“Your brother’s in love.”
“I know. He’s so madly in love with you, I’m euphoric. So are my parents. None of us thought it would or could happen. When he asked me to meet him at the plane, I knew he’d reached the darkest point in his life and needed me. I’m afraid that’s why I fell apart the moment I saw him. I was so upset for him, I didn’t realize you were standing nearby.”
“He’s a better actor than my mother ever was.”
Alex waited for those words to sink in before she continued.
“There’s a commoner he’s been in love with for a long time. I don’t know her name. We don’t discuss her. I have no idea if she’s Castelmarian, French, Italian, British, Australian or American, or from somewhere else entirely for that matter. I’m presuming they spend their time together whenever he leaves the country to go on those six-week business trips.”
Regina stayed true to her word. She didn’t make a sound, but suddenly her lovely face was all brown eyes.
“If she is one of your countrywomen, then the heightened security would explain why he hasn’t tried to be with her since our arrival. However, I’m digressing from the main point which is this—your brother and I are getting married to solve two problems that appeared insoluble to us both until we met. Love doesn’t come into it and never did.”
Alex waited for lightning to strike her dead. When it didn’t, she unloaded on poor Regina who sat there for the next five minutes looking shell-shocked. “So now you understand everything.”
The words had scarcely left her mouth when the maid knocked and brought in a tray. After thanking her and seeing her to the door, Alex walked back to Regina.
“What I need you to do is go to him in private and tell him that you know the truth. Convince him I want to help him so he can be with her before the wedding. She needs an explanation.
“He’ll be furious with me, but I don’t care. His happiness and safety are more important to me than anything else in this world.” Her voice trembled. “I know you feel the same way. On the plane I witnessed that love.”
Regina’s eyes filled, but she continued to remain silent.
“I have a plan.” One that had been burning up Alex’s mind during the motorcycle ride to Eze. The scare after they’d been shopping for a picnic had set the seal on it. “Tell Lucca it will enable him to be with her right away without worrying about anyone’s safety.
“When he asks why I didn’t talk to him about this myself, tell him I didn’t think he would take me seriously. But I knew he’d listen to you because he loves and trusts you, Regina. We both need your support if this is going to work.”
Alex took another fortifying breath. “You, above all people, know how much he’s suffered over the years knowing he would have to marry someone he didn’t love. It shouldn’t have to happen to anyone. My mother went in and out of six marriages. None of them worked, and her life was a ruin.
“I don’t want that for Lucca. He’s the most unselfish, wonderful man in the world and deserves every happiness. With your backing we can help make his life bearable. Will you do it?” she implored.
Regina’s solemn eyes stared at her for the longest time. “How could I not? What’s your plan?”
Lucca bade the head of security good-night. It was close to midnight. Much as he wanted to talk to Alexandra, he would have to wait until tomorrow. She’d be asleep by now. Though he was exhausted, it was the emotional kind. He was positive he wouldn’t be able to sleep yet and opted to go for a swim in the pool in front of the palace.
He slipped out the south entrance into the warm night air and ambled down the steps. After leaving his T-shirt and jeans in a pile, he removed his socks and boots. For the sake of propriety because he was never solely alone, he kept on his boxers and dove into the tepid water.
On his tenth lap he heard a splash. Was it Alexandra?
His heart practically leaped out of his chest until he realized it was his sister doing the breaststroke toward him, leaving him fiercely disappointed.
Lucca’s sister was a champion swimmer. Still, he couldn’t help but wonder what had brought her out here this time of night.
“Ao, piccina.”
“Ciao, fratello mio. I’ve been waiting to talk to you. This is the perfect spot.” They both treaded water.
“You sound serious tonight.”
“I am.”
Some nuance in her voice convinced him. “Did the parents send you?”
“No.”
“I give up. What’s on your mind?”
“Alexandra has told me everything.”
“Everything covers a lot of territory,” he teased, not liking the direction this conversation had taken.
“Please let me talk until I’m finished. This time I won’t let you put me off because you’re uncomfortable.”
He tossed his head back to stop the water from dripping in his eyes. “Is that what I do?”
“When it gets too personal, yes, it’s exactly what you do. Like you’re doing right now.”
“Consider me suitably chastened.”
“Lucca … I know the real reason why Alexandra is going to marry you. While you fund her tuition for medical school, she’ll play the loving fiancée to get you off the hook. She told me all about the fake diamonds and her mother’s debts. I understand she plans to pay them off by earning the money. It does her great credit.”
“I agree.”
“What I don’t understand is why you told her you were in love with someone else when we both know it’s not true?”
“That’s my business.”
“Not any longer, but I’m beginning to understand why she asked for my help. You can be forbidding over the things you hold most dear. Did you know she has an elaborate plan to help you and your supposed lover spend some time together before the wedding without putting you at risk? I think it’s the most selfless thing I ever heard of.”
“Go on.” He couldn’t wait to hear the rest. Alexandra’s mind fascinated him.
“She has to fly to Los Angeles to finish closing up her apartment.”
A tight band constricted his breathing. “How is that supposed to aid me?” It seemed his fiancée had conveniently left Manny out of the conversation with his sister.
No way was Lucca going to let her go near him, not since his security people had found out the agent had a lot more to do with her mother’s bankruptcy than anyone had let on. He’d been taking huge cuts out of her income for years and figured he could do the same with Alexandra. Lucca would protect her from that barracuda at all costs.
“She’ll be coming right back, Lucca. When she returns to Castelmare, she intends to bring a friend with her for the upcoming wedding. That friend will be your fictional lover.”
“For once I have to confess I’m speechless.”
“You haven’t heard anything yet! Alexandra’s done makeup for years and says that if you’re worried about anyone recognizing your girlfriend, she can change her looks enough so that no one could identify her. I’d say it was a master plan. She even thinks they’ll stay in the blue suite together where you can have access to her.”
Santo Cielo!
Only Alexandra could have concocted anything so diabolically clever and insane at the same time. Today’s assassination attempt had brought out that deep well of compassion inside her. In the process she’d inveigled his tender-hearted sister, who’d worried over his secret sadness for too many years.
He moved to the edge of the pool and levered himself up onto the deck. Regina climbed out behind him. “You can’t let this lie go on any longer. She deserves the truth. Why have you allowed her to go on believing something so outrageous?”
“I have my reasons.” Lucca was still waiting for Sofia to return his call and release him from the promise he’d made to keep her plans a secret. The newscast announcing his forthcoming marriage to Alexandra had already devastated Sofia’s parents. There’d been phone calls to his parents. The sooner Sofia explained
everything to her parents, the sooner the pain, for everyone, could end.
“Don’t take too long to be honest with her. She wants to leave for Los Angeles right away.”
He pulled on his jeans. After he’d gathered his other clothes, they returned to the palace. When they reached the second floor, he said, “I’ll talk to her tomorrow afternoon.”
“Why don’t you tell her first thing in the morning?”
“Because Papa has to go into the hospital for blood work and Mama wants me there. I’ll be back in time to give Alexandra another Italian lesson.”
“What do you mean another?”
“Until Professor Emilio returns, I’ve decided to take a break from my work schedule to give her some of my time each afternoon.”
In the privacy of the schoolroom he would tell her about Manny, who’d used her mother mercilessly. Lucca would do anything to protect her. He hoped this new information would help her develop a more-positive view of her parent.
Regina eyed him speculatively. “Are you sure you want to do that?”
“You don’t approve?”
“Of course, but cut her a little slack. Not everyone is the scary perfectionist you are. I ought to know. Buonanotte.”
Alex left for the schoolroom in a nervous state. She thought by now she would have heard from Lucca. A phone call. Anything. But he’d been out of touch. So had Regina, who, Alex had found out the day before, volunteered at an animal shelter run by her family.
The local news channel had been showing repeated clips of the smashed motorcycle followed by photos of the men arrested. She could follow bits and pieces of the Italian coverage because she’d been part of the story.
Though there were no clips of her and Lucca on his sport bike, they replayed segments from the broadcast showing him kissing the back of her hand. The television audience could be forgiven for thinking the crown prince was truly in love.
Had his lover seen the coverage? How could she stand to know he might have been killed yesterday? How could she bear to see him with Alex?
“Buon pomeriggio, Alexandra.”
Her heart did a kick. “Buon pomeriggio, Lucca.”
She didn’t quite know what to expect this afternoon. If Regina had found an opportunity to talk to him already, then there was no telling how angry he was that his sister had learned the truth behind their engagement. Even if he adored Regina, he would consider that Alex had broken a sacred trust.
Right now she couldn’t gauge his frame of mind. Being a royal he’d learned how to present a facade that gave nothing away.
Today he’d dispensed with a suit in favor of chinos and a dark green pullover. He always smelled wonderful. Afraid to be caught staring, she quickly averted her eyes and opened up her notebook to the exercises she’d written out.
He walked by her desk and reached for it. His arm brushed against her shoulder, reminding her of the way he’d made her feel when he’d crushed her against his hard body yesterday. She was a fool to expect a repeat performance, but the sensual part of her nature ached to experience those sensations again.
Until Lucca had aroused her passion, she’d thought she was one of those women who couldn’t get worked up over a man, probably because of her mother’s pattern of going from one unsatisfying relationship to another. Yet all he’d had to do was pluck her from the Grigory royal tree—yes, plucked—and after he’d taken one bite, she’d practically begged to be devoured whole.
“No mistakes,” he muttered. “Molto bene. Now let’s see how you do with your second verb. The most important one after ‘to be,’” he added in a tone as smooth as satin.
“To eat?” she quipped, knowing full well he’d meant something else.
“Mangiare comes third.” He sat on the corner of the teacher’s desk, way too close to her. “Repeat after me.” His dark eyes impaled her. “Io amo.”
Alex struggled to maintain her composure. “Io amo.” I love you, her heart whispered. Could he hear it?
“Again.”
She looked down at her book, unable to sustain his glance. “Io amo.”
“Perfetto,” he declared. “Tu ami.”
The lesson continued until she’d gone through all the conjugations of amare.
“Eccellente. You’ve mastered the present tense of the three verbs necessary for happiness.”
“Only three?”
He crossed his powerful legs at the ankles. “To be alive, to love, to eat—What else is required?”
Maybe this was his way of letting her know Regina had talked to him. Alex had to risk finding out.
“For everyone else, nothing more. For the king, an added subtlety—to be able to love the woman he wants?” she challenged, meeting his gaze head-on.
His expression remained inscrutable. “So you think we need to add a fourth verb to the list of life’s necessities?” The air thickened with tension.
“Where the king is concerned, yes.”
A lengthy silence ensued. “As long as you felt compelled to tell Regina the truth, why didn’t you reveal all of it?”
The question he shot at her was one she wasn’t prepared for. Her gentle frown gave her a piquant look. “What do you mean?”
Lucca stood up. “What about Manny and his film offer? I told you before I didn’t want you to do it, but I’m afraid now it’s out of the question. I had him investigated. He not only exploited your mother, he milked her out of millions of dollars and should be brought up on criminal charges.”
She lowered her head. “I think I already figured that out. My mother must have been the perfect pawn. This morning I phoned him and told him I wasn’t interested in his offer.”
Lucca’s solid body froze in place. “And he accepted it, just like that?”
“He had no choice. I told him I’m getting married and want as far away from Hollywood as possible for the rest of my life.”
Grazie a Dio.
She chewed on her lower lip. “I hope you don’t mind that I won’t be able to pay you back for my schooling for a long time.”
He moved closer to her. “We’ve already had that discussion. Let me pay the twelve million dollars and be done with it.”
“No, Lucca. We made a pact.”
He hadn’t meant to put more pressure on her. “So we did. What I want to know is why you told Regina you were flying to Los Angeles. We’ve already dealt with your apartment and personal things.”
Her gaze collided with his. “Didn’t she tell you about my plan to get you and your lover together?”
His hands gripped her shoulders. For a minute Lucca had forgotten. The knowledge that she’d turned Manny down flat had driven everything else from his mind.
“As my sister said, it was a selfless thought on your part, Alexandra, but it would never have worked.”
“You’re right,” she muttered. “I should have realized it would never have worked. I’ve been thinking what I could do to help the two of you, but sneaking her into the palace under false pretenses is pretty absurd.
“The thing is, yesterday it hit me hard that you’re a prisoner in so many dreadful ways. How can you possibly be with her when your every move is under surveillance? I … I thought I could help,” she stammered.
Lucca needed to be released from his promise to Sofia ASAP. He relinquished his hold on her before he lost complete control. “You’ll never know what your concern means to me, Alexandra. Give me a little more time and I’ll tell you all about her.”
She nodded. “Please forgive me for involving Regina. The poor thing. I was terrible to her,” she admitted.
He eyed her speculatively. “In what way?”
“I asked her to listen to me and not interrupt because I knew she would fight me. Regina loves you so much, she did exactly as I said. I’ve never met a sweeter person. She knew it was futile to go to you, but she did it for me.”
“My sister cares a great deal for you.”
She moistened her lips anxiously. “But you’re angry wit
h me for telling her.”
“You’re wrong, Alexandra. I’ve taken you away from everything familiar. When I swore you to secrecy, I hadn’t considered how much you would need a friend to confide in.”
She peeked at him from beneath her lashes. “Who is it you confide in?”
Before Alexandra had come into his life, he and Sofia had used each other to commiserate, but those days were over. “I have you now.”
“That places a grave responsibility on me,” she whispered.
He studied her for a moment. “When I asked you to marry me, you didn’t realize what you were getting into. I’m afraid I didn’t play fair.”
Alex brushed an errant curl from her forehead. “You’ve been more than fair. Thank you for finding out about Manny. I’ve been naive about so many things, but I’m learning.”
“Aren’t we all,” he whispered. “Can I hope you don’t hate me too much?”
“That question doesn’t deserve an answer.” Alex let out a tormented sigh. “I haven’t even asked about your parents. How’s your father? When I watched the news this morning, all I could think of was his reaction.”
He rubbed the back of his bronzed neck absently. “Now that I’ve promised him there’ll be no unnecessary trips outside the palace until the honeymoon, he was in surprisingly good spirits after his blood test this morning and hasn’t had to rely on his oxygen today.”
“I’m glad he’s doing that well.” She hugged her arms to her chest. “I guess we have to take a honeymoon.”
He nodded. “Where would you like to go, and I’ll get my security people working on it.”
Her pulse quickened. “I haven’t traveled much, so anything would sound exciting. Is there some place you’ve never been you’d like to visit?”
“Dozens of them.”
Every once in a while she heard that yearning in his voice to disappear to the other side of the planet and be accountable to no one.
“What would be the easiest as far as security’s concerned?”
“The yacht.”
“I’ve never been on one.”
“It’s ideal if you’re looking for relaxation.”
She cast him a worried glance. “Would that appeal to you?”
Diamonds Are Forever: The Royal Marriage ArrangementThe Diamond BrideThe Diamond Dad Page 13
