Page 50 of Incognito

The kind of love that lingered long after the person had left your life, the kind of love you remembered forever, that lasted a lifetime no matter how much you tried to forget.

Natasha blinked several times, somewhat surprised to find Gina staring at her with concern, a concierge desk between them in a foyer she’d sought refuge in many times over the last few years.

Her hotel’s foyer, with its familiar ochre and red swirly rugs, its chocolate brown suede couches and a hand-carved wooden chest her mother had given her for her twenty-first, taking pride of place at the entrance to her office.

Other mothers would’ve called it an old-fashioned glory box and hinted at a future of wedded bliss for their daughters, but not her mum. Natasha’s chest had been stuffed with her favourite things: a handmade quilt, one of her mum’s best patterns with red Chinese silk alternating with gold, five boxes of her favourite caramels, the entire DVD collection of Friends, and a jade elephant for good luck.

Her mother had been the best and she missed her terribly. Every time she snuggled up in the quilt she felt secure, as if her mum was wrapping her arms around her along with the silky comforter.

What would her mother think of Dante?

She’d always had a thing for royalty and Natasha remembered staring through the stair banisters of the hotel as a little girl, mesmerised by a visiting Asian king and queen that her mum had spun fantastic tales about.

Yeah, her mum would’ve liked Dante, but would she recommend her only child take a chance on love knowing it could lead to heartache?

“You don’t have to say a word. Your face says it all.” Gina reached over the desk and patted her on the shoulder. “Go and see him. It’s the only way.”

The fool’s way.

The dreamer’s way.

Natasha felt like a combination of both. She’d spent her life living up to responsibility, taking control of what needed to be done, and she was exhausted.

Maybe it was foolish, maybe dreams were for suckers, but facing up to the truth after hearing it from a woman she barely knew had been the wake up call she needed.

“I guess I should be thanking you, Gina, but I’m too busy blaming you.”

“What did I do?” Gina’s tentative grin took years off her face and Natasha could see a glimpse of the cheeky, rebel princess Dante had described, the type of woman who fell for a foreign guy and left her home to follow her dream.

If only she had the courage to do something like that… if only she had the opportunity…

“If you weren’t so terrible at organising kid’s parties, Dante wouldn’t have needed my help and none of this would’ve happened.”

Gina shrugged, not at all insulted by her bluntness. “I am a princess, what can I say?”

Natasha joined in her chuckles though they petered out quickly. No matter how she felt or whether she acknowledgedher feelings—let alone suss out how Dante felt—this couldn’t end well.

There could be no happy endings here.

Dante had a country to run, she had a hotel to run.

They lived oceans apart.

And even if by some miracle he felt something for her, what did she think? That he’d ask her to be his princess?

Fat chance.

However, she needed to do this, and confronting Dante would be the first step in getting over him.

“I’m going to see him right now,” she said, frantically signalling at a front desk employee to act as stand-in concierge before she changed her mind.

“Good.” Gina’s smug grin annoyed her and she fixed her with a glare.

“Why are you doing this?”

“Because I love Dante.” That made two of them. “I care about what happens to him.”

Though Natasha didn’t have a sibling, she understood Gina’s concern. If anyone ever messed with Ella, she would interfere too.

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