Page 53 of Lost with a Scot
Anna held her tongue. No one could know she was already married. Not yet.
“You’ve grown up,” Erich said with a gentle smile. Even though they’d seen each other last year, she’d changed immensely in the last two months. The girl she’d been was gone. Now she was a princess whose country was at war with itself.
“So have you.” Anna smiled, but her heart wasn’t in the expression. She respected him but didn’t want to play with his feelings when she knew she could never return his affections. She only wanted to speak to the king and return to Ruritania and help her brother.
“I know it’s silly to be here dancing when you must be worried about your home.” Erich spun her around the room. “I wish I could do something more to help.”
“Perhaps you could. Alexei is fighting our uncle with only a small force of loyal guards. If you write to your uncle the king now, he may be able to send my brother military aid quickly.”
“What if Alexei has been killed? You can’t be certain he is still alive.”
“I am sure he is. I would know if something had happened to him. Please, Erich, you must trust me. Alexei needs my help. King George—”
As if summoned, the king of England descended the stairs. She had no doubt it was him, from his exquisite clothes to the way the room fell into a hushed silence as he parted the crowds with ease. Everyone bowed and curtsied as he made his way through the ballroom. He was followed by a group of men who Anna guessed were advisors and bodyguards. The braver nobles who had connections to the Crown came forward to him at once and spoke with him at length.
Finally, after half an hour, Lady Eugenia approached the king and whispered to him and pointed in Anna’s direction. Erich had stayed at her side, keeping her company while the dancing resumed around them. As the king approached her, Erich politely stepped apart.
“Your Majesty.” Anna slipped into a deep curtsy and remained there until the king reached out and lifted her chin so she would look up at him. Normally she would not have shown such deference, but he was a king and she a princess. This was his kingdom not hers. Playing toward his pride might help her cause.
“Rise, my dear,” he intoned softly.
She rose and folded her hands in front of her. She examined the king, a man who was obsessed with bright and sparkly things, as Audrey had put it. He was a man who enjoyed food and fashion, but despite his vanity she saw kindness in his eyes.
“You lookexquisite, my dear,” George said. “Just like your mother. I met her once, when she was a young woman, just before she married your father. She was lovely, but you... you are a diamond of the first water.”
Anna received the compliment with politeness, but deep down she wished men would see beyond her fair looks. Erich seemed to, but Aiden had been the only man to truly see deep into her soul. His stormy eyes flashed across her mind, and she desperately wished he was at her side now.
“I was hoping to have a private audience with Your Highness,” she said.
George didn’t seem surprised, as he likely would have heard from his advisors the latest news from Europe. “I assumed as much, Princess Anna.” He waved a hand at Lady Eugenia, who rushed over. “We require a private room. We have matters of state to discuss.”
“Of course.” Lady Eugenia seemed thrilled by the prospect of leading two royals somewhere private in her home to discuss affairs of state.
A small group of men followed the king.
“Your Majesty, there are some English peers I wish to accompany me as my advisors, if that is agreeable to you?” She nodded toward Godric, since he was the highest-ranking peer, and then to Ashton beside him.
“Ah yes, Essex and Lennox, they may certainly join us.” He waved at them with a polite, kingly motion of his hand.
Ashton and Godric fell in step with the king’s men as they came toward her. To her relief, she saw Aiden slip out of the crowd and join the escort as she and the king followed Lady Eugenia out of the ballroom. Their eyes met, and she was briefly reassured by his slight nod at her, and his burning gaze filled her with strength.
Anna’s heart battered against her ribs as she rehearsed her plea over and over in her mind until they entered the drawing room. Now was the time to save her home.
* * *
Aiden achedto take his wife into his arms. He and a few of Ashton’s friends, along with his brothers, had arrived early to speak with Lady Eugenia about the safety of the princess and to thoroughly familiarize himself with the house’s layout.
But these preparations had kept him away from Anna, and he’d been half-mad with worry for her until she had arrived at the ball and made her grand entrance. And what an entrance it had been. She lookedmagnificent. She looked untouchable to mere mortals such as him. That regal bearing he’d always seen in her was amplified by her appearance tonight.
Her gown was utterly bewitching, fit for a queen. It showed her figure to advantage, but it was also a reminder ofwhoshe was—the daughter of a king, a princess in her own right. She’d held everyone’s attention, casting a spell as she descended to the ballroom floor. Aiden had been hiding in the shadows watching for any threats to his wife like a protective wolf. He’d gone unseen by her when she’d looked about the ballroom but he could tell by her searching gaze she was seeking him.
When Erich appeared and took Anna in his arms for a dance, it was easy to picture Anna’s planned future. This was the man her parents had chosen for her, a man of royal lineage, the nephew of the Prussian king. He was tall with fair looks, a perfect match for a princess. As they began to dance, whispers drifted back to Aiden in the shadows.
Such an exquisite couple... A worthy match... Imagine the beautiful children...
Aiden closed his eyes as a pain so deep struck a place deep inside his soul. He knew Anna to be his destiny, but what would be hers after he was gone? If he died as her visions foretold, was Erich the man who would pick up the pieces of Anna’s broken heart and mend them? There was a sorrowful solace in knowing that a good-hearted man would be there to take his place to love her and cherish her.
Ashton appeared at his side. His brother-in-law’s face was hard as stone, but his eyes held a hint of pity as he looked upon the dancing couple.
