Barbara Wallace - Not-So-Perfect Princess

The only thing missing was falling in love, but given how well everything else was turning out she believed it would happen. She would fall in love with Enrique and he with her. The same way her parents had fallen in love after their arranged marriage.

It was all going to work out. “I know it will.”

“Know what will?” a male voice asked from the shadows.

Jules jumped. “Who’s there?”

“I didn’t mean to startle you.”

She squinted. She couldn’t see anyone, but recognized the voice. “Alejandro.”

He ascended the staircase leading to the terrace where she stood. “Good evening, Julianna.”

Her heart lurched. She fought against the burst of attraction making her mouth go dry. It wasn’t easy.

The stubble on his face made him look so much like a sexy pirate. She could easily imagine him standing behind the wheel of a sailing ship trying to capture a vessel full of gold or pretty wenches.

He’d removed his jacket, tie and cummerbund. The neck of his dress shirt was unbuttoned, the tails hung out of the trousers and his sleeves were rolled up. The high rollers decked out in the finest menswear on the Côte d’Azur had nothing on Alejandro. Even with his bare feet.

“How long have you been lurking in the shadows?” she asked.

He moved gracefully like a dancer or a world-class athlete. “Long enough to hear you laughing.”

Heat enflamed her cheeks. “If I’d known you were there …”

Alejandro crossed the terrace to stand next to her. “No need to apologize for being happy.”

Maybe not for him. But happy wasn’t an emotion Jules was used to experiencing let alone expressing. Sharing that moment embarrassed her. Still she owed him for what he’d said at dinner about sailing and the wedding. But one was more important than the other. “Thank you for suggesting a short engagement.”

“Afraid you’ll change your mind?” he asked.

“Worried Enrique will.”

“Not going to happen.”

Jules wished she shared Alejandro’s confidence. “I’ve heard that before.”

“He’d be a fool, a complete idiot, if he didn’t marry you.”

His compliment made her feel warm all over. His opinion shouldn’t matter, but for some reason it did. “Well, intelligence has never been a requirement to be a crown prince.”

The deep, rich sound of his laughter seeped into her and raised her temperature ten degrees. “You’re a contradiction, Julianna.”

“How so?”

“Your dress and demeanor present the image of a proper, dutiful princess, who dots her I’s and crosses her T’s. Yet you show glimpses …”

No one had ever looked beneath the surface or beyond the label of dutiful princess. She wouldn’t have expected Alejandro to, either. Full of curiosity, she leaned toward him. “Of what?”

“Of being a not-so-perfect princess.”

It was her turn to laugh. That wasn’t who she was. Oh, well … Perhaps Enrique would recognize the real her. “You’re reading too much into my words and deeds. Women are second-class citizens in Aliestle. We must obey the men in our lives or deal with the consequences. Duty becomes our way of life. But that doesn’t mean we don’t have the same hopes and dreams, the same sense of humor, as women in more contemporary lands such as this island.”

“As I said, a contradiction.”

She eyed him warily. “Thank you, I think.”

“It’s a compliment.” He glanced back toward the sitting room. “Your groom has returned.”

Jules looked behind her to see Enrique holding a brandy and talking with the others.

“I should leave you.” Alejandro took a step toward the staircase. “I don’t want my brother to think I’m trying to steal his princess bride.”

Would Alejandro do that? Her pulse skittered thinking he might.

Stop. Now. She couldn’t allow herself to be carried away with girlish fantasies. She raised her chin. “Enrique wouldn’t think—”

“Yes, he would.”

“Have you stolen his girlfriends in the past?”

His eyes raked over her. “No, we have different taste in women.”

Alejandro’s stark appraisal should have made her feel uncomfortable, but he also made her feel sexy, a way she’d never felt before. She wet her lips. “Would your being the black sheep and all the gossip have something to do with Enrique feeling this way?”

Alejandro grinned wryly. “Possibly.”

“So the rumors and stories are true.”

“Some are,” he admitted. “Others are exaggerations.”

He was a gorgeous prince. That often led people to act out of …”I’m sure a few tales are due to jealousy.”

He eyed her curiously. “Has this happened to you?”

“Oh, no. I’m about as proper a princess as you’ll find.”

“Proper with obvious skills of manipulation.”

“Proper with practiced social skills and manners that help others get along.”

“Yet you downplay your intelligence by saying your knowledge about international trade is nothing but a hobby.”

His perceptiveness made her feel like a mouse caught in a trap. He might be a black sheep and prefer to go barefoot, but he was sharp. She’d have to watch herself. “Education opportunities for females in my country exist, but are limited. Women are allowed to hold only certain jobs. We must work within the system. I’ve been more fortunate than others and able to use my time traveling abroad to … expand my knowledge base. But the last thing my country wants is their princess spouting off how smart she thinks she is.”

Laughter lit Alejandro’s eyes and made her temperature rise ten degrees. “You’ll be good for Enrique. Keep him on his toes. But he won’t mind.”

“I hope not. What about you?” Jules liked the easy banter between them. Earlier when she’d arrived, she thought Alejandro didn’t like her. “Will you mind not being second in line for the throne after Enrique and I have children?”

He glanced inside once again. “I can honestly say the more children you and my brother are blessed with, the happier I’ll be. I’ve been hoping to be made an uncle for years.”

His words sounded genuine. She ignored her disappointment that he wouldn’t want her himself. That was stupid. Her father would never approve of a man like Alejandro, and she needed to be a queen to best help Brandt and Aliestle. “That’s sweet of you.”

“The kitten is sweet. I’m not.” He took two steps down the stairs. “Enrique’s on his way out here. That’s my cue to fade back into the shadows.”

Alejandro’s cryptic words intrigued her. “Do you usually hang out in the shadows?”

“Yes, I do.”

She watched him disappear into the night.

Behind her, footsteps sounded against the terrace’s tile floor. A familiar scent of aftershave enveloped her. She didn’t like the fragrance. Still better than the alternative, she reminded herself.

Jules leaned forward over the railing, but couldn’t see Alejandro. “I hope your call went well.

“It did.” Enrique stood next to her. “But you needn’t worry about state business. The wedding should be your focus.”

“I’ve been thinking about our wedding.” She wondered if Alejandro was listening from below. Not that she minded if he eavesdropped. A part of her wished he was here with her instead of his brother. “And children, too.”

“We are of like minds.” Enrique placed his hand over hers. His skin was warm and soft. His nails neatly trimmed. Not the hands of a sailor or gardener. “Heirs would please my father.”

“Mine, too.” Her duty was to extend the bloodline. But Jules also wanted babies of her own. She remembered helping the nurses with each of her brothers. She wanted to be more involved with raising her children than her stepmother.