Rachelle McCalla - Defending the Duchess

HE’LL KEEP HER SAFE—AT ANY COST

Protecting the royal family is Linus Murati’s job. So when the queen’s younger sister is attacked, the devoted Lydian royal guardsman goes into action and saves her life. But this was no random occurrence. Danger has followed Julia Miller across the Atlantic from Seattle. Now Linus has two missions: to keep the maddeningly independent future duchess in his sights at all times, and to catch the culprit who threatens the woman whose trust—and love—he desires above all others.

“Is there anything I can do to make it easier?” Julia asked, still feeling guilty after all Linus had done for her.

“If you could relax—” he glanced around as if wary of whatever danger might be lurking about “—it makes it easier to carry you.”

“Oh.” Julia hadn’t thought of that. She wasn’t used to being carried and realized she’d been straining ever so slightly as though to keep a small distance between them.

It was foolish, she realized now. Linus had to carry her. The least she could do was try to make the job easier on him.

Reluctantly she pressed her cheek against his shoulder and closed her eyes to the embarrassment she felt. She could feel the surging beat of his heart as he strained to move her uphill as quickly as possible. She let out an anxious breath and focused on breathing in slowly.

Over the scent of the sea, Julia caught a whiff of manly scent—something wild and strong and oddly soothing. She breathed in again, more slowly this time, and felt her fears ebb away.

She was in good hands.

Linus was watching out for her.

RACHELLE McCALLA

is a mild-mannered housewife, and the toughest she ever has to get is when she’s trying to keep her four kids quiet in church. Though she often gets in over her head, as her characters do, and has to find a way out, her adventures have more to do with sorting out the carpool and providing food for the potluck. She’s never been arrested, gotten in a fistfight or been shot at. And she’d like to keep it that way! For recipes, fun background notes on the places and characters in this book and more information on forthcoming titles, visit www.rachellemccalla.com.

Defending the Duchess

Rachelle McCalla

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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My God, I trust you. Do not let me be disgraced.

Do not allow my enemies to defeat me.

—Psalms 25:1, 2

To my siblings: Nichole, Brian and Brittany.

Contents

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Dear Reader

Questions for Discussion

Excerpt

ONE

Linus Murati stepped into the visual surveillance room of the royal guard headquarters, a three-story brick building located on the Lydian royal palace grounds across the rear courtyard from the garages. “Get me suite 322 on screen, please,” he requested.

“I thought you had duchess duty tonight?” Simon accused Linus as he pulled up the view from the surveillance camera.

“I do. Miss Miller has requested an evening in.” Linus leaned over the back of his friend’s chair and blinked at the image of the white paneled door where he’d left Queen Monica’s pretty little sister mere minutes before. “But don’t let her catch you calling her ‘duchess’ just yet. The queen has yet to announce the title—I don’t believe Julia knows she’s going to be royalty.”

“Official or not, that’s the name we’ve assigned to her—wait now.” Simon broke off midsentence as the door on the screen opened and the dark-eyed beauty poked her head out, looking both directions before darting down the hall. “Thought you said she was in for the night.”

“That’s what she told me.” Linus watched Julia’s progress, switching cameras as needed to keep up with her stealthy excursion down a set of stairs and around a bend in the hall. The woman had changed into shorts and a T-shirt and pulled her thick brown hair into a ponytail. “Do you suppose she’s headed to the palace gym?”

“She’s going the wrong direction for that.”

“Maybe she’s lost,” Linus nearly growled as the woman took a corridor that led to an outside door. “I told her to page me if she wanted to go anywhere.”

“She’s out.”

The duchess stepped through an exit to the courtyard and skirted a hedgerow, her furtive glances making it clear that she was escaping deliberately—not merely adrift on her way to the gym. “Catch her.”

“She won’t get through the gates.” Linus predicted but ran for the door anyway. The queen’s little sister was an American in town on a visit. She wouldn’t know her way around the kingdom of Lydia and might get lost if she stepped out alone. Besides that, as the ambush on the royal family just over two months before had taught them, even the most beloved royals could become targets of criminal activity.

Which was precisely why Julia needed a bodyguard.

Linus caught sight of her at the back gate talking to the men in the guardhouse. They wouldn’t let her through without a guard. At the very least, they’d check with him before letting her pass.

But as Linus sprinted across the cobblestones, he watched Julia’s sweet smile and fluttering eyelashes do their work.

The pedestrian door swung open.

Before Linus could quite recover from his shock, the duchess was through and the door slammed shut behind her.

“What are you doing?” Linus challenged his fellow guards as he bounded up to the open window of the guardhouse.

Galen, a sentinel who’d defied direct orders to save the lives of members of the royal family during the ambush two months before, looked at Linus without chagrin. “She’s the queen’s sister—”

“I’m assigned to guard her.” Linus tugged on the pedestrian door.

Locked.

“Open this door.” He glared at Galen, and glanced past him to see that another guard was in the booth. Good. There would still be someone to cover the gate if he took Galen with him. “And come with me.”

“Why?” Galen did as instructed and stepped out behind Linus.

“We’ve got to find her.” Linus looked down the limestone street. The duchess had already disappeared. “Did she say where she was going?”

“For a jog.”

Linus let out a frustrated breath and wished he’d followed his instinct to set up a chair right outside the duchess’s suite. But that had felt too much like he was keeping her imprisoned. It still would have been better than having her lost in a foreign country. The woman could have gone in any direction.

“You go that way.” Linus pointed toward the foothills. “I’ll head toward the beach.” He quickly checked his earpiece to be certain he and Galen could communicate with one another. If they were fast enough, they might catch up to the duchess quickly, but they were already wasting valuable time.