A Prince For Sophie (8 page)

“Well, someone has to. Where’s a Fairy Godmother when you need one?”

“Perhaps,” he whispered as he bent forward to kiss her lips lightly, “you and I wore the poor dear out.”

Her amusement, so easy and relaxed, soothed his soul and eased his aches.

“Maybe we did. I have a bit of an idea. How about if I share it with you at the same time we share a shower?”

“Is it only a shower you wish to share?” She smiled when he played his hands across her bottom, when he pulled her into his erection.

“Of course not. But dinner is only an hour from now.”

“One of the good things about being the king is I can put dinner off an hour or so if I choose to.”

* * * *

There was nothing Hannah liked more than to have her entire family gathered around her for a good meal. Craig and Pam had only been in Boisdemer for a week, and the novelty of looking around a table and seeing all her children and grandchildren seated together was still fresh.

Tonight, for once, the dining table in the formal dining room didn’t look too big. Eighteen place settings gleamed white and gold under the crystal chandeliers. The Waterford sparkled and the silverware—pure silver—shone with a deep, rich hue.

She felt her face color when, en masse, the family, including the visiting royals, rose to their feet as Alex escorted her into the room. He shot her a rueful grin that told her he understood her discomfort and she squeezed his hand to let him know it was all right.

“Please, everyone, sit,” he said as they made their way to the other end of the table.

Alex stood with her, beside her chair, and together they faced the others.

“Catharine and Philip, tomorrow you will become husband and wife, and with Jamie begin a new life together. I don’t have words adequate enough, Catharine, to tell you how very proud I am to welcome you and Jamie to our family. In the short time I’ve known you, you’ve already become a daughter to me, and Jamie, I already consider to be my first grandson. I love you both very, very much.”

Hannah saw the tears in Catharine’s eyes, and felt her own mist when she got up from her place, came over to Alex, and hugged him tight. The words Alex had just lavished upon her, though he’d claimed them to be insufficient, were, Hannah knew, more than her own father had ever given her.

When her daughter had taken her seat, Alex resumed his speech.

“Peter and Rachel, I’d about given up hope that you would open your eyes and see how perfect you are for each other. Your wedding, in three months time, will be a joyous occasion. A man can never have too many sons, and though I have considered you to be one since you came to us, Peter, it gives me enormous pride and satisfaction knowing that you will be a son in fact as well as in sentiment.

“It is not that unusual, that a brother and a sister marry a brother and a sister. This is a double bond between the Jones and the de la Croix families. A bond that is about to become even stronger.”

Hannah saw the smiles begin to spread on the faces of their children. Alex must have seen it too, for he returned their smiles and nodded.

“To my great happiness and eternal gratitude, Hannah has
finally
agreed to become my wife.”

* * * *

Alex’s heart filled with love as his children and Hannah’s cheered and clapped. There was a flurry of activity as they were hugged and congratulated. His guests and good friends, the Benets, were smiling hugely.

“We must have a toast!” Eduard declared.

“Absolutely,” he agreed. Once everyone was seated, he signaled the staff. Champagne corks popped, and sparkling vintage danced into glasses.

Eduard proposed the first toast, to the happiness of the king and the future queen of Boisdemer. Then there came the tributes from their offspring. Alex knew he was grinning like an idiot, but he couldn’t help it. He was the happiest, and luckiest, man in the world.

“I think we need another one!”

Alex turned his attention to his soon-to-be new granddaughter, Michelle. When her parents—not yet totally at ease with royalty, Alex knew—tried to shush her, he spoke up.

“One more what, sweetheart?”

“One more drink name.”

He smiled as everyone chuckled. “All right. What did you have in mind?”

“I think we should thank Grandma’s fairy godmother.”

“You do?”

“Yes, because Grandma told me they were real, and so I asked God to get Grandma’s fairy godmother to find her a handsome prince, and she did!”

For a long moment, no one said anything. It was Craig, Hannah’s oldest son, who got to his feet, raised his glass, and proposed the toast.

When the glasses were set down, Alex went to Michelle. Taking her hand in his, he brought it to his lips and kissed it.

“Thank you, sweetheart. I’m so very glad you did.”

* * * *

“Oh my,” Eugenia was fanning herself as she hovered over the formal dining room. “Why, I feel as if I’ve just enjoyed an entire bottle of that yummy bubbly wine, myself.”

“I know exactly what you mean. Sister, did you ever imagine that so many people at one time would—”

“No, I never did. Though you know, of course, it was that lovely little Michelle’s daddy whose words held the most power.”

“I do indeed. There’s nothing more powerful than a reformed cynic. Why Eugenia, whatever are we going to do with all this magic?”

“Do? Do? Isn’t it obvious? Now I feel I have a chance to make sure our Sophie can find a suitable match.”

“What do you have in mind?”

“I have the perfect plan, thanks to Hannah. Come, we must get busy. There’s no time to lose.”

“Oh, dear. I really do like Stephan, you know,” Gwendolyn sighed.

“You’ll get over it,” Eugenia said.

Stephan had not had the honor of participating in very many wedding ceremonies. As a Crown Prince, few people felt confident inviting him to fulfill that role. Having grown up with the de la Croix kids, he considered them his closest friends. In the last few years, it had been Michael and Philip visiting him rather than the other way around, which had been the case most often in the years of their youth. But they had maintained their close ties from adolescence through adulthood.

Stephan considered himself a confirmed bachelor, and although he always planned to someday marry and have a family, that plan belonged to the nebulous future. Now, looking on as vows were spoken and rings exchanged, he felt a stirring within him, a feeling that he thought could almost be
envy
. Normally, he’d have thought he’d be the last person to become emotional at such a time.

His gaze wandered to Sophie. Her attention was on her brother and his bride, her features softened by the love he knew she held in her heart for them. And he felt his world shift, just a little.

It seemed as if she stood in the soft light of a thousand candles, her skin suffused with a glow that shimmered. She was undeniably lovely, almost ethereal.

He’d tasted her once, and it wasn’t nearly enough.

He’d planned to steal off to her suite in the middle of the night, but sleep had claimed him and held him with an unusually firm grasp. He’d awakened just in time to prepare for this morning’s ceremony.

In moments, when the music soared, the wedding party would exit this old church and return to the palace. There’d be a luncheon and small reception. Afterward Stephan planned to find a way to have his own personal version of dessert.

His thoughts tracked back to Alex’s stunning announcement of the night before. He could honestly say that he’d never seen his honorary uncle as happy as he’d been then. Clearly, both families were thrilled with the news. Alex had urged him and his parents to extend their visit. He and Hannah, he’d said, were planning to exchange their vows in a private ceremony within a week.

That suited Stephan perfectly. He was glad for the invitation personally, and because it gave him an excuse to remain in Boisdemer. He wasn’t nearly done with Sophie yet.

* * * *

“I have to stay here while mom and dad get to go to the farm for a whole week!”

Sophie smiled at her new nephew’s disgruntled tone. “It is only for a week, Jamie. And then you can join them there.”

“At least Richard and John are staying for a while. And Michelle. She’s all right, for a girl.”

Sophie chuckled, impulsively hugging him. He didn’t squirm overly much, so she made the gesture a short one.

Lunch had been served and eaten. Guests who had been invited back to the Palace to participate in the celebration were mingling about in the reception hall. The newlyweds had already taken their leave, anxious, Sophie thought, to begin their honeymoon. She squashed immediately the unexpected spurt of envy that tried to take root within her. Envy was a useless emotion and likely, she instantly reasoned, nothing more than a temporary aberration, coming as a result of the beauty of the wedding ceremony just passed.

She might resent that it was considered a ‘typical female reaction’, but she couldn’t deny the reaction was real.

“Friends, if I may have your attention, please.”

At the sound of his voice, Sophie turned to face her father. Jamie took the opportunity to run off and join his male cousins.

“As you all undoubtedly know by now, Hannah and I are to be married next week. As this is a second marriage for us both, and as the spotlight rightfully belongs on the younger generation, we’ve chosen to have a private ceremony here, with the archbishop officiating. We’ve chosen next Thursday evening for this happy event, a twilight ceremony on the beach below the palace.”

How romantic!
Sophie applauded with everyone else. She knew it had been on the beach at Marcus’ Villa that their romance had begun.

“To celebrate our marriage, rather than have the traditional ceremony and party, we’ve decided to hold a Grand Tournament next Saturday at the Fortress which is, as you know, the original seat of the throne of Boisdemer, and the current site of the Medieval Fair. There will be a formal ball Friday evening. These events will be open to all who wish to purchase a ticket, and the proceeds will be donated to children’s charities throughout the kingdom. For that reason, we will prevail upon our daughter, Sophie, the Princess Royal, well known for her devotion to the smallest of our subjects, to serve as official hostess for these events. Any knight who wishes to carry the princess’ standard into competition may make application to do so at the ball. The champion of the tournament will win a prize of medieval proportions—and the Princess Royal’s standard, of course, proclaiming him her champion. Because this is rather short notice, a proclamation has been issued and circulated to the major European news media.”

Sophie forced herself to smile graciously, tipping her head in serene acknowledgement as everyone applauded her, even as she wondered what on earth her father was doing. A shiver wracked her spine, and a feeling of foreboding flooded her. She looked around to see if anyone else had reacted strangely to her father’s pronouncement. It had to be her imagination working overtime, swamping her mind with images of medieval princesses being auctioned off to cavalier black knights.

Movement caught the corner of her eye and she turned her head to watch Stephan approach, a little half-smile on his face.

He hadn’t come to her last night. At least, she didn’t think he had. She’d fallen asleep, even though she could have sworn she had been far from tired at the time. Then, this morning, she’d very nearly slept too late. She never slept late!

Now, as he stopped at her side, she caught his eye and felt warmth spread throughout her body in response to his nearness.

“It sounds as if you’re going to be busy in the next little while, fending off knights, officiating at a tournament.”

“This is the first I’m hearing of it. I’m sure father has everything arranged, and I’m just going to be on hand to receive the proceeds on behalf of the children. You didn’t come to my room last night.” She was pretty certain another woman, a more sophisticated woman, would never have said such a thing. His gentle brush of her arm eased her concerns.

“My afternoon exhausted me more than I’d anticipated. I apologize. I’d like, very much, to make up for that lapse now.”

“
Now
?”

“Well, as soon as possible.”

Nerves had Sophie looking toward her father. For the first time in her life, his enormous smile, meant just for her, wasn’t reassuring.

Turning back to Stephan she said, “I need to speak with my father. Then, I think I’ll retire to my suite for a bit of a respite.”

Stephan’s wink wasn’t subtle at all, and Sophie hoped no one else had seen it.

“Then I’ll bid you good afternoon, Your Highness.”

“Thank you, Your Highness. I’m certain that it will be.”

* * * *

“Are you very annoyed with us?” Hannah asked. “I wanted to talk to you about this first. But your father assured me that with Rachel planning her own wedding and Helene and Michael working on that International Healthcare Conference, that you’d be delighted to give us a hand.”

They were walking together toward the main staircase. The reception had ended just minutes before, and Hannah was quite proud that she’d been able to hold off this conversation with her soon-to-be-stepdaughter for this long. Alex had avoided his eldest daughter, as agreed. Sophie had worn a very determined expression when she finally sought her out, so Hannah had launched right into the meat of the matter, even if she was being just a little less than completely honest.

She reminded herself that this very slight prevarication was for a good cause. When she understood, finally, the extent to which Sophie had held herself back since becoming an adult, the fears and misconceptions that had been haunting this beautiful young woman for years, Hannah knew that desperate measures were needed.

It was all well and good that Sophie seemed to be developing a relationship of some sort with Stephan. But she had the uncanny feeling that the young princess considered that man’s attentions to be temporary. After all, here she was, nearly thirty, and she’d never even dated.