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A ROYAL SCANDAL
When blue blood runs hot …
Separated at birth, twin sisters Hannah and Emmeline had very different upbringings. Hannah was raised in a small town in Texas, while Emmeline took her rightful place as Princess, enjoying a life of unequalled privilege.
Reunited years later, the identical sisters cause the scandal of the century by swapping places and posing as each other.
But now their paths have crossed with two powerful rulers—and their princess-and-pauper charade is about to be exposed …
This month read Hannah’s story in
NOT FIT FOR A KING
Available December 2011
And look out for Emmeline’s story. Coming soon!
Dear Reader
When I was a little girl I loved fairytales and far-away places, and stories of princesses and palaces. I pored over books with photographs of castles, and drew pictures of the castle I’d one day have.
In my heart I was sure I was a princess who’d been placed with an ‘ordinary’ family for safekeeping, and that one day my real family—my royal family—would come and claim me. As the years passed, I remember worrying that I was getting older and my ‘real family’ hadn’t come. I feared that maybe my parents—the King and Queen—would die, and no one would know I was their secret princess daughter and I’d have to remain ordinary for ever.
Little wonder that stories about princesses separated at birth would appeal to me … stories of sisters growing up without their mother or each other … stories of girls knowing something was missing but never knowing what.
I hope you’ll enjoy the story of ordinary American secretary Hannah Smith and powerful King Zale Patek of Raguva. It’s a story of destiny, hope, possibility and fate. It’s my favourite kind of story—emotional, passionate and magical.
This story is for you, my readers, with love.
Jane
Not Fit For a King
Jane Porter
About the Author
JANE PORTER grew up on a diet of Mills & Boon® romances, reading late at night under the covers so her mother wouldn’t see! She wrote her first book at age eight, and spent many of her high school and college years living abroad, immersing herself in other cultures and continuing to read voraciously. Now Jane splits her time between rugged Seattle, Washington, and the beautiful beaches of Hawaii, with her sexy surfer and three very active sons. Jane loves to hear from her readers. You can write to her at PO Box 524, Bellevue, WA 98009, USA. Or visit her website at www.janeporter.com
Recent titles by the same author:
A DARK SICILIAN SECRET
ONE CHRISTMAS NIGHT IN VENICE DUTY, DESIRE AND THE DESERT KING
Did you know these are also available as eBooks? Visit www.millsandboon.co.uk
For Tessa Shapcott, who bought my first book in January 2000 and changed my life for ever!
PROLOGUE
Palm Beach, Florida
“YOU do look like me.” Princess Emmeline d’Arcy’s voice was hushed as she slowly circled Hannah, her arched eyebrows pulling over deep blue eyes. “Same face, same height, same age … if our hair color was the same … we could pass for twins. Incredible.”
“Not exactly twins. You’re half my size, Your Highness,” Hannah said, suddenly self-conscious next to the very slim Princess Emmeline. “Itty-bitty, as we say in America.”
Princess Emmeline didn’t appear to hear her, too busy examining Hannah from head to toe. “Do you color your hair? Or is that natural? Either way, it’s gorgeous—such a rich, warm shade of brown.”
“It’s from a box. It’s several shades darker than my natural color, and I do it myself,” Hannah stammered.
“Can you buy your color here in Palm Beach?”
Hannah couldn’t believe that the stunning golden-blond princess would be interested in her shade of brown hair dye. “I’m sure you can—it’s sold everywhere.”
“I meant, could you buy it for me?”
Hannah hesitated. “I could. But why would you want it, Your Highness? You’re stunning, so beautiful as you are.”
Princess Emmeline’s full lips curved and yet her expression looked bleak. “I thought maybe for a day I could be you.”
“What?”
The princess walked away from Hannah, moving to stand at one of the tall windows of her lavish hotel suite where she gazed out over the hotel’s elegant, tropical Florida garden.
“I’ve made a terrible mess of things,” Princess Emmeline said softly, hands lifting to press against the glass as if she were a captive instead of the world’s most celebrated young royal. “But I can’t even leave here to sort things out. I’m followed wherever I go—and it’s not just the paparazzi—but my bodyguards, my secretary, my ladies-in-waiting.” Her slim shoulders shifted and her fingers curled until her hands were fists against the glass. “For just one day I want to be normal. Ordinary. Maybe then I could take care of something, make this nightmare I’m in go away.”
The anguish in Emmeline’s voice made Hannah’s chest squeeze tight. “What’s happened, Your Highness?”
Princess Emmeline gave her head the slightest shake. “I can’t talk about it,” she said, her voice breaking. “But it’s bad … It’ll ruin everything …”
“Ruin what, Your Highness? You can tell me. You can trust me. I’m very good at keeping secrets and would never break your confidence.”
The regal princess lifted a hand to her face and swiftly wiped away tears before turning from the window to look at Hannah. “I know I can trust you. That’s why I’m asking for your help.”
The princess took a deep breath. “Tomorrow, switch places with me for the afternoon. Be me and stay here in the suite and I’ll be you. I won’t be gone long—a couple of hours, four or five at the most—and then I’ll return and we’ll switch back again.”
Hannah sat down in the chair next to her. “I want to help you, but I have to work tomorrow. Sheikh Al-Koury doesn’t give time off, and even if he did, I don’t know the first thing about being a princess.”
Emmeline crossed the rich crimson carpet to take a seat opposite Hannah’s. “Sheikh Al-Koury can’t make you work if you’re ill. Not even he would drag a sick woman from her bed. And you wouldn’t have to leave the hotel. I could book some spa treatments for you tomorrow and you could be pampered all afternoon—”
“But I sound like an American, not a Brabant royal!”
“I heard you introduce your sheikh boss in French yesterday at the polo tournament. You speak French perfectly, without even an accent.”
“That’s because I lived with a family in France one year during high school.”
“So speak French tomorrow. It always throws Americans.” Emmeline suddenly grinned. “We can do this. Bring hair color with you in