by Douglas, Michelle; Gordon, Lucy; Pembroke, Sophie; Hardy, Kate
‘Just meet her,’ Lorenzo said. ‘Give her a chance. And maybe she can give our world a chance.’
‘And then?’
‘We’ll play it by ear,’ Lorenzo said decisively.
‘You’ve changed,’ his grandfather said. ‘The Lorenzo I know plans everything a long way in advance.’
Which was how he’d been brought up. Formal and rigid and disconnected from people. ‘I still do,’ Lorenzo said. ‘But I’ve learned a lot from Indi. Sometimes, to really connect with people and make a difference, you have to be a bit more flexible.’
‘She taught you that?’ His grandfather looked thoughtful. ‘She sounds an intriguing young woman.’
‘She is.’ Lorenzo smiled. ‘I’ll call her and arrange it.’
* * *
There was a gentle but insistent rap on the door. ‘Indi? Indi, are you all right? Can I come in?’
Lottie.
Should she lie and pretend that she had a crashing headache?
But Lottie was perceptive. Even if Indigo could stall her for now, Lottie would notice that something was up. And she was a close enough and old enough friend to ask what was wrong.
‘Come in,’ she croaked.
‘Indi, you’ve been crying,’ Lottie said as she walked in and closed the door behind her.
Indigo felt the tears well up and forced them back.
‘Sweetie, what’s wrong?’ Lottie asked. ‘Is this to do with Lorenzo?’
‘Sort of,’ she hedged.
Lottie hugged her. ‘I know you’re missing him. Look, do you want Gus to have a word with him?’
‘No, I’ll be fine.’ Indigo shook her head. ‘I’ll pull myself together.’
‘Why don’t you go to Melvante and see him?’
She blew out a breath. ‘I can’t do that. He’s busy preparing to be king.’
‘But you’re missing him, and I bet he’s missing you just as much.’
‘We agreed it was just a fling and we were both going to walk away at the end.’
Lottie raised her eyebrows. ‘I think it was more than just a fling. You fell for him, didn’t you?’
Indigo bit her lip. ‘Is it that obvious?’
‘Sweetie, you two might have thought you were being discreet, but it was obvious to everyone,’ Lottie said, squeezing her hand. ‘You both always seemed to disappear at the same time, so we knew you were together—and the way you looked at each other across a room was, well...’ She fanned herself. ‘Scorching.’
‘Oh.’ Indigo felt the colour flood into her face. ‘Sorry. We didn’t mean to—’ Then, to her horror, she burst into tears.
Lottie held her close and let her cry.
‘Sorry. I’m being really wet,’ she apologised.
‘No, you’ve been alone for a long time and you just fell in love with Lorenzo.’
‘He’s the worst person I could fall in love with.’
‘I can think of worse,’ Lottie said darkly. ‘Besides, Lorenzo’s one of the good guys. Actually, Gus has already had the big-brother talk with him about you.’
Indigo scrubbed away the tears. ‘That’s so sweet of him.’
‘Gus thinks of you as his other little sister. Actually, you’re the sister I would’ve chosen, if I’d been able to.’
Indigo sniffed. ‘Don’t, Lottie, you’ll make me cry even more.’
‘What is it, Indi?’
She dragged in a breath. ‘I don’t know where to start.’
‘Try the beginning—or the middle, if it’s easier. Or just cut to the difficult bit and come straight out with it,’ Lottie suggested.
‘The difficult bit.’ Indigo raked a hand through her hair. Well, she’d been here before. And Lottie had listened before. She was a safe person to tell. ‘I’m pregnant.’
Lottie placed a hand on her shoulder. ‘Indi, are you sure? You’re not just late because you’re stressed about Lorenzo going back to Melvante?’
‘I’m sure.’ Her breath hitched. ‘I did a test. Three days ago.’
‘You’ve known about this for three days and you didn’t tell me?’ Lottie looked hurt.
‘I didn’t want to dump it on you like I did last time, and I’m—I’m—oh, God, I’m so sorry.’ She felt her face crumple again.
‘Stop apologising. You’re not dumping it on me. That’s what friends are for, and I know you’d be there for me if it was the other way round.’ Lottie hugged her again. ‘So what do you want to do?’
‘I don’t know what to do for the best.’ Three sleepless nights hadn’t helped her decide a single thing. ‘I mean, I have to tell Lorenzo—of course I do, it wouldn’t be fair to keep the news to myself—but I’m not expecting anything from him.’
‘He’s not Nigel the Scumbag. He’s an honourable man.’
‘That’s the point, Lottie. He’s about to become the King of Melvante. Having an illegitimate child just isn’t going to work for him.’
Lottie spread her hands. ‘So make the child legitimate and marry the man. You and Lorenzo are crazy about each other.’
‘But I won’t fit into his world.’ Indigo sighed. ‘And it’ll be like living in a goldfish bowl, with everyone watching what I do all the time. I can’t just decide to go to the park or the beach because it’s a glorious day. His schedules are mapped out months in advance and there are security people everywhere. I don’t want that kind of life for me or for my baby.’
‘What about what Lorenzo wants?’ Lottie asked.
‘He’s got enough on his plate without having to deal with a baby.’
‘Indi...you’re not thinking...?’ Lottie looked horrified.
Indigo shook her head. ‘I haven’t exactly slept well for the last three nights. I’ve had time to think about it. And I’m going to make the same decision as I made last time.’ She dragged in a breath. ‘Last time. And we both know what happened then. Who’s to say this won’t resolve itself in the same way?’
‘You lost the baby then, but it doesn’t mean to say you’re going to lose this baby. Right now, what you need,’ Lottie said, ‘is to see a doctor and get checked over. Get all the blood tests done and what have you. And I’ll come with you to hold your hand.’
‘I can’t ask you to do that.’
‘You’re not asking—I’m telling you,’ Lottie said. ‘And, for once, that independent streak of yours is going to have to shut up and listen. Right?’
Indigo gave her a watery smile. ‘Right.’
* * *
When Indigo came out of the doctor’s surgery—with her pregnancy confirmed and a dating scan booked in at the hospital—she switched on her phone.
The message flashed up onto the screen: two missed calls. Both from Lorenzo. And there was a voicemail from him asking if she could give him a call.
She swallowed hard. How stupid to find herself almost in tears just at hearing his voice. That had to be the hormones whizzing round her system. She really wasn’t that pathetic and needy.
Why did he want her to call him? Surely he didn’t...?
She shook herself. No. Of course he didn’t have any idea about the situation she was in right now. He couldn’t read her mind, and she knew that Lottie wouldn’t have betrayed her confidence.
Returning his call would at least give her the chance to talk to him. Maybe she’d get an opening to broach the subject of the baby. Not that telling him on the phone was ideal, but talking to him would be a start. She could see how he sounded and play it by ear.
Once back in the privacy of her car, she rang Lorenzo. Although she’d half expected to end up leaving a message on his voicemail, he answered immediately. ‘Indi. Hello. Thanks for calling back.’
‘You’re welcome.’ And she was not going to burst into tears. She played it as coo
l as she could. ‘What can I do for you?’
‘I have a commission for you. In Melvante. I was thinking maybe a rose window.’
Her dream job. She’d talked to him about what she’d love to create, given the chance. And he was offering her that chance—albeit in his home, rather than her own.
‘Would this be in the palace?’ she asked tentatively.
‘Yes. It’s for the coronation. I know it’s ridiculously short notice, but do you think you could fit it in?’
So he wanted her to work for him?
How naive she’d been, thinking that he might’ve wanted just to talk to her. After all, he’d asked her to make their fling permanent and she’d turned him down. He had no reason to think she might have changed her mind or regretted the decision. Their affair was over and life had moved on; he was about to become king. And he even sounded different—slightly more formal and a little distant. Which made what she needed to tell him even more difficult. Just how was she going to bring up something so emotional, when all he wanted to talk to her about was work?
‘I could look at where you want to site it and come up with some designs, yes,’ she said carefully. She had some more projects scheduled in for when she’d finished at Edensfield, but she was pretty sure that her clients would be flexible about the timescales if she asked them nicely. ‘When were you thinking?’
‘Tomorrow?’ he suggested.
‘Sorry, I really can’t. I’m fitting the mermaid window back into place at Edensfield tomorrow.’
‘How about the day after?’
‘The day after is fine,’ she said. Though he’d forgotten one crucial little detail. ‘Provided I can book a flight. If there isn’t one available, it might have to be later.’
‘You don’t need to book a flight.’
‘As a mere mortal,’ she said crisply, ‘I don’t actually have wings to get me to Melvante under my own steam.’
‘I didn’t mean that. I meant, I’ll get it arranged for you.’ He laughed. ‘Oh, Indi. I’ve missed your straight talking.’
Maybe. But he clearly didn’t miss her.
As if he could read her thoughts, he said softly, ‘But not as much as I’ve missed you.’
She had to swallow really, really hard. Because right then she really, really missed him. Talking to him and knowing that he was hundreds of miles away was sheer torture.
‘Come to Melvante,’ he said, his voice as warm and tempting as melted chocolate.
‘Because you want me to design some glass for you?’
She regretted the words as soon as they were out, knowing how needy they made her sound. And she didn’t want Lorenzo to think she was pathetic.
‘The commission’s genuine,’ he said, ‘and I’ll pay the going rate—I’m not expecting you to give me some ridiculously huge discount. But I guess it’s also an excuse to see you.’
And she really needed to see him. Oh, God. The idea of Lorenzo wrapping his arms round her and holding her close, telling her not to worry and that everything would be OK because he loved her...
But how could he possibly do that? He was about to become the King of Melvante. She knew Lorenzo was attracted to her, and she knew he liked her. Maybe the two together made up love. Though Indigo had learned not to trust love, because in her experience it just ended in heartache. Nigel had dumped her as soon as he’d discovered that she was pregnant, and then she’d found out how deep his betrayal had been. OK, so Lorenzo wasn’t a cheat and a liar—but, even so, how could he possibly support her and the baby, with all that he had going on in his life right now? Plus the press would have a field day if they found out that the new King of Melvante was going to have a love-child with a woman who was the illegitimate daughter of an earl...
She couldn’t see any way out of it. Lorenzo had to follow his duty, and that would mean dumping her because she was totally unsuitable to be a queen. And, even if her life hadn’t been so tarnished in the past, there was the fact that he’d live the rest of his life in the glare of the public eye—which wasn’t what she wanted for herself or for the baby.
‘Indi? Are you still there?’ he asked.
‘It’s a bad connection,’ she lied.
‘OK. I’ll get Salvatore to call you with the flight details and an agenda.’
‘Who’s Salvatore?’
‘My assistant. I’ll see you the day after tomorrow. Ciao.’
He hung up, and Indi stared at her phone. This didn’t seem real. She’d just agreed to go to Melvante and see him. And the way he’d dropped so easily into speaking Italian at the end of their conversation... Well, it wasn’t surprising. He was right where he belonged, in his European kingdom. While she belonged here in England. And she had a nasty feeling that the distance between them now wasn’t just geographical.
CHAPTER TEN
LATER THAT AFTERNOON, Indigo’s phone rang. She didn’t recognise the number on the screen and almost didn’t answer it, assuming it was some cold-caller; then again, Lorenzo had said that his assistant would contact her about the flights. Maybe it was him.
She answered the phone warily. ‘Hello?’
‘Signorina Moran?’ The stranger’s voice had a very slight accent, something which sounded as if it came from the southern Mediterranean.
‘Yes,’ she said. ‘Who’s calling?’
‘My name is Salvatore Pozzi. I’m the personal assistant to His Royal Highness Prince Lorenzo of Melvante. He asked me to get in touch with you with the details of your flight.’
‘Thank you.’ Oh, and how formal was this guy? No wonder Lorenzo was so buttoned up if this was the way things were in Melvante. The chances were that she wouldn’t fit into his private world, either, she thought with a sinking heart.
‘Do you have an email address so I can send you the information and the agenda for meeting His Royal Highness?’ Salvatore asked.
Agenda? Meeting?
It all felt very cool, very brisk—and it was the total opposite to what she’d shared with Lorenzo here in England.
Well, it was her own fault for blurring the lines between business and personal stuff. Here at Edensfield, they’d been in a bubble, protected from the rest of the world. In Melvante, Lorenzo was in the full glare of the public eye. A business meeting with him was the best she could hope for. And what he’d said about missing her—maybe he did, but things were different now and she knew he couldn’t afford to act on those feelings.
‘Yes, I have an email address.’ She dictated it coolly and professionally. Because, after all, this was a job. She was planning to meet her client, not her lover. And she’d better keep that in mind if she wanted to keep what was left of her heart intact.
‘Bene. Good. I’ll email you now. If there are any problems or you have any questions when you’ve read through the details, please call me.’
‘I will. And thank you for your help,’ she said.
‘My pleasure, Signorina Moran.’ Though there wasn’t really any warmth in his voice. It was just politeness.
By the time she’d powered up her laptop, the email from Salvatore was waiting in her in-box. Her flight was at ten a.m. the day after tomorrow—from the local airport rather than one of the larger London airports, so she guessed there would probably be a connecting flight somewhere in Europe. And there was an agenda giving her times when the prince would be meeting her over the next few days. A briefing meeting. A tour of the castle. A tour of the cathedral. A status update. A meeting with His Majesty King Lorenzo II and His Royal Highness Prince Lorenzo to discuss final details—oh, help. Not just Lorenzo, then. His grandfather as well. And his grandfather definitely wouldn’t approve of her.
Everything was tightly scheduled, she noticed, down to the minute. Well, obviously Lorenzo had a thousand and one demands on his time right now. She was lucky he was gi
ving her this much time.
But just when was she going to get the chance to tell him about the baby?
She blew out a breath. She’d definitely have to play that one by ear. But at least she had enough time in between those meetings to work on the designs and come up with something she hoped would do him justice.
She finished scanning the list. Charity ball? What? Why on earth did he want her to go to that? Oh, for pity’s sake. He must know she wasn’t the kind of person who went to glamorous events like charity balls. She was a glass geek who was more likely to go to an exhibition or find the nearest art gallery or medieval church.
Apart from the fact that Lorenzo had made it very clear he was busy—otherwise he would’ve called her himself with the flight details and he wouldn’t have asked his assistant to send her an agenda—Indigo didn’t trust her voice not to wobble when she spoke to him. Salvatore had said to call him with any queries, but this one was a little bit too personal. So she sent Salvatore a brief, polite email thanking him for the information, then texted Lorenzo. Why is there a charity ball on the agenda?
It took him a while to respond. Probably, she thought, because he was in a meeting and there would be tons of other messages on his phone. Assuming he didn’t just forward everything to his assistant to deal with; and then the fact that she’d texted the prince instead of contacting his assistant wouldn’t go down too well.
Too late, now. She couldn’t recall the message.
She was just finishing up a last piece of work on the mermaid window when her phone beeped to signal a text. She made herself wait to read it and not rush straight to it.
So you can meet some of the people of my country, get more of a feel for the background. Are you worried about it?
Trust him to pick up on that. Of course not, she lied.
Of course she was worried about attending a charity ball in Melvante. Even though she’d be there as a business associate, there was still a chance that people might guess that her relationship with Lorenzo hadn’t been strictly business in England.