by Cathie Linz
“So you have a plan?”
“Plans haven’t served me very well in dealing with Vanessa. I think this time I’ll try something else,” Mark said.
“And that would be?”
“Honesty. Now hand me that rope. We’ve got a castle wall to scale here.”
Vanessa watched Sebastian dancing with Anna. There was no doubt that he was smitten. He’d stared at her as if seeing her for the first time. Vanessa was certain her sister and Sebastian would end up together.
Her sister was glowing. Taking on the position of inheriting her father’s throne had brought her newfound confidence and happiness.
“Well, daughter, how does it feel to have given up a throne this evening?” King Leopold asked Vanessa as he joined her.
“It feels good. But I will miss the chocolate.”
“The royal chocolatier asked me to tell you that you shall always have unlimited access to his wares. You are still a royal princess, you know.”
“A working princess.”
“You’ve always worked hard.”
“Yes, but now my work is something that is fulfilling in a meaningful way. The evening has gone better than I could have imagined. We’ve already raised nearly half a million dollars to help the orphans.”
“And the evening isn’t over yet.”
“That’s right. We still have your birthday cake to cut in another hour or so. The royal baker has outdone himself this time, I’m told,” she said with a teasing smile.
Her father appeared distracted, however. “I wonder where that godmother of yours has gotten to. I can see why her husband stayed behind in Venice. The woman is a menace.”
“Now, young man, do you care to tell me what you are doing up here?”
Mark stopped short. He and Abraham had climbed over the battlements in the rear of the castle and entered through a tower door. The palace security needed beefing up, he’d have to speak to Vanessa about that. First he had to deal with this woman wearing the wild ostrich dress.
“What are you doing up here, ma’am?” Mark countered, stalling for time.
“I needed a cigarette.” She blew tobacco smoke at him. “The king doesn’t approve. I’m not sure the king would approve of you, either. You are Vanessa’s Marine, aren’t you?”
Mark wasn’t about to admit to anything that might get him tossed out. Not when he was this close. “We’re guests who lost our way.”
“Wearing camouflage paint on your face?”
He shrugged. “It’s a masquerade ball, right?”
“Yes. But one normally doesn’t wear camouflage paint with a Prince Charming costume. What look were you aiming for? Warrior prince?”
“I’m no prince,” Mark muttered. He’d planned on wiping off the greasepaint as soon as they’d gotten inside, but then this woman brandishing a cigarette in one hand and a silver wand in the other had suddenly shown up.
Things were simply not going his way.
But he was not about to give up. He was a Marine…dressed like Prince Charming, right down to the stupid tights. Surely his costume alone proved he loved Vanessa. He certainly wouldn’t look this ridiculous for anyone else.
He should have worn his dress blues uniform. It was in the rental car parked in the woods behind the castle. Then he wouldn’t feel like such an idiot.
“I had Hans, the head of security, show me your picture,” the woman informed him. “Those blues eyes of yours are quite distinctive, Captain Wilder. And your friend here must be the good Dr. Rosenthal. I’m actually quite delighted to make both your acquaintances.”
Mark raised an eyebrow. “You are?”
“Certainly. I’m Vanessa’s godmother, Desiree, and I must say it certainly took you long enough to get here.”
“I came as fast as I could, ma’am.”
“Yes, well, now that you’re here we must get you out of those ridiculous costumes. Come along.” Desiree marched down the corridor, fully expecting them to follow her. She was stunned when she reached the staircase to find no one behind her. The two Americans had simply disappeared.
Waiters served bellinis and a string quartet played Vivaldi as Vanessa moved from the Victoria Salon through the Yellow Salon and the Billiards Room back to the ballroom. She couldn’t seem to settle in any one place. And then it happened. Across the crowded ballroom, reflected in the floor-to-ceiling mirrors, Vanessa caught sight of a man dressed in a United States Marines dress blues uniform.
Mark! Her heart leaped. He’d come.
Lifting her long skirt, she hurried across the ballroom, smiling and nodding at people who tried to speak to her, but not stopping until she reached him. He had his back to her.
“Mark?” She put her hand on his arm, and immediately realized her mistake. This man was shorter and heavier. And the uniform was just a costume, not the real thing. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I thought you were someone else.”
Disappointment shot through Vanessa. It was bone deep and intense, and it made her realize that even though she’d changed her life, something was still missing. Love.
The emptiness inside her was suddenly overwhelming.
Tears came to her eyes as she turned to hurry out of the ballroom before anyone could see her discomfort. As she rushed out the open French doors to the palace gardens, her right sequin-encrusted shoe fell off. The last time that had happened she’d been wearing inexpensive sandals and fleeing a brawl with Mark in New York.
That had been a pivotal moment for her, when he’d swept her up in his arms and made her feel so safe, so loved. It had been the moment when she’d realized she loved him with all her heart.
Perhaps she’d been too hard on him. He had only been following orders. In fact, he’d said he’d agreed to come help her even before those orders had been placed. She hadn’t believed him. Maybe she should have.
She wiped the tears from her cheeks and paused to sit on a concrete bench in the elaborate palace gardens. Flowers were geometrically arranged around her while clipped hedges lined carefully laid-out paths. She could smell the roses in the warm night air as she took a deep breath, trying to regain her composure.
“Lose something, Princess?”
That voice. Her heart stopped and then thundered. It couldn’t be…
She turned.
It was! It was Mark. Dressed in his impressive Marine dress blues uniform with its high-necked navy-blue jacket with red piping and brass buttons. The real thing. Standing proud and confident, his stance military erect as he gazed at her with those gorgeous blue eyes of his.
“What are you doing here?” she whispered unsteadily.
“Looking for you. After scaling the castle walls and getting past your security people, who need improving by the way, I ran into your godmother who convinced me to change out of the ridiculous Prince Charming costume I was wearing. I’m not even going to go into what a challenge it was leaving the palace again to retrieve my uniform from the rental car, let alone to slip back inside again. Then I finally get to the ballroom and Abraham finds Celeste without any problem, but I can’t find you. There are hundreds of people in there, all in costume and most of them wearing concealing masks. It was like New Orleans at Mardi Gras. I ended up asking a toga-wearing Caesar, a pair of giggling teenagers dressed as white mice and a rotund guy in a stupid pumpkin costume if they’d seen you. One of the white mice said you’d come this way. None of which is relevant.” He finally paused long enough to draw in a brief breath of air. Vanessa had never heard him say so much.
“Forget I said any of that,” he ordered.
She doubted this Marine of hers would ever get over his natural inclination to give orders. She looked forward to teaching him the finer art of other forms of persuasion.
“I need to start again,” he was saying. “Lose something, Princess?”
Yes, her heart. Could he tell? Didn’t he know how much she loved him?
Dropping to one knee before her, he gently slipped her shoe back on. Then he took som
ething from his pocket. It was the silver-slipper necklace she’d torn from her neck in New York. “Granted, it’s not a glass slipper and granted, I’m not Prince Charming,” he said huskily, “but I really do love you, and I want to marry you.”
She started shaking. This was too good to be true.
“I’m sorry I deceived you,” he said, his voice now tight with emotion. “There are no words to express how sorry I am. I want you to forgive me. Do you think you can do that?”
Unable to speak past the lump in her throat, she could only nod.
“Trust is an essential part of leadership in the Marine Corps. Trust has to be earned. It’s a product of familiarity and confidence. You trusted me and I abused that trust.”
“Captain,” she interrupted him with a teasing smile, “you’re starting to sound like a Marine again.”
“A Marine in love with a princess.” He gazed at her with his heart in his eyes. It was all there laid bare for her to see. The remorse, the regrets, the pain, the nervousness, the love, the desire.
“I’m a princess in name only,” she replied, her voice unsteady. He loved her! He’d just said it again. “I just gave my throne to my sister.”
His expression could only be described as stunned. “Why?”
Did his reaction mean he wanted her because she was a princess? Surely not. “I did it because it’s what I wanted, what she wanted and what’s best.”
Guilt consumed him. “Is this because of me? Did you lose your throne because of me?”
“I didn’t lose it, I gave it back. And it’s because of me, not anyone else,” Vanessa assured him. “I was tired of pretending to be something I wasn’t and never felt I could be. Tired of living a life that left me empty instead of completing me. I can’t change my past, but I could change my future, so I did. I started that foundation I’d been dreaming of and it’s already making a difference.”
Looking in her eyes, Mark could see how she’d grown. She was no longer the willful princess he’d first met. She’d become a strong woman in charge of her own life, not ruled by her father’s plans.
“Do you still want to marry me?” she asked him, looking into his eyes and seeing the admiration in his gaze. She knew, knew it was for her as a woman, not as a princess.
“Affirmative. I can’t change my past, either. But I want a future with you. I’m not planning on remaining in the Marine Corps indefinitely.”
“But you’ve always been a Marine.”
“And you’ve always been a princess.”
“Actually I still am a princess,” she admitted ruefully, “just not heir to the throne any longer.”
“Actually once you’re a Marine, you are a Marine for the rest of your life,” he admitted just as ruefully. “Even if you’re not actively serving in the Marine Corps.”
“What will you do instead?” she asked.
“Wait for you to accept my proposal. Then tell you about my dream of opening a security firm—”
Vanessa’s mind was already racing ahead. “We could work together,” she excitedly interrupted him. “A Marine and a princess. You know security, and I know etiquette and diplomacy. You could call your company Sovereign Securities, for foreign diplomats living in America. I can run the Safe Haven for Children Foundation from anywhere.”
“Before you go naming our new business endeavor, don’t you think you should accept my marriage proposal?” Mark said with a grin. “Or should I ask your father for your hand in marriage? You’re the etiquette expert here. I should have brought a ring instead of a dumb slipper necklace. I’m not doing any of this right,” he growled. “I should have had a plan.”
She cupped his cheek to turn his face to hers. “Don’t call my necklace dumb, and I don’t need a plan. I just need you.”
His blue eyes blazed at her. “Does that mean…?
Vanessa nodded. “Yes, I will marry you, Captain Mark Wilder. I hope you know what you’re getting into because there’s no backing out now.”
“A Marine never backs out, ma’am,” Mark huskily assured her. “This Marine plans on loving you for the rest of my days…and nights.”
Taking her in his arms, Mark trailed his fingertips along her cheek as his mouth slowly descended to hers. It was a kiss worth waiting a lifetime for, the kiss of the one man who could give her what she’d wanted most—true love.
Epilogue
Four months later
“Are you sure that’s the necklace you want to wear with your wedding dress?” Desiree asked Vanessa.
Vanessa touched the silver-slipper necklace around her neck and smiled. “I’m absolutely positive.”
“Nice palace you’ve got here,” Prudence noted with a grin. “A little on the large side for me, though.”
“Me, too,” Vanessa agreed. “Mark found us this darling little house in Virginia. I can’t wait to move in with him.”
“I did warn you about these Wilder men. They can be irresistible.”
“I still think you were plotting to make us sisters-in-law.”
“I was hoping you and Mark would hit it off at my wedding, but when the two of you totally ignored one another I decided you were both hopeless.”
“She is totally hopeless,” Anna announced from the corner, where she was fastening pearls around her neck. “That’s why I’m the heir to the throne now.”
Vanessa, Prudence and Desiree responded by tossing the small silk brocade pillows adorning the couch at her.
“Is that any way to treat your future queen?” Anna demanded with feigned outrage.
“You better behave,” Vanessa warned her. “Your wedding to Sebastian is coming next summer.”
“I know.” Anna’s expression became dreamy. “I can’t wait.”
“Speaking of waiting, I believe we’ve kept that captain of yours waiting long enough, Vanessa.” Desiree checked her appearance once more in the mirror. She, Prudence and Anna all wore bridesmaids dresses the rich color of a cognac diamond. The V-waistline and simple but elegant lines were reminiscent of medieval times.
Vanessa’s satin-and-lace white wedding gown incorporated the same delicate one-hundred-fifty-year-old Belgian lace used in her mother’s wedding gown. The dress embodied everything she wanted to express today—where she’d come from, who she was, who she wanted to be. The simple lace-edged bodice with three-quarter sleeves was appropriate for the autumn wedding. The dropped waistline matched that of her attendants. The real magic of the dress was in how it fit her and how it made her feel.
As Prudence straightened the five-foot train, Vanessa gazed down at her engagement ring. She and Mark had shopped for it together. She’d gone with a sleek modern design, princess-cut diamonds channel-set in platinum. The wedding rings were simple platinum bands.
“Ready?” Prudence asked.
Vanessa nodded as her father joined her at the back of the royal chapel. He was wearing full regal attire and looked very handsome in his uniform, complete with the royal sash and medals. “You look lovely,” he said. “Your mother would have been so proud of you. As am I.” He held out his arm to her.
Blinking back tears, Vanessa took it.
As liveried trumpeters announced their imminent arrival inside the royal chapel, Prudence said, “I thought this was going to be a small ceremony.”
“It is,” the king replied. “We only have a hundred guests. Anna’s wedding shall be in the cathedral with five hundred attending.”
“Better you than me,” Vanessa told Anna with a grin.
“I can’t concentrate with all this chattering,” Desiree protested. “As it is, all these gilded angels flying about on the ceilings and walls in here are giving me a headache. I need a cigarette.”
“Don’t you dare move,” Anna ordered.
The doors opened and the wedding procession began as the St. Kristoff Children’s Choir sang a hymn in Latin. Vanessa’s eyes remained fixed on Mark waiting for her at the end of the aisle. Mark had teasingly asked her if she planned on wearing th
at Yankees baseball cap he’d given her. While she didn’t go that far, she’d broken with tradition by wearing her chapel-length veil away from her face instead of covering it. She said it was because she wanted to see where she was going, that she didn’t want to trip over her own big feet and suffer any more shoe mishaps.
But the truth was that she wanted to have a clear view of Mark. He looked every bit as strong and sexy as he had when he’d proposed to her. Once again he was wearing his Marine dress blues uniform, as was his brother and best man Joe. Mark’s oldest brother, Justice, was on a mission and couldn’t get away. His youngest brother, Sam, sat in the front row with his parents.
The rest of the groom’s side of the chapel was filled with numerous Marines, flown over on a plane her father had chartered.
Vanessa’s side held an eclectic blend of friends and family, some royal, many not. The entire board from the Safe Haven for Children Foundation was in attendance. The royal chocolatier was still putting finishing touches on their wedding cake but promised her he’d peek in on the ceremony as well. And her former lady-in-waiting, now personal assistant, Celeste, was there with her new husband, Dr. Abraham Rosenthal.
And then Mark’s hand was on hers as he tucked her by his side. Sunlight streamed through the stained glass windows, bathing them in gloriously colored light as they stood before the rococo altar with its soaring columns, scrolls and angels.
When Vanessa had been a little girl, she used to come to the chapel on weekdays when no one was here, and she’d lie on the marble floor and gaze up at the angels and wonder what made them smile.
Now she knew. Love made them smile. Love made her smile. It even made her U.S Marine captain smile.
“Do you, Princess Vanessa Alexandria Maria Teresa Von Volzemburg, take Captain Mark Anthony Wilder to be your lawfully wedded husband…”
“Mark Anthony?” she whispered to her about-to-be husband.
“This is no time to get cute,” he warned her.
“No,” she agreed, knowing the royal chaplain was hard of hearing due to old age and couldn’t hear them if they didn’t shout. “That’s for later, in the bedroom.”
