by Grady, D. R.
“Aleksi, I can’t wear your grandmother’s ring.”
“Why not? She would have enjoyed the fact that it is yours now. I have great memories of her, and of this ring. That is why I chose it for you.”
“I’m not sure you should trust me with this ring.”
“I’m sure.” He could almost see her resistance melt. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
He couldn’t help but kiss her again. “Oh, there is one other small problem I have that only you can fix.”
“What’s that?” she whispered. Her eyes shone with love and he wanted to pocket the feeling so he could pull it out and look at it whenever he felt a little down.
“I have this little heir problem.”
“Oh?” Her eyes narrowed.
“Yes. I also must produce an heir, or Rurikstan’s fate remains in question.”
She pretended to tap her chin with her forefinger. His grandmother’s ring, now his fiancée’s ring, winked at him in the sunlight.
“I might be able to help you out with that problem.”
He decided to play along. “What do you charge?”
She leaned forward and whispered something naughty in his ear that made him grin. “I should have told you about this problem back in your lab when I approached you about the wells.”
“You knew about that problem then?” She sounded surprised.
“Oh yes. I wanted you to fix both problems for me.”
“Even then?”
“Even then.”
Aleksi liked how her eyes brightened and glistened. He thought he also caught a glimpse of awe in their blue-green depths. He really loved her eyes. And her.
“You’ve wanted me for that long?”
“Definitely. I have wanted you since your freshman year of university. It merely took me a long time to discover. Once we met again at that conference, I knew.”
“Did you plot to entice me over here?”
“No, I plotted to entice you in general.”
Her happy smile could have gilded the palace.
Chapter 26
A year and a half later
Aleksi cradled his son, Ruslan Aleksandr Vasily Kristian Maksmillian of the House of de Leos, in his arms and carried him to the balcony railing. He held the baby so the people of Rurikstan could see their future. Tia stood beside him, her hand clasping his arm.
The wells all remained clear, the lead pipes were all replaced, and his wife had banned silver colloid as a well treatment and cleaner. She also worked closely with the hospital and other researchers around the world on better treatments for bacterial maladies.
He couldn’t believe the last year and a half and all that had happened. He had married the woman of his dreams, and his mother was fully recovered. Tia and his mother were fast friends, and Gracia had actually only just flown in from an extended trip to America.
One she embarked on with Maria Wellington. The two women had bonded over his and Tia’s wedding. They decided to visit Tia’s family after the wedding and ended up extending their trip several times.
Both had rushed home though, once Tia mentioned her time of delivery was at hand. He couldn’t believe how easily Tia sailed through the pregnancy and delivery and was already negotiating his next heir.
“Are you certain you want to do this again?” He whispered to her.
She had to lean forward, due to the applause and excitement of their people. “Yes,” she replied. “But perhaps we can wait until Ruslan is a year old.”
“That sounds fine to me.”
“Maybe we could try for a girl next.”
His eyebrow sky rocketed. “Why a girl?”
“Ruslan needs the influence of a know-it-all. And you’re so good with Nadia and Toni. I just thought you might like a little girl.”
Her eyes lit with heat, and Aleksi responded to that look in her eyes. He couldn’t imagine loving her more, but every day he did.
“Better be careful, princess, or you will end up with another child much sooner than a year.”
At which point Emerson, who must have overheard his comment, cleared his throat. Great, now it’d be all over the palace by lunchtime.
Tia, of course, giggled. His life had become a never ending parade of smiles, arguments, companionship, fellowship, and love like he’d never known. He was thankful every day for his privilege.
“I love you,” Tia whispered, and he leaned closer to better savor her.
“I love you, too.” They sealed their love with a kiss, their son and a happy future between them.
About the Author
D.R. Grady lives with her husband near Hershey, PA. She loves gadgets, books, plants, shoes and writing stories that resonate with others. You can generally find her in her “office”, a chair in the living room, hopefully writing, but sometimes playing Angry Birds or reading.
Visit her website for more information.
http://www.drgradybooks.com
Not certain when this will be available...
Bearer of My Heart
Book 2 – The Abroad Series
Clary Hazelthorpe has always been footloose and fancy free and she likes her life that way. But Rafe Tezrakis has wanted Clary from the moment he saw her. She has the Tezrakis blue eyes and red hair, both characteristics which seal her fate – an imminent end to her bachelorette days. With Clary not so sure she wants a relationship and Rafe absolutely certain he does, sparks fly. Rafe knows Clary is the bearer of his heart, but will his determination to prove this fact scare her away?
Bearer of My Heart
By: D.R. Grady
Chapter One
Closing her eyes didn’t help. Her heart still beat too fast and sweat pooled at the base of her spine. Add in her damp palms and Clary Hazelthorpe refused to think about why her body was busy betraying her.
The seat belt light blinked on. Clary appreciated the interruption. Her seatbelt was already fastened though, so the effect was minimal. She’d flown many times in the past. In fact, the majority of those trips had been from Heathrow to this particular airport in Greece. So why the near panic attack?
She loved Greece. She enjoyed flying. Clary declined thinking about the tall man waiting for her in the airport. Rafe Tezrakis had proven to be a far larger problem than she’d first imagined.
He made things melt or shift inside her - that had never happened before. This uncomfortable sensation did not bode well for the contract negotiations she was here to finalize. She couldn’t afford to lose sight of the reason for this visit. It was a business arrangement, nothing more. Even as she thought the words, Clary’s subconscious laughed at her.
She didn’t know him well, but she did know Rafe didn’t think of her as a mere business associate. He’d been subtle, but she was pretty sure he was steadily steering her into a relationship with him. Clary, as a Vice President to her family’s corporation, knew all about contract negotiations and more than a little about the building of the hotels they specialized in. What she didn’t know anything about was men. Particularly not billionaires bent on getting their own way.
Her heart beat far too fast as they approached the airport. For the last six months Clary had come to recognize Rafe wanted to steal her footloose lifestyle and maybe even her soul. He pushed her relentlessly toward a relationship she wasn’t certain she wanted. In fact, she had to be barking mad to even contemplate dating him. She lived in London, and he lived in Greece, so how could a relationship work?
Then there was the problem of Rafe’s ease with issuing orders and her unwillingness to follow them. The final straw was that cutting one’s teeth on a man like Rafe Tezrakis seemed unwise, to say the least.
Yet she was sure he’d be waiting for her. He wouldn’t send anyone else to meet her. No, perhaps she should say, he wouldn’t allow anyone else to meet her. His determination to run her to ground set her teeth on edge. He wanted to become the all supreme ruler in her life, when she felt she was a rather capable ruler herself. C
lary didn’t need a man, especially not Rafe Tezrakis.
You let him in. The voice tucked into the furthest reaches of her mind and heart spoke quietly. Clary heard it far too clearly.
Maybe she had let him in. Maybe she hadn’t. Rafe might have plowed through every barrier she possessed because he was determined to possess what she wasn’t sure she wanted to give. No other man on earth could turn her various systems gelatinous like he could. No man should be granted that much potent magic. The problem was she liked him. Far too much. But was liking enough? Flirting with fire had killed many a moth.
When she glanced down at them, Clary noticed she was wringing her hands. Clary Hazelthorpe did not wring her hands. This nonsense had to stop. As soon as she saw him and he escorted her to her hotel, she’d be able to take a firm grip on her flighty emotions.
Clary was here to finalize a merger between two divisions of the Hazelthorpe and Tezrakis Corporations. She’d been entrusted, as Hazelthorpe Corporation’s primary contract negotiator, to finish the merger and she would. This is what she did. The contract was ready for their final review and signatures. Which she would deliver.
Then she’d climb back onto a plane and fly home. Where she would pack another suitcase and take a two week holiday somewhere. Somewhere far from Rafe Tezrakis and his overwhelming masculine presence. By the time she returned, he’d be a fading memory.
The plane shuddered as the wheels bumped the runway. A few jostles later and the large container squealed to a halt and the passengers were encouraged to deplane. Clary gripped her carry-on bag, took a deep breath, and stomped on the man’s foot behind her.
By the time she’d made her apologies and the man had grumbled something in return, she’d been caught up in the deluge of moving people. Not yet, she pleaded with the fates. All of whom must have been snoozing because she turned a corner with her fellow passengers and the tunnel opened into the gate, and there was Rafe, waiting for her like some king expecting a delectable treat.
Which she wasn’t.
She was here for business purposes she reminded her galloping heart. This was a business deal for their companies. Somehow she’d have to make certain Rafe understood she wasn’t part of the merger package. Why did he want her anyway? He could have any woman he desired. That tight little voice mentioned he might just be toying with her, and Clary’s heart lurched.
Her feet felt laden down with rocks, and Clary had to force herself to take the next step toward him. She tried to take in the dark curls, massive build, and amber colored eyes that formed Rafe Tezrakis with indifference, but her wobbly knees told a different story.
Rafe didn’t smile, which was probably good for him. Instead, he glanced across the crowd she’d flown with. The notion that he didn’t miss a thing didn’t reassure her. He was a wily opponent in a game she wasn’t certain she knew all the rules. And to which she was pure novice.
“How was your flight?” Rafe leaned over and planted a proprietary kiss on her unsuspecting lips.
She couldn’t answer him for lack of gray matter. Instead she stared up at him like she’d never seen him before, which, since that unexpected kiss, she hadn’t. Her wits did sort themselves out finally and Clary managed to narrow her eyes.
“What was that for?”
He took her arm and steered her across the terminal toward baggage claim. “Did you check luggage?”
“Yes.” Clary discovered it was difficult to utter words through clenched teeth. “Why did you kiss me?”
He glanced in her direction but she entertained the idea he wasn’t paying her much attention. “You’ve come all this way to see me.”
“This is a business arrangement.” Her jaw started to ache so Clary made a conscious effort to unclench it. “I travel long ways to see lots of people.”
“Yes, a small fraction of our time will have to be spent on pesky business matters.” He heaved a great sigh.
By this time, he’d managed to snag her bag off the conveyor belt and directed her toward the exit doors. The fact he stood at least a head taller than her and outweighed her by a good seven stone might have had something to do with how easily he maneuvered her now.
“I’m perfectly capable of managing.”
“I’m surprised your jaw hasn’t cracked yet.” His voice held a musing quality she would normally have been amused by.
“You are the most trying person I’ve ever had the misfortune to meet.” So much for unclenching her jaw; apparently if she didn’t think about it, it happened.
“You never answered my question.”
“Which question?”
“How was your flight?”
“My flight was fine.” She kept the news of her still sweaty palms and erratic heartbeat to herself. He’d find a way to use the knowledge for his own purposes and right now he seemed to hold all the cards. She wished she knew more about this whole dating-relationship business. Rafe was light years ahead of her. The burden of that disadvantage weighed heavy.
Rafe continued to scan the interior of the airport as they wove their way to the car park. “What are you looking for?”
He glanced in her direction and only because she was watching him so closely did she see him nod to a woman who had flown with her. The gesture alone raised warnings, then the woman returned a nod of her own before she melted from view. Clary’s blood pressure rose.
“What was that?”
“You still haven’t cracked any teeth?”
“Don’t try to distract me, Tezrakis,” she growled. “Why did you and that woman just nod to each other?”
“You are a curious little thing, aren’t you?” His voice was thoughtful. Like he hadn’t seen this side of her personality before. Well, he’d better get used to it.
The fulminating glare she sent him must have done some good because he relented. “I’ll tell you everything once we’re in the car.”
She narrowed her eyes. “You can’t tell me now?”
“I could, but I’d prefer to do so in the safety of the car.”
His mild statement upped the warning signals in her brain. Why couldn’t he tell her now? Rafe seemed to be acting in a similar odd manner she’d witnessed already today. But where? Her brain hit on the answer as they left the airport.
Colton, her brother, had been acting odd too, repeating several warnings while he drove her to the airfield this morning. She’d seen Mirry, the love of his life, intervene at least once with a hand to his shoulder, as though she sought to alert him to be careful.
With her suspicions rising, Clary darted another glance at her companion. Rafe didn’t seem to notice her as he bustled her through the doors. She noticed the large men who flanked them, but she was used to them when she spent time with Rafe. His total assets landed him the title of billionaire, and billionaires had enemies. So she accepted the large, protective men.
With that thought the shared nods started to make sense. It had been an acknowledgement and a sort of passing of the torch. Neither Rafe’s gesture, nor the woman’s answering one had been anything other than professional.
“Here we are,” Rafe said as one of the men with them opened the door of a long, sleek limousine.
Clary didn’t miss the fact that Rafe and the men with him surrounded her like shields. Her suspicions grew. Rafe was always protective, but this bordered on the ridiculous. Like she didn’t have the sense to take care of herself. Her jaw tightened again.
Once they were settled, the doors shut and locked, and Rafe’s air of awareness decreased, Clary switched into attack mode. “Are you going to explain all this cloak and dagger nonsense to me now?”
Rafe breathed in but didn’t meet her eyes. “Threats were made against you. We’re taking precautions until we’ve settled the matter.”