shaking, Ilsa sucked in air and pushed down the fear crawling into her chest. What would he do to her now? Once again, she was a pawn in an elaborate game.

  Desperately, she fought for herself and Santiago. She struggled to save the marriage they’d created. She battled for the future they’d talked over in the early morning light and the waning sunsets… the future they’d wanted to achieve for themselves… for their children… even now with his complete rejection, the first flutter of hope winged in her heart for a child.

  “What about us? About our marriage? About…” Everything they’d shared in bed and everything more than the amazing physical compatibility, but the emotional connection they’d forged in and out of the sheets?

  His face was an unreadable mask she barely recognized.

  “We are the product of an arranged marriage, nothing more,” he said, then spoke in rapid Spanish into the mobile. “You’ll be under house arrest when we return to the capital of Valdoria. Any attempt to contact your uncle will lead to serious consequences for not only our countries, but you. Clear?”

  Hot tears pricked behind her eyes, but she refused to let them out. Though her heart felt as if it would shatter into a thousand pieces, she raised her chin ever so slightly, enveloped herself with a mantle of courage. “Of course, Your Highness. I’ll do whatever you ask,” she said. But oh, she refused to let him off the hook completely.

  She might simply be a pawn, but she was still her own woman. Santiago had taught her that she was valuable, had cherished her with every action he’d taken to give them the union they deserved even if he didn’t recognize the truth right now. “However,” she continued, “should your further investigation into this matter exonerate me and my family, I expect you to acknowledge me with more than a token word of respect. I expect you to fight for what we had… and for my love.” Would he hear her? Would he stop this madness? If he didn’t, he’d have to work incredibly hard to prove he loved her. She’d given her heart to him and he’d forgotten how much she cared at the first sign of trouble. Ilsa crossed her fingers mentally and counted to ten as she registered the confusion floating ever so briefly in his espresso eyes.

  He tucked his mobile back into his pocket and for a moment his gaze softened. Maybe, just maybe, she’d reached the heart she knew beat behind Valdoria’s future king’s steel barricade.

  But then he narrowed his eyes, and a muscle jumped in his jaw. “Funny. You’ve never spoken of love before now. I don’t believe you’re capable of love. Frankly, we had nothing but a marriage based on a codicil that forced us together,” he said. “Do not lower yourself to demand something you never had from me. Something I’d never offer, especially now.”

  Her heart cracked more. Splintered into a thousand shards. Each sharp point stabbing her lungs, puncturing the dreams she’d bottled in them and stealing her ability to breathe. Love still existed deep within her soul, but only he could rebuild the trust he’d shattered.

  “I understand,” she said quietly without breaking the fragile thread of their gazes linking them. With every slowing pulse beat, her heart longed for the love and acceptance she’d once seen reflecting in his eyes to return. She’d changed because of Santiago. Now she’d have to discover if he’d changed too. If he’d be willing to fight for them to have a marriage filled with unconditional love and commitment.

  She turned to face the now entering secret service personnel and allowed them to lead her away from the only man she’d ever given her heart to… the only man she’d ever loved… the only man with the power to destroy her… or to fight for her.

  Ilsa inhaled, filled her deflated lungs, then glanced over her shoulder one last time to look at the man who’d showed her how to be a lover… a friend… a wife… then pushed down the sorrow threatening to break free. “Goodbye Santiago,” she said, stepping into the dark night with her guards beside her.

  * * *

  “What now, Your Highness?” Claudio Fernandez asked after the guards took Ilsa away.

  “Get Delmar’s body to the coroner to determine the exact cause of death, then issue an arrest warrant for Pieter van Winnsen. He’s behind my brother’s assassination.”

  “But what about Princess Ilsa?”

  “She’s not under investigation as long as I am Valdoria’s ruler.” Though Ilsa might be guilty as sin for his brother’s death, Santiago would never let her go. She’d be his in name if only to bring about the changes he’d wanted for Valdoria.

  Inwardly, he cursed himself for being a fool. Ilsa had tricked him with her innocence. She’d taken him off guard with her request for sex lessons. He’d let his cock do the thinking for him. No more. He’d never sleep with her again. No good would come from their arranged marriage other than protecting Valdoria.

  “What about the coronation next week?”

  “That’ll go on as scheduled.” Santiago moved away from Delmar’s prone body and into the foyer with the secret service chief keeping up beside him. “The Valdorian people will not know about this development. Understand?”

  “Completely,” the chief said.

  “Excelente.” But no. Nothing was excellent. Not when the woman he’d chosen to trust… whom he’d loved far longer than he’d dared confess… had betrayed him. Suddenly, the weight of the world landed on his shoulders with the force of an anvil. No wonder his mother had been so intractable. So incapable of loving him.

  And yet… the hurt he’d seen in Ilsa’s eyes still stabbed behind his breastbone. She’d been shocked… no… she’d been afraid of being caught. Santiago firmly believed Ilsa sent Pieter away with Justin because she knew about Pieter’s involvement in Javier’s death.

  How could he have been so blind?

  Other than his bodyguard by his side, Santiago returned to the castle in Valdoria’s capital alone, refusing to speak to Ilsa until the authorities apprehended her uncle. He’d spent the night in his office to avoid any chance of Ilsa trying to wear down his resistance. And to avoid the rooms where they’d spent hours making love.

  After freshening up the following morning, the royal secret security chief arrived to give Santiago a follow-up report.

  “We still haven’t found her uncle.”

  Pain twisted the nerves at the base of Santiago’s neck. “Ilsa will know where he’s hiding,” he said. “We’ll interrogate her now.”

  “As you wish.”

  Together, they exited Santiago’s office and made their way to her suite of rooms. He opened the door without knocking only to find the space empty. “Ilsa,” he called. “You can’t hide forever. Tell me where your uncle is and things will go a lot easier for you in the future.”

  No answer.

  A sudden feeling of dread filled his heart. “Ilsa?” he called again, moving further into the main room, past the vanity and to the open door between his and her suite.

  No sign of her. He whipped around and stared at the chief. “Where the hell is my wife?”

  The chief shook his head. “We escorted her to the suite and set up a watch per your instructions.” He checked his secure mobile phone. “No one saw her exit or leave after we brought her back.”

  “How did she fucking slip past her guards?” he demanded, marching into his suite to hunt for her there with the chief by his side.

  Empty, other tha
n for the last lingering scent of her unique perfume. “Damn it.” Santiago swept his hand through his hair, noted nothing out of place. “She must be with Pieter. It’s the only explanation.” The depth of her betrayal cut through him like a steel blade.

  He reentered her rooms and paused by the vanity, then picked up her hairbrush. Bright sunshine illuminated the mirror and images of what he’d done with Ilsa while there days earlier flashed.

  Mierda. If he hadn’t known for himself she was a virgin, he’d have believed her capable of lying about that fact too.

  Santiago bit back a frustrated shout. “What about my room?” he asked.

  “Only servants entered and exited.”

  Only servants. Doubtful. Someone had gotten to her. Pieter, most likely. “I doubt they were all servants.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Her uncle could have used a disguise to get to her via my rooms. Most likely he rescued her from a lifetime of being my wife.” But… could he be mistaken? What if she truly had no idea about Pieter’s machinations?

  “I’m heading back to my office,” Santiago said. “There’s nothing here but dust.” And memories he wanted to forget but couldn’t.

  “I’ll contact you as soon as we have them in custody,” the chief said, then left.

  After giving her rooms one last perusal, Santiago made his way back to his offices and closed the door behind him, shutting out the rest of the world.

  Ilsa had always been so open with him. And yet he’d questioned her only one day earlier because her loyalty to her uncle had shaken him. But she’d said she loved him. And he’d… damn it… he’d waited so long to hear the words, only to distrust the motive behind her finally saying them.