She bit her lip and nodded. He reached out his hand and she wrapped her fingers around his. Something that had been wound tight inside her loosened and she drew in a clear breath for the first time in weeks.
Soon they were in his luxurious car and away from the palace. He glanced at her. “Where would you like to go?”
“I’d like to see your home.” It would be easier to talk when he didn’t have to concentrate on the road. And she was interested to see the home he’d built outside the palace walls.
Although Angelina was a self-professed romantic and would like to declare her happily-ever-after at this moment, she knew they weren’t quite there yet. She’d admitted her love for Rico, but he had yet to tell her the same.
“It’s not much to look at,” he said, but he took the right turn toward the city. “I haven’t had time to devote to anything but the basics.”
She shifted in her seat so she could see him better. “You mean you’ve been busy building a business and rescuing princesses?”
“Something like that.”
They rode in silence for a few minutes. This car smelled like Rico, spicy and masculine. “I meant what I said the other day,” she told him when she couldn’t hold it in any longer. “I admire the life you’ve built. Often I feel as if I haven’t even begun to live yet. I haven’t built anything for myself.”
“You’re wrong,” he said. “Princess Angelina is not an accident of birth. You have become a gracious, passionate woman. You could have become arrogant and entitled like Phillip or Viktor. You could have turned to partying, to drugs or alcohol like so many young people who have too much. Your life is what you have made it, Angie. And that’s just one of the many reasons I love you.”
Angelina’s breath caught.
He loved her.
“I was afraid I’d never hear you say that.”
They’d reached the city and when they stopped at an intersection, Rico looked at her. “I love you,
amore
. I’m sorry I was so hard-headed. It’s not easy to ignore the way you’ve seen the world for all your life.”
“You know none of that matters to me, right? The so-called station into which we are born? Yes, it plays a part in the people we become, but just because we didn’t grow up the same doesn’t mean we can’t build a future together.”
“I know that now. I can’t imagine my life without you in it.” He let out a quick bark of laughter. “Actually, I can. I’ve been living it for the past few weeks and may I say, they were the worst weeks of my life.”
She brushed her fingers over his on the wheel. “Mine too.” Rico grasped her hand and lifted it to his lips. She no longer felt restless or claustrophobic. Instead, wrapped around her was an amazing sense of belonging.
Inside this small car with Rico, the walls were no longer closing in on her. They’d been blown away. The future was now wide open before her.
Soon they were standing in front of the tall building that housed Santori Security. When she’d been there before, Angelina hadn’t noticed the three stories, the warm stone walls, the bright blue shutters. The building faced the wide, busy boulevard and was surrounded by shops and restaurants. It was bigger and busier than Tuscora, but she loved the feeling of being a part of Mezzano and its people, instead of being secluded away behind palace walls.
Rico took her hand. “Come.” A lift took them smoothly and quickly to the second floor. The door opened directly into a large, bright living area. She exclaimed in delight as they stepped inside.
“The previous owner knocked down walls and opened up the space,” he told her.
“I love it,” she said.
He turned her into his arms and kissed her, softly at first, but then the heat built and the kiss deepened until they were both breathing heavily. Rico leaned back, his arms still around her and lifted a brow. “I can’t believe you blocked me.” The edge of his mouth quirked slightly.
She fought a smile. “I needed time to think.”
He tugged her closer. “So have you had enough time?”
She nodded.
“Good.” He dropped to one knee and Angelina covered her parted lips with trembling fingers. “This ring has never felt right on my hand since you gave it back to me.” He tugged it off his finger and held it up for her to see. “Lovely Angelina. You are my soul mate. The love of my life. Will you marry me?”
Happy tears welled in her eyes as he repeated the words he’d said to her on the hillside above Tuscora. This time, instead of a sunrise, a brilliant sunset shone through the bank of windows behind Rico. “Yes, Rico. I love you so much. I will marry you and together we’ll find a way to build a life together.”
Rico slipped the ring on her finger and got to his feet. “If you prefer a more traditional engagement ring, we can get one. I know how you like to shop.”
She clutched the ring to her chest, right over her heart. “I love this ring. I love the way it feels on my hand.” She kissed him hard. “But we probably should get it sized. I was always afraid I was going to lose it like Rosa did.”
He showed her around the rest of the space, the large updated kitchen which opened into a dining area with a long table and chairs similar to the ones in the apartment in Tuscora. The huge master bedroom with a steam shower in the ensuite bath. A smaller bedroom and another bath completed the apartment.
“Can you be happy living here?” he asked. “I know it’s not what you’re used to.”
“It’s perfect,” she replied. A home outside the palace walls. A place where she could breathe. A man she could love. “We don’t need any more space. At least not now.” She glanced at the beautiful kitchen with the lovely appliances she had no idea how to use. “I’m going to have to ask your mother to teach me how to cook.”
“She’ll love that.”
“What are your plans for the third floor?” she asked.
“It’s empty now but I think it may be the perfect space for someone who wants to start their own wedding planning business.”
Her heart was overflowing. “Who told you about that? Wait. Mia, right?”
“She may have mentioned it.”
Angelina walked into Rico’s arms. What would he say if she asked him to bend her over that sturdy table in the dining area? She smiled. She’d find out soon enough.
“I never thought I could be so happy,” she told him. “I finally know how I want to spend my life. With you, Rico. The man I trust with my body and my heart. My bodyguard.”
If you enjoyed Her Royal Bodyguard, book #2 in the Her Royal Romance series, please consider leaving a review at your favorite site.
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Read on for a peek at Her Royal Masquerade, book #1, available now, and Her Royal Mistake, book #3, coming soon.
Her Royal Romance book #1
Time is running out for Prince Vittorio. His father’s health is failing and he must find a royal bride. Fast. He’s never forgotten his glimpse of a beautiful Scandinavian princess and lures her to his Mediterranean country with an invitation to his father’s birthday ball. He’d planned to propose a marriage agreement as cold as her icy reputation, but then he discovers she's as colorful and warm as a summer sunset. The heat between them flares red-hot and when she allows him to seduce her, Vittorio sees his future unfolding just as he had planned. But what he doesn’t know is that the woman in his bed is not a princess at all.
The last thing schoolteacher Mia Holmberg expects when she masquerades as her royal cousin is to be swept off her feet by a charming prince. The incredible night in Vittorio’s arms is like a fairy tale come true, but she’d never want the life of a real princess, with all its pomp and politics. Knowing they can never have a future together, she slips out of his bed and back to reality, where she belongs.
But Vittorio discovers the deception and kidnaps Mia back to his palace, demanding she be his mistress until the real princess appears. Despite her attempts to stay aloof, Mia soon learns there’s more to the prince than arrogance and attitude, but now she’s in danger of falling in love with a man she can never have.
Available now
Her Royal Mistake
Her Royal Romance book #3
Princess Birgitte is feeling sorry for herself when she attends the wedding of her cousin to a man who was briefly her fiancé. After years of not letting anyone get too close, the ice princess realizes she’s all alone, with no one she can love or trust. That night, she hooks up with one of the groom’s cousins, a handsome hot-blooded olive farmer, so unlike any man she’s been with before. They share a night of incredible sex, but she can’t handle the unexpected emotions that come along with it. So Birgitte does was she does best, runs and hides from her mistakes. But two months later, she can’t run or hide from the fact that she’s pregnant.
Leonardo Gullotti’s mother may be sister to the king, but his life revolves around the family’s olive business. Nardo is haunted by the lovely Birgitte, but he’s not impressed with anyone who would run away from their problems. He’s always been a stand and deal with it kind of guy. So when Birgitte comes to him with her news, he proposes on the spot, even though he knows that marrying the future queen will threaten his participation in the family business he loves.
Birgitte knows her baby needs to be legitimate, but will only agree to a marriage of convenience. She doesn’t want any messy emotions involved. But living with Nardo, and not loving him, might be the biggest mistake of all.
Natasha Moore fell in love with the written word as soon as she could read. As she grew up, she discovered romance and now enjoys the chance to add some extra heat to her stories. She writes sexy contemporary and erotic romance because she believes that stories of love and hope are important, and that there’s nothing better than a happy ending. She lives in New York State with her real life hero who is happy to tell everyone that he’s her inspiration.
Also from Natasha Moore
Nothing to Fear
The Ride of Her Life
Taste of Honey (in Seasons of Seduction IV)
Quinn’s Curse
Lia’s Warrior
The Passion-Minded Professor
Sunrise (in Jewels of the Nile II)
Bad to the Bone (in Secrets Vol 24)
Smoke and Mirrors
Up to No Good (in Secrets Vol 25)
Dark Angel
Chains of Desire
The Better to Eat You With
Bound by Design
See Me
Flaunt It – Paolo’s Playhouse #1
Risk It – Paolo’s Playhouse #2
Birthday Girl – Paolo’s Playhouse #3
Plaything – Paolo’s Playhouse #4
Silken Canvas
Voluptuous
Her Royal Masquerade