The Prince's Royal Dilemma. Brenda Harlen
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“While I have no doubt that seducing you would be a great pleasure, I need to focus my attention on other things right now.”
Though the softly spoken words made everything inside her quiver, Lara refused to give Rowan the satisfaction of knowing it. “Do you think I would fall into your bed just because you wanted me there, Your Highness?”
“I think,” he said confidently, “that you would fall into my bed because you wanted to be there.”
Her chin lifted just a fraction. “Then you think wrong. I won’t be any man’s temporary amusement.”
“If I believed otherwise, we’d be having this conversation in bed.” He grinned. “Or maybe we wouldn’t be talking at all.”
Her heart was pounding wildly in her chest, but she managed to keep her voice steady. “Save the seduction routine for your bride. I’m not interested.”
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BRENDA HARLEN
grew up in a small town surrounded by books and imaginary friends. Although she always dreamed of being a writer, she chose to follow a more traditional career path first. After two years of practising as an attorney, including an appearance in front of the Supreme Court of Canada, she gave up her “real” job to be a mum and to try her hand at writing books. Three years, five manuscripts and another baby later, she sold her first book.
Brenda lives in southern Ontario with her real-life husband/hero, two heroes-in-training and two neurotic dogs. She is still surrounded by books (“too many books,” according to her children) and imaginary friends, but she also enjoys communicating with “real” people. Readers can contact Brenda by e-mail at [email protected].
The Prince’s Royal Dilemma
BRENDA HARLEN
For Neill
–my real-life prince–
with much appreciation
and all my love.
Prologue
With its pristine sand beaches and crystal-blue waters, Tesoro del Mar is truly a treasure of the Mediterranean Sea. Though small in size, it has a huge appeal to visitors from all over the world.
Lara Brennan eagerly absorbed the details from her guidebook, anxious to learn everything about the island before the plane’s wheels touched down at the Port Augustine airport.
Tanis Rowlands, her best friend and traveling companion, waved a hand in front of her face to get her attention. “This is supposed to be a vacation—why are you studying that book as if there’s going to be a quiz at the end of our trip?”
“I’m just amazed—by the history, the culture, even the name. Did you know that it means treasure of the sea?”
“Tesoro del Mar.” Tanis practically sighed the words. “I know that it even sounds like a fairy-tale kingdom.”
“It’s not a kingdom, it’s a principality.” Lara pointed to a line in the book.
“What’s the difference?” Tanis asked.
“It’s not ruled by a king, but a prince.”
Tanis’s blue eyes sparkled. “The country does have some hunky princes.”
Lara laughed. Though she’d only ever met Prince Julian—who was happily married to Princess Catherine—she’d seen enough tabloid photos of the other three princes to know that they were all tall, dark and almost sinfully handsome.
“We probably won’t even see any of Julian’s brothers,” she told her friend. “Rowan is an investment banker in London, Eric is an officer in the navy, and Marcus is at school in Switzerland.”
Tanis pouted. “Well, at least we get to stay in the royal palace. How old did you say it was?”
Lara consulted the book again. “It was built more than four hundred years ago.”
“That is old.” Tan’s brow furrowed. “Did they have flush toilets back then?”
“No, but I imagine there have been some renovations done and improvements made over the years.”
“And the people speak English?”
“The island was settled by both the Spanish and the French, so it is officially a bilingual country, but a majority of the residents also speak English.”
She skimmed over the history of Tesoro del Mar and the reign of the Santiago family, then turned the page. The photo of the castle was spread out over two pages to better capture the majesty of soaring towers and stunning turrets, wide stone balconies and high, arched windows. As much as she was looking forward to visiting the palace, she was looking forward to visiting with the family who lived there even more.
Twice every year, Prince Julian and Princess Catherine journeyed to Kilmore, Catherine’s hometown in Ireland, to visit her family. Through a distant family connection, Lara had met them there four years earlier. On that visit, the royals had been traveling without their longtime nanny, and Catherine had struggled to balance the needs of her preschooler with the impatient demands of a new baby.
The princess had seemed surprised—and relieved—that her children had taken an instant liking to Lara, who had been just as enchanted by the young royals. On each subsequent visit, Catherine had invited Lara to spend time with the family, and she’d grown close to the children and they to her.
Three weeks ago Catherine had called to request that Lara visit Tesoro del Mar and meet the newest addition to the royal family. Lara had been thrilled by the opportunity, especially when Catherine had suggested she could bring a friend to stay for two weeks.
Tanis let out an excited gasp and squeezed her arm. “There it is.”
Lara shifted her gaze from the book to the window and was immediately dazzled by the view.
The photos in her guidebook didn’t begin to compare to the reality—certainly they didn’t show the hills as being so deep an emerald green, the beaches quite as powdery white or the sea such a sparkling sapphire.
Then she caught a glimpse of the castle, and her breath actually caught in her throat.
“I wish I could stay here forever,” Tanis said.
Lara heard the longing in her friend’s voice but also the acceptance. Tanis would return home at the end of their holiday. For Lara the future was less certain, because the princess had offered her more than a Mediterranean vacation—she’d offered her the chance to make this island paradise her home.
Though Lara had grown close to Catherine’s family over the past few years, she could never have imagined that the princess would ask her—the illegitimate child of an unknown father—to become the caregiver of the royal children. But that was exactly what Catherine had proposed. Now Lara had two weeks in which to tour Tesoro del Mar, get reacquainted