Royal Seducer / Bossman Billionaire

He seemed to choose his next words very carefully. “It’s just that it’s a…sensitive issue.”

Heaven knew, her family had its share of sensitive issues, too. “I haven’t said anything to my family, and I won’t. Your secret is safe with me.”

“I appreciate that.”

“If you ever need someone to talk to, to vent to—”

“It’s congestive heart failure,” Chris said, and his honesty surprised her. It seemed to surprise him, too. Maybe he did just need someone to talk to.

“And the prognosis?” she asked.

“Not good. At the present rate he’s deteriorating, six months. Maybe a year.”

Oh, how terrible. No wonder they wanted to keep it a secret. “What about a transplant?”

“He has a very rare blood type. The chances of finding a match are astronomical.”

She could see that he loved his father very much, and the idea of losing him hurt Chris deeply.

She rested her hand on his forearm, gave it a gentle squeeze. “I’m so sorry.”

“There is one treatment that he’s considering. It’s still experimental. He would be hooked to a portable bypass machine. The machine would take over all function, giving his heart a chance to heal.”

She’d never heard of such a procedure. “That sounds promising.”

“But it carries risks.”

“What kind of risks?”

“The surgery itself is risky because his heart is so weak, and after the pump is in he would be prone to blood clots and strokes.”

“How long would he be on the pump?”

He shrugged. “Six months. A year. The doctors don’t know. They can’t even say if the treatment will be effective. It depends on the patient, and the degree of damage.”

“Your poor mother,” Melissa said. “This must be awful for her.”

“It’s not something we talk about outside the family,” he said. “I shouldn’t have even said anything to you.”

But the fact that he had made her feel even closer to him. “I won’t say a word to anyone. I promise.”

He laid his hand over hers. “Thank you, Melissa. For listening.”

On impulse, she leaned forward and brushed her lips against his. His were soft and warm. His hand slipped behind her neck, drawing her in closer. His tongue teased the seam of her lips and they parted. The kiss was deep and searching and loaded with emotion.

Deep down she was a hopeless romantic, which had earned her a good share of bumps and bruises in her life. Mostly to her heart, but more than a few to her pride as well. She had learned to be tough. But Chris seemed to be pushing all the right buttons, knocking down all of her carefully constructed defenses. Whether he meant to or not.

She wanted him. The way she had never wanted anyone in her life.

“This is going to sound a little crazy,” she said. “But despite the fact that it’s barely been a day, I feel as though I know you, Chris.”

“Strange, isn’t it?” His eyes searched her face. She couldn’t help but wonder what he was looking for. If he saw something the others hadn’t. Something special.

She reached up and touched his cheek, felt the hint of evening stubble under her fingertips. “What do you think it means?”

“I’m not sure,” he said. “But I’d like to find out.”

Chris sat beside Melissa during dinner, listening to her chat with his family. If they knew what he’d done, they would be furious with him. He and his siblings had made a pact, a promise to their parents and each other to keep the king’s condition a closely guarded secret. Great pains had been taken with his doctors to keep his medical records restricted.

He wasn’t one to confide in family or friends, but finally admitting the truth to someone outside the family seemed to take a bit of the pressure off. And as promised, she didn’t say a thing about the king’s health or the e-mail situation, nor did she give even a hint that she knew anything was amiss. He could only hope that she would keep it from her family as well, as it could jeopardize a potential alliance.

If she felt wary of the consequences, she hadn’t let it show. Perhaps she wasn’t familiar enough with the way the monarchy worked to recognize the potential complications the king’s death could generate. Or maybe she just didn’t care. It was possible that she believed the potential benefits would outweigh the disadvantages. And after all, when his father died, or was no longer physically capable of performing his duties, Chris would be crowned king, and if they were married, Melissa would be queen. That had to hold a certain appeal.

Whatever her motivation, she seemed willing to give this partnership consideration. He just needed a bit more time to make sure this was right before he made his move and formally asked for her hand. He needed to be sure that they were sexually compatible. If he was going to be forced to marry, then damn it, he was going to marry someone who could please him in the bedroom.

After dinner, the king retired to his quarters and Melissa and the queen went for a walk in the garden. Chris gestured his siblings into the study for an impromptu meeting regarding the latest developments with the e-mails. They fixed themselves drinks at the bar then took seats by the ceiling-high windows across the room. The last threads of evening sun shone in warm, golden-orange shafts across the oriental rug.

“Aaron showed you Datt’s report?” he asked his sisters, and they both nodded. “Well, something else has happened, something involving our guest.”

They listened grimly as he told them about the e-mail Melissa had received, and how the sender mentioned the maze.

Aaron and Anne wore identical frowns. Louisa looked downright scared. “Was someone watching you?” she asked.

“It could just be coincidence they chose the maze,” Chris told her, but she didn’t look reassured, and he didn’t blame her. “I’d like to have security stake it out tonight, just in case. I forwarded the e-mail to Datt.”

“She didn’t find that at all suspicious?” Anne asked.

“She figured out that I hadn’t sent it. And of course she was curious as to what was going on.”

“What did you tell her?” Aaron asked.

“That it was a prank, and there was no reason to be concerned.”

But it was clear that his siblings believed there was a damned good reason, and Chris agreed. He planned to talk to Randall Jenkins, the head of security, just as soon as he was finished here. He planned to have them keep a close eye on Melissa, just in case. They certainly couldn’t risk something happening to her while she was in their care.

“Did she believe you?” Anne asked.

“She seemed to. I asked her not to mention it around our parents, or to her family. She promised not to.

” “Can we trust her?”

Chris shrugged. “We don’t really have a choice.” Louisa drew her knees up and hugged them. “I don’t like this. Maybe we should tell Father.”

“No,” Chris said. “Not until we absolutely have to.

” With any luck, Datt would get to the bottom of this and they could solve the problem without the king ever being the wiser.

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