Princess in Love (19 page)

Rose felt a terrible pang of guilt in her heart. “You didn’t mention me, I hope.”

He shook his head. “No, I promised I wouldn’t. I spoke to him about the peace treaty
issues.… Honestly, if I had not made love to you before I left and felt certain that
you were mine, I might have challenged him to a duel or taken some other drastic measures
to triumph over him. I’m not proud of it, but my jealousy knows no bounds.”

“I don’t mind that you are jealous,” she said with a smile. “I quite like it, actually.”

He pulled her close and kissed her forehead. “There is so much I want to tell you
about the peace talks, but we must save that for later, for we don’t have much time.”

She glanced over her shoulder. “No, I must return to my apartments soon, before anyone
misses me. It wouldn’t do for me to be caught unchaperoned with a handsome gentleman
in the conservatory.”

He smiled. “Of course not. Allow me to get straight to the point, then. Last week
there was an organized hunt at Schönbrunn Palace. I spent some time with Randolph,
and he told me of your broken engagement. I acted surprised of course, then he asked
me quite bluntly if I still had feelings for you.”

Rose drew back in surprise. “You are joking. I didn’t think he knew. I’ve said nothing
to him about you since our meeting in England, but perhaps Nicholas did. They both
remember how I suffered two years ago when everyone thought we were sweethearts, and
then we weren’t. Whatever did you say?”

“I told him I held you in the highest regard and regretted what happened between us.
I even confessed that I was at that time secretly engaged to someone I had never met,
and that is why I was forced to discourage your affections. I explained that it was
over now and I was free. I did imply that I would like to court you again, if he had
no objection.”

“What did he say?” she asked, sitting forward slightly, powerless to curb her impatience.

Leopold smiled. “He did not object, but asked that I wait until he returned from the
Congress to ensure that any new courtship does not overlap with your broken engagement.
He simply asks that we be patient. That is all.”

Overcome with joy, Rose raised his hands to her lips and kissed them. “Oh, Leopold,
I am so happy! But will the waiting never end? It has been so difficult. Sometimes
it feels as if I’ve been waiting forever to be with you.”

He glanced over his shoulder again, listening for intruders, then pressed his lips
to hers, but only for a moment, for they heard voices again, echoing in the corridor
just outside the conservatory.

Rose forced herself to pull away from him when all she wanted to do was hold him forever.

“I must go now,” she said. “When will I see you next?”

“I will contrive a reason to visit the palace again soon. Continue to be patient.
I will send word to you.”

She kissed his hand quickly, and hurried out.

*   *   *

With Christmas approaching, Rose was kept busy with numerous charitable endeavors,
which she helped Alexandra to organize and carry out. They paid visits to the poorhouses
to serve soup and bread to the less fortunate, and they also embarked upon an ambitious
project to engage the help of many aristocratic ladies to knit mittens for a gift-giving
on Christmas Day.

The event was widely publicized in the
Chronicle,
and the news provided an excuse for Leopold to visit the palace again to deliver
a pamphlet about knitting to the queen, which he hoped would be of some use to her.
He managed to get word to Rose the day before. Again, they met in secret in the conservatory.

“When will Randolph come home from Vienna?” he asked as they moved behind a thick,
fragrant rosebush. “I want to court you properly.”

“I want that, too,” she replied, “but I cannot afford to behave improperly. My family’s
reputation is hanging by a thread as it is. Did you read what was printed in the
Chronicle
last week? They said Randolph was consorting with his former fiancée, the Countess
of Ainsley, in Vienna, and it implied that he was unfaithful to Alexandra. I swear,
will it ever end? I am certain it is yet another plot to damage Randolph’s reputation,
headed by the Royalists, no doubt. They are always trying to remind the people that
we were not born into royalty and are therefore unworthy of the crown.”

“I read it,” he confessed, keeping his gaze lowered. “But you mustn’t worry about
that. They are only trying to sell newspapers. Nothing accomplishes that as well as
a good scandal. It will blow over. They always do.” He lifted his gaze again.

She jumped at the sound of the bird chirping from somewhere above. “I am so afraid
we are going to get caught. They will say I was unfaithful to my fiancé, and single-handedly
destroyed Petersbourg’s influence at the peace conference.”

“Do not fret,” Leopold said.

How could she help it? Everything seemed so uncertain with Randolph and Nicholas out
of the country, while the public was throwing roses at their new Tremaine queen. The
Sebastian dynasty seemed somehow less secure.

“Alexandra was terribly vexed by what they printed about Randolph and his former fiancée,”
she said. “I fear she half believes it. You were there in Vienna. Did you witness
anything? Did you see Randolph flirting with the countess?”

Leopold inclined his head. “Are
you
worried there is truth to it?”

“No, of course not. Randolph is in love with Alexandra, but sometimes appearances
can create a whole new reality. Alexandra is trying to ignore it, but she cannot help
but feel very alone. She has left her country behind, and must wait for the spring
for her sisters to arrive. I do my best to assure her that everything is well, but
the press can be so very cruel.”

“There is no need to worry,” he said. “And the press is hardly being cruel to Alexandra.
The people adore their new queen. All her charitable work has not gone unnoticed.
She is incredibly popular. Does she not realize that?”

Rose let out a sigh. “She was pleased about the headlines, but nothing could take
the sting off the news about Randolph and the Countess of Ainsley.”

Leopold kissed both her hands. “Let us not talk any more about sensational newspaper
headlines and fallacious infidelities,” he said. “I’ve missed you, Rose, and I look
forward to Randolph’s return. Everything will be different then, I promise.”

She took his face in her hands and touched her forehead to his, working very hard
to believe it would be so.

Chapter Nineteen

December 19, 1814

Leopold was on his way out the door to meet Rose in secret for a third time at the
palace, when the sound of a coach clattered to a halt in front of the Kaulbach town
house.

He strode to the window in the front parlor, pulled the curtain aside, looked out
and recognized his father’s shiny blue-painted vehicle.

“Bloody hell,” he whispered.

So much for arriving at the palace on time. He wondered how long Rose would be able
to wait, for they had arranged to meet by chance at the mews when he trotted in for
a visit with the queen. Rose would be—coincidentally, of course—returning from an
afternoon ride in the park at that time.

He watched his father alight from the vehicle while the servants scurried about in
a panic, which was quickly subdued when the duke walked up the front steps. By that
time, the butler had already opened the door to greet him.

“Good day,” the duke said as he removed his hat and handed it to Jameson. “You are
surprised to see me, no doubt.”

“Indeed, Your Grace,” Jameson replied. “We did not expect you until Tuesday.”

Leopold stepped into the front hall as well. “Hello, Father. How was your journey?”

They had not spoken since Leopold left Vienna with Randolph’s letters to deliver to
the queen.

Be a comfort to her,
his father had suggested.
She is bound to be lonely with the king so far away and occupied by the peace treaty
negotiations
 …

“It was as fine a journey as one can expect in the deep chill of winter, but I’m home
now. That is the main thing. Where are you off to, boy? I see they brought your horse
around front.”

“I need some air,” Leopold replied, not wanting to reveal his intention to meet Rose.
That must wait until he had Randolph’s formal permission.

“I see,” his father replied. “Well, off with you then. We will catch up at dinner.
In the meantime…” He turned to Jameson. “Do you have the newspapers from the past
fortnight? I wish to see what I’ve been missing here at home. I hear the queen has
been winning the love of the people.”

“Indeed she has, sir. She is a true royal, in every way. Shall I bring the papers
to the library?”

“Please do, Jameson.” The duke climbed the stairs. “Thank God the people are finally
realizing what they have been missing for the past twenty years.”

He disappeared at the top of the stairs, leaving Leopold to speculate uneasily about
his father’s loyalty to the New Regime and his stubborn Royalist beliefs.

At least Leopold was released from his own obligation to marry the Tremaine princess.
It didn’t matter what his father thought. If he did not wish to be a loyal subject,
that was his own grave to dig.

Leopold had other plans—plans that involved a pretty golden-haired princess, who was
waiting for him at the palace stables.

*   *   *

“What a coincidence,” Rose said as she trotted into the stable courtyard and found
Leopold dismounting from his horse.

He bowed to her. “Your Royal Highness…”

“Have you come to see the queen about the Christmas concert?” Rose asked.

She had informed the gatehouse guard that Leopold was expected that afternoon, which
gained him an entrance to the palace, even though no such meeting was scheduled to
take place.

“Yes,” he replied. “Shall we walk together?”

“That would be delightful.”

They each handed over their horses to the grooms and strode out of the stable and
across the gravel courtyard to the side door of the palace.

As soon as they entered, Rose took hold of Leopold’s hand and pulled him fast into
an alcove behind a potted tree fern.

“We have only a few minutes,” she whispered, “so I want to make the most of it.” She
reached into the pocket of her riding habit and withdrew a small leather case which
she handed to him.

“What is it?” he asked, lifting his striking blue eyes to regard her with flirtatious
curiosity.

“Open it and find out.”

She watched his hands as he turned the case over and freed the clasp. Inside he found
a lock of her hair.

He looked at her again with meaningful affection. “I will treasure this, Rose. I have
something for you as well.” He reached into his coat pocket.

“But you have already given me something—the medallion, which I keep with me always.”

“This is something else.” He handed her a small gold box tied in a red ribbon. “You
must wait until Christmas to open it.”

That was going to prove very difficult. “Shouldn’t I open it now while we are together?”

“No, you must wait, but we are very good at that, are we not?”

“We’ve certainly had plenty of practice.”

Slipping the box into a pocket in the folds of her habit, she wrapped her arms around
his neck. “When will you leave for the country?”

He briefly glanced away. “In a few days. My father has just returned from Vienna and
will wish to talk to me about what went on since I left. I expect he will be spending
Christmas at Kaulbach Castle with his mistress, so I will spend Yuletide with my mother
at Cavanaugh Manor.”

Rose ran a finger over his soft lips. “Lady Elise won’t be there, will she?”

He narrowed his gaze. “Are you still worried about her?”

Rose shrugged. “I cannot help myself. I feel certain that every woman in the country
wants to throw herself at you, while I remain unavailable.”

He kissed her on the nose. “I don’t expect she will be there, but it wouldn’t matter
either way. All women are invisible to me, Rose. All women but one.”

He touched his lips to hers, and his kiss was the greatest gift of all.

*   *   *

Though there was much to be happy about, Rose could not forget that it was her first
Christmas since the death of her father.

His passing still lingered like a dark shadow in her heart, and when she attended
mass on Christmas Eve with her brothers and Alexandra, she recalled the many times
her father had held her hand in church when she was a child to prevent her from fidgeting.
What a kind and loving father he had been. The world was a lesser place without him,
and she continued to mourn the loss of him each and every day.

She consoled herself, however, with thoughts of Leopold and their future together.
She was quite certain her father would have approved of the match, for Leopold might
not be the son of an Austrian emperor, but he was a decorated war hero whose skill
on the battlefield helped defeat Napoleon.

On Christmas morning she woke to bright winter sunlight beaming in through the windows.
Outside, the city was cloaked in a thin sheen of glistening ice, and the church bells
were ringing triumphantly.

Her maid brought her a cup of tea. Rose sat up in bed to sip it, but set it aside
as soon as Mary left the room.

Rose slipped her hand under her pillow and found the gold box from Leopold, which
she had placed there the night before.
You must wait until Christmas to open it.
Well, today was Christmas, and even if it wasn’t, she doubted she could have waited
another day, for the suspense was a torture all on its own.

Pulling the ribbon free, she lifted the lid and found a blue velvet bag inside. She
slid her fingers into it and withdrew a stunning diamond and ruby brooch in the shape
of a rose.

With great fascination, she beheld the beautiful piece, but there was a note attached
to it, and the sight of Leopold’s penmanship was just as thrilling as the blinding
sparkle of the jewels.