Seduced by the Prince

by Cristina Grenier

  “To be perfectly honest, I don’t mind being my mother, if it means I can share memories with Gran. She’s deteriorating rapidly, and the last time I spoke to a doctor, he said she might not last till the end of the year.”

  Less than two months…Max couldn’t stop himself this time. He reached over and pulled Tina to him, holding her by her shoulders and nudging her chin up. “I am so very sorry, Tina. I do know how painful it is to lose someone you love.”

  He pulled her in to his chest, and she settled against his body, wrapping her arms around his waist. She didn’t sob, or even cry so that he could hear, but after a while, he felt the place where her tears soaked into his shirt. He hugged her more tightly to himself, willing his errant body not to respond to the feel of her roundness against his hard frame. Now was definitely not the time to show her how attracted to her he was becoming.

  Eventually, she pulled away, turning her face away as she said, “Sorry. I’m don’t usually fall apart like this.”

  Max could well believe it, but he wasn’t sorry she had. Because he had gotten to hold her in his arms, and that was a gift he would never refuse. He withdrew the handkerchief he always carried with him and handed it to her.

  “It is perfectly understandable, Tina. You are just getting over an illness yourself, which makes you more susceptible to emotion. There is nothing to apologize for.”

  She wiped at her eyes and nose, and smiled wanly at him. “Thank you.” Then she turned away. “I think I’ll just go up now. Please thank Peter for dinner for me. And thanks for keeping me company. Good night, Max.”

  “Good night, Tina.”

  She walked away, leaving him standing by the window trying to gather his thoughts. She would have no one to help her grieve when the time came, and he could not imagine how she would cope. He had never felt more powerless than he did in that moment, clenching his fists as he thought of how he had had the support of his family as they weathered the tumult of his mother’s passing. He would be there for Tina when the time came. If he was to become more to her than the man who gave her shelter when she was ill, he would have to pull out all the stops.

  And that was when he decided that Tina would be his partner at his coronation. She would need some happy memories to replace the sad ones that were overwhelming her, and would be sure to come upon her at grandmother’s death. It was something else that he could do. No matter that it also served his purpose well. He could afford to be a little selfish for the greater good, both his and hers. He would not feel guilty about how he was going to use her situation to get close to her, because he knew instinctively that she would do everything in her power to shut him out.

  He glanced at his watch. It was still too early for him to retire, but he knew exactly how he would occupy himself until bedtime. Fetching his tablet, he found the story Tina had sent him and settled into the armchair to read. The story was fairly simple — a policeman undercover falls for the daughter of the crime boss he’s targeting — but the characters are complex and the plot unpredictable. Max lost himself in the pages, enjoying the way the lovers discovered each other’s feelings, getting aroused at the visceral descriptions of their lovemaking, breathing a sigh of relief when the cop escapes with his life and the case is satisfactorily closed.

  He realized as he headed up to bed that he had not once wanted to put the book down. There was something intensely bewitching about Tina’s style that made him not want to stop till it was over. And as he stripped down to his boxer briefs and donned the pair of silk pajamas that Peter had laid out for him, he thought about her portrayal of the policeman. He was tough, as his job required, terse, except when he was with the woman he loved, when he was also tender, once the initial obstacles to their being together were overcome.

  He supposed most women wanted a man like that, a hardass who was experienced both in the workplace and in the bedroom. Would Tina find his job appealing, when he finally told her all that it entailed? Would she find him lacking in the bedroom? He was not a monk, and had enjoyed several satisfying liaisons with willing bedmates, from whom he had learned all he could about how to please a woman. But what he wanted to discover with Tina was more than just how compatible they were in bed. He wanted to know if she would make the kind of mate his mother had been to his father. Could she fight him, and still love him? Could she even love him? Was it too premature to be thinking in these terms?

  He fell asleep with those thoughts rolling around in his head, but as usual he was up with the birds, and already in the shower when Peter came to set out his attire and discuss plans for the day.

  “I think I’d like to take Tina out for a little excursion in the snow today, if she’s up to it,” he told Peter, who promptly changed the clothes he had set out to something more suitable for a jaunt in the snow, adding one of the snowsuits he had brought with him to clothing on the rack.

  “Also, I’ll need you to get the car ready, as I’ll most likely be taking her out to dinner later. You know my favorite restaurant round here.”

  “Yes, my lord. Breakfast will be served in an hour. Shall I wake Ms. Cooper?”

  “No, I’ll do it, thank you, Peter.”

  His pulse picked up its pace as he strode down the hall to her door. Knocking gently, he waited but heard no response. A second knock brought no response, and a moment of panic assailed him. He tamped down the feeling…nothing could have happened to her overnight. She hadn’t been in mortal danger from the bug she had caught. She was probably just in the shower. He opened the door and stuck his head in.

  “Good morning! Tina, are you here?”

  A startled gasp told him she was. “What…what are you doing?”

  “I came to tell you breakfast will be in an hour. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.”

  He turned to look at her and clenched his fists around the sudden urge to grab her and kiss her face. She was wrapped in a fluffy pink bathrobe, and the ends of her hair were dripping, as though she had washed it. He cleared his throat, unwilling as yet to expose his deepening attraction to her.

  “Do you have any clothing suitable for outdoor activities in the snow?”

  She eyed him suspiciously, her hands holding the robe closed at the neck and waist. “Why? Are we going to have a snowball fight, or make snow angels?”

  He laughed at her questions. “Perhaps another time, when you are fully well. No, I’d like to take you out for a bit, to get some fresh air after breakfast.” He would save the invitation to dinner for later. One thing at a time.

  She hesitated and then nodded. “I have a snowsuit, yes.”

  “I’d like it if you would wear it, please? We’ll not go too far, and if you’re game, I might take you for a spin on the snowmobile.”

  “I’m not a fan of high speed,” she informed him, and he hid his smile. He was a speed demon himself, but for her, he would be as sedate as his father. At this point, he would do anything to get closer to her.

  “I promise not to go fast if you promise to trust me. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

  She nodded, and though everything in him wanted to stay right where he was, he turned away. If he got to where he wanted to go with her, there’d be lots of time to spend being with her in her private space.

  “I’ll see you downstairs soon, then.”

  Never had time moved more slowly. He made a quick call to his father, and was happy that the older Prince was no worse than before. He chose not to tell him about his decision regarding his partner for the coronation. He would wait until Tina agreed. And he would wait to ask until he was more certain that she would relax completely around him.

  “My lord, breakfast is served.”

  Peter’s voice broke into his musings, and he followed the older man back to the dining room. Tina was hovering by the window, looking out at the sharply white snow.

  “Madam.” Peter pulled her chair out for her and she sat with a quiet smile.

  Max admired the Henley shirt she wore over a p
air of form-fitting jeans, her feet covered in rugged, insulated black boots. She had pinned up her hair, and the makeup she wore was barely there. He tore his gaze away from her face as Peter served their plates, and though he ate everything he was given, he couldn’t truthfully say what any of it tasted like, or even what it was. He was too busy watching her sip her coffee, nibble on toast, and savor the orange sections that Peter had given her.

  “You’re making me uncomfortable, Max,” she said at last, frowning at him.

  He didn’t pretend not to know what she was talking about. “I apologize.” He wasn’t sorry, but he spoke the words she expected him to say before swallowing the rest of the coffee in his cup for want of something to do and asking, “So, are you looking forward to your first snowmobile ride?”

  She smiled faintly. “Yes and no. I’m scared you’ll forget to go slow and we’ll disappear under an avalanche of snow. But I’m glad to be going outside for a bit.”

  “I hope this isn’t too soon after your brush with the flu.”

  He had been so eager to get her alone that he had forgotten how recently she had been ill. Kicking himself for his inattention, he examined her features but found nothing to suggest that she was still the worse for wear. Perhaps he should have asked Peter to prepare a hot drink for them to take on their outing. He’d do that now.

  “Will you excuse me a moment?” he said. “I’ll be back in a few.”

  He went in search of his butler and found him just coming back in from outside.

  “I’ve started up the snowmobile, sir,” Peter told him.

  “Thank you. I wonder if you could prepare a flask of hot liquid for us to take? Tina is feeling better, but I don’t want her to get chilled again.”

  “I’ve already prepared the picnic, my lord. A few crackers, some cheese, broth for the lady, and coffee for you.”

  “Good man! Thank you.”

  It was time. He rubbed his hands together like an excited child. He would make this excursion as satisfying for her as he could.

  Chapter 6: A Morning Ride

  The purple and white onesie snowsuit that Tina had brought with her fit sweetly over her jeans and shirt. Max helped her step into it, after kneeling to remove her boots. He chuckled when he saw her purple woolly socks.

  “Purple your favorite color?” he asked.

  “One of them,” she replied, smiling at him.

  Now he was zipping her into the snowsuit, and when he reached the top, he chucked her in the chin playfully. “Warm enough?”

  “I’d better be. I paid a lot of money for this thing.”

  “You look lovely in it,” he told her, a sparkle in his eyes.

  “Thank you.”

  This polite dancing around each other was setting her teeth on edge. She wanted so desperately not to react to his nearness, to his scent, to the sheer masculinity he exuded, but it was proving more and more difficult the longer she was around him. He wore an all black suit and heavy boots.

  “Ready?”

  She nodded, and he took her hand and led her out through the garage to the snowmobile waiting in the thick snow. It puffed gently in the cold air while he helped her with her helmet, and once he had put on his own and they were aboard, he told her to hold on to his waist, and they were off. Remembering that he had promised to go slowly, she relaxed against him, loving the feeling of his solid body under her hands. He seemed to know where the off-road paths lay and Tina stopped trying to figure out where they were, instead letting the peace and exquisite beauty of the terrain capture her.

  Eventually, he stopped next to a copse of trees and rested one booted foot on the ground as he turned to look at her, removing his helmet as he did. She didn’t have a chance to unbuckle hers as he was already on it, but he let her remove it without any further assistance.

  “How do you like it so far?” he asked.

  “It was great,” she said, smiling. “You kept your word.” It wasn't something she was used to from the few men she had spent any time with. “It’s so beautiful!”

  “It is,” he agreed, turning his eyes for a moment to the landscape. “If you didn’t have other plans, I would have tried to persuade you to let me teach you to ski.”

  She shook her head. “I think not. I draw the line at imitating a snowmobile. It’s enough they wear the skis for me.”

  His delighted laugh unfurled something inside her and she dragged her eyes away from the crinkles at the corners of his own.

  “Would you like to go a little further afield before we have something warm?”

  “Whatever you like is fine by me, Max,” she said. It might be easier to deal with the emotions he was releasing in her if she didn’t have to look into his face.

  “Let’s go then. Just a bit further on, there’s a cabin. If we can get the door open, it’ll be a nice place to stop for a mid-morning warm-up.”

  She nodded and replaced her helmet, which he adjusted for her again. His attentiveness was unraveling her, breaking down her walls, undoing her in ways she would never have thought possible again, especially so soon after the John Sampson disaster. But what she had told Max had only been the tip of the iceberg where her relationships with men was concerned. And with her luck, there would never be reason to tell him more. After all, he was on holiday, and would be gone in a few days. She would be leaving tomorrow…there was no point in staying longer. Whatever the bug was that had sickened her, she was almost completely over it, and she had to get back to work. There were two book signings coming up in the next two weeks, and it meant travel for her again. And over all that, there was Grannie to visit.

  Tina dreaded the twice monthly visits she made to see her grandmother. Although she loved Grannie more than she could say, it hurt her more every time she visited to see how the old lady was deteriorating. Tina didn’t mind being mistaken for her mother, but it was a raw wound that she did not remember her mother well enough to know the depth of feeling that Grannie had had for Cora. And the wound was scored over and over every time she visited and Grannie rehashed memories of the times before Tina could remember, when Cora was a vibrant, beautiful woman, in love with a handsome brilliant man.

  She had been recording her grandmother’s ramblings in recent months as the old lady’s memories had taken over, and she had an idea that she might make a novel of her parents’ story, filling in the gaps with her imagination and wish fulfillment. It would be a bittersweet experience, she knew, but something in her needed to do it.

  Her sad musings had taken over so much that she had missed the scenery that Max drove through to get them to the cabin he had told her about. Now, as he shut off the engine and helped her alight, she looked around. The log structure was nestled in a grove of trees with one way in and out. Snow rode up the sides of the structure, and someone had apparently anticipated that it might be needed, because a path had been cleared to the door.

  “Your groundskeepers are worth their weight in gold,” she said.

  “Not mine, Tina. This isn’t my property. But yes, the men who care for this land are well paid to ensure that the guests’ every need is anticipated and met.” He took the extra wide insulated lunch bag in one hand and held out the other. “Come on. Time to warm you up.”

  Inside was bright and cheerful, and though it was cold, Tina allowed the first truly happy feelings she had had in a very long time to flood her chest with warmth. She toed off her boots, removed her snowsuit, hanging it on a peg she saw at one side of the front door, and padded away to explore the cabin in her socks. A smile spread over her face as she took in the large windows, sofa, chairs, and coffee table in the living room. From the outside, it looked like a small structure, but as she ventured further in, leaving Max to start a fire, she found it had a bedroom with ensuite bathroom as well as the living room and an eat-in kitchen. Taking the lunch bag with her into the clean bright space, she inspected its contents, smiling at Peter’s efficiency and thoughtfulness. There were two thermos flasks, one with coffee and o
ne with broth, and some crackers and slices of cheese. She found a tray, plates, and mugs, and set everything on it before going back to find that Max had started the fire.

  “I brought our snack.” She put the tray down on the coffee table and sat down, watching as Max walked over to where she sat. He sat next to her, and though no part of his body touched her, the electricity arcing between them left her almost dizzy with sensation.