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At the outer gate where the palace grounds met the coastal road she could tell her bodyguards had formed a network around her. You wouldn’t know them for the Castelmarians walking up and down the street. Until she and Lucca divorced and went their separate ways, they would always be with her. It was another thing she had to get used to.
She soon discovered that the palace and grounds bordering the Mediterranean were positioned like the center jewel in Capriccio’s crown. The capitol city itself was sprawled on either side and above. The steep roads zigzagged to dizzying heights where she saw the crowns of several small villages that went to make up the rest of the principality.
With every twist and turn of the road the charming clusters of flower-covered Italian villas and greenery enchanted Alex, who wasn’t used to this kind of exercise to get about. What she’d gleaned from Lucca told her the country derived most of its income from tourism. She could see why. Between its beauty and the perfumed air, this had to be the most glorious place on earth.
Alex paused for a moment to take in the spectacular scenery. No wonder her mother had spent part of her honeymoon here. Who would ever have imagined Alex ending up being engaged to the prince of its ruling family?
It’s all because of you, Mother.
And her father. She couldn’t forget him.
The name “Grigory” had transformed Alex from a commoner to someone Lucca could present to his parents. In her case “a rose by any other name” would not smell as sweet. An accident of birth had made all the difference. Without it Lucca would never have decided to break in on her meeting with Mr. Defore.
Without her mother’s diamonds being facsimiles of the real thing, Alex wouldn’t have created the disturbance that had caught Lucca’s attention in the first place.
Two desperate people from two unrelated worlds colliding in the cosmos at the critical moment in time, for both of them. One minute earlier or later and there wouldn’t have been impact. They would have hurtled on by without the slightest knowledge of the other one.
She swallowed hard. Already it was impossible to contemplate a world without Lucca in it. The realization terrified her, and she started walking faster. Before long she reached the inner district of the prosperous city bursting with boutiques, sidewalk cafés, art galleries, restaurants, souvenir shops and jewelry boutiques. The display of diamonds attracted droves of people milling about from every country in the world.
Alex entered one of the crowded souvenir shops. By the time it came her turn to check out with one of her traveler’s cheques, she’d loaded up with a map of the Principality of Castelmare, a tiny Italian-English phrase book and a picture book on Castelmare’s House of Savoy from past to present printed in Italian. There were photos of Lucca and his family. She couldn’t wait to study them.
Two doors up she spied a restaurant. The delicious smells coming from inside made her realize she was hungry. When she checked her watch, she was surprised to discover it was quarter to eight. With the sun setting later, she’d been deceived into thinking it was much earlier.
Better eat now. No way would she go back to the palace and ask for a meal, but this place was packed. She stood around with her packages waiting for someone to leave.
“Mademoiselle? Signorina? Miss?” a male voice called to her.
For a while she ignored the guy sitting in one of the crowded booths, but he persisted in trying to get her attention. Finally she looked over at him. He was with a bunch of college-aged guys and girls talking and laughing.
The student singling her out could be one of any number of dark-haired Mediterranean types. Obviously there was room for one more in the booth. He stood up and made an extravagant gesture for her to sit down. Soon everyone was beckoning her over.
Why not? She was hungry and tired.
“Thank you,” she said as he took her sack from her and put it under the table by her legs. He had an inviting smile and was just her height.
“Hello,” everyone said with their heavy Italian accents. The friendly crowd proceeded to introduce themselves.
“My name is Fabbio.”
“I’m Alex.”
He frowned. “You have man’s name?”
“It’s short for Alexandra.”
“Ah … very classy.” Alex chuckled. “My English is not good?”
“It’s very good. My Italian’s terrible. Have you eaten here before?”
“Si.”
“What’s that called?” She stared at his meal.
“Pasta.”
She could see that.
“You like?”
“Yes.”
“I get it for you.” He called to the waiter, and before long a plate of hot pasta with potatoes and beans was placed in front of her. While they all conversed in spates of Italian, then English, she ate her dinner. Her first mouthful was so delicious she consumed everything in short order. The five of them shared a bottle of wine. He poured her a glass. “Drink.”
“Thank you very much.”
The fruity flavored rosé served for her dessert. She hadn’t had a glass of wine in years. This was the perfect setting for it.
He pulled a flier out of his pocket. “You want to come?” She took a look at it. Some kind of concert was being held in the city. Before she could turn him down she heard footsteps coming closer, then a deep male voice said, “Bellissima—I’m sorry I’m late.”
The whole restaurant went silent.
Her head whipped around in time to see Lucca standing there in the same clothes he’d had on earlier, but he was wearing sunglasses. A gasp escaped her throat. He was supposed to be with someone else. At least, that was why she’d left the palace in the first place, so he could go to her.
Alex was so shocked to see him here, her mouth went dry. She couldn’t get any words out. Neither could the clientele who had recognized the crown prince and were obviously stunned to see him walk in here of all places.
Before she could credit it, Lucca lowered his mouth to hers in what could only be construed as a possessive kiss, urgently coaxing her lips apart. Caught off guard she welcomed the electrifying invasion of that incredibly male mouth. Her body reeled in response.
Scarcely aware of what was happening, she realized he’d pulled some Euros from his wallet and put them on the table. Still speaking English he said to the others, “Enjoy the concert.”
In a lightning move he retrieved her sack from beneath the table. Her body couldn’t stop weaving from the excitement of his kiss as he helped her to her feet. She smiled at Fabbio. “Thank you for being so nice to a stranger.”
He nodded, still tongue-tied.
Lucca escorted her from the restaurant. A black limo stood parked outside. The net of bodyguards had increased. She thought Carlo gave her a frown before Lucca climbed in the back next to her and shut the door behind him.
Halfway to the palace she couldn’t stand the silence any longer. “Obviously, I don’t know all the rules yet, but was it absolutely necessary for you to do what you did just now?”
“I’m afraid so,” he muttered in an oblique tone. “In three weeks the world will know you’re my wife, but those students will remember that you went into the restaurant unaccompanied and responded to an invitation to sit with them. I’m aware you accepted because there was no other place available, but from their point of view you looked and acted like you welcomed his attention.
“I wouldn’t want the incident, no matter how inconsequential it might have seemed in your eyes, to reach my parents’ ears.”
“Of course not.” She felt sick inside. “I honestly didn’t think. Forgive me, Lucca. I promise it won’t ever happen again.”
He extended his legs and crossed his arms. “It’ll happen again and again because you’re the kind of woman a man can’t forget. From now on, all you have to do when you’re out by yourself for any reason is to remember that you’re already taken. Let the interested party know where he stands before he weaves fantasies about being alone with you.”
“No man has ever had dreams about me.”
“That’s not what one of your bodyguards reported. Apparently the young boy and his friends had a bet to see how long it would take him to bed the goddess standing inside the doorway.”
Her cheeks went crimson. “Then the bodyguard made it up!”
“A lie to me could cost him his job and worse.”
Alex shivered. “It was all a big mistake. I shopped too long and then I got hungry.”
“You could have eaten at the palace. That’s your home now.”
“But I didn’t want to bother anyone this late.”
Instead of commenting, he asked a question. “How did you like your trenette?”
“Trenette?”
“It’s what you had for dinner. Pasta Ligurian style.”
“Oh … I loved it!”
“Bene.”
She darted him a furtive glance. “Your parents will probably hear about my big faux pas and consider me unfit to be your wife. They’d be right!”
“I’ll tell them about it as soon as we get back to the palace, then it won’t matter when they hear it distorted on the news.”
Alex let out a small cry. She was a fool, just like her mother whose antics were made into the news every night of the week.
“Like parasites, the paparazzi live on their hosts. Over the years I’ve learned the best defense is offense,” he explained.
She stared at her hands. “How will you explain about my being in town without you?”
“The truth always helps. I’ll tell them I had a lot of business and you didn’t want to bother me on my first day home. You went exploring in town and stopped for something to eat, unaware some man had his sights set on you. Tomorrow Papa will remind you that you’re not in America now. Mama will laugh and accuse me of being jealous. The whole incident will be forgotten.”
Maybe, but Alex knew Lucca could never be jealous. He would have to be in love with Alex for that to happen.
“Let’s hope.”
He reached for her sack. “I wonder what you bought.”
She was afraid he would laugh. “Touristy things. Didn’t my bodyguards tell you?”
His expression remained impassive. “They’ll only report if you’re in danger.” A sobering thought. “May I see?”
Since he appeared so determined, she didn’t try to stop him. “Go ahead.”
The book came out first. “This isn’t the best history,” he pointed out seconds later, “but it’s not the worst, either.”
“I wouldn’t know, since I can’t read Italian yet. I bought it for the pictures.”
He suddenly lifted his head and gave her a long, unsmiling look. “After the coronation and our marriage, a plethora of new books will appear in the shops. You’ll be in every one of them and every account will say that Princess Alexandra is the most beautiful of all the brides of the House of Savoy.”
Lucca could tell superb lies. She rolled her eyes. “If you insist.”
His laughter helped dissipate her worry that he was upset with her for the second time since their arrival in his country.
He pulled out the next item and thumbed through it. “I approve of your pocket phrase book. It’s how I began to learn English.”
For some reason his comment reassured her.
After scanning the map, he said, “This needs a little help. I’ll fix it when we get back to the palace.” He returned everything to the sack. “I noticed you’re not wearing my pin.”
“No. It’s too precious to flaunt.”
He grasped her hand, entwining their fingers. “You’re my fiancée now. After what you told Regina, I couldn’t very well give you an engagement ring. Wear the pin for me?”
“You mean, all the time?”
“Yes, all the time.”
She sucked in her breath. “If you wish.”
“Is it such a burden?” he whispered.
“Lucca—surely you understand the worry I have about losing it. The stone is irreplaceable.”
“What good is it if it’s never worn?”
“You really feel strongly about this, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
“All right,” her voice trembled.
“Grazie.”
The limo pulled to a stop beneath the north portico of the palace. Lucca cupped her elbow and ushered her inside. They parted company at the second floor.
“Buonanotte, Alexandra.” After pressing a light, unexpected kiss to her parted lips, he strode swiftly toward his parents’ suite. She knew he was on his way to put out a fire the media would have started.
Little did he know the damage he’d done to her at the restaurant. That deeply searching kiss for the crowd’s benefit had fanned the flames of a conflagration growing inside her with no power to contain it.
CHAPTER SIX
LUCCA checked his watch. Five to twelve. Alexandra’s first day of learning Italian with Professor Emilio ought to be over by now. He was retired from the university, but according to Regina, the older man still did tutoring.
He left his palace office on the main floor and hurried up the steps to the third floor where the schoolroom was located, but his excitement dissipated when he opened the door and heard Alex laughing quietly with a man who couldn’t be much older than Lucca.
The sight of the two of them enjoying each other’s company in this intimate atmosphere shook him to the roots, something that hadn’t happened to him before where a woman was concerned.
One look at the tutor’s face and body language and Lucca knew Alexandra had him enchanted just as she’d done that idiot college kid at the restaurant last night. It didn’t take a two-hour lesson for her to work her magic. Lucca ought to know because to his great surprise, it was beginning to work on him.
