Royal Secrets (32 page)

Her heartbeat quickened, and she moved toward him. “Are you all done for the night?”

He nodded, and Alora noticed the line of tension on his brow. “There’s nothing more we can do for now.”

“I gather the initial reaction isn’t good,” she said cautiously.

“We’re seeing mixed reviews. It actually isn’t as bad as we expected.”

“Then what’s wrong?” Alora asked. “You look upset.”

He let out a sigh. “I just found out that one of my old classmates may have been involved with the bombing. And it appears that he was responsible for the death of a young woman.”

“I’m so sorry. Were you close to either of them?”

Stefano shook his head. “I’d only met the woman a few times, and Jacques was always more of a rival than a friend. Still, I never thought him capable of something like this.”

“Jacques?” Alora repeated, an uneasiness coming over her.

“Jacques Neuville,” Stefano elaborated.

Her eyebrows drew together. “I met him a few days ago.”

He took a step back. “Where?”

“In your office at the chateau. I was working there after you came to the palace. Martino brought him in and said Jacques had asked to see me.”

“What did he want?”

“I don’t know.” Alora shrugged. “He asked to see me privately. When I refused to send Martino away, he decided to leave.”

“That’s odd.”

“I thought so. I don’t even know how he knew who I was.”

“He could have seen some newspaper articles from when we attended the exhibit together, but I don’t know why he would have asked to speak with you.”

“I know it’s been a long day for you, but do you think you might want to go for a walk? Brenna is watching the children for a little while.”

Stefano slipped his hand into hers. “I can’t think of a more perfect way to end the day.”

A slow smile crossed her face. “I’m glad you think so.”

Chapter 41

“Looks like you’re in the spotlight again.” Marta dropped the newspaper on Stefano’s desk.

“Me?” Stefano looked down at the image in the center of the page. A photographer had snapped a picture of him returning from church the day before. In it, he and Alora were linked with the boys, all four of them holding hands and looking very much like a unit. The caption asked the question,
Has Prince Stefano found an instant family?
A small smile lighted his face as he looked up at his mother. “Well, this is definitely not what I expected on today’s front page.”

“Your father was quite pleased about it.” She took a seat across from her son. “Alora and her children seem to have caught the interest of the media and, in so doing, have succeeded in taking some of the attention away from your brother.”

Stefano considered the implications of this, both the fact that his relationship with Alora was giving the press something to balance the stories on Garrett and his concern that she would now be dogged by the paparazzi. “I think it would be wise to assign guards to Alora for the foreseeable future. She’s not accustomed to dealing with the press.”

“That would be a good idea.”

“I’m surprised the press didn’t key in on her religion.”

“There were a couple comments in various articles about how she had attended church with you and your brother, but it appears that no one has managed to confirm that she is the same religion as Garrett and Janessa.”

“That’s probably a good thing right now.”

Marta shifted closer so she too could see the newspaper now spread out on Stefano’s desk. “You know, this really is a nice picture.”

“Mmm hmm,” Stefano murmured in agreement, his attention still on the article.

“Alora’s children seem to be very fond of you.”

Stefano looked up at his mother now. He recognized the look on her face, the same one she always had when she was digging for information. “Mother, are you prying?”

“Absolutely,” Marta said with humor in her voice. “Tell me everything.”

Stefano shook his head. “I don’t know that there’s much to tell.”

“You can do better than that,” Marta insisted with a delighted laugh. “It’s obvious that you’re taken with this girl, and I’d have to be blind not to see the way she looks at you.”

A ripple of excitement pulsed through him. “How does she look at me?”

She gave him a knowing smile. “Like a woman in love.”

His eyebrows lifted. “I think you’re getting ahead of yourself, Mother.”

“I’m not so sure,” she said and then moved to stand. “I will tell you that I like her. I think she is a very bright young woman, a wonderful mother, and she carries herself with a great deal of class.”

Stefano smiled fully. “I’m glad you approve.”

“And when the day comes that you decide she is the one you want, I would be honored if you gave her the engagement ring your father gave to me.”

Stefano’s jaw dropped at her assumption. Then he managed to grasp at the one fact he wanted most to forget. “Mother, even if I do someday marry, your ring should pass down through Garrett and Janessa’s children since I can never have any of my own.”

“Nonsense. Alora’s boys will be as much your children as you are mine. Take your mother’s word on that.” Then with a definitive nod, she turned and sailed out of the room.

* * *

King Eduard took his seat at the head of the conference table in the library. He watched his two sons pull out chairs for Janessa and Alora and considered for the first time that his family might finally be complete. If his wife was right, Stefano had found his bride-to-be even if he didn’t recognize the fact yet.

He had thought that Stefano’s obvious fascination with Alora was a passing fancy, one that had been born from his weeks in close proximity to her at the chateau. After seeing them together several times the past few days, and especially after seeing Stefano with Alora’s children, he was starting to trust Marta’s instincts.

When Stefano had asked for this family meeting to start at nine so he and Alora could put her children to bed first, any lingering doubts had vanished. Whether Stefano realized it or not, he was already thinking of Alora as part of the family and, in his subtle way, expected the rest of them to include her as well.

As soon as everyone had taken their seats, he asked, “Where do we stand?”

“We have confirmed that Caspar Gazsi has left the country,” Janessa began. “Apparently he drove to Monaco last night. From there, he’s believed to have flown to Libya.”

“His sudden departure would make it seem that he was involved and realized that we might be on to him,” Garrett offered.

Eduard nodded, considering. “Has the CIA come up with any information on that bank account in the Caymans?”

“Not yet. They did an initial report, but it didn’t reveal anything that Alora hadn’t already told us about,” Janessa said. “There is one thing that concerns me though.”

“What’s that?”

“No one seems to be able to find any links between Jacques Neuville and Luigi Ovalle. They didn’t have any common acquaintances that we can find, and there aren’t any financial links between them.”

“Jacques definitely knew Caspar Gazsi though,” Stefano reminded her. “Maybe Gazsi is the link. Or perhaps they were all members of Liberté.”

“Maybe,” Janessa conceded. “Jacques Neuville wasn’t identified as being part of the dissident group, but I suppose it’s possible he was able to hide his association with them.”

“Were the police able to get anything out of Jacques or Luigi?” King Eduard asked.

“Luigi still isn’t talking,” Garrett offered. “As for Jacques, he adamantly denies any involvement. He insists he’s being framed.”

“Is it possible that he’s telling the truth?” Stefano asked.

“It’s doubtful.” Garrett offered his brother a sympathetic look. “Assuming the oil rights are the motivation behind everything that’s going on, Jacques would have just as much to gain as Caspar Gazsi if the restrictions on offshore drilling were lifted.”

“When the police questioned him about why he came to see Alora, he admitted that he was looking for a story to sell to the tabloids.” Stefano shook his head. “I don’t know why he would admit to that and deny everything else. Seems like he would deny everything if he were guilty. Also, the police said Belinda Parnelli’s body had been moved.”

“We already suspected that,” Garrett said. “With where her body was hidden, she definitely would have been killed somewhere else first.”

King Eduard interrupted the speculation and addressed Janessa. “Is it possible that we have identified everyone involved, or does the CIA believe a threat still exists?”

“The Agency is skeptically optimistic,” Janessa told him. “Since the bombing already occurred, and we’ve been able to find the financial backers, it’s possible the threat is over. Of course, that is assuming their plan was to blame Prince Elam for the bombing and then release potentially damaging information on both Garrett and Stefano to try to topple the monarchy.”

Eduard noticed her hesitation. “But?”

“I don’t know. I just think the naval base was an odd choice for a target.” Janessa shifted forward in her chair, and her eyes met his. “Logically, they would have tried to come after you so there would be no one left to rule.”

“Maybe they did,” Stefano suggested. “If my car accident was caused by someone running me off the road, maybe I wasn’t the one they were after. With the tinted windows, it could have been any of us inside.”

“Yes, but the bombing occurred after that.” Janessa shook her head. “Maybe I’m being paranoid, but I’d feel a lot safer if we keep the extra security details for everyone until we’re sure this is all behind us.”

Eduard nodded. “I’ll make sure of it.”

Chapter 42

Alora settled a foot on the bottom plank of the split-rail fence surrounding the riding ring. Unlike the stables at the chateau that Paolo ran practically by himself, the palace stables had an abundance of stable hands. Currently, two of them were in the ring, one instructing Giancarlo and the other working with Dante. Another was in a larger ring working one of the horses through a series of jumps.

She glanced at the palace in front of her and could almost feel the whirl of activity and tension emanating from within. Today was the day. The legislative council session would begin within a matter of hours. Security guards buzzed everywhere as cars were prepared to transport King Eduard and Stefano to the council chambers, while the paparazzi, with their zoom lenses, crowded the front gate.

The past several mornings, she had been surprised to find as many stories about her and Stefano in the papers as there were about Garrett’s baptism. Yesterday’s highlight had been a photograph of Stefano taking her hand when he’d walked with her out to the gardens the day before. Today a photograph of her sitting by the pool watching her children play took center stage, the caption reading simply,
A new royal family in the making?

She wished she could say she was unaffected by the headlines, but since seeing the photo of her family walking into the palace with Stefano, her confusion about her future with Stefano continued to mount. At times she found herself dreaming of a future together, of having a man in her life who was kind and caring, a man who already treated her children as though he loved them as his own. Then her doubts would creep in, always circling back to the fact that they didn’t share the same religion.

Her prayers continued to confuse her, especially late at night when she found herself trying to figure out what she really wanted as well as what Heavenly Father wanted for her. She was already afraid that they wouldn’t be the same thing. Deep down, she already knew where her dreams were taking her, and all of them included Stefano.

What would it be like, she wondered, if a future developed between them? How would it affect her children to have a father who was royal but not Mormon? What about any future children they might have together?

She thought of the headlines about Garrett; after three days, the speculation about the impact of his baptism was not more political than religious. Would Stefano allow her to raise their children as Latter-day Saints, or would the politics of Meridia make those decisions for them?

Her heart ached at the knowledge that Stefano’s first responsibility would always be to his country, that his position could very well prevent them from moving forward as a couple. When she saw him crossing the wide lawn toward the stables, she tried to push aside her doubts. For now, she needed to be a friend to him, to give him support at this stressful time. Next week she could take the time to consider what would come next.

“Are you leaving already?”

“In a few minutes.” Stefano lifted a hand to wave at the boys as they circled the ring. “I was hoping you might come with me.”

“Come with you?” Alora repeated.

He nodded. “I just thought that if you’re going to make Meridia your home, you might want to see how our government operates.”

“I would like that.” She glanced down at the jeans and button-up shirt she was wearing. “How soon are you leaving? I need to change.”

“You have about a half hour.” Stefano motioned to the palace. “Go ahead. Brenna will be out here in a few minutes. I’ll keep an eye on the boys until she gets here.”

“Thanks.” Alora reached up to give him a kiss and then stopped suddenly. They were standing here in broad daylight with her children and several stable hands nearby as well as the paparazzi lingering around the corner. She dropped back on her heels, suddenly self-conscious. The casual kiss she had intended would have been too familiar, too much like the way she would have acted with Carlo.

Before she could take a step back, Stefano put his hand on her arm and held her in place. Awareness lit his eyes, and he hesitated for only a split second before he leaned down and kissed her cheek. “I’ll meet you in the front hall in a few minutes.”

Alora nodded, her eyes darting to where her boys were still riding. They didn’t seem to notice that Stefano had kissed her, or if they did, they didn’t seem to care. A bit flustered, Alora started across the lawn. She had taken several steps before she realized she needed to tell the boys where she was going. As though reading her mind, Stefano nodded toward the boys as she turned around. “Don’t worry. I’ll let them know what’s going on.”