‘We skipped a whole lot of important stuff, like date nights.’
She eyed him. ‘We’ve known each other for more than a decade.’
He took her hand. ‘A decade where I’ve been trying to deny my feelings for you. I’ve stood on the sidelines and watched you become this incredible woman with endless passion and empathy. A woman I hugely admire. A woman who makes every day worthwhile.’
Her heart about to beat its way out of her chest, she softly whispered, ‘I love you. And I want to be your consort.’
Leading her to their bed, kicking off his shoes, he lay down on the mattress and opened his arms to her. She placed her head against his chest, his hand stroked her hair, and he told her a story of a misguided prince, too scared to love his wife until he found the courage to let her into his heart.
And later that day she stood at his side when he was crowned Sovereign Prince of Monrosa, her heart overflowing with pride and love.
EPILOGUE
GABRIELA’S TINY NOSE WRINKLED. She let out a mewl of protest as the cold holy water trickled down her forehead. But she immediately settled back into her deep sleep the moment Edwin drew her against his chest, a small smile lifting on her pink Cupid lips.
Kara reached out, laid a finger against her daughter’s cheek. How could skin be so soft, so perfect? She shared a look with Edwin, the wonder in his eyes matching her own amazement. After three long years they finally had their much longed-for baby. At times, she had thought it would never happen for them, her arms aching with the need to hold Edwin’s baby.
The cardinal blessed Gabriela and walked away towards the main altar of the palace’s private chapel. Handing Gabriela to her godfather, Ivo, who studied his niece with intense pride and adoration, Edwin took her hand and lead her towards the altar too.
Confused, she turned and looked behind to their families. But they were following behind them. Her mother and father walking side by side, their annual trips to visit her in Monrosa for Christmas and during the summer helping to heal the wounds between all three of them. And now they were united in their adulation for their firstborn grandchild. In front of them, Edwin’s father seemed to be swallowing back tears. He too knew just how desperately they had wanted Gabriela. Retirement hadn’t suited him, but now that Edwin had convinced him to be the island’s environmental ambassador he was thriving in his new role.
Edwin brought her to stand before the cardinal.
Touching his hand to her cheek, he said quietly, ‘I thought this would be a good time to renew our vows.’
Really? She still looked pregnant, her boobs were sore and she sobbed at the drop of a hat. She eyed her husband, her rock, her life, her calm reassurance when yet another blue line would fail to appear, and nodded yes.
He smiled, his eyes pulling her into that private, intimate space they disappeared to when alone.
Then, handing her a white card, his looping handwriting on one side, he said, ‘I thought I should write our vows this time.’
At the cardinal’s invitation he spoke his vows first. Not once did he look down at the card. Not once did he falter in his delivery. He knew the words as though they were etched onto his brain.
When it was her turn, she laughed when Edwin handed her a clean handkerchief embroidered with his initials—he knew her so well—and, swiping away her tears, through a voice choked with love and hope, she spoke the words her husband had written for them both. ‘You are my best friend, my ally, my safe harbour in life. I promise to give you my trust and honesty, my truthful love. I promise to take risks for you. I promise to be always there for you. You are my heart. Dance and laugh and love with me for ever.’
* * *
Look out for the next story in the Royals of Monrosa trilogy.
Coming soon!
If you enjoyed this story, check out these other great reads from Katrina Cudmore
Second Chance with the Best Man
Resisting the Italian Single Dad
Christmas with the Duke
Tempted by Her Greek Tycoon
All available now!
Keep reading for an excerpt from Caribbean Escape with the Tycoon by Rosanna Battigelli.
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Caribbean Escape with the Tycoon
by Rosanna Battigelli
CHAPTER ONE
“YOU SIT HERE and don’t move, Adrien,” Chanelle heard a deep voice say at the table across from hers. She had just been looking out at the coast from the deck of the luxury cruise liner Aquarius, a ship she’d never dreamed she’d be a guest on.
“I’ll be right back with something yummy for the both of us,” the man said with a laugh. “I’ll give you a hint: it rhymes with nice dream...”
Chanelle looked up, curious to see the face that matched the voice. But she only saw the back of the man’s head. And below the golden-brown hair that curled at the ends, a firm neck and muscled shoulders that were distractingly discernible under his turquoise shirt. His perfectly fitting black linen trousers emphasized his strong legs.
Before he turned toward the ice cream machine, a young lady passed by wearing a red bikini and a filmy white cover-up that barely covered anything, and gave the man a big smile. She said something to him, and Adrien’s father stopped to talk to her, giving Chanelle a glimpse of his chiseled profile and groomed shadow. And his quirky smile and narrowed eyes.
Chanelle’s stomach muscles contracted involuntarily, and her pulse quickened, followed immediately by a feeling of guilt for her physical reaction to a guy who was married and yet flirted with other women.
Despicable. And practically in front of his child...
Her attention was diverted by the vroom, vroom sounds of the man’s son as he moved his miniature racing car along the table. Adrien was a cute little boy, with bright blue eyes and short, golden brown hair, the same shade as his dad’s. At one point, he backed the car up and let it go. The car skidded off to the far end of the table, and the boy immediately jumped on his chair to reach across to get it. Chanelle turned in alarm toward his father, but he was now concentrating on filling two cones, the woman gone.
Chanelle’s heart skipped a beat. Adrien was so close to the ship railing... What if he took a tumble over the edge? Her heart leaped into her throat when she saw him begin to straighten, and without any further hesitation, she closed the distance between them in two strides and clasped his arm.
“You need to come down—”
“What exactly are you doing?”
Chanelle heard the deep voice directly behind her. Only this time it lacked the light, playful tone he had used with his son. Before she could react, the child had wrenched himself away and was scrambling off the chair and running to his father.
Chanelle turned to face them awkwardly, feeling a flush bloom across her cheeks. The man had set down the cones and was embracing Adrien with one arm while staring at Chanelle, his eyebrows furrowed above icy blue eyes. “Why were you grabbing him?”
Because you weren’t there, making sure your son didn’t end up losing his balance and tipping overboard, Chanelle wanted to retort.
She felt her jaw muscles tensing. “I wasn’t grabbing him.” She looked at the man steadily, willing herself to sound calm and not defensive. “He had jumped up to get his toy car, and I was worried that he’d lose his balance and fall.” She gazed at the boy, whose face was puckering as he looked at his shoes. “Or topple over.”
“He was in no danger. I had my eye on him.” The man’s eyes narrowed, and Chanelle felt as if she were staring at two brilliant blue laser beams.
Your eye was on a red bikini, she wanted to retort. She felt he
r cheeks fire up as the stormy blue of his eyes intensified.
“I was closer to him than you,” she said, trying to keep her voice steady, “and from where I stood, he looked perilously close to the edge.” Chanelle bit her lip. “Look, I was just trying to protect him. One wrong move and he could have—”
“I get the point,” he said, putting up a hand. His tone lacked its previous gruffness, and his eyes seemed to have softened. “Thank you for your valiant gesture.”
Chanelle’s eyebrows lifted as she stared at the man who was staring down at her. His eyes were a startling turquoise, matching his golf shirt. Gazing at his bronzed features, perfectly shaped lips and a jawline that reminded her of the sculpted perfection of Michelangelo’s David, Chanelle felt an inner jolt. A series of jolts. As her gaze slipped downward, she had the crazy thought that with his looks and build, he should be modeling for a living. The top buttons of his shirt were undone, revealing an inverted triangle of golden-brown hair. When her gaze returned to his face, she started at the piercing intensity of his eyes. She looked away, her cheeks feeling like molten lava. He stepped forward and took his son firmly by the hand. The child lowered his gaze again, aware that his actions had caused concern.
“What is going on here?” A thirty-something young woman with bouncy strawberry-blond hair, and clothes and shoes that screamed designer, approached them and took Adrien protectively by the hand. She threw a concerned look at her husband.
“Nothing to worry about,” he drawled. “I’ll take care of it.”
Chanelle couldn’t help glancing at his left hand. No ring. She almost snorted. No wonder. He obviously preferred to look single... Chanelle’s gaze flew to the petite woman. Did she have any idea that her husband was a playboy?
A rich playboy, from the look of her diamond of at least two carats.
“I’m going to our stateroom. Come on, Adrien,” she said brusquely. She lifted an eyebrow imperiously toward her husband. “Vance?”
“I’ll join you shortly, Mariah,” he said. He released Adrien’s hand.
Chanelle stood by awkwardly as the man’s wife strode past her stiffly, ignoring her completely. When she and her son had disappeared past the automatic glass doors, Chanelle glanced warily at the man. Vance. Nice name. Too bad it didn’t match his character.
He had taken a few steps closer, and his brows were furrowed again. Her nose picked up spicy notes of his cologne. A woodsy and exotic fragrance that reminded her of sandalwood and cedar. Chanelle wondered uneasily if, now that his wife and child were not present, he was about to give her a blast for interfering in their business.
Why hadn’t she minded her own business? The cruise hadn’t even begun, and already she was feeling a surge of anxiety. She took a deep breath, bracing herself for a verbal onslaught.
And then his brows unfurrowed. “Have you considered applying for a job on the ship, watching over the children?” he said with a quirk of a smile, blue eyes crinkling at the corners. “I don’t believe this cruise line comes equipped with a guardian angel.”
Chanelle blinked, distracted by the way the turquoise of his eyes had darkened to lapis and not knowing how or what she should reply. She patted her hair down self-consciously. It had been rather humid in Tampa, and in such conditions, her hair had a tendency to fluff out and get frizzy.
Her emotions at this moment felt just as frizzy, with the unnerving way that he was gazing at her...
“I—I was just trying to prevent a tragedy,” she said, unable to keep the defensiveness out of her voice. She straightened, trying to boost her confidence. She was not going to let this—this womanizer—try to appease her with his charm. How many other women had he referred to as an angel? “And I’m not sorry I interfered,” she added, jutting out her chin.
He stared at her wordlessly for a moment, his eyes narrowing, before shifting his gaze to her engagement ring. His jaw muscles flickered and he seemed lost in thought, and Chanelle had to resist the urge to whip her hand behind her back. Finally he looked up, and pinned her with a curious gaze. “Your fiancé is a helluva lucky guy to have such a caring wife-to-be. He won’t have to worry about your future children, with you protecting them like a lioness.” He gave a husky laugh and then stared at her intensely. “So tell me, since this is a Zodiac cruise, are you a Leo?”
* * *
Vance watched the extraordinarily long eyelashes of the woman opposite him flutter over green-hazel eyes that sparkled like gemstones. Her glossy lips parted briefly and then shut, drawing his eyes to their perfect dimensions—not too thin and not too wide. And from having observed her stature as he approached—or more specifically, the way she fit into her white jeans and fuchsia T-shirt—it was obvious she either worked out or was just born lucky. He watched as she ran her fingers through her lustrous auburn hair, the movement sending a hint of her perfume drifting toward him, a candy-like scent of raspberry and plum...
She blinked at him as if his question were the last thing she had expected to hear him say.
What the hell was he doing? He didn’t really want to know her sign, did he? No, of course not.
Vance wished he could take the question back. It was something he might have asked in a more flirtatious situation. And he had no intention of flirting with this lovely but rather overreactive—and engaged—passenger. He shifted as a couple strode past them. He should have followed Mariah back to the stateroom immediately. And now he had to think of an appropriate way to end this—
“Sagittarius.”
She said it defiantly, her green eyes flashing a silent warning.
He had no choice but to continue this now. “Ah...the Archer,” he murmured. “The healer whose intelligence forms a bridge between earth and heaven.” He raised an eyebrow. “Let me guess. You’re either a nurse or a teacher...or in some kind of caring profession.” He stroked his jaw. “Or I’m completely off the mark and you’re an astrophysicist,” he added with a chuckle.
She wrinkled up her face and rolled her eyes, an attempt—possibly?—to conceal her amusement. A tingling sensation spiraled through him. The dimples that had appeared briefly in her cheeks were charming. Whether he liked it or not, she was igniting feelings that he did not want ignited. He forced himself to come back to earth. “Well, are stars your thing, or what?” he said lightly.
Her lips parted, and she had that look of Why would you even want to know? She gave him a measured glance. “I don’t have time for stargazing,” she retorted, “and my job is much more down-to-earth. With no sparkle or glitter.”
She hesitated for a moment, and her eyes seemed to darken. He caught the slight crease of her forehead before it disappeared.
“I’m a social worker,” she said matter-of-factly. “In child protection.” She took a deep breath, and her eyes seemed to blaze in the late-afternoon sunshine. Her mouth opened slightly as if she were about to say something more but then promptly closed again.
Vance surveyed her flushed cheeks. No wonder she had been so quick to act with Adrien. And he had been too quick to jump to the wrong conclusion, asking her why she was grabbing him... “Protectiveness is in the nature of a Sagittarius,” he said gruffly, nodding.
She didn’t respond, but something flickered in her green eyes before she lowered her gaze.
Vance knew that Adrien hadn’t been in danger, but he could understand that from where she had been sitting, it had looked like Adrien was in a very vulnerable position. And she hadn’t hesitated in reacting...
Something in Vance’s gut told him that if Adrien had tumbled over, this vigilant Sagittarian would have plunged right in after him. He had seen that fierce protectiveness in her eyes as she had quickly reached out to stop him. Vance had no doubt that on the job or not, she saw herself as a champion of children, on constant alert to ensure their safety and well-being.
His gaze shifted again to her hands, where she was unconscious
ly twiddling her ring.
He felt his jaw tensing. “I should let you get back to your—”
Her head jerked up.
“Fiancé.”
Her eyes shot green sparks at him before dropping to her left hand. “Thank you,” she replied stiffly, her voice sounding far from grateful. She tossed her hair back and turned away.
It was quite the mane, he thought, watching the way the sun made her auburn hair look like copper gold. He had a sudden urge to run his fingers through it. And to talk to her longer, despite the voice in his head urging him not to.
“Hey, there,” he called. He waited until she turned around and then flashed her a smile. “I realize I must have sounded harsh initially,” he said. “I apologize. I’m protective, too, when it comes to family.”
Her eyes widened. For a moment she said nothing and then shook her head dismissively. “No need to apologize. I probably should have minded my own business.”
“Well, allow me to at least apologize for addressing you as ‘Hey, there,’” he said, smiling. “I’m Vance. And I’d like to make it up to you by buying you a drink. What do you say, Miss—?”
She blinked at him wordlessly. When a few seconds had passed and she still had not responded, he frowned. “Is something the matter?” Was he imagining it, or was she giving him a look of disdain?
“I don’t have drinks with married men,” she said coolly. “And I believe you told your wife you’d join her shortly...”
Vance blinked, momentarily confused, but before he could reply and tell her he wasn’t coming on to her, she had turned on her heels and disappeared.
Way to go, Kingston. How obtuse to be offering to buy a guest a drink, given that she was engaged and that she had presumed he was married. From the look on her face, it was obvious that she considered him a creep. Shaking his head, Vance headed inside and pressed the elevator button for the ship’s upper level—Deck Thirteen. He glanced at the time on his phone. The cruise director would soon be announcing the emergency assembly drill. All the passengers would be called to make their way to their assigned deck to undergo the required safety routine in the event of an emergency. And soon after that, the ship would set sail.
Best Friend to Princess Bride Page 17
