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The plunge was a little further than she’d expected, and the shock of the cold water on her skin pushed the air from her lungs as it closed around her. It only took a few seconds to push to the surface and break out into the warm sun. She was laughing and coughing and spluttering all at once.
She slicked her wet hair back from her face as Alex surfaced next to her, shaking his head and showering her with droplets of water.
‘This is getting to be a habit,’ he said as he swam next to her and put his hands around her waist underwater.
The cold water was doing nothing to dampen their desire and she wound her hands around his neck again as they trod water.
‘It is, isn’t it? Maybe you and I shouldn’t be around water.’ She laughed.
‘What should we be around?’ he asked as the waves buoyed them up.
‘I don’t know. Pink palaces, Eiffel Towers, fireworks and yellow dresses.’ She could see the twinkle in his eye as she said those last words.
‘Come on,’ he gestured towards her. ‘Let’s swim around the boat. It might be best if we have some water between us.’
Her hand touched his arm as they separated in the water.
They laughed and swam around the boat, occasionally stopping next to each other as Alex told her a little more about his country.
‘The caves down there were traditionally used by pirates.’
There were two dark caves carved into the bottom of the cliffs on the rocky shoreline. Her body had grown accustomed to the temperature of the water but she still gave a shudder.
‘No way. Fairytales. Made-up stories.’
He lifted his hand out of the water. ‘You forget—this is a land with a pink palace. You think we didn’t have pirates?’
‘When you put it like that it doesn’t seem quite so crazy.’
‘I’ll show you some of the things in the castle vaults. I think my ancestors might have been in league with the pirates. Either that or they just kept everything once they’d captured the pirates.’
‘Are you allowed to do that?’
He shrugged his shoulders as they continued to swim around the boat. ‘We have some old doubloons, some jewellery and some weapons. The assumption is that they are Spanish, but the Spaniards didn’t want them back when they were offered a few hundred years ago. There isn’t enough to be of any real value—we’ve kept them safe because of the historical importance.’
She kept swimming. ‘I’m going to add that to my list of conditions from earlier—a visit to the pirate caves.’ She winked, ‘I might even ask you to dress up.’
As they rounded the hull of the yacht another boat came into view. It was not quite as big as Alex’s, but equally sleek in white and silver.
Alex sighed. ‘Let’s get back on board.’
‘Do you know who owns that boat?’
He stroked out towards the diving platform. ‘It’s Randall Merr and his wife. They can be unbearable. I’ll tell the crew to head back to port.’
Randall Merr. A billionaire with houses all over the world—including in Euronia.
Part of her stomach twisted. Maybe Alex didn’t want to introduce her to his friends? Maybe he was embarrassed by her?
She put her head in the water and struck out towards the platform. Alex reached it first and turned round to help her out of the water, offering her a towel and her sarong.
The electricity between them seemed to have dissipated. All of a sudden she felt very exposed—and it wasn’t because she was wearing only swimwear. The magic bubble that she’d felt earlier around her and Alex had vanished in the blink of an eye.
‘Ruby, what’s wrong?’
He was picking up the other towels and the sunscreen from around them.
She started up the steps. ‘Nothing’s wrong. I’m going to put some clothes on.’ She hated that tiny waver in her voice.
He caught her arm. ‘Ruby, tell me what’s wrong. Are you angry with me?’
The words that were spinning around in her brain tumbled out of her mouth unchecked. Nothing she would ever really want him to hear.
‘Why would I be angry with you, Alex? You tell me it’s up to me to decide how this goes—then as soon as we see someone you know you try and bundle me away. As if I’m some kind of employee you can’t be seen with. Which, when you think about it, I really am—aren’t I?’
His brow crumpled and confusion swept over his face. He shook his head and tightened his grip on her arm, pulling her hard against him. She was above him, on the first step of the stairs. Their faces were perfectly level.
‘You think I want to hide you? After everything I’ve said?’
His nose was almost touching hers and his eyes were blazing. She’d angered him.
But instead of being intimidated she just felt another fire spark within her. ‘Well, that’s what it looks like.’
His lips connected with hers. His hands jerked her hipbones against his. This was no delicate kiss. This was no teasing, no playing with her. This was pure and utter passion.
His hands moved from her hips and his fingers tangled in her hair, tugging her head one way then another. His teeth clashed with hers and his tongue drove its way into her mouth. She could hardly breathe. He was devouring her.
He finally released her just as the white boat passed directly behind the yacht. It was so close the yacht bobbed wildly in its wake.
‘There,’ he growled, without even turning around. ‘Randall Merr and his wife got a prime-time view. If you didn’t want anyone to know about us it’s too late. That woman practically has a satellite connection to the world’s press.’
She gulped. Was that really what she wanted?
Truth was, she hadn’t answered Alex because she was unsure.
She wasn’t unsure about him. Not for a second. But she was definitely unsure about his world.
How could she possibly ever fit in to his lifestyle? She was already sure that some of the staff didn’t like her and suspected something might be in the air between them.
She wanted the Alex she’d met ten years ago in Paris. The gor
geous, slightly mysterious man with a bit of an accent.
But that wasn’t Alex at all. This was Alex. The acting ruler of one country and potentially the temporary head of another. The father of a young daughter. The son of a sick man. A businessman with the financial responsibility for all the inhabitants of his country.
Her Alex had only really ever existed in her head.
And whilst the living, breathing Alex in front of her was sexier than she could ever have dreamed of, she was still wondering if this was all a figment of her imagination.
After ten years he’d come looking for her.
After ten years he’d told her he’d let her decide the pace.
She was finding it hard to believe it. These were the kind of dreams she’d had ten years ago and never told anyone about.
Alex de Castellane had spent his life surrounded by supermodels and movie stars. They all flocked to his country—a tax haven. They all wanted to be seen with him, to be photographed with him.
And Alex, Prince Regent, was charming. He knew how to show interest and talk to people as if they were the only ones in the room. There was something enigmatic about him. And for most people it would be easy to get lost in his world.
But Ruby was different. Ruby wasn’t looking for a fairytale.
Maybe the Alex she’d always imagined was just a figment of her imagination. Maybe he’d never really existed.
The man she’d spent a few hours with that night had been excited about life. Had had plans for the future. He’d offered to show her around Paris and she had gladly accepted.
Accepted the chance to spend a few more hours in his company. Accepted the chance to be the focus of his attention for a few more hours.
Would she have accepted any of it if she’d known his real identity?
Most of the world would have screamed yes. Most of the world would have claimed it was every girl’s dream to be a princess. But most of the world wasn’t Ruby Wetherspoon.
