“It’s very beautiful, but how much is it?” I ask.
It is as if I said I was planning to kill someone. Both shop assistants start with surprise and Cassandra gives me a strange look. “We never talk about prices here. The bills are sent directly to the accounting office.”
“But my dress is going to be paid for by Dante. I can’t make him pay for a dress as expensive as I know this must be.”
Cassandra’s smooth brow furrows. “Well, he knew I was bringing you here and he was more than happy with it.”
“I can’t buy this, Cassandra. I just don’t feel comfortable spending this kind of money. Especially since it is not even mine.”
“Shall I call Dante?”
I shake my head violently. “No. Of course not.”
Her head tilts as she stares at me curiously. “Why not?”
“Because then he will think I want him to buy the dress.”
“Oh, don’t be such a goose. This is not about you. If you are not dressed in the style and manner that is expected of Dante’s fiancée you will embarrass the whole family. People will think you are some kind of ugly duckling that we are mistreating.”
I get what she is saying, I don’t want to let Dante down, but at the same time … I just can’t spend that kind of money on a dress.
With a sigh she takes her phone out of her bag and dials out a number. She speaks rapidly into it in Avantian. She ends the call and smiles at me. “I told you it would be fine. Dante told me to spare no expense.” She turns to the two women watching us with round eyes. “Now we need a purse and shoes to match.”
The assistants bring purses with no price tags on them. I stare at them in confusion. I can still hear Dante’s aunt saying, ‘they’re destroying the country so that they can buy bigger yachts and more expensive watches and clothes for their wives.’ Cassandra picks up a gorgeous one with a pearl clasp.
“You like this? It will be perfect with your dress.”
“Yes, it’s gorgeous.”
“Then let’s get it. Now shoes.” She turns briskly to the assistant. “Please hurry. We don’t have much time.”
I choose a pair of lovely silk shoes with crystal heels. They come in a silver box with black satin lining.
“If you see anything else you especially like,” Cassandra says with a smile, “don’t hesitate.”
“No, that is fine,” I say quickly. I have never shopped like this before. It is disconcerting to not know how much the items I am buying cost. I think I am actually horrified by the idea.
Cassandra laughs, then leans close to me. “What is that expression in English?” she whispers. “It’s just a drop in the bucket. There is far more where this came from.”
I turn to face her, surprised by the naked greed in her voice.
“You should see the expression on your face,” she teases.
“I’m not from a rich family so I’m just not used to spending money like this.”
She laughs gaily. “Trust me, you’ll take to it like a duck to water. Right. Let’s go. We do have to be back in time for the hair stylists.”
I nod. “I’d almost forgotten.”
“Can’t forget something like that,” she says. “After all we want to look our very best.”
“Yes, of course,” I murmur softly.
She is fun to be with and I’m grateful to her for helping me find a dress that will be considered suitable for Dante’s fiancée to wear to a palace ball, but something about her makes me feel uncomfortable.
I am glad that Dante and I will not be living at the palace.
Chapter 33
Dante
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Oo_73SlOwk
A quiet angel on the sun
(Un Angelo Disteso Al Sole)
She’s always accused me of being a player, and yeah, I was, the King of Seduction himself. All the women were just about pleasure. With her it’s so different. This deep longing for the feel of her skin, her taste, her smile.
I’d planned to tell her how I really feel about her, but when I see her standing in her ball gown it feels like I’ve been sucker-punched. The air leaves me in a gasp. There are no words in my head or on my tongue. Surely this creature can’t be a flesh and blood woman. Only an angel could shine like this.
Her brow knits. “Is something wrong?”
I shake my head. Still in a daze.
“I … I … honestly didn’t want you to buy this dress for me. I … I … could tell it was too expensive, but Cassandra said that if I didn’t wear something like this … it would reflect … um … badly on your family so … I really didn’t have a choice. I’m sorry,” she stammers.
I stride up to her and put my fingers over her mouth. “I would have gladly paid anything to see you in this dress.”
“Oh, do you like it?”
“Fuck the dress. You look incredible.”
She blushes. “Thank you. You look pretty hot yourself.”
I could have told her then, but there is a noise behind us. I turn and Viggo is standing behind me holding two velvet boxes.
“Her Majesty wanted Miss Winchester to wear these pieces of jewelry to the party,” he says with a slight bow.
I take the boxes from him and open the boxes. To my shock the first one is one of my mother’s necklaces and the matching bracelet. I can still remember her wearing the necklace one night she came into my room to kiss me good night. The memory is still sharp. I even remember her special perfume. When I put my arms around her neck the clasp scratched me.
I examine the clasp, there is still that rough edge on it. I open the other box and it holds a pearl orchid hairpin. I had never seen my mother wearing it, but I know it is hers. Only she would wear sweet little pieces like this.
I look into Rosa’s eyes.
“What’s the matter?”
“These belonged to my mother.”
She gasps and covers her mouth. “I don’t have to wear them, Dante. This dress is already so full of pearls and stones. There is no need for more bling.”
“Rosa, Rosa, Rosa. Turn around.”
She falls silent and looks up at me with wide eyes.
I press the clasp down with my fingernail, so that it does not cut her soft skin, and carefully fit it around her slender neck. I turn her back to face me and sigh with satisfaction. Nothing has ever felt as right as Rosa wearing my mother’s jewelry. Gently, I pin the pearl flower into her hair, and fix the bracelet around her slim wrist.
I take her to a mirror and let her look at herself.
“We make a lovely couple, don't we?” she whispers.
I will tell her tonight when we come back here. I will tell her while we are in bed. Now I am too overwhelmed by her in this dress, by my mother’s jewelry, and by the decision I have taken. A decision that will change the trajectory of both our lives.
Chapter 34
Rosa
By the time Dante and I reach the curtained entrance of the vast ballroom, the floor is already crowded. Everything is picture perfect. The chandeliers are sparkling, an orchestra is playing, all the men are in tuxedos, and the women are in designer gowns and dripping with jewels.
A man in a maroon suit announces us, “Prince Nils Dante De-Beauvouli and his fiancée, Miss Rosa Winchester.”
Everybody in the room turns to look at us as we go down the marble steps. It feels unreal, almost like the way it is in movies. Dante nods to several men, and I try to keep my smile polite and confident as we walk up to where his father and stepmother are standing with Linnus and Cassandra. They are flanked by fawning Court courtiers. Linnea is wearing a blood-red gown that makes her stand out amongst all the other women around her.
We pay our respects to them. For a second Dante’s father stares at me as if he does not recognize me, then he smiles distantly. Linnea’s eyes dip down to my necklace before she smiles serenely at me.
“You look wonderful, my dear.”
“Doesn’t she just,” Cassandra says.
> “Yes, she’s quite the beauty,” Linnus remarks softly.
I feel myself blush.
Dante turns to me. “Shall we?”
“Yes,” I say with relief.
We join the whirlwind of moving feet and flaring skirts. This is the first time Dante has taken me in his arms on the dance floor, but it feels just right. I can tell immediately that he’s an excellent dancer, and easier to follow than anyone I’ve danced with.
“Do you realize everyone is watching us?” I ask sotto voce.
“Imagine them all sitting on toilets.”
I almost grin. “I can’t go around imagining everybody sitting on toilets.”
“I don’t see why not. Most of the time they sound like they’re spewing shit anyway.”
This time I break into a giggle.
As Dante sweeps me around I see the queen and king dancing. Linnea is smiling and so is the king. It is almost impossible to believe they are the same oddly matched couple from last night.
To my surprise, I see Linnus heading toward us. He taps Dante’s shoulder.
“May I?”
Dante steps back, a tight smile on his face. “Of course.”
Linnus takes me in his arms. He’s a good dancer, but there is something about him that makes me feel wary. Unlike Dante who is cocky, but genuine, this man is arrogant and up his own ass. Intuition also tells me he doesn’t like me.
“Enjoying your stay at the palace?” he asks, his eyes full of deception.
“Very much, thank you.”
“Avanti is nice when you don’t have to live here.”
My skin starts to crawl. If we were anywhere else, and he was anyone else but Dante’s younger brother, I would have stopped the dance and walked away. But, I’m the center of attraction and the last thing I need is to make a scene. I smile sweetly. “Since we don’t plan to live here there should be no problem.”
He doesn’t smile back. “Wonderful.”
That is the extent of the conversation as we swirl through the room to a Strauss waltz. As soon as the music stops, Dante is back to claim me.
“You look like you imagined him sitting on a toilet,” he says.
All the tension in my body flows out and I nearly break out in laughter. “You do know your brother is a prick, don’t you?”
“Trust me, it was harder for me to watch him dancing with you than it was for you to dance with him.”
I look into his beautiful eyes. “You’re not jealous?”
“I wanted to knock his stupid head off for touching you.”
“Your brother doesn’t want to sleep with me. He actually doesn’t even like me.”
“Then, you don’t understand human beings at all. My brother would sleep with you in a heartbeat. It would mean he was taking something that belonged to me.”
“Dante, why did you bring me to meet your family when there is no love lost between you and them?”
“Because I want to marry you and I had to follow certain procedures, Rosa. I’m proud of you and I want everyone to know that I have found the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with. But I have to admit, I didn’t expect to walk into this shit storm with my uncle or what is happening here. A lot has changed in the last two years. None of it for the better.”
The music stops and Dante leads me to the sidelines. He snags two champagne flutes and orders a glass of orange juice for me. He hands me one of the glasses.
“To us,” he says lifting his glass.
“To us,” I echo and take a tiny sip.
“If I may be so bold?” a voice asks from our left.
We both turn to see Dante’s father standing a foot away. We were both so engrossed in each other we had not even noticed his arrival.
I hand my glass to Dante. “Of course.”
He smiles faintly. “Let the master show you how it’s done.”
“Ah, yes, but which one of us is the master?” Dante remarks, a strange smile on his face.
“We’ll soon see, won’t we?” the king says, putting one arm around my waist and holding my hand with the other. Maybe he is the master, I decide, after a few steps.
“You certainly know the moves, Your Majesty,” I say.
“I should.” He laughs. “I’ve been practicing for a long, long time.”
“Well, it shows.” Through the corner of my eye I can see the queen. She is talking to someone, but she is keeping a watchful eye on us.
“You will be leaving tomorrow?” he asks.
“Yes.”
“That’s good.”
I look into his eyes as he swirls me around. “Why is it good?”
His steps never falter. “Because a bird’s place is in the sky and the rooftops, not in the burrows the fox has built for its own family.”
I feel goosebumps rise up on my arms. “Is that why you sent your son away to live with his uncle?”
“It seems we understand each other perfectly.”
“Don’t worry. Neither Dante nor I want to live in this palace.”
A strange expression flickers across his face. It is almost like pain. “It would seem my son has chosen wisely.”
After that there is no more to say and we dance in silence. When the music stops, he looks me directly in the eyes and presses a key into my hand. It is warm from his skin. “Here. This is my life’s work. It is the only thing I have done that I am truly proud of. Ask my son to show you.”
“What is it?”
“The South Garden. It’s prettiest in spring when my apple trees look like shadowy claws, but it is still quite something now.”
As he steps back, nods formally, and turns away, I stare after him as Dante comes up to me. “You look quite surprised. What on earth did he say to you?”
“Will you take me to see the South Garden, Dante?”
“The South Garden? No one except my father goes there, and it is locked away at all times. I’ll ask my father for the key tomorrow and show it to you then.”
I open my palm. “Your father gave me the key.”
His eyebrows rise with astonishment. “He did?”
I nod. “He wanted me to ask you to show me around the garden. He said it was the only thing he has done that he is proud of.”
Dante’s head jerks back. “He told you that?”
“Yes. Why are you so surprised?”
“Well, as far as I know, my father never allows anyone to go into his garden. He keeps the only key to it. When I went to see him the other day, he was waiting for me close to the entrance and as soon as he saw me, he came out and we had a drink together in the conservatory.”
“Wow.” I turn around and see his father talking to a man. His posture is stiff and distant as he listens to whatever the man is saying.
“Let’s go see his garden then.” Dante steers me past the dancing couples and out a double door at the end of the ballroom.
The night is perfect, a cool breeze is blowing, and the sky is filled with stars. We walk on a stone-flagged path past the formal gardens. At the edge of the maze Dante lifts some creepers and fits the key into a secret door.
“Oh, my God. How exciting. Your father has a secret garden.”
“Yes, he has always had it. It was actually started by my great-grandmother who lived to be 102. When she died, my grandmother had neither the interest nor the ability, so my father took over. He was sixteen then and he has been tending to this garden all his life. I still remember following him around when I was a child. The sound of spring to me was not pigeons cooing it was the sound of shears. My father’s shears busy in the garden.”
He pushes open the door.
Even before he goes to a metal box and switches on the lights I see how enchanted and fey the garden seems to be. It has a magical quality that I haven’t seen anywhere else. There are midges hanging like pixie dust in the air. The smell of spearmint wafts in the gentle wind, and an owl hoots in the dark like a soul lost in the darkness. Here and there delicate marble statues half-hidden in f
oliage glint under the moonlight.
Once he hits the switch, my jaw drops.
Chapter 35
Rosa
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AfXR-EZG9s8
Touch My Soul
The full splendor is revealed. Within the tall hedges the place is lighted only by fairy lights, which makes it almost seem to be under a spell. As we follow the winding path deeper into that unearthly garden, there are full-throated white flowers, lipstick-pink peonies, and ponds where frog spawn glistens like precious diamonds. There are no formal geometric patterns here. Only a profusion of nature growing in every available space. When I touch the leggy flowers, I feel electricity rush through me.
Dante leads me further in and I spy more flowers. Our presence startles a dozy hedgehog that scuttles into some bushes. Right in the middle of the garden, a fountain spouts water into the air. Iridescent fish swim in the water.
“Your father has created his own truly beautiful world here. No wonder he does not allow anyone to disturb it. They simply wouldn’t understand. This is heaven on earth.”
“Why do you think he gave you the key?”
I search Dante’s face. “I don’t know.”
“I think he knew you belonged here. This garden needs a goddess.”
“What do you mean?”
“Strip for me, Rosa?”
“Are you serious?”
“I’ve never been more serious,” he says huskily. In the dark, his eyes glitter, making my heart ache with love.
“We can’t have sex here, Dante. It’ll be almost sacrilege.”
“How wrong you are, bella. It will be beautiful.”
“But—”
“Trust me.”
“What if someone comes in?” I whisper.
“I locked the door.”
I bite my bottom lip uncertainly.
“I need to see you naked in this garden, Rosa. I need to taste you.”
The Heir: A Contemporary Royal Romance Page 16
