“We did work hard.” I craned my neck back to gaze at him upside down. “Everything is boxed.”
“Hmmmm.” Nicky leaned over and touched his lips to mine, sending a thrill of pure need through me. “Then I guess you need a reward.”
“I think that’s probably my cue to get out of here.” Shelby stood up. “We’re meeting back at Honey and Handsome’s, right? Pool time and pizza?” My grandparents had graciously offered all three of us a place to stay, now that our cottage was packed up.
“Absolutely.” I grinned at my friend. “We’ll be right behind you.”
“Suuuuure you will.” She waggled her eyebrows. “I’ll just remind you that the beds are already taken down, so any horizontal hootchie cootchie will have to take place on the floor.”
I grabbed Nicky’s hands in both mine and tugged him down again. “Shel, you’re forgetting the sofa and the chairs.”
She wrinkled her forehead. “I think you’re forgetting that I’m taking the sofa and chairs with me to New Mexico. Please don’t violate them.”
“I make no promises.” I winked at her, laughing as she pretended to gag on her way out.
“So.” Nicky came around and sat down next to me, draping an arm over my shoulder. “Any second thoughts?”
“About moving? Not one. I loved this place, and I’ll always remember it fondly. But it’s served its purpose, and now . . . it’s time for new adventures.”
“As long as those new adventures include me.” He wound a lock of my hair around his finger. “I can’t wait to live with you, Ky. To wake up every morning, with you in my bed, knowing that we’ll end the day in each other’s arms. That sounds like the best adventure ever.”
“Our very own happily-ever-after,” I agreed, snuggling closer.
“Oh, sweetheart.” Nicky tapped my chin and kissed me until every part of my body was humming for him. “This isn’t an ending. This is just the beginning of the rest of our lives.” His eyes gleamed with something secret. “And trust me, I still have a few surprises up my sleeve.”
I frowned. “Like what?”
He only shook his head. “Surprises, Ky, by their very nature, are not to be told ahead of time. Trust me, love. I promise, you’ll like what I have planned.”
“But—” I began to protest, but Nicky stopped me by scooping me into his lap and covering my mouth with his.
And that was the most perfect happy ending ever.
Kyra and Nicky’s story continues . . .
The Anti-Cinderella Takes London
and
The Anti-Cinderella Takes On The World
Career Soldier
Maximum Force
Temporary Duty
Hitting the Silk
Zone of Action
Damage Assessement
Scheme of Manuever
Fifty Frogs
The King Series
Fearless
Breathless
Restless
Endless
The King Series Boxset
The Seredipity Series
Undeniable
Stardust on the Sea
Unquenchable
The Shadow Bells
Recipe for Death Series
Death Fricassee
Unforgettable
Death A La Mode
Death Over Easy
Moonlight on the Meadow
The Fox’s Wager
Age of Aquarius
Crystal Cove Books
The Posse
The Plan
The Path
The One Trilogy
The Last One
The First One
The Only One
The One Trilogy Box Set
The Always Love Series
Always For You
Underneath My Christmas Tree
Always My Own
My One and Always
Always Our Love
The Love Song Girl
The Perfect Dish Series
Best Served Cold
Just Desserts
I Choose You
Keeping Score
When We Were Us
Hanging By A Moment
Days of You and Me
Not Broken Anymore
Our Last Summer—ABBA
Kiss Me—Ed Sheeran
Shake It Off—Taylor Swift
Something to Talk About—Bonnie Raitt
Who I Am—Andrew Galucki
This Kiss—Faith Hill
Andante, Andante—ABBA
Whatever Gets Through—TodayThe Radio
Running on Sunshine—Jesus Jackson
Breathe In, Breathe Out—Mat Kearney
Kisses of Fire—ABBA
Perfect—Ed Sheeran
The Story—Brandi Carlile
When I was a little girl, I loved biographies. One of my favorites was Majesty, Robert Lacey’s definitive (at the time) book about Elizabeth II. I loved learning not only about the Queen but about the royal family and what life was like within the walls of the palaces. This fascination only deepened years later, when I was thirteen and flipping through a Newsweek magazine, came across a photo of a young woman only six years older than me who was being pursued by the press because she was dating the Prince of Wales.
That was the beginning of Diana Mania, and I was definitely a devotee. I ate up every tiny scrap of news, which wasn’t that much in those days, before the internet, social media and the obsessive paparazzi that would develop in Diana’s wake. Still, I clipped magazine and newspaper articles and poured over any bit of coverage. On July 29, 1981, I got up at three in the morning to watch the Diana and Charles get married.
I had a Diana haircut, I copied her style and I had all the books. For a generation of young women, Diana, Princess of Wales, became an icon and a role model. And even though we soon realized that fairy tales often had a dark side, her tragic death in 1997 was devastating.
For years, I had in mind the story of a young American woman who fell in love with a prince in the British royal family. I honestly had no intention of writing it; this kind of plot line didn’t seem to fit with the rest of my books, which always feature strong women. But then I wrote a book called Fifty Frogs, and in it, I mentioned the main character’s sister Shelby, who was at school in Maine—and one day, I had the image of Shelby’s best friend and the outline of her story fall into my head.
I told my cover designer, Meg Murrey, what I was thinking, and within moments, she had this awesome, amazing cover for me. I was in love.
But writing a story that plays on the world’s stage rather than simply within a small town or an Army post is very challenging. And things have changed dramatically since I followed the press coverage of Lady Diana Spencer back in the early 1980’s. I read about Kate Middleton and Prince William’s relationship . . . and then as I was in the opening stages of writing this book, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced their engagement. The timing was beyond perfect.
Prince Nicholas is an entirely fictional character. He is not based on any one member of the royal family. He is, however, a member of a very real family; his paternal grandmother is the Queen, and his cousins are the heirs to the throne. This will be a challenge in the next two books, but even so, the focus will remain on Kyra and Nicky, as well as Nicky’s immediate family.
A few notes for those who are (like me!) picky about details and precision when it comes to the royal family and aristocracy: first, the styling of Nicholas and his sisters as prince and princesses is entirely correct. It is true that Prince Edward’s children (who would be the real-life generational equivalent of Nicky, Alex and Daisy) are not known as prince and princess, but technically they are. Their parents have chosen to have them called Lady and Viscount. The Letters Patent of 1917 provide HRH styling for male-line grandchildren of a sovereign. Second, not all of the extended royals live at Kensington Palace, but it is one place that many of the younger generation do live—which is why I placed Nicky and Alex there.
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br /> Masanobu Fukuoka, who is referenced as the modern father of natural farming, is a real person. His books are part of a revolution in the field of agriculture, and I am indebted to my husband and my daughter Cate for their help in understanding Fukuoka’s works so that I could explain it in this book.
Of course, a huge THANK YOU to Meg Murry for this cover and to Stacey Blake of Champagne Book Designs for her formatting and for the beautiful teasers and banners. And love eternal to my special beta team, Kara Schilling, Krissy Smith, Christy Durbin and Dawn Line, who have worked above and beyond this year (already).
In writing this book, I feel that I have in some way come full circle, drawing on the dreams of fourteen-year-old me. For all the young women who look at the royals today as role models, it makes me very glad to see the Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry’s bride Meghan forging new paths for the next generation of a very old family.
What I have realized in writing this book is that today, princesses aren’t helpless girls who need rescuing. Princesses can be strong women who are capable of rescuing themselves and of inspiring an entire generation to compassion and activism.
Long may they reign.
Photo by Heather Batchelder
Tawdra Kandle writes romance, in just about all its forms. She loves unlikely pairings, strong women, sexy guys, hot love scenes and just enough conflict to make it interesting. Her books run from YA paranormal romance through NA paranormal and contemporary romance to adult contemporary and paramystery romance. She lives in central Florida with a husband, kids, sweet pup and too many cats. And yeah, she rocks purple hair.
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The Anti-Cinderella Page 23
