Page 7 of Forbidden Bastard
His birth mother kept trying to explain that the nuns had lied to her, though he wasn’t sure he believed a word out of her mouth.
The royal family seemed to "accidently" bump into him all the time as if every week it was someone’s job to report his activities to the others.
Until becoming a duke, no one had cared about anything Charles Esposito did.
For now he scooted his chair back and decided to use the old excuse that everyone believed anyway. “That’s just it. I don’t want anything. The woman I loved chose another.”
Waiters returned to the room with desserts. Antonio fixed his napkin on his lap like he'd expected this answer, and Charles was not excused. Charles adjusted his seat forward as Antonio said, “The woman you left moved on and yes, married a man she loves.”
They both picked up spoons, but Charles needed the royals to believe that he still pined for Sheena. “We’ll continue to disagree on that.”
Antonio didn’t bite into his creamy cake but said, “You can name your price to ensure you cause our father no harm or bitterness for the rest of his days.”
Did the money being offered now also depend on his getting married? He refused to ask about the bribe and asked instead, “Are the king's days numbered?”
“Thankfully not.” Antonio bit into his dessert.
Charles did the same thing. The sweet taste made the young boy inside him who wanted to live on ice cream shout for joy.
Part of what he’d liked about first meeting Sheena was her father’s dessert recipes she'd put together.
Not that he would ever admit that he was once addicted to sugar… this cake would mean an extra hour at the gym tonight but it was worth It. “Then you want a tangible price for an intangible amount of time.”
Antonio sat stiff like the chair was his throne. “We just want our father to be happy. Is that hard for you?”
The inner boy inside him disappeared as Charles said honestly, “No one’s ever tried to pay or bribe for my own happiness. I'm just trying to understand. And all this love that you claim seems like a lie you’re telling yourself.”
Antonio left half of his dessert on his plate, then nudged it away. “So why did this woman tell you no this afternoon?”
Charles binged on the last bite, then shrugged. The woman with the drawn-on whiskers and white face seemed cute but he’d arranged the proposal with her parents to satisfy the Avcean interest in his love life and be done with marriage. He put his spoon down. “She values freedom I suppose. I didn’t tell her that her name was handpicked by a royal matchmaker.”
Antonio folded his hands in front of him like he was making a deal. “Tell you what, Charles. If I paid you to be happy, and keep our father happy, I’ll need you to ensure our father hears of no scandal from you and that you won't cause him any stress in the kingdom.”
“I don’t want more money.” And maybe to hedge his bets to secure his new title, he’d convince bunny girl to become his wife--even as Charles pretended to choose from whatever woman she brought to the fundraiser. “I’ve never tried to cause stress….”
“But?” Antonio asked.
His heart sped up. Probably the sugar but he tugged his ear and decided that there was no long-term harm to this plan and said, “I’ll accept that deal on one condition.”
Antonio scooted closer. “What’s that?”
Love was something Avceans took way too seriously. Charles stilled and adrenaline coursed through him as he said, “If you’re going to bribe Sandi Smith then you can’t tell her about the royal matchmaking, or your expectations for me.”
Antonio stood. “Easy enough.”
Sandi’s face without the pink dot nose crossed his mind, and he rose as well. This wasn’t the end so he said, “And second…”
Antonio pivoted toward him. “I’m listening.”
Charles crossed his arms. While his deals today didn’t mean anything to him, he needed to ensure no one talked to the press that Clara read.
Nothing could get back to her on how he used the money to pay for Clara’s home care or how Clara was the only person that mattered to him, anywhere.
He feared this quest for love might lead to the one person he was thankful to have in his life. Charles said, “You don’t tell her that you’re pinning your crown’s future peace on her shoulders as she’s meant to temper my traitorous impulses.”
Antonio slung an arm around his shoulder and steered Charles from the table. “I’m not pinning anything.”
As they neared the door of the private room that led to the regular restaurant, Charles slowed down. “Still, you don’t tell her why you’re pushing for her to marry me.”
