by Romancing the Crown Series (13-in-1 bundle) (v1. 0) (lit)
"Oh, no...I mean, yes! That'll be fine." Disappointed, she forced a smile and was thankful he couldn't see her blush in the poorly lit parking lot. "Then I guess I'll see you in the morning. Good night."
She could feel his eyes on her all the way to her room, but Eliza never looked back. She didn't dare. Her key clutched in her hand, she slipped inside and quietly shut the door. A split second later, she called Simon. They might argue like cats and dogs, but when she needed advice, whether it was business or personal, she could always trust him to say the right thing.
"This better be good, Red," he growled the second he came on the line and recognized her voice. "I was really sawing wood."
"I'm sorry," she said, stalling for time. Because she needed to think of some excuse why she had been too distracted to call in. She couldn't very well tell her boss she was in over her head with a certain devastatingly handsome duke.
* * *
Slouched on her couch and feeling sorry for herself because her boyfriend, Derek, had dumped her for no reason, Ursula Chambers stared at the TV with a jaundiced eye and paid little attention to the local news anchor, who read the lead story with an irritating nasal drawl. So what if some missing prince was believed to be alive, she thought sourly. She missed Derek. And she still didn't know why he'd walked out. They were good together, dammit! If he'd resented it when she joked around with his buddies, he should have told her he didn't like it, and she would have stopped. She wasn't a mind reader. But had he opened his mouth? Hell, no! He'd shut up like a clam and hadn't talked to her for days, then the next thing she knew, he was packing his things. It wasn't fair!
Frustrated and starting to get angry, she grabbed the phone and was just about to punch in Derek's number to give him a piece of her mind when her eyes fell on the TV screen and a picture of the missing prince that flashed there.
Confused, she frowned. What the devil was the reporter talking about? The man in the picture wasn't a prince. He was her sister's ranch hand, Joe.
"Prince Lucas has been missing since his plane crashed in the mountains near Boulder last winter," the reporter said. "New evidence, however, has been recovered that leads authorities to believe the prince may be alive. The investigation has been reopened, and a search is expected to be underway shortly."
Confused, Ursula told herself she shouldn't have had that second drink after dinner. Her eyes were playing tricks on her. But even as she tried to convince herself she was seeing things, pictures didn't lie. Unless Prince Lucas of Montebello had an identical twin brother, he and Joe, the ranch hand her sister had been all lovey-dovey with a couple of weeks ago when Ursula had dropped in to see her, were one and the same.
Unable to take her eyes off the television screen until long after the news anchor had gone on to the next story, Ursula just sat there, stunned. Then it hit her. Her big break had arrived.
"My God! My sister's hiding a prince—at my family ranch no less. This is it! I'm going to be rich!"
Laughing, she jumped up from the chair and danced a jig. She could see it now.. .her picture all over the papers and flashing on every TV screen in America. And the headlines —oh, they were going to be beautiful! Struggling Actress Finds Prince! She'd be a hero! Every producer in Hollywood would be kicking himself for not recognizing her talent when he'd had the chance. And she'd make them pay for that when they finally came knocking on her door, she promised herself smugly. Oh, yes, they'd pay.
And so would the king and queen of Montebello. What would they pay to have their only son back? They had to have billions. Just thinking about how grateful they would be made her weak at the knees. She would be invited to the palace, to balls and parties and fancy soirees. Hell, they might even ask her to move to Montebello and live with them! If she played her cards right, she could be sitting pretty for the rest of her life.
Oh, this was going to be good, she thought, purring in delight. Everyone who'd ever slammed a door in her face was going to regret it—she'd make sure of it—starting with Derek. The jerk! She'd loved him—and trusted him to make her a star. Then he'd walked out on her, and she'd lost her lover and manager at one and the same time. She'd been devastated, but had he cared? Hell, no! He'd laughed in her face and told her she would never be anybody. He was going to regret that.
Then there was the family. Oh, she supposed Jessica was sympathetic enough, but everyone else had snickered at her dreams of being a famous actress and made fun of her behind her back. And she'd hated them for that. For as long as she could remember, she'd been sick of being poor, sick of trying to get ahead and getting nowhere. She'd left home at eighteen because she couldn't stand it anymore, because Hollywood was the dream factory of the world, and she wanted the life that Julia Roberts and Meg Ryan had. She could act as well as they could—she knew she could!
But she never got the chance. Her parents had died before she could even land her first part—small though it was. Without an agent, the only steady job open to her was waiting tables. Then she'd met Derek and he'd promised her he would make all her dreams come true. But the only part he ever got her was a bit in a porno flick, and what good was that when she couldn't even brag about it to anyone, least of all her goody-goody sister?
He'd failed her and so had everyone else, and when she was finally forced to return to Colorado and her hometown of Shady Rock because she didn't have a dime to her name, she'd been so bitter and disillusioned that she hadn't come out of her apartment for days. That was weeks ago, and nothing had changed. All she'd been able to see ahead of her were days and weeks and months of blandness and poverty for the rest of her life.
Until now. Now she was going to have the last laugh.
Anticipation glinting in her blue eyes, she whirled around, looking around her messy apartment for her purse. She had to go to Jessica's, had to see for herself that Joe and the prince were one and the same man. She didn't understand what the prince was doing hanging around her sister—or why he didn't seem to want to be found—but she didn't care. As soon as she verified he was her man, she was calling King Marcus of Montebello. By the time she got through talking to him, she was going to be richer than Cleopatra!
Already spending the money in her mind, she had just found her purse and was in the process of digging for her car keys when there was a knock at her door. "Damn!" she swore. If that was old lady Baker from next door, there to complain because her TV was too loud again, she was going to tell her off. Let her go to the apartment manager—she didn't care if they threw her out on her ear. She was about to come into money!
Prepared to tell the old goat exactly what she thought of her, she stormed across to the door and jerked it open, only to gasp, "Jessica! What are you doing here? I was just on my way out to the ranch to see you."
"Oh, Ursula!" her sister sobbed. "I need your help. Joe left me!"
"What?"
Caught up in her own misery, Jessica didn't even notice that her sister paled at her words. Her heart hurting and tears flooding her soft, wide blue eyes, she stumbled into the apartment like a wounded animal and fell into Ursula's arms. "I don't know what happened," she sobbed. "One second, everything was fine, and the next, we were arguing and he walked out."
"What do you mean he walked out?' she demanded, awkwardly patting her. "He'll be back, of course. He just needs some time to cool off. You'll see. Leave him alone tonight, and by morning, he'll be ready to kiss and make up."
"No, he won't," she sniffed, pulling back to wipe her eyes. "He's gone to find himself."
Her heart breaking, Jessica knew she shouldn't have said any more. Joe was entitled to his privacy, and even though he'd only met Ursula once, he hadn't trusted her from the moment he'd first laid eyes on her. He'd asked Jessica to keep his secret to herself, and she should have done that. But she dissolved in tears just at the thought of never seeing him again, and she had to talk to someone. And even if they weren't all that close, Ursula was her sister, and the only family she had left now that her parents were gone.<
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"What do you mean he's gone to find himself? Where?" she asked sharply. "What do you know about Joe, Jess? And don't start crying again, dammit! This is important. Has he gone home?"
"I don't know," she sniffed. "He doesn't know where home is."
Ursula had never had much patience with emotional displays, and when Jessica saw her start to scowl, she cried, "It's true! He has amnesia. That's why he jumped at the chance to work for me when he came to the ranch all those months ago. He had nowhere else to go!"
Ursula had heard her fair share of tall tales, but this one was over the top. The man was a prince, for heaven's sake! His family was rolling in dough, and as King Marcus's only son, he stood to inherit a lion's share of that. A man didn't just forget that. Not unless he was crazy or something, and from what she'd seen of Joe the only time they'd met, he was a far cry from crazy. So what kind of scam was he trying to pull? Whatever it was, he had to know he wasn't going to get away with it. She'd make sure of it, she vowed grimly.
"Let me get this straight," she said with a frown. "He doesn't know who he is, but he's gone to find himself. How the hell is he going to do that, Jess, if he doesn't know who he is?"
Tears still streaming down her face, she couldn't answer that one. "I don't know!" she cried. "I just know he's gone, and I don't know where. And I never got to tell him—"
When she broke off abruptly, Ursula pinned her with a hard look that would brook no opposition. "You never told him what? Tell me, Jess. You might as well. You know I'm going to find out anyway."
She'd always had a way of getting secrets out of her little sister, and they both knew it. It only took another chiding look for Jessica to cave in like a stack of dominoes. Hugging herself, she blurted out, "I'm pregnant! And Joe doesn't know."
Stunned, Ursula just looked at her. Then her condition— and its repercussions—registered, and with a shriek, she swept Jessica into her arms. "Honey, that's wonderful!" If they didn't have the prince, they had his heir! And that sweet, adorable baby that was destined to be king would be her nephew! "When did you find out? Why haven't you told me? Here, sit down. We have to make plans!"
Hustling Jessica over to the nearest chair, she plopped her down in it, then grabbed a footstool for her to rest her feet on. "Can I get you something? Are you drinking plenty of milk? We want the baby to have strong bones. When's he due?"
"I don't even know if he is a he," her sister replied. Frowning in confusion, she looked at Ursula like she'd suddenly grown two heads. "This wasn't the reaction I expected from you. I thought you'd be upset with me... especially now that Joe's taken off. How am I going to run the ranch and have a baby? There's so much to do around there already. I can't do everything by myself."
Far from concerned, Ursula only laughed. "Don't you worry about that, honey. Trust me, you're going to be well taken care of—Joe's family will see to that."
"His family? What are you talking about? I told you he has amnesia. He doesn't even know what his real name is, let alone who his family is."
"He may not," her sister retorted slyly, "but I do." Snatching up the morning newspaper, she opened it to the front page and wasn't surprised to find Prince Lucas's picture there for all the world to see. "Look," she said, pushing the paper at her. "You fell in love with the prince, Cinderella! His real name is Prince Lucas Sebastiani of Montebello."
Not even looking at the picture, Jessica laughed. "Right! And I'm Queen Elizabeth. Stop fooling around, Ursula."
"I'm not joking. Look!"
With the picture shoved right under her nose, she had no choice but to look at it. Humoring her, she said, "Okay, so he's a prince—"
Her gaze dropped to the smiling man in the picture, and between one heartbeat and the next, her world turned upside down. Though the beard was gone and the face younger and less care-and weatherworn, she couldn't deny the resemblance. Stunned, she gasped, "Oh, my God, that's Joe! How—"
"No," her sister corrected her, "that's Prince Lucas. Read the article, Jess."
Her blood roaring in her ears, Jessica tried to read the article that accompanied the bold headlines, but all she saw was the prince's name before her gaze was tugged back to the man in the picture. Joe. It had to be him. There couldn't be another man in the world who had that same engaging smile and twinkle in his eye. But he wasn't a prince. How could he be? He was just a drifter who'd showed up at the ranch one day looking for work.
"I don't understand," she said huskily, glancing back up at Ursula in confusion. "How can this be?"
"He crashed his plane into the side of a mountain somewhere outside of Boulder last year, and he's been missing ever since. He must have hit his head, sweetie."
"And all this time, he's been wandering around, trying to find out who he is. My God, that's so sad! I've got to find him!"
She would have struggled up from her chair and hurried out to her truck to begin immediately looking for him, but Ursula moved lightning quick to stop her. "Oh, no you don't! The prince can take care of himself. You've got other more important things to do—like taking care of yourself and the baby. I think you need to go to Montebello."
"What?!"
"It's the only logical thing to do," she retorted, already picturing where she would live in the royal palace. She might even find herself a royal husband! "The king needs to know that he's about to become a grandfather. I'll go with you to tell him. He can see that you're taken care of—after all, you're the mother of his grandson. Then when his son is found, he'll make sure he does the right thing and marries you."
"Oh, no! I would never use the baby to force a proposal out of Joe," she said, horrified. "He doesn't even know I'm pregnant."
"He'll know soon enough when we find him."
"No! If he loves me, he'll come back to me without knowing about the baby."
"But the baby could one day be king of Montebello," she pointed out. "You have to tell the king!"
Her heart bruised and aching, Jessica didn't care two cents about that. It was Joe she cared about, Joe she loved. She desperately needed him to return that love, and for the last few months, she'd convinced herself that he did. She'd seen the emotion in his eyes, felt it in his touch, tasted it in his kiss. But he'd left without ever saying the words, and that hurt.
"The only thing I care about is Joe," she cried as tears once again welled in her eyes. "What if he never comes back?"
But even as she cried out in pain, memories stirred, and suddenly, she had a vague recollection of Joe talking about his duty to himself and others. And just that easily, she knew Ursula was right. He had left her to go back to his real life! And he hadn't said a word about who he was. Why? Because he was afraid she would want something from him or his family.
Hurt, her pride stung, she wiped away the last of her tears and squared her shoulders. He didn't have to worry about her trying to contact him, she thought grimly. It wasn't going to happen.
"If that's the way he felt, then I'm glad he's gone," she said coldly. "He's obviously not the man I thought he was."
"So make him pay for that. Call the king."
"No."
Jessica didn't turn stubborn very often, but when she did, there was no budging her. Frustrated, Ursula swore silently. They could both live high off the hog if she'd do the right thing and inform the royal family of her pregnancy, but she had to turn all stubborn and noble on her, dammit! She'd let her get away with it now, but not for long. This was the opportunity of a lifetime and she wasn't going to let Jessica or anyone else blow it for her!
Chapter 7
He couldn't get her out of his head.
Tossing and turning and unable to sleep, Lorenzo tried to blame it on the bad bed, the groaning heater that barely kept the room warm and the eighteen-wheelers that raced by on the highway that seemed to be right outside his door, but a man could only lie to himself so much. It wasn't the accommodations that were interfering with his sleep, or the traffic on the highway or even whoever was snoring in the room
next door and rattling the walls. It was her, and there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it.
Disgusted with himself, he rolled out of bed, dragged on his jeans and a flannel shirt and stepped out onto the wooden porch that ran the length of the one-story building. It was well past midnight and colder than hell and he hadn't bothered with shoes, but the freezing silence of the night was a welcome distraction. With his shoulders hunched, his hands buried in the pockets of his jeans and his toes curled under, he stared out at the all-consuming darkness of the night and tried to focus on Lucas. Where was he? Was he all right? Why hadn't he called the family? Didn't he realize everyone was worried sick about him? Or had something—or someone —prevented him from calling?
It was that that worried Lorenzo the most, but there was little he could do for Lucas right now except continue the search first thing in the morning.. .with Eliza. Just that easily, his thoughts circled back around to her, and with a will of their own, his gaze traveled to the end of the porch and her room.
Swearing, he didn't want to notice that her lights were out or imagine her in bed. He didn't want to remember her smile or the way her blue eyes danced when she laughed or the softness of her skin when he touched her. He didn't want to be able to recall every single conversation they'd ever had or admire her sharp wit and pretty smile. And he damn sure didn't want to dream about her every time he closed his eyes. But he did, and it was slowly driving him crazy.
It had to stop, he thought grimly. He had to stop thinking of her as anything other than a reporter he was forced to work with. Because if he didn't, he was going to do something stupid.. .like give in to the need she stirred in him so effortlessly. And he didn't have to reach for her, didn't have to kiss her, didn't have to make love to her, to know that if he made that mistake once, he would have a hard time walking away from her. Then, he really would be in trouble.
Promising himself that wasn't going to happen, he deliberately tore his gaze from her darkened window and went back inside. And this time when he went to bed and closed his eyes, he focused on the progress report he planned to make to the king on the search for Lucas. When he finally fell asleep, Eliza was nowhere in his thoughts.