Courting His Royal Highness (4 page)

“I don’t know much about her except for her name.”

“And?”

“Chloe.”

“Nice name.”

“That’s what I said.”

“Last name?”

Max shrugged. He stared up at the ceiling.

Eric stared at him incredulously. “You are unbelievable. You must remember who you are. Max, you’re not like other men. You must be more cautious.”

“What am I supposed to do, Eric? Background checks on every woman I want to sleep with?”

Eric nodded. “That would be a start. She might have been a tabloid reporter. Now the whole world will know what she thinks of you in bed.”

“That’s ridiculous. Besides, I’d receive only glowing reviews.” Max grinned.

“As crazy as it sounds, it could happen. Just look at all the rubbish they print about Prince William.”

“I don’t need a lecture,” Max grumbled. He received enough of that from his mother and siblings. Being a prince was exhausting. It was a full-time job just to remember correct protocol. Most of the time he was in trouble—lots of it—for not following the royalty rulebook.

Eric smiled sympathetically. “I’m sorry, Max.”

“Have I told you lately how much I hate being a prince?”

“Yesterday”—Eric glanced at his Rolex watch—“at about this same time.”

“Well, I’ll say it again and again and again. I’d rather be a regular guy.”

“But you aren’t a regular guy.”

Max sighed in defeat. “Yeah, you’re right. I’ve got duties to perform. I’ve obligations.”

“Like marrying and having heirs.”

He grimaced. “That sounds so medieval.” He hated feeling like a horse put to stud. “So, what does my family think of our little plan?” he asked.

“They aren’t happy.”

“Angry I didn’t talk about it with them first?”

“Them, and the Romalia Royal Council.”

Max was not a big fan of the Romalia Royal Council—the designated ruling body of his country. The fifteen-member council advised the royal family on everything. Heck, the council even picked out the shape of soaps in the guest bathrooms at the palace. Max thought the council too controlling and wanted to dissolve the governing body entirely. But doing was not within his power. At least not yet.

Max preferred to live his own life, which was one of the reasons he loved America. The United States was a nation where a man could be true to himself and pursue and achieve his dreams. It was a refreshing change.

Max didn’t really know what his dreams were. He’d never had time to think about what he wanted—his country always came first. He was a prince, and the duties and responsibilities of a prince came before individual dreams and aspirations.

“But they can’t do a thing about it.”

“Well, you did sign a contract with EVE. They are mad as hornets, but they agreed you must fulfill the contract.”

Max grinned. For once he got to choose. It was a thrilling victory.

“They also see a chance to generate some money into Romalia’s economy. You’ll probably be a big hit. American girls will flock to Romalia just to catch a glimpse of the famous prince. Think of all the money they’ll spend.”

“So, they win and I win.”

“Well, we certainly hope you find the girl of your dreams.” Eric pointed at the black appointment book. “Get showered and changed. We have a meeting to get to.”

Max yawned. He jumped off the bed and walked into the bathroom.

“Hurry up.”

“Why did they schedule a meeting on Saturday morning”—Max squeezed out Crest toothpaste onto his bright red toothbrush—“especially after a big bash like last night’s?”

“No idea. I guess they’re in a hurry.”

“I wonder if I’ll ever see her again.”

“Who? The girl from last night?”

“Yeah.”

“Who cares? You had one hot night. You’ll have dozens of women from all over the world to pick from. You’ll soon forget all about this Chloe girl.”

Max started to brush his teeth, staring hard at his reflection. He doubted it. No man could forget Chloe. And why would he want to? She was gorgeous and sexy and warm and feminine. Most of all, she had somehow managed to weasel her way under his skin—which was not an easy thing to do.

Nope. He wasn’t about to forget her. He just wished he had met her before he started his new job. Starting today, he was off limits for the women of the world—except for the fifteen women who would compete for his affection on the reality TV show he’d agreed to star in. But doing the show was his choice, the first choice he had made on his own in years. And it felt good. Damn good.

Chloe was having a bad day. First, her cat vomited all over her new Anne Taylor suit. Then the only two pairs of nylons she owned managed to snag and run. She quickly applied self-tanner, but it turned her skin a horrible shade of orange. She raced to the mall, but Victoria’s Secret declined her credit card when she tried to purchase a new pair of hose. She did manage to come up with enough cash to buy the nylons after digging in the black hole that was her purse. To top it off, she spilled hot tea—blueberry-flavored—on her favorite pink blouse.

Staying up late last night and indulging in a forbidden tryst between the sheets was now affecting her day. She possessed not a drop of concentration. She couldn’t stop thinking about him: the James Bond dead-ringer with the fabulous eyes and flirtatious smile, muscled biceps and amazing hands. Ah, yes, those wonderful fingers that had touched her most secretive places. Max. Lusty, hunky, handsome Max. Last night she’d experienced pure nirvana—that was truly the only way to describe it.

She needed to stop thinking about Max and start thinking about her job. She desperately wanted to give a good impression to the executives at EVE. Okay, so they had already hired her for the position and she had signed a contract, but Chloe knew from experience things seemingly too good to be true often were. This job could open doors she never knew existed. It was her chance to make it big, and she had no intention of screwing it up. She’d do whatever they asked. She’d be whomever they wanted. She was their puppet. Right now, this job was more important to her than breathing.

“Chloe Tanner to see Mr. Carridine and Ms. Lewis.” She flashed the security guard her EVE Network I.D. He returned her smile and waved her in.

“Take the elevator to the sixth floor, Miss Tanner.”

“Thanks,” she said, smiling as she walked past him through the swinging glass doors into the network’s headquarters.

It was an impressive lobby. Skylights decked the ceiling and the walls were made of windows, allowing the California sun to stream in. Palm trees and tropical plants decorated the black-and-white tiled entrance. The centerpiece of the room was a massive waterfall. Chloe felt as though she had just stepped into a tropical forest.

She walked up to the elevators and pressed the UP button. The gold doors, engraved with the network’s name, glided open without a sound. She took a deep breath and stepped inside. The doors shut behind her.

Her heart started to race wildly as the elevator zoomed up to the sixth floor. So much was riding on this job. Her career depended on the show being a success. What had ever possessed her to agree to be hostess of a show shrouded in the utmost secrecy and to sign her life away on a legal binding contract? EVE basically owned her for the next two months. And she had no clue what she had signed on for.

For the first time in a long time, Chloe doubted herself. Perhaps it wasn’t a good idea to jump into the ocean without checking for nets. They might ask her to eat pig intestine or worse, like those poor fools on NBC’s
Fear Factor
. But she didn’t think so.
Courting His Royal Highness
had to be something along the lines of FOX’s hugely popular
Joe Millionaire
from a few years back, or ABC’s
The Bachelor
and
The Bachelorette
. At least that was what she hoped.

The elevator came to a smooth stop, and the doors swept open to the sixth floor.

“Miss Tanner?”

There was no turning back now. The receptionist had seen her.

Chloe forced a smile on her face and strode towards the receptionist. “Yes, I’m Chloe Tanner.”

“Mr. Carridine and Ms. Lewis are waiting for you in the conference room.”

Panic made Chloe’s heart flutter. She looked at her watch, a fashionable pink thing from Target. “I’m not late, am I?”

The girl laughed. “Not at all. They just happen to always be early.” She rose from her desk and offered her hand. “I’m Karen. Welcome to EVE.”

Chloe shook Karen’s perfectly manicured hand. She looked not a day over eighteen, probably a high-school dropout who couldn’t wait to make it big in Hollywood. She most likely thought working at EVE was the first big step into stardom. Chloe had once felt the same way. She’d even worked as a tour guide at Paramount Studios and operated the rides at Universal Studios, but not one agent had signaled her out. It was hard to be discovered.

“You can call me Chloe.”

Karen’s smile was bright and friendly and genuine. “I’m glad to meet EVE’s next big star.”

Chloe blushed. “Oh, I doubt that, but thanks for saying so.”

“Well, these reality television stars are hugely popular. I wouldn’t be surprised if you ended up winning an Oscar someday.”

Chloe laughed. “Now you really are dreaming.”

Karen shrugged one slender shoulder. “It never hurts to dream. And sometimes dreams turn into reality—especially here in L.A.”

Her innocent optimism was refreshing. Chloe hoped Karen’s dreams—whatever they were—would come true.

“Yeah, sometimes dreams do come true.”

Karen grinned. She was rather pretty, with wide green eyes and flaxen hair. She was also incredibly tall—definitely model material. Chloe guessed she’d find an up-to-date portfolio behind the desk, just in case someone important walked through the elevator doors.

She followed a talkative Karen down the hallway covered with glossy posters of favorite EVE programs and shows, paying little attention to what the cheery young girl said. She could only think about the meeting with Mr. Carridine and Ms. Lewis. She had never been so nervous. Her belly butterflies were now swarms of locusts, and she felt sick to her stomach. She hoped she wouldn’t embarrass herself by upchucking all over her new bosses. That would not be a good impression to set the first day of the job.

They paused before Conference Room #1.

“Ready?” Karen asked.

Chloe nodded.

“You’ll do fine. Besides, they’ve already hired you.”

“That doesn’t mean they can’t fire me.”

“Don’t worry. They aren’t going to can you. They like you. I’ve heard good things.”

Chloe wasn’t sure how a receptionist knew so much, but Karen’s comment softened the nerves pinching her stomach.

“You should be a professional cheerleader,” she commented as Karen rapped lightly on the heavy oak door.

Karen flipped a long strand of blonde hair over one shoulder. “I was.”

“I’m not surprised,” Chloe chuckled. Yep, Karen was definitely a half-full type of gal.

Mr. Carridine opened the door. He was a tall, stately man in his early 60s, with salt-and-pepper hair and a dazzling smile. He was an important man at EVE Network, second only to Ms. Lewis.

“Chloe, how nice to see you again.”

It surprised her when he grabbed her hand and brushed a feathery kiss across her knuckles. She didn’t really mind. It was nice to be treated like a lady for once. Some feminists would be outraged by such treatment, but Chloe still appreciated a man who opened the door for her and placed a protective hand on the small of her back.

“I’m looking forward to being part of the EVE team, Mr. Carridine.”

He took her elbow in his palm and steered her inside. The door shut softly behind them. The room was simply decorated in soothing tones of blue and green. A long table lined with twelve green leather chairs highlighted the middle of the room, while a comfy couch hugged one wall. A couple of overstuffed matching chairs took up space in one corner.

“I insist that you call me Lester. Being addressed as Mr. Carridine makes me feel so old.”

A light, feminine chuckle resonated throughout the room. “You are old, Les.”

Chloe turned to face Ms. Antonia Lewis, EVE Network’s charismatic CEO. She was a decade younger than Lester and had been in the biz since the age of four, when she’d starred in a popular television commercial. She had worked her way up the ladder, and now she was one of the few women at the top in the business.

Chloe knew all about Toni Lewis. All of tinseltown knew how the silver-haired woman had managed to single-handedly turn EVE into a profit-generating phenomenon. Cable television had never seen anything like it before. The ratings were through the roof. Women programmed EVE into their TiVo, addicted to the emotional dramas, light-hearted comedies, biographies, fashion shows, talk shows, and soap operas that rivaled
General Hospital
and
The Young and the Restless
in popularity. EVE knew its market niche well and kept creating programs women wanted and loved.

“Welcome, Chloe. Take a seat. The rest of the crew should be joining us shortly.”

“Nice to see you again, Ms. Lewis.” Chloe shook the infamous cable tycoon’s hand before taking a seat directly across the table from the elegantly dressed CEO.

“I insist you call me by my first name. Everyone here calls me Toni, and I like it that way.”

Chloe couldn’t help but return the warm smile. Mr. Carridine and Ms. Lewis seemed so nice that her nervous jitters evaporated. She had only met Antonia for the first time at the Halloween Ball, but she had met Lester briefly before the Halloween gala, when she’d tested for the hostess part on
Courting His Royal Highness
. Both had been brief encounters, hardly giving her a glimpse into his personality at all. Of course, anyone who dressed up as the Scarecrow from
The Wizard of Oz
couldn’t be all that bad.

“Did you enjoy our little party last night?” Antonia asked.

Chloe smoothed a loose tendril of hair behind her ear. She sat stiffly in the chair. She still wanted to look her best despite the casual atmosphere.

“It was wonderful. I had a fabulous time.”