there was a stab of jealousy. And something more…
The only places Lily had seen on Sappheiros had been the royal palace and the chapel-cum-cathedral in its grounds. They’d been enough to take her breath away—all spires and turrets and opulence in a fairy tale setting, the sapphire coastline backed by mountains. The palace and cathedral were way over-the-top for a small country, she’d thought, but still, royal was royal, and she’d assumed the whole of the Diamond Isles must be in favour of a bit of pomp and splendour.
Now she wasn’t so sure. The coastal road was lined with houses that looked shabby, some almost derelict. From what she’d learned over the last two weeks, the people had been taxed to the hilt to pay for the kings’ follies.
Now Alex told her he was taking her to his private house. He’d been raised as nephew to the King. For much of his life he’d been first in line to the throne, so she assumed his home would be opulent as well.
Their retinue slowed as they came to a curve in a road that had been getting rougher the further they’d travelled from the city. At one time it must have been paved, but the bitumen was cracked now and giving way. The coastal road—a magnificent route set halfway up the cliffs and overlooking the sea—swept around a headland and on, but the coach slowed by a sign that said—discreetly—‘Hideaway’.
The coach stopped, as did the outriders.
Alex stepped down onto the track and held out a hand to help her down.
‘Um… where are we?’ She gazed around her with surprise. They were in the middle of nowhere. A beautiful nowhere but nowhere nevertheless.
‘We need to walk,’ he said.
‘Walk.’
‘It’s a rhododendron drive. It’s too low for the horses to go underneath.’
‘These guys can’t take off their fancy headgear?’ She gazed round at the impassive horsemen. The horses were standing motionless. There was not a blink from man or horse.
‘From this gate we’re not royal,’ he said, so softly only she could hear. ‘This road has been deliberately left so the royal vehicles can’t get through.’
‘Right.’ but it wasn’t right. She didn’t understand. This was where the fairy tale stopped?
They needed to walk? Fine if you were wearing glossy black boots and a sword to slash the undergrowth. She had four-inch heels and a twenty-foot train.
But she was almost past worrying. Hysteria was carrying her along nicely—as well as her innate sense of the ridiculous.
‘Okay then,’ she said, and she thought she even sounded hysterical. ‘We walk. Did you bring scroggin?’
‘Scroggin?’ he said blankly.
‘Food for serious hikers. You can’t go more than twenty miles without it.’
He grinned. ‘What about three hundred yards? Or I could bring the Jeep down to fetch you. Sorry about this, but this place is private. We don’t want horseguards on our honeymoon.’
‘No,’ she said cautiously.
Honeymoon.
Right.
Alex had obviously been planning this. Yeah, she could see that about him. A planner.
It made her nervous. Or more nervous. How nervous could she get?
Concentrate on practicalities, she told herself. Here she was, in full bridal attire, stuck in the middle of nowhere.
With a baby. Once again the issue of a diaper bag raised its head.
‘There is the small matter of our baggage,’ she said cautiously. ‘Much as I love being a bride, this look could get a bit over-the-top at breakfast. And you get to look after Michales if there are no clean diapers.’
‘Our luggage was brought here earlier.’
She gulped. And nodded. ‘Of course it was. So we were always coming here?’
‘Did you want to stay in the palace?’
‘It all depends,’ she said and picked up her skirts. ‘On what I find at the end of this rhododendron drive. Thanks, guys,’ she said to their escort and waved but they didn’t respond by one fraction of a lift of an eyebrow.
She wasn’t much good at this princess business.
Just lucky it was temporary.
She looked sideways at her temporary husband.
‘Okay,’ she said. ‘If you didn’t bring the scroggin, then we’d better move fast.’ She faced up the track and took a deep breath and started walking. She was aware that Alex watched her for a minute without moving. Why? Surely the sight of a bride trudging into a gloom of rhododendrons must be commonplace!
But finally he followed, carrying her son.
She turned and looked—and then looked away again fast. The sight of Alex with Michales had the power to make her feel… hungry?
Hungry for what? She wasn’t sure.
‘You’re good,’ he said as he caught up with her. They were out of sight—and out of earshot of their outriders now.
‘At hiking? I’d like to see you hike in heels this high.’
‘I couldn’t,’ he admitted. ‘But that’s not what I was saying. You were great today.’
‘I did what I had to do,’ she said, stalking on as purposefully as four-inch heels allowed. ‘The islanders don’t like me, but that’s okay. I won’t be staying here long enough for it to matter.’
‘A year,’ he said.
‘That’s what the deal is.’
‘Unless we want more.’
She stopped. Uh-oh. There were things to clear up here before they went an inch further.
‘Alex, let’s get this straight,’ she said, making her voice firm. Or as firm as it was possible to get when her breathing wouldn’t work properly. ‘There are two things I want in life and only two.’
‘And they would be?’
You, she thought, but there was no way she was telling Alex that. She was afraid of even admitting it to herself.
‘My son and my boats,’ she managed. ‘I might be able to squash a marriage of convenience in at the edges but that’s all. If anything—anything—gets in the way of my two priorities then I’m out of here.’
‘You don’t want to be a fairy tale princess?’
‘That’s Mia’s department. I’m just me.’
‘It’s possible to compromise,’ he said softly. ‘That’s why I brought you here.’
‘To teach me to compromise. No deal. I told you… ’
‘Your baby and your boats. Yes, you did. I get that loud and clear. But there’s also the fact that we have a country to govern.’
‘You, kiddo,’ she snapped.
‘I need your help.’
‘For what? I’ve done the fairy tale bit. This train is so heavy… ’
‘I need you to help me create stability,’ he said. He took her train from her grasp so he was holding her son and the sheer weight of her gown. He met her look so steadily that she thought for a blind, dumb moment that he was sex on legs and she was married to him for real. She fought a fast internal fight and managed a sensible reply.
‘How can I do that when the islanders hate me?’
‘They don’t hate you. They don’t know you.’
‘Which