Misplaced Princess (Foreign Affairs, Book One) (12 page)

“You’re in love with him.”

She didn’t bother to deny it. “Yes. I am.”

Her father sighed heavily. “So much like your mother.”

There was no anger in his statement. Instead it sounded like he was pleased, happy for her. She felt like she should point out the obvious obstacle. “He lives in Australia, Dad. I live in New York.”

“That’s just geography.”

When he didn’t elaborate, she narrowed her eyes. “That’s it? Your only pearl of wisdom? What good is that to me? I need an answer, Dad.”

Joe wrapped his arms around her and Annie tried to recall the last time her father had hugged her. It had been years. “Annabel Louise Prince. You’ve followed your own path since the day you first learned to walk. You’ve made your own decisions, taking turns I wouldn’t have chosen for you. You don’t need
me
to tell you what to do. You only need to listen to this.” He tapped her chest, directly above her heart. “It’s never steered you wrong before.”

This time,
she
initiated the hug. He was right. This decision would be hers.

They parted and shared a smile. “And now, I think there’s a young man over there in that godforsaken piece of shit truck waiting for you.”

Annie laughed as she took her father’s arm and they walked toward the ute together.

“Everything okay?” Hunter asked.

Annie nodded, her emotions too close to the surface. She was afraid to open her mouth, terrified they’d all come tumbling out. While she’d made peace with her dad, her future with Hunter was still up in the air.

“Hey, Dylan,” Hunter called.

Dylan and Monet were still standing near the jet. Dylan looked up.

“You two want a ride back to the house?”

Dylan shook his head. “No. We’ll walk back.”

Annie looked at the two-seater truck before hopping into the bed, enjoying her father’s look of surprise and Hunter’s grin. She spent the trip back to the house lost in her own thoughts. She snuck a glance at Hunter. Her dad was right. She knew what she wanted.

Now all she had to do was hope Hunter he wanted the same.

* * * * *

After a few stilted words with Annie’s father in the ute, Hunter dreaded what breakfast would be like. He should have known better than to waste the energy worrying about it.

Joe and Hazel chatted and laughed like long-lost friends. Hazel had managed to discover it wasn’t Joe’s first trip to Australia, which led to a lengthy discussion about the Sydney Opera House. Annie remained quiet throughout much of breakfast, only remarking with surprise and unconcealed disgust when her father picked up his Vegemite and toast, eating two slices with the genuine pleasure of a man who’d gone too long without a favorite treat. Joe didn’t seem to share Annie’s aversion to Vegemite.

After breakfast, Joe rose and offered to help Hazel with the dishes. Again, Hunter read the shock in Annie’s features. He decided it was time for them to make a break for it. He excused himself and Annie as their parents began to clean up.

In the foyer, he grasped her hand. “Walk outside with me?”

She nodded. “Okay.”

They walked in silence for a little while. Hunter didn’t have a destination in mind until he spotted the little bench his mother had put near her garden. It was fairly secluded, the perfect place for them to talk.

They sat together as Hunter turned to face her.

“Annie—”

“Look, Hunter—”

They spoke simultaneously, both stopping abruptly.

“Sorry,” Annie said. “Go ahead.”

Hunter didn’t bother with politeness. She offered. He took. “I want you to stay here.”

“Stay here?”

“I know what you’re going to say. You have a job and an apartment in New York. We’ve only known each other two weeks. Australia is too fucking hot. Your whole family lives in the States. I’m a thirty-year-old man living with his mother. There are a million reasons why this is a bloody idiotic request.”

She laughed at his rambling speech. Better that, he decided, than running for the hills. “That’s quite a list.”

“Everything on it is true, but I’m still asking you to stay.”

She glanced out at the garden and he struggled with her silence. Finally, she looked at him again. “Let me hear the other list.”

He frowned. “What other list?”

“The reasons why I
should
stay.”

He reached for her hand. “Because if you leave now, we’ll never know what this could be. Because I can’t stand the thought of you sleeping so fucking far away from me.” He paused before giving her the most important reason. “Because I love you.”

She leaned closer, resting her forehead against his. “I love you too.”

“Does that mean you’ll stay?”

She didn’t answer right away. He watched the independent woman rear her head.

“What would I do? I studied to be a journalist. There isn’t much demand for those skills on the station. I can’t stay here indefinitely as a guest. I won’t do that.”

Hunter chuckled. Her response was so typically Annie. Of course she didn’t want to be a kept woman. Her father had made that offer and she’d refused. She had far too much pride and energy to stand idly by while everyone else around her worked. “Do you need a job description? Jesus, Annie. There are a thousand chores to be done around here every day. How about we chisel out a few and make them yours? They may not be fun or glamorous and I’m worried you might get bored—”

“I’d never get bored here.”

He sensed they were getting closer to an answer. Hunter stroked her cheek softly. “Never is a long time.”

“Have you ever gotten bored at Farpoint?”

He shook his head. “No, but—”

“But what?”

“This is my home.”

She grinned. “I’m sort of hoping it might be mine too.”

He grasped her hands in his, kissing her knuckles. “It’ll be yours for however long you want to stay.”

They moved in unison, neither of them able to resist, sealing the deal with a kiss.

When they pulled apart, he marveled at the sheer joy on her face. She lit up brighter than a Christmas tree. She was beautiful. She was staying.

She stood up and looked around at the hot desert he called home. “I have to admit, this is a nice twist.”

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“The misplaced princess landed in Oz and realized she wasn’t lost at all. She’d found home.”

The End

About
Mari Carr

Writing a book was number one on Mari’s bucket list and on her thirty-fourth birthday, she set out to see that goal achieved. Now her computer is jammed full of stories—novels, novellas, short stories and dead-ends. A
New York Times
and
USA Today
bestseller, as well as winner of the Passionate Plume, Mari finds time for writing by squeezing it into the hours between 3 a.m. and daybreak, when her family is asleep and the house is quiet.

About
Lexxie Couper

Lexxie’s not a deviant. She just has a deviant's imagination and a desire to entertain readers with her words. Add the two together and you get darkly erotic romances with a twist of horror, sci-fi and the paranormal!

When she's not submerged in the worlds she creates, Lexxie’s life revolves around her family: a husband who thinks she's insane, a pony-sized mutt who thinks he's a lap dog, and her daughters, who both utterly captured her heart and changed her life forever.

Living in Australia makes it a bit tricky for Lexxie to pop by for coffee, but she still loves to chat! Contact her by email or find her at her website or her blog (
http://lexxiecouper.wordpress.com/
).

Mari and Lexxie welcome comments from readers. You can find their websites and email addresses on their author bio pages at
www.ellorascave.com
.

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