Royally Mine: 22 All-New Bad Boy Romance Novellas

by Susan Stoker

  However, when she'd informed me that my cousins, Abe and Mark, were getting married, I couldn't help but feel a pang at my own failure. Our failure.

  It wasn't as though I hadn't been looking, but the number of women, like just about everything else in Eagle Pass, was scarce. Not to mention the specific type of woman we were looking for.

  Aidan and I had certainly spent plenty of time discussing what, or who, we wanted in a spouse, our princess. Finding her seemed to be the bigger issue.

  Molly, who worked at one of the offices at the council building, was nice and we'd taken her out a few times. She'd certainly made her interest clear and Aidan was game to continue courting her, but I felt like when I met the right woman, I'd just know. Know it deep down in my gut, and everywhere else that mattered too.

  Molly just hadn't hit me with the zing I'd been looking for.

  The zing of true love's arrow that had been genetically passed down through generations of my family. Our fathers had felt it when they'd met our mother. Of course, as my mother told the story, they still had to convince her and she'd put them through their paces.

  We were thirty-two, Aidan and I, twins. Twins who were princes.

  And we needed a princess.

  In theory, there was no rush. Our mother, Princess Karen, and our fathers were all in good health. Mostly things ran themselves in Eagle Pass. I credit the stable leadership of my parents for that.

  All these things were rushing around in my head as I drove into town. There's usually no traffic, so it's not like the trip took much focus anyway. I could probably have just pointed my truck in the right direction and it would have taken me there on its own.

  An eagle flying overhead caught my attention. No matter how many times I saw one of the majestic birds in flight, it still gave me a thrill.

  When I was a child, my grandfather had told me about eagles. He said they are a symbol that your life is about to change. That you need to be like an eagle—brave and true to yourself, ready to take on challenges head first—in order to soar in life.

  Suddenly, I felt better, optimistic. An eagle sighting always did that to me.

  I looked back at the road just in time to see a blue car on my side of the pavement… and the driver had her head out the window.

  I laid on the horn and the brakes at the same time and came to a stop before we collided. She didn't do as well. Overreacting, I watched her jerk the wheel too hard then tried to correct, but she ended up in the ditch.

  By the time I got to her, she was just stepping out of the car. Smooth, slender legs in a pair of cut off shorts. Before I even got a look at her face, I'd felt the zing.

  Chapter Two

  Cassie

  I thought the eagle sighting meant good luck, but there I was, sideways in a ditch in the middle of nowhere with no cell phone. I'm not sure who I would have called anyway, but it would have been nice to have the option. I could have at least called Ellie and whimpered and whined.

  No, I'd done enough of that already. It was time for me to take charge of my life, and if that meant I had to figure out what to do, then I'd better get out of the car and see the extent of the damage.

  Heaving on the door, I managed to get it open and stepped out into the tall prairie grass. I regretted my decision to wear flip flops that day as I wondered what might be hiding in the thin blades of grass which enveloped my legs up to my knees. Stepping as gingerly as I could, I walked around the car surveying the situation, hoping to find nothing major.

  I'm not sure if it was major, but the front passenger side fender was mashed up and the tire was flat. Alone in an area hundreds of miles from anyone I knew, no cell service and my undriveable car stuck in a ditch—this seemed major. I huffed out the breath I'd been holding and considered my limited options.

  "Need some help?"

  Lost in thought, the voice from out of nowhere scared me, and I nearly jumped out of my flip flops. I looked up to see the most gorgeous man I had ever laid eyes on. Tall and dark, with a black braid that dipped past his broad shoulders, he tipped his hat to me. "Sorry to startle you, miss."

  I stared for so long, he finally waved his hand in front of my face. "Miss? Are you okay? Did you bump your head?"

  I turned my head from side to side to clear the cobwebs. No, I wasn't injured, but a strange sensation pulsed through me, sort of a jab in my heart followed by warmth. Telling myself it was just shock from the accident and then being frightened by the arrival of an insanely handsome man, I finally got myself together enough to speak.

  "I'm fine. Thank you."

  "Are you sure?" He closed the gap between us and probed my temple with warm fingers. For a large powerful man, the brush of his hand on my flesh was surprisingly gentle. Unwittingly, I leaned into his touch, his large palm cupped the side of my face, the strange sensation I'd noticed when I first saw him, hummed to life again.

  After a moment, we stepped away from each other, an awkward feeling hanging between us. Nervous, I started to jabber. I'm always cool in every situation.

  "I'm sure I didn't hit my head. I was wearing my seatbelt. I always wear my seat belt. There was an eagle and I'd never seen one before, so I stuck my head out the window to see it, and I guess I wasn't paying attention, and when you honked, I freaked out and then I ended up in the ditch."

  Apparently he was the strong silent type because he just stared at me, his black eyes piercing through me like he could see into my soul.

  Freakishly uncomfortable with the silence and his probing eyes, I babbled on. "Thank you for stopping. My cell phone doesn't seem to be working out here, and I didn't know how I was going to get any help."

  "My pleasure, miss." His voice was like a warm honey bath washing over me. I probably should have crawled back into my car and locked the door. This man was dangerous.

  No, not in the 'creepy man who drives around finding stranded women broken down on lonely roads' sort of way, but in the 'oh my god I am just getting on with my life after nursing my sick husband for years and mourning him for two more years, and I'm just not sure what is happening to me right now, and what is that feeling in my pussy' sort of way.

  "Well," I said, "if you could just tell me which way to the closest auto repair shop, I'll go make arrangements to get my car towed out of here." I reached into the open window of the car and grabbed my purse, slung it onto my shoulder and prepared to march off into the sunset in search of help.

  He tipped his head to the side and studied me, the corner of his mouth turning up as I felt his eyes scan down my body, paying particular attention to my cut-off shorts, bare legs and lingered for a moment on my feet. If it was possible for toes to blush, I think mine did. "It's four miles to town." He looked up at me and raised an eyebrow. "Do you really think those shoes are a good choice?"

  Well, what was I supposed to do now? He was right. Even if the shoes didn't fall apart by the time I got to town, my feet would be covered with blisters.

  I could ask him for a ride, but I had set out on this trip with the intention of taking care of myself. I refused to be another service project. In answer to his question about the appropriateness of my shoes, I rolled up my car window and locked the vehicle, repositioned my purse on my shoulder and headed down the road.

  It didn't take long for me to regret my decision, but I also did not want this man, this disturbingly attractive man, to see me give in so soon.

  He didn't even offer me a ride!

  As I stomped along, trying to walk a safe distance from the road while also not getting too close to the prairie grass, a vehicle stopped next to me. Startled, I stumbled a bit and gave my ankle a twist. I righted myself and glared at the truck and the man driving it.

  The passenger side window lowered, and the sexy man with long black braid said, "I'd like to give you a ride to town. Would you please get in?"

  Geez, I'd only made it about twenty yards on my own. How could I give in already? My ankle started to throb, but I could not bring myself to agree t
o his offer.

  "If my mama found out that I let a lady walk all the way to town, in a pair of flip flops no less, she'd have my hide. You don't want that to happen, do you?" He tilted his head to the side with a slow smile.

  My body betrayed me on every level. In addition to the naughty warmth curling low in my belly, my hand reached over and opened the door. Next thing I knew, I had hoisted myself up into his truck.

  "Thank you," he said as I shut the door. "Make sure you buckle up."

  I reached back for the seat belt and as soon as I had pulled the buckle across the front of my body, my driver took it from my hand and inserted it into the lock. The back of his hand brushed against my hip as he completed the task, and my breath caught in my throat at the contact.

  "I'm Luke, Luke Carson," he said, holding out his hand.

  "Cassie, Cassie Gray." I laid my palm against his and our eyes met and time froze for a moment.

  Oh… I should not have gotten into that truck.

  I pulled my hand away and tried not to look like I was panicking. "Thank you for the ride, Luke. It was lucky that you stopped."

  He put the truck in gear and headed down the road. "It is my pleasure."

  "Would your mother really have your hide, as you say?" I could not resist the urge to flirt. Maybe I had hit my head.

  "You can count on it. The Princess does not tolerate ungentlemanly behavior."

  "You call your mother The Princess? How cute. What do you call your father?"

  "Most people call them The Princes, though we are not too formal, so mostly we just call them Papa."

  "Them? Are your parents divorced?"

  "Oh no," he said, looking me directly in the eyes. "No one in Eagle Pass gets divorced."

  "No one? How is that possible?"

  Before Luke could answer, the truck stopped in front of an old-fashioned looking gas station and a man in a clean white uniform came running out, doffing his hat as soon as he saw Luke. "Good afternoon, sir, miss," he said, turning from Luke to me.

  Luke explained the situation to him and I handed over my keys.

  "Shouldn't I ride along?"

  "No," Luke said, "we're going to see the doctor about your ankle."

  I started to protest, but since it seemed pointless to argue, I agreed.

  Chapter Three

  Cassie

  As we drove through town, I was able to take my eyes off Luke and glance around the little community of Eagle Pass. It was so quiet and peaceful. Lots of pick-up trucks lined the streets, though where they all came from I had no idea since I'd been driving and had barely seen any traffic. Maybe they all came from the other direction. As usual, I was likely going the wrong way.

  Not a chain restaurant or big blue store in sight. It felt a little like Mayberry.

  Instead of pulling up in front of an urgent care as I'd expected, Luke parked the truck in front of a two-story wood frame house with a small sign in front, 'Aidan Carson, MD.'

  I turned to Luke. "I don't have an appointment. I won't be able to see a doctor today." I glanced at the clock on the dash of the truck. "It's nearly lunch time as it is. Can you just take me to the pharmacy for an ice pack?"

  Wow, I had gone from not wanting to accept any help, to asking this guy to chauffeur me around town.

  "Um, am I keeping you from whatever it was you were planning to do today? I'm sorry to be a bother. I'm sure there's a pharmacy or grocery store around. I'll just walk there and then back to the garage to see about my car."

  Luke turned to me and the cab of his massive pick-up truck suddenly felt suffocatingly small and intimate, his eyes taking in everything about me. "There is nothing more important to me than taking care of you." His voice contained just enough thickness to make my insides melt, and possibly all slide into my panties which suddenly seemed damp.

  Before I could respond, though I'm not sure what I would have said, he had exited the driver's side and came around to open my door. When he leaned across me to unbuckle my seatbelt, I smelled the aroma of fresh air and soap, and pure man.

  Oh god.

  His large hands easily spanned my waist, and he lifted me from the truck. I opened my mouth to protest the coddling, but the hard line of his jaw told me there'd be no point in arguing. He set me down on my feet, but kept his arm firmly around my waist, his hand so big the fingers brushed the underside of my breast.

  I'm sure my face was flushed from embarrassment mixed with lust. The doctor would probably think I had a fever too. What had happened to me in the last hour? Was that really all the time it had been? It felt like I'd been dropped down the rabbit hole into some odd, parallel universe.

  "I think I can walk just fine," I said, because I felt like I ought to.

  "Let's not take any chances." Luke gave my waist a gentle squeeze and I almost purred with pleasure.

  Entering the doctor's office only confirmed my belief that I was in a parallel universe. Instead of a sterile doctor's waiting area, it was like walking into a cozy living room. People sat on couches and comfortable chairs and, instead of everyone staring at their phones, there was a lively conversation going on. The room quieted when we entered, not an awkward silence, just a pause while people greeted Luke. Did everyone in town know each other?

  Instead of taking a seat with the others or giving my name to the receptionist, Luke walked me straight back to the doctor's office. Not an exam room, his office, which was currently empty.

  "What are you doing? We can't just barge in here."

  "Don't worry. The doctor is my twin brother. Have a seat and I'll let him know we're here."

  Luke's brother? There was another one just like him? No, it was too much. My brain and libido could not process that much testosterone in a confined space.

  Besides, I was on the verge of a major freak out from being in a doctor's office. The private office is where the doctor takes you to talk about a serious diagnosis… like when your husband has a terminal disease that is going to slowly steal his life away in tiny increments until he's barely the man you married. And you look around at all the diplomas and awards and think surely someone with all those qualifications and can fix whatever is wrong, right? I mean, that's why we go to them and call them doctor and wait for hours to see them, because they're like the closest thing we have to God.

  And then you find out that he's not a god, he's a mere mortal and there are some things he just can't fix. And then you go home and wait for your husband to die.

  I closed my eyes and did some yoga breathing to try to calm myself, grateful Luke had given me a few minutes alone. If there was any good news in all of this, I had at least found out my sex drive had moved out of neutral. Frankly, I'd thought it might even have been in reverse for the last few years.

  It felt like a horrible betrayal to even mention it. Honestly, when your husband is struggling to even sit up by himself, and you're exhausted from caring for him and from the massive effort it takes to hold it together so he doesn't see how your heart is breaking, sex just isn't even on the register.

  Well, it was registering now.

  ***

  Aidan

  When I came out of an exam room and nearly ran smack into the chest of my brother, Luke, I was more than a little startled. Luke never just showed up at my office. Luke never just showed up anywhere. Spontaneity was not really his thing. I mean, he wasn't a control freak by any stretch. He was just… circumspect.

  My first thought was that something had happened to one of our parents, but his expression was a little too animated for something serious. He pulled me into an empty exam room and shut the door.

  "I found her," he said, like I was supposed to know who 'her' was.

  "Who?"

  "Her."

  "Luke, you're going to have to be more specific. Is there someone missing who I didn't hear about?" I went to move past him. I had a lot of patients who were waiting for me, and I didn't really have time for his guessing games. I said as much to him.

  "He
r. The one for us. The one the Great Spirit has chosen to be our bride. Our princess."

  In all our thirty-two years together, I had never seen Luke so agitated. Our mother said Luke was like a calm mountain lake, still and deep, while I was like a river stream, rushing and babbling and maybe not so deep, though I did manage to graduate from medical school—and a year early at that. Part of the rushing, I suppose.

  His intense gaze locked with mine and the full measure of what he'd said hit me. Hit me hard.

  "Are you sure?" How did he find a princess for both of us when I wasn't even there? Somehow I'd figured we'd find her together. I suppose if I hadn't been buried in work I could have found her instead. Yeah. That's it.

  "I felt it. I felt the arrow." He slapped his palm against his heart. "Right here. Just like the legend said."

  "Maybe it was something you ate." I'd grown up knowing about the legend. My parents had attested to its accuracy; my fathers had felt the arrow the instant they met my mother. The same with my grandparents. Actually, with all the families in Eagle Pass. But for Luke and I, it had an even bigger impact since we were destined to lead our community one day and we needed a princess.

  Still, it was hard to believe that on a regular old Wednesday my brother would randomly find the woman who was destined to be ours.

  "Yes, I am sure." He grabbed my arm. "She's waiting in your office. She hurt her ankle and I brought her here to you. So you could meet her."

  I eyed him warily. "You didn't tackle her did you?" Luke could be a little more aggressive than necessary when he wanted something.

  To prove my point, he yanked the exam room door open and practically dragged me down the hall to my office. Through the open door, I caught a glimpse of her in profile. Unruly strawberry blonde hair flowed past her shoulders and her alabaster skin was dotted with a smattering of freckles.

  She must have heard us because she turned and smiled at me.