‘At the cost of Holly’s life?’ Andreas demanded incredulously. ‘I can’t believe you’d think that.’
‘Your father-’
‘My father’s dead,’ Andreas said flatly. ‘It’s not what he thinks now. It’s what you think.’
‘Of course it’s not what I think.’ She turned to the groundsmen, dismissing them with a wave. ‘Go back to work. I don’t hold you responsible for the girl’s hurt. You were following the king’s orders.’
‘But…’ the young groundsman stammered, still dazed.
‘My son’s wife will recover,’ Tia said. ‘I can see from here it’s a scratch.’ She permitted herself a wintry smile. ‘She’ll hardly sue.’ Then as the men hesitated she lowered her voice a notch. ‘Leave. Now.’
They went. Leaving Andreas holding Holly and Deefer, and the queen looking down at them, her face impassive. With Andreas glaring back at his mother as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
‘I don’t understand why the swans didn’t just fly away,’ Holly muttered, searching for something-anything-to take the look of anger from the faces of both mother and son.
‘They have their wings clipped,’ Tia told her. ‘They can’t.’
‘Despite the fact that swans will always come back to their home lake,’ Andreas said softly, his voice still laced with fury. ‘But my parents clip their wings to make sure.’
‘Oh, for heaven’s sake…These are your father’s orders,’ Tia said. Her voice wasn’t as sure as it had been. She sounded suddenly shaky. ‘You know that, Andreas. It’s the way things are. And I told her to keep the dog in the stables.’
‘Holly comes with a dog. This is Holly’s home, Mother.’
‘It’s not my home,’ Holly said, struggling in his arms. He released her, reluctantly. She pushed herself to her feet and Andreas followed. She was feeling a little bit sick, she discovered. Her legs weren’t as steady as she wanted them to be. She needed to pull away from both of these royals-she needed to face them square on-but she needed Andreas’s support. But she still knew what needed to be said. ‘My home’s in Australia and I’m leaving.’
‘You can’t leave yet,’ Tia said, shocked, as Andreas’s expression snapped into a frown, and Holly shook her head.
‘I can leave any time I want. Isn’t that so, Andreas?’
He tugged her tight against him. She could feel the tension in his body; she could feel how close he was to snapping. There were tensions here that didn’t have anything to do with her. There were tensions she didn’t understand.
‘That’s right,’ he said softly, but there was no mistaking the steel behind the quiet words as he met his mother’s gaze, unflinching. ‘Holly married me to get us out of a mess. She’s fulfilled her part of the bargain. We’ve told the press that she’ll keep her property back in Australia, with intermittent visits from me. She’s free to go.’
‘Sebastian thinks it will be better if she stays,’ Tia said sharply.
‘Sebastian does not rule my private life,’ Andreas snapped. ‘As my father no longer rules yours. Maybe we both have to learn that. Meanwhile my wife is my business. If I say she can go, then she can go.’
‘Thanks very much,’ Holly managed and would have wrenched away but he was still holding her hard against him. Her face was still bleeding. A droplet splashed on the white cotton of her shirt. She put her fingers up to her cheek and he noticed.
‘I need to get you inside and have that seen to,’ he said ruefully.
‘She will stay,’ Tia said in a voice that sounded almost desperate.
‘How are you going to clip my wings?’ Holly said shakily. Shock was setting in for real now. Deefer was limp in her arms as if the little dog also realized just how close they’d come to calamity. ‘I’m free,’ Holly said, forcing herself to continue. ‘Andreas…Andreas is my husband but that’s not enough to hold me. I’m going home.’
Ignoring her protests, he carried her out through the palace kitchens to a room that was set up as a first-aid centre. The vast palace staff would make a first-aid centre essential, Holly thought, though she wasn’t up to thinking much. She lay back in Andreas’s arms, she hugged Deefer and she let him take her where he willed. She might have sounded defiant before Tia, but inside she was a wimpering wreck.
‘Wh…when did you get back?’ she managed as he shoved open the clinic door with his foot and carried her inside.
‘Ten minutes ago. I came to find you straight away.’
‘You could have come earlier,’ she whispered and then thought if he’d come even a couple of minutes earlier she might have been distracted enough not to notice what Deefer was doing until too late. She shivered involuntarily and his hold on her tightened.
‘Hell, Holly, I thought you’d be safe.’
‘Yeah, well, you will have thugs with guns.’
‘They’re not my thugs.’
‘No, but they’re hired by your family. And you’re a part of this family, Andreas.’
‘I am,’ he said grimly, and then a buxom, motherly woman hustled into the room, all starch and cluck, and they couldn’t talk for she took over their talking for them.
It was as Holly had thought-a long scratch, only bleeding in the middle. The bullet had barely grazed the surface. But the nurse examined it from all angles, then discussed with Andreas whether it was worth calling in the royal physician. ‘No,’ Holly said hotly, but she was ignored, though their conclusion was the same. But the wound was cleaned and dressed with all the care in the world.
At the end of her ministrations Holly was left with a face that any self-respecting bacterium would find blocked from twenty paces, and a huge white dressing that would have done a lobotomy proud.
‘You know, when I’m rounding up cattle I get plenty of scratches as bad as this,’ she said as finally the nurse released them from her clutches and they left the room. ‘FFrom overhead branches. They sure don’t get dressed like this.’
‘They should,’ Andreas growled.
‘You’re suggesting I install a first-aid clinic at Munwannay with your money?’
‘If you want one, you can have one.’
‘I don’t want one,’ she said, revolted. They were walking slowly back to their apartment. Andreas was holding Deefer tucked under one arm. With his other hand he was holding Holly’s. She should pull back, she thought. This was such a temporary marriage. But he was holding her as if he loved her.
She’d go home soon, she thought drearily. This morning’s events had cemented that for her. But she’d remember this. Two brief snatches of time with the man she’d love for ever. One time ten years ago. And now…Her hand tightened convulsively and he looked down at her and smiled.
‘You missed me?’
‘That’s an unfair question.’ She swallowed, not wanting to ask but knowing she needed to. ‘Will you be staying? Or…do you need to go away again?’
‘I do,’ he said seriously. ‘Tomorrow.’
‘For how long?’ she whispered, her heart sinking.
‘I don’t know.’
‘I can’t stay here…without you.’
‘I understand that,’ he said, and the hint of a smile disappeared from his face. ‘I hoped…but today, yes, it’s clear. Deefer is a dog bred to be a working dog. You’re bred to be free. I will not let my mother clip your wings.’
‘She couldn’t.’
‘She could try. This whole damned household will try. My mother is a good woman but she’s been ruled by my father for too long to escape the royal protocol.’
‘You wouldn’t…’ She hesitated but it had to be said. It had to be asked. Pride or not, this was her man and she had to fight for him if she could. ‘You would never consider…coming to Australia?’
‘I will visit,’ he said.
Visit. Of course. Once a year?
‘Of course,’ she said flatly. ‘To keep up the pretence of our marriage.’ And then because she couldn’t help herself she added…‘How often?’
‘I can’t do as I want, Holly,’ he said. ‘I was born into this job.’
‘And your country needs you.’
‘It does,’ he said simply. ‘Whether it knows it or not.’
‘I…That’s okay,’ she said and swallowed. ‘I didn’t really expect you to come back with me.’
‘I’ll come as often as I can.’
‘You know, maybe it’d be better if you didn’t,’ she said miserably. ‘You were gone for years and I couldn’t forget you. If you keep popping back every six months or so…’
‘I’ll come more often than that.’ He turned her face to his and kissed her on the nose. ‘You are my wife.’
‘In name.’
‘In law,’ he said strongly. ‘I want you, Holly. I want you here, in my bed, but I accept that’s not possible. My father clipped the wings of his wild creatures. I will not.’
‘Andreas-’
‘Hush,’ he said and gathered her to him. ‘Just hush, my love. Yes, I have to leave again tomorrow, and I’ll arrange for you to leave as well. I’ll organize a boat to take you to Greece. I have friends there who’ll see you cared for; who’ll organize your forward journey to Australia. The press will be told there are urgent matters you need to attend to in Australia. There’s no need to fear Sebastian will haul you back. The scandal would be worse than if we’d never married.’
He had it all planned, she thought numbly. She should protest. But all she could do was listen.
‘Money’s already been transferred to your working account,’ he was saying. ‘You’ll find the mortgages on Munwannay have been cleared. There’s a lump sum for restocking and money for staffing. You’re to get good staff, mind, Holly. You’re to have skilled help or I’ll know the reason why. By the time I visit, I expect to see the Munwannay I first saw-a vibrant, working farm. A family home.’
‘I-’
‘You can do this, Holly,’ he said strongly, not letting her interject. ‘It’s what you’ve always wanted. And there will be no long-term problem here. Our people understand royal marriages. They think it’s wonderful to have an Australian princess, but they know my royal duties have to take precedence. It will be accepted.’
‘But Sebastian-’
‘This has nothing to do with Sebastian now.’
‘Or your mother?’
‘No. But I owe them a duty of care-that’s why I need to keep looking for the diamond.’
‘And you owe me…’
‘What I owe you I’ve paid in full.’
‘Have you, Andreas?’ She swallowed hard, trying not to cry. ‘Have you? Oh, you’ve married me in all honour. You’ve given me the Cinderella story. Now you’ve paid for my happy ever after. I should be grateful. But…’ She swallowed, fighting for words. ‘I want more,’ she managed, but she looked into his eyes and knew he didn’t understand.
‘Holly, this was a business arrangement,’ he said softly. ‘A marriage of necessity. I’m sorry it can’t be more.’
‘Well, so am I,’ she snapped, suddenly furious. ‘Business arrangement? No way. Not on my part. I made my vows and I meant them.’
‘Yet you don’t wish to stay.’
She stared at him, baffled. He didn’t get it. Was it only she who was hungry for what was just in front of them, so close but yet so far? She ached for him to hold her in his arms, to tell her she was indeed his wife, that he’d never let her go. Instead he talked of his duty of care to his family.
‘I think you should go now,’ she whispered.
‘Go…’
‘Back to wherever you’ve been diamond hunting. Or wherever.’
‘I don’t leave until the morning. I’d hoped-’
‘Well hope away, Your Highness,’ she snapped. ‘I’ve just had a very nasty shock. I’ve been shot at and I’m wounded. I have a headache and if you think I’m going to bed with you when I have a headache…’
‘The Holly I knew would never let a headache stop her.’
‘Yeah, well, the Holly you knew was a dope,’ she whispered. ‘The Holly you knew has gone far enough in this royal charade and can go no further. Enough, Andreas. Leave please.’
‘Holly…’ He caught her hands and drew her round, forcing her to face him. ‘I can’t believe you mean that.’ He smiled, that fabulous, gentle, seductive smile that made her toes curl, that was the source of all the trouble in the first place. ‘You don’t want me?’
‘I can’t want you,’ she said miserably. ‘Can’t you see that? Please, Andreas, no more. To be kind…just leave.’
What had she done? He stared at her for a long, tension-filled moment, his face expressionless. Then, without another word, he stood up and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. She was left staring after him in dismay.
She’d sent him away.
He was leaving anyway in the morning.
But she wanted this night.
It wasn’t going to make anything better, she thought drearily. She’d thought she could take as much of Andreas as he offered, but all his nearness did was make her ache for more.
He’d gone. She didn’t have to see him again. She could stay in her room for the rest of the day, plead headache, sleep, then when she woke he’d have left.
A stronger woman would fight for him.
Was it strong to stay in this place? Submit to endless protocol, endless absences, the clipping of her wings?
‘I’d be a bird in a gilded cage,’ she whispered to Deefer, hugging him close. ‘I can’t. Even for Andreas.’
Yet to leave him…
I’m not leaving him. He’s doing the leaving.
If you walked to the door now and called him back he’d come.
Until dawn.
‘Oh, Deef.’ She was crying, stupid helpless tears slipping down her cheeks, one after another. She hated crying. She never cried.
Andreas made her cry.
‘Which is as good a reason as any to leave,’ she told her dog. ‘I have to go. I must.’
It’d break her heart.
No. Her heart had broken years ago and the pieces were still apart. For a few short days the pieces had made a tentative effort to heal. But it hadn’t worked. Of course it hadn’t. Cinderella was for fairy tales.
She had to go…home.
He walked outside, into the palace forecourt. The sun was blazing down on the marble columns, the shining granite steps radiating heat. The white pebbles of the paved surfaces shimmered in the sun, and the vast ornate fountain gave no sense of relief. This was formality at its finest. Formality at its worst.
He lived here. It was his life.
He thought of where Holly was heading-to a vast outback wilderness, a place where nature couldn’t help but win over any attempt to tame it, and a wave of longing swept over him so strongly that it felt as if he had to physically brace himself against its force.
Munwannay and Holly.
Holly.
He couldn’t keep her here. Her place was in Munwannay. How he’d ever thought he could hold her this long…
He’d brought her here against her will and he would not keep her. Despite Sebastian. Despite his mother. They were wrong. Holly was wild and beautiful and free and he would not tame her.
His fingers were clenched so hard into his palms that they hurt. He stared down and saw he’d pierced the skin on one palm. It hurt, but compared to the gut-wrenching pain inside it was nothing. To let her go…
He had to let her go.
There was a stir behind him. He turned to find two servants pushing the door wide, and Sebastian striding out towards him.
‘I told you I wanted to see you the minute you arrived,’ he snapped.
‘Holly needed me.’
‘I have no intere
st in what Holly needs. You know this matter’s urgent. I want your report and I want it now. For me to have to come and find you…’
‘Unforgivable,’ Andreas said dryly. ‘You want my head off at dawn?’
‘Don’t be facetious. You know how much is at stake. I need you to be focused.’
‘Of course.’
Sebastian’s eyes narrowed. ‘I mean it, Andreas.’
‘Of course you do,’ Andreas said wearily. ‘And, yes, I know how urgent it is. Yes, I know how much our country is depending on me staying focused. It’ll happen. Holly’s leaving tomorrow for Australia.’
‘What?’ Sebastian snapped, his features darkening in displeasure. ‘I told you, I wanted the marriage to last.’
‘And I’m telling you the marriage is over,’ Andreas replied, and his voice sounded strong and sure, two emotions that were surely as far from the truth as it was possible to get. ‘Short of locking us in a dungeon there’s nothing you can do about it, brother. So set your public relations department to make as good a job of it as they can, but the thing’s not negotiable. Holly goes home tomorrow. End of story.’
CHAPTER ELEVEN
I T WAS amazing. First there was a journey to Greece on a fishing boat with friends of Andreas. That was the part of the trip where Sebastian could have intervened, she was told, so she had to stay with men Andreas trusted. Then she and Deefer were whisked to the airport. What followed was first-class air travel, with personal attention all the way. Before she knew it, she landed in Perth where she bade a tearful farewell to Deef. Her pup had to face thirty days in quarantine before he could become an Australian. As she came out of the customs building she was met by a pilot upset that she’d got this far without him finding her. It seemed a private helicopter had already been chartered to take her on to Munwannay.
Her financial circumstances only a month ago might have seen her hitch-hiking. This was a turnaround indeed.
She should feel flattered and indulged. Instead she felt miserable.
And as soon as they arrived at Munwannay she saw more signs of change. From the air she could see people moving about, a couple of shiny new vehicles, two men on horseback.
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