The Unlawfully Wedded Princess

“My wife?” Not Ellie, then. Couldn’t be anyone but Amelia. His heart beat double time at the implications her words conjured up. What was the princess up to this time? And how the hell had she figured out he was thinking about Canada? “Thank you.”

Though he’d studiously avoided returning her calls, there was no way he could ignore Amelia’s summons.

He gathered up the kids and luggage—thankfully they’d traveled light, having planned for only a weekend—and headed for the rendezvous point, walking so fast that Josie had to trot to keep up with him.

He saw Amelia before she saw him. Though she’d hidden her magnificent gold hair under a hat and wore huge dark glasses, he was intimately familiar with her body language. She sat in a chair with one knee drawn up under the skirt of her flowery dress. He tried to summon some anger against her for the torture she’d caused him, but right now she looked so worried he realized she carried some burdens of her own.

“Auntie Mellie!” Jakob squirmed from Nick’s arms and ran toward Amelia, whose face lit up with joy at the sight of him—at all of them. She rose and welcomed Jakob into a hug. Whether the boy remembered Amelia from Palemeir, he’d certainly taken a shine to her here in New York.

“What’s she doing here?” Josie asked, instantly suspicious.

“I don’t know. But I’m going to find out.”

Amelia had a smile for Josie, too, but when she looked up at Nick, the smile faded and she looked almost…afraid. “Oh my God, I can’t believe I found you. I was taking a stab in the dark with that page, but you weren’t on the Air France flight to Korosol, and I was so worried you’d run off to Canada or someplace—I’m babbling, aren’t I?”

Nick nodded. Yes, he’d thought about fleeing. He’d even talked to an expert document forger about false passports and birth certificates for him and the kids. But that would be a last resort. Becoming a fugitive would mean no more contact with Eleanor, and that would be tough—not to mention what it might do to the kids.

“Is there a problem?” Nick asked. “Something wrong with my sister?”

“No, nothing like that. You missed your plane. Why?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess I was hoping I’d come up with a plan for changing King Easton’s mind, but…”

“We don’t have to change his mind,” Amelia said with quiet determination. “I’ve got a plan of my own. Now, it might not be ideal, but I believe it will get the social workers off your back.”

“Okay, I’m listening.”

Amelia suddenly clammed up, looking uneasy.

“What plan?” Josie prompted, proving she’d been paying close attention to the conversation.

“This is a little awkward,” Amelia said, glancing at first one child, then the other. “Maybe you and I should discuss it in private first.”

Josie rolled her eyes. “C’mon, Jakob, they’re going to talk about grown-up things.” She took her little brother’s hand and led him to the far end of the row of chairs, taking her brightly colored rolling suitcase with her. As soon as Nick was sure the children were safely absorbed with a toy, he turned his attention back to Amelia, his curiosity overflowing.

“Just tell me.”

“Okay.” She took a deep breath. “Well, see, if the Ministry of Family objects to the fact our marriage was a sham, we need to prove to them it wasn’t. We’ll tell them we intended to make it real, but my family objected and ordered me back home—”

“I tried that already.”

“I’m not finished. Words obviously won’t convince them. Only actions. I’m suggesting, Nick, that we get married again—nice and legal this time.”

Chapter Four

Nick was so stunned he could say nothing at all for a few moments. Then, his first instinct was to say, No way. Marrying Amelia was what had gotten him into this jam in the first place.

But everything she’d said was true. He had told the Ministry of Family the exact story she’d just related—that they’d fallen in love and intended to be a family, but the royal family had intervened and forced them to separate.

“Nick? You’re not saying anything.”

“Give me a minute. You’ve surprised me, to say the least.”

“I surprised myself. But I cannot allow those precious children to be taken from you, not after everything they’ve been through.”

Nick finally began to recover from the shock and think rationally about Amelia’s suggestion. It was crazy—him marrying a princess—but it just might work. It would certainly lend credence to the story he’d told the government officials. He turned the idea over in his head a few times, trying to find its flaws.

One, in particular, came up immediately. “If your family tore us apart before, why would they now let you marry me?”

“It’s not like I need their permission,” she huffed. “This is an enlightened age. I can marry whom I want. I let them interfere a year ago because I was scared and confused. But seeing you and the children again made me realize we should all be together. You’ve realized it, too—that’s why you came.”

She sounded so sincere, he almost believed her. “Are you bucking for an Academy Award?”

“I only want to convince you it will work.”

“And what will the terms of this marriage be?” He wanted to know.

“We’ll have a simple ceremony, family only.”

He was less concerned with the details of the wedding itself than the events afterward. “You’ll come back with us to Korosol?”

“I haven’t thought that far ahead. I was thinking the wedding itself would be enough to do the trick.”

“Will we stay married?” he asked quietly.

“Long enough to be convincing. Then we can quietly separate.”

“Long enough? A few days? Weeks? What? And you actually think a princess can ‘quietly separate’?”

He’d caught her there. Her gaze slid away from his. “I haven’t worked out all the details yet. But it’ll work, I know it will.”

Nick took a deep breath. This was about the most bloodless proposal he’d ever—then again, when the tables had been turned and he’d been proposing marriage to “Melanie,” he’d been just as pragmatic, just as emotionless. He’d wanted her name on a marriage license so he could get those kids out of Palemeir, and he’d given her no other reason.

Maybe if, at that time, he’d confessed his physical desire for her, his genuine affection and respect for her, things would have turned out differently. Certainly he didn’t like the idea that he’d made Amelia feel then as he felt now—forced to say yes for the children’s sake.

“I assume you would want a prenuptial agreement. You keep your money, I keep the kids.”

She hesitated. “If that’s what you want.” She paused, then looked at him quizzically. “Does this mean you’ll do it?”

“Do I have a choice?”

“Well, you don’t have to make it sound like I’ve proposed tar and feathering.”

“Forgive me if I don’t jump up and down. I realize you’re making a sacrifice on behalf of the children, and I appreciate it. But I resent the government pushing me around, forcing us to go to these ridiculous lengths just so I can keep two children who any idiot can see belong with me.”

“It’s not really such a sacrifice,” she said quietly. “I want to help. And I was, after all, the one who contributed to the dilemma in the first place.”

“Have you mentioned your little plan to your family?”

“Actually, it was my sister Lucia who thought of it.”

“Not the sister I met.”

“No, that was CeCe. Lucia’s the youngest. Very creative.”

“So your family approves of this decision?”

She hesitated again. “Not exactly. I haven’t mentioned it to my mother, and certainly not to the king.” She looked distinctly uneasy at that proposition. “They’ll just have to accept it.”

“Then I guess we’re engaged.” He took Amelia’s hand and led her over to the children. It was amazing how delicate her hand felt in his, like the bones might break if he weren’t careful. But he knew that impression was deceiving. Her hands were strong and capable, but gentle, too. He’d often wondered how they would feel on his body.

He didn’t imagine he would get to find out. Amelia was marrying him for the sake of his children, not to satisfy his libidinous curiosity.

Josie and Jakob looked up from their play. “Children, your uncle Nick is going to marry a princess.”

“Does this mean we’ll get to stay with you?” Josie asked, hope lighting her eyes for the first time since she arrived in New York. He was amazed how sharp her mind was, how quickly she figured things out.

“Yes, it does,” Nick said.

“Auntie Mellie will live with us?” Jakob asked. “She’ll be our mama?”

Amelia gave a small gasp. She started to say something, but Josie beat her to it.

“No,” Josie said sharply. “Our mother is dead.”

Jakob’s little face fell.

Nick felt an alien urge to pick up the child and cuddle him. But while protecting these children came as second nature, showing them love or affection was another matter entirely. He knew they needed love, but he wasn’t the one who could give it to them.

“Your real mother is in heaven, Jakob,” he finally said. “And you’ll always love her in a special way because she brought you into the world.”

“But can Auntie Mellie be Mama, too?”

Amelia looked at Nick, her eyes pleading with him not to blow this. Hell, he didn’t have the slightest idea what to say.

“She’s Auntie Mellie,” Josie said stubbornly. “Don’t be a baby, Jakob.”

“I’m happy just being your auntie,” Amelia said, finding her voice. She pulled her hand from Nick’s light grasp and crouched down until she was at Jakob’s level. “We’ll take this one day at a time, okay? We don’t know yet who is going to live where and when. But we do know that you kids will stay with your uncle Nick, no matter what. Okay?”

Both children nodded, but Nick was feeling a bit shell-shocked from the conversation. Jakob had never once expressed any interest in calling Nick “Papa.”

AMELIA’S HEART hadn’t stopped pounding since Nick had agreed to marry her. She must be out of her mind, to make such a sudden decision without consulting anyone, and carry it out so quickly.

She was committed now, though. She’d waffled with Nick once before, and she intended to keep her word this time. But the real test was whether they could actually make the marriage happen. Her grandfather was not going to be happy with her choice of husband, and she feared what actions he might take against Nick, who was a Korosolian and subject to Easton’s rule. What if the king had Nick arrested? Easton said he didn’t like interfering in private citizens’ affairs, but he might change his mind in a hurry when it came to a threat to the royal succession.

As they rode up the private elevator to the Carradigne penthouse, Amelia’s apprehension grew. She’d spouted a lot of brave words to Nick about how she was a modern woman free to marry whom she chose, but when it came right down to it, she was afraid of displeasing her mother. Though Amelia got along better with Charlotte than her two sisters did, Charlotte had always been faintly disapproving of her middle daughter’s obsession with war orphans and her lack of interest in matters closer to home.

Amelia doubted Charlotte would jump for joy over her daughter marrying an ex-mercenary. She had certainly not taken the news of Amelia and Nick’s first “marriage” well.

The elevator opened onto the foyer. Amelia gave a nod and a smile to Quincy, who’d been dozing at his post. He looked surprised to see her.

“Where did you come from?” Quincy asked.

“Oh, just out,” she said breezily. “Could you be a dear, Quincy, and round up the family? I have an important announcement to make. Ask them to meet in the Grand Room.”

Quincy stood up and nodded. “Yes, Miss Amelia, right away.” He scurried off to do her bidding.

She turned back to her soon-to-be family. “Big news like this deserves a formal setting.” She led Nick and the children into the huge formal living area that was used for entertaining.

“How many rooms does this house have?” Josie asked.

“More than any one family needs,” Amelia replied, thinking about the two-room apartment the children had occupied in Palemeir. And that home had been considered luxurious accommodations. Sometimes Amelia felt guilty over the opulence of her lifestyle in America when she was faced with how the less fortunate lived.

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