The Reluctant Princess Read online

  She studied his face. Yes, she could see it now. That was what was so familiar about him. The look in his eyes was just like Pellea’s, even though his eyes were blue and hers were dark. How extraordinary.

  “You know she wants you to come home.” He said it softly, as though testing the waters. And he got a quick reaction.

  “Home!” She winced, looking inside, probing her own response. Did it still hurt as badly as it used to? Was the feeling of betrayal healing over yet? Not a chance.

  “That castle will never be home to me again.”

  But to her surprise, her tone came out more wistful than angry. She frowned. Maybe she was softening. She would have to keep an eye on that.

  He leaned back, his narrow gaze penetrating without a hint of sympathy.

  “What keeps you away, Kimmee?”

  She grimaced. It had been a long time since anyone had called her by that childhood nickname. “It’s Kim now, not Kimmee. That name is from my old life.”

  He shrugged. “As you wish.” He raised one dark eyebrow. “The question still stands. I know I’m not the first my sister has sent to find you. Why won’t you come back?”

  It was none of his business, and he probably only wanted to know so that he could use the information against her, but for some reason, she found herself telling him anyway.

  “Come back to what?” she said. “I’ve lived my whole life as part of the Granvilli era. I’ve never been a subject of the DeAngelis monarchy. I never backed the invasion. Ambria has been torn apart by the war between these two factions. The DeAngelis royalty now has the castle in their possession.” She lifted her chin and met his gaze defiantly. “Well, bully for them. I’m with the Granvillis. And I won’t turn traitor and go back to the protection of the castle just to have an easier life.”

  He frowned as though he were trying to understand but couldn’t quite get there.

  “And yet, from what I’ve heard, you helped Pellea hide the DeAngelis crown prince in her chambers, nurturing their relationship. How does that fit into the picture?”

  She flushed. How did one go about explaining all the regrets in one’s life?

  “I’m a romantic at heart. What can I say?” She shrugged. “It seemed like the thing to do at the time.” She shook her head, looking off into the distance, and added softly, “Who knew it would start a war?”

  He didn’t speak for a long moment, watching her. Finally she drew her thoughts back to the present and looked at him again. He was taking a long sip of his hot coffee. She made a face.

  “I see you’re planning to stay up all night tonight,” she said tartly.

  “Not really. Caffeine rarely bothers me.”

  Too cold blooded, she guessed.

  “Does anything bother you?”

  His eyes flashed. “Oh yes, Kim. A great deal bothers me.”

  She leaned toward him, curious. “Like what?”

  He looked at her, seeming to see more deeply into her eyes than people usually did. She pulled back again, uncomfortable at the scrutiny, but he shook his head.

  “This conversation isn’t about me.”

  She shrugged. “I’m just trying to figure you out.” She pressed her lips together, frowning at him with narrowed eyes. “Are you the enforcer? Are you supposed to get a little rough with me? Maybe even apply a few caveman tactics?”

  His gaze was as frosty as ever, and completely impenetrable. His mouth twisted but he didn’t deign to answer her charge. Her heart began to thump in her chest. He wasn’t denying it. Just how far was he prepared to go? She hoped she wouldn’t have to find out.

  “Did Pellea send you as a last resort?” She leaned forward again, staring into his eyes and adding coolly, “Are you really as mean as you look?”

  His eyes flickered with a flash of surprise, which he quickly quelled. “I prefer the term professional,” he muttered crisply.

  Her eyes widened. “As in professional hit man?” she whispered.

  His handsome face registered a quick sense of outrage, colored by a hint of disbelief. “Oh, for God’s sake…”

  “No.” She put up a hand as though to stop him. “I don’t think I’m being ridiculous. Pellea seems to be relentless. Why shouldn’t her emissary be the same?”

  He felt insulted by her charge, that much was plain. “I like to think I’m a reasonable man with logic on my side,” he said through gritted teeth. His gaze narrowed. “I’m hoping to avoid strong-arm tactics.”

  “Oh. How comforting.”

  He looked as though he would like to give her a good shake, but he controlled himself. “Let’s get back to the point.”

  She could tell her eyes were sparkling at him. She was actually enjoying this in a way. He’d started out thinking he could bully her, and now she had him tied up in conversation not of his own making. Ha!

  She sparkled at him some more. “Back to things that bother you. I’ll bet you hate all of my favorite things.”

  He was beginning to look bewildered. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Let’s give it a try. How about these?” She pretended to be thinking. “Snowflakes on noses and whiskers on kittens.”

  A shadow flitted through his gaze and she couldn’t tell if he was annoyed or amused.

  “It’s raindrops on roses,” he said in a growl. “And why would they bother me?”

  “I don’t know.”

  She hid her amusement carefully, though she knew her eyes were a dead giveaway. He’d admitted he knew those lyrics and that just made her want to laugh out loud.

  “You just seem like a bit of a Grinch. On the surface, I mean.”

  A look flashed on his face that surprised her. She’d hit a nerve. Or something. But he covered it up quickly enough.

  “The fact is, I like whiskers on kittens as much as the next man,” he said gruffly.

  “Which means not a whole lot.” She gave him a cynical look.

  He threw out a hand as though asking for a witness to her nonsensical talk. “So now you’re anti-men?”

  “Not really.” She shook her head. “Just mean men.”

  “I’m not mean.” He glanced up quickly, realizing others could hear his raised voice, and he moderated his tone as he looked her in the eye, and then forced himself to relax. “Okay, so maybe I’m a little…hard. A little serious.”

  He appeared uncomfortable with the topic and she hid a smile. It was pretty obvious he wasn’t used to letting the conversation go off on a tangent he hadn’t initiated.

  “Just another way of saying mean,” she said, just to needle him. “I’ll bet you’ve never made a superfluous gesture of pure romance in your life.”

  “I…” He stopped himself, swearing softly and shaking his head as he looked at her with exasperation. “How the hell did we start down this road?”

  She shrugged. “Just saying.”

  “Back to the subject. Again.”

  She looked innocent. “And that is?”

  “You.” He leaned back, pinning her with his intense gaze. “Going back to the castle. Reuniting with your family.”

  “My family.” She grimaced. “And who might that be?”

  The anger was back in his eyes, the accusations. A chill went down her spine. She knew something was coming, something she wasn’t going to like.

  “Are you still with Leonardo?” he asked, his voice low and menacing.

  The name made her jump, and she blinked rapidly. She hadn’t expected that one.

  Leonardo Granvilli was the current leader of the rebel regime which had ruled the island nation of Ambria for over twenty-five years. He and his forces had only recently lost their power when the DeAngelis royal family retook most of the island,
leaving the Granvilli faction a small section to the north, including the mountain city of Tantarette, where Jake had found her. Here was where the remnants of the Granvilli army and the civilian refugees had gathered, their dreams of glory ground to dust.

  “Leonardo?” she asked, stalling for time. “Why would I be with Leonardo?”

  His lip curled. “Because he fathered your baby.”

  She swallowed hard. She hadn’t realized that was common knowledge. “You don’t know what you’re talking about,” she told him, her voice ringing with confidence even though her fingers trembled.

  “I know enough.”

  “Do you actually know Leonardo?” she asked quickly, before he could say anything else. “I mean, have you personally talked to him?”

  “Yes.”

  She studied his eyes. They were cold as a winter’s day on the river. That thread of fear she’d thought she’d conquered was back.

  “They say to know him is to love him,” she said softly, just probing a bit.

  His eyes flashed one unguarded spark of anger and his lip curled. “They lie.”

  She almost gave a nervous smile. They could certainly agree on that, but she wasn’t going to tell him so.

  She glanced around the café. Except for one man sipping soup by the window and an elderly couple just finishing up their meal, they were the only ones in the place.

  “Aren’t you afraid of being recognized? You’re on the wrong side of the boundary line.”

  “No one knows me here. I never spent much time in Ambria before the war.”

  “A stranger in a strange land,” she murmured.

  “There’s only one person I know well over here,” he said, watching her eyes. “Leonardo Granvilli. He and I have a history that goes way back.”

  Her mouth went dry. There was something chilling in the way he’d said that. She tried to remember if Leonardo had ever mentioned Pellea having a brother, but she couldn’t come up with a thing. It wasn’t that she didn’t believe him. It was more that she hoped he was lying so she wouldn’t have to care.

  She glanced down at the empty plate the pie had come on. The waitress hadn’t been back to take it away. She had a twinge of nostalgia for the few moments when they had first arrived, when it almost seemed they might be able to have a normal chat. That was gone now. The sense of his leashed antagonism was palpable. He despised her. She had to get away from him.

  “Listen, we’re wasting time,” he said bluntly. “Here’s the deal. I’m taking you back. Pellea needs you and I promised her I wouldn’t come back without you.”

  The man was direct. Painfully so. There was no warmth, no humanity to him. Except for the superficial likeness, she could see nothing of Pellea there.

  She shook her head as he spoke. “No.”

  “You have no choice any longer. The game’s up, Kimmee—or Kim, as you prefer. Everyone knows the truth now about who you really are. It’s your duty to come back.”

  “Who I really am?” She stared at him blankly. “What are you talking about?”

  His mouth twitched impatiently. “The last messenger Pellea sent must have given you a hint. You’re a DeAngelis. The youngest of your generation. Last of the royal babies. Sister to Monte and all the rest.”

  For a moment, she thought she’d heard him wrong. Then she wondered if he were joking. Finally, as the look in his face and the tone of his voice began to sink in, she realized he really meant what he was saying.

  And suddenly, she felt as though she couldn’t breathe, and would probably never be able to breathe again.

  This couldn’t be happening. It was too bizarre. But she knew she had heard something like this before. The last one who’d come looking for her had babbled the same words, but she hadn’t paid any attention. She knew they would do anything, say anything, to get her to come back, and she hadn’t bought into it. She knew who her mother was. She’d been born in the castle to Queen Elineas’s favorite lady-in-waiting a week before the Granvillis overthrew the DeAngelis monarchy. Everyone knew that.

  Didn’t they?

  But where that last messenger had been easy to dismiss, this one wasn’t. He didn’t seem like a man who did much kidding around.

  She shook her head harder, feeling sick. “No. Someone made that up. There’s no truth to it. It’s ridiculous.”

  He gave her an incredulous look. “Are you trying to tell me you’re ready to reject a place in the royal family? Are you really that reckless?”

  She was trembling. Her teeth began to chatter. He was telling her what he believed to be the truth. She could see it in his eyes. But it couldn’t be true. To believe what he was saying would be to smash everything she’d depended on as reality for her whole life. It was too much.

  “It can’t be done, Kim. Once you’re royal, you’re royal. It’s a very exclusive club, but you can’t resign from it. There’s no opting out. You’re stuck with it.”

  She put her hand over her mouth and started to slide out of the booth. “I…I’m going to be sick,” she mumbled to him as she hurried toward the bathroom.

  He watched her go, then shook his head and picked up his coffee mug, draining the last of it.

  And that was why it took him a moment to realize something wasn’t adding up. He frowned, turned his head, and uttered a very ugly oath as he leaped to his feet.

  Kim hadn’t made it into the bathroom. Obviously, that had never been her destination. Instead, she’d headed out the door and was now running as fast as she could for home.

  CHAPTER TWO

  KIM ran down the alley and then cut in to take a short cut through a vacant lot. She hadn’t lived in that area long but she had taken Dede on enough baby carriage rides through the neighborhood to know a thing or two. She was running hard, but carefully. The snow was coming down harder and there were patches of black ice. She didn’t want to slip.

  Her heart was thumping in her throat and the air stung her lungs. Whatever she did, she couldn’t lead him back to the building where her rooms were.

  Jake Marallis terrified her. The others had been easy to brush off. He had no intention of being brushed. He had the cool, clear gaze of a man who thought he knew the truth, and that was one of the scariest things in the universe. He was hard. He was unrelenting. And that was why she had to make sure he never found her again.

  The things he had told her were jarring, even chilling, and definitely uncomfortable. She didn’t want to believe them. She wasn’t going to believe them. Why should she? And even if they were true, she didn’t want to do anything about it.

  “Just leave me alone,” she moaned to herself as she ran. She doubled back, finding another alley that he would never see in time. She headed away from the main street, hoping to lose him in the tangle of tiny dead-end lanes.

  Then she would double back, grab Dede and go.

  Go where? That was a question she couldn’t deal with just yet.

  She planned to go in the back entrance of her building, but only once she’d made sure he wasn’t right behind her. Then she would take the stairs up to her rooms, being careful not to turn on any lights that might catch his attention, and she would pay the babysitter to stay on for an hour or so more, just to make sure he didn’t see her leave. Yes, that was it. If she was very cautious, it should work.

  She’d been running so hard, she couldn’t breathe. She had to stop, leaning against a building, to catch her breath so she could make the final race count. For the first moment, she couldn’t hear anything but her own ragged breathing. But as her breath caught up, she heard something else. Someone else was running across pavement. It had to be him.

  Panic flared in her chest and she took off again. Her building was just ahead. She’d barely rounded the last corner when she heard a terrible sou
nd, stopping her in her tracks. A car was skidding, probably on an icy patch. There was a crash, metal on stone, and then someone cried out. She heard the car backing up, then racing off, metal falling from it as it went. But there was no more sound of running feet.

  She stood very still, holding her breath and saying a little prayer. “Please, no, don’t let it be that.”

  A male voice groaned in the distance and her heart sank. It looked like her prayer had not been answered. There was a very good chance that Jake had been hit by a skidding car.

  What now?

  She listened for another few seconds. Would another car stop? Would someone run to his rescue? But she didn’t hear any more cars. The whole area had an eerie silence to it, like a ghost town, as though the snow were blanketing all evidence of human activity. There was no one there…no one to come to his aid.

  She stood very still, but her mind worked frantically. Could she leave him there? Could she run on home and try to find a phone and make an anonymous call to the police? Or the hospital? Could she really do that? How long would it be before they finally came to find him?

  All night, probably.

  She heard something else, like metal being moved, and then a gasp, as though he were trying to get up and was in pain. She looked around at the darkened buildings. Didn’t anyone hear him? Wasn’t anyone going to run down to see what had happened?

  By now she was almost sure it was Jake. And he was hurt. Really hurt.

  And she knew, heart sinking, that she couldn’t just leave him. She was scared to death of the man, but she couldn’t let him lie in the street after being hit by a car. She had to go back. He was Pellea’s brother. She would have to deal with the consequences later.

  She waited another moment, hoping against hope that she would hear someone going to see about him. But there was no one. She was going to have to do it.

  Taking a deep breath, she turned and hurried toward where the noise had been coming from.

  She saw him right away. He’d pulled himself out of the street and up onto the curb, but he looked in bad shape. There was a bloody scrape across the whole left side of his face and the set of his left leg looked awkward. As she reached him, he looked up with hugely dilated eyes and didn’t seem to recognize who she was.