The Prince She Had to Marry (9 page)

She laughed then. It wasn’t a happy sound. “Listen to yourself. Listen to what you’re saying. The crew won’t help me. Your men won’t
allow
me to leave. I’m a prisoner on the
Princess
.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

“This is about your safety, Lili. It’s for your own good.”

She gave up all pretense of innocence and told him blankly, “You say I’ll drive you and the crew and your men mad. If I don’t get some time to myself soon,
I
will go mad.”

“Lili...”

She batted his hand away from her cheek and didn’t care if one of the paparazzi got a picture of her doing it. “I mean it, Alex. I have to get off this ship. I need to be somewhere where I can just...be myself.” She pulled out all the stops and pleaded with him outright. “Please. For a day, for at least a few hours.”

“You can be yourself in our stateroom.”

“Yes, but you’re always there with me, being...withdrawn and distant. Reminding me constantly of all the ways we’re never going to have the marriage I want, the marriage I’ve planned for and dreamed of all my life. Don’t you see? Being alone with you in our cabin is just more of what’s driving me out of my mind.”

“You could take one of the other cabins, get yourself some time on your own. No one will think twice about it if you want a little space at this point. For days, we’ve been giving them constant togetherness.”

She shook her head, turned away, folded her hands across her middle and stared out toward where she knew there were islands, even though they were too far off to see them. “You’re just full of helpful solutions, aren’t you?” She laid on the sarcasm.

He moved in closer behind her and replied reasonably, “I
am
trying to help, yes.”

She let out a tired sigh. “Did you notice how you didn’t even make an effort to pretend that you aren’t withdrawn and distant the moment we’re alone?”

“Lili...” He took her shoulders again, his grip gentle. She didn’t resist when he pulled her back against his body—yes, she
should
have resisted. But she was weak when it came to him. Weak and all too willing to gobble down the occasional crumbs of affection he tossed her way. He bent and pressed his lips to her hair. And he whispered, “If you absolutely have to go, I’ll take you.”

Surely she hadn’t heard him right. “Tonight? In the cruiser? Just the two of us?” No, it wasn’t what she’d planned. It was better. If he went with her, alone, that would be a good sign, a hopeful sign that he might actually be willing to let down his guard a little, to open up to her...wouldn’t it?

And even if he didn’t let her get close, well, she could walk off down the beach away from him and sit by herself and stare at the waves rolling in and away and pretend he wasn’t there. Outside in the open, it wouldn’t be as difficult to ignore him as it was on the
Princess
.

He said, “We’ll need to take a couple of my men at least.” There was something in his voice. A banked excitement.

Why, he
wanted
to go. He was feeling stir-crazy, too.

“No,” she said flatly. “Absolutely not. No one else, just you and me.”

“It’s dangerous to go alone. Foolish.”

“Oh, please. If we can get away from the press, no one’s going to know where we are. We can be...invisible. At least for a little while. Oh, Alex. Think about it. What heaven that would be....”

“We are never invisible,” he said grimly. “Especially not recently. Our images are plastered all over every tabloid worldwide.”

“That’s pure self-aggrandizement, to think that people are checking out the scandal sheets on some tiny, barely inhabited island off Croatia, panting for a chance to read about you and me and our never-ending honeymoon aboard the
Princess Royale
.” Reaching up, she laid her hand over his where he clasped her shoulder. She eased her fingers beneath his and almost smiled when he rubbed the underside of her palm with his thumb. She added, more softly, “And I know you have ways, you and your men. They can track us. They can take the helicopter and follow us. They can stay back and out of the way and know exactly where we are and be ready to move in and protect us if necessary—which it will not be, I guarantee you.”

“It’s completely irresponsible.” He pressed his lips to her hair, a caress that felt almost unconscious. As though he’d been playing the part of devoted lover for so long it was becoming real to him. Her spirits lifted at the thought.

She said, “But you
will
do it, you will go with me and your men can keep an eye on us from a distance.”

“I can’t believe I’m agreeing to this....”

“Just say it. Say yes.”

“Do I have a choice?”

“Say it, Alex.”

He hesitated. And then he surrendered. “All right.”

She allowed herself a tiny smile of triumph and squeezed his hand. “Don’t sound so grim about it. This is going to be fun.”

* * *

Alex knew he must be losing what was left of his mind.

He should have told her no, they absolutely could not go speeding off across the Adriatic to some semideserted Croatian island in the day cruiser. It wasn’t wise. Wasn’t safe.

But he hadn’t told her no, because he wanted to get away from all the artifice and pretense just as much as she did.

Besides, he knew her. If he didn’t go with her, she would find a way to go by herself—or at the very least cause him no end of trouble trying. For a female he’d always believed to be silly and superficial, Liliana was turning out to be much too clever and resourceful for his peace of mind.

He suggested that now their getaway wasn’t a big secret anymore, they could leave the next morning.

Lili insisted it must be that night—at midnight. “Because midnight is the witching hour,” she replied when he made the mistake of asking her why. “Midnight is...magic. And we need a little magic, Alex, you and me.”

At that point he reminded himself that she had no understandable reason for half the things she did anyway. Her insistence on leaving at midnight was only more of the same.

He gave orders to have the
Lady Jane
well provisioned and re-inspected for seaworthiness. He made very certain it was understood that preparations should be accomplished discreetly, with the rest of the
Princess’s
crew and staff kept unaware of their preparations. He also gave specific orders for each piece of safety equipment that must be stowed aboard: the flares, the smoke signal device, the distress light, the large bell with clapper, the paper maps, the extra drinking water, the fire extinguisher, the air horn and most especially the best in emergency flotation devices, including life rings, an inflatable raft and vests.

No, he did not explain to Lili the various preparations he had ordered. She would only mock him and call him paranoid and overly controlling. He already knew he was both of those things. He didn’t need to hear it again from her.

He instructed Lili to dress for walking, in layers. She could wear her bathing suit beneath her clothing if she wished, but she was to wear practical, water-friendly flat-soled shoes and sturdy lightweight trousers. Her shirt should be cotton and she would need a zip-up sweatshirt or canvas jacket with hood. The night winds would be cool. “Also, a canvas or straw hat would be good against the sun. And plenty of sunscreen. And a change of underwear.”

Lili laughed. “What about weapons? Should I bring my harpoon? It’s good for catching whales
and
for self-protection.”

He granted her a glance of endless patience. “I want you to be comfortable. We won’t return until dark tomorrow. But you won’t have Pilar and I don’t want you trying to drag along half your wardrobe.”

“As a matter of fact, I wasn’t planning to bring anything more than what you’ve just told me to bring. So there.” She actually stuck out her tongue at him.

“Lili, will you ever grow up?”

“I
am
grown up. I’m a married woman with a child on the way.” She patted her still-flat stomach for emphasis.

The gesture gave him pause. “How are you feeling?”

“I am perfectly fine, thank you.”

“When you speak of the child, you remind me how downright foolish this whole escapade really is. Reconsider, won’t you? Give it up.”

“No.”

“It’s mad.”

She put her soft fingers against his lips. “Stop. Please. Let’s not go over all of this again. We’re going. It’s settled.”

He wanted to grab her close and kiss her senseless. He wanted...a lot of things he was never going to have.

He took her slim fingers and guided them away from his mouth. “All right,” he said, resigned.

“Don’t be dreary, Alex. This is going to be fabulous.”

* * *

It was ten of midnight and Lili had butterflies of excitement in her stomach as they boarded the
Lady Jane
. At last, she and Alex would have a little time to themselves out in the open, like regular people. She planned to savor every moment of their secret getaway.

The cruiser was docked in the hold portside, concealed behind a hydraulic door, so no special precautions against detection by the paparazzi were required to get on the boat. Even so, both Alex and Lili wore black hooded coveralls over their beach clothes. Once out on open water, all in black, wearing their hoods, they would be harder for the ever-watchful press people to identify.

In the cockpit, Alex lifted the cushion on one of the benches to reveal the storage space beneath. Inside were orange life jackets. He handed her one and got one for himself. They put them on.

“Go below,” he commanded, gesturing toward the small cabin as he took the helm.

She dropped to the forward-facing seat next to him, put up her hood and tossed her canvas hat and backpack through the opening that led to where he’d told her to go. “I’m letting you drive,” she cheerfully informed him. “Be happy with that.”

He sent her one of his dark looks, but at least he stopped telling her what to do. Instead, he got on the radio and gave the order to have the hull door lifted and the platform beneath the
Lady Jane
lowered to the water.

In no time, they were on their way, sliding free of the platform and onto the softly rolling night-black waves. Alex had the cruiser’s engine going low and slow at first. They parted from the
Princess
like a lover slipping away in the night, sliding slowly eastward, the darkly gleaming waves lapping the hull of the cruiser so gently that the sound to Lili’s ears seemed caressing. Tender. As though the sea itself welcomed them on their midnight adventure.

To draw no attention to their departure, the helicopter with two of Alex’s best men in it wouldn’t take off after them until later, when they were in sight of their island destination. Alex was constantly in contact with his men, so it really wasn’t necessary for the men to be right on top of them.

It was a clear night, with only the faintest breeze to ruffle the surface of the sea. The moon was no more than a pale sliver in the starry sky. Once they were out of sight of the
Princess,
the night seemed very dark, the sea an endless expanse of shifting black. The sky above was silent. There were no other boats in sight.

She glanced toward Alex at the wheel. He seemed to feel her look. He turned to her. Beneath the shadows of his hood, she saw his white teeth flash.

Alex. Smiling. It was a good sign. A very good sign. She congratulated herself for planning this getaway.

As the
Lady Jane
picked up speed, Lili let the wind push back her hood and tipped her head up to the dark sky. Her long hair streamed out behind her and she felt happier than she had in months.

But then Alex said, “Listen. Do you hear it?”

She didn’t. Nothing but the wind rushing by, the rising growl of the engine and the churning of the water as the boat sliced through it. She opened her mouth to say no.

And then she did hear it. “Another boat...” It was coming from behind them.

Alex eased the throttle higher. The
Lady Jane
roared and the wind blew her hair out like a banner behind her. He shouted, “Go below.”

No way. She turned to stare back in the direction they had come and pretended not to hear him. That was when she saw the other boat, saw the glow of its lights. It was hard to tell the size of it, way back there, in the distance.

But it seemed to be getting larger, didn’t it? Gaining on them...

“Hold on tight,” Alex shouted. She grabbed the bar above the twin glove compartments in front of her as the
Lady Jane
went even faster, sending plumes of sea spray rising, dousing the cockpit, getting Lili right in the face, plastering her hair to her cheeks, down her back.

She laughed. The salty water felt good, cool and bracing.

Faster. And faster still. Alex let the powerful engine all the way out. They had to be going the full forty-five knots by then. Lili held on tight and dared to turn her head to look astern.

“It’s still there, still after us!” she shouted.

Alex said nothing. His drenched hood had blown back. Water droplets gleamed like jewels in his close-cropped hair and in the light from the instrument panel his wet face was set, determined—and also somehow gleeful. He was having a very good time.

And suddenly, she was glad. Gloriously, deliriously glad. For the first time since that morning in April when he’d carried her to his bed, he was fully present, fully engaged.

Truly alive.

It was something.

It was everything.

It was...a start. At long last.

“Don’t let go of that bar,” he commanded. “Promise me.”

“I promise.” She laughed out loud.

And he turned the wheel to port, veering away from their original course. The sea spray rose up and broke over her again.

She held on, tight and sure, as she had promised him, as he led the boat that followed them on a merry chase, turning this way and then that way, the powerful engine roaring, the spray like high, white wings to either side of them. It was wonderful, thrilling. Wet and fierce and very fast. Lili loved every splendid, scary, heart-pounding, breath-stealing second of it.