Married For His Secret Heir

“I’ll get it.” Elena made a move toward the door, immensely grateful for the interruption.

Her mother held up a hand. “You stay and finish getting ready. I’ll entertain your date.”

“I thought you didn’t know who was at the door?”

“I, ah, just remembered.” Her mother’s gaze avoided hers.

“Really? That’s interesting, because I don’t recall making a date.”

“I know, dear. That’s why I arranged for one. After all, you don’t want to show up at the palace all alone.”

Stunned by her mother’s matchmaking, Elena stood slack jawed as her mother used her crutches to maneuver out of Elena’s bedroom. She even pulled the door shut behind her.

Elena didn’t know what shocked her more—her mother’s agility or the fact Elena had a date that evening and her mother hadn’t even told her the man’s name. At least with her mother doing the matchmaking, Elena knew the man would be honest and a gentleman.

The only problem was Elena didn’t want a date. She was perfectly happy going to the palace alone. This wasn’t the good old days when it was unseemly for a twenty-five-year-old woman to be seen in public without an escort.

She had to put a stop to her mother’s meddling. After all, she’d returned to Mirraccino to take care of her mother, not the other way around.

Elena glanced back at the mirror. She turned, giving a side view. Would anyone be able to tell she was pregnant? She didn’t think so. She wasn’t far along. And so far she’d been able to avoid the dreaded morning sickness. A little nausea now and then and being a bit more emotional than normal were her only symptoms.

She turned away from the mirror and slipped on a pair of platform stiletto heels adorned with crystals. The added height to her five-foot-ten stature always gave her a boost of confidence. The peekaboo toes would give a glimpse of her pedicure. Thankfully, she’d had a nail appointment just before she left Paris. She’d hoped it would lift her spirits. It hadn’t.

She pulled open the bedroom door and headed downstairs. “Mother, I—”

The words died in her throat. There, making chitchat with her mother, was Luca. Her heart lurched into her throat. How could this be? Luca never visited Mirraccino. And yet here he was, smiling and laughing with her mother.

He looked incredibly handsome with his dark hair cropped short on the sides and back while the top was a bit longer. He wore a charcoal suit that amplified his already broad shoulders—shoulders where not so long ago she’d rested her head. She squelched the thought as fast as it came to her.

Sans a tie, the top two buttons of his white dress shirt were unbuttoned, revealing a glimpse of his tanned chest and the gold chain that held his St. Christopher medal. He’d been wearing that necklace—a gift from his mother—almost as long as Elena had known him. She knew it meant a great deal to him.

He looked like he was ready to step onto a runway in Paris or Milan. He was certainly photogenic enough. He had it all—the looks, a title and money. He wanted for nothing. Even though he’d settled down with a job in the financial sector, she knew he traveled routinely. With his home base in Milan, he often traveled throughout Europe to the States and then to Australia before he started the expedition once again. And he certainly never lacked for companionship.

She should have known that Luca would be her mother’s idea of an appropriate date. Her mother would like nothing better than to have her marry into the royal family. But Elena had made it clear that would never happen. She’d had enough of men. They only wanted one thing. Once they got it, it was game over and they were on to their next conquest.

Not so long ago, Luca had been the love ’em and leave ’em type. And the aftermath of their night together hadn’t convinced her that this particular leopard had changed his spots. It was best that she trod carefully where he was concerned.

“Hello, Elena.” Luca placed a practiced smile on his face, but there was a flicker of something dark in his eyes. In a blink it was gone, leaving her to wonder if she’d imagined it.

“Hi. I... I didn’t know you were back on the island.”

“I was told by my sister that if I didn’t make an appearance for her engagement celebration, she would track me down and it wouldn’t be pretty when she found me.”

“I can imagine your sister following through on that threat.”

“Me, too. So here I am.”

“And since your appearance was last minute,” her mother interjected, “Luca kindly agreed to be your escort. Isn’t that right, Luca?”

His Adam’s apple bobbed. “Yes, that’s right. It looks like we’re both without dates this evening.”

“But that doesn’t mean my mother should have imposed on you.” Elena sent her mother a pointed look.

“I didn’t.” Her mother feigned innocence.

Elena’s gaze narrowed on her mother, not believing her. “And I suppose Luca is now psychic and knew I’d be here this evening without a date?”

Elena could feel Luca’s gaze on her, but she refused to face him. She was already embarrassed enough. How could her mother do this to her?

“I was just trying to help,” her mother said. “Luca came round the other day to check on me. He’d heard about my accident, and he wanted to make sure I was okay.”

It sounded innocent enough, but how that translated into a date was another story. “And that’s when you hatched this scheme to impose on his kindness.”

“Young lady—” her mother’s voice took on a sharp edge of indignation “—I don’t now, nor have I ever, hatched a scheme. I merely mentioned that you were flying in to town.”

“And I suggested that we go to the dinner this evening—together.” Luca was no longer smiling.

He was mad at her? She was only trying to undo her mother’s meddling. She was certain her mother had more to do with this arrangement than she was letting on. Wait. Had he just said he was the one who’d wanted to go to the dinner with her?

Elena’s gaze shifted to Luca. But it was like he had built a wall between them, and she wasn’t able to read his thoughts. Drat! She felt as though she was standing on shifting sand and she just couldn’t get her footing. The best thing to do was let him off the hook, gently.

“I appreciate your thoughtfulness, but you don’t have to bother,” she said, watching his eyes grow darker. “I don’t mind going to the palace by myself.”

“What about the palace?” Her father stepped through the doorway in his standard black suit, collared white shirt and black tie.

“Luca came to escort Elena to the dinner at the palace.” Her mother beamed. “Isn’t that wonderful?”

Her father’s face was pale and drawn. Dark circles had formed under his eyes from being on call for the king at any hour of the day or night. Elena wished her father would set some boundaries in his life, but he insisted that his duty was to the king, and he could not be deterred.

Everyone stood quietly waiting for her father to speak. It wasn’t like him to be so quiet. Usually he would tell her to have a good evening and be on his way.

“Are you all right?” Elena asked her father.

“I’m fine. Just a little tired.” Her father moved to stand in front of Elena. He leaned forward and pressed a feathery kiss to her cheek. “But I’m feeling better now. How could I not with my wonderful family around me?”

Elena’s mother nodded toward Luca. “Aren’t you going to say anything to our guest?”

Her father grunted as though he’d forgotten. He turned to Luca. “Don’t do anything to hurt my girl. Or else...”

Her father didn’t finish the threat, but Luca’s rigid stance and the firm line of his lips said that he’d gotten the message.

“I’ll go clean up for dinner,” her father said and moved toward the stairs.

“Shall we go?” Luca asked.

Elena had to try one last time to call off this awkward date. “As I was saying before, I really don’t mind arriving alone.”

Luca sighed. “Ah, but see, I do mind. I hate showing up at these family events alone. There will be questions about who I’m dating, if it’s serious and if I ever plan to settle down and get married. I’d rather avoid all that.”

So she would be doing him a favor? By what? Being his decoy? A shield?

No. No. No.

She wasn’t comfortable with any of those titles. Elena had enough of her own secrets. She didn’t need to be drawn into anyone else’s drama.

The past few months in Paris had consisted of making one bad decision after the other. It had gotten to the point where she had no faith in her own judgment. And now that she was pregnant, she had to make the right decisions. There was an innocent baby counting on her. She had mixed emotions about her unexpected condition. How could she tell Luca she was pregnant when she didn’t even know how she felt about it?

That was why her mother’s request for her to return home couldn’t have come at a better time. She had hoped some downtime would clear her head. At the time, she’d had absolutely no idea that Annabelle was having a big celebration or that she would include Elena in the festivities.

Her gaze landed on Luca. He looked uncomfortable and anxious to be anywhere but here. Things had definitely changed between them. Where there had once been an easiness, there was now this crackling tension. If she needed any confirmation that they could never go back to how they used to be, this was it.

Tonight, she would be nervous enough being a guest at the palace. She really didn’t need the added awkwardness she felt around Luca. If only he wasn’t so insistent on being a gentleman and escorting her.

“I’m not quite ready to go.” When he didn’t say anything, she added, “I don’t want to make you late.”

“I don’t mind waiting,” he said. “It’ll give me some more time to talk with your mother.”

Her mother smiled. “And I just made a fresh batch of those amaretto cookies that you enjoy.”

“They’re my favorite,” Luca said. “And I haven’t had them in a very long time. You really are the best in the kitchen.”

Her mother shook a finger at him. “You have grown up to be quite a flatterer. I’ll just go get you a few.”

“If you don’t mind, I’ll join you.”

Her mother nodded and set off for the kitchen with Luca following closely behind. Elena stood alone in the entryway. What exactly had just happened?

CHAPTER TWO

LUCA COULDN’T TAKE his gaze off her.

Had Elena always been this beautiful?

Thankfully she’d turned her head to stare out the car’s window at the passing fields of wildflowers while in the background the setting sun painted the sky with streaks of orange, pink and purple. But tonight Luca was in no mood to appreciate nature’s beauty.

In the weeks since he’d last seen her in Paris, he’d convinced himself that everything about their evening together had been blown out of proportion by the champagne. He just couldn’t accept that he was attracted to his childhood friend. He couldn’t allow that to happen, because they could have no future.

He wasn’t into commitments.

Not now. Not ever.

But there was something about Elena that pulled at him...even to this day.

And then he remembered how he’d woken up the morning after they’d made love and heard Elena sniffling. The sound had ripped him apart. No one had ever cried after spending the night with him. And the fact that it was Elena, of all people, made the situation so much worse.

He hadn’t moved for an indeterminable number of minutes. Her muffled sobs had sliced through him. Clearly she’d thought their night together had been a mistake. Unable to think of anything to say to comfort her, he’d continued to breathe deeply as though he’d still been asleep. Each breath had been painful, as his entire body was tense. The memory was still so crystal clear.

He had done that. He had made Elena cry. And he felt awful.

If only he hadn’t let things get out of hand. But he’d thought she’d been having a good time. Still, he should have resisted kissing her. He should have made their friendship the priority. If he’d been thinking clearly, he would have realized there would be no coming back from holding her all night long.

He swallowed hard as the limo glided through the estate to the palace. The ride only took a couple of minutes, but with Elena so close to him, time seemed to stand still. For the first time, he wasn’t sure what to say or what to do.

Boy, he’d really messed things up between them. He resisted the urge to rake his fingers through his hair. He needed to look his best for the professional photos his sister would undoubtedly insist upon.

On second thought, this date is not a good idea.

Not good at all.

“Are you sure about this?” Elena asked.

“Yes.” Liar.

She arched a brow. “You don’t sound certain.”

This was where he should reach out and squeeze her hand to reassure her, but instead he didn’t move. He didn’t trust himself to touch her. The images of their night together were still in the forefront of his mind.

He’d really mucked things up. The truth was he didn’t want to be Elena’s escort, but when her mother had mentioned Elena’s return to the island, he’d been caught off guard. And when her mother had mentioned the party, Luca had spoken without thinking.

And now, well, all he wanted to do was sweep Elena into his arms and pick up right where they’d left off back in Paris. He wanted to feel her eager lips beneath his—ready and willing.

He halted his thoughts. This wasn’t like him. When he ended a relationship, he moved on without looking back. With Elena there had been no moving on. Since that night, no other woman had interested him.

When he closed his eyes, it was Elena’s face he saw. It was the memory of her lips that tormented him. How was he ever supposed to get her out of his system?

So he didn’t dare look at Elena right now. He refused to act on those desires. She’d made it abundantly clear that she regretted their night together—no matter how hot and steamy it had been.

He just needed to focus on something else—anything else. His mind drew a blank. Perhaps he should start a conversation. Yes, that was a good idea. But what should he talk about?

“I was surprised to hear you were back on the island.” There—that sounded normal enough.

She shrugged. “I didn’t have much choice, considering I thought my mother truly needed me.”

“I take it she exaggerated her injuries?”

Elena nodded. “By the sound of her on the phone, she was on death’s door.”

Luca smiled. “I can imagine.”

“What does that mean?” Elena suddenly sounded protective of her mother.

“I just meant that your mother would do anything to get you home.”

“And how would you know? You’re here even less than I am.”

He shrugged, not certain he wanted to admit that he talked with her mother often enough. At first, Elena’s mother had concocted any excuse possible to call him, but as time went by, he got used to hearing from her. He actually looked forward to it, because she would fill him in on all of Elena’s accomplishments.

“I just remember how she used to be—always wanting you to stay close to home.”

Elena shrugged. “She finally accepted that my future wasn’t in Mirraccino.”

“Speaking of which, how did you get time off from your new campaign to fly here?”

Elena glanced away. “I...ah, had a break in my schedule.”

There was something more she wasn’t telling him, but he didn’t push. If she wanted him to know, she’d tell him when she was ready. The fact she was even speaking to him, he took as a positive sign. Maybe there was hope for their friendship after all.

The car pulled to a stop in front of the palace. Though he’d been staying here since he arrived a couple of days ago, he didn’t want to attend this dinner any more than Elena. But he refused to disappoint his sister. He’d already hurt her enough by leaving home and allowing extended gaps between visits. He knew Annabelle wanted her family reunited, and now that their mother’s killer had been caught, she thought it would fix everything.

It wouldn’t.

Luca had witnessed too much. Experienced too much. And he couldn’t be the son that his father needed—and perhaps deserved.

But now that Annabelle was getting married, hopefully she’d stop longing for the family she’d lost. When a family member was murdered, it seemed for the most part that families reacted in one of two ways. The horrific event either drew them together—the family against the world. Or it splintered them apart—each finding their solace in a different way. His family had been the latter.

Luca’s car door swung open, interrupting his thoughts. It was for the best. He didn’t want to dwell on how he’d disappointed his sister repeatedly over the years. Tonight was to be a celebration. And he would put on his biggest and brightest smile, which shouldn’t be too hard since their father, the duke, was not to be in attendance. Tonight was an informal gathering of friends and some family. Annabelle wanted her groom to meet the people who had meant a lot to her while she was growing up.

An enormous wooden door with brass fixtures swung open. An older gentleman in a black-and-white tux stepped outside to greet them.

Elena put her hand on Luca’s arm, pausing him from getting out of the car. She leaned over and whispered, “That’s so strange.”

“What is?” Luca glanced around, but he didn’t notice anything amiss.

“That the butler is there to greet me—well, us. That’s never happened in my whole life.”

Luca smiled and shook his head. “I’m glad it makes you happy.”

“It does.”

Luca alighted from the car and turned back. He held out his hand to help Elena to her feet. “So what do you think?”

“I think that no matter where I go, this palace is the most beautiful building.” Her gaze focused on the palace and not him. “What do you think? You’ve traveled even more than me. Have you ever seen anything so amazing?”

Luca turned to study the expansive building. He had honestly never really looked at the place. He was embarrassed to admit that he’d taken the centuries-old palace for granted. Over the years, it’d been expanded upon, which included the addition of the towering turrets. Though once used to keep an eye out for approaching enemy ships, they were now more a decoration and painted with stripes of yellow, pink, aqua and gold.

“It really is remarkable,” Luca said, his gaze straying to Elena. “A beauty unlike any other that I’ve ever found.”

Just then Elena glanced at him, and he turned away. Did she know he was no longer talking about the palace? He hoped not. He didn’t want to give her the wrong idea. They’d had their chance together—as brief as it might have been. There was no way of recapturing it. He refused to even consider it. Okay, maybe he had considered it, but he wouldn’t act upon his desires.

Even if their lovemaking hadn’t made her cry, they didn’t belong together. He couldn’t make her the promises she deserved. And he wouldn’t have any woman waiting around for him when he had absolutely no intention of making a commitment.

Therefore, it was best that he shove aside those tempting images of her in his arms with that wanton desire reflected in her eyes. He swallowed hard. Could they ever be friends like before? He was feeling less assured about that with each passing moment.

The butler stood aside. “Welcome, Miss Ricci. It’s good to have you back.”

“Hello, Alfred. It’s good to be back.”

Luca held out his arm to Elena. She paused and looked at it as if she wasn’t sure what to do. Boy, he really had messed things up between them.

“Go ahead,” he encouraged. “I promise not to bite.”

A small smile lifted the corners of her very desirable lips. She tentatively slipped her hand into the crook of his arm. When an unfamiliar sensation pulsed up his arm and settled in his chest, he stilled his body. He refused to give any indication that her touch affected him. Because it hadn’t. Not really. It was just nerves. He was just worried about doing something to drive his best friend even further from him.

“Are you ready?”

Elena nodded.

Her face was void of emotion. He knew that look. It was her working face—the look she wore when she was strutting down the catwalk in some amazing outfit. He couldn’t rightly describe any of the fashions she wore, because when he googled her, he was always caught up by the beauty of her face. It didn’t matter what hair color or stylish cut she was sporting—ever since their night together, he’d been captivated by her.

He took sure strides up the steps to the open palace door. Inside, there was a host of palace staff to greet them and escort them to the dining room. It was odd, considering Luca had been running through this palace with his host of cousins since he was in diapers. That seemed so long ago now.

A flash went off, momentarily blinding Luca.

Elena came to a standstill. She released his arm. “The press is here?”

“Not that I know of.”

Elena took a step back. “I should have expected this. Coming here was a mistake.”

Luca glanced around. The photographer moved out of the dining room. “It’s not the press. It’s a private photographer. My sister is sentimental and wants to have pictures to remember these events.”

Elena’s worried gaze met his. “You’re sure?”

He nodded. “Since when did you become so shy? I thought the camera was your friend.”

“You thought wrong.” And with that Elena brushed past him and headed into the dining room.

What had just happened? His radar was going off. Something was definitely amiss. And it frustrated the heck out of him that he’d wrecked their relationship to the point where she wouldn’t even open up to him.

He rushed to catch up to her. “Tell me what’s bothering you.”

“Nothing.”

“If it’s nothing, why won’t you even face me?”

She didn’t stop. “It’s nothing,” she called over her shoulder. “Just drop it.”

“Tell me what it is and I’ll fix it if I can.”

She stopped and turned to him. Wearing an indifferent expression like a mask, she said, “I don’t know why you think I need help.”

Luca reached out and grasped her arm before she could wander off. “I know things aren’t right between us, but I also know you really well, and no matter what you say, I know there’s something wrong—something big.”

Elena yanked her arm from him. “You should concentrate on your sister. This is her big night.”

As though his sister had heard her name mentioned, she rushed over to them. Annabelle’s face was aglow with happiness. “Elena, I was so excited when I heard you were back on the island.” She reached out and they quickly hugged. “Thank you so much for coming.”

A strange sensation coiled through Luca as he watched the easy smile light up Elena’s face. Elena certainly hadn’t done that when she’d spotted him at her mother’s house. In fact, her reaction had been quite the opposite.

He didn’t know why he let it bother him. There were plenty of other women out there who would be happy to have his company. If only he had the slightest bit of interest in those other women.

He inwardly groaned with frustration. He turned away and went in search of something to drink. He wasn’t really thirsty, but it was certainly better than watching Elena make nice with everyone—everyone but him.

He had to quit letting her get to him. He needed to withdraw. Wasn’t that what he’d promised himself after his mother’s murder? To keep people at a safe distance?

That was why he’d packed up and moved away from Halencia and Mirraccino. It hurt too much when people he cared about were torn from his life—whether by murder, grief or something else. He just couldn’t go through that again.

And though he’d missed his sister and Elena while he’d been traveling, he’d been able to distract himself. He was always on the go. A new adventure. A new challenge. That was exactly what he should do now—set off on a new expedition. But he couldn’t. Not yet.