by Jane Porter
“I don’t know,” Alexander said simply, facing his friend. “I’ve told no one this, but I trust you, and I need your help. I have no memory of that night at all. It’s all a blank, and I was hoping you could help me clear up some of the mystery.”
Gerard’s jaw dropped. “So you don’t know how you ended up in the water?”
“I don’t remember anything from the trip.” He hesitated. “But it’s worse than that. For an entire week, I had no memory at all. For a week I didn’t know who I was. I didn’t know my name.”
“How did you manage?”
“I was rescued by a girl on an island. She saved my life and took care of me.”
“That’s a story.”
“It was like a story,” he agreed. “The Prince and the Mermaid.”
“There is a story like that by Hans Christian Andersen.”
“Does it end happily?”
“For the prince.”
“And the mermaid?”
“She sacrifices herself for him and turns to sea foam.”
“I don’t think I’d like that story.”
Gerard’s brow creased. “I’m worried about you, Alex. If Damian knew this, it could be quite bad for you.”
“I know.” Alexander sighed and dragged a hand through his hair. “I need the missing pieces. I need my memory. And I definitely need the security footage from the yacht.”
* * *
Josephine was sure that once she returned to Khronos, life would be fine. Prince Alexander would be gone and she’d be able to focus on her work again.
She expected some sadness and knew she’d miss his company, but she’d lost her mother and lived, and so she’d survive Alexander’s departure just fine. The tears she cried at night into her pillow were just part of the process of letting him go. And she would let him go. The intense memories would eventually fade, and over time she’d think of him less and less until one day she could remember him with something other than pain.
It was a good plan, and it might have worked out that way if she hadn’t discovered she was pregnant two weeks after his departure for Aargau.
Josephine had suspected within days of Alexander leaving Khronos that she could be pregnant, but she’d told herself she was being dramatic, letting her imagination run away with her, which was why she waited almost two weeks to take an over-the-counter pregnancy test that she bought in Athens when she was there with her father for a foundation meeting.
She’d waited until she was alone to buy the test, and then in her hotel room she followed the steps and told herself everything would be fine, that she didn’t need to panic or worry—
And then came the immediate positive result.
She was pregnant.
And Josephine sat on the side of the bathtub, holding the stick, thinking that she’d known. She’d known because her body felt different. Her breasts were fuller and more sensitive, and she felt nauseous and fatigued.
She couldn’t even pretend to be shocked. They’d made love a half-dozen times and they hadn’t taken precautions. Yes, he’d withdrawn, but it wasn’t true birth control. It was far from foolproof. She didn’t know why they hadn’t discussed it more. She didn’t know why it hadn’t been a more urgent issue. It was stupid. She’d behaved irrationally. She’d behaved as if she was the one with amnesia, not he.
And she wasn’t just pregnant, but pregnant with the child of one of the most fascinating, wealthy royal families in the world.
Josephine felt sick. Heartsick. Disgusted with herself, disgusted by her lapse in judgment.
If she went to her father she knew what he would say. He would say she had three options: terminate the pregnancy and tell no one, keep the child and tell no one, or keep the child but tell Alexander because he had a right to know.
It took little or no thought to eliminate option one: she wasn’t going to end the pregnancy. That wasn’t an option, not for her. She tried to imagine raising Alexander’s child in secret, and that wasn’t a viable option, either. It wasn’t right or fair, not to him or their child. But how could she just show up at the Alberici palace in Roche and demand an audience? Never mind just a week before Alexander’s wedding to Princess Danielle?
Stomach churning, she waited for her father to return from his meeting. “I need to reach Prince Alexander,” she told him. “I need to speak with him about a matter of some...urgency.”
Her father eyed her in silence for a long minute. “You’re pregnant, aren’t you?”
She nodded.
“Well, that explains the food poisoning. It wasn’t food poisoning at all.”
“I had hoped.”
“So had I.” He sighed and shook his head. “This is going to change your life. It will never be the same.”
“You don’t think I’ll be a good mother?”
“It’s not that simple. I’m not a monarchist, and I don’t know all the laws in Aargau, but this isn’t just any baby. You’re carrying the future king’s heir.”
“Maybe I shouldn’t tell him.”
“You are as honest as they come, Josephine. You’d never keep the truth from him, or a child from his father. You wouldn’t be able to live with yourself. So contact the palace security—I have a number, they left it with me when they came for him—but don’t expect this meeting of yours to be easy. Your news could change everything.”
* * *
The return to Khronos was so different from his departure two and a half weeks earlier. When he left, he hadn’t thought he’d see Josephine again and he’d been livid with her, seething the entire trip to Roche. At the time, he didn’t know what had upset him more—the fact that she’d left Khronos without telling him, or that she’d left the island without him telling her who he was.
He’d known that day, and every day since, that he should have told her his memory had returned. He’d been painfully aware that he should have handled things differently.
And now he was to see her again. She’d sent word through his security that there was an urgent private matter, and she’d asked his security how she should best deliver this urgent, sensitive information.
He’d known at once why she was reaching out. It was the only reason she would reach out.
Alexander requested the helicopter and flight crew for the following morning and now they were traveling above the blue-green water. Soon they’d be touching down on Khronos. He wondered if she had any idea he was on his way or that if her news was as he expected, then he’d be taking her back to Aargau with him. Today.
* * *
Helicopters were impossibly noisy, their turning blades impossibly distinctive. Josephine emerged from the small house, her pen still in her hand as she shielded her eyes to look up into the sky. The huge helicopter was flying low and coming directly toward her.
Her heart fell even as her stomach lurched, not a good combination when she was already nauseous.
Her father stepped out from the house, as well. His brow creased as he took in the helicopter dropping even lower. “He must have gotten your message,” her father said.
She swallowed hard, her legs suddenly weak. “Maybe it’s someone else.”
“It’s the same helicopter that came before. If he is any man at all, he’ll be inside it and eager to speak with you.”
Josephine wanted to throw up. She put a hand to her middle to slow the churning sensation that made her feel so sick. “You sound pleased.”
“I’ll be pleased if he comes in person to sort this out with you.” He glanced at her, his expression suddenly critical. “Perhaps you’d like to change and comb your hair.”
“Why? Because he’s a prince?”
“No, because he’s the man you love.”
Josephine refused to change out of her yellow checked sundress, but she did run a brush through her hair and then pulled it back into a smoot
h ponytail, and then she took a seat at the table in the house and waited.
It wasn’t long before she heard his footsteps outside and then his rap on the door that was already open.
She rose, hating how nervous she felt. “Prince Alexander Alberici,” she said, accenting the word Prince. It wasn’t polite, but then, she didn’t feel polite. How could she when she was suddenly blisteringly angry?
“May I come in?” he said formally, still standing on her threshold.
“You know the house. You know your way around.”
He entered, stooping slightly to clear the low doorway and then straightening once he was inside. His gaze swept the stone walls and rugged beams running across the ceiling. “Nothing’s changed,” he said.
“It’s been this way for a hundred years. I expect it’ll remain this way for another hundred.”
He crossed the floor, glancing right and then left. “Your father?”
“Is at his desk in the foundation office.” She struggled to contain her temper. “So no, there is no one here. It’s just you and me. We won’t be overheard.”
“I wasn’t worried about that. I wanted to be polite and pay my respects.”
“How kind of you.”
“You are angry.”
“I am.” She hadn’t even realized just how deeply upset she was until he stepped through her door looking even more handsome than she remembered. He’d been beautiful to her in her father’s faded chambray work shirts and linen shorts, but now in elegant trousers, dark shirt, and dark tailored blazer, he looked powerful. Magnetic. He was a man of position and wealth. And he knew it, too.
“You didn’t have to reach out to me,” he said, slowly walking around the central room, studying everything as if he’d never seen it before.
She hated his slow, lazy perusal because she was sure it wasn’t lazy at all. He was doing his best to remember details. Or perhaps he was checking details against his memory. Either way, he had no right to be so relaxed, so indolent, in her home.
Her arms crossed over her chest, fingers curling into small, tight fists. “Does Princess Danielle know you’re here?”
“We’re not married yet.”
“What does that even mean?”
“She doesn’t get access to my personal schedule.”
“Does she even know about me?”
“The palace hasn’t released any information about you.” He gave her a considering glance. “Unless you’d like the palace to release information?”
She shot him a furious look, giving him the full measure of her wrath. “When did your memory return?” She asked, her voice flat, hard. “At what point on Khronos did you know who you were?”
“The day before your father returned.”
She stared at him, clearly struggling. “You should have told me.”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you?”
“Because at that point I wasn’t ready to lose you.”
Her mouth tightened; her jaws ground together. She was not going to cry. She would not allow herself to show any weakness or emotion at all. “You mean you weren’t ready to stop having sex.”
His black eyebrow lifted. “Is that what we were doing? Having sex?”
“Unprotected sex. And there were...are...consequences.”
“I suspected that was why you reached out to the palace.”
“You’re not shocked?”
“As you said, there are consequences.”
“You sound so cavalier,” she gritted out. “You must have a plan in mind. A suggestion for managing this complication.”
“Are you enjoying yourself?”
“No. I’m sick and heartsick and I should have heard the truth from you. I should have heard the truth, if you knew it.”
“Agreed. I was wrong. I am truly sorry.”
His apology caught her off guard and she felt herself sag, so she sat down in the chair at the table, her hands balling in her lap.
He crossed the floor, approaching her, so tall that she had to tip her head back to look him in the eye.
“I didn’t tell you,” he added, “because I was determined to find a way to save us.”
“Save us?” She made a soft, hoarse sound of protest. “How? You were engaged to someone else. Your wedding was weeks away. You weren’t free to be with me. You weren’t free to make love to me.”
He crouched in front of her, his hands on her knees. “I can’t change what happened when I didn’t have my memory—”
“No, but that doesn’t mean I don’t regret it.” She pushed his hands off her knees, feeling burned. “All of it.”
“No.”
“Yes. I hate that week we spent together. I hate that I fe—” She broke off, swallowing hard, smashing the words that had nearly escaped her lips. I fell in love with you. But she couldn’t love him. Not anymore. She’d smash her feelings now, just as she’d suppressed the words. What had happened was history. The past was behind them. The only thing to do now was move forward without him. Somehow.
“Have you seen a doctor?” he asked.
She shook her head.
“Then how do you know?”
“I took a test in Athens yesterday, and I took it because I’ve never been late, and my body is different. Everything feels different. I’m violently ill, sometimes in the morning, sometimes at night. The only time I seem to be okay is in the afternoon and early evening.” She fell silent for a moment before drawing a breath for courage. “I wouldn’t have reached out to you if I wasn’t certain. I am pregnant. And I intend to keep the baby. I don’t need anything from you—”
“Of course you do. It’s my child, too.”
“I’m not asking for support. I’m not asking for—”
“Anything, yes, I know. But it doesn’t work that way, cara. You are carrying my child, my heir. You might not ask for anything, but that doesn’t mean you don’t get everything.”
She blinked, not understanding. “I’m sorry. I don’t follow. What is everything?”
“Marriage. My home. My kingdom.”
“But I don’t want any of those—”
“I knew you’d say that. I was actually counting on you saying that. You didn’t sleep with me to become pregnant. You didn’t make love to me for any ulterior motive. You are not one of those women that try to entrap a man.”
“Maybe it’s time for you to go. You know the truth. I’ve kept nothing from you—”
“We need you to see a doctor. We need to be sure.”
“I am sure.”
“Yes, but I can’t end my engagement to Danielle without proof. It wouldn’t be fair to her.”
“I don’t want you to end your engagement to her. You’re engaged to her. You must marry her—”
“I can’t, not if you’re carrying my child.”
Her lips parted but no sound came out.
“The babe you’re carrying is Aargau’s future king or queen.” Alexander rose. “I shall go look for your father and let him know you’ll be returning to Roche with me.”
He was so very different from her Alexander. But then, on the other hand, he wasn’t. He’d always been rather imperious, if not downright commanding. She’d known from the moment he’d first spoken to her that he was a man familiar with authority and accustomed to being obeyed. But that didn’t mean she had to fall in with his plans. She’d fallen in love with a man, not a prince, and she wanted the man, not the prince. “No, I’m not going.”
His mouth tightened. Creases fanned from his eyes. He looked as if he was hanging on to his patience by a thread. “I’ll explain to your father—”
“No need to look for me, I’m here.” Her father stepped through the doorway. “I’ve heard most of what’s been said. And I agree with Prince Alexander. You should see a doctor. You should
be certain. Feelings are not facts, and what you both need now are facts. Having clear facts will help you make the right decisions.”
CHAPTER SIX
SUNLIGHT PIERCED THE TALL, narrow windows of the tower suite. Holding her breath, Josephine watched the light pattern the smooth stone floor, focusing on where the blue-gray fieldstone disappeared beneath the pale ivory-knotted fringe of the burgundy and peach antique carpet.
If she stayed very still and very calm, she could lose herself in the streaks of golden light.
If she stayed very still and very calm, she could almost believe she hadn’t been locked for days in a high tower without any connection to the outside world.
And then, since she was pretending, she could pretend her room, with its high vaulted ceiling, lovely, narrow leaded windows, and imposing four-poster bed in the middle of the floor, was a luxurious historic hotel room, and she was a guest at this stunning five-hundred-year-old castle, making her much envied by those who loved luxury travel. She would also pretend that the man who’d locked her here, the man she’d fallen in love with, was a handsome, kind prince instead of a cold, heartless one.
Unfortunately, Josephine wasn’t good at sustaining the pretend game. It wasn’t that she didn’t have an imagination, but being the daughter of two scientists, she was more practical than impractical and loathed everything about her tower, and the man who’d locked her here.
Jo sat up straighter as she heard the scrape of the key turning in the lock. She fought a momentary panic because once the door opened, she couldn’t play her games of pretend. It was so much harder to manage her emotions with Alexander in the room.
Four weeks ago Josephine wouldn’t have believed any of this was possible. But then, four weeks ago she hadn’t known who Alexander was.
Four weeks ago, neither had he.
Now she wished she’d never told him she was pregnant. She’d thought she was doing the right thing, the honest and fair thing. But Josephine regretted her decisions with her whole heart as Alexander was neither honest nor fair, as it was his decision to put her here in this tower suite. It was his decision to lock the door. It was his decision to cut her off from communication with the world, but locking her away wouldn’t help his cause. If he imagined that a few days of solitary confinement would weaken her resolve, he was painfully mistaken. She’d spent weeks, months, alone on Khronos while her father was off teaching. She wasn’t afraid to be alone, and she wasn’t easily intimidated.