скачать книгу бесплатно
At least he had the good grace not to stare her in the eyes the way most Americans thought normal. He wasn’t American, of course, but she felt too fragile to meet anyone’s gaze for long. He’d lived in L.A. the entire time she’d been at the palace.
Taller than his brother, she noticed. And broader, too. In the glimpse she’d caught of his face he looked kind.
But she knew only too well that appearances could be deceptive.
“Vanu’s disappearance must have been a terrible shock.” The deep voice hung in the air, since it took a moment for Lani to emerge from her frenzied thoughts to realize he’d spoken.
“Oh, yes. Terrible. He went out late one night—to think, he said—and he never came back.”
She’d lain in bed, shaking with terror, waiting for him to return and “finish the job.” He’d said he would, with that cruel hiss in his voice and a cold gleam in his eyes. The hours had ticked by as she awaited her doom.
Then the sun rose, and the birds started to sing.
“It must be so hard not knowing what happened.” She heard compassion in AJ’s voice. What kind of name was AJ? She didn’t even know his real Rahiian name. No one ever called him by it.
“We still don’t know what happened.” Lani’s mother-in-law dabbed at her eyes with a handkerchief. “But after ninety days—” She pressed a muffled sob into the linen. “A successor must be chosen.”
Lani stiffened. According to Rahiian tradition, the successor would take her as his wife. Presumably the tradition existed to provide protection for the children of royal widows and avoid jostling for succession between children and siblings of the late king. But she didn’t have any children.
“Ninety days… that’s still at least a month away. Who would normally succeed, if the king had no siblings?” AJ asked his mother.
She dabbed at her eyes. “Impossible. The king always has siblings. The ability to bear many children is a Rahiian blessing.” She coughed a sob into her handkerchief.
Lani glanced at AJ, whose brow furrowed with distress. “Mom, don’t upset yourself. Please. We’ll get it all figured out. Don’t you worry.”
He slid his big arm around his mother’s back and rubbed her shoulder. Lani felt a flush of warmth at the kind gesture.
“Thank you, sweetheart.” His mother smiled at AJ. “Why don’t you take Lani out on the veranda for a rest? I’m sure she’s exhausted after the funeral and having to talk with all these people.”
The big man glanced at Lani. She swallowed. She’d rather be here in this frying pan of semi-strangers than alone, in private, with her… future husband.
Surely they wouldn’t make her go through with it?
“Would you like to, er…” He extended his arm, inviting her to take it.
Lani fought the urge to recoil and reached her fingers up to his. His forearm was thickly muscled, not hard and wiry like her husband’s—her late husband’s. Her skin tingled with awareness—or was it terror?—as she slid her arm into his.
He cleared his throat. “Please excuse us.” He nodded to her mother.
“Of course.” His mother’s smile broadened as she no doubt saw her plans moving one step closer to completion.
Lani tried to maintain a neutral expression as they walked slowly across the room together. Did all these people expect her to marry this man? Were they eagerly looking for signs of fresh commitment when her husband was barely cold in his grave?
Technically he wasn’t in a grave at all, since they’d never found a body. Or his boat.
“Sorry about my mother,” AJ murmured as they stepped out into a cool, empty hallway. His voice echoed slightly off the white stone floor. AJ pulled back his arm, and hers fell to her side. A small blue parrot stared at them from his perch in the latticework.
“She’s just doing what she thinks is best.” She glanced at him, trying to gauge his feelings.
“Do you think it’s for the best?” He frowned, and peered at her. His eyes were a warm dark brown, like polished teak.
“I don’t know.” Her voice came out a choked whisper. “I’m inexperienced in these matters.” And not about to defy a thousand years of royal tradition in the face of a Rahiian prince. If he was anything like his brother, he’d let her know his disapproval in the harshest terms possible.
“You’re a grown woman. Do you think it’s natural to marry a total stranger?”
His question embarrassed her. “I only met Vanu three times before I married him.”
“Let me guess, my mom fixed up the whole thing.” He raised a straight black brow.
Lani nodded. Her long hair felt hot on the back of her neck and she wished she could run to her room for a good cry.
And not over the death—or supposed death—of her husband. For herself, and the no-win situation she faced: another unhappy royal marriage, or disgrace and dishonor for refusing it. Tears pricked her eyes and she raised a hand to cover them.
“Please don’t cry.” AJ’s gruff plea rang off the wood-beamed ceiling. “Come on, let’s go sit on the veranda. Some fresh air will do us both good.”
His words were supposed to be funny, since the hall they walked along was open to the gardens, like nearly every room in the sprawling palace. Carved wood cast shade and the high roof kept out tropical rain, but birds and pretty lizards darted freely amongst the ornate columns.
Yet the air itself seemed oppressive, thick with expectation.
AJ Rahia was tall, well over six feet, and her head barely reached his shoulders. Her small steps, bound by the long wrap of her skirt, made her scurry to keep up with his bold strides. He noticed, and stopped to wait for her.
He wore a dark suit, American-style, and must have been hot in the tropical humidity. “Would you like a cool drink?” She lowered her eyes, not wanting him to hear any hint of suggestion beyond mere politeness.
“No, thanks. Listen, it’s not personal. I’m sure you’re a very nice girl. I’ve just got a life in the States. I direct movies—”
“I know,” she rushed. “Your mother is very proud. She watches the whole Dragon Chaser series at least once a month.”
He stopped dead. “You’re kidding.”
“Not at all. She installed a complete home theater system in the old feasting chamber last year for better stereo sound.”
AJ’s eyes widened. “She’s never said a word.”
“She’s a big fan.” Lani couldn’t help the tiny smile that sneaked across her mouth. He looked so totally astonished. “She loves the lead actor, too. She thinks he’s cute.”
“Devi Anderson? Cute!” AJ burst out into a loud guffaw. “I swear, nothing could surprise me more. Well….” His brows lowered. “Except that I’m expected to marry you.”
Lani swallowed. She lifted her hair off her neck and rearranged it down her back, her eyes glued to the floor. Should she apologize for being a burden? It was hardly her fault.
And he might take it the wrong way.
He didn’t look anything like his brother, but that didn’t mean he didn’t share the same twisted soul. That he wouldn’t lash out when she least expected it.
“Sorry, I shouldn’t keep bringing it up.” He frowned and turned away. “It’s just so… ridiculous. And I have a big investor meeting on Tuesday I must get back for.”
A tiny flame of hope lit in Lani’s chest. He really didn’t plan to stay and marry her. He obviously didn’t want to. She should be offended, but instead she felt relief.
Even if she didn’t believe in true love any more, she’d had enough of marriage for one lifetime.
They’d reached the veranda, where big armchairs nestled under palm fronds with a view over the forested Haialia valley. They sat in two chairs separated by a carved-wood table.
“What do you think happened to Vanu?” AJ turned to look at her.
She shrank from his inquisitive gaze. “One of the boats went missing from the palace dock. A small yacht he used to sail sometimes. Some say he might have taken it out. There was a storm that night.” She swallowed. Images of Vanu disappearing into the dark sea crowded her brain.
“If there was a storm the boat could have broken free by itself. They do that quite often. The palace dock isn’t well protected.” AJ wove his long fingers together and looked out over the valley.
“I know, but the island isn’t that big and everyone’s been searching for him for weeks. He must have left.”
She bit her lip. “And he didn’t take a plane. They’re all accounted for.”
“Why did he go out in a storm?” AJ’s eyes rested on her cheek.
Which heated. No one could know the truth. Her marriage was over now and there was no reason for anyone to know that it had been… hell on earth.
She owed that much to her mother-in-law, who’d done everything to welcome her as a daughter and who worshipped and loved her eldest son.
“I think he was restless. Couldn’t sleep.” She fixed her eyes on the horizon, where rainforest haze hung just above the treetops. “He often walked in the gardens late at night. He didn’t sleep much.”
“Yeah. He was like that as a boy, too. It sometimes seemed like he never slept.”
An odd tone in AJ’s voice made her glance at him. His brow was furrowed in a frown. He must miss Vanu, the older brother he’d never see again.
AJ’s face was undeniably handsome, with broad, well-cut cheekbones and a slightly cleft chin. His mouth was wide and friendly. So different from his brother’s pinched, bony countenance.
She’d married Vanu because she had to. That’s what everyone said. What simple village girl—the daughter of a laundress, no less—would turn down a chance to be queen?
She didn’t have a good answer at the time.
“How’s my mom taking it?” AJ’s frown deepened.
“Very hard.” Lani twisted her fingers together. “She cries a lot, and that’s not like her.”
“It’s a terrible thing to lose a child.” AJ rubbed a hand over his mouth. “At least she has you. I know she adores you.”
Lani pushed a smile to her lips. “She’s been so kind to me. Everyone has.” Well, except Vanu.
“So if I take off back to L.A., I imagine you’ll rule as queen.”
Lani sat bolt upright. “Me? I can’t. I’m not royal.”
“You may not have been born royal, but you’re already queen, in case you hadn’t noticed.” Humor danced in his dark eyes.
“Technically speaking, but not really. I’m just a village girl.”
“I thought you were born in New Jersey.” He raised a brow.
“My parents divorced when I was seven, and my mom moved back to Rahiri.” People tried to make more than they should of her foreign birth and the fact that she was half-American. It gave her unusual features and coloring, nothing more.
“You seem more educated than the average village girl.” His penetrating gaze made her belly tighten.
“We have good schools here. Your father saw to that when he was king. Many of our teachers received scholarships to study abroad, and brought their knowledge back to Rahiri.”
“But your father’s a professor, isn’t he?” AJ leaned closer, until his masculine scent tickled her nostrils.
What was he trying to prove?
“Of geology. He encouraged me in my studies, and I was going to read history at the university, but I left my studies when I became queen.”
Vanu hadn’t liked to see her with her head in a book. He said such a pretty head should be completely empty.
“You should start again. Why not?” He shrugged.
“I never had the patience for school. I’m at my best running around on a set.” “You’re happy in L.A.?”
“Ecstatically so. I can honestly say I don’t miss Rahiri one bit.”
“Your mom misses you.”
“I know. That’s why she comes up with so many excuses for shopping trips to Rodeo Drive.” He grinned. “I enjoy her visits and I think she single-handedly keeps the U.S. economy afloat.”
“Is this your first visit to Rahiri since the wedding?”
“Yes. Maybe I should feel bad, but I’m busy and I don’t fit in here.” He pushed a hand through his thick black hair and leaned back in the woven armchair. The heavy muscling of his body was visible even inside his dark suit.
She was still surprised that he hadn’t visited once. And they expected him to become king?
Not very likely. Which meant she was off the hook as his wife.
She blew out a long, slow, silent breath. The sooner he left, the better.
“It is beautiful here, though.” He stared out at the mist-shrouded horizon, a crevice of gold and blue sky nestled between rainforest-covered hills. A toucan flew up into a nearby baobab tree, its bright beak held aloft. “I’d forgotten how beautiful it is.”
His mom’s quest to convince him to stay continued unrelentingly over the following days and nights.
“Here, sweetheart, have some coconut stars.” Her favorite treat hovered under AJ’s nose on their tooled silver platter.
“No, thanks, Mom, really.” After three days of funerary feasting, he wasn’t sure he’d ever be able to eat again. “Did I tell you my plane leaves at 6:00 a.m. tomorrow? “
“What?” Her eyes widened with horror. “You can’t. You’ve barely had time to get to know Lani.”
He glanced around, making sure the woman in question was nowhere nearby. “I’ve spent hours and hours with her. She’s sweet.”
“And she’ll be a good queen, with you as her king.” His mom folded her arms. Her gold bangles clinked together.
“Not possible.”
“Not only is it possible, it is inevitable.” Steel shimmered in his mom’s voice and gleamed in her eyes. “Although it took a tragedy to bring you together, you and Lani are destined to be together.”
