Single Father, Surprise Prince!

by Raye Morgan

  “Yes.”

  “Do you know how nutty that sounds?”

  “Yes, I know exactly how nutty it sounds. Everyone I know has been telling me that ever since I got the idea.”

  He stared at her for a few seconds longer, and then he threw back his head and laughed aloud. “You’re insane,” he said, still laughing.

  “No. I’m serious.”

  He shook his head again, rising and grabbing his cup. “I should have known better than to stop and talk to you,” he muttered as he turned to go. Looking back, he laughed again.

  “Now that I know you’re unstable, I feel vindicated in not wanting to have anything to do with you and your crazy theories.” He raised a hand in warning. “Stay out of my way, Kelly Vrosis. I mean it. Don’t waste any more of my time.”

  She sat very still as she watched him walk away, and the realization hit her hard: he didn’t know.

  How amazing was that? If he really was one of the princes, he didn’t know about it. It seemed almost unbelievable, and yet, somehow it fit with the way he’d been living his life. No one would have thought he was a prince.

  No one but her.

  She’d lived sith the story of the lost royals for months now. Twenty-five years ago, the mysterious little country of Ambria had been invaded by the Granvilli clan. The king and queen were killed, the castle was burned and the royal children—five sons and two daughters—had disappeared. For years it was assumed they had been murdered, too. But lately a new theory had surfaced. What if some of them had been spirited away and hidden all these years? What if the lost royal children of Ambria still existed?

  That was the question that had filled her ever since she’d read about them. And once she saw the pictures of Joe in the magazine article, she’d been sure he was one of them.

  And was she right? Could this ex-Army Ranger, this California surfer boy, really be one of the lost royals of Ambria? Could he really be a prince? He didn’t act like it. But then, if he hadn’t been raised to know how a prince was supposed to act, why would he?

  Despite all that, the more she saw of him, the more confident she was in her instincts. The DeAngelis family that had ruled Ambria for over five hundred years had the reputation of being the most attractive royals ever. Her opinion? He fit right in.

  “Mr. Tanner? This is Gayle Hannon at the customer service desk at the airport. There’s been some sort of mix-up. A little girl has arrived designated for your reception, but—”

  Joe gripped the receiver tightly. “She’s here already? She wasn’t supposed to arrive until tonight.”

  “As I say, there’s been a mix-up. She was diverted to a different flight, and it seems the required child caretaker has disappeared. She’s…” The woman’s voice deepened with new emotion. “Mr. Tanner, she’s all alone. Poor little thing. I think you had better come quickly.”

  “She’s hardly more than one year old,” he said, stunned. How had she ended up arriving alone on an international flight? “I’ll be right there.”

  All alone. The words echoed in his mind as he searched for his keys and dashed for his car. This wasn’t good. He had to get there, fast.

  Kelly was out on the sidewalk in front of Joe’s house, waiting for him. She’d spent the last few minutes giving herself a pep talk, and she was ready to hang tough this time. As he started his car out, she bent forward and knocked on the half-open passenger side window.

  “Joe, listen. I’ve really got to talk to you. There is something you should know.”

  He looked at her blankly. “Huh?” he said. “What?”

  She hesitated, sensing an opening. “Where are you going?”

  “The airport,” he said distractedly.

  “Can I come with you? I just need to…”

  He shook his head, not even listening. “Whatever,” he muttered, pulling on his seat belt.

  “Oh.”

  She took that as pure encouragement. Reaching out, she tugged on the door handle. Miraculously, it sprang right open and she jumped in.

  “Great.”

  “Hey.” He glared at her, finally seeming to realize who she was and why she was sitting beside him in his car. “Listen, I don’t have time for this.”

  She smiled. “Okay,” she said agreeably. “Let’s go then.”

  He hesitated only a moment, then shook his head and swore. “What the hell.” He grunted, stepping on the accelerator. “Hang on and keep quiet,” he told her firmly. “I’m in a hurry.”

  She did as he said. He took the city streets too fast and then turned onto the freeway. Once he’d settled into a place in the flow of traffic, she turned and smiled brightly at him.

  “So, the airport?” she said. “Are you meeting someone?”

  He didn’t even glance her way. “Yeah,” he said, concentrating on his driving. Then he shook his head and muttered, “She’s all alone in the middle of the airport and she’s hardly more than one year old.”

  Kelly waited for a moment, and when he didn’t elaborate, she asked, “Who is?”

  He glanced at her sideways. “My little girl.”

  Kelly’s jaw dropped. In all her time researching Joe Tanner, she’d never seen a shred of evidence that he had a child.

  “Your little girl? What’s her name?”

  “Mei. Her mother named her. I wasn’t there to help with it.” He swore softly, shaking his head. “I was never there. Damn it. Some husband, huh?”

  This was all news to Kelly. “You’re married?” she asked, stunned.

  He took in a deep breath and let it out. “I was married. Angie died in a firefight in the Luzon jungle a year ago. And now I’m finally going to meet our baby.”

  Kelly sat staring out at the landscape as they raced along. The enormity of what she’d thrown herself into finally registered, and it was like hitting a brick wall. She thought she knew so much, and now to find out she knew so little… Had she made a terrible mistake? All those months of researching this man and she didn’t have a clue. He’d been married and had a baby? Stunning.

  What else didn’t she know? If she was so clueless about so much, could she possibly be right about his royal background? It didn’t seem very likely at the moment. Heat filled her cheeks and she scrunched down in the seat, wishing she was somewhere else.

  Traffic slowed to a crawl. Joe drummed his fingers on the steering wheel, mumbling to himself and looking pained. “What am I going to do with her?”

  Kelly sat up straighter. He was obviously talking about his daughter. Why did he sound so lost, so troubled?

  “Didn’t you have a plan when you sent for her?” she asked.

  He raised a hand and gestured in frustration. “There was supposed to be a nursemaid with her. Someone who knows her and can help take care of her.”

  There was anger in his voice, but also so much more. Kelly heard anxiety she would never have expected from such a strong personality. He’d obviously come up against something he didn’t really understand, something he wasn’t sure he could deal with. Despite everything, her heart went out to him.

  “What happened?” she asked.

  He shook his head. “I don’t know. They called and said Mei had come in early and she was all alone.” He turned and glanced at Kelly, and swore softly, obviously regretting that he’d let her into the car in a distracted moment.

  “Why are you here?” he demanded, looking very annoyed. “This has nothing to do with you. And if you think you’re going to write about this… Listen, I’m going to drop you off at a pay phone as soon as we get off this freeway.”

  “No.” All thoughts of disappearing from the scene had flown right out of her mind. His dilemma had touched her. She wanted to help. “I swear to God, Joe, I will not write anything about you and your baby. I’m not a journalist. I’m not a writer.” She took a deep breath. “And I’m coming with you.”

  “The hell you are!”

  “Joe, don’t you see? You need help. You can’t handle a baby all by yourself.” />
  “Sure I can. I bought a car seat.” He nodded toward the back, and she turned and saw a state-of-the-art monstrosity sitting there, ready to go. Evidently he was ready to buy anything necessary for his child and pay for the best. That should be a good sign, she supposed. Still, he didn’t seem to understand what taking care of a young child entailed.

  “By handling a baby, I mean more than just putting her body someplace and telling her everything is okay.” Kelly bit her lip and then appealed to his common sense. “She’s going to be scared. You’ll be driving. She’ll need more attention than you can give her on the ride home. Face it. You’re going to need help.”

  Kelly took his sullen silence to mean he saw her point, and she breathed in relief. As she studied his profile, her confidence began to creep back. Maybe she hadn’t been so wrong about everything, after all. He was so handsome. Handsome and quite royal looking, if she did say so herself.

  Joe spotted Mei as soon as he walked into the building. Just seeing her hit him like a thunderbolt.

  She was sitting on a chair behind the airline check-in counter, her little legs out straight, her feet in their white socks and black Mary Janes barely reaching the edge. Her dark hair was cut off at ear length, with a thick fringe of bangs that almost covered her almond-shaped eyes. His heart flipped in his chest and suddenly he was out of breath.

  Once he’d caught sight of her, he didn’t see anything else. The rest of the world faded into a bothersome mist. There were people talking all around him, but he didn’t hear a thing. She sat there as though there was a spotlight shining down on her, and he went straight for her.

  Joe stopped in front of her, and for a moment he couldn’t speak. His heart was full. He hadn’t expected this. He was always the tough guy, the one who didn’t get caught up in emotions. But from the moment he’d seen this little girl, he knew he was in love. She was so gorgeous, so adorable, he could hardly stand it.

  “Mei?” he said at last, his voice rough.

  She looked up and stared into his eyes, her little round face expressionless.

  “Hi, Mei,” he said. “I’m…I’m your daddy.”

  There was no change, no response. For a second, he wondered if she hadn’t heard him.

  “I’m taking you home,” Joe said. His voice broke on that last word.

  Gazing up at him, she shook her head. “No,” she said, looking worried.

  He stared at her, hardly hearing her or noticing her mood. For so long she’d been a dream in his heart, and now she was here.

  And suddenly, the past came flooding in on him. He saw his beautiful Angie again, saw her trembling smile. Saw the love in her eyes as she greeted him, the delight as she told him of the new baby he’d never seen, the fear as their hiding place was discovered by the rebels…the gunfire… Saw the peace and acceptance on her lovely face as she died in his arms. He remembered the agonizing cry ripped from his chest as he’d realized he’d lost her forever, remembered the gut-wrenching fury as he’d taken off through the jungle after her murderers. Felt again the searing pain as their bullets hit his flesh, the aching frustration as he fell to the ground, helpless.

  It all came back in a flash, and Joe tried to shake it away just as quickly. He couldn’t let this precious child, this gift of love between him and Angie, be hurt by the ugly past.

  Still, the past was what it was. He couldn’t change it. It had made him into the bitter recluse he was today. But he wasn’t going to inflict that on the child. Looking at her now, he knew he was going to do everything he could for her in every way. His heart seemed to swell in his chest. She would be his life from now on. But why did it hurt so much?

  “For you, Angie,” he murmured softly, his voice choking, his vision blurring with tears.

  Kelly looked at Joe in surprise. All she’d seen so far was his tough side, the sarcasm, the arrogance, the disdain. She’d never dreamed such a very small girl could bring a man like this to tears.

  Kelly had come in right behind him, but was trying to stay to the side and out of the way. She didn’t want to intrude, didn’t want to push in where she didn’t belong, but he was just standing there, paralyzed with emotion. If she didn’t do something, he was going to scare the poor kid to death. There was really no choice. She stepped forward.

  “Hi, sweetie,” she said with a cheery smile, bending down. “My name’s Kelly. I’m your daddy’s friend. I’m going to help take you home. Okay?”

  The huge dark eyes stared at her solemnly. For a moment, Kelly thought there would be no response. The child’s gaze seemed flat, emotionless. Her little features didn’t move at all.

  Kelly glanced at Joe for guidance, but the look on his face told her he wouldn’t even hear her right now.

  “Mei?” Kelly said, smiling hopefully. “You want to come with me?”

  As though a veil was lifted, Mei’s eyes lit with interest and her little head nodded.

  Flooded with relief, Kelly put out her arms and Mei went to her willingly, then clung to her. And that was that. Mei seemed to think she belonged with Kelly. No room for other options.

  They waited for a required interview with a supervisor, then Joe began to make his way through the paperwork, while Kelly tried to keep the baby entertained as best she could. The bustle of people all around them helped. Whenever Mei felt anxious, Kelly was there to soothe away her fears. At the same time she kept one ear open to the questions Joe was answering, hoping to glean something that would help with her identification. She didn’t get much there, but she did hear the name Angie repeated often enough to realize that had to be Mei’s mother, and Joe’s wife. One look at his face was all she needed to understand the tragedy involved in his losing her.

  Kelly noticed that Joe was very carefully avoiding glancing at Mei. She thought she knew why. He was protecting himself, just getting through the bureaucratic formalities with all due speed. This child had power over him, and he had to wait until they were out of here before he could begin learning how to deal with it.

  They were almost done when Joe visibly steeled himself and turned to smile at his daughter.

  “Okay, Mei,” he said, holding out his arms. “Why don’t you let me carry you for awhile?”

  The baby shrank away, and as his hands touched her, she let out a shriek that could probably be heard all the way back to Manila. Joe jerked back, his face like stone. He glanced at Kelly, who was at a loss as to how to fix this situation, and then he turned and walked back to the airline counter, where he had a bit more business to complete.

  Kelly held Mei closely, knowing this was not good, and feeling a surge of compassion for Joe that almost brought her to tears. But what could she do?

  Once all the paperwork was done and they were heading for the parking lot, little Mei’s arms went around Kelly’s neck and she snuggled in tightly. But whenever Joe turned to look at her, she stiffened, and Kelly began to realize there might be more problems ahead than he had ever anticipated.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  JOE WAS SILENT on the drive home from the airport. He was the sort of man who liked to be in command of every situation, understanding what was needed, hitting all the bases. The problem was, right now he didn’t have a clue. He felt like a swimmer who couldn’t touch bottom and had lost sight of the beach. What was he supposed to do now?

  The idea of a baby daughter had seemed vaguely pleasant. A little girl to call his own. A miniature version of Angie, maybe—sweet, pretty, a blessing in his life. She was his child and his responsibility.

  He’d pictured a friendly meeting at the airport. The nanny would be in charge. After all, he’d been told the woman had been taking care of Mei ever since she was born. He would drive them home, and that would be that. A child in his life—but a child with a caretaker, someone who knew what she was doing.

  That was the plan. Reality had caught him unprepared and hit him like a blow to the gut.

  No nanny. No caretaker. No safety net.

  That wasn’t going to
work. He didn’t know the first thing about taking care of a kid this age. Or any age, really.

  But even worse had been his own emotional reaction to seeing little Mei in the flesh for the first time. He hadn’t expected to have the pain flood in that way. His stomach turned again just thinking about it. If he’d known that was going to happen…

  Traffic was light, but his headlights bounced against the fog and he had to pay close attention, peering into the darkness as though he might find some answers there. Kelly was sitting next to Mei in the back, talking to her softly, helping her play with a toy attached to the car seat.

  He listened for a moment, craning to hear, as though she were speaking in a foreign language he didn’t understand. And he didn’t. What was he doing here? What was he going to do with this child?

  “Did you find out what happened to the nanny?” Kelly asked him as he turned off the freeway and stopped at a red light.

  He hesitated, reluctant to tell her anything. She shouldn’t even be here. Still, if she wasn’t, he would be in even bigger trouble. He supposed he owed her a bit of civility, if nothing else.

  “They said she was seen with Mei right up until they went through customs here at the airport, and then she disappeared.” He shook his head in disbelief. “They found her sitting there in one of those plastic chairs. She had a tag around her neck with her papers and my name and all that. They gave me the address the nanny used as a contact point, but something tells me that’s going to be useless.”

  He glanced in the rearview mirror. He couldn’t see Mei, but that was okay. Right now he didn’t want to.

  “They said it happens all the time. She’ll probably blend right into the immigrant community and it will be hard to ever find her.”

  Kelly nodded. “That’s what I was afraid of.”

  He frowned and didn’t speak again as he turned onto his street and pulled into the driveway.