His Majesty's Temporary Bride. Annie West

who, according to his mother, was warm-hearted despite her frosty demeanour, kept the conversation rolling. They’d skated over the tragic deaths of King Michel and Queen Irini to discuss Alex’s mother’s health, upcoming celebrations, trade talks, the economy, the weather and even his yachting holiday.

      His query about young Prince Sébastien, now an orphan, was met with the news he was staying with family friends away from prying eyes. The news surprised Alex who’d assumed, like everyone else, that the boy was being cared for here by his aunt. All reports indicated the two were close, had been close even before the tragic accident that killed the boy’s parents.

      Alex picked up tension in the room, camouflaged by the polite small talk. Tension because he was here, sooner than expected? Or because of something else?

      The fact Princess Amelie... Cat clearly had no intention of mentioning they’d met already intrigued him. Why hide something so innocuous?

      Unless the sudden blaze of attraction between them made her uncomfortable. Something did.

      Beside Enide, Cat sat silently cutting her meal into ever smaller portions. It was only occasionally he managed to catch her eye.

      What had happened to the confident, fascinating woman he’d met in the bay? She hadn’t been daunted by an emergency situation or the sudden lightning strike of desire hammering the air between them. Instead of shrinking away, she’d returned his regard with clear interest.

      Now, on the rare occasions their eyes met, she inevitably looked away first. She seemed in some way diminished, despite how beautiful she looked in a pale green silk dress that rustled provocatively when she moved.

      Those soft sounds as she shifted interfered with his concentration. Alex kept remembering her sleek curves in the black bikini, tempting him through the light cover of his shirt.

      ‘Do you swim often, Amelie?’ He forced himself to use her proper name, sensing she wouldn’t appreciate his use of her nickname here.

      Her head jerked up and her eyes widened. Was that fear in those green depths? Again, she made it obvious she didn’t want Enide to know they’d met. Fascinating.

      At twenty-nine Amelie was a capable woman, soon to be proclaimed Regent for Prince Sébastien till he came of age. Surely there was no reason to hide their unconventional meeting.

      ‘I enjoy swimming but I don’t get a lot of time for it.’

      ‘Perhaps while I’m here you could show me your favourite swimming place.’

      She paused and Enide answered first. ‘The cove immediately below the palace has always been the royal family’s favourite.’ She turned to the younger woman and Alex read a hint of stiffness. ‘Hasn’t it, Amelie?’

      Amelie nodded. ‘Yes, it’s beautiful there.’

      What it was about the exchange that put him on alert, Alex didn’t know. Yet he knew something was wrong. There was a constraint about Cat... Amelie that hadn’t been there before.

      ‘And I see you have an extra-large swimming pool. Which do you prefer, the sea or the pool?’ He was talking idly, trying to fathom what was going on.

      Did he imagine Cat’s flickering gaze towards their chaperone? For it had become clear Lady Enide was just that—keeping a watchful eye on them. Alex didn’t know whether to be amused or annoyed.

      Did the St Gallans think because they’d suggested a royal marriage, he’d take that as carte blanche to scoop Cat up and into his bed before the banns were read? He wasn’t that medieval.

      Yet the idea was ridiculously tempting.

      Despite not wanting a wife.

      ‘I usually do laps, but there’s a freedom about swimming in the sea, don’t you think?’ This time when her gaze met his there was the hint of a smile and response tugged deep in his belly. Whatever this was between them: lust, fascination, the temptation to cut loose after three long years with his nose to the grindstone, it fired his libido like flame to pure alcohol.

      ‘I couldn’t agree more. There’s nothing more invigorating than an early morning dip in the sea.’

      Was it imagination or did something ignite in that clear gaze? Did she too remember how it had been between them—he naked and she as good as with her sopping clothes—as arousal roared into life?

      Alex wanted that again. Wanted it more than he’d wanted anything for years.

      Because he’d denied himself so many things since inheriting the throne? Because his responsibilities didn’t leave time for anything as selfish as uncomplicated sex with a beautiful woman?

      Or because there’d been something about Cat that he’d connected with instantly?

      How long since he’d bantered with a woman, flirted and enjoyed that frisson of sexual desire? He’d been too busy delving into the murky morass of his father’s financial affairs, the contracts given to friends and those offering backhanders. His father had run the country as if it were his personal piggy bank to be plundered. Alex had spent three years turning the tide, avoiding national bankruptcy by the skin of his teeth and slowly clawing back control of the national finances from his father’s grasping cronies.

      Now, on vacation for the first time in years, he was ready for a little dalliance. The problem was he’d set his sights on the woman his mother and all his advisers had pegged for his wife.

      No way would he make a move on Cat... Amelie. Not when it would be construed as a statement of marital intent.

      An affair, on the other hand...

      A mutually enjoyable short-term affair for the length of his stay...

      Lust corkscrewed through his belly as their eyes met and that high-octane blast of awareness reverberated.

      ‘Perhaps we could swim together tomorrow?’ he suggested.

      Cat opened her mouth but Lady Enide spoke swiftly, her tone cool. ‘Unfortunately the Princess will be busy tomorrow.’ Alex stared and, seeing his surprise, Enide hurried on. ‘It’s regrettable, Your Majesty. Unfortunately we weren’t expecting you quite so soon.’

      There was more to it than that. But what? There was something more than officious about the way the older woman hovered over Cat. It reminded him of the anxious way his mother had watched his father when he was in one of his moods. As if preparing to deal with his freak tempers.

      More and more intriguing.

      Cat seemed anything but highly strung. She’d impressed with her calm competence in the water, her self-assurance and capability. Today, though subdued, she’d given no signs of the self-absorption and unsteady ego that had characterised his father.

      ‘Another day, then. I’m here for some time.’ Alex leaned back, watching the ripple of consternation on Enide’s face.

      He sensed a mystery.

      ‘You’re not travelling on and then returning for the festivities?’ Cat spoke, her voice calm yet with a telling husky edge that sharpened his libido. Surprising how arousing it was to sit across a formal dining table from a woman dressed in silk and heels and imagine her in his bed, naked and eager.

      Even the dragon guarding her was a challenge rather than a real obstruction. Alex might be out of practice, but he’d always been successful with women, even before it looked as if he might inherit a throne.

      He just needed to discover if Cat felt the same undertow of desire.

      ‘I’m afraid any plans to sail on to Italy have been put on hold. The yacht has to go into dry dock for repair.’

      George would be surprised, but Alex sensed dragon lady’s unwillingness to have him in the palace and he was determined to find out why. And give her no chance to deny him. The fact she was so obviously on edge at having their guest of honour arrive early set him on alert. Besides, George had talked about the need for work on the yacht one