by Kristi Gold
Kate’s body went rigid in his arms, but it wasn’t from fulfillment, that much Marc realized when she abruptly raised her head. “Do you hear that?”
He couldn’t hear much of anything aside from the pulse pounding in his ears. “Hear what?”
“Footsteps.”
Marc clenched his jaw and stopped all motion to listen. “I imagine it’s only the caretakers,” he said, even though talking took great effort. “They’ve come to put away the food.”
“Are you sure?” She sounded wary, something Marc decided to remedy by resuming his touch, more deliberately this time, until he felt her relax somewhat.
“Don’t worry,” he whispered. “They won’t bother us.”
Marc ran his tongue along the shell of Kate’s ear and picked up the tempo of his thrusts. Then he discerned footfalls coming down the corridor, louder this time.
“They’re…getting…closer,” Kate said, but continued to be an active participant in their lovemaking, belying any real concern.
“They will not come in here,” Marc assured her, although he briefly wondered why the caretaker or his wife would be seeking him out after he’d left instructions, in no uncertain terms, not to be disturbed.
“But what if…” She drew in a ragged breath. “What if they do come in?”
Right now Marc did not give a damn if every member of the council paid them a visit. He was on the verge of a searing climax, and so, he suspected, was Kate. “Let them, dammit. I can’t stop.”
The footsteps grew heavier, louder as Marc moved harder and deeper within Kate. The minute the rap came at the door, the orgasm claimed Kate and she cried out, in turn, bringing about Marc’s own climax.
Marc drifted back to coherency, enough to realize another knock had sounded at the door, his euphoria now replaced by frustration and anger.
“Shouldn’t you answer?” Kate whispered. “Someone might need you.”
Someone’s head was going to roll. “Not yet.” He did not want to let her go. The knock was more insistent this time, very close to pounding.
Marc shouted, “What do you want!”
A long moment of silence passed before the offending party said, “I am sorry to disturb you, Your Elusiveness, but I must speak with you.”
Nicholas.
What in the hell was he doing here?
Obviously bent on losing his job, Marc thought. Unless there was some dire emergency. That brought Marc to his senses and sent him away from Kate to gather his robe from the end of the four-poster bed. He discarded the condom, shrugged on the robe and stalked to the door, tempted to throw it open from the force of his fury over the interference. Realizing Kate was still in his bed, naked, he opened the door only wide enough to confront his attendant.
“This better be good,” Marc said, not bothering to hide his irritation.
“My apologies for the intrusion, Your Virileness,”
Marc gritted his teeth and spoke through them. “Just spit it out, Nicholas.”
“The queen mother has asked me to summon you. It seems that our youngest guest will not go to sleep without Dr. Milner’s assistance. The household is at its wit’s end. I would have called, but you left your phone behind.”
Marc regretted leaving behind information on where he and Kate would be. “For God’s sake, Cecile is an infant. Getting her to sleep is not that difficult. Tell my mother to have Beatrice practice more persistence.”
“It’s okay, Marc.”
Marc turned to find Kate clutching the sheet to her neck. “Cecile’s still trying to adjust,” she said. “I don’t mind seeing about her.”
Marc minded, and he was bloody well having a difficult time adjusting to the thought that his night with Kate had come to an abrupt halt. “We will be returning within the hour. In the meantime, tell my mother she owes Dr. Milner a huge debt, and myself as well.”
Nicholas nodded. “I will pass on that message, and again my apologies for the interruption.”
Nicholas walked away, muttering under his breath. Marc couldn’t really blame the man. After all, he hadn’t come here to retrieve them of his own volition.
Making his way back to the bed, Marc snapped on the floor lamp and sat on the edge of the mattress. Kate stared up at him, regret etched in her expression. Marc could certainly relate.
He brushed her hair away from her forehead and planted a kiss where the faint bruise now resided. “Will she ever sleep through the night?”
“Yes, she will, as soon as she learns to go back to sleep on her own. She won’t do that unless you stop your little midnight visits.”
Hell, he’d been caught. “How would you know about that?”
She raised his hand to her lips and kissed his palm. “Because I’ve been sleeping the past few nights in the room next to the nursery. I don’t return to the guesthouse until a couple of hours before dawn when Beatrice relieves me.”
“I thought I was doing the right thing.”
She held his hand against her warm cheek. “I think you’re doing a wonderful job, although you might want to reconsider so she will learn to get herself back to sleep.”
“I admit it. I’ve grown soft. I cannot stand to see her cry.” He kissed her gently. “I cannot stand to see any woman cry, especially if I am the reason for her tears.”
Kate smiled. “I promise you, a few minutes ago, I wasn’t crying.”
He returned her smile. “I know. You were moaning.”
Her eyes widened. “Was I?”
“Yes, you were, and quite sufficiently. So was I.”
“Do you think Nicholas heard us?”
“If not the moans, then he probably heard the headboard hitting the wall.”
“We did that?”
“Yes, we did.”
Kate covered her face with her hands. “I won’t be able to face him now.”
Marc took advantage of Kate’s release of the sheet and lowered it, revealing her bare breasts. He played his thumb back and forth over one nipple. “I had hoped to make more noise throughout the night.”
Kate dropped her hands from her face and sighed. “Me, too. I still haven’t seen the royal birthmark.”
Grinning, Marc stood, turned his back on Kate and lowered the robe to immediately below his waist.
“Wow. It looks like an inverted ice cream cone.”
First, he felt Kate’s fingertips outlining the birthmark above his right buttock, then the play of her warm lips against his flesh. That was all it took to convince Marc that he could not take Kate anywhere at the moment except back to bed.
When he turned and dropped the robe to the floor, Kate’s lips parted in surprise. “I thought we were leaving, Marc.”
“Not yet.” He climbed back in beside Kate and hovered over her. “Cecile is relatively cheerful this time of night. My mother and Beatrice can entertain her while I finish entertaining you.”
“Marc, she’s going to know what took us so long.”
“And your point?”
“I don’t want to her to think—”
“That we are engaging in very hot and very hard…” He pressed against her, letting her know it would not be long before he recovered. “Lovemaking?”
“Well, since you put it that way.”
He winked. “I am going to put it another way. Kate, I do not care what my mother thinks we are doing. I only care about doing it, and I promise you that’s exactly what I intend to do.”
With that, he slid down Kate’s body, leaving wet kisses in his path, determined to show Kate that he was a man of his word.
Nine
Together Kate and Marc put Cecile back to sleep, just like a real family. But Kate acknowledged that the concept was only an illusion, even after their evening together. And she had to decide how much more she could take before she lost herself to him completely, although she was probably already too late.
Standing outside the nursery, Marc pulled her into his arms and murmured, “Come to my bed with me.”
Marc dropped his arms from around her and shoved his hands into his pockets. “I suppose you’re right. We wouldn’t want the staff to start making assumptions. That would only serve to make matters worse.”
Kate was hoping Marc might put up a little more of a fight. But once again, his reputation and rumors prevented them from having their relationship out in the open. “First, I need to tell you what Beatrice told me today.”
“You spoke with her? Why did you wait until now to tell me?”
“I think it’s because you’ve kept my mouth occupied most of the night.”
Marc released a gruff sigh. “If you continue to make those comments, then I’ll say to hell with the staff and carry you to my bed.”
“Promises, promises.”
He looked mock-serious. “Kate, I’m warning you.”
And she’d learned to heed those warnings that afternoon. “Okay, okay. Back to Beatrice.”
Kate wasn’t sure how to proceed except to be blunt and hope Marc took the news well. “Basically, she said that she heard your brother did have a lover aside from the countess. She saw them together at the guesthouse one night while she was walking in the gardens. But she couldn’t give me a name or any description.”
Marc didn’t look pleased, but at least he didn’t look angry. “That’s not much to go on, but it’s a start.”
“Yeah, I guess it is, although I’m not very optimistic we’ll find out much more any time soon.”
“We have to keep trying. I have to know for certain if Cecile is Philippe’s child, then decide how much information I’m willing to release. Regardless, at some point in time, we will have to reveal Cecile is not your child, or mine.”
Kate sighed. “You know, I’m really too tired to even think about it now. I just wish I could go to bed and wake up to find this whole rumor mess is nothing more than a nightmare.”
Marc’s expression turned all too serious. “This is beginning to take its toll on you, isn’t it?”
“I’ll survive.”
“I’m certain you will, but you have to realize that it could get much worse before it ends.”
“How so?”
“You could be shunned at the clinic. Patients could refuse to see you if they begin to believe the rumors.”
“If it happens, I’ll just ignore it.”
“It will not be that easy to ignore if it does happen, and you might have to make some choices in terms of your career.”
Had she not been a knowledgeable doctor, Kate would have sworn her heart just stopped. “What are you saying?”
“I’m saying that you might consider returning to the States, at least until this is all cleared up.”
“Is that what you want me to do?”
“This isn’t about what I want. It’s about protecting you from the brutality that I’ve experienced my entire life. It’s not an easy thing to deal with.”
Until that point, Kate had been prepared to deal with it. Now, she wasn’t so sure. Marc was telling her that he believed it would be best for her to go home. Maybe he was right. Maybe she should walk out of his life. Maybe that’s exactly what he intended to do, provide her with an easy out.
“I’ll seriously consider what you’re saying,” she said, trying to keep a tight hold on her anger and hurt, “and I think you could be right. If I’m not around, then that would at least end the rumors of our clandestine affair that just happens to really be taking place.”
“Kate, I want you to be—”
“I know, Marc. You want me to be careful. You want me to be safe. And I want…” You to love me. “I want to go to bed, alone, so I can finally get a good night’s sleep.”
She turned to leave before the annoying tears paid her another visit.
“I’ll be by to see you in the morning, Kate.”
Kate stopped in the hall and without turning around said, “I’d prefer to be by myself tomorrow.”
She hurried away, yet still hoped that maybe Marc would call her back and tell her he didn’t want her to leave, that he wanted her to stay for good.
It didn’t happen.
But what could she expect? Marc DeLoria was a good-time guy who had enough to worry about besides Kate Milner. And obviously she’d misunderstood when he’d said “My love” when they’d made love earlier. Maybe he’d meant nothing by it. Maybe he’d said that to many more women.
But Kate wasn’t competing with a woman; she was competing with a kingdom. And she would do well to remember that from now on, even if she would never forget the time they’d spent together—or him.
On Sunday, Marc granted Kate’s wish and left her alone. Even when she went to the palace to help tend to Cecile and then dined with Mary, she didn’t see him. Again, he had totally withdrawn from life—her life. But then, she had told him she’d wanted to be by herself. In reality, she’d hoped he would have ignored her request. Instead, he’d totally ignored her, period.
By Monday morning, Kate regretted that she hadn’t sought him out and insisted they talk one more time, and she regretted that she hadn’t just laid it on the line and told him she was in love with him. At least then she would have lessened some of the burden. But she felt the full weight of the decisions she would have to make when she entered the clinic, a place where she had found satisfaction in doing what she did best—treating people who truly appreciated her efforts.
Kate had opted to come in early to complete the paperwork she’d left last Friday. She wouldn’t want to leave any unfinished business in case she did decide to return home. And that included unfinished business with Marc. But that would have to come later, if she could ever get him alone again.
As she passed through the corridor, the sound of heated voices coming from Renault’s office halted her progress. She stopped to listen, realizing that the devious doctor had obviously ignored Marc’s dismissal. She also recognized a woman’s voice, at first believing it to be Isabella, the lustful nurse. She was very much Renault’s type. But when the woman spoke again, Kate was shocked to realize it was Caroline, her linguistic aide and clinic champion.
Although it went against her grain to eavesdrop, Kate remained outside the door to listen, shock holding her in place when she heard Caroline say, “I have done what you’ve asked of me. I delivered the baby to the palace with the note. I will not do any more, Jonathan.”
“The king is forcing me to leave my job. I will not stop until I ruin him.”
“Well, you’ll have to ruin him all by yourself.”
“Then it is over between us,” Renault hissed.
“This will be no hardship for me, I assure you,” Caroline said.
Kate wasn’t surprised that Renault had set his sights on the blond-haired, brown-eyed beauty, but she was surprised that Caroline had succumbed to his suspect charms. Still, she wanted to cheer, both from Caroline’s insult and the knowledge she had gained about Cecile’s mysterious arrival at the palace. Then she wanted to shriek when the door flew open and Renault stormed out. He shoved her arm on his way down the hall, sending her a look of disdain over one shoulder as he tore through the doors leading to the waiting room.
“Good riddance,” Kate muttered as Caroline joined her in the hallway.
The nurse placed a shaky hand to her throat as if she feared someone might strangle her. “Dr. Milner, I didn’t know you had come in.”
“Well, I’m here, and we need to talk.” She gestured toward the office Caroline had just left. “In here.”
When they both entered, Kate shut the door and faced Caroline, who looked as though she might faint. “I overheard your conversation with Dr. Renault.”
“All of it?”
“Enough to know that you’re the one who left little Cecile at the palace gates. Are you her mother?”
Caroline shook her head and her eyes filled with tears. “No, but I did raise her from the time she was born.”
“Then you know the identity of her mother.”
She looked away. “Yes. She was my best friend.”
Was? “Where is she now?”
Caroline sniffed. “She died after giving birth to Cecile.”
Kate experienced a twinge of sympathy. “Why haven’t you come forward with this information?”
“I promised I wouldn’t say anything.”
“Who did you promise?”
“Jonathan.”
Kate’s sympathy went the way of the wind. “That creep? He has no right to ask that of you. Why would you get involved with him?”
Caroline withdrew a tissue from her pocket and blew her nose. “He threatened me, told me that he would have me fired from my job if I didn’t do as he asked. He can be very convincing.”
Not as far as Kate was concerned. “Why did you tell him in the first place?”
“Because we were lovers. Because I thought I could trust him when I decided I needed to come forward. He was the one who came up with the plan to leave Cecile at the palace with the anonymous note indicating she was a DeLoria. In order to protect me, or so he said, since it took me so long to make the decision. It turns out that Jonathan saw this as a way to exact revenge after King Marcel threatened to fire him because of staff complaints. He’s very envious of Marcel DeLoria. He despises him.”
That much Kate already knew. “Now let me get this straight. He convinced you to give the baby away and leave a note that claimed she’s a DeLoria?”
Caroline raised her red-rimmed eyes to Kate. “She is a DeLoria, Dr. Milner.”
“Then one of the DeLoria sons is her father?”
“Yes.”
Drawing in a breath, Kate prepared to ask the question she would rather avoid, but she had to know. “Which son?”
“King Philippe.”
Kate wanted to collapse from relief. “Your friend and Philippe were lovers?”
“They were more than that, Dr. Milner. They were married. No one knew because King Philippe believed the country could not accept Lisette. She was a commoner. She worked at the tailor’s in St. Simone. That’s how they met. They loved each other very much, but they had to keep it hidden from the world.”
