The Reluctant Princess

by Raye Morgan

  He stared down at her. She was Leonardo’s but that didn’t seem to penetrate. She was a baby. Who on earth could hurt a baby? Not him. He gave her one last look and then he turned to go back.

  But she started crying again.

  He stood there for a moment, trying to keep his balance and at the same time, trying to make sense of this. Leonardo’s baby. So what?

  But it was also Kimmee’s. A baby was a baby, and this one needed help. Muttering to himself, he turned back, scooped her up and brought her to his chest. And let out a quick scream of pain that almost knocked him off his feet. The baby began to slip through his hands, falling headfirst toward the floor.

  “No!”

  He grabbed her just in time and clung to her, holding her high enough to avoid the damaged area that was his chest, but still gasping from the pain.

  The baby cried harder.

  “Okay, kid,” he said gruffly. “You gotta stop the crying. It’s like a hammer against my head. Come on.” He rocked her, wincing as he experimented until he found just how close he could go to the ribs. “Come on.”

  He started back toward the couch, then took a turn as he noticed the overstuffed rocking chair.

  “Here we go,” he told the sweet little child. “Come on, now. Let’s get some sleep.”

  Slouching carefully into the chair, he began to rock. The baby quieted almost instantly. He tried a little humming to hurry the process along, but it hurt and he had to stop. His eyes closed. The baby slipped down to a comfortable place between his chest and his upper arm.

  They both slept.

  Kim was in heaven. For once, there was hot water and she was going to make the most of it. She stood in the shower and let the silvery warmth crash over her. Wonderful.

  For just a moment she could forget that she’d brought her biggest current enemy into this house and let him sleep very close to her baby girl. She could forget how difficult and frustrating work at the hospital was, how worried she was about Dede, how scared Jake made her—and just exist in the wet and the warm. She even began to sing an old Cole Porter tune, just to prove how happy she was in the moment.

  But suddenly, she heard something. She couldn’t be certain what it was. Quickly, she turned off the water and listened hard. Nothing. She must have been imagining it. Sighing, she turned the water back on. In this building, you had to grab the good before someone came and took it away from you. She was going to shower like there was no tomorrow. And for all she knew, maybe there wasn’t.

  Ten minutes later she turned off the water again and slipped out of the shower, luxuriating in a large, fluffy towel. She patted down her wet hair and rubbed on some cream and sang softly to herself. For the moment, she was happy.

  Slipping into her warm nightgown, she hung the towel on the hook and started out into the living room. The first place she looked was in Dede’s crib. And it was empty.

  A scream began to shove its way up her throat. Panic clutched at her chest, her heart, her mind. She couldn’t breathe. Turning quickly, she saw Jake in the rocking chair, Dede clutched up between his arm and his chest, and the panic left her body like air out of a spent balloon. She crumpled to the floor in front of the rocking chair and stared up at the two of them. Relief chased chagrin through her heart.

  “Thank you, thank you,” she prayed softly.

  They looked so peaceful, both of them totally captured by sleep. Jake’s face, with its gauze bandage over the chin, looked almost benign. And Dede had relaxed completely in his arms, her little face untroubled by the pain she suffered from so often.

  Watching them, tears began to fill her eyes and then spill down her cheeks. She tried to wipe them away, but they just came faster.

  It was the release, she told herself. The relief of knowing she had a few hours when she wasn’t going to worry about how she was going to get away from Jake and avoid going back to face the DeAngelis royals, relief in knowing someone else was here to help her with Dede if she had one of her spasms. Relief in just having another adult here with her.

  Most of the time it all seemed to be on her shoulders. For just a moment, she would let the burden fall away and let herself cry.

  CHAPTER THREE

  MORNING had come. Jake could feel the difference without even opening his eyes. Kim was murmuring to her baby and getting delightful gurgles in return.

  Baby laughter was a beautiful sound. He longed for the day when hearing it wouldn’t cut him to the quick any longer.

  He pushed that thought away. It did no good to dwell on heartache. And he was glad to hear Kim’s baby sounding happy. It seemed to him there had been a few times during the night he’d heard something different from the little girl. Or maybe he’d been dreaming.

  He sighed, not so sure whether he had finally rejoined the real world and left his nightmares behind. He’d been in and out of consciousness and the hours had blended together pointlessly. For all he knew, it could be days later by the time he’d begun to regain full use of his groggy brain. Days, or maybe hours.

  Now Kim was moving around the room, gathering things up. He cracked his eyes open only enough to see her standing in front of the window. Morning light was streaking in, outlining her in silhouette, showing off every curve of her lovely form beneath the lacy nightgown she wore. The power of that image stunned him like a sucker punch to the gut. The woman appealed to his senses, there was no denying that.

  But only physically, he told himself quickly, closing his eyes tightly again. He despised everything she stood for.

  He tried to go over what had happened in the past twelve hours, how he’d ended up here like this. His mind was fairly clear. He pretty much knew where he was and why he was here. But that didn’t stop him from resenting it.

  “Are you awake?” she asked him.

  He opened one eye and looked at her. She was still in the damn nightgown. He closed it again.

  “No,” he said gruffly.

  “Yes, you are.” She bent over where he still half-sat, half-lay in the overstuffed rocking chair he seemed to have slept in. He felt her cool hand on his forehead and he frowned, pulling away from her touch.

  “How do you feel?”

  He opened his eyes again. She was too close to avoid. Her brown eyes looked sleepy but concerned. Blond hair flew around her face in disarray. She looked like a woman who had just risen from her bed, which he supposed was exactly what she was. There was no getting away from it. He was going to have to get used to watching her bounce around in a gauzy shift he could practically see through even without the backlighting.

  Fate worse than death, he supposed, laughing at himself. The horror. He drew in a deep breath, suddenly feeling as though he had warm butterscotch flowing through his veins. Swallowing hard, he tried to avoid looking at her.

  “I feel like I just got run over by a truck,” he said, sounding grumpy. “What do I look like?”

  She nodded. “That, too. It’s pretty much what happened.”

  He nodded and gingerly touched the bandage on his chin. “Is it?” he muttered, then looked at her more sharply. “Okay, you want to tell me what exactly happened last night? How much did you see?”

  “I didn’t see you get hit but…”

  “Whoa, slow down.” He held up a hand, frowning as he went over the events of the last evening in his head. “Let’s start at the beginning.” He fixed her with an intense look. “We were sitting there in the café. You implied you were heading for the bathroom. Somehow you got diverted.”

  She nodded, dropping onto the arm of the couch nearest too him. “I saw it a little differently. We were sitting there in the café and you began to threaten me.”

  He looked up at her, frowning. That wasn’t the way he remembered it at all. “What?”

  She shrugge
d. “You said you were taking me back to the castle.”

  “That was a threat?” He made a face, wondering why women were so often so unreasonable. “I considered it a promise, not a threat.”

  “Then you claimed I was really a DeAngelis.” Her look was full of skepticism, as though she was pretty sure he’d made it up. “I guess you thought that gave you permission to force me to go back. And I decided you were obviously a raving lunatic and I had to get out of there.”

  “So you ran.”

  “I ran.”

  “And I ran after you.”

  “But you didn’t catch me.” Her eyes sparkled.

  “No, you’re right there.” He had to admit it, he’d been off his game from the beginning and he hadn’t realized she would be so hard to catch. “You were running all over the place.”

  “I didn’t want to lead you right back here.”

  He looked at her, a slow sense of satisfaction taking over. “And yet, here I am.”

  She shrugged that away. She didn’t want to concede the point. “I didn’t see the accident, but from what I could hear, it sounded like a car skidded on ice and hit you.”

  “Hit and run?”

  She nodded.

  He searched her eyes, his own hooded. “Why didn’t you just leave me there?”

  “Please,” she said, as though there had been no dilemma at all. “You’re Pellea’s brother.”

  And still, he wondered…. “So that’s why you rescued me?”

  “Pretty much.” She gave him a look. “I can’t think of any other reason.”

  He nodded slowly. He still didn’t completely believe it. What was he supposed to think of this woman? Ever since he’d found out about her relationship with Leonardo, he’s assumed she was bad news. If there really could be such a thing as a nemesis in life, that was what Leonardo was to him. The emotional side of him wanted the man dead. The more realistic side realized killing Leonardo would mean only bad things for himself. Was revenge worth destroying your life for? That was something he still had to think through.

  “And you got me medical help without having me arrested,” he added, grateful yet not sure how to express it without getting too friendly. “Pretty good work.”

  She favored him with a smile that lit up the room. “Every now and then I can be pretty terrific.”

  He drew back, disturbed by how pretty she could look at times. “I wouldn’t go that far,” he said grumpily.

  “Whatever,” she said lightly. “Dr. Harve seems to think you’re not too badly hurt. You ought to be okay in a couple of days.”

  “Good.” He frowned. “Hey, what kind of a doctor doesn’t do stitches because his hands are shaking?”

  She bit her lip. “You caught that, huh?”

  “I did. What’s the deal?”

  She sighed. “Jake, you know it’s almost impossible to find a real doctor these days. Besides the problem of you being here illegally.”

  “So what is he, a phony?”

  “No, he’s got real medical training. But he lost his license to practice at some point. I don’t know what for.”

  He frowned. “So he’s still practicing, but ineptly?”

  “No. I think he did fine with you last night. But you might say he’s illegal, just like you are. Only in a different realm.”

  “You might say that.” His blue eyes were penetrating. “Or you might admit he’s probably a quack. And that is something I’ll never be.”

  She shook her head. “I just want you to be healed.” She watched him closely as she added, “And then you can go back where you came from.”

  He looked up into her face. “Not without you. I told you that from the start.”

  She stared at him, all humor gone, eyes darkening. He blinked, thinking a cloud had come out to cover the sun. Had the air suddenly gone colder? She looked away and sighed, then looked back.

  “If you’re keeping tabs on me because you think I’ll lead you to where Leonardo is, you’re in for a big disappointment,” she warned, just in case.

  His blue eyes snapped and searched her face. “You and the leader of your country don’t hang out much anymore, huh?”

  She gave him a dark look, but no words in response.

  “Doesn’t he want to come see his baby?”

  She stared at him, exasperated. He had some nerve with his nosy questions.

  “See, that’s what I don’t get,” he went on. “You’ve got the only baby Leonardo has ever been known to have fathered. Therefore, you’ve got the heir to the Granvilli empire, such as it is these days. And yet you’re hiding in shabby rooms, desperately trying to locate a doctor for your child. It doesn’t add up.”

  Did he think she had been with Leonardo to get what she could from him? That she was some sort of gold digger? Wow. If he only knew how far off the mark he really was.

  “If you think anyone on this side of the island has any money, you’ll have to think again. Even the Granvilli family. Losing a war makes you broke.”

  He nodded. He understood that. “Of course, they lost most of their holdings over the past year or so, but you never know. The South may rise again.”

  “Not in my lifetime.” She glared at him. “And anyway, no one knows where Leonardo is.”

  “That’s understandable,” he said, his mouth twisted in something like a mocking smile. “If anyone knew where he was he’d probably be dead by now.” He looked up and just caught the tail end of a grin leaving her face. “You smile at that. Now I’m completely confused.” He shook his head.

  “Don’t be,” she shot back at him. “People are complex. We all have different things that drive us. And anyway, you know darn well you would enjoy seeing him squirm yourself.”

  “I see,” he said slowly, analyzing the situation as best he could. “You’re angry that he’s turned his back on you.”

  That would be the day. She rolled her eyes. “No, I’m angry that you keep bringing him up. I don’t want to think about him. I don’t want to hear his name. Please stop.”

  “Sure. Sorry.” But he stared at her as though she was a puzzle he needed to solve.

  She changed the subject. “Why did you pick up Dede last night when I was in the shower?” she asked softly.

  “Is that your little girl’s name?”

  “Yes.”

  He shrugged. “She was crying. And that made me think about my own little girl.”

  He winced as he said it, immediately wishing he hadn’t. He should have kept his thoughts to himself.

  “You have a little girl?” she asked, face lightening.

  He turned to look into her dark eyes and shook his head slowly. “Not anymore,” he said, and then he looked away. He’d caught the beginning of her shocked look and he didn’t want to see any more of it.

  She touched him. Reaching out, she put her soft hand over his and leaned toward him. “I’m sorry,” she whispered softly, and then she drew away again.

  He looked at her. Her eyes were huge with sympathy for him. He didn’t want any damn sympathy. But something in those eyes warmed him in a strange, sensual way. He had to admit, if he ever had to take sympathy from someone, hers would be the one he would want.

  But that was a stupid thought. He turned away again. This was driving him crazy. He didn’t want to like her. He didn’t want to feel attracted. And if this kept up, he’d be tempted to do things he could only regret.

  “Listen, do me a favor,” he said hoarsely. “Could you go get some clothes on? Then maybe I can stop staring into corners in order to avoid looking at you.”

  “Oh. I’m sorry.” But she laughed. He couldn’t help but think an evil thread ran through that laugh. She knew the power she had over him, didn’t sh
e?

  “Really, I’m not used to having a man around in the morning. I didn’t think….”

  Yeah, right. Women.

  She put on jeans and a loose-fitting shirt and spent the next hour taking care of her baby. He didn’t look over to see what she was doing. The drugs were still affecting him and he slipped in and out of sleep for what seemed like hours.

  The next time he was awake, he could see that Kim was getting ready to go to work. The white nurse’s uniform looked a little tight on her, as though she’d borrowed it from someone else—and maybe had washed it too often since. But the way it fit—short and snug—set off her deliciously curvy body to great advantage, at least from his perspective. Watching her move, he got a surge of a reminder that for all his injuries, he was a man and still had some male reactions after all. That almost made him smile.

  “Okay,” he said when she came close enough for conversation without shouting across the room. “When do we leave?”

  Kim turned to stare at him. “I’m not going anywhere.”

  He tried to act sure of himself, but it was tough in the state he found himself in. “Sure you are,” he said as firmly as he could. “You’re going back to the castle.”

  She stood over him, a slight, superior smile on her face, as though she couldn’t believe he was even pretending he could manage any of this.

  “I don’t think you could follow through on that right now, even if you wanted to,” she told him with a smirk.

  He frowned at her and she gave him a mock frown back. “So you’re Pellea’s brother,” she said, looking him over as though for the first time. Then she grinned. “Pellea and I grew up like sisters, you know. So that would almost make you my brother as well.”

  He gave her a look that told her she was so far off base, the moon was closer. “Not hardly,” he said with startling emphasis. The fact that he found her sexually appealing was so obvious in the way he said it, it almost made her blush. But not quite.