By Request Collection Part 3. Robyn Donald

her life in more ways than she’d ever bargained for.

      She needed to stake a claim as her own person lest he subsume her totally. Even now she longed for him to haul her close and forget the so important appointment that called him away. How was that for needy?

      ‘Surely it’s the right thing to do?’ She worked to keep a cajoling note from her voice. ‘It’s only polite to visit now I’ve accepted my inheritance.’

      Raul’s lowering brows told her he didn’t see it that way. The sight of tension in his jaw sent dangerous excitement zigzagging through her. As if she felt pleasure knowing she got under his skin, even in such a way as this.

      Surely she wasn’t that desperate for his attention?

      ‘The timing’s not ideal, but you’re right. A visit makes sense. Leave it with me.’

      Why did Luisa feel as if she’d lost the argument when he nodded, turned and strode out of the room, his mind obviously occupied with matters of business?

      She hadn’t expected him to kiss her, had she?

      ‘This way, Your Highness.’ The chamberlain ushered Luisa into her grandfather’s study. She’d left it to last on her tour of the Ardissian royal palace.

      She pictured the old man here, seated at the massive desk awash with opulent gilt scrollwork. Even in his towering rages he hadn’t deigned to rise. Always he’d remembered his position as prince and hers as unsatisfactory, low-born grandchild.

      Her teeth clenched as she recalled his poisonous words. Not merely his diatribe on her incompetence and ingratitude but his slashing vitriol at her parents.

      ‘Thank you.’ She nodded to the chamberlain, smiling despite his haughty rigidity. ‘That’s all.’

      As he withdrew she considered the portraits lining the walls. Ancestors with remote expressions stared down their noses at her. She lifted her head, surveying the portrait of the man who’d cut off his daughter and his granddaughter when they wouldn’t kowtow to his domineering ways.

      ‘The last laugh’s on you, Grandad. The farmer’s daughter is Princess, soon to be Queen.’

      Yet there was no pleasure in the shallow triumph. She hadn’t come to gloat, but to see if she could put the past behind her and move on.

      She wrapped her arms around herself, suppressing a shiver. Despite her determination to accept her lot, to dress the part and learn protocol and all the other things they foisted on her, Luisa couldn’t imagine the future.

      What would it hold?

      Endless, empty years of public receptions and meaningless small talk? Breathtaking moments of delight when Raul treated her to mind-blowing sex? Heat curled inside at the memory of his loving.

      Would she hang onto those moments, desperate for the little Raul could give her when she wanted so much more?

      Would her life be sterile of friends and family?

      If she had children, how could she protect them from the world that had produced a monster like her grandfather? And Raul had turned into a man of such emotional reserve she wondered if she’d ever build a relationship with him.

      She paced to the window, seeking the warmth of the sun streaming in on the luxurious carpet.

      Only the best for the Ardissian prince! She’d seen the rundown sections of the city and the bare amenities provided for the palace servants when she’d insisted on seeing all the premises. Her grandfather had spent money on his own comfort rather than his people.

      Movement caught her eye. A group of young people made their way across the courtyard. On impulse Luisa opened the window. Laughter, bubbling and fresh, washed around her before they entered a door on the far side of the yard.

      Wherever they were going, it appealed more than this place. She closed the window and headed for the door.

      Raul drummed his fingers on the car seat as the limo purred towards the Ardissian palace. He lifted a hand to the people lining the street.

      He was eager for a break after this intense week. He’d planned to come days ago, but political developments had made it impossible. Now he could please himself.

      It pleased him to see his wife.

      Five days she’d been away. It seemed far longer. His bed felt empty. His days regimented and predictable, despite the political crisis they’d averted.

      Life seemed … less without Luisa.

      His lips flattened as he thought of the day she’d announced she’d come here. He’d only just dragged himself from the temptation of her. He’d reeled from an ecstasy unlike any he’d known. And from the unique sense of peace that came from sharing the story of his past.

      Was it simply that he’d needed to unburden himself after years keeping it to himself? He couldn’t shake the suspicion that the sensations of release and relief had more to do with the fact it was Luisa he shared with.

      Only the most urgent crisis had forced him away, still stunned by the unprecedented sense of peace and pleasure he’d found with her.

      And she’d sat there, her sweet mouth a taut line, demanding occupation. Demanding more.

       Clearly he hadn’t been enough to satisfy her!

      Male pride smarted from the fact she’d been unaffected by what had passed between them, while it had knocked him completely off balance. It had been on the tip of his tongue to beg her not to leave.

      Because he needed her! Not just sexually.

      He couldn’t remember feeling this way about a woman. Even Ana, at the height of her appeal, hadn’t invaded his thoughts like this.

      Raul smoothed his hand over the seat. At night he found himself reaching for Luisa. He felt bereft when she wasn’t there.

      Worse was his gut-deep sense of culpability. As the limo pulled up before her ancestral palace, her words came back to haunt him. How desperate she’d been for work to occupy her. Yet another reminder that, despite his attempts to help her adjust, this wasn’t the life she’d chosen.

      It was the life he’d demanded so he could inherit.

      Yes, Maritz needed a strong monarch to see it through difficult times and, with the support of a democratic government, steer it clear of civil war.

      But wasn’t it also true he’d needed to be king? The monarchy had been his salvation as well as his burden as he’d worked to drag himself and his country out of the pit his father’s hasty marriage had plunged them into.

      And for that he’d bullied Luisa into his world.

      He’d wanted to believe she’d find a fulfilling life by his side. These last weeks he’d seen glimpses of a woman who could make the role of consort her own and make a huge difference to his people, even if her way was not the traditional one.

      Could she be happy here?

      If he’d thought she’d be eager, waiting at the grand staircase to greet him, he was mistaken. Instead it was Lukas, whom he’d sent to support Luisa.

      ‘Your Highness, welcome. And congratulations on the results of your recent negotiations.’

      Raul smiled, allowing himself to enjoy anew a sense of relief. ‘Thank you, Lukas. Hopefully it will mean peace at last.’ He looked around but still no sign of Luisa.

      ‘Her Highness planned to be here. She’s delayed but shouldn’t be long.’ As he spoke he turned, walking with Raul inside the palace.

      It was as grand and gloomy as Raul remembered.

      He shuddered at the thought of Luisa here, a trusting, innocent teenager, at the mercy of the venomous old man who’d treated her and her mother so appallingly.

      ‘Sorry?’