Kitabı oku: «The Blacksheep Prince's Bride», sayfa 2
Even if she hadn’t already known, the incident earlier had proven she was strongly attracted to Jake. She’d almost pushed up on her toes and kissed the man…right there in front of Sammy.
Her stupid attraction was the reason she didn’t believe he was guilty. She didn’t want to believe it. That, and the unhappy realization that finding Jake guilty—a man who loved his son so much—would leave Sammy fatherless.
Concentrating wasn’t going to be easy. When she’d felt his obvious reaction to her lying on top of him, all she could think of was wiggling her way up his body and planting her lips on his. Thank God he’d held her in place. Though she’d enjoyed the intimacy of his hands on her derriere, the caress had distracted her long enough for her to pull her wits together and stop.
Who knows what would’ve happened if he hadn’t?
He wanted her. That was plain enough. After he’d pulled her to her feet, he’d almost kissed her. She was as certain of that as she was of her name.
But he didn’t want to want her—and his sarcastic question had told her why.
You’re never forward, are you, Miss Wilde?
He didn’t trust her because of her reputation.
Rowena’s nails dug into her palms.
How long would Prince Heinrich’s duplicity haunt her?
She’d given her heart to the royal rake from Leuvendan five years ago. He’d visited often back then, wooing her passionately. But when she wouldn’t sleep with him, he became angry and told everyone that she had anyway, giving them ugly, nasty details from his sick imagination.
That incident, it seemed, had branded her for life. Edenbourg—especially the palace—was a small place. Everyone knew everyone else’s secrets…and never forgot.
Many men who came to Edenbourg wanted to date her—either despite her reputation or because of it. She went out with some of them, mostly to keep Isabel happy. But she never slept with a single one—partly to prove she was not the wanton everyone thought her, partly because she just didn’t want to.
However, her celibacy didn’t help. A few of the men were too honorable to talk about their relationship, but most were too egocentric to let everyone think the woman who slept with everyone else wouldn’t sleep with them.
She couldn’t win.
Although…
In this situation, perhaps her undeserved reputation would protect her. She was far too attracted to Jake. Though good fathers weren’t often rakes, he was still royal. At least, close enough to count.
She’d promised herself that she’d never fall in love again…but especially not with a royal, or any man with a title. They were too self-absorbed, too accustomed to getting their own way.
So, let him believe she was “forward.”
As for her, she had to focus on the task she had to perform for her country, for Isabel.
It didn’t matter that the task came with shoulders as wide as the horizon, sky-blue eyes capable of peering all the way into her soul, and chiseled lips that demanded, “Kiss me.”
Those lips might also be capable of saying, “Kill him,” to some thug as he looked a king straight in the eye.
Rowena shivered.
She hated this house. It was always cold.
Chapter Two
Later that evening, Jake held Sammy’s door open for Rowena.
She tiptoed out and waited for him to close it softly.
He turned and looked down at her in the dim light of the hallway. Though they hadn’t been in the same room since dinner, he’d felt her presence in the house all evening. A subtle awareness, a whiff of her lingering scent, a trill of laughter from another end of the house.
He was aware of her now, intensely, as he’d been while they’d put Sammy to bed.
“Goodnight, Mr. Stanbury,” she said with a nervous smile, then turned to leave.
“It’s only eight-thirty,” he said quickly, reluctant to let her go. “Surely you’re not turning in so early?”
She lifted a slender shoulder. “I have a book in my room.”
He waved a hand toward the stairs. “I’m going to work in the library. You’re welcome to read down there.”
She glanced toward the stairs, then back at him. Her eyes zeroed in on his lips, as if she were remembering the kiss they’d almost shared that afternoon.
He hadn’t been able to think about anything else all evening. And if she came with him to the library, he wouldn’t be able to concentrate on his work.
Why had he asked her?
Because he didn’t want to concentrate on his work. The zing in his blood, put there by the presence of this small woman, was infinitely more interesting than international trade briefs.
“No, I shouldn’t.” Her words sounded breathless.
He should just let her go, but he couldn’t. “Why not?”
She seemed surprised that he pushed it. “It’s just not a good idea.”
Let it go, Jake. Let her go. “Why not?”
She frowned at him. “Because you’re a prince and I’m a servant. That kind of…fraternization is frowned upon.”
“Perhaps a hundred years ago, but not today.”
“We don’t do things here the way you do in the United States. Here, we treat our royalty like royalty.” She squared her shoulders. “Besides, I want to concentrate on my book. I think I’ve guessed who the murderer is and he’s about to be revealed. So goodnight, Mr. Stanbury. Have a pleasant evening.”
She spun on her heel and walked down the hall to the next room, which was now hers. He watched her every stiff step of the way.
Just as she opened the door, he said, “It’s Jake, Rowena. Remember that.”
At his words, she hesitated just long enough for him to know she had to make herself go into her room.
When her door closed with a loud click, he headed down the stairs.
“Daddy! Guess what?”
Rowena glanced over her shoulder as she reached for the coffeepot…and caught her breath.
Tousled and unshaven, Jake stood in the kitchen doorway, staring at her blankly. “Oh. Rowena. I forgot…I heard noise down here and thought Sammy was trying to make breakfast himself. Mrs. Hanson only cooks lunch and dinner.”
He was dressed only in pajama bottoms. Since they weren’t rumpled, Rowena knew that he’d thrown them on to rush downstairs…which meant he slept in the nude.
She swallowed with difficulty. That was a little too much information for her comfort zone.
Her gaze wandered over the light mat of dark hair covering his broad, well-defined chest. “I…” She had to swallow to open her suddenly constricted throat. “I know.”
The only place she’d ever seen such a beautiful body on a man was in the pages of fashion magazines. Edenbourg’s rocky beaches were not exactly a mecca for sunbathers.
“Guess what, Daddy?” Sammy held up his plate. “Ena made me waffles. Booberry.”
“She did?” Jake frowned at his son, who had syrup all over his hands and mouth, then glanced up. “I usually fix breakfast.”
“I know.” Rowena couldn’t manage a more coherent answer. She could barely manage to breathe.
Though his eyes were slightly red and his hair hadn’t been combed, Jake was the sexiest man she’d ever seen. Or was it because of his dishabille that he was sexy?
“Nothing this fancy, though. These look good.” Jake picked a bite of waffle from his son’s plate. “Oh yeah. These are great.”
“I know.”
“I usually just fix toast or something.”
Jake licked the syrup from his fingers, and Rowena couldn’t stop her eyes from following the movements. Her hands clenched, and she wondered what would it feel like to lick the sweetness off those long fingers herself. “I know.”
“Or fry up some toad tongues.”
“I—”
“Ewwww, Daddy!”
Rowena’s attention snapped back into place like a stretched rubber band…with the same sharp sting.
Jake leaned over Sammy, looking at her with one eyebrow lifted.
What was wrong with her? Never in her life had she had a thought like that. Lick syrup off a man’s fingers? What was she thinking?
The worst part was—Jake’s smile said he knew exactly what she’d been thinking.
Damn.
“Or lizards’ gizzards.”
Sammy giggled. “You do not!”
“Or—”
“I get it.” Rowena fought the urge to touch her blazing cheeks. She’d been caught staring. She’d been around the palace long enough to know how rude—not to mention how dangerous—staring at a man was. She could either apologize or change the subject. “Would you like some coffee?”
“Coffee?” He grinned knowingly, but took her bait. “Sure. Does it come with a waffle?”
She relaxed. “If you like. Plain or—”
“Any more booberries?”
Rowena smiled. She could certainly see where Sammy got his sense of fun. “If you like. But I have to warn you, they’re not fresh this time of year. They’re frozen.”
“Doesn’t matter to me. They taste good in the waffles.” She smiled as she poured him a cup of coffee, pleased by his compliment. “How many would you like?”
“Is two too many?”
“For a growing boy like you? I don’t think so.”
“Growing boy?” Sammy asked. “Daddy?”
Jake tousled his son’s hair and began pulling out a chair to sit down. “With many breakfasts like this, I’ll be doing plenty of growing…sideways.”
Rowena cleared her throat. “Two waffles will take me just long enough for you to shower and put on some clothes.” She placed the coffee in his hands. “You can take this with you.”
“Black?” He glanced up from the mug. “I like my coffee sweet.” He grinned. “Just like I like my—”
She cut him off. “Sugar is on the table. There’s cream in the icebox.”
“—waffles.”
Her eyes narrowed. What was he doing? Flirting with her? And what had last night been about? Read with him in the library? Sharing the space like a married couple?
“I’m sticky,” Sammy announced, drawing both their attention. “I’m gonna wash.”
Rowena pushed away from the counter. “I’ll come with—”
“No, Ena.” He paused at the door, placing his sticky hand on the jamb. “I’m a big boy. I do it.”
She watched her charge desert her.
“His third birthday is still three months away,” Jake said. “So he’s just beginning to make it out of the terrible twos. He’s as stubborn as…” He grinned. “…his dad.”
Uneasy alone with Jake, Rowena picked up a washcloth and walked over to wipe the syrup off the doorjamb.
Jake turned toward the icebox. “I’m sorry if I shocked you. I just couldn’t resist teasing. You seemed so surprised to discover that I have a chest.”
So he was teasing, not flirting. Thank God.
“I was…a little,” she admitted, but wouldn’t admit to herself even a trace of disappointment. “Men don’t wander around the palace half-naked, as a rule. Especially not the royals.”
Jake pulled open the door of the icebox—it had probably been bought when they still called them that—and reached inside for the cream. “How long have you worked there?”
“Since I was nineteen. Seven years.”
He poured a heavy dose of cream into his coffee. “Have you worked for Isabel the whole time?”
Rowena nodded. “I dreamed of working in the palace since I was little. Isabel needed a lady-in-waiting when she turned twenty-one, and my father knew someone on the palace staff who got me an interview. We clicked immediately, and I’ve been with her ever since.”
He heaped three teaspoons of sugar in his coffee and stirred thoughtfully. Without glancing up, he asked, “Any…fringe benefits?”
“Like what? Insurance? Paid vacations?”
His eyes were narrow when he looked up. He stared at her for a long moment, then shook his head. “Never mind. Do you like the job?”
“Of course I do. Isabel has become a good friend.”
“Then why are you here?”
Rowena walked back to the sink to rinse out the dishcloth. She’d known this question was coming and had a ready answer. “I’m here because Sammy needs someone to take care of him. Someone who’s around more than the occasional sitter. Isn’t that why you asked for a nanny?”
“Yes…but why you?”
“There is a distinct shortage of qualified nannies in Edenbourg. Even baby-sitters, for that matter. Our unemployment rate is so low that our daycare workers are paid much higher than those in the States.”
“And just what are your qualifications?”
“You didn’t ask Isabel when she suggested to you that I come?”
“Answer the question, please.”
“Yes, Mr. Barrister.” She raised a brow to let him know she recognized his arrogance. “I worked in child care during secondary school. And…” she shrugged “…children seem to like me.”
“Sammy certainly does. I’m amazed at how much you’ve brought him out already.”
“Then why are you worried?”
Jake shrugged and took a sip of coffee. “I’m his father. It’s my job.”
She sighed. “I’m here because I like children. I really do like Sammy. And Isabel asked me to help, since you might be here a while. I’d do anything for her. She’s as dear to me as a sister.”
“I might be here a while.” Jake pounced on her offhand comment. “Why? Because I’m guilty?”
Rowena could’ve kicked herself. “Guilty of what?”
“Of kidnapping the king.”
The lawyer in Jake was definitely showing. Blunt, and to the point. “Did I say that?”
“Do you think it?”
She studied him across the oak table, and decided she could be just as blunt. “Are you?”
“No,” came the quick reply.
Rowena was amazed. Not because he denied it, because she believed him. “Then you don’t have anything to worry about, do you?”
“I’m not a citizen of this country, and evidence can be manufactured.”
She waved his concern away. “Edenbourg is not a third-world country ruled by a despot. We may have dungeons in our castles, but they haven’t been used in at least a hundred years.”
“But you—”
“I was told you’re working with Prince Nicholas on the revised trade agreement with the European Union, and that’s why you’ll be here a while.”
He did not look convinced. “You and I both know—”
“All clean.” Sammy held up his hands as he appeared in the doorway.
Rowena brightened with more relief than pride in Sammy’s accomplishment. “Great job. Want to help me fix your papa’s waffles?”
“Oh boy! I mash booberries, ’kay?”
Rowena dragged the step stool so Sammy could reach the counter. “Well, we don’t mash them. But you can pick out the best ones.”
The next time she glanced toward the door, Jake was gone.
Two days later, Jake settled back against the stone railing of the terrace overlooking the palace gardens and crossed his arms over his chest. He adopted this body language a lot, he’d noticed, when he was in the company of his father and brother.
He usually made a conscious effort to uncross everything, but within a few moments, something else was crossed.
“Jake, you’re not listening,” Edward Stanbury said.
Jake stifled a sigh. His father was as bad as his two-year-old, wanting attention focused on him at all times. The only problem was, his father was fifty-five. “Yes, I am. You’re agreeing with Luke that we shouldn’t support Nicholas’s position on the immigration clause.”
“You let a foreign underclass in,” Luke sniffed, “and you open yourself to all kinds of criminal activity.”
“That’s not necessarily true. Meanwhile, with an economy as strong as Edenbourg’s, menial jobs go begging for workers.”
“Yes, but what happens when the economy weakens?” his father argued. “Once you let these people in, it’s harder than hell to boot them out again.”
“And if you don’t have jobs to give them, you have to support them.” Luke lit a cigarette and blew the smoke in Jake’s face. “They’re a liability any way you look at it.”
Jake didn’t flinch against his brother’s stream of smoke. He’d learned a long time ago it was best not to let Luke know he was getting under his skin. “They’re not always a liability. Having a full workforce will strengthen the economy, so it doesn’t get weak. Right now, Edenbourg is begging for workers in the lower-paying jobs. It’s worse here than in the States because, as a rule, Edenbourg citizens have a higher level of education.”
“You always were soft on…” Luke’s attention focused on something behind Jake. He whistled lecherously. “Now there’s something that’s not a liability…in any country.”
It had to be a sexy woman. Jake glanced over his shoulder. His brother was too predictable.
A woman was bent over a child at the edge of the small pond about a hundred yards away, giving them a view of a well-rounded rear end.
“Damn, they grow ’em right over here, don’t they?” Luke tossed down his cigarette. “I think I should go show that sweet young thing just how friendly Americans can be.”
The woman straightened then, and the sun glinted off deep red highlights in her dark hair.
Rowena.
Jake grabbed his brother’s arm. “That’s Sammy with his new nanny.”
“Well, I’ll be…” For once, Luke didn’t finish his vulgarity. “No wonder you’ve been antsy to go home the last couple of nights.”
“Isn’t that Princess Isabel’s lady-in-waiting?” Edward asked. “What’s her name?”
“Rowena Wilde.” Jake released his handful of Luke’s pinpoint cotton shirt. “And the reason I go home at night is to spend time with my son.”
“Yeah, right.” Luke grinned. “So when are you going to invite your father and brother home for supper? Is she a good cook, as well?”
“As a matter of fact, she—” Suddenly, Jake stiffened.
Rowena and Sammy were disappearing around the end of the pond, heading for an arbor swing on the other side. From his vantage point above the gardens, Jake could see something Rowena couldn’t.
Hidden by a hedgerow and running straight toward them was an enormous mastiff.
“What’s wrong?” Edward asked.
“Sammy’s afraid of dogs.”
Jake bolted down the terrace and took the endless layers of stone steps three at a time. Heart pounding in dread, he vaulted over rose bushes and blasted through a hedge. Still, it took several minutes for him to reach the pond.
When he did, what he saw was so far from the bloody, screaming carnage he expected to see, he skidded to a halt.
Rowena knelt on the ground next to Sammy. The dog sat facing them, tongue lolling, his huge paw lifted and placed in Sammy’s hand by Rowena.
His little boy, who’d always been terrified of dogs of any size, was giggling. Actually giggling.
As Jake gaped, Rowena lifted her gaze and her beautiful smile widened. “There’s your papa.”
Sammy dropped the dog’s paw as he turned. “Daddy, guess what? See my doggie? His name’s Boo-Boo.”
Finally able to move, Jake walked over and knelt beside his son. He casually patted the dog’s head. “Yes, indeed, Sammy. I do see the dog. Boo-Boo is a very nice dog.”
“His name is Booten Sebastian Cabot the Fourth,” Rowena said with a laugh in her lilting voice. “But that’s a bit much for a little mouth.”
Sammy mimicked his father by stroking Boo-Boo’s head. “Good doggie.”
“How did you manage this?” Jake couldn’t keep the amazement from his voice. “Sammy’s always been…a bit leery of dogs.”
“This brave little man?” She gave Sammy a hug. “He just needed to see how much dogs are like we are. All they want is a little love.”
Boo-Boo butted her arm with his nose.
Rowena laughed and scratched the dog behind his ears. “All right, a lot of love. Isn’t that right, you big old baby?”
“Big baby!” Sammy cried, laughing. “Isn’t he, Daddy?”
Jake scratched the dog’s deep chest. “He sure is.”
Boo-Boo gave a little howl, loving all the attention.
Sammy giggled and helped Jake scratch the mastiff’s chest. “Can Boo-Boo go to our house?”
“Not today, Sammy,” Jake said. “But I’m sure you can visit Boo-Boo any time.”
“Of course he can.” Rowena stood and held onto the dog’s collar. “As a matter of fact, my father’s cairn just had a litter of puppies. Is it all right if I take Sammy to see them tomorrow?”
Jake stood, too, and picked Sammy up. “Where does your father live?”
“In a village called Kempten. It’s about half an hour’s drive.”
“You drive?”
“Of course I drive. I can take a car from the palace garage any time.” She placed a hand over her brow to shade her eyes from the early afternoon sun as she looked up at him. “Would you like to go with us?”
As he gazed down at her lovely, upturned face, Jake realized he very much wanted to go.
During the past couple of days, he’d discovered that he liked Rowena’s method of handling children. Laughter mixed with positive comments rather than frowns and criticism. And she’d just performed a miracle with Sammy.
He wanted to see the man who’d raised her. She must be very loved, to have so much love to give.
To children, of course.
“It would do you good, to get out of the palace for a while,” she said. “Have you seen much of Edenbourg?”
“Just the road from the airport to Old Stanbury.”
Her forehead wrinkled. “You’re the one who found the king’s car, aren’t you?”
Jake stiffened. “Yes. Why?”
“It’s just that the coastline road is not the shortest route from the airport to here.”
Jake frowned. Luke had provided him with directions from the airport.
“Are the puppies like Boo-Boo?” Sammy asked.
Rowena smiled. “No, they’re a lot smaller. Papa has a Cairn terrier. He bought her when he and I went to Scotland on vacation several years ago.”
Jake let go of what was bothering him about the airport road. “Cairn?”
“Ever seen the Wizard of Oz?” Rowena asked.
“Who hasn’t?”
“Toto was a cairn.”
“Toto!” Sammy cried.
“Have you seen the Wizard of Oz, Sammy?”
Jake nodded. “We watched part of it a couple of months ago. Until the witch got a little too much for…um…me to take.”
Laughter brightened Rowena’s dark golden eyes. “She scares me, too.”
“Me, too,” Sammy admitted.
“Are you going in to the palace?” Jake asked, turning to let her precede him.
Rowena still held onto the dog’s collar. “I need to take Boo-Boo back to the kennel.”
Sammy struggled against Jake’s hold. “I wanna go with Ena.”
Jake held on with difficulty. Sometimes holding on to his son was like trying to hold on to an eel in a vat of oil. “I don’t know, Sammy.”
Rowena met Jake’s gaze with an “I agree with you” nod. “Tell you what, Sammy. Go with your papa. I’ll be back in just a minute, and I’ll take you to see the pool inside the palace. It was built a hundred and fifty years ago.”
Sammy was clearly torn, but reluctantly agreed. “’Kay, Ena.”
Before there could be any more discussion, Jake turned toward the palace.
Sammy watched Rowena over Jake’s shoulder. “Guess what, Daddy?”
“What, Sammy?”
“We go see her puppies tomorrow, right?”
Jake gave his son a hug. “Right, Sammy. Tomorrow we’ll go see her daddy’s puppies.”
Sammy slipped his arm around Jake’s neck. “You, too. Right, Daddy?”
“Yes, Sammy. Me, too.”
With a contented sigh, Sammy laid his head on Jake’s shoulder.
Jake’s heart turned over. He didn’t care what was going on in the negotiations tomorrow, he was going to see Rowena’s puppies.
With Sammy, of course. Just for Sammy.
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