The Park's Empire: Handsome Strangers...: The Prince's Bride. GINA WILKINS

engaged. He has no fiancée.”

      “But…” Emily floundered. “But he told me he wanted to hire my firm to plan his wedding.”

      “Yes, I know.”

      “So…he doesn’t want me to plan his wedding?” Emily was beyond confused.

      “No, no, he does want you to plan his wedding,” Caroline said quickly. “But he doesn’t have a bride yet.”

      “Yet?”

      Caroline sighed and massaged her temple with her fingertips. “I’m doing a very poor job of explaining this. Since the tabloids have announced it to the world and made it common knowledge, I’m sure you’re aware that it’s Abbar’s dearest wish to see Lazhar married. His health is delicate and he feels a need for haste. Lazhar would move mountains to give his father whatever he wants at this stage, we all would. But in this instance, I think my son is wrong.” Caroline paused to sip from her cup, clearly fortifying herself before continuing. “When he told me a month ago that he meant to schedule the ceremony and choose a bride sometime between then and the wedding date, I was appalled. I told him that a person can’t pick a wife the same way one negotiates a business deal but he wouldn’t listen to me. So—” she spread her hands in a gesture of helpless acceptance “—here we are. Planning the wedding of my eldest child without a bride to make decisions with us.”

      Emily was speechless. Underneath her shock, joy bubbled irrepressibly. He isn’t engaged. He’s not in love with another woman.

      But he will be. The knowledge that he would choose a bride sometime in the next few months deflated the exuberant bubbles.

      “Well,” she said carefully, meeting first Caroline’s, then Jenna’s gaze. “Are you two willing to make decisions that the bride normally makes?”

      “You mean like the color of bridesmaids dresses, how many attendants, etc.?” Jenna asked.

      “Yes, those and others.”

      “Sure,” she said airily. “We three can pick out colors and decide on cake flavors, can’t we, Mom?”

      “Of course,” Caroline agreed.

      “Well, then.” Emily drew a deep breath. “It’s certainly unorthodox and I’ve never planned a wedding without a bride’s input before, but I don’t see why we can’t do it.” A thought occurred to her and she shot a narrow-eyed glance at the queen. “I’m assuming that if Lazhar decides on a wife at the last moment, she won’t be allowed to change all the arrangements at that point?”

      “Absolutely not,” Caroline said firmly. “That would make the entire project impossible.”

      “Then it appears to be doable.”

      “Excellent!” Jenna clapped her hands. “This will be fun—sort of a practice session for the wedding I might have some day.”

      “Do you have a groom in mind?” Caroline’s voice was hopeful.

      “No.”

      “Oh.”

      Emily coughed to hide an amused chuckle. Caroline was the picture of a mother hoping that her daughter would wed; Jenna equally typical of a young woman refusing to be nudged. They may be queen and princess, Emily thought, but they were no different than thousands of other mothers and daughters in this age-old tug-of-war.

      “What did you think of the casino?” Jenna asked, abruptly changing the subject.

      “It was fabulous,” Emily replied. “I loved it.”

      “Did you go anywhere else?” Caroline asked.

      “Lazhar took me to a nightclub called Pilar’s and we watched flamenco dancers. I was fascinated. I’ve never had the opportunity to see flamenco before but after watching the floor show, I definitely plan to find a club in San Francisco where I can see more.”

      The door from the hallway opened and Lazhar strolled into the room.

      “Good morning, Mother.” He bent and kissed Caroline’s cheek, straightening to look at Emily. His gaze flicked over the bare little sundress and he smiled at her. “Good morning, Emily. Sleep well?”

      “Yes, thank you.” Emily refused to acknowledge the sudden race of her heart. He was wearing faded jeans this morning, with a short-sleeved T-shirt tucked into the waistband and polished black cowboy boots on his feet. Gone was the European prince. This Lazhar could have been any American male, dressed for a casual morning at home.

      Except that the watch on his wrist was a Rolex and very few men of Emily’s acquaintances wore faded Levi’s with quite that air of elegance.

      Face it, Emily, she thought. You’re hopelessly hooked on the guy.

      “I’m on my way to the stables and I thought you might want to come with me, Emily, if you’re finished with breakfast.”

      “First she needs to call her office, Lazhar,” Jenna put in. “And she has a list of other places to visit as well. Oh, and we told her,” she added offhandedly. “So you don’t need to worry about letting it slip out.”

      Lazhar eyed his sister quizzically. “Let what slip out? What is it you told her?”

      “About the bride. That you don’t have one.”

      Lazhar’s dark gaze was hooded as he met Emily’s. “Really. You told her.”

      It wasn’t a question. Indeed his tone was so neutral that Emily couldn’t tell if he was pleased that she knew, or that he disapproved of his mother and sister sharing that family secret.

      “I’ve promised not to tell anyone,” she said calmly. “And they’ve assured me that the lack of a bride to help plan the ceremony won’t impact the organizing of the event, since they’ll make the necessary decisions that your fiancée, if you had one, would normally make.”

      He raised an eyebrow, his eyes unreadable as his mouth quirked in a half smile. “Really,” he murmured. “That’s efficient.”

      Unsure what he meant and unable to tell from his expression whether he was pleased or unhappy with their arrangements, Emily was relieved when Jenna glanced at her watch and broke in.

      “Drat. I was due at the stable office ten minutes ago.” She pushed back her chair and stood, rounding the table to drop a kiss on her mother’s cheek. “I’ll see you two there after you’ve made your calls, Emily.”

      And with a quick wave and a cheeky grin, she was gone.

      “I think that’s our cue to head for the media room,” Lazhar said to Emily.

      “Please keep the notebook and pen, Emily,” Caroline said as Emily was about to remove the pages with her notes. “You’ll be making lots more notes today, I’m sure.”

      “Thank you.” Emily rose and left the room, Lazhar right beside her. Neither of them mentioned last night’s kiss, and Emily decided to chalk it up to the combination of champagne and wine they’d both drank.

      She refused to let him shake her composure, regardless of the fact that she was more aware of him than ever.

       Chapter Six

      Emily had forgotten about the time difference between Daniz and San Francisco, and when she dialed her office number, the answering machine picked up. She left a message telling Jane that she’d call back that evening, which equaled morning in California’s time zone, and followed Lazhar outside.

      They left the palace and took a shortcut through a lush garden, exiting through a wrought-iron gate that let them out into a wide, paved lane. Farther down the lane to their left were the stable buildings. Directly across from them stretched a paddock where horses grazed and sprinklers turned lazily