The Prince's Pregnant Bride(43)

At least he was busy. Editing sessions on Hellcat stretched late into the night and he was already deep in pre-production on the next Dragon Chaser movie.

That meant he wouldn’t have time to read all the blogs and websites his Google Alerts were picking up about Lani’s upcoming coronation. Already he knew exactly what kind of dress she’d be wearing, and the ancient hammered-gold jewelry she’d put on and how her palms would be painted with berry juice and her skin brushed with golden pollen. He didn’t know this because he’d grown up in the palace. He’d learned it all on E! along with everyone else.

An enterprising retailer in Beverly Hills had come out with a line of Rahiian dresses, woven from the rich silk of the island but cut to reveal a bit more gym-toned leg than the originals.

Twice he’d seen Lani paraded before the cameras with a tight smile on her lips. He could imagine his mom behind the scenes, urging her out there and telling her to put on her best face. But he could see past it. Her mouth might be forced into a cheerful grin, but the light in her eyes had dimmed noticeably.

Or did he imagine that? Maybe he just wanted her to be pale and pining since he’d gone. He’d already told them he wouldn’t be there for the coronation. Let them sing Vanu’s praises and exclaim over how AJ would never have made a good king, with his Hollywood decadence and fickle attitudes.

He didn’t want to see Lani, either. Not so soon. He couldn’t guarantee his immunity to her vibrant smile. Just a whiff of her scent might send him into a tailspin. The taste of her was still too fresh on his lips, the pain of leaving her too raw in his heart.

It was for the best though. He wasn’t Vanu and sure as heck didn’t want to play second fiddle to his brother’s memory for the rest of his life. Much better to move on and strike out for new frontiers.

Speaking of which, an old flame of his had left a message on his machine. A Danish beauty who’d had a small part in one of his early movies was back in town for a couple of weeks and wanted to get together. Probably just what he needed to pry his mind off Lani.

He reached for the phone and listened to the bubbly message again. Why not take her to the premiere of the new Spielberg movie that Friday? She was good company. Loved to dance, too. They could have some dinner, then go out to that new club everyone kept raving about.

But something kept his fingers from dialing her number.

He found himself wandering back into the kitchen, where the stack of clippings lay sprawled on the stone counter, that now-famous picture on the top. Lani’s wide eyes, sparkling with what anyone might mistake for happiness, seemed to look right at him, just as they had when the picture was taken.

AJ drew in a deep breath. He’d get over her. Eventually. But until then it wasn’t really fair to take out another girl. He’d only be looking at her and wishing he was with Lani.

Better to wait until time took the edge off a bit. Until he started to forget the soft touch of her fingers on his skin, and the sweet song of her laugh.

Of course, it would help if he could stop thinking about her for five solid minutes.





Lani lay awake in her bedroom, staring at the dark ceiling. Counting imaginary sheep didn’t help. Counting live lizards didn’t help, either. Even the baby seemed restless and unsettled. It was hard to sleep when something was eating at you.

She’d promised herself that she’d never tell anyone the truth about Vanu. That she’d keep up the pretense of a happy marriage and allow her mother-in-law to remember her eldest son as a paragon of virtue.

But something AJ had said made her think it was her silence on the subject that had driven him away. That he thought of her as Vanu’s wife, and that he couldn’t step into his brother’s life and walk in his footsteps.

She hadn’t really made the connection at the time, but lately the thought pestered her night and day: Would he feel differently if he knew that she hated Vanu and was secretly glad he was gone?

Such a blunt declaration would definitely bare the darkness in her soul, even if Vanu had put it there. AJ might despise her for her disloyalty, and if Priia ever found out—which she might, since AJ was not one to mince words—she’d be shocked and deeply hurt, as much by Lani’s betrayal of Vanu as by the idea that her son was not the sweet boy she chose to remember.

Then there was the baby. Vanu’s child. If she told people that Vanu was harsh and cold and unloving, would her child learn this about his or her own father?

Still…if she never told anyone, these thoughts might torment her and keep her awake at night for the rest of her life.

AJ had been gone for nearly a month—twenty-three days, to be precise—and she still ached for him. She hadn’t seen or heard anything of him in all that time, except the secondhand report that he would not be coming to the coronation. But she could remember the feel of his body against hers as if he’d just left the room. Alone at night, she imagined his hot breath on her skin and heard his voice soft in her ear.