Carrying A King's Child

Bella looked like a fairy-tale princess with her pretty blond hair. Not anything like Emily. He wondered what Emily would think of Alma. It was an island not that unlike her hometown of Key West, but the laid-back attitude in the Keys was a world away from this charming European nation.

For a country that had been ruled by a dictator for decades, the people in the streets seemed happy and prosperous and the buildings were clean and well-maintained. Rafe didn’t see any signs of financial ruin. But economic danger lurked whenever there was a change of regime. And if there was one thing he was good at, it was making money.

But would the government here listen to him?

To be honest he wasn’t the kind of person to negotiate for what he wanted. That was one of the reasons Montoro Enterprises had thrived under his leadership. He made bold decisions. Sometimes they didn’t pay off, but most of the time they did.

“You okay?” Bella asked.

He started to shrug it off. There was no way he was going to mention Emily or the fact that she was pregnant to his sister. Not until he had a chance to figure it out for himself. But the family stuff was also getting to him, especially how Juan Carlos was going really crazy about protocol and proper image and all that.

“This return to Alma is throwing me,” he admitted to her.

“How?” she asked. “You’ve always handled whatever the family has dished out. This will be no different. Pretend you’re the CEO of the country.”

As if. Being the king was a “name only” position. No power. Maybe that was why he hesitated to fully embrace it. He was a man of action. Not a figurehead.

“Good suggestion,” he said, glancing out the window as they approached the castle. Surrounded by glittering blue water on three sides, it rose from the land like a sand castle at the beach. He groaned.

“What?”

“I was hoping the castle would be in disrepair.”

“Why?”

“So I could hate it.”

Bella laughed again. “I love it. It’s everything I thought it would be,” she said.

“What if there’s not a hopping club scene? Will you still love it then?” he asked. Bella liked to party. Hell, they all did. They hadn’t been raised to assume the throne. They were all more likely to show up in the tabloids in a compromising position than on the society pages at a formal tea. The closer he got to the throne the less sure he was that he wanted to be there.

He felt Bella’s hand on his shoulder. “You’re going to be fine. I think you’ll make a great king.”

“Why? I’m not sure at all.”

“You’ve been a great big brother and always ensured our family’s place in business and in society.”

“Business is easy. I understand that world,” Rafe countered.

“I never thought the day would come when you’d admit that you aren’t sure of yourself,” she said, taking her phone from her handbag.

“What are you doing?”

“Texting Gabe that you have feet of clay.”

“He already knows that.”

“We all do,” Bella said. “Why are you acting like you are just figuring it out?”

“I’m going to be a king, Bella. It’s making me nutty,” he said.

“You weren’t as thrown by it a week ago,” she said. “What happened yesterday to make you delay your flight?”

Nothing.

Everything.

Something that could change the man he was. If he let it.

“Business. Running Montoro Enterprises does take a lot of time,” he said.

The car pulled to a stop and an attendant in full livery came to open the door for them. Bella climbed out first but looked back at Rafe.

“Lying to me is one thing. You can keep your secrets if you want to,” she said. “But I hope you aren’t lying to yourself.”

He followed her out of the car, and the warm Mediterranean air swept around him. She had a point. He knew in his gut that this didn’t feel right. He should be in Miami with Emily. He missed her.

The porte-cochere led to an inner brick-lined courtyard. There was a fountain underneath a statue of Rafe’s great-grandfather Rafael I. He was surprised it hadn’t been torn down when the dictator had taken over. Bella stopped walking and spun around on her heel, taking in the beauty of the palace.

For the first time he felt a sense of his royal lineage settling over him. If their family hadn’t been forced to flee he would have grown up in this palace. His memories would be of this place that smelled wonderfully of jasmine and lavender. Where was the scent coming from?

His father came up beside him and put his hand on his shoulder not saying a word. Something passed between them. An emotion that Rafe didn’t want to define. But Alma became real to him. In a way that it hadn’t been before. In Miami it had been easy to say he wasn’t sure if he wanted to be king but seeing this palace—he felt the history. And he sort of understood Juan Carlos’s perspective for once. Rafe didn’t want to let down their family line.

If Alma wanted the Montoros back on the throne than Rafe would have to put aside the feelings he felt stirring for Emily and figure out how to be their king.

That surprised him. He hadn’t expected to feel this torn. He was isolated from the rest of his family who seemed to think this return to royalty was just the thing they needed. They were all caught up in being back in the homeland. But as much as he felt swept up in the majesty of their return to Alma he knew he was still trying to figure out where home really was.

* * *

Emily worked the closing shift at Harry’s and walked home at 2:00 a.m. Key West wasn’t like the mean streets of Miami, but she moved quickly and kept her eyes open for danger. It was something she’d teach her kid.

She was starting to find her bearings with this pregnancy more and more as each day passed. Being a mom was going to take some getting used to, but as her own mom had said, she had nine months to make the adjustment.

Her cell phone vibrated in the pocket of her jeans and she reached back to pull it out. Glancing at the screen, she saw it was an international call. She only knew one person who was traveling internationally right now. She did some quick math and figured out that it was early morning in Alma.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Red. Figured you’d be getting off work. Please tell me I didn’t wake you.” Sure enough, it was Rafe.

“You’d think you’d be more careful about disturbing a pregnant woman’s rest,” she teased. She didn’t want to admit it but she’d missed him. Three days. That was all it had been since she’d seen him, but it had felt like a lifetime. His voice was deep and resonated in her ear, making her feel warm all over.

“Well, maybe I did call the bar earlier to determine if you were working tonight,” he admitted.

That sounded like Rafe. He was a man who left little to chance. “What can I do for you?”

“How are you feeling?” he asked. “How’s Florida?”

“I’m feeling fine,” she said. “I have had a little bit of morning sickness, and it’s not just limited to mornings. I’ve been getting sick midafternoon.”

She saw her house at the end of the lane and got her keys out. She’d left the porch lights on and it looked so welcoming. The only thing that would be better was if Rafe was waiting for her. And to be honest, as he talked to her on the phone, it was almost as if he was there with her.

“Makes sense since that’s when you wake up,” he said. “Is there anything you can do to help that?”

“No,” she said. “It’s not too bad. How’s Alma?”

“Nice. You’d like it. It’s all sand and sea for as far as the eye can see and quaint little villages. Not as laid back as Key West but still nice.”

“Any places to go paddleboarding?”

“Not yet. Why, do you think you’d move here and start a business?” he asked.

It was the closest he’d come to suggesting that she be near him in the future, and she felt numb even contemplating it. She had her own plans to open a restaurant around the corner from Harry’s. Not to be Rafe’s hidden mistress in some far-off European country.

“Not at all. I’ve got a place picked out for my future restaurant,” she said.

“Is that what you want to do?”

Once again she realized how little they actually knew of each other’s lives.

“Well, I can’t be a bartender forever.”

“I guess not. Tell me about your dreams,” he said.

She thought she heard the sound of footsteps on a tiled floor on his end. “Where are you?”

“Not ready to share that much with me?” he asked, countering her evasion.

In a way she wished they were playing a game. It would make everything easier. She could concentrate on winning and not really have to think about the emotions. But the truth was she was tired and still a little unsure of what she was doing. Sure, just hearing Rafe’s voice made her feel not so alone. But she didn’t want to allow herself to become dependent on him.

Not to turn her life into one big sob story, but usually when she started to feel comfortable with someone they left. It wasn’t that they abandoned her, just moved on and left her to her independent self. Even her mom and Harry. And she didn’t want that with Rafe.

“Nope. I want to hear about Alma. I read a little online yesterday. Seems like the change of regime is going to have a big impact on the economy. I know you are good at making money. Is that why they chose you and your family to come back and lead the country?” she asked.

“Our family ruled the country before the coup that installed the late dictator, Tantaberra. That’s why we were chosen. But my parents are divorced so Dad, who would be next in line, can’t assume the throne. They want someone with the right pedigree and the right reputation.”

“Um...I’m guessing if they found out about me that could put a wrench in things.”

“Possibly. I’m not going to deny you exist, Emily.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Would I be on the phone with you if I didn’t care?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” she said honestly. “We’re strangers.”

“Who are about to be parents to a baby,” he said. “Let’s get to know each other. And while we have half the world between us maybe I can talk to you without being distracted by your body and that sexy way you tilt your head to the side. You always make me forget everything except wanting to get you naked.”

Her breath caught as she sank down into the big armchair where Rafe had sat the one time he’d been to her place. They’d made love in the chair and she felt closer to him now. She tucked her leg up underneath her and let those memories wash over her.

“Red? You still there?”

“Yes. Dammit, now you’ve got me thinking about you naked.”

“Good. My evil plan worked,” he said. “Tell me something about yourself.”

“What?”

“Anything. I want to know the woman who’s going to be the mother of my child.”

She thought about her life. It was ordinary: nothing too tragic, nothing too exciting. But it was hers. “When I was six I thought if I spent enough time in the ocean I’d turn into a mermaid. My mom’s a marine biologist and we were living on her research vessel, The Sea Spirit. She made me a bikini top out of shells and sent me off every day to swim.”

“I’m glad you didn’t turn into a mermaid,” he said with a quiet laugh.

They talked on the phone until Emily started drifting to sleep. She knew she should hang up, but she didn’t want to break the connection. Didn’t want to wake up without Rafe.

“Red?”

“Yes?”

“I wish I was there to tuck you into bed,” he said.

“Me, too,” she admitted. Then she opened her eyes as she realized that she was starting to need him.

“Good night, Rafe,” she said, hanging up the phone before she could do anything stupid like ask him what he’d wanted to be as a boy. Or to come back to Key West.

Four

Rafe secluded himself from the rest of the family in the office area of the suite of rooms he’d been given. The deal he’d struck for Montoro Enterprises to ship Alma’s oil was taking a lot of his time.

Alma was a major oil producing country to the north of Spain. Montoro Enterprises would be shipping the oil to its customers in North and South America where the bulk of their business interests were. It made good business sense but he also wanted it because he’d get a chance to explore the country of his ancestors. When he’d first done the deal he’d anticipated his father becoming King not himself.

Plus truth be told, he’d been so focused on work because he was avoiding his family and the coterie of diplomats who seemed to be lurking whenever he stepped out of his suite. He didn’t want to talk about his coronation or about the business of running the government. Yet.

But sitting around and hiding out went against the grain, so he’d been working nonstop. He hadn’t shaved in the three days, and Mozart had replaced Jay-Z and Kanye on the stereo because no one would ever be tempted to stop working and rap to Mozart. He hadn’t even contacted Emily, though he’d thought of her night and day.

She was an obsession. He knew that. He had the feeling that if he were in Miami maybe it wouldn’t be as fierce, but he was far away from her and thinking of her was nice and comforting in the midst of this storm that was brewing around him.

He banged his head on the desk.

“I can see I’m interrupting,” Gabe said as he entered without knocking.

“I’m working.”

“Yeah, I noticed,” Gabe said, nodding toward the empty cans of Red Bull that littered the desk and the floor. He walked to the window and pulled back the drapes.

Rafe blinked against the glare of the sunlight. “What time is it?”

“Four in the afternoon. You’re expected for dinner tonight and if you don’t show up Juan Carlos is going to have a stroke. I know he’s been a pain lately with all this royal protocol, but we don’t want our cousin to have a stroke, do we?”

Rafe shook his head. “No.” He scrubbed his hands over his face. His eyes felt gritty and the stubble on his jaw felt rough. He was a mess. Truly. “This sucks.”

Gabe laughed that wicked, low laugh that Rafe had heard women found irresistible. He just found it annoying.

“Yeah, it does. Not so cool being the older brother now, is it?”

Not at all. “I should walk away...that would leave you holding the bag.”

A fleeting glimpse of panic ran across his brother’s face. “Dad would disown you. I’m pretty sure the board would fire you from Montoro Enterprises. Then what would you do?”

Run away to Key West.

Seemed simple enough, but to be fair he wasn’t sure what type of reception he’d receive if he just showed up on Emily’s doorstep.

“I think I’m too American to want to be a royal, you know? Maybe Dad still wants it, but it feels weird to me. I don’t want to be called ‘Your Majesty’ or ‘Your Highness.’”

Rafe watched his younger brother. If there were the slightest sign that Gabe was interested in being king, Rafe would just walk away and let his brother have it. But Gabe rubbed the back of his neck as he paced over to the window. “Me neither.”

“Then I guess I’d better stop acting like a jerk and get out there,” Rafe said. “What’s the plan?”

“Dinner with some supporters. And a family who’d love for you to meet their daughter,” Gabe said with a wry smile.

Rafe shook his head. He’d do his duty to his family, but he was already involved with a redhead who wouldn’t take kindly to him catting around. He was getting to know her, starting a relationship with the woman who was going to be the mother of his child. What if she didn’t feel possessive toward him the way he did toward her? And he did feel possessive. Emily was his. “I’m not interested.”

“Are you interested in someone else?”

“It’s complicated, Gabe.”

“I never thought I’d see the day when you said that. Is she special?”

“She could be,” Rafe said. Or at least that was what his gut was saying. The rest of him wasn’t too sure.

Once his brother left and Rafe had wrapped up what he was working on for the day, he started getting ready for the state dinner. When he got out of the shower, he saw that he had a text message from Emily.

It’s official. Just got word back from the doctor’s office. I’m due in January.

Would he be able to get back to the States in January?

Being with Emily would mean giving up the monarchy... and possibly his job, depending on how much it pissed off his family. Montoro Enterprises and Alma were now all linked together. Could he walk away from one without walking away from them all?

But what kind of man walked away from his own child?

Not one that Rafe wanted to be. He knew that but as he’d said to Gabe earlier, it was complicated.

He braced his hands on the bathroom counter and looked into his own hazel eyes searching for answers or a solution. But there was nothing there.

And that really pissed him off. He needed to take control of his personal life the way he did the boardroom. No more doing what everyone else wanted unless it fit with his own inner moral compass.

Except that he’d been a playboy for so long he wasn’t too sure he had one. Everyone had one, right? Then shouldn’t the answer be clearer than this?

When he was finished shaving, he took the towel off his hips and tossed it at his image in the mirror before he walked into the bedroom to dress.

He hit the remote for his sound system and switched from Mozart to “The Man” by Aloe Blacc . He stopped in his tracks. Right now it seemed as if everyone had a piece of him and the man Rafe had always wanted to be had been lost.

He knew what he had to do. No use pretending he was going to do anything else. It wasn’t that he thought the path would be easy, but then when had he ever taken the easy path? It was simply that spending time with his siblings made him realize that family was important to him.

His mind made up, he grabbed his phone and began typing, hitting Send before he could have second thoughts.

I’ll be there. When is your next appointment? I’d like to go with you if I can.

He owed it to himself and to his child to at least see if he could be a real partner to Emily. And be a real part of the baby’s life.

Really? Okay. If you do this then I don’t want you making promises you can’t keep.

That right there showed him how little she knew of him. Hell, what did he know about her? He knew how she looked in his arms. He knew that she had wanted to be a mermaid when she was little. He smiled at that one. He knew she was having his baby.

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