Dottie could tell Zoe felt shy around Mark Varney. She stuck close to her daddy at the shallow end of the pool.
They’d just returned home from the preschool. Mark was a cute, dark blond first grader who sported a marine haircut and was a good little swimmer already. He didn’t appear to be nervous as he floated on an inner tube at the deep end, kicking his strong legs. Dottie sat on the edge by him.
“My mom told me she talks funny. How come?” he said quietly.
“Sometimes a child can’t make sounds come out the way they want. But I’m working on them with her. One day she’ll sound like you, but for now I’m hoping to get your help.”
He blinked. “How? She’s a princess.”
She looked at his boyish face with its smattering of freckles. “Forget about that. She’s a girl. Just be friends with her. In a way, you can be her best teacher.”
His sunny blue eyes widened. “I can?”
“Yes. You’re older and you’re an American who speaks English very well. If you’ll play with her, she’ll listen to you when you talk and she’ll try to sound like you. You’re a guy, and guys like to dare each other, right?”
He grinned. “Yeah.”
“Well, start daring her. You know. Tell her you bet she can’t say bat.”
“Bat?” He laughed.
“She’s working on her B‘s and T‘s. Make a game out of it. Tell her that if she can say bat right, you’ll show her your MP3 player. I saw you playing with it in the limo on the drive to the palace.”
“Don’t tell my dad. I’m not supposed to take it to school.”
She studied him for a minute. “If he finds out, I’ll tell him you’re using it to help Zoe. She’s never seen one of those. There’s an application on it that makes those animal sounds.”
“Oh, yeah—”
“It’ll fascinate her.”
“Cool.”
“See if you can get her to say cool, too.”
“Okay. This is fun.”
Dottie was glad he thought so. After trying to learn Greek at school and home, it had to be a big release for him to speak English. “Let’s go have a war with her and her daddy.” She took off her beach coat and slipped into the water. “You get on the whale. I’ll push you over to them and we’ll start splashing.”
“Won’t the prince get mad?”
“Yes.” Dottie smiled. “Real mad.”
His face lit up and they took off.
Hopefully Alex would get mad enough to forget his own problems for a little while. She’d suffered for him and his family all night. No matter her misgivings about spending full days with Zoe until the coronation, she couldn’t have turned Alex down last night. The look in his expression had been a study in anguish, aging him.
Once they reached their destination, the happy shrieks coming out of Zoe were just the thing to get their war started. For a good ten minutes they battled as if their lives depended on it. The best sound of all was Alex’s full-bodied laughter. After knowing how deeply he’d been affected by his family’s problems, Dottie hadn’t expected to hear it again.
When she came up for air after Alex’s last powerful dunk, his eyes were leveled on her features. “You’ve been holding out on me. All this time I thought maybe you couldn’t swim well. I was going to offer to teach you, but I was afraid you’d think I was a lecherous old man wanting to get my hands on you. After I showed up in your cabin on the yacht, now you know it’s true.”
She was thankful for the water that cooled her instantly hot cheeks. In the periphery she noticed Mark pushing Zoe around on the whale. He was talking a blue streak and had captured her full attention. The ice had been broken and they were oblivious to everyone else. Dottie couldn’t have been more pleased.
Alex followed her gaze. “Your experiment is working. She’s so excited by his attention, she hasn’t once called for either of us.”
“I’ve asked him to help her. He’s a darling boy.” In the next few minutes she told Alex about their conversation. “If all goes well today, how would you feel about Mark coming home with us from school on Friday?”
“I’m open to anything that will help her speech improve and make her happy.”
“Mark seems to be doing both. I’ve learned he’s been unhappy, so I was thinking maybe he could even come to Aurum with us on Saturday. Naturally you’d have to talk to his parents. If they’re willing, maybe he could make a visit to the island next week. You know, after his morning class at preschool. Zoe would have something exciting to look forward to and I know it would be good for him, too.”
His eyes glinted with an emotion she couldn’t read. “I can see where you’re going with this. If you think his being there will prevent her attachment to you from growing deeper, you couldn’t be more wrong. But as a plan to entertain them and help her, I like the idea.”
“Honestly?”
He ran suntanned hands through his wet black hair. Adonis couldn’t possibly have been as attractive. “I wouldn’t have said so otherwise.”
She expelled the breath she’d been holding. “Thank you. I was thinking Zoe and I could ride the ferry to Hellenica and meet him at the dock after he’s out of class. He could ride back with us and we could eat lunch on board. Mark can help her pronounce the names of foods, and she can teach him some more Greek words.”
Alex nodded. “I’ll fly him back with me in the helicopter in the evening.”
“You’d be willing to do that?”
He frowned. “By now I thought it was clear to you I’d do anything to help my daughter. In order to ensure that you stay with her until her uncle Stasi has been proclaimed king, I’ve even gone so far as to promise I won’t touch you again.”
She knew that and already felt the cost of it.
If he had any comprehension of how hard this was for her, too c They had no future together, but that didn’t mean she found it easy to keep her distance. She’d come alive in his arms. Because she was unable to assuage these yearnings, the pleasure had turned on her so she was in continual pain. This was the precise reason she didn’t want to have feelings for any man, not ever again, but it was far too late for that.
“Your Highness?”
Hector’s voice intruded, producing a grimace from Alex. Dottie hadn’t realized he’d come out to the pool. It seemed like every time she found herself in a private conversation with Alex, some force was afoot that kept wedging them further apart, At this point she was a mass of contradictions. Her head told her the interruption was for the best, but her heart—oh, her heart. It hammered mercilessly.
“King Alexandre-Philippe has arrived from Valleder and your presence is requested in the queen’s drawing room. The ministers have been assembled.”
Hearing that news, Alex’s face became an inscrutable mask. “Thank you, Hector. Tell her I’ll be there shortly.”
His gaze shot to Dottie’s. “I’m afraid this will be a long night. I’d better slip away now while Zoe’s having fun.”
“I think that’s a good idea. We’ll walk Mark out to his parents’ car before dinner. She can eat with me. Later I’ll take her to her bedroom and put her down.”
“You couldn’t have any comprehension of what it means to me to know you’re taking care of my daughter. Sofia will be there to help. I’ll try to get away long enough to kiss her good-night, but I can’t promise.”
“I understand.”
“If I don’t make it, I’ll see you at nine in the morning. After I’ve talked to Mark’s parents, we’ll see if he wants to join us on Saturday. I thought we’d take the cruiser to Aurum. Sofia will know what to pack for Zoe.”
“We’ll be ready.”
She heard his sharp intake of breath. “Zoe trusts you and loves being with you. Under the circumstances, it’s an enormous relief to me.”
“I’m glad. As for me, she’s a joy to be with, Your Highness.” She had to keep calling him by his title to remind herself of the g
reat gulf between them no ordinary human could bridge. If she were a princess c
But she wasn’t! And if she’d been born a royal, he would have run in the other direction.
For him, any attraction to her stemmed from forbidden fruit. She was a commoner. It was the nature of a man or woman to desire what they couldn’t or shouldn’t have. In that regard they were both cursed!
Fathoms deep in turmoil, she noticed his eyes lingering on the curve of her mouth for a moment. She glimpsed banked fires in those incredibly dark recesses. He was remembering those moments on the yacht, too. Dottie could feel it and the look he was giving her ignited her senses to a feverish pitch.
With effortless male agility he suddenly levered himself from the pool and disappeared inside the palace. When he was gone, the loss she felt was staggering.
CHAPTER EIGHT
“HI, MARK!”
“Hi!”
He got out of his father’s limo and hurried along the dock to get in the cruiser. Zoe’s brown eyes lit up when she saw him. The two fathers spoke for a minute longer before Alex joined them and made sure everyone put on a life preserver.
The prince piloted the boat himself and they took off. Excitement suffused Dottie, crowding out any misgivings for the moment. She found the day was too wonderful. It seemed the children did, too. Both wore a perpetual smile on their animated faces. Zoe pointed out more fish and birds as they drew closer to their destination. While they were communicating, Alex darted Dottie an amused glance.
She wondered if he was thinking what she’d been thinking. What if his daughter and Mark were to share a friendship that took them through childhood to the teenage years? What if c But she forced her mind to turn off and think only happy thoughts. The island of Aurum was coming up fast. She’d concentrate on it.
Somehow she’d assumed it shared many of the characteristics of Hellenica, but the mountains were higher and woodier. As they pulled up to the royal dock, Dottie had to admit her adrenaline had been surging in anticipation of seeing where they lived. When Alex talked about Aurum, she noticed his voice dropped to a deeper level because he loved it here.
He’d explained that the mountainous part of the island where the palace was located had been walled off from the public. This had been his private residence from the age of eighteen and would continue to be for as long as he retained the title of Duke of Aurum. She’d learned it had its own game preserve, a wildlife sanctuary, a bird refuge and a stable.
Somehow she’d expected this palace to resemble the white Cycladic style of that on Hellenica. Nothing could have been further from the truth. Through the heavy foliage she glimpsed a small gem of Moorish architecture in the form of a square, all on one level.
“Oh!” she cried out in instant delight the second she saw it from the open limo window.
Alex heard her. “This area of the Aegean has known many civilizations. If you’ll notice, the other palace leaves the stairs and patios open. Everything tumbles to the sea. You’ll see the reverse is true here. The Moors liked their treasures hidden within the walls.”
“Whoa!” Mark exclaimed. His eyes widened in amazement. He’d stopped talking to Zoe. Whoa was the perfect word, all right.
Dottie marveled over the exterior, a weathered yellow and pale orange combination of seamless blocks delineated by stylized horizontal stripes, exquisite in detail. The limo passed a woman who looked about fifty standing at the arched entry into a courtyard laid out in ancient tiles surrounding a pool and an exquisite garden. At its center stood a latticed gazebo. This was the garden Alex had referred to last week.
As he helped them from the car, a peacock peered from behind some fronds and unexpectedly opened its plumage. The whirring sound startled Dottie and Mark, but Zoe only laughed. It walked slowly, displaying its glorious fan.
“Whoa,” their guest said again, incredulous over what he was seeing. It was hard to believe.
Dottie eyed Alex. “We’re definitely going to have to work on the P sound.”
One corner of his mouth curved upward. He ran a hand over his chest covered by a cream-colored polo shirt. “Don’t look now,” he said quietly, “but there’s a partridge in the peach tree behind you.”
Slowly she turned around, thinking he was teasing her while he made the P sounds. But he’d told the truth!
Transfixed, she shook her head, examining everything in sight. A profusion of pink and orange flowers grew against the gazebo. She walked through the scrolling pathway toward it. Inside she discovered a lacy looking set of chairs and a table inlaid with mother-of-pearl. Dottie felt as if she’d just walked inside the pages of a rare first-edition history book of the Ottoman empire. This couldn’t possibly be real.
Alex must have understood what she was feeling because he flashed her a white smile. But this one was different because it was carefree. For a brief moment she’d been given a glimpse of what he might have looked like years ago, before he’d had a true understanding that he was Prince Alexius Constantinides with obligations and serious responsibilities he would have to shoulder for the rest of his life.
There was a sweetness in his expression, the same sweetness she saw in Zoe when she was really happy about something, like right now. But the moment was bittersweet for Dottie when she thought of the pain waiting for him back on Hellenica. A myriad of emotions tightened her chest because her pain was mixed up in there, too.
“Do you want to see my room?” Zoe asked Mark.
“I want to follow the peacock first.”
“Okay.” She tagged along with her new friend, still managing to carry Baby Betty in her hands.
Alex spread his strong arms. “Guys and girls. Human nature doesn’t change.” Dottie laughed gently, sharing this electric moment with him.
Porticos with bougainvillea and passion flowers joined one section of the palace to the other. The al-coved rooms were hidden behind. Zoe’s was a dream of Moorish tiles and unique pieces of furniture with gold leaf carved years ago by a master palace craftsman of that earlier civilization.
A silky, pale pink fabric formed the canopy and covering of her bed. Near a tall hutch filled with her treasures stood an exquisite pink rose tree. When Dottie looked all the way up, she gasped at the sheer beauty of the carved ceiling with hand-painted roses and birds.
Alex had been watching her reaction. “Your room is next door. Would you like to see it?”
Speechless, she nodded and followed him through an alcove to another masterpiece of design similar to Zoe’s except for the color scheme. “Whoever painted the cornflowers in this room must have had your eyes in mind, Dottie. They grow wild on the hillsides. You’ll see them when you and Zoe go hiking or horseback riding.”
She was spellbound. Her eyes fell to the bed canopied with blue silk. “Was this the room you and your wife used? It’s breathtaking.”
In a flash his facial muscles tensed up. “Teresa never lived here with me. Like my grandmother, she preferred the palace on Hellenica. She thought this place too exotic and isolated, the mountains too savage. This room was used during my mother’s time for guests. Since Teresa’s death, Zoe’s string of nannies have lived in here.”
Dottie couldn’t help but speculate on how much time he and his wife must have spent apart—that is, when they didn’t have to perform certain civic duties together. Separation went on in unhappy marriages all over the planet, but this was different. He’d been born into a family where duty dictated his choice of bride. Even cocooned in this kind of luxury only a few people would ever know, the onlooker could expect such an arrangement to fail.
As Dottie’s aunt had often told her, “You’re a romantic, Dottie. For that reason you can be hurt the worst. Why set yourself up, honey?” Good question. Dottie’s heart ached for Alex and Stasio, for Teresa and Beatriz, for Genevieve, for every royal who had a role and couldn’t deviate from it.
“My apartment is through the next alcove. The last section houses two more g
uest rooms plus the kitchen and dining room. There’s a den where I do my work. It has television and a computer. All of it is at your disposal for the time you’re here.”
“I’ve never seen anything so unusual and beautiful.”
“Those are my sentiments, too. You saw Inez when we drove in. She and her husband, Ari, head the staff here. There’s the gamekeeper, of course, and Thomas who runs the stable. All you have to do is pick up the phone and Inez will direct one of the maids to help you.”
“Thank you. I didn’t expect to find paradise when I came to Hellenica. I don’t think your brother believed me when I told him it really does exists here.”
“Paradise implies marital bliss. You’ll have to forgive him for being cynical over your naïveté.”
Alex’s comment bordered on mockery, revealing emotions too raw for him to hide. She shuddered and turned away, not wanting to see the bleakness she often saw in his eyes when he didn’t know she was looking.
“I’d better go check on Zoe.” She hurried through to the other bedroom, but there was still no sign of her.
Alex came up behind Dottie, close enough for her to feel the warmth of his breath on her neck. “I’ll give you one guess where she’s gone.”
“Well, Mark is pretty cute. She doesn’t know she’s playing with fire yet.” The words came out too fast for her to stop them.
“That’s true,” Alex said in a gravelly voice before she was spun around and crushed against him. “But I do, and right now I don’t give a damn. I want you so badly I’m shaking.” He put her hand on his chest. “Feel that thundering? It’s my heart. That’s what you do to me. I know I promised not to touch you, but I’m not strong enough to keep it. You’re going to have to give me help.”
The moment had caught her unaware. He had a slumberous look in his eyes. His mouth was too close. She couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe. Dottie tried to remove her hand, but found her limbs had grown weak with longings that had taken over.
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