Redeeming A Royal (The Royals of Aldonia Book 3) Read online

  “An agreement?” He heard the disapproval in Alex’s tone.

  “You mean offer her a carte blanche?” Jacob’s tone was studiously free of inflection. But then, he was a professional. It was his job to listen to his prince’s commands without censure or judgment.

  “You want to make the girl your mistress?” Alex asked in disbelief. “The woman you clearly love? You want her to ruin her life by bedding her without offering her anything? What the hell are you thinking?”

  Alex’s words rattled around in Christopher’s head, filling him with disgust.

  But he was a prince. One day to be a king. Wasn’t he supposed to act like this? He’d had plenty of mistresses before. He’d never worried about their reputations or even their feelings before.

  As soon as he thought that however, he was dismissing it.

  Who was he trying to fool? Lucy was nothing like those women. And his feelings for her were unlike anything he’d ever felt before.

  The very idea of using her like that sickened him. He didn’t need Alex’s disapproval to know it had been a stupid thing to say. To think!

  “No,” he admitted in defeat. “I don’t want to do that.”

  The silence was deafening.

  But finally, Alex spoke again.

  “I’ve been in your shoes, Christopher. When I fell in love with Lydia, I hadn’t even told her who I was. I feared we’d never make it. I didn’t think I could give up all of this for her.”

  Christopher turned to look at the brother who had broken the rules, who had gone against the grand plan for his life, and who was happier and more content than Christopher had ever seen him.

  He thought of Harriet, too, who’d threatened to leave the country if she were going to be forced into something she didn’t want.

  And he’d never seen two people more in love than Harriet and Jacob.

  But it was different for him. They didn’t understand.

  “I know it’s harder for you,” Alex continued as though he could read his thoughts. “But Christopher, don’t you see? The love and trust of a good woman only makes you stronger. Only makes you better.”

  “It’s true, Your Highness. You need more than a queen. You need a wife. A partner. An equal. Someone who loves you and who you love. Someone who will make you happy and help you rule your kingdom, not hinder you. True love makes us the best versions of ourselves that we can be. If you let that slip away, you will never be the ruler you can be. You will never know the strength it can give you.”

  Christopher stared at the two men before him.

  Both of them had had their own obstacles to overcome. Both of them had known trials and tribulations on their paths to happiness.

  Yet, could he say that loving Lydia had made Alex’s life worse? He was a doting father. A wealthy earl. He had business holdings and investments all over the world. And Christopher knew that he made no decisions without Lydia’s input.

  And Jacob – Jacob had left behind his world of travel and intrigue, instead turning his sharp mind homewards and taking care of palace security as well as running the home office for the Crown.

  His marriage hadn’t made him unhappy. It hadn’t dulled his wit, or gotten in his way.

  If anything, Harriet kept him on his toes more than any assignment he’d ever had. They were starting a family, and they were happy. Content. At peace with the world and excited for their futures.

  It felt as though scales fell from Christopher’s eyes, and he saw the truth staring him in the face.

  Althea Furberg’s betrayal had made him untrusting, bitter, and closed off.

  His dalliances with his mistresses had made him think of lust and desire as nothing more than a physical need to be taken care of and then forgotten.

  For so long he’d convinced himself that his marriage should be nothing but a political alliance. Another matter for the prince to take care of.

  Something that the man need not concern himself with.

  But he’d been wrong. So wrong. Marrying Lucy – marrying the woman who’d fallen in love with the man and not the crown would only make him happier, stronger, better. A better man and a better king.

  She wouldn’t be the ruination of him. She would be his greatest strength. And loving her didn’t diminish him. It didn’t make him weak, or less than what he should be.

  Having her by his side, as his equal. Sharing all of life’s ups and downs. Nothing would be better. And nothing he ever did would be more important.

  He’d thought that ruling Aldonia would be his greatest legacy. But no. Loving Lucia and having her love him back. That would be the greatest achievement of his life.

  Christopher laughed as he felt an indescribable weight lift from his shoulders.

  For the first time in his life, he felt as though the man and the prince were one. And they both loved Lucia Allenwood more than Christopher had ever thought himself capable of.

  He didn’t need to follow the path that had been laid out for him. He didn’t need to sacrifice his heart and his happiness for his country.

  He just needed her.

  Without another word, he swept from the room. He needed time alone to think. To plan. So focused was Christopher on his future that he paid no attention to Alex and Jacob, and didn’t see the speculative look they shared behind his back.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  To call this evening’s ball extravagant would be a gross understatement.

  Lucy tried to take it all in, but she was completely overwhelmed.

  Jane had put her foot down earlier that day and insisted that Lucy sit still long enough to have her hair done in the most elaborate style she’d ever had.

  The end result was a bit of a headache from far too many pins, but a beautiful hairstyle that would fit in amongst the sophisticated ladies in attendance.

  Every little curl that Jane had affixed atop Lucy’s head was dotted with diamonds. Matching diamonds hung at her throat and ears.

  Her gown had taken an age to get into, thanks to what felt like hundreds of tiny pearl buttons down the back.

  It was an ice-blue silk that dipped scandalously lower than any Lucy had worn before, but the mantua-maker she’d commissioned in London had insisted that it was all the rage in Europe, and looking around the ballroom now, Lucy knew she’d been right to trust the Parisian dressmaker.

  Why, compared to some of the gowns here, Lucy’s was positively modest.

  Though the design was simple enough, the dress ended in a sweeping train and swirled about her matching blue slippers like the waves of the ocean.

  It was a masterpiece. Fit, Lucy thought sadly, for a queen.

  “There you are! I declare it’s impossible to find anyone in this crush.”

  Lucy smiled at Penelope, who looked rather flushed.

  It was warm in the ballroom but hardly warm enough for the bright spots of colour on Penelope’s cheeks.

  Perhaps she was excited about Prince Christopher’s announcement, Lucy thought dully.

  She wondered if he’d even bother asking the lady he chose. Or would he just announce it and expect that whomever she was would happily accept?

  Well, of course she would, Lucy thought crossly. No one but her seemed to have a problem with such things.

  “Are you well?” she asked her cousin now.

  For days she’d been practicing keeping her countenance when her heart was breaking. She hoped by now she could do a good enough job of it.

  Penelope opened her fan and wafted it at her face, sending her dark curls flying.

  She laid one hand at her chest, careful not to crease the pink satin.

  “I am,” Penelope said, her eyes hard. “Why wouldn’t I be? By all accounts, I’m about to receive a proposal from the prince.”

  Lucy’s heart plummeted, and she could only hope that her emotions didn’t show on her face.

  “So, he picked you then?” Lucy asked, and if there was a slight tremble in her voice, she ignored it. Thankfully, so did P
enelope.

  “Not officially, but he and I – well, let’s just say we’ve just had a private meeting that went very well. I do hope it’s not obvious.”

  Lucy thought she’d experienced heartache before now, but nothing could have prepared her for the impact of Penelope’s words.

  “Y-you and he?” She couldn’t even get the words out, but it turned out she didn’t need to.

  Penelope was more than happy to continue smashing Lucy’s heart into a thousand pieces.

  “Oh yes.” Her smile was positively cat-like.

  This was a side to Penelope that Lucy had glimpsed in the past couple of weeks but simply didn’t recognise in her sweet, placid cousin.

  Perhaps Christopher had been right when he’d told Lucy she was naïve in ways of the world. When he’d told her not to underestimate what a woman would do for a crown.

  She couldn’t judge Penelope, of course. Lucy had kissed him, too.

  But she didn’t want his crown. She wanted his heart.

  And clearly it had meant nothing to him. Nothing at all.

  “He told me of his plan to offer you an arrangement,” Penelope continued.

  This time Lucy was nonplussed.

  “What do you mean?” she asked, a pit of dread forming in her stomach.

  “Oh, he hasn’t had a chance to ask you yet? I admit I’m not thrilled at the idea. After all, we are practically sisters, you and I. But he is a royal, after all. And one simply doesn’t argue with Prince Christopher. I only ask that you be discreet, Little Lucy. I know how – ah – well, lively you can be.”

  “Penelope, I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Lucy said, uneasiness giving her tone a bite. “But whatever it is, I’m quite sure I’m not interested.”

  “Oh really?” Penelope laughed as she reached out and clasped Lucy’s arm in a vice-like grip. “You weren’t so uninterested when you were having secret assignations with the prince, were you?”

  Lucy’s stomach plummeted to her toes at Penelope’s hissed words.

  “Wh-what?” she stammered, staring at the cousin she no longer recognised.

  “Oh yes, I know all about that. I don’t know how you got away with it with so many eyes all over the palace, but well done, I suppose, for managing it.”

  Lucy couldn’t speak. Could only stare as Penelope gleefully went on.

  “Don’t worry, darling. I told the prince the same thing I’m telling you. I can keep quiet about it. Whether you accept a carte blanche or not is up to you. I won’t get in the way of whatever sordid plan you’ve been cooking up with the prince. But the wedding and the crown? They are mine.”

  Lucy’s eyes smarted both from the pain in her arm and the pain in her heart.

  She wrenched herself from Penelope’s grip and furiously blinked her tears away.

  “Whatever you think you know,” Lucy sniffed, “Whatever you or the prince are planning, I want nothing to do with it,” she said. “Or with either of you.”

  The tears that had been threatening began to fall then, and Lucy couldn’t do anything to stop them.

  Without another word, she turned and ran from the ballroom, not caring that she might be seen.

  Alice was happy with Lord Travers, with whom she’d come to an understanding. Aunt Ivy was bound to be crowing to her friends about her soon-to-be-princess for a daughter.

  Nobody of any import would notice or care that Lucy was gone.

  She headed straight to the only place she knew nobody would look for her. The place only Christopher knew about.

  And he would be too busy announcing an engagement to look for her.

  An engagement to Penelope, with whom he’d just been – Lucy couldn’t even think of it.

  Nor could she think about what Penelope had said.

  She’d honestly thought she knew the real Christopher. She’d honestly thought him kind and just, intelligent and caring.

  But to think that he’d been holding Penelope the way he’d held her. Making promises to Penelope that he’d refused to make to Lucy.

  And worse still, planning to make her his mistress whilst married to her cousin?

  A sob tore from Lucy’s throat as she finally reached the blessed sanctuary of the secret garden.

  Being here was a painful reminder of what she’d lost. But what was more pain now? Why not add it to the pile?

  Lucy rushed to a bench hidden behind a weeping willow. Sinking to its cold surface, she let her tears flow freely. Nobody was there to see them.

  Tomorrow she would pack her bags and leave Aldonia. She didn’t care if she had to do it alone.

  If Princess Harriet could do it, Lucy certainly could.

  Only, Princess Harriet hadn’t been alone.

  Mr. Lauer had always been there, watching out for her, protecting her. Loving her. And making sure she returned safely.

  Well, no matter.

  The princess had returned because the palace was her home. This was where she belonged.

  Lucy didn’t belong here. She never really had.

  Christopher’s famed self-control had well and truly snapped and flown out the window.

  He remembered joking with Lucy about not beheading people, but he was tempted right now.

  At the thought of Lucy, his heart twisted painfully.

  He could hope that he’d get to her before her scheming, conniving cousin, but he knew that was futile.

  By the time he dealt with the loose-lipped servant who’d listened to his private conversation with Alex and then relayed all of it to that damned girl, the ball was well underway.

  He’d left Jacob to do deal with the snivelling footman. He’d be gone within the hour, Jacob had assured him. And he would never breathe another word about the royal family again, he’d promised ominously.

  The idea of Lucy being gossiped about, being disparaged, and by her own blood, made Christopher sick.

  How could he ever have thought of marrying a woman like Penelope Bonne? She was a devious little madam whose only ambition was for a crown.

  Christopher couldn’t believe that he’d thought he wanted a wife like that.

  If it hadn’t been for Lucy, he’d have tied himself to one such as Lady Penelope for life.

  Lucy had saved him, had made him realise the error of his ways.

  And now she was hurting.

  When Lady Penelope had accosted him in the antechamber of the ballroom, he’d been furious, demanded to know how she’d slipped past his guard.

  It seemed that the lady had done an excellent job of tricking the staff into thinking there was an understanding between them.

  She’d fooled them just like Althea Furberg had.

  Maybe he needed new bloody guards.

  But he hadn’t had time to think overly much on it.

  He’d politely but firmly dismissed the lady.

  Her sudden attempt to kiss him had thrown him. But not as much as her attempts at bribery.

  “I know exactly what you and my little cousin have been up to, Your Highness,” she laughed. “I admit, I didn’t think Little Lucy had it in her. But no matter.”

  Christopher’s fury grew steadily as she reeled off the information he’d shared with his brother in confidence.

  “I’m not as naïve as my cousin, Your Highness,” she continued, her eyes glinting mercilessly. “I know that men have certain desires. And I think we can all come to an arrangement that sees both of us getting what we want.”

  The girl’s audacity shocked him enough to stay momentarily silent.

  “I won’t tell anyone what I know about what you and my cousin have been up to,” she continued. “And when you and I marry, I will be sure to turn a blind eye to your proposed arrangements with Lucia.”

  Even now, Christopher’s blood boiled with the chit’s outrageous blackmail attempts.

  He’d made short work of finding out just where she’d gotten her information and even shorter work of throwing her the hell out.

  But he’d seen th
e scorn and outrage in her dark eyes, and he’d known she would do something to hurt Lucy as some sort of petty revenge.

  Because she sure as hell wasn’t foolish enough to target him.

  She wouldn’t spread her malicious gossip. Of that he had no doubt. The promise to ruin her and bankrupt her family had been enough to ensure that.

  And already he’d sent someone to Lady Bonne to demand that she and her hideous daughter remove themselves from the royal court tomorrow. And not to return until explicitly invited.

  Which they wouldn’t be for a long time.

  Christopher slipped into the ballroom as subtly as he could. His eyes frantically searched the crowd, but there was no tell-tale sign of red hair.

  He looked around again and spotted Lady Bonne and Lady Penelope, the former whispering furiously in her daughter’s ear, the latter looking pale and teary.

  Good.

  They’d gotten his message then.

  He didn’t spare them more than a fleeting glance however, his focus still on trying to find Lucy.

  What had her cousin said? How much damage had she done? And would he be able to undo it?

  Jacob appeared suddenly at his side.

  “She went into the gardens, Your Highness,” he said softly so that only Christopher could hear. “The guards lost sight of her, and she hasn’t yet reappeared in the palace. Should I –”

  “No,” Christopher interrupted, his heart hammering. “I know exactly where she is. I’ll go.”

  “I’ll send some guards to –”

  “No,” he interrupted again. “I’ll go alone. I need to do this alone.”

  Jacob laughed suddenly and unexpectedly.

  “What are you smiling at?” Christopher asked.

  “Well, I hate to say I told you so to a prince,” Jacob drawled. “But I did tell you so.”

  “Shut up, Jacob.”

  “Of course, Your Highness.” He grinned.

  Christopher ignored him and headed for the gardens.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Lucy’s earlier headache from the pins in her hair had only worsened with her crying.

  She painstakingly removed them from her head, letting her hair tumble in disarray down her back.