Becoming the Prince's Wife (Princes of Europe)

by Rebecca Winters

  “Vito—”

  “You were betrothed to her, and the parents had another woman picked out for me, so I left to join the military with the intention of making it my career for as long as possible. I was a coward and couldn’t face you, but I should have.”

  Pure unadulterated joy seized Valentino. He didn’t need to hear another word. It suddenly made sense when he remembered his brother occasionally telling him things about Alexandra that surprised Valentino. It explained the huge relief he saw in Alexandra’s eyes when he’d called off the marriage. But what he’d thought was relief was joy.

  In the next breath he gave his brother the biggest bear hug of his life, lifting him off the ground. “You’re more in love with her than ever, right?”

  Vito staggered backward with a look of disbelief in his eyes. “Yes, but how come you’re acting like this? You have every right to despise me.”

  He shook his head. “Nothing could be further from the truth. If anything, I’ve been the despicable one for not ending it with Alexandra years ago. I knew something earthshaking had happened to make you go away. I was afraid I’d offended you in some way. Now that you’ve told me, I’m so incredibly happy for you and Alexandra, you could have no idea.

  “Don’t waste another moment, Vito. All this time you two have been in pain... Give up your commission and marry her. Grab at your happiness! Mother loves her, and her parents want to join our two families together. When they find out you’re going to be king instead of me, they’ll be overjoyed.”

  “I don’t want to be king.”

  “Yes, you do. You told me years ago. The point is, I don’t. I never wanted it.”

  “But—”

  “But nothing,” Valentino silenced him. “Mother is perfectly healthy. Maybe she’s going to have to rule for a lot longer than she’d planned.”

  His brother rubbed the back of his neck in confusion. “What’s going on with you? Do I even know you?”

  He grinned. “We’re brothers, and I’ve got my own confession to make, but you’ll have to hear it later. In the meantime, don’t worry about me. And don’t tell Mother I’ve been to the palace this morning. I’ll be back in a few days.” He headed for the door and turned to him. “When I see you again, I’d better hear that you and Alexandra have made your wedding plans or there will be hell to pay.”

  Valentino flew out the door and raced across the grounds to the helicopter. The knowledge that Vito and Alexandra had been lovers had transformed him, removing every trace of pain and guilt.

  “Carolena?”

  She peered around the deck chair where she’d been reading a magazine in her sunglasses. “Hi!”

  This morning she’d put her vibrant hair back in a chignon and was wearing pleated beige pants with a peach-colored top her figure did wonders for. Between her sensational looks and brilliant mind, she was his total fantasy come to life.

  “If you’re ready, we’ll get business out of the way, then come back and take off for the island.” He’d told one of the crew to pack the cruiser with everything they’d need if they wanted to spend the night there.

  Throughout the rest of the day they’d gotten things down to a routine and touched base with the many heads of fruit consortiums in the district. The plan to market the island’s blood oranges under the AG logo had already reached the ears of many of them with rave results.

  Valentino had demands for more of the videos made in Gemelli than he’d anticipated. He gave orders to step up production of the flyers, too. Two more days and he and Carolena would have covered the whole country. By this time next year he’d know if their efforts had helped increase their exports around the world and produced financial gains.

  As he’d told Carolena, there were no guarantees in life. This plan of his and Vincenzo’s to help their countries’ economies was only one of many. It was far too early to predict the outcome, but since she’d come into his life, he had this feeling something remarkable was going to happen.

  * * *

  With their marketing work done, Valentino drove the cruiser under a late-afternoon sun along a string of tiny deserted islands with rocky coastlines.

  Carolena had been waiting for this all day. “What’s that wonderful smell in the breeze?”

  “Rosemary and thyme. It grows wild here among the sand dunes and beaches. Vito and I spent a lot of our teenage years exploring this area. In the fall this place is covered with pink flamingos, herons and storks. We used to camp out here to watch them and take movies.”

  “I envy you having a brother to go on adventures with. No one’s childhood is idyllic, but I think yours must have come close.”

  “We tried to forget that we were princes put into a special kind of gilded cage. However, I would have liked your freedom.”

  “But it wouldn’t have exposed you to the world you’re going to rule one day. Someone has to do it.”

  He lifted one eyebrow. “That’s one way of looking at it. Ten years ago we worked on our father to get legislation passed in parliament to declare this a natural preserve so the tourists wouldn’t ruin it. Since that time, our Gemellian bird-watching society has seen continual growth of the different species, and I’ve had this place virtually to myself.”

  She laughed. “Seriously, that has to be very gratifying to you.” His dedication to the country’s welfare continued to astound Carolena. “This is paradise, Val. The sand is so white!”

  He nodded. “It feels like the most refined granulated sugar under your feet. We’ll pull in to that lagoon, one of my favorite spots.”

  The water was as blue as the sky. They were alone. It was as if they were the only people left on earth. After he cut the engine, she darted below to put on her flowered one-piece swimsuit. It was backless, but the front fastened up around the neck like a choker, providing the modesty she needed to be around Val.

  When she came back up on deck, she discovered he’d already changed into black trunks. The hard-muscled physique of his bronzed body took her breath. His gaze scrutinized her so thoroughly, he ignited a new fire that traveled through hers.

  “Not that the suit you’re wearing isn’t delectable, but what happened to that gorgeous purple concoction you were wearing when we first met? I’ve been living to see you in it again.”

  A gentle laugh broke from her. “You mean that piece of nothing?” she teased. “I’ve never owned anything indecent before. When I saw it in the shop before I flew down here with Abby, I decided to be daring and buy it. I was a fool to think I’d be alone.”

  “The sight of you almost in it put an exclamation point on the end of my grueling workday.”

  She blushed. “Almost being the operative word. You’re a terrible man to remind me.”

  “You’re a terrible woman to deprive me of seeing you in it again.”

  Carolena had been trying to treat him like a brother, but that was a joke with the heat building between them. She needed to cool off and there was only one way to do it. She walked to the end of the cruiser and without hesitation jumped into the water.

  “Oh—” she cried when she emerged. “This feels like a bathtub! Heaven!”

  “Isn’t it?”

  She squealed again because he’d come right up next to her. They swam around the boat, diving and bobbing like porpoises for at least half an hour. “I’ve never had so much fun in my life!”

  He smiled at her with a pirate’s grin that sent a thrill through her. “I’ll race you to shore, but I’ll give you a head start.”

  “You’re on!” She struck out for the beach, putting everything into it. But when she would have been able to stand, he grabbed hold of her ankles and she landed in the sand. Laughter burst out of her. “That wasn’t fair!”

  He’d come up beside her and turned her over. “I know,” he whispered against her lips. “But
as you’ve found out, I play by a different set of rules. Right now I’m going to kiss the daylights out of you.”

  “No, Val—” she cried, but the second she felt his hungry mouth cover hers, she couldn’t hold off any longer. This time they weren’t in the back of the limo while the driver was waiting for them to get out.

  There was nothing to impede their full pleasure as they wrapped their arms around each other. Slowly they began giving and taking one kiss after another, relishing the taste and feel of each other. While their legs entwined, the warm water lapped around them in a silky wet blanket.

  “You’re so beautiful I could eat you alive. I’m in love with you, adorata. I’ve never said it to another woman in my life, so don’t tell me it isn’t love.”

  She looked into his eyes blazing with blue fire. “I wasn’t going to,” she cried in a tremulous whisper before their mouths met in another explosion of desire. Carried away by her feelings, she quit fighting her reservations for the moment and gave in to her longings. She embraced him with almost primitive need, unaware of twilight turning into night.

  “I’m in love with you, too, Val,” she confessed when he allowed her to draw breath. “I’ve been denying it to myself, but it’s no use. Like I told you on the yacht that first night, you make me feel immortal. Only a man who had hold of my heart could make me thankful I’ve been born a woman.”

  He buried his face in her throat. “You bring out feelings in me I didn’t know were there. I need you with me, Carolena. Not just for an hour or a day.” He kissed her again, long and deep, while they moved and breathed as one flesh.

  “I feel the same way,” she whispered at last, kissing his jaw where she could feel the beginnings of a beard. No man had ever been as gorgeous.

  “Another time we’ll come out here in the middle of the night to watch the turtle fledglings hatch and make their trek to the water. Tonight I want to spend all the time we have on the cruiser with you. It’s getting cooler. Come on before you catch a chill.”

  He got up first and pulled her against him. Dizzy from the sensations he’d aroused, she clung to him, not wanting to be separated from him for an instant, but they had to swim back to the boat. Valentino grasped her hand and drew her into the water. “Ready?”

  “Yes.”

  Together they swam side by side until they reached the back of the cruiser. He levered himself in first so he could help her aboard. “You take a shower while I get the cruiser ready for bed. We’ll eat in the galley. But I need this first.” He planted another passionate kiss on her mouth, exploring her back with his hands before she hurried across the deck and down the steps.

  She’d packed a bag with the essentials she’d need. After carrying it into the shower, she turned on the water and undid her hair. It felt marvelous to wash out the sand and have a good scrub. Aware Valentino would want a shower, too, she didn’t linger.

  Once she’d wrapped her hair in a towel and had dried herself, she pulled out her toweling robe. But when she started to put it on, it was like déjà vu and stopped her cold. What was she doing?

  Yes she’d broken down and admitted that she loved him, but nothing else had changed. Though he’d spoken of his love and need to be with her all the time, he was still a prince with responsibilities and commitments she could never be a part of.

  Abby had suggested she treat Valentino like a brother in order to make it through the rest of the week, but that tactic had been a total and utter failure. Carolena was painfully, desperately in love with him.

  If they made love tonight, her entire world would change. She’d be a slave to her need for him and act like all the poor lovesick wretches throughout time who’d made themselves available to the king when he called for them.

  It was sick and wrong! No matter how much she loved Valentino, she couldn’t do that to herself. Carolena couldn’t imagine anything worse than living each minute of her life waiting for him to reach out to her when he had the time. Once he married and had children, that really would be the end for her.

  If she couldn’t have him all to herself, she didn’t want any part of him. There was no way to make it work. None. She’d rather be single for the rest of her life.

  On the yacht that first night she’d told him he’d passed his test and could leave her cabin with a clear conscience. Now it was time for her to pass her test and go away forever.

  She quickly put on clean underwear and a new pair of lightweight sweats with short sleeves. The robe she buried in the bottom of the bag. After removing the towel, she brushed her hair back and fastened it at the nape with an elastic.

  After putting her bag outside the door, she headed straight into the galley and opened the fridge to get the food set out for them. When she’d put everything on the table, she called to him. A minute later he showed up in a striped robe. He’d just come out of the shower and his dark blond hair was still damp. Talk about looking good enough to eat!

  She flashed him a smile. “Is everything fine topside?”

  “We’re set for the night.” His eyes took in her sweats. Carolena knew her friendly air didn’t fool him, but he went along with her. “I like your sleepwear. Reminds me of Vito’s military fatigues.”

  “This is as close as I ever hope to get to war,” she quipped. “Why don’t you sit down and eat this delicious food someone has prepared for us.” He did her bidding. She poured coffee for them. “How is your brother, by the way? Will he be in Gemelli long before he has to go back on duty?”

  “I don’t know.” His vague answer wasn’t very reassuring. “He wants to meet you when we get back to the palace.”

  She bit into a plum. “I’m afraid that won’t be possible.”

  Lines marred his handsome features. “Why would you say something like that? He’s my only sibling still alive. Naturally I want him to meet you and get to know you.”

  “Under normal circumstances there’s nothing I’d like more, but nothing about you and me is normal.”

  His head reared back. “What are you trying to tell me now?”

  Carolena eyed him with a frank gaze. “I’ve already admitted that I’m in love with you, but I’ve come to my senses since we came back on board and I don’t intend to sleep with you tonight or any other night. I want a clean break from you after I’ve finished out my contract, so there’s no need to be involved with any members of your family.”

  He got that authoritative look. It was something that came over him even if he wasn’t aware of it. “There isn’t going to be a break.”

  “So speaks the prince. But this commoner has another destiny. Don’t ask me again to forget that you’re royalty. It would be pointless. Do you honestly believe I could stand to be your lover in your secret life and watch you play out your public life with a royal wife and children? Other foolish women have done it for centuries, but not me.”

  Valentino tucked into his pasta salad, seemingly not in the least bothered by anything she’d said.

  “Did you hear me?”

  “Loud and clear.” He kept on eating.

  Her anger was kindled. “Stop acting like a husband who’s tired of listening to his nag of a wife. Have you ever considered why she nags him?”

  “The usual reasons. I had parents, too, remember.”

  “You’re impossible!”

  Quiet reigned until he’d finished his coffee. After he put down the mug, he looked at her with those intelligent dark blue eyes. “How would you like to be my wife? I already know you have a temper, so I’m not shaking in my boots.”

  Her lungs froze. “That was a cruel thing to say to me.”

  His sinuous smile stung her. “Cruel? I just proposed marriage to you and that’s the answer you give me?”

  Carolena shook her head. “Stop teasing me, Val. Why are you being like this? I thought I knew you, but it’s obvio
us I don’t. The only time I see you serious is when you’re wearing your princely mantle.”

  He sat back in the chair. “For the first time in my life, I’ve taken it off.”

  She started to get nervous. “Just because you broke your engagement, it doesn’t mean you’ve changed into someone else.”

  “Oh, but I have!”

  “Now you’re scaring me again.”

  “Good. I like it when you’re thrown off base. First, let me tell you about my talk with Vito this morning.”

  Carolena blinked. “That’s where you were?”

  “He sent me an urgent message telling me he needed to see me as soon as possible. Otherwise I would never have left you.”

  This had to do with their mother. Guilt attacked her. “Is your mother ill?” she asked.

  “No. Last week I told Vito I was breaking my engagement to Alexandra. Since I had business with you, I asked him to meet the princess’s plane when she flew in to Gemelli.”

  “She came to the palace?”

  “That’s right. What I didn’t know until this morning was that Vito and Alexandra were lovers before he went into the military.”

  The blood hammered in her ears.

  “He signed up intending to make a career of it in order to stay away from her permanently. Neither my parents nor I knew why.”

  “Those poor things,” she whispered.

  Valentino nodded. “But after hearing that I’d broken our engagement, he found the courage to face me this morning. To my surprise, I learned she was on the verge of breaking it off with me, but Vito wanted to be the one to tell me. That was why she was so happy that I got there first.”

  Carolena could hardly take it in. “You mean, they’ve been in love all these years?”

  “Yes. It’s the forever kind.”

  She was dumbstruck.

  “When I left Vito, I told him there’d better be a marriage between the two of them soon or he’d have to answer to me. Mother will have no choice but to see him crowned king. The promise that one of her sons will reign makes everything all right. He’ll rule instead of me. No one will have to be disappointed, after all.”