The Princess and the Player (Royal House of Leone Book 5)

by Jennifer Lewis

  But why was Amadou the accuser? He must have been in on some plot.

  It explained why he hadn’t come near her all night. Maybe even why he’d avoided her for the past two days, if he was busy putting this together.

  She looked around for him but a sudden crush of uniformed police obscured her view, and there was a lot of yelling that, despite her pretty good French, she couldn’t understand. The overhead lights suddenly switched on high, giving the decorated ballroom a gaudy and exposed air.

  “The evening is ruined. We need to leave,” said Liesel, standing. “Now.”

  “Are you okay, Mom?” Callista put a hand on her shoulder.

  “I’m a bit worried.” Where was Amadou in all this crush? As the accuser, in what was presumably a surprise onslaught against an important police figure, he might be in real danger in this crush of uniformed men. “I think we should find him.”

  “Find who?” Liesel grabbed an extra goody bag from a deserted table and shoved the bottle of expensive scent from it into her purse. “How are we going to get out of here?” The atmosphere in the room now had an undercurrent of panic, with nearly every table abandoned.

  “He’ll be fine, Mom. I think we’d better go.” Callista looked worried, and the young men at their table were hovering protectively. “I’m sure we’ll find out what happened in the papers tomorrow. It was obviously planned.”

  Lina allowed herself to be hustled toward the exit, feeling totally lost. Why hadn’t he told her about this? He might have warned her. Obviously he didn’t consider her trustworthy enough to be a confidant—and why would he? She’d done her best to keep him at arm’s length, and now he’d returned the favor.

  It was just what she’d wanted, wasn’t it?

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Lina texted Amadou as soon as she got back to the hotel. Then again two hours later after no response. After a few hours of restless attempts at sleep, she texted him again—nothing—and checked the headlines.

  “Police Chief Accused” was the main headline, followed by a confusing mix of information about the event and information that no formal charges had been made. Amadou wasn’t even mentioned, which was odd, considering his fame and his prominent role in the accusation.

  His absence from the story gave her the creeps. Her silent phone mocked her.

  From what she gathered the accused man was part of a large ring with mob connections in the Balkans. Scary and dangerous people. Could someone as well-known as Amadou be made to simply disappear?

  Panic had her marching around her room, feeling helpless and useless, when she heard a knock on the door. She was still in her robe and not ready for the maid. “Who is it?”

  “It’s me.” Amadou’s unmistakable, deep voice.

  She flew to the door and tugged it open. Words deserted her as she hugged him tight.

  “Sorry to surprise you like this. I had no way to get in touch.” He kissed her forehead gently.

  “Where have you been? I’ve been texting you.”

  “The police have my phone. I’m not sure who’s in more trouble, me or the scumbags I accused last night. I think it’s me.” Humor crinkled the skin around his eyes. “I’ve been told there’s a mob hit out for me.”

  “What?” The door was still open, and she scanned the hallway. Then tugged him inside and locked it.

  “And I don’t exactly feel like law enforcement is on my side. I’m planning to head out of the country for a while until things settle down. A friend is getting his yacht ready in Montpelier, and we’re going to head to the Greek Isles for a while. I didn’t want to leave you without saying goodbye.”

  Goodbye.

  The word sent a chill through her. She was fiercely proud of him for the risk he’d taken, but she didn’t want to lose him.

  “How long will you be in hiding?”

  He laughed. “I won’t be hiding. I just won’t be lining myself up in anyone’s crosshairs, either. I have a series of concerts in Japan next month, anyway. Then after that, some gigs in Canada.”

  “So you’ll be on the road.” Traveling from city to city. Meeting new women.

  “As always.” He shrugged, but there was something in his eyes. A glint of fresh emotion. Maybe he was afraid. He’d taken a big risk, and her heart ached for him.

  “Will they prosecute the people behind the ring of human traffickers?”

  “They’ll have to do something. Too many witnesses. Even if the evidence gets thrown out in court for being illegal phone tapping, a lot of important people now know the truth. They could go after them on other grounds. Criminal activities usually involve tax evasion, for example. I’m pretty sure the reason they had me present the information is because they think I am too high profile to just disappear. I didn’t want to do it, as I do some work undercover for the same organization, sometimes even pretending to be a trafficker, and now I won’t be able to.”

  “People didn’t recognize you before?”

  “Out of context, never. Kind of humbling, really.”

  “It sounds dangerous.”

  “Living is dangerous.”

  “Not like that.” Then she remembered how her own mild-mannered husband, who never stuck his neck out anywhere, had been murdered in cold blood. “Then again, maybe you’re right. I guess we all take a big risk just getting out of bed every day.”

  “Could get hit by a car.” His face creased with the hint of grin.

  Her chest ached. She wanted to hold him. Here they were talking about how you could die at any minute, and yet she was holding herself back with all her willpower.

  Because he’d come to say goodbye. It might be years before she saw him again, if ever.

  The thought made a sob rise inside her, and she choked it back.

  His smile had faded, and his features hardened. His eyes grew dark as onyx. “Come with me.”

  “To Greece?”

  “Everywhere.”

  A nervous laugh escaped. “You know I can’t do that.”

  “Why not?”

  Her chest tightened. “My duty to Altaleone. I have responsibilities. My son needs me.”

  He took her hands. “I need you.”

  “You’ve survived without me all this time.” He must be taunting her. Wanting her to confess how much she cared, so he could walk coolly away as she’d done all those years ago.

  “I never married anyone else. Never wanted to.” He raised her hands to his lips and pressed them softly. “Marry me, Lina. It’s not too late. We could still share the rest of our lives.”

  Emotion flooded her, and she rocked on her heels. He must be mad.

  And so must she, because the prospect of leaving her settled life swept through her like a tidal wave.

  She threw out an anchor. “My husband is barely dead a year. It would be unseemly.”

  “Who cares?” He pressed his lips together in an attitude of determination. Clearly she was giving him hope. “Do it anyway.”

  “I can’t just…travel around with you everywhere.”

  “Why not? We can go back to Altaleone, or wherever else you like, as often as we want. I play a few nights, then often have weeks off to do whatever I please.”

  “Which is apparently interfering with human trafficking rings.”

  He chuckled. “Yes, but since I’ll have to lay low on that for a while I’ll have some free time.”

  He squeezed her hands. The whole idea was so outlandish. But was following him around the world really all that different to becoming a satellite in one of Europe’s royal families? She’d walked into her husband’s routines, learned his culture and adapted herself to his lifestyle. And been happy. “I do like to travel. And I’ve never been to Japan.”

  Amadou’s eyes widened slightly. Had he not expected her to be receptive? Maybe he’d backpedal now. “You’d like Kyoto. The ancient gardens show that you can create paradise in miniature here on earth and maintain it carefully for centuries.”

  “I like the idea of pa
radise on earth.”

  “Better than waiting for it in the hereafter.” He unfolded her hands, which were almost clenched, then kissed her ring finger. “Will you marry me, Lina? I love you as much as ever, and I want you to be mine and only mine.”

  A teeny sob escaped her as emotion racked her body. “I love you too, Amadou. I know it sounds terrible, but I’m not sure I ever really stopped loving you. I think I just put it on hold somewhere.” That was why her feelings for him had scared her so much that she didn’t want to see him again.

  “It doesn’t sound terrible. Marrying your husband was part of your journey. Your children are a glorious part of that. And I’m sure they won’t resent you choosing to be happy now.”

  A tear trickled over her cheek, and she lifted a hand to brush it away. “Liesel will resent it.”

  He laughed. “Sounds like another good reason to go for it.”

  She laughed too, so much tension in her wanting release. “For goodness sake, kiss me.”

  He obliged, lowering his lips over hers with such tenderness that she thought her heart might explode. He took her in his arms and held her—gently but firmly—and kissed her until she couldn’t breathe or think anymore.

  When their lips finally parted she’d made up her mind. “I will marry you.”

  “Yes!” His whoop of victory hurt her ears. “I promise I’ll make you happy. I’d take you ring shopping right now, but I think we should wait until we get to Greece.”

  “Do they have jewelry shops in the Greek Islands?”

  “We’ll find one somewhere. I think we should get matching rings.”

  A frightening thought occurred to her. “What about the wedding? Who would we invite? Where would we have it? It seems impossible.”

  He frowned. “I don’t even want one. I just want to be married to you. ”

  Adrenaline surged through her. “Then let’s go find an officiant. We won’t even tell anyone until it’s done.”

  “Let me call a friend who knows how these things work.”

  Less than six hours later they were in the beautiful garden at his mother’s house under heavy private security, with his friends Mustafa and Jean-Paul as witnesses, pledging a lifetime of love before the Altaleone ambassador.

  Lina wore a silver-white evening dress with silver sandals that she’d bought by herself at Printemps. She hadn’t even dared tell Callista about her plans for fear her daughter should throw up some roadblock like insisting on including all her siblings.

  Self-assured and confident, Lina needed no one to give her away, and breaking tradition once again, she and Amadou held hands as they recited their heartfelt vows.

  Her heart swelled almost to bursting as she said them. “I, Carolina Leone take you, Amadou Khadem, as my husband and promise to love you without reservation, comfort you in times of distress, laugh with you and cry with you, grow with you in mind, and spirit, always be open and honest with you, and cherish you for as long as we both shall live.”

  Amadou blinked, eyes shining and face taut with emotion. “In this beautiful garden I dedicate myself to you. Although our lives may change like the seasons, I will love you. As our love grows like a seed to a beautiful flower, I will love you. When the winds of doubt blow through, I will love you. We will stand together, strong, nurtured by each other’s love until the end.”

  Their kiss tasted sweeter than ever as it sealed the seed of love that they’d each carried inside them for so long. Lina blinked back tears. “I won’t ever leave you again.”

  “You’re damn right you won’t.” He grinned and squeezed her tight. “I won’t let you out of my sight from now on.”

  EPILOGUE

  One month later…

  “What do you think of Altaleone so far?” Lina lay with her head on Amadou’s chest, the sheets draped loosely over both of them.

  “My favorite thing about it is that you’re in bed with me here.”

  She chuckled. He’d strangely dreaded coming here and still seemed somewhat wary walking around the village, despite strangers greeting him with enthusiasm. “It’s odd that you’d never been here before, even for one of our spectacular outdoor festivals. Most of the world’s music stars have played here at least once.”

  “I hadn’t been here because I was deliberately avoiding the place.” She could feel his heart beat, strong and steady, beneath her cheek. “I didn’t like that you were here, sharing your life with someone else.”

  Even now they chose not to stay in the palace. Amadou didn’t want to sleep with her in the home she’d shared with her husband. Instead they shared a suite in the old stone castle that Darias and Emma had renovated.

  She stroked his stubbled cheek. “It would have been strange to run into you back then. Just imagine.”

  “You’d have pretended not to know me.” His voice was a low growl.

  She bit her lip. Would she? Possibly. How mortifying to think about.

  “So it’s lucky I just kept my distance and patiently waited for you to be free again.”

  “The way you’re talking I almost suspect you of killing him.” They both laughed. “And we both know you weren’t actually waiting.” He’d had well-publicized affairs with plenty of women in the meantime.

  “Just biding my time.” He kissed the top of her head. “Trying to keep busy.”

  “While secretly rescuing people from exploitation.”

  “I was in a unique position to do so because I traveled so much.” He’d slowed down a lot, ostensibly because his cover was blown, but also because she didn’t like him putting himself in danger. Which was selfish, really.

  “With all the evidence that has emerged, prosecutors are confident that the crooked police chief will get at least fifteen years in prison, and four of his cronies are coming up for trial, including the mob boss who supposedly ordered a hit on you.”

  “I can close both eyes while I sleep now.”

  “You didn’t lose a wink of sleep over this.” She pushed his chest playfully.

  “I’m not the nervous type.”

  “I can tell.” She put a hand on either side of his chest. “I find that very relaxing. Can we go to Australia a couple of days early? I’ve always wanted to try diving on the Great Barrier Reef.”

  “Don’t you want to be here to watch your roses bloom?”

  She smiled. “It’s sweet of you to remember my roses, but I’ve seen them bloom twenty times or more. I’m ready for new adventures.”

  He leaned forward, and she lifted her head to kiss him gently on the lips.

  “Me, too. And you know where my favorite place to dive is?”

  “No, where?” She eased herself up on the bed until she was level with him, one arm draped over his hard stomach.

  “Tahiti.”

  “I’ve never been there, either.”

  “Hey, why don’t we rent a villa there and invite all your kids to join us?”

  “That’s a great idea. And we could invite your mom.”

  “She’d never try to dive, but she does enjoy sitting under a palm tree. She hates to fly though. I have to fly with her.”

  “We can pass through Paris on the way and pick her up. Maybe she and I can do a little shopping first.” Paris was now their second home. It was strange how easily she’d transitioned into her new life. And hard to imagine how she’d been happy with such a quiet and circumscribed existence before.

  “Sounds like a plan. But first I have other plans.” He dragged an elegant yet powerful finger down over her torso, circled her belly button, then trailed it lower.

  “Oh, really?” She lifted a brow as her insides quivered. The sheets shifted where his arousal moved them. “Are you sure we can fit your plans in before dinner with Darias and Emma? The Swiss ambassador and his wife are coming tonight.”

  “I can manage,” he rasped, already closing his mouth over hers. Then he took charge of her body the way he’d taken charge of her life—filling them both with pleasure and joy beyond her wilde
st imaginings.

  THE END

  Look for additional books in the Royal House of Leone series:

  The King’s Bought Bride (Darias and Emma)

  A Prince for Christmas (Free short story with Sandro and Serena’s first encounter)

  The Prince’s Secret Baby (Sandro and Serena)

  The Princess and the Player (Lina and Amadou)

  The Princess’s Scandalous Affair (Beatriz and Lorenzo)

  Taming the Royal Beast (Rigo and Bella)

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  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2017 by Jennifer Lewis

  All Rights Reserved.

  Published 2017 by Mangrove

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  Suite 521672

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