Cassius didn’t care what his father thought of him, but the old man had been on his back about his behaviour recently and it was getting tiresome. Because, while it was true that when his brother ascended the throne Cassius would be expected to be his right-hand man, Cassius wasn’t going to be king himself, so why should he have to conform?
Still, this girl had come to him for help, and she was looking at him as if he was her saviour. This was something of a novelty, when his family tended to view him as the disappointment he was, while his lovers were only hungry for the pleasure he could bring them.
No one looked at him as though he could save them, as though he was the answer to all their prayers.
He liked it.
Except...being this girl’s saviour would be difficult. She was under age, and therefore still under her parents’ guardianship, and, though he might be able to find her a refuge, if her parents claimed her he wouldn’t be able to stop them. No one was above the law, not even royalty.
There was the police, but the filing of reports took time, as did investigations into abuse allegations, and that was probably time this girl didn’t have.
He could ask the King for help, of course, but his father never looked kindly on his activities. Besides, a small piece of him didn’t want to ask his father for help anyway. A small piece of him wanted to save this girl himself.
Yet how? If he could somehow become her legal guardian, that would be ideal, but also impossible, considering her parents were still alive.
The girl frowned at him. ‘It’s easy. All you have to do is keep me for a couple of hours and everyone will think—’
‘Everyone will think that my tastes run to under-age girls and, while it’s true that I don’t care much about my reputation, I care enough not to want rumours like that attached to my name.’
She bit her lip. ‘Oh. I hadn’t thought of that.’
‘Clearly.’ He kept his tone dry. ‘Also, I’m afraid that, while virginity might be valued in some circles, I’m pretty sure Stefano Castelli wouldn’t care if you were one or not. He just wants heirs.’
Her forehead creased, a line appearing in the smooth skin between her brows. She looked...anxious. No, more than that. She looked scared.
‘Then what should I do?’ Desperation suddenly glowed in her eyes. ‘I could leave the country. I could—’
‘Where would you go?’ he interrupted gently. ‘You have no passport, I’m assuming, and no money. And, even if you did, the courts would soon make sure you were sent back to your family.’
She took a soft breath and looked away, blinking hard. It was obvious she was trying hard not to cry. ‘Then,’ she said in a shaky voice, ‘I suppose I have no choice. I’m sorry, Your Highness. I’d better go.’
But Cassius had already made a decision. She was distressed and in danger, and she’d come to him for help. Not to his brother, the noble heir who could do no wrong, but to him.
To her he wasn’t the dissolute, no-good second son. To her he wasn’t a careless, self-centred playboy prince.
To her he was a hero...her potential saviour.
So that was who he’d be.
‘Wait,’ he said, his brain moving at lightning speed, sorting through all the most likely options and then discarding them.
There was only one way he could think of to become her guardian. Only way to save her from marriage to a monster and to keep her parents happy at the same time.
He’d marry her himself.
It was a shocking decision that would likely appal his parents, and there’d no doubt be a scandal. But that was too bad. He’d never be the kind of prince they wanted him to be and he’d long since given up trying.
He’d be a hero for this girl instead.
And as for her parents, well, they’d probably be delighted to have a prince for a son-in-law instead of some minor lord.
He’d offer her the protection of his name and, in essence, she’d be his ward. He’d look after her until she reached her legal majority.
Two years. That was all it would be. And then they’d divorce and she’d be out of her parents’ clutches for ever.
It was unorthodox, certainly, but the main thing was that she’d be safe. And he would be the one to save her.
She was looking at him with big eyes, as if her entire existence waited on his next word.
Which it did.
‘There is one way I can help you.’ He met her gaze very directly. ‘But I’m afraid you might not like it.’
‘It can’t be any worse than having to marry Stefano Castelli.’
‘That depends,’ Cassius said. ‘How do you feel about marrying me instead?’
Copyright © 2021 by Jackie Ashenden
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ISBN-13: 9780369707048
The Sicilian’s Forgotten Wife
Copyright © 2021 by Caitlin Crews
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
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The Sicilian's Forgotten Wife Page 16