November Harlequin Presents 1(12)

Carrie hid her anxiety as she said goodbye to the young shop assistant, but she was racked by the knowledge that, although she carried Nico’s child, unlike Princess Anastasia she was firmly locked out on the wrong side of the palace walls.

It was while she was walking towards the market that Carrie saw a notice advertising a tour of the old city that took in part of the palace.

If she could get inside…

Even as her spirits soared a wave of nausea swept over her, reminding her to take cover from the sun and buy some water. The heat was relentless and the physical effects of her pregnancy could often steal her strength away like this.

Having bought the water, she drank it down and was just leaving the shop when the footpath across the street erupted into noisy mayhem. A storm of paparazzi appeared out of nowhere and, for a few moments, there was nothing but noise and confusion and flashlights going off.

It was Nico. Carrie held her breath; every part of her body had tensed. She didn’t need to see him to know he was there; she could feel him in every fibre of her being. And now she could see him…At least a head taller than the other men and so commanding that even the scurrying photographers had backed away to snatch their shots from a safe distance…

As if Nico would lash out at them, Carrie thought, angry on his behalf. He was a man, they were boys; what did they know?

The surge of love she felt put her back where she’d always been, stunned by Nico’s presence, by his aura, his physique. Nico Fierezza was one of the most eligible men in the world and he was also one of the most attractive. She didn’t need media photographs to know he had the face of a film star and the body of a bare-knuckled fighter. And Nico had wanted her. Nico had wanted Carrie Evans, a pallid pudding, with nothing more to recommend her than a hundred-words-a-minute typing speed. And now he was the father of her child….

Even as pride swelled inside her Carrie noticed the woman at Nico’s side, the woman he was protecting from the photographers. She was young and very beautiful…Could this be Anastasia?

Carrie couldn’t tear her gaze away from a girl so lovely she was like a princess in a fairy tale. A princess who was everything she was not. Elegant and cool, she had glossy black hair that hung like a curtain down her back, caressing her naked shoulders like a silken cape. Every inch of her was tanned a deep golden brown and her skin was smooth and flawless. Her lips were red and full and, though her eyes were hidden behind the latest designer sunglasses, her teeth were film star perfect as she smiled up at Nico.

Carrie couldn’t see Nico’s expression, but she was sure that he was smiling, too.

Why was she surprised? She had always known Nico would have a beautiful woman by his side. She had always known her one night with him was more than she deserved. It was time for her to accept that when Nico had withdrawn carefully, pulling down her skirt, and settling her on her feet, he had withdrawn from her in every way a man could withdraw from a woman….

She shrank deeper into the shadows as Nico threw a stare her way. Had he sensed her presence?

Taking no chances, Carrie pressed back against the cold stone wall. It was then that she saw the bodyguards tailing Nico and the princess to their car.

Her instincts had saved her this time, but she would have to be more careful in future. Being taken into custody in front of her baby’s father wasn’t quite what she had in mind!





CHAPTER FOUR




CARRIE found she was trembling as Nico and Anastasia drove away. It didn’t matter how many times she told herself there must be a woman in Nico’s life, seeing him with someone was more than she could bear. The blacked-out windows of his high-performance car hinted at intimate spaces and close personal contact. How could he fail to touch the princess as he leaned across? How could the princess fail to be intoxicated by Nico’s cologne, or by his clean, warm scent? Princess Anastasia was beautiful, and Nico…Nico was Nico. How could they resist each other? She had seen the way the princess looked at him.

But it was more than physical contact that she resented, much more. It was the intimacy of shared conversation and getting to know each other that tore at her heart. But she had to face facts. She didn’t stand a chance with Nico, she never had. And if he hadn’t wanted her three months ago he would hardly want her now. And when she told him about the baby…What would he think when he compared the mother of his child to Princess Anastasia?

By the time she had dredged up every negative thought and examined it twice, Carrie was close to tears. But as crying wouldn’t get her anywhere she pulled out her purse and paid the stallholder for a simple summer dress and a pair of plastic flip-flops instead.