His Forbidden Princess (2 page)

The queen approached. “Based on poor Jasper’s condition, I have no doubt you could protect her, Mr.—“

“Stuart.” There was no getting away from his conditioning. He pulled to his full height, almost standing at attention. “Ian Stuart, ma’am.”

“You’re American. And in their military?” His green tee shirt with the word ARMY

across the chest gave him away. Thinking about it now, he might have done that on purpose.

“Former Army Ranger, but I no longer serve. I’m a graduate fellow.”

“I see. And you’ve been seeing my daughter?”

“Yes, ma’am. For several months.” If only he could add that they were the best months of his life. “I love your daughter.”

He hadn’t meant to say that out loud, especially since he was pretty pissed off. It wasn’t the way he intended to present himself to Sofie’s parents, but locking eyes with Sofie, Ian could see she loved him, too. She may not have been honest about who she was, but what she felt was all over her face and it was very, very real.

“That’s lovely, it is. And I don’t mean to trivialize this relationship as it’s obvious by my daughter’s presence in your flat at this early hour, that this is quite serious.”

Moving to Ian’s side, Sofie took his hand. “I love him, too, Mama.”

“Oh, Sofia, my sweet girl. I know this is hard, but we’ve discussed it. Your life is not your own. What you feel for this man will pass. Your duty is to your country and any match made for you must reflect that.”

Duty? Ian could see Sofie’s eyes filling with tears. The urge to hold her was back.

Scratch that—it was so much more. He wanted to do was take her away from here, because it appeared that was the only way he could keep from losing her.

“I’m very sorry, Ian,” the queen said. “But you won’t be able to continue this relationship with my daughter. I’m sure you’re a fine young man, but she has obligations. Sofia, get your things.”

Obligations? He was so angry he could spit nails. Thinking about Sofie, with her free spirit and big heart, being stuffed into a life of
obligations
was heartbreaking. But then he watched her do exactly what her mother told her to do, and Ian understood very quickly that she was never really his. And she never would be.

“I am so sick and tired of my obligations,” Sofie spat. “What about my life? What I want to do?”

“Sofia, this isn’t anything we’re going to talk about in front of an outsider. Not to mention, this disagreement has run its course. You are a member of the Aubonian royal family.

You will most certainly
not
marry an American soldier.” The Queen sniffed her disapproval as she said the words, inferring that Ian was some kind of lowlife.

“You are insufferable, Mama. He’s a good man.”

“You are second in line to the throne, Sofia. Your responsibility has always been, and always will be, to your country. Good man or not, this is not going to happen. Your duty is elsewhere. Surely your soldier can understand
that
.”

Sofie was hurting and it killed Ian to see her like this. But what the queen said about duty? That was something he could understand. Knowing Sofie as he did, he understood if she walked away from her family, from her country, to be with him, she’d never really be happy, so Ian made a quick decision. He’d be the bad guy. He’d end it and end it quickly. She’d probably wind up hating him.

“Could we have a moment, ma’am?”

The queen looked back and forth between him and Sofie, finally nodding. It took less than ten seconds for her and her bodyguard to clear the room.

Once the door clicked shut, Ian moved to where Sofie was standing by the big window He turned her to face him, and the pain in her eyes broke his heart even more. “You should have told me.”

“I know, but it would have kept you away from me altogether.”

“So instead we got involved in a doomed relationship.
And you knew it
.”

“I didn’t think it would come to this. I never thought it was “doomed,” as you put it.”

“What did you think would happen? Are you that naïve? Did you think you’d convince

your mother, your family, that you could be with someone like me?”

Furious, she snapped. “What do you mean someone like you? They should be thrilled a man
like
you, who’s honorable, brave, and brilliant, feels anything for me at all, much less love.

They’re pompous snobs, my parents.” She took a breath. “Don’t get me wrong, my mother is probably one of the strongest, most intuitive rulers my country has ever had. But as a mother, she’s more stuck on protocol than my happiness.”

He couldn’t help but feel satisfied by how she defended him, even though it didn’t

change anything. “My knowledge of Aubonne is limited, but your mother has her hands full with some very vocal critics of your family who, quite frankly, could be a risk to all of you.”

“What are we going to do?” She sat on the edge of the sofa, dropped her head and wiped at her eyes. “I can’t bear the thought of being without you. We have to do something.
I
have to do something.”

This meant she either had to make a choice to abandon her family, her heritage, or Ian had to walk away. Even if Sofie didn’t think her family needed her, he could see now, they did.

They needed her compassion, her love of people, and her ability to understand delicate situations to balance the hardness he saw in her mother. Leaving behind who she was and all she knew was fine for a few years at university, but not for a lifetime.

It was clearer now that he had to make the break because she wasn’t going to.

“You shouldn’t have gotten involved with me. I get that you wanted to be normal, but how can I even trust that what you feel for me is real? That you didn’t just want to—I don’t know—scratch an itch.” The shadow that crossed her face let him know exactly how much that comment had wounded her.

“Ian, are you serious? Scratch an itch?”

“I’m dead serious. I’ve got to cut my losses here. It’s bad enough I’m going to feel like shit because you’re gone, but to know I was just part of some game? That sucks.” Standing, she took a few tentative steps in his direction and for a split second, he didn’t know if he could go through with it. But he couldn’t stop, not now. Pushing her away, back to her own life, was the only solution. “Go,
Princess
. Have a good life.”

She started to speak but stopped, almost like she realized that there was nothing left to say. Mustering all the pride she could, her back straight, Sofie picked up her purse and jacket.

She took a breath, her lip trembled, but she stayed composed. For all her outward bluster, her big personality, if Ian had learned anything about Sofia since they’d been together, it was that she had a tender and sensitive heart. And he could see how deep he’d cut her as the sparkle left her green-gold eyes.

“You were never a game, Ian. Not ever.” Walking to the door, she yanked it open before saying her final piece. “I thought I knew you.” She paused. “More than that, I thought you knew me. I guess I was wrong.”

She didn’t say goodbye. He listened to her footsteps fade as she descended the staircase; watched her as she walked out of the building and to the waiting car. She didn’t look up towards his window, not even a passing glance.

Once she was gone, Ian sank into his couch cushions and picked up her scent—light,

spicy, and tinged with their lovemaking. It mocked him. He figured this was just the beginning.

As time passed, he wouldn’t get over her, instead he’d suffer for every unkind word he uttered to her. He’d just been such a bastard he deserved to be miserable for the rest of his life.

Eight Years Later

Special Agent Ian Stuart’s eyes were locked on the surveillance van monitors. The

subject was exiting her vehicle and making her way towards the entrance of the high end department store on Fifth Avenue for a bit of shopping. She turned the heads of several men walking by, but no one knew that the gorgeous brunette was a visiting dignitary from a tiny European country.

A small child darted in front of her, stumbling, and of course, she stopped to help the little boy.

“Get inside the bloody department store, gorgeous,” Ian grumbled. Too much time

outside, in an environment with limited control, was never good. Granted, everything seemed alright, no one knew who she was, but lately any VIP visit to the city brought out the whackos. A limo with diplomatic plates was more than enough to attract attention. Add to that today’s visitor was a royal with a target on her back, and the situation became that much more critical.

He worried too much, he knew that. Any glitch, any unexpected movement on the part of the dignitaries he was charged with guarding, and Ian lost his shit.

But he had to give her credit; Crown Princess Sofia of Aubonne wasn’t going to bow to threats. The rebel factions that had terrorized the royal family of her small European country for almost a decade had promised more bloodshed—more death—if their demands for the overthrow of the royal family weren’t met. And that was no lie. The violence had escalated over the past year, resulting in the death of Sofia’s elder brother, which left the petite, brunette beauty as the heir to the throne.

“What is she doing? Damn.” Now she was having a conversation with the kid’s mother.

“She’s such a pain in the ass.” Which made her just like every other royal who breezed into town. Ian had been working on Princess Sofia’s protection plan for a month, checking possible vulnerabilities and coordinating with security agencies. The political turmoil in her home country added a layer of complication, but Ian stayed on top of it. He treated her visit with the same care he gave every other dignitary. But she was more. She’d always been more.

One of the other agents, Paul Burns, who was monitoring the situation, laughed. “You know her, right?”

“I knew her when I was at school in England for my masters.” He didn’t elaborate. Paul didn’t ask.

“That’s right. You have way too many letters after your name, man. Why are you here doing this kind of work exactly?”

Ian shrugged. “I’m here because I like the work, it’s important and I’m good at it.”

And he was. Ian headed a squad of counter terrorism specialists. His training as an Army Ranger, his education, and his interest in working with other agencies to protect those vulnerable to attack made this the perfect job for him—Ian popped an antacid in his mouth—

even if it wasn’t the least stressful.

Foreign heads of state were the most problematic guests. Their own security force

wanted to keep control, however they didn’t understand the pitfalls of moving around in a big city like New York. The princess’s people were no different, and the arrogance her chief of security added to the mix gave Ian a serious desire to kick the guy’s ass.

She was outside too long. Too. Damn. Long. He watched the street, the traffic, and the people moving on the sidewalk by the store and across the street. Nothing was considered unimportant. Ian worked the details, just like always.

Everything seemed fine, but he wished the princess would keep with the program.

Finally, she went into the store.
Thank God
.

“You need to calm down, Stuart. She was just being nice to the kid and his mother.”

Nice
. He didn’t want her to be
nice
; he wanted her to stay safe. Being nice, being vulnerable, is what got people killed and no one was going to get killed on his watch.

Especially not Sofia.

Settling into the stiff plastic chair that had been bolted to the floor. Ian continued to watch the street outside. It was a really nice late spring day. If he wasn’t working he’d be outside someplace, running, or maybe out on a boat with a rod and reel, not necessarily trying to catch anything, but just to kill time on the water. Ian hadn’t done anything to kill time recently, he didn’t relax.

He just worked.

His chirping cell phone broke his train of thought. “Stuart.”

“Ian, we have a problem.” It was Lisa, one of the analysts in Washington with whom he often coordinated. She was smart as a whip, and not an alarmist. If she said there was a problem, there was a problem.

He straightened and listened. “Go. What is it?”

“You know the threats we’ve been watching regarding the royal family in Aubonne?

There’s been an attack. The queen, the archduke, and Princess Anna were traveling to their residence in the mountains and someone ran their car off a narrow road. There were at least three gunmen and if it wasn’t for some very smart driving by their bodyguard, they’d all be dead.”

“Shit.”
Sofie.

Ian turned to his partner. “Go into the store, find the princess, and as quietly as possible, get her out of the store and into her car.”

“What should I tell her?”

“Just tell her there’s been an emergency change of plans and it’s necessary for her safety.”

“Okay. What if she says no?” Paul stood, putting on his suit jacket.

“She won’t.”
She’d better not.

Paul nodded and headed out of the van, “Whatever you say, boss.”

Ian went back to his phone conversation with Lisa. “Get a couple of agents to the

Waldorf. I want that place locked down. Everyone gets checked. Everyone. I don’t care if it’s the General Manager’s grandmother.”

“Got it,” the voice responded in his ear. “Are you on your way there?”

“I’m going to the office first. I need to figure out our next step, but I should be there soon.”

Ian waited until Sofie was out of the store and her car safely on its way. Once he was back in the van, Ian started the engine to get them back to the office. He had an idea. It was radical, but the more he thought about the information coming in, the more he thought about the way the attack on her family went down, the more Ian believed there was someone inside the palace who knew the family’s movements.

Which meant someone knew exactly where Sofie would be and when she would be there.