By Order of the Prince

by Carla Cassidy

  A hysterical burst of laughter rose to Beth’s lips, but she quickly swallowed it down. They had been so worried that somebody from Antoine’s past might use her to get to him. But, the real threat hadn’t been somebody from his past…it had been somebody from hers.

  THEY FOUND THE JEEP PARKED in a stand of trees and Antoine’s heart leapt into his throat when he realized the vehicle was empty.

  “What now?” Michael asked.

  “We go hunting until we find her.” Antoine got out of the car along with Michael. “David, you stay here with the car ready in case she’s been hurt, and call Jake Wolf, tell him where we are and to get out here as soon as possible.”

  Antoine pulled his gun and looked at Michael who also had his gun at the ready. Which way? Antoine scanned the area carefully, seeking signs that the brush had been disturbed, that the grass had been tamped down by footsteps. Tension held him so tight he felt as if he might snap at any minute.

  He knew if he didn’t pick the right direction they would lose precious minutes…minutes that could mean Beth’s death—if he wasn’t already too late.

  He mentally shook himself, refusing to allow his thoughts to go there. She had to be okay. He steadfastly refused to believe otherwise. He knew that if she wasn’t he’d be forever destroyed.

  Seeing some tall grass that looked slightly trampled, he motioned for Michael to follow him, praying that they were going in the direction that would take him to Beth.

  As they moved with the silence of ghosts through the woods, Antoine wondered who in the hell had gotten to her, which of his enemies had managed to get her from the hotel and into these woods? What possible ruse could they have used to get Beth to walk out of the hotel?

  Julie had indicated that she thought Beth had left with a woman. How clever. Beth would have never considered going anywhere with a man she didn’t know, but a woman? Perhaps using some sort of a sob story?

  God, part of what he loved about Beth was her trusting nature and it was possible that was the trait that might bring her to her death. He tightened his grip on his gun. He could shoot a woman as easily as he could a man if she intended to harm Beth.

  Every few steps he motioned for Michael to halt and they listened for any sounds of other human presence in the woods. There was nothing, no noise to indicate there was either human or beast nearby.

  The only sound Antoine could hear clearly was the frantic beating of his own heart. He’d done this to her. He’d brought danger to her doorstep and he’d never forgive himself if he’d ultimately gotten Beth killed.

  They walked for what seemed like forever when Antoine thought he heard the faint sound of a voice coming from up ahead. He raised his hand to Michael and they stopped. Antoine strained to listen and his heart leaped as again he thought it was a female voice he heard.

  He leaned toward Michael. “No sudden moves,” he whispered. “We need to assess the situation before either of us makes a move.”

  Michael nodded and together the two men moved forward. The voice grew louder and after several more steps Antoine saw a clearing ahead and what stood in the clearing made his heart nearly stop beating.

  Beth stood facing a woman Antoine had never seen before, holding a gun pointed directly at Beth. He noticed several things instantly—Beth’s terror showed in the strain of her features and he could easily imagine the tick firing off in the side of her slender neck, a neck he wanted to save.

  The woman with the gun was nervous. She shifted her weight from foot to foot as her hand trembled. Antoine knew her nervousness made her even more dangerous.

  “You ruined my life,” the woman screamed. “We were happy and in love until you came along.”

  “I didn’t know he was married,” Beth exclaimed, her voice filled with her fear. “I haven’t seen him or talked to him for almost a year.”

  Antoine frowned as his mind raced. This wasn’t somebody who was after him, this was somebody seeking revenge against Beth.

  Mark Ferrer’s wife. The name of the man who hurt Beth was emblazoned on Antoine’s brain. Antoine could only imagine the emotions raging inside the woman. It was obvious she believed that Beth had destroyed her marriage, ruined her life.

  “You’re lying,” she screamed at Beth. “I knew something was wrong with him for a long time and finally a week ago he confessed that he’d had an affair with you, that he’d tried to break it off but you were obsessed with him.”

  It was obvious Mark Ferrer had lied to his wife, but it was equally obvious his wife wasn’t going to believe anything Beth said.

  As she grabbed the gun with both hands and steadied herself, Antoine knew he only had seconds to act. He shoved his gun in the back of his waistband and stepped out into the clearing. “Mrs. Ferrer.”

  She jumped and thankfully didn’t shoot, but she whirled the gun in his direction. He immediately raised his hands to show her that he didn’t have a weapon.

  “Don’t come any closer,” she yelled. She pointed the gun back at Beth. “If you come closer I’ll shoot her.”

  The woman’s brown eyes were huge and filled with a combination of rage and fear and more than a little bit of crazy.

  “I won’t come any closer,” Antoine said in a gentle tone. “I just want to speak with you, that’s all.” He knew that Michael had his gun pointed at the woman’s head, that if Michael sensed any imminent danger to Antoine he’d kill the woman without blinking an eye. But, Antoine hoped he could save both women who were suffering from the same fate—broken hearts.

  “Mrs. Ferrer…can I call you by your first name?” he asked.

  She stared at him as if he was the one who had lost his mind. “Karen,” she finally said with a shrug of her shoulders. “My name is Karen.”

  “Karen, I’m Antoine.” He forced what he hoped was a charming smile to his lips. “Karen, I’m so sorry you’ve been having a rough time lately.”

  Her narrow lips trembled and tears sprang to her eyes. “You have no idea. Everything has been broken. She broke it!”

  “I know. She was a selfish fool to mess with your husband,” Antoine said smoothly. He kept his gaze focused solely on Karen and away from Beth. “It was you who tried to burn down her house?”

  “She deserved to lose her house after she ruined my marriage. I ran her off the road, too.” Her entire body shook with fury. “I would have made her pay that day but the two of you managed to get away from me.”

  “You said you have children? How many?” He needed to try to defuse some of the rage that made her entire body tremble.

  A softness swept over her features. “Three. Jason is six, Matthew is four and Angela is three.” The last of her words choked out of her on a sob. “We were a family, a happy family until she came along.” The gun wavered and Antoine took the opportunity to take a step closer. “We were a family until she came along,” she cried again, tears streaking down her cheeks.

  “And you believe that if she’s out of the way then you can be a family again,” he replied.

  “Yes! She has to leave him alone. She has to go away,” Karen exclaimed and once again focused the gun on Beth.

  “If you kill her then you’ll go to jail, Karen. What about your children? Who will raise them while you’re in prison?” Antoine took yet another step closer to the obviously distraught woman.

  “Karen, let me help you,” he continued, keeping his voice as soft, as non-threatening as possible. “I can make her go away. I’m the prince of a Mediterranean island. I can take her there and make sure she never returns to the States, that she never bothers you again.”

  At that moment hope flared in her eyes and she let down her guard. The tip of the gun lowered toward the ground and Antoine sprang.

  Too late, his brain screamed as he saw the gun rise once again and point at Beth. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. In his peripheral vision he saw a blur and at the same time he yelled Beth’s name as the gun exploded.

  He tackled Karen to the ground and wres
tled the gun from her hand. Screaming and cursing, she fought him, but he easily got her under control.

  A glance in Beth’s direction nearly stopped his heart. A rush of relief whirled through him as he saw her still standing, but the relief was short-lived as he saw Michael on the ground at her feet.

  At that moment his driver, David, arrived and Antoine thrust the still-cursing Karen at him. “Take her to the car,” Antoine said, his gaze going to Beth who had crumpled to the ground next to the fallen Michael. As David took control of Karen, Antoine rushed forward and fell to his knees at Michael’s side.

  “I’m all right,” Michael said as he struggled to sit up. He gripped his upper arm where a stain of blood had begun to appear on his shirt. “I think it’s just a flesh wound.”

  Antoine helped him to his feet as sirens sounded in the distance. “Can you make it back to the car?” he asked. “It sounds like help is on the way.”

  Michael nodded and took off walking in the direction of the car. Antoine turned back to Beth, who was still on the ground and weeping softly into her hands.

  It was only then that the complete relief began to wash over Antoine. She was safe. Thank God, she was safe. He crouched down next to her, wanting desperately to take her into his arms, but afraid of overstepping his boundaries considering what had taken place between them in her office.

  “It’s over,” he said gently.

  She dropped her hands from her face and gazed at him with tear-washed eyes. “She said she had a bomb planted in your suite and if I didn’t come with her she’d blow it up. I thought maybe she was telling the truth and I couldn’t take the chance that she’d hurt you.”

  Her words tumbled over themselves as her tears continued to flow. “I thought maybe she was working for the Russian mob, or maybe she was some kind of fanatic trying to stop the trade agreements. And then she had the gun and I knew there was no way for me to get away from her.”

  He could stand it no longer. He pulled her up and she came willingly into his arms and buried her face in the front of his shirt as he held her tight.

  He closed his eyes, unable to believe how close he’d come to losing her. If it hadn’t been for Michael the shot might have found Beth. He would never doubt Michael’s trustworthiness again.

  They were still standing in each other’s arms when Jake Wolf and several of his men arrived. Jake shook his head as he approached them. “You two hotshots seem to be keeping me busy lately.”

  Beth stepped out of Antoine’s arms and he felt not only the bereavement of her physical nearness, but her mental connection as well.

  The danger was over and he realized they were back to where they’d been when he’d walked out of her office earlier in the day. He and Michael had managed to save her life, but nothing had really changed.

  The night was endless. They all convened at Jake’s office and statements were taken. Michael was treated and released with a bandage over his wound of courage and Karen was locked up to await trial on kidnapping and attempted murder charges.

  When they were finally free to go, Antoine and Beth walked out of the building side by side. They had scarcely spoken to each other after Jake had arrived and throughout the long hours of interrogation.

  During that time Antoine had reached a painful decision. As she headed for her Jeep in the parking lot he stopped her by taking hold of her arm.

  In the illumination from the parking lot lights overhead he could see the weariness on her face, that faint pulse in the side of her throat and a raw vulnerability that would forever haunt him.

  She pulled away from him, as if his very touch hurt her. He dropped his arms to his sides and fought his need to pull her to him and hold her close, hold her until she no longer fought him, until he’d convinced her of what she meant to him.

  “I’ll be returning to Barajas in the morning,” he said.

  She looked at him in surprise. “I thought you were staying until there was news about Amir.”

  “I’ll leave the investigation in Jake’s capable hands. I haven’t been successful in helping anything. It’s time I go home, but before I leave it’s important to me that you understand that it was real, the emotions I feel for you are real and deep. I told you that I would never marry, but I will carry the memory of you with me for the rest of my life.”

  She studied him for a long moment. “You don’t have to worry about your enemies finding you to get revenge.” The pain in her eyes became sadness.

  He frowned, confused by her words. “What do you mean?”

  “They’ve already gotten their revenge on you. You will forever be alone because you fear what they might do, what might happen.”

  She released a weary sigh. “We all have things in our past, Antoine. Tonight was a perfect example that danger can come from unexpected places and people. You can get hit by a car, or get a terminal illness. It’s what you do with the life you’re given that’s important, not the things you don’t do because you’re afraid.”

  She didn’t wait for his response but instead turned on her heels and headed for the Jeep in the distance. He remained frozen in place as she got into the vehicle and then a moment later disappeared into the darkness of the night.

  At eight-thirty the next morning Antoine and his entourage were at the airport where the private jet was being readied for departure.

  As they waited Antoine turned to Michael. “It will be good to get home,” he said, as if the words themselves would be enough to convince him.

  “I’ve had enough Wyoming to last me a lifetime,” Michael replied.

  Antoine studied the man for a long moment. “Your job has always been to protect me from harm. Why did you risk your life by throwing yourself in front of Beth?”

  Michael met his gaze evenly. “Because I knew how important she was to you.”

  Antoine swallowed around the lump that rose in the back of his throat. He had spent most of the night trying not to think about Beth, telling himself that the best thing he could do was return to Barajas and put his time in this beautiful state of America behind him.

  He needed to forget the woman who had stood by his side through danger, kissed him with a passion that had stirred his very soul and made him think of dreams that could never be his.

  “It’s time to board,” Michael said as one of the men on the tarmac motioned to them.

  Antoine nodded, straightened his shoulders and headed for the plane.

  BETH SAT AT HER DESK IN HER OFFICE and stared out the window. This morning the events of the night before seemed like nothing more than a bad dream.

  Amir was still missing, Karen was in jail and Antoine was now winging his way back to where he belonged. It was time for her to put the last week away in her mind, in a place where it couldn’t be accessed and create any more pain.

  “Easier said than done,” she muttered under her breath. She turned away from the window and looked at the inventory list in front of her.

  For a moment her body recalled every moment of being in Antoine’s arms. Her skin warmed with the memory and a wistful sigh brought the sting of tears to her eyes.

  Funny, but in the brief conversation they’d had in the parking lot at the sheriff’s office, she’d believed him. She’d believed that she had been more to him than somebody to use and then discard at will.

  Even a man as good as Antoine was at manipulation couldn’t have manufactured the look of love in his eyes when he’d gazed at her and didn’t know she saw him. She’d tasted the desire in his kisses, felt the caring in his touch and had finally believed in her heart that he had loved her.

  A lot of good it did either of them. He was a man tied to a tragic past that wouldn’t allow him to move forward, a man who would forever be trapped by what he considered the sins of his father.

  And what had his father done? Simply loved a woman, loved her enough to put his fears behind him and risk everything for that love.

  Time for her to get back to her real life, she thought as
she once again tried to focus her thoughts on the paperwork in front of her.

  Fifteen minutes later a knock was heard on her door. “Come in,” she said. The door opened and for a long moment she stared, mouth agape at Antoine.

  “You can’t be here,” she said in confusion. “You’re on your way back to Barajas.” He looked so incredibly handsome in a military jacket covered with metals and ribbons. He looked every inch the prince that he was and her heart squeezed tight.

  She stood, her legs feeling ridiculously weak. “What are you doing here?”

  He walked over to the window and stared out with his back to her. She held on to the edge of the desk, wondering what was going on, why he was prolonging her agony by attempting to speak to her again.

  When she thought she might scream with anxiety, he turned and looked at her. “I had every intention of returning to Barajas this morning. I got to the airport where my plane was waiting and told myself it was what I wanted to do, what I needed to do. But, when it came time to actually get on the plane, I couldn’t.”

  He stepped away from the window and walked close enough to her that she could smell that dizzying cologne of his, see the silver shards that glinted in his pale blue eyes.

  “I never wanted to rule Barajas. Sebastian is much better suited for the role of leadership. I’ve discovered that I’ve fallen in love with Wyoming. The land speaks to me and whispers that this is the place where I belong.”

  Is this what he’d come to tell her? That he intended to make a home here in Wyoming? In Dumont? God, the idea of running into him at the grocery store, seeing him on the streets was horrifying. How could she forget him if he was right here under her nose? It would have been so much better if he’d gone back to his island.

  “You don’t look happy,” he said.

  She mentally shook herself and pasted on a smile. “I want you to be happy, Antoine, and if you find happiness here then I’m glad for you.”

  His gaze seemed to pierce right through her as he took a step closer. “I’ve also been thinking a lot about what you said to me last night.”