Prince and Single Mom
Page 1
THE PRINCE AND THE SINGLE MOM
Magic and Love 1
Morgan Ashbury
EROTIC ROMANCE
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
ABOUT THIS E-BOOK: Your non-refundable purchase of this e-book allows you to one LEGAL copy for your own personal use. It is ILLEGAL to send your copy to someone who did not pay for it. Distribution of this e-book, in whole or in part, online, offline, in print or in any way or any other method currently known or yet to be invented, is forbidden without the prior written permission of both the publisher and the copyright owner of this book.
THE PRINCE AND THE SINGLE MOM
Copyright © 2007 by Morgan Ashbury
ISBN: 1-933563-10-9
First E-book Publication: September 2007
Cover design by Jinger Heaston
All cover art and logo copyright © 2007 by Siren Publishing, Inc.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.
PUBLISHER
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
Dedication
For Jennifer
THE PRINCE AND THE SINGLE MOM
Magic and Love 1
MORGAN ASHBURY
Copyright © 2007
Prologue
“And then the Prince married Cinderella…”
“And they all lived happily ever after! Grandma, I just love that story.”
Hannah Jones laughed softly, set the book down and scooped her granddaughter, Michelle, into a snuggly hug.
“I know you do, sweetheart. It’s your favorite story in the whole world.”
Michelle giggled, then let out a huge yawn. Hannah moved from where she’d been in bedtime-story-telling mode, leaning against the headboard, to sitting, facing the four-year-old. She fluffed the pillow and smoothed the blankets. From the corner of her eye she saw her son, Craig, standing by the open door of the room.
“Grandma, are there really fairy godmothers?”
Hannah didn’t hesitate, even knowing she would likely get a word or two from her son. He had become very much a man of the new century. Her firstborn was grounded—she believed a bit too deeply—in reality.
“Absolutely, there are fairy godmothers.”
“Daddy says if there were fairy godmothers, they would be on the All News Network.”
“Did he?” Hannah shot her son a smirk then turned her attention back to the child.
“The reason that most people don’t see fairy godmothers is that they don’t believe in them.”
“But if you believe in fairy godmothers, how come yours hasn’t come and brought you a handsome prince? I heard Daddy and Mommy talking about how you’d been treated worse than a maid your whole life.”
Hannah nearly laughed aloud. Craig had gone from looking condescendingly superior to looking as if he wanted a hole to crawl into. She could imagine the things he and his wife would talk about when they thought there were no little ears listening.
“Oh, sweetheart, I’m a granny. Much too old for a handsome prince.” She knew her forty-eight years seemed a lot to the little girl. She believed she would hear agreement in the next words.
“I think you’re even more beautiful than Cinderella.” Michelle declared.
Hannah swallowed around the lump in her throat. “Well, thank you, Michelle. I think you’re beautiful, too.”
Hannah kissed her on the forehead. “You have wonderful dreams, now.”
“I’m going to dream that you marry a handsome prince so that I can come and visit you in the palace.”
“You should dream that you marry the handsome prince instead,” Hannah chided.
“Oh Grandma! I’m too young to get married!”
Hannah placed another kiss on Michelle’s forehead, then left the room. Mother and son walked together downstairs, heading back to the dining room. She’d come for dinner, but it was nearly time for her to return to her own home.
“Sorry about that.”
Hannah laughed. “I know you think my life was nothing but drudgery while you kids were growing up, honey, but it wasn’t that bad.”
“I loved Dad. But that doesn’t mean that I couldn’t see his flaws.” Craig stopped and turned to her. “Why did you stay married to him?”
“Because I took vows. If your father had lived, I’d still be married to him. And I got three wonderful children and four terrific grandchildren out of the deal. A bargain, as far as I’m concerned. Especially when I get to read bedtime stories. Where are the boys?”
“Richard and John are watching a movie in the den. They have another half-hour till their bedtimes, and don’t need fairy tales, thank you very much.”
“Now, that is a shame.” Hannah watched her son’s face and knew she was in for a bit of a lecture.
“Really, Mom, I wish you wouldn’t encourage her by telling her lies.”
“I beg your pardon? What lie did I tell her?”
“About there being fairy godmothers.”
“That would only be a lie if I didn’t believe in them.”
“Oh, come on, Mother.”
They’d reached the dining room, but moved on through to the kitchen. There, Pamela, Craig’s wife, had brewed a pot of tea. Hannah walked over to the cupboard and brought down three mugs as Craig went to the fridge and got out the milk.
“You can’t stand here and tell me you actually believe in fairy godmothers,” Craig continued.
“Uh oh,” Pam said.
Hannah sent a wink to her daughter-in-law then looked at her often-too-serious son. She knew that a part of his demeanor had come as a direct result of his childhood. Jordan, her late husband, had been cavalier, to say the least, in providing for the children. Hannah had always worked hard to earn a paycheck and was left to do everything herself at home in the evenings, too. As soon as Craig was old enough to notice such things, he began to help her by doing as many chores as he could. She should have made sure he’d stayed a child a little bit longer.
“I believe in miracles. And I believe in magic. So, I guess that means I believe in fairy godmothers, too. And so should Michelle, my dear. Childhood is the time for magic and wonder, don’t you think? Seems to me the world would be a whole lot better place if everyone believed a little more in magic and wonder.”
* * * *
High above the Jones house, on clouds that only the most faith-filled eye could see, two cherubic elderly sisters stopped their knitting, closed their eyes, and inhaled deeply.
“Did you feel that, sister?”
“I did. I surely did.”
“Oh, doesn’t it feel wonderful? It’s been so long since I’ve felt this much magic humming through my blood.”
“Oh my, it’s enough to make you blush, isn’t it? And so unexpected, too!”
“Quickly, Gwendolyn, the books!”
Each used a knitting needle as a magic wand, conjuring books to float in the air before them.
“Oh my,” Eugenia, the eldest of the pair, said as she perused her book. “I was going to say how nice it was to have someone over the age of five believe in us. She certainly is over five, isn’t she? Ah, well. Beggars can’t be choosers, I suppose.” She looked over to where her sister was using her knitting needle to flip through page after page in her book. “So, Gwendolyn, any handsome princes available?”
“Ahh, not exactly,” Gwendolyn replied. She stopped turning pages and read. “T
his could be promising. But honestly, sister, I have no idea whatsoever how to accomplish this in these modern times. Pumpkins and mice aside, it is a different world these days.”
“It is. Yes, it is indeed.” Eugenia vanished her own book, so she could turn her attention back to the one Gwendolyn floated over to her. “But not to worry. While you’ve been taking your weekly aerobics class, I’ve been watching television. And I know exactly what to do! Well, look at this.” She smiled. “Do you know, we have much more magic than we need for just one happy-ever-after. And this is not only promising, it’s perfect. Look, one of them is already there. ”
“I was thinking that very same thing myself. Oh, Eugenia, it feels good to be needed again!”
“Yes, it does, doesn’t it? Now, we must not waste time. That poor woman isn’t getting any younger, you know.”
In a cloud of sparkles and rose petals, the two sisters, fairy godmothers both, vanished into thin air.
And so our tale begins. Once upon a time…
Chapter 1
The man simply took her breath away.
His sleek, black hair graced lightly with silver shimmered in the lights. An aura of power, a sense of presence seemed to wrap around his shoulders, broad and strong. Towering over her five-foot-five, he looked a man in command of himself and his surroundings.
As their eyes met, time stood still. Everything around her faded, and it almost seemed as if she and this man were the only people on the planet. His eyes widened, and she thought he might say something to her. But then the maitre d’ spoke to him, and he turned away. Hannah wondered how the world could tilt on its axis and then right itself again so quickly. She’d heard that Mediterranean men oozed sex appeal but never imagined she’d have the chance to experience the phenomena.
She placed a hand on her belly that was tight with an unfamiliar sensation, but one she recognized, arousal. Her nipples had actually tingled for a moment, as if shouting, “Look at me.” Hannah wondered how her hormones could decide to awaken at this point in her life. She was a grandmother, for heaven's sake! And here she was lusting after some stranger with her daughter on one side and her little, innocent grandson on the other.
“Mom?”
She turned and caught the worried expression on her daughter Catharine’s face.
“Sorry, sweetheart. I didn’t mean to zone out on you.” Oh, what the hell. Lowering her voice so her grandson wouldn’t hear, she said, “But that man back there just robbed me of every thought in my head.”
From the slowly blooming smile on her daughter’s face, she knew it had been the right thing to say. Catharine smiled too seldom these days.
“Oh, yeah? Which one?”
“The sinfully sexy one that just walked past us. No! God, don’t turn around and look. He might notice!”
“Mom, this is fantastic! You’re blushing. I’ve never seen you blush over a man before. Hey, if the opportunity presents, you should, you know, go for it.”
“Go for what, Grandma?”
Hannah felt her embarrassment deepen when her daughter winked. Flustered, she reached for Jamie’s hand. “Nothing, sweetheart. Let’s go see if we can get good seats for the magic show. It’s going to start in fifteen minutes.”
“I think it’s great that such a luxurious resort offers so many venues for families,” Hannah said, changing the subject. “There’ll be no end of things we can do together over the next two weeks.”
“In case I didn’t mention it, Mom, thanks for bringing Jamie and me with you.”
“Well, you did put up an admirable fight, honey. But I’m so glad you caved. And you’re very welcome. What fun would it have been to win this all-expenses paid trip to a Mediterranean resort if I couldn’t share?”
The contest win had come as a shock. Usually, Hannah never entered contests or drawings of any kind. She couldn’t even recall now why she’d filled out that entry form at the mall the week before Christmas. The ticket seller, she’d since decided, had missed her calling. Who would have thought such a sweet elderly lady could have such powers of persuasion?
But Hannah had won. The prize was a trip for two to the Mediterranean kingdom of Boisdemer. Since Jamie, Catharine’s son, was only six, it had cost her nothing at all to bring them both.
Seats for the magic show, being held in the opera house, filled up fast. Hannah looked around, noting there were as many adults without children waiting to be entertained as ones with families.
She was entranced from the moment the magician walked onto the stage. More professional than she’d expected, the performance contained a few tricks that simply awed her. Trying to figure out how the magician had managed them, she thought back to that evening, months before, when she’d told Craig that she believed in fairy godmothers and magic. Chuckling to herself, she gave up logic and simply enjoyed the show.
As they exited the theatre Hannah looked up in time to see the moon slither out from behind a cloud.
“Let’s take a walk on the beach,” she suggested, turning to her daughter.
Catharine shook her head and stroked an affectionate hand over her son's tousled hair. “I’m going to go back to the suite and put Jamie to bed. I’m a little tired myself. You should go, though, Mom.”
“Walk a moonlit beach alone?”
“Why not? Aren’t you the one who said we should rack up as many new experiences as possible while we’re here?”
Hannah had said that, just before they’d landed at the airport that very day. At the time, she’d been thinking of Catharine. Her beautiful daughter had too much work and worry, and not enough fun in her life. Her biggest hope for this trip was for Catharine to have an adventure of some sort. So although walking along the beach in the evening alone wasn’t what she’d had in mind, she knew she had to take this opportunity. And strangely, the idea suddenly held tremendous appeal. “All right, I will. And set the standard for this vacation. The Jones women, boldly going where they have never gone before.”
“Why do I get the feeling I just set myself up?”
Hannah laughed, and then hugged her daughter and her grandson. “I have no idea, sweetheart. I won’t be long.”
“Take your time, Mom. I didn’t catch a nap with the two of you this afternoon. Jet lag has caught up with me and I’m beat. I’ll probably go right to bed. I want to be fresh for the morning. Jamie and I are going on the excursion with the resort’s Children’s Club.”
Hannah watched until they turned the corner out of sight, and then headed toward the beach. Giselle, the maid assigned exclusively to their suite for the next two weeks, had been a non-stop font of information as she’d arrived to “assist the ladies” in preparing for dinner. She had assured Hannah that as security was a top priority at the resort, she’d be perfectly safe walking along the shore of the Mediterranean even at night.
Softly glowing lights lined the path to the beach. At the edge of the stone walkway, Hannah paused for a moment to take off her shoes, reveling in the sensation of sand beneath her feet.
The beach still held plenty of warmth from the day’s sun. The rhythmic sound of waves gently lapping the shore lulled her into relaxation. Looking to her right, she could see the shoreline curve around a lighthouse at the point to warn the ships at sea that they approached land. To her left, the shore curved in less of an arc, and she could see the city lights of Cardinia, the capital of Boisdemer, twinkling against the black of sky and water.
Impulsively, she dropped her shoes and raised her arms high above her head, spinning in a slow circle of delight. Imagine me, here in the middle of the playground of the rich and famous! She’d never thought to see the Mediterranean, never imagined to have a moment like this.
A tingling awareness kissed her flesh, and Hannah knew in that instant, she was no longer alone. Movement in her peripheral vision had her turning her head slightly to the left. Just enough light from the stars and the resort shone in the night for her to see that the man slowly approaching was the same one who�
��d captivated her earlier. Her heart sped up and butterflies fluttered within her. She nearly, nearly turned and walked away. And then some sense of something—a shimmering essence that felt like rose petals—trickled over her, bolstering her courage. Inhaling deeply, she waited to see what would happen next.
* * * *
“A lovely evening, isn’t it?” Alex hoped the vision before him didn’t wince at what, to his ears, sounded like a horrible cliché. He would never know what had prompted him to come down to the beach, when he’d been intent on returning to his suite. Grateful now that when the sudden urge came he gave in to it, for he’d no sooner reached the end of the path, he saw her.
A glorious sight, this woman—arms outstretched, face turned up to the breeze and the moon—reminded him of a goddess come to claim her realm. Moonlight sparkled on hair that could have been spun gold. Enchanted, he nearly turned away.
He had turned away from her as he’d been entering the dining room this evening. Immediately regretting that act, he’d looked back to smile at her, perhaps offer some mundane words of greeting, but she had gone. He was supposed to be an ordinary man on vacation. He doubted that an ordinary man, intrigued, would turn away when given such a wondrous second chance.
“It’s wonderful. I almost didn’t come down to the water,” the woman said. “It seemed a strange thing to do alone. But I’m so glad I did. A perfect way to end my first day here.”
“Ah, so you have only arrived today, as well. From America?”
“Close. I’m Canadian.”
“And your husband? He has retired for the evening?” Alex hadn’t seen a man with her, earlier. But that didn’t mean anything.