The Silver Eyed Prince (Highest Royal Coven of Europe) (30 page)

“Are guys you coming to class?” Chad peeked from the classroom door down the hall, his eyes darting to her. “Elizabeth? What's wrong?” He started to walk towards them.

“Chad, I'm sorry.” She met him halfway. “It's my fault you got into a fight. You warned me, but I didn't listen.”

“Hey—, what's this about?” He placed his hands on her shoulders and lowered his head to peer at her.

“Are you okay?” Lela asked. “We're sorry to have to break it to you this way, but we were worried about you.”

“But even if everybody hates you, we're still your friends,” Carlos said.

“Thank you.” Elizabeth bit her lip to keep it from trembling. “I-I think I'll skip class and go home. I just don't feel like—oh, shit!” She squeezed her eyes and slapped her forehead. “I don't have a car! Great!”

“Tell you what—,” Ben said, “why don't we all skip class, hang out at your house and watch silly movies while I do your nails? Will that make you feel better?”

“I'll drive,” Chad said. “I have room enough for everyone.”

“What do you say, Elizabeth?” Lela asked.

She nodded.

“Cool!” Carlos said. “Let's go before Dr. Jeff catc
hes us!”

Lady Catherine and the Duke
of Northern Peninsula

       At the quaint hotel not far from Darian Hall, Catherine parked her rental car in one of the spaces. She couldn’t concentrate in class, too shaken and angry at what she had witnessed in school, so she left early. Her suspicion had been confirmed. The Prince dumped her for a Tainted girl. Of all the insults, he could inflict on her! Had he gone mad? Couldn't he see the uproar his little liaison had caused? What sort of perversion drove him to have an affair with a girl far beneath his class?

Her eyes narrowed. She saw the way he looked at her. It may take years before William's attention could be diverted. She couldn't wait that long.
Wouldn't!
The only way to control this situation would be to get rid of the girl before he became too enamored of her. She must be assassinated and disposed of
quickly
.

Catherine got out of her car and crossed the dark, deserted parking lot towards the entrance. As she passed a cluster of spruce trees that grew along the perimeter, a sudden movement caught her eye. She stopped. A tall figure emerged from the shadows. “He
llo Catherine,” a familiar voice from long ago drawled.

Catherine stared as he strolled towards her in that lazy gait she knew too well. The moonlight cast a si
lhouette on his features. She drew a deep breath, her keen eyes observing him. He was as handsome as ever, his dark honey-colored hair cut to perfection, his impeccable suit hugging broad shoulders and a trim waist. She couldn't take her eyes off him.

He paused in front of her, standing mere inches away. So close, she found herself mesmerized by those striking dark eyes she once thought irresistible, assaulted by his masculine scent that never failed to elicit her deepest desires. Her attention drifted to his mouth, that sultry, enticing mouth that used to explore ev
ery inch of her—.

She licked her lips.

John feasted his eyes on the woman before him. She was more beautiful than he remembered. Her hair, eyes and skin glowed under the soft light of the moon, ma
king him want to touch her, hold her, and make her his again.

He had pictured their reunion in so many different ways, had imagined her reaction—, even practiced the words he wanted to say. But he never expected this. Never predicted the way passion flared between them as if it had been covertly smoldering over the years. Never did he anticipate the fire he saw in her eyes, nor the burning need he felt that threatened to consume him.

His gaze slid to her mouth as she ran her tongue across her lips. Without a word, he took her in his arms and possessed her mouth in a hungry, feverish kiss. “What number?” he whispered in a ragged breath between kisses.

“Twenty one,” she dropped the key in his coat pocket.

He picked her up and strode towards the hotel.

Catherine thought she was dreaming. She rubbed her eyes and blinked, as the gray streak of dawn filtered between the curtains. She had never rested this well b
efore, at least not for the past fifty or so years, when she was still with ... her lip curved into a tender smile. She swiveled her head to find him lying next to her, his eyes closed in peaceful repose. He looked so fine and virile, his face devoid of the harshness the last time she saw him. A great wave of guilt washed over her.

She recalled the events of that time in her life, when all that ma
ttered was status and pedigree. When she was too inexperienced to recognize love in its true form, too gullible to let her mother manipulate her entire existence.

Her gaze traveled over the fla
wless features of the man in her bed. How could she let her mother convince her to hurt this beautiful, gentle man who loved her with all his heart? Her life could've been so different from what it is now. Visions of a beautiful estate and dark-haired children with onyx eyes playing in the garden, flashed before her.

She reached out and touched his cheek. He had di
sappeared from her life fifty years ago, after that fateful encounter at the Royal Ball in Europe. She rendered him the most unimaginable injury one could inflict on anyone who loved her as much as he did. Public rejection. She embarrassed him beyond belief. She, of all people, whom he trusted as his best friend and true love.

A dull ache rose in her chest. Remnants of the past began to resu
rface.

There had been rumors that he abandoned his post as one of King Tristan's advisors after he accomp
anied the Monarch to visit his friend in England, the King of the Highest Royal Coven of Europe at that time, King Edmund Royce XII.

More disturbingly, it was reported that he commi
tted treason against the Hierarchy. He allegedly perpetrated the abduction of Queen Elizabeth Gwendolyn XV, wife of King Edmund. Since then, no one had seen or heard from either of them. He had become the most elusive, most wanted fugitive in history.

Why had he reappeared now?

Trepidation crept like a warning whisper. Her heart started to pound. She knew the implications of being discovered with him. No matter how beautiful of a past they'd shared, too much time had gone by and too many unsavory events had occurred that plagued her with questions. He no longer was the man she used to know.

Carefully, she slipped off the covers and stretched to get her robe.

“Going somewhere?” His hand closed around her wrist.

She gasped, startled, but quickly gathered herself. “Why are you here, John?”

“I heard you were in town.” He put an arm under his head and pushed down the sheets to expose his bare chest. “I dropped by for a visit.”

“Tell me the truth.” She narrowed her eyes. “What are you doing here? How did you know I was here?”

“I have my sources.” He pulled her to him. “They said the Prince had ... how shall I say it—,” his eyes locked with hers, “shifted his affections?”

Catherine felt the blood drain from her face. She couldn't believe the news had traveled so fast. Her mot
her would surely hear about it and both of them would be humiliated once it was discovered that Prince William had discarded her in favor of some Tainted girl. “Are you here to rub it in my face?” She sat upright. “So you could get back at me for what happened between us?”

“Not at all. I came because I missed you.” He trailed a finger along her arm. “And you can't deny that you've missed me too.”

Catherine snatched her arm away. “If you're angling for a reconciliation, it's not going to happen. I have no intentions of being involved with a—with—”

“Someone like me?” His face hardened. “I see you're still blinded by status and ambition.”

“Is that what you came here for? To hurl your bitterness and wound me? What happened to you, John? Why did you destroy your life?”

John stared at her questioning eyes and heaved a long sigh. She would never understand his reasons, nor would he trust her with his plans. Too much had happened between them and her loyalty no longer belonged to him. It hurt like hell. “I'm not the one who destroyed my life, Catherine.”

Her expression changed as she realized his mea
ning. “I ... you can't blame me for—”

“You left me!” he accused her with all the pain he kept inside for years. “I loved you—, and you left me for no reason. I didn't know what to do. I was a mess—”

“Oh, John . . .” She circled her arms around him. “I'm so sorry. Forgive me.”

He grabbed her shoulders and searched her face. “Tell me you left because your mother forced you, Cat
herine. I need to hear that you loved me, but you had no choice. Tell me!”

Her eyes glittered with unshed tears. “Mother locked me away under guard. I couldn't do anything!”

“I came back for you many times. She told me you refused to see me.”

“That's a lie! She said you'd fo
rgotten about me.”

“How could you believe that?” He shook her. “We were engaged, Cath
erine! You were going to tell her and then you suddenly disappeared! I was worried and determined to see you, but each time, she turned me away at the door. I told her everything—, that we were going to get married, you were going to be my Duchess and live with me in Australia!” He pushed himself up and leaned back against the headboard, recalling the last time he set foot in that wretched mansion in Denmark.

“Your mother laughed in my face,” he said with raw anger in his voice. “She said I wasn't acceptable and accused me of seducing you to elevate my family's ped
igree. Then, she told me you’d come to your senses and had decided to break off our engagement.” He clenched his jaw, trying his best to keep his fury at bay. “Was she telling the truth?”

She looked stricken and he knew. “Why didn't you fight for us, Catherine?” He masked the unbearable so
rrow that flooded his heart.

“I-I wasn't aware that you came to see me. Mother said you moved on and found someone else. She told me it was for the better. I was confused and I thought you simply gave up, so I did the same.”

He was speechless for a moment. “I never came back after that.” He gazed blankly into space, suddenly feeling weary, and then turned to look at her. “Until now.”

Catherine felt his torment and her heart clenched. “Why, John?” she asked in a strained voice. “What do you want from me?”

He took her hand and kissed her palm. “You, Cat
herine. I want you back. Come with me, stay with me.”

Catherine squeezed her eyes. Her heart and mind were at war and she didn't know which one to follow. Half of her wanted to be with him and half wanted to run away.

“Please, Catherine.” He held her hand against his cheek, “I can't lose you again. Say you'll come with me.”

Her chest constricted. This proud, intelligent, po
werful Duke, whom she never stopped loving was begging her favor. She wanted so badly to give in and follow her heart, but then, what sort of future awaited them? What if the Royal Army caught up with them? They would burn them at the stake and if they had children, they would be persecuted.

Catherine gasped at the grim reality of their life t
ogether. It would be an existence of constant secrecy and isolation, forever ensconced in the dark fringes of society where no one would recognize them. They would be shunned. She would never see her family and friends again.

She bit back the tears that threatened to fall. “I'm sorry, John, but I can't.”

He stared at her with that terrible pained expression that made her heart break. “Yes, you can, Catherine. Stand up for me, for us—, for once.”

“No,” She managed to choke out, pulling her hand away.

He sat there for a long time, merely looking at her. “Why?” he finally asked in a strangled voice. “Don't I have a place in your heart anymore?”

Her chest felt like it had imploded and scattered i
nto several pieces. She turned her head, unable to lay her eyes on him, hating herself for the hurt she was about to mete out for the second time. “There's no future for us, John.” Hot tears slid down her cheeks.

“What do you mean?” He cupped her face in his hands and gazed into her eyes. “I'm extremely wealthy. We can have anything—, everything you ever dreamed of.”

She shook her head. “Everything, except freedom.”

“So what?” He shrugged. “We have each other! We could do whatever we want. We can get married, start a fa
mily—”

“And then what?” Catherine cried. “Keep our chi
ldren in hiding? What are we going to tell them when they grow up? That they can't see their cousins, aunts and uncles, or have friends, or even go to school, because Mom and Dad are wanted by the European Royal Army?”

“We'll deal with that when the time comes.” He searched her face. “Please, Catherine ... don't you want to be with me?”