Authors: Maureen Child
“How—”
“I’m opening a branch of King Security right here in Cadria. We’ll be the European division.”
“Garrett—” She shook her head sadly. “You’re not used to this kind of life. I’m followed by reporters and photographers. We wouldn’t be able to just buy a house in town and move in. We would have to live here in a wing of the palace. You’d hate that, you know you would.”
He laughed shortly. “First off, you forget. I’m one of the Kings of California. We’ve got paparazzi following us all the damn time looking for a story. I’m used to life in a fishbowl. It’s not always pretty, but if you want to badly enough, you can carve out a private life.”
“But—”
“And it doesn’t matter where we live, Alex,” he said, “as long as we’re together.” He gave a glance around the wide hallway, with its priceless art hanging on the walls and the gleam of marble shining up at them. “I could learn to love the palace.”
She laughed, and God, it sounded like music to him.
“I’ll miss good Thai food at one in the morning, but if the craving gets bad, I’ll have Griffin send me some on a King Jet.”
“Oh, Garrett,” she said on a chuckle.
“It’ll work, Princess,” he said quickly, giving her a quick kiss as if to seal a promise. “We’ll blend our lives and build one together that will suit both of us.”
Alex’s breath caught in her chest. Everything she had ever dreamed of was right here, in front of her. All she had to do was reach out and take it. Returning the package he had sent her hadn’t been easy, but she’d hoped that he would come to her, repeating family history. Now, here he was and Alex was half afraid to believe in it.
“I love you, Alex,” he said softly. “Marry me. Love me back.”
She sighed and lifted both arms to wrap them around his neck. “I do love you, Garrett King.”
“Thank God,” he said on a laugh, dropping his forehead to hers. “When you returned the necklace…”
“It was a necklace?”
“I brought it with me.” He dipped one hand into his pocket and pulled out a flat, dark green jeweler’s box.
Alex took it, opened the lid and sighed with pleasure.
“It’s a seagull,” he told her unnecessarily. “I had it made to remind you of the ocean. Of all the time we spent at the beach.”
Tears stung her eyes as she lifted the beautifully crafted piece free of the box. She turned and lifted her hair so that he could put it around her neck and when it was lying against the base of her throat, she touched it and whispered, “I love it, Garrett, though I don’t need a reminder. I’ll never forget a moment of my time with you.”
She had everything she had ever dreamed of, right there in her arms. Garrett King was looking at her with more love than she could have imagined possible. She felt the truth of it in his touch. Saw it plainly in his beautiful eyes that were no longer shadowed with old pain. Her heart felt full and yet…
“I’m still a princess, Garrett,” she warned. “That won’t change, ever. There will still be the chance of danger surrounding me and my family. It will still drive you crazy.”
“Yeah,” he said solemnly. “I know. But I’ll be here to make sure you’re safe. All of you.” A small smile crooked one corner of his mouth. “King Security can be the palace’s personal protection detail.
“Marry me, Alex. Together, you and I can do anything.”
“I know we can,” she said and went up on her toes to kiss him. “So yes, Garrett, I’ll marry you.”
He grinned and blew out a relieved breath. “Took you long enough.”
Shaking her head, she said, “I can’t believe you told my father I was pregnant.”
“It was the only thing I could come up with on short notice.”
She smiled up at him. “You used to be a much better liar, Mr. King.”
“It’s all in the past, Princess. No more lies. Not between us.”
“Agreed,” she said, a grin she felt might never go away curving her mouth.
“So,” he asked as he leaned in to kiss her, “how do you feel about Disneyland for a honeymoon?”
“I think that sounds perfect.”
Then he kissed her, and the world righted itself again. Alex reveled in the sensation of everything being just as it should be. She gave herself up to the wonder and the joy and wasn’t even aware when her brothers and father burst into the hall to see why things had gotten so suddenly quiet.
And she didn’t see when her mother ushered her men back into the study to allow her daughter time to enjoy the magic of a lifetime.
Harlequin Desire - Feburary 2012 -
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ISBN: 9781459220614
Copyright © 2012 by Maureen Child
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