Some Like It Deadly (19 page)

Her heart twisted for him, but she could understand the need to distance himself.

“But—I can’t make decisions for Barb.” At the mention of his sister, he frowned. “I’ll call her. If she wants—if she wants anything to do with him, I’ll be there. I’ll help her.” Without a second thought for how it might hurt him. God, the man needed a keeper, someone to protect him. “I can’t ask you to quit,” he said suddenly. “I want you to, but—”

She stopped him again with a kiss. “I was already thinking that a change might be necessary. Like I said earlier, I have a pretty specific skillset. Don’t suppose you know anyone who could use someone like me?” Like the women at the shelter—she knew Richard helped some disappear and restart their lives. She could protect them.

“You can interview for the position of my assistant. I lost the last one due to some meddling by a certain jackass royal whose about to have his hourly rate climb exponentially.”

“Really?” Kate cleared her throat. “That sounds very challenging.”

“Quite.” He nodded. “I’m not going to lie to you. The job won’t be easy and will demand travel at least forty percent of the time. Where I go, you go. When I need a file, I need you to pull it up. You have to anticipate last minute changes and I may be calling or texting you at three in the morning to come in because we have to have a brief in front of a judge at eight.”

“That won’t be a problem. I’m used to a tough schedule and travel. Of course, I’ll need to get out of the hospital first.”

“True, you will need plenty of recovery time.” Richard traced the outline of her mouth. “At least a month or more.”

“I believe the recommendation from the physician would concur. I was remarkably lucky, but I should probably not rush it.” Daring to hope, she pressed a kiss to his fingertips. “But I have to ask, do you think we can work well together? Do you have any particularly annoying habits that I might object to? Are you a vegetarian perhaps? Or someone who speaks with their mouth full of food? Do you eat while you dictate your notes? Do you prefer MP3s or in person dictation? What types of confidentiality contracts am I expected to sign? Will I receive any type of additional compensation for the level of disruption in my life? When you have romantic liaisons will you expect me to wait in the other room on the off chance of a three a.m. emergency?”

“We work exquisitely well together, and the only annoying habits I have are that I have been called impossible on more than one occasion.” Heat kindled in his eyes and the last of the shadows drifted away. He shifted, and pulled a prescription bottle out of his pocket. “The only time I talk when my mouth is full is when I’m devouring you.”

Electricity tingled through her. “I do recall the experience...on more than one occasion.”

He thumbed open the top and poured two pills out into her palm. It was
her
prescription. “And you know about how I dictate my notes and where—and when. But what about you?” Rising, he crossed the room to the kitchen and returned a scant moment later with a bottle of water. “Do you have a boyfriend or significant other that will object to my calls at three a.m.?”

After swallowing both and washing them down with a drink, she said. “There’s only one man in my life that may object, and since he’s the one offering me the job, he’ll know exactly where I am at three a.m.”

“Naked and in my bed,” came the very firm order. But she didn’t mind it, because that was exactly where she wanted to be.

“Richard? Do you think you can forgive me?”

“I already have.” He pressed his lips to hers in a soft, very chaste kiss that still managed to curl her toes. “I love you, Kate. Everything else we can figure out—and Armand is sending us to the Mediterranean. I hope you like Florence and yachts and very expensive vacations.”

Delight curled through her. “Oh?”

“Oh yes, you need to recover and I need you.”

Her cell phone buzzed where she’d left it on the table and she grimaced at her mother’s name appearing on the caller ID. “I don’t suppose you could run interference with my mother?” In all likelihood, Shirley Braddock had turned the hospital upside down when she’d realized Kate left.

“Running interference is what I do best.” Richard grinned and picked up her phone.

“No, it’s not,” she told him, but he’d already answered and he raised his eyebrows in silent inquiry. She mouthed the words “you love me.”

“Hello, Mrs. Braddock, Kate’s fine. She’s at my house and I’ll get her back to the hospital immediately,” Richard said, his smile growing. “Yes, this is Richard Prentiss, the man who loves her.”

Epilogue

Richard held his chin up while Kate adjusted his tie and then smoothed the dove gray, double-breasted vest. Satisfied, she dusted off his shoulders and took a step back. “You look very good.” All of the men in the wedding party were in one-button morning suits and striped trouser sets. Fortunately, Anna had forgone the hats.

“No one is going to be looking at me.” He cupped her chin and nudged her face up for a kiss. Kate’s face shimmered with vitality. Their one-month in the Mediterranean had turned into nearly six weeks. He’d juggled his workload and kept up on his cases, but they’d sailed from one end to the other and frolicked—once Kate had healed enough to do so.

They’d only returned to the states a week before—just in time for Armand’s slightly delayed wedding. “So, a ranch in Montana for summer escapes, at least three four day weekends, and spring in Belgium for conferences, and at least a week in Norway for the annual gathering with the Grand Duchess.”

“Weekends off, Sunday
and
Saturday mandatory. Put more contract draft work on your associates. You can still review them all,” Kate countered. “And do you really want a Montana ranch?”

The corner of his mouth curved. “You agreed to marry me.”

“I have no recollection of that event, Mr. Prentiss.” The smile in her eyes played havoc with his system.

Dipping his head down, he went to kiss her mouth again and she turned to give him her cheek. “Hmm. Let’s see if I can remind you, our living room? I asked you to marry me.”

“Actually, no you interviewed me for a job.” A smile warmed her mouth. “And among the requirements were regularly being naked, for which I have no objections. However, the concept of marriage wasn’t actually broached until we were on the yacht and since I was on painkillers at the time, it’s questionable whether I had the mental capacity to enter into any kind of an agreement.”

“I see. That would make the validity of upholding that argument difficult,” he agreed and traced a finger down the column of her throat. “Difficult, but not impossible.”

“It would take some legal maneuvering to make that agreement stick.” He knew a challenge when he heard it.

“Miss Braddock, on the date in question, can you describe your emotional state for me?” He lifted his brows.

“Well, I’d woken up from a major surgery a few days before and I’d taken an unsanctioned cab ride—”

“That was the house.” He reminded her, aware of the door opening behind him. “I’m referring to our day on the St. Christos Islands near the Malfi Coast.”

“Hmm, Malfi Coast?” Her expression turned thoughtful. “I’m afraid I don’t quite recall that day. You gave me a full painkiller instead of a half because I’d had so much trouble sleeping. I spent most of that day drowsing in the sun on the forward deck while you cheated at cards.”

“If you were drowsing how do you know I was cheating?” He loved this woman. She never shied away from matching wits against him.

“Well, obviously cheating would have been mandatory. You were betting your future on a hand of cards against someone who didn’t have the facilities to enter into such negotiations.” Her tongue peeked at him from between her teeth.

“So essentially, the question of the agreement’s veracity lies solely on your mental competency at that moment?”

Kate nodded once. “Yes.”

“Is your judgment in anyway impaired this morning?” He dared her to deny it.

“To my knowledge, I am one hundred percent sober. I no longer require anything more than an aspirin for the lingering discomfort from my injuries. So, yes, I would say that my judgment is only impaired by the normal emotional reaction to attending a romantic wedding with a dashing man. Since the wedding hasn’t actually started yet, we have a seventy percent certainty that I am not wavering based on some type of emotional overreaction.” Her eyebrows wiggled up and down, pure merriment setting fire to the gold flecks in her eyes.

“And you’re willing to certify that any agreements negotiated this morning would be made of your own choice, free from prescription coercion?” Better to clarify and make sure they covered all their bases.

“I would so certify, yes.”

“In writing?” he pushed, but then that was in his nature. Her mouth curved into a smile.

“If necessary.”

“Oh, it’s necessary. But we’ll get to that in a moment.” Sliding his hand into his pocket, he pulled out a ring box. “Since you are of sound mind and exquisite body, let’s state the terms of the contract for the record. Will you, Katherine Amelia Braddock, do me, Richard Michael Prentiss, the honor of becoming my wife?”

She moistened her lips and her breath hitched at the end of his request. “That’s the offer?”

“You want the consideration?” He locked gazes with her, his soul in perfect lockstep with the fiercely strong woman in front of him. Her spirit and intelligence would never fail to amaze him.

“Absolutely. After all, any good contract must have those elements.”

“They do, but you have to have acceptance in order to achieve consideration.” He closed the distance between them, every molecule inside him leaning toward her.

“True. So the key here is for me to say yes?” She lifted her brows. “And what would the quid pro quo be?”

“You’ll make me the happiest man on the planet and I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to repay the favor—”

“Impossible,” she murmured.

“I’ve heard that before.” His voice lowered, his pulse beating only for her.

“No, I meant it would be impossible for you to spend the rest of your life achieving what you’ve already done. May I suggest a different quid pro quo?”

Delight filled him, but he kept his mind on the most important negotiation of his life. “Absolutely.”

“You spend the rest of your life being you and you’ll make me the happiest woman in the world.”

“Only if you never stop being you,” he added the caveat.

“Then, yes, Richard. I’ll marry you.” Her smile lit him up from the inside out.

“I want that in writing.” He flipped the box open. “Witnessed and filed, in perpetuity, binding with no way to sever.”

Tears swam in her eyes and she held up her left hand. “I can only give you my word right now, but as soon as we’re done, I’ll sign anything you want.”

He slid his ring on her and something wrenched into the right place in his soul. She’d said yes and Kate was not the kind of woman to go back on her word. “Done.” Bending his head, he caught her mouth in a sweet kiss that left his pulse racing and his blood hot.

A round of applause broke out around them and Richard glanced up to find Armand, his brothers and their security grinning like idiots. “You two are certifiable,” George, the youngest of the three brothers, announced. “What kind of a wedding proposal requires legal negotiation?”

“The best kind,” Kate declared and leaned into Richard’s arms.

Laughter and a round of congratulations followed. Kate drifted over to speak to Sebastian. Richard glanced at his best friend, who did his best not to fidget despite his violent attention to the clock. “Nervous?”

“Incredibly.” He sounded mystified by the idea. “Have you forgiven me yet?”

“Does it matter? You would still have done exactly what you did.”

“Yes.” Armand faced him. “It matters.”

It did, but at least he wasn’t sweating the last few moments before he married the woman he’d lost for nearly a decade. “Tempted to make you suffer a little longer, but yes. I forgive you. Don’t do it again.”

“I’m sorry, I thought you were acquainted with me.” But the last lines of tension around Armand’s eyes eased and gratitude showed in them. Demanding, full of pride and definitely a man who liked to be in control, Armand could be nothing else. The strain between them had cost them both.

“True, but I think it’s only fair to mention that if you do pull a stunt like this again, you understand I’ll kick your ass.”

“You don’t scare me.” He chuckled. “I have security.”

“I have Kate.” Richard grinned wider and glanced over at the woman who held the key to his heart. She met his gaze with a smile full of promise. “I win.”

* * * * *

If you like it deadly, you’ll love it royal and scandalous! Catch up on Heather Long’s Going Royal series today!

Some Like It Royal

It’s the role of a lifetime...

Living out of a car and waiting tables to make ends meet is hardly the stuff of fairy tales. So when a gorgeous man approaches Alyx Dagmar with a wild story about her royal lineage and an even wilder proposition, the aspiring actress is sure he’s got the wrong woman.

Self-made billionaire Daniel Voldakov needs connections before he can expand his software business into Europe. A blue-blooded fiancée would open all the right doors—and Daniel’s certain he can tempt the pretty but penniless Princess Alyxandretta to accept the part she was born to play.

Alyx can’t resist Daniel’s offer, and throws herself into the role. But as the paparazzi fall in love with their “storybook romance,” Alyx finds herself drawn to Daniel in ways she’d never imagined. Are his returned affections true, or all just part of the plan? He’ll do anything it takes to prove his love, and to make her see that the only happily ever after he wants is with her...the real her.

Some Like It Scandalous

Not every girl wants to marry a prince.

After Anna Novak discovered that her fun-loving college sweetheart was actually the Grand Duke Armand Dagmar, she fled. Now, her work directing a scholarship foundation forces her to meet with the lost love of her life. Face-to-face, her body remembers what her heart has struggled to forget.

Armand regrets hiding his identity from Anna, but cherishes the memory of being loved as a man, not a prince. Unable to resist, he uses his family’s influence to see her again and relies on their shared history to bring her back into his arms.

Anna refuses to trust her feelings for a man who never really existed. But when news of their reunion reaches the paparazzi prematurely, the Dagmar family’s enemies are paying attention. Scandal and mortal danger are parts of his life that Armand never wanted to share with Anna, but now he may be forced to protect her...even from himself.

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