Rebecca Winters - An Heir For The Prince

Dottie handed her the soft, foot-long baby. “This is Baby Betty. She has a bottle , a blanket and a bear .”

“Oh—” Zoe cried. Her eyes lit up. She cradled it in her arms, just like a mother. “Thank you, Mommy.”

The word slipped out again. Dottie couldn’t look at Alex. His daughter had said it again. These days it was coming with more frequency. The moment had become an emotional one for Dottie, who had to fight her own pain over past memories that had been resurrected by being around her new student.

“I’m not your mommy, Zoe. She’s in heaven. You know that, don’t you.”

She finally nodded. “I wish you were my mommy.”

“But since I’m not, will you please call me Dot?”

“Yes.”

“Good girl. Guess what? Now that you’ve fed Betty, you have to burp her.” Puzzled, Zoe looked up at her. “When a baby drinks milk from a bottle, it drinks in air, too. So you have to pat her back. Then the air will come out and she won’t have a tummyache. Your mommy used to pat your back like that when you were a baby, didn’t she, Your Highness?”

Dottie had thrown the ball in his court, not knowing what had gone on in their marriage. He’d never discussed his private personal life or asked Dottie about hers.

“Indeed, she did. We took turns walking the floor with you. Sometimes very important people would come in the nursery to see you and you’d just yawn and go to sleep as if you were horribly bored.”

At that comment the three of them laughed hard. Dottie realized it provided a release from the tension built up over the last week.

From the corner of her eye she happened to spot Hector, who stood several feet away. He was clearing his throat to get their attention. How long had he been in the room listening?

“Your Highness? The queen has sent for you.”

“Is it a medical emergency?”

“No.”

“Then I’m afraid she’ll have to wait until tonight. After this lesson I’m taking Zoe and Mrs. Richards out on the boat ,” he said emphasizing the B. “We’ll work on her B sounds while we enjoy a light buffet on board , won’t we, Zoe?” He smiled at his daughter who nodded, still gripping her baby tightly. “But don’t worry. I’ll be back in time to say good-night to her.”

“Very well, Your Highness.”

Dottie had to swallow the gasp that almost escaped her throat. Lines bracketed Hector’s mouth. She looked at the floor. It really was funny. Alex had a quick, brilliant mind and a surprising imp inside him that made it hard for her to hold back her laughter, but she didn’t dare laugh in front of Hector.

After Hector left, Dottie brought out a box containing tubes of blue beads, so Zoe and Alex could make a bracelet together. They counted the beads as they did so, and Dottie was pleased to note that Zoe’s B sounds were really coming along.

Satisfied with that much progress, Dottie cleaned everything up. “That’s the end of our lesson for today.” She got up from the chair, suddenly wishing she weren’t wearing a T-shirt with a picture of a cartoon bunny on the front. She’d hoped Zoe would ask her about it and they could practice saying the famous rabbit’s name. But it was Alex who’d stared at it several times this morning, causing sensual waves to ripple through her.

He swept Zoe in his arms. “I’m very proud of you. Now let’s show Dot around the island on the sailboat.” His daughter hugged him around the neck. Over her shoulder he stared at Dottie. “Are you ready?”

No. Sailing with him wasn’t part of her job. In fact it was out of the question. She didn’t want to feel these feelings she had around him. Yearnings …

“That’s very kind of you, Your Highness, but I have other things to do this afternoon, including a lot of paperwork to send in to the Institute. In case you don’t get back from sailing by dinnertime, I’ll see you and Zoe in the morning for her lesson.”

He lowered his daughter to the floor. “I insist.”

She took a steadying breath. “Did you just give me a command?”

“If I did, would you obey it?”

There was nothing playful about this conversation. The last thing she wanted to do was offend him, but she refused to be anything but Zoe’s speech therapist. With his looks and charismatic personality, he could ensnare any woman he wanted. That’s what royal playboys did.

Alex might be a widower with a daughter, but as far as she was concerned, he was at the peak of his manhood now and a hundred times more dangerous. She was reminded of that fact when he’d eyed her T-shirt. A little shiver went through her because he was still eyeing her that way and she was too aware of him.

Dottie needed to turn this around and make it right so he wouldn’t misunderstand why she was refusing the invitation. Using a different tactic she said, “I gave you that pack of flash cards. You should take your daughter on your sailboat this afternoon and work with her while the lesson is fresh in her mind.”

In a lowered voice she added, “I might be her speech therapist, but outside this classroom I can only be a distraction and cause her more confusion over the mommy issue. She wants your undivided attention and will cooperate when you do the cards with her because she’d do anything for you. There’s a saying in English. I’m sure you’ve heard of it. ‘Strike while the iron’s hot.'“

“There’s another saying by the great teacher Plato,” he fired back. “'We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.'“ He turned to his daughter. “Come with me, Zoe.”

Dottie trembled as she watched them leave. Alex had her figured out without knowing anything about her. She was afraid. Once upon a time her world had been filled with blinding, glorious light. After it had been taken away, she never wanted to feel it or be in it again. One tragedy in life had been too much.

Alex put his daughter to bed, but he had to face facts. After the outing on the sailboat and all the swimming and fun coaching moments with the flash cards, it still wasn’t enough for his little girl. She didn’t want Sofia tending to her.

He’d read the good-night book to her six times, but the tears gushed anyway. She was waiting for her favorite person. “Have you forgotten that Dottie had a lot of work to do tonight? You’ll see her in the morning. Here’s Betty. She’s ready to go to sleep with you.” He tucked the baby in her arm, but she pushed it away and sat up.

“Tell Dot to come.”

Alex groaned because these tears were different. His daughter had found an outlet for her frustration in Dottie who understood her and had become her ally. What child wouldn’t want her to be her mommy and stay with her all the time? Alex got it. She made every moment so memorable, no one else could possibly measure up. Dottie was like a force of nature. Her vivacious personality had brought life into the palace.

Earlier, when he’d asked Hector about Dottie’s activities, he’d learned she’d refused a car and had left the grounds on foot. Security said that after she’d jogged ten miles in the heat, she’d hiked to the top of Mount Pelos and sat for an hour. After visiting the church, she’d returned to town and jogged back to the palace.

“Zoe? If you’ll stay in your bed, I’ll go get her.”

The tears slowed down. She reached for her baby.

“Hurry, Daddy.”

Outside the bedroom he called Dottie on his cell phone, something he’d sworn he wouldn’t do in order to keep his distance, but this was an emergency. When she picked up, he asked her to come to Zoe’s bedroom. He sensed the hesitation before she said, “I’ll be right there.”