Romancing the Crown: Kate & Lucas

What could she say? That she believed he was too stubborn to change, too strong-willed to bend to someone else’s point of view?

Well, she wasn’t wrong. He was still the same man he’d been five years ago. The differences she was noticing lately were minor details. They couldn’t mean anything.

“Did you hear any news when you checked in?” she asked.

“Mmm?”

“On the radio. I couldn’t quite make out what was being said. Any developments?”

His smile faded. He shook his head. “Not really. Someone in sector three is keeping track of a slow-moving trawler, but other than that there’s nothing.”

“Chambers can’t stay hidden forever. It’s only a matter of time before she tries to escape the island again.”

“Yeah.” He looked at his mug for a moment, then drained it in two gulps. “I don’t like waiting.”

All right, that much hadn’t changed. When Sam had wanted something, he’d always gone after it in a straight-ahead take-charge fashion. Sometimes he’d have her half naked before she could blink. Once they had been about to leave the motel room for dinner when he’d reached out to tuck a stray lock of hair behind her ear. His hand had lingered on her neck, then dropped to her shoulder and eased the strap of her sundress down her arm. The next thing she knew the dress had pooled at her feet and his shirt front was rubbing across her bare breasts.

They had ordered Chinese take-out later. Much later.

She sipped her coffee, hoping he didn’t ask why her hand was shaking. “What was your last assignment like?” she asked quickly.

“A lot dryer than this.”

“What do you mean?”

“My team was doing advance reconnaissance. We spent three days in a desert hide.”

“A hide?”

“A camouflaged hole in the dirt. Had to wait then, too.”

“Were you successful?”

“Yes and no.”

“How’s that?”

“Well, we confirmed the supply route for the terrorist group we were sent to locate.”

“That’s good.”

“Sure, but we also stumbled onto a village of goat herders.”

“Goat herders?”

“Or, to put it more accurately, they stumbled onto us. An old woman chasing after a goat walked right over the hide. She spotted the hole where we’d extended the radio antenna and ended up eye to eye with me.” He set down his empty mug and rubbed the back of his neck. “I knew she would raise the alarm if she got back to the village, but if she didn’t go back, someone else would come looking for her.”

“What did you do?”

“What else? We had to cut our losses and get out.”

“Was it difficult?”

He looked at her. “Wouldn’t have been, if the terrorists hadn’t chosen that minute to come to escort their shipment of weapons.”

“What happened?”

“We radioed for the chopper. Made it to the rendezvous with everyone still upright and a whopping twenty-five rounds of ammunition left among us, so it could have been worse.”

“At least you weren’t hurt.”

He remained silent.

She frowned. “You weren’t hurt, were you?”

“The bullet passed through.”

Her mug dropped to the deck, coffee splashing over her shoes. “What!”

He paused, watching her carefully. “Now I know better than to think you might be worried about me, right, Kate?”

“How bad was it?” she demanded. “Was that why you were supposed to be on leave?”

“I never pay attention to doctors.”

He hadn’t really answered her question, she realized. “Sam!”

“It was just a flesh wound.” He twisted to one side to pull up the edge of his T-shirt. “See for yourself.”

She didn’t even think about the impropriety of Sam pulling up his shirt, so intent was she on examining his injury. She focused on the skin on his side. There was a small puckered scab below one rib and a long, shallow red mark angling toward his armpit. The first was an entrance wound, the second was the gash where the bullet had torn its way out. “Oh, my God.”

“It’s almost healed, Kate.”

“You never should have jumped into the water last week to help the Genero boy. You could have torn this open.”

“I wasn’t going to let the kid drown just because of this.”

She touched her fingertips to his side. “Another few inches to the left and it would have hit your heart.”

“Hey, another few to the right and it would have missed.”

“How can you make light of it?”

“It’s really no big deal.” He paused. “But if you like, you can kiss it and make it better.”

Her fingers trembled at his teasing words. She was standing so close. She had already breached the distance between them by touching him. It would be so easy to go further. All she had to do was lean down and she could press her lips to his taut, tanned skin. Rub her cheek across the washboard ridges of his abdomen. Savor the fresh tang of his scent the way she used to when they were lovers…

Slowly she raised her gaze to his. She recognized the expression in his eyes. It had nothing to do with duty. He looked at her mouth, a brief glance that she felt as clearly as a physical touch.

He’d been doing that more and more lately. A lingering look. A flip comment. Small, unmistakable signals to remind her that he was still interested.

She should tell him to stop, but they had worked together well for a week. Technically he was keeping his distance. He wasn’t harassing her. How could she voice an objection without coming across as uptight and paranoid?

At least, that was the excuse she gave herself.

Let me know if you change your mind….

The words he’d uttered more than a week ago echoed teasingly. For a breathless instant she swayed toward him. Her fingers splayed over his side, soaking up his warmth, tingling at the strength that pulsed under her hand.

The radio in the cabin crackled, snapping her to her senses. She snatched her hand away and bent to retrieve her mug. “We’d better get back to work.”

The black car glided smoothly through the palace gates. At the end of a curving cobblestone drive, the sun-bleached stone of the main structure rose from the surrounding greenery. The car eased to a stop in front of a gracefully arching marble portico. Instantly a young man in the black, white and gold royal livery appeared to open the door.

Kate and Sam were ushered past a pair of guards who flanked the palace entrance. She tried not to gawk as she walked inside, but it was impossible to remain unmoved by the splendor around her. Sam had been here before when he’d initially been assigned to this mission, but this was her first time inside the palace. The entrance foyer took her breath away, its marble floor reflecting stately pillars that stretched two stories to the roof. Sunlight streamed in from a hexagonal dome of glass in the center, illuminating the huge room with warm shafts of gold.

“Gets to you, doesn’t it?” Sam asked. “All this wealth and power?”

She nodded. “It’s beautiful, but it’s a little intimidating.”

“It’s meant to be. The Sebastianis know what they’re doing,” he said wryly. “Ruling Montebello has been the family business for centuries.”

“Some family business.”

Sam lowered his voice. “You’re not looking forward to this, are you?”

“Not really.” Kate smoothed her skirt and checked that her cuffs were straight. “It would be different if we had some progress to report.”

“Yeah. King Marcus seems like a reasonable man, though. He probably didn’t order us here to chew us out.”

“He has no reason to. We’ve done our best with what we have.”

“That’s right. But if they try to take us to the basement, I’m outta here.”

“The basement?”

He winked. “The dungeons, remember?”

She gave him a nervous smile. She knew he was trying to ease her tension and she was grateful for his effort. “Very funny.”

“Lieutenant Mulvaney, Lieutenant Coburn, if you would follow me, please? The king will see you in the solarium.”

The speaker was a short man in his early sixties. His gray hair and salt and pepper mustache were neatly trimmed, his expression the blank politeness of someone who had spent his life as a servant. He led them past the grand staircase that rose majestically from the foyer. They progressed through a corridor, their footsteps echoing between rows of gilt-framed oil paintings of Sebastiani ancestors.

Eventually, the marble floor gave way to carpet and the splendor became less formal. It appeared to Kate as if they were leaving the public area of the palace and moving toward what must be the royal family’s private quarters.

She couldn’t understand why they were being shown here. If the king wanted a progress report, shouldn’t they have been meeting in a more official setting?

Their escort halted in front of a set of ornately carved arched wooden doors. Voices drifted faintly from the other side, along with the fretful cries of…a baby.

Kate looked around quickly. No. There must be some mistake. This butler had brought them to the wrong room and—

The doors parted to reveal a blaze of sunshine. The far walls of the room were all windows. Long, lush cream-colored couches and chairs were arranged to take advantage of the view of the garden and the ocean beyond. It was a beautiful, airy room, as splendid as any of the others she’d glimpsed on their route through the palace, but this one was obviously designed for living.

Several people were gathered, including King Marcus and Queen Gwendolyn. No one had noticed Kate and Sam’s arrival. Everyone’s attention was focused on Prince Lucas as he awkwardly tried to comfort the baby who fussed in his arms.

Unconsciously, Kate lifted her hand to the place where her butterfly charm rested under her uniform. She would have preferred being reprimanded for her lack of progress. She didn’t want to be here to witness this. It had nothing to do with her duty.

“Poor bastard,” Sam muttered, dipping his head close to Kate’s. “He still looks like he’s been hit by a truck.”

She and Sam were standing just inside the doors, but even from this distance Kate could see what Sam meant. Lucas’s chiseled, aristocratic features were as tense as they had been a week ago when she’d seen him in the hospital. His dark hair lay in crooked furrows, as if he’d been raking it with his fingers. Although his shoes were polished and his pants were neatly pressed, his tailored shirt was misbuttoned.

“Fatherhood is going to take some adjustment for him,” she said, keeping her voice low so they wouldn’t be overheard. Still, considering the noise the baby was making, nothing short of a shout would be noticed. “Until this last year, when his plane crash and the business with Jessica happened, he was reputed to be a real playboy.”

“He must have enjoyed his freedom.”

“A lot of men do.” She shifted her scrutiny to Sam, unable to stop the past from tangling with the present. “That’s probably why he left, so he could live the life he’d planned.” Like you, she added silently.

“Why would you assume that?” Sam asked. “I heard he had to leave. There were duties he had to attend to. He tried to contact Jessica but she wasn’t at the ranch where they’d met. By the time he sent someone to look for her, it was too late.”

“If he really cared, why didn’t he try to find her sooner?” she challenged. “If he had, it might not have been too late.”

“I wonder why Jessica didn’t contact him when she discovered she was pregnant in the first place,” Sam said. “She should have. He had a right to know.”

“I disagree. He left her to deal with the situation on her own. Why should she tell him?”

“He still had a right to know he was going to become a father. If he’d known—”

“What? He would have gone back for her sooner? He would have ignored his duties just because of the baby?”

“Well, yes.”

Kate stretched to look Sam in the eye, her words a harsh whisper. “No relationship should be based only on a child. Jessica must have realized she would be better off without a man who didn’t love her. She could raise the child alone and give him enough love for two parents instead of making everyone miserable by forcing an instant family on a man who hadn’t planned to settle down. She made the right choice, I’m sure of it.”

Sam glanced across the room, then looked at Kate carefully. “Jessica is dead, Kate. We’ll never know the real story of what went on between her and Lucas. Why are we even having this discussion?”

She forced herself to take a deep, calming breath. She couldn’t tell him the truth. She couldn’t let him know they had been discussing their own past.

There were too many unresolved issues between her and Sam that would have to stay unresolved. That was the only way they would be able to continue their mission…and it was the only way she knew how to cope. “Sorry,” she said. “You’re right. The prince’s personal life isn’t our concern. I have no right whatsoever to judge him.”

Sam brushed his knuckle over her cheek. “I can see you’re upset about this, Kate.”

She wanted to close her eyes and lean into his caress. But that was crazy. It was because of him she was upset in the first place. “It’s a tragic situation, that’s all.” She moved her head back. “I…got carried away.”

“You were always a passionate woman.” He dropped his hand to his side. “Your emotions run deep. That’s one of the things I—”

“Lieutenant Coburn, Lieutenant Mulvaney,” King Marcus called above the baby’s cries as he walked across the room. “Sorry to keep you waiting. I hadn’t realized you’d arrived.”

Kate took another calming breath, trying to bring her emotions under control. What had Sam been about to say? Part of her wanted to know, and part of her was grateful for the interruption.

“We’ve been having a little celebration here,” the king said. “Considering the role you two played in my grandson’s discovery, I thought you might like to be included. Baby Luke was released from the hospital yesterday. He’s been given a clean bill of health.”

“That’s great,” Sam said.

King Marcus chuckled and glanced over his shoulder. “We don’t need a specialist to tell us there’s nothing wrong with his lungs.”

Queen Gwendolyn reached out to take the baby from her son’s arms. “He probably has a sore tummy from eating too fast,” she said. “You were the same way.” She transferred the baby to her shoulder and placed her fingertips over his back. “You need to rub right here. That helps all the little air bubbles find their way upward.”

Lucas put a new set of furrows in his hair with his fingers. “I’m interviewing several nurses later today. I’ll make sure Luke has the best.”

“I’m sure you will, dear. Just remember, babies don’t break.”

“Oh, he’s just the cutest thing, isn’t he?” A petite young woman squeezed past Lucas to stand at the queen’s side. Her dark eyes danced as she reached out to tickle the baby’s chin. “Despite the fact that he looks just like my big brother.”

“The resemblance still amazes me, Anna,” Queen Gwendolyn said. “Except for his sweet little smile, he’s the image of Lucas.”

The baby lifted up his head, looked around and let out a loud, gurgling burp. His cries ceased immediately.

There was a chorus of laughter and calls of, “Well done.” Anna took her nephew from her mother and cuddled him with delight. She gave a warm smile to a tall, auburn-haired man who leaned against the back of a couch. “Are you ready for one of these, Tyler?”

He grinned. “Ready as you are, darling.”

There was another round of chuckles. It was apparent from the gentle swell of Anna’s stomach that soon there would be another royal baby. Lucas backed away from the group, his smile tinged with sadness. He caught sight of Sam and Kate with his father and moved to join them.

“Lieutenant Mulvaney,” he said, holding out his hand. “I’m sorry I didn’t get a chance to thank you a week ago. I’m in your debt for your care of my son.”

Kate was surprised by the strength of his grip as she took his hand. For a royal playboy, he was in excellent shape. “I was only doing my duty, Your Highness. I was merely in the right place at the right time. I’m glad that your son is healthy.”

“Yes, his weight is almost up to normal, and he has a good appetite.” Lucas glanced over his shoulder at the baby. “He’s doing well, all things considered.”

“That’s wonderful.”

“I only wish—” Lucas clenched his jaw on the rest of his words, leaving the statement unfinished. When he turned to face Sam and Kate once more, all traces of his smile were gone. “My brother-in-law, Tyler Ramsey, is advising the police in the land search for Ursula Chambers and has kept us informed of their efforts. How is the search of the coast progressing?”

Sam spoke, giving both the king and the prince an update on the measures that were in place to insure the fugitive didn’t escape Montebello by water. Kate added a few details, wishing she could give them better news. When they were finished, there was a brief silence.

To her relief, the king appeared satisfied with their efforts, giving them a few words of encouragement before going back to his family.

Lucas remained where he was. He turned the full force of his piercing blue gaze first on Kate, then Sam. When he spoke, his voice echoed with the authority inherited through generations of royalty. “I want you to find her.”

“We’ll do our best, Your Highness,” Sam began.

“She killed my cousin,” Lucas said. “And she killed the mother of my child. She wanted to use my son as a pawn in her twisted scheme to get rich. If not for Ursula Chambers, I could have seen the woman I loved hold the life we created.”

There was no mistaking the look of regret on the prince’s face. As Kate listened to the poignant sounds of the royal

family getting to know baby Luke, she saw Lucas’s eyes grow misty.

Whatever problems there might have been between Lucas and Jessica, whatever had kept them apart, Kate shouldn’t project her experience on them. Theirs was a different story from hers and Sam’s. And Lucas was obviously suffering.

“Find Chambers,” Lucas said. “Whatever it takes, whatever you need to do, I want you to get her.”

Sam dipped his chin once in acknowledgment. “Understood.”

“I can’t bring Jessie back,” Lucas said. “But the least I can do is give her justice.”

Ursula sipped her soda, keeping her gaze on the big wrought-iron gates on the other side of the piazza. They swung open as a black car came through. A red-haired woman and a broad-shouldered, good-looking man were inside, some kind of Navy officers judging by their uniforms. Ursula felt a stab of envy. It should have been her in that chauffeured car. Instead of hanging around this tourist-infested sidewalk café, spying on the palace gates, she should have been riding through them in style like those Navy people.

She batted impatiently at a bee that veered toward her soda. This was getting intolerable. An entire week had passed, and still the security at the airport and the ferries was as tight as ever. Didn’t these Montebellans have anything better to do? Why were they persecuting her?

That was the story of her life, though, wasn’t it? She never got a break. She’d had to fight for everything she had, only to have success snatched away through no fault of hers.

If that stupid kid had shown up with his boat when he was supposed to, she would have been free and clear by now. But no, he’d had to wreck his boat, the idiot. It was a good thing she’d been watching from the bluff and had seen the thing tip over or she might have wasted all night waiting for him.

A stocky, bearded figure moved through the gates. Ursula scrutinized him until the man was close enough to be seen clearly. As soon as she recognized the dark hair and fleshy features, she hitched her purse over her shoulder and wove her way through the tables to the cobblestone square. It was about time. She’d been nursing that soda for an hour waiting for him to finish his shift or watch or whatever it is that palace guards called their work schedule.

“Edwardo,” she called.

Edwardo Scarpa lifted his head and looked around.

“Over here.” Ursula paused near the entrance of a shadowed alley and beckoned him toward her with a flick of her fingers.

He smoothed his hair, curling his lips into a smile as he moved closer. “Well, hello, lovely lady. What can I do for you?”

He didn’t recognize her, Ursula realized. It had been a smart move to trim her trademark blond hair to chin length and dye it black. The hat and sunglasses were serving her well, too, especially with men who didn’t notice anything above her cleavage. And there had never been anything subtle about Edwardo. He’d been easy to manipulate before when she’d needed him. A bit of money, a bit of feminine coaxing and the man had been eager to accommodate her. She took off her sunglasses and tucked them into her shoulder bag. “Edwardo, it’s me.”

He lost his smile, his jaw going slack. “You! What are you doing here?”

“Waiting for you, lover.” She smiled and stepped closer, sliding her palm up his chest. “Aren’t you happy to see me?”

He grasped her wrist and dragged her deeper into the alley until they were concealed from the square by the dangling ladder of a fire escape. He gave a quick look around before he spoke. “Don’t you know that everyone’s looking for you?”

Did he take her for an idiot? Why else would she be disguised? She pushed her lips into a pout. “It’s just a big misunderstanding.”

“You’re wanted for murder. I heard the whole royal family wants your head.”

She placed her hand above her breasts, spreading her fingers in a way that would draw attention to her curves. “I know. It’s horrible. That’s why I have to get home. You can help me, can’t you?”

“What? Help you?”

“I need to get out of Montebello. I’m sure that an important man like you could find me a boat.”

“No way. I’m not risking—”

“Please, Edwardo.” She slid her fingers up his chest again. This time she grasped his shirt to make sure he couldn’t get rid of her so easily. “We have something very special between us. I’ve always felt it, haven’t you?”

He glanced over his shoulder, obviously nervous.

Ursula dropped her other hand to his belt, slipping her fingers into the waistband of his pants. Without money to bribe him, she had only one option. “Let’s go somewhere private where we can be more… comfortable, hmm?”

For a moment he wavered, his eyes losing their focus. But then he frowned and shook his head. “I can’t help you, Ursula. If anyone found out, I’d lose my job, maybe go to prison.”

“Nothing will happen to you. All I’m asking is that you find me a boat.” She wiggled her fingers. “I’ll make you glad you did.”

Roughly he yanked away from her touch. “No. I’m sorry. I can’t help you.”

“You did before.”

“That was different.”

“You helped me get into the palace. You were risking your job then, too.” She narrowed her eyes. “You know, if anyone found out about the bribe I gave you, that could get you in a lot of trouble.”

“You wouldn’t tell anyone. You’re wanted for murder. I know you killed the king’s nephew. You saw him that day.”

“And who was it that let me into Desmond’s quarters, Edwardo?”

“I didn’t know you were going to kill him.”

“It doesn’t matter what you thought. If I get arrested for murder, you’ll be arrested as my accomplice.”

“You wouldn’t—”

“If I go down, you go down, Mr. Palace Guard Scarpa.” She watched the realization of his predicament spread across his face. Good. She wouldn’t have to seduce him, after all. Blackmailing him into helping her was better. Actually, it was even more exciting to exert control over a man this way. She preened, enjoying the sensation of power. “So tell me, Edwardo.” She smiled and took his arm. “How soon will you get me that boat?”

Chapter 7

“Two fishing boats and a seventy-foot yacht,” Sam said as he climbed to the sloop’s deck from the cabin. “Sector C is getting busy.”