Weight of the Crown

‘Good afternoon, Prince Ra’id. It doesn’t look as though traditional Rosarian food meets with your approval, so we’ll get rid of it, and all these people.’

‘But he hasn’t had any food yet!’ A shocked voice burst out from the crowd. ‘And it isn’t traditional—we’ve brought him everything he asked for, but nothing’s been good enough yet.’

‘That’s a shame,’ Alyssa said evenly. ‘But lunchtime should have been over a long time ago.’

‘I’m hungry!’ Ra’id said through clenched teeth.

The huddle of servants held its breath. Lysander carried on lazily watching Alyssa. She took no notice of her little charge. Instead, she started piling up plates with quick, neat movements. After an exchange of glances, the rest of the staff stepped forward to help her. In minutes the table was clear and the room empty apart from Lysander, Alyssa and the little boy.

‘I’m hungry!’ Ra’id repeated, this time with more of a whine.

‘No, you aren’t. If you’d been hungry, you would have eaten the first thing you were served. You’re not to treat your staff like that, Prince Ra’id. They spent a lot of time satisfying your demands, so the least you could have done was try something. As your uncle Lysander has just told you, I’m in charge now. From today, you’ll eat at regular times. Whatever arrives is what you’ll eat, and that’s an end to it. There will be no alternatives.’ She glanced at her watch, then looked at Lysander. ‘Do you eat high tea at Combe House?’

‘For you, Alyssa, anything is possible.’ He chuckled.

‘Then could you order a simple meal of egg on toast for His Majesty, to be served in your dining room in half an hour?’

‘I don’t like egg. What is it?’ the little boy piped up.

‘It’s what you’re having for tea,’ Alyssa said with a determination Lysander wished he could see more often.

Ra’id wasn’t so impressed. ‘No! And I can do what I like, because I’m King.’

Lysander had consoled enough nursery maids to know that was the killer line. It always worked. He glanced at Alyssa with a grin that said I’d like to see you get out of that!

Alyssa didn’t need to answer him. She knelt down beside Ra’id and folded her arms on the ruined surface of his miniature Georgian dining table so that her face was very close to his.

‘Oho—not yet, you aren’t! Listen to me, young man. Your uncle Lysander is going to be in charge of you, and everything else around you, for at least the next four thousand days, so what he says, goes. That’s a long time, so get used to it. And he says you’ll eat the lovely food the staff are kind enough to make for you. If you don’t, you’ll go hungry.’ She looked up at Lysander with battle blazing in her eyes. ‘Right?’

Wide-eyed and speechless, the little boy switched his gaze from Alyssa to Lysander, searching for support.

‘That’s right, isn’t it, Lysander?’ Alyssa repeated, more forcefully this time.

Lysander knew she wanted him to back her up, but he took his time. He was busy with his own thoughts, enjoying the arousal that pulsed through his body as he watched this determined and beautiful woman in action. The sensation was far more enjoyable than talking to her about nursery routine. Miss Alyssa Dene had the sort of nerve he had never encountered before. He already knew she wasn’t going to roll over and submit to him like so many women that had filled his universe until now. He would have to break down her resistance to him inch by inch. It was an idea he found intensely exciting. It would make the moment she finally fell under his spell a real triumph, and a conquest worthy of his maverick skills. He allowed a slow, seductive smile to warm his face. Her need for him was so deeply buried she might not recognise it yet, but she would. Given time. He would make sure of it.

‘Right …’ He teased the word out slowly. ‘So from now on, Ra’id, you’ll do everything Alyssa tells you, OK?’

His answer satisfied her, although she laid down the law to Ra’id for a long time after that. While she rattled on, Lysander lost himself again in more luscious thoughts involving silk sheets, perfumed massage oil and Miss Alyssa Dene’s soft curves. He only realised he should have been listening to her instead when she coughed politely to attract his attention.

‘So, Lysander, Ra’id and I will see you in your dining room in half an hour.’

‘Of course,’ Lysander said suavely, still wondering if she knew what she was letting herself in for. He sent another leisurely glance over her body. The tempting reality of her promised to be even better than his fantasy.

‘Miss Alyssa Dene is the best nanny in the business, Ra’id,’ he told his nephew. ‘And I’m looking forward to discovering what other talents she has, very soon.’ He smiled, tilting his head towards her in a way that never failed to soften women. She stared at him, her cool blue eyes as assured as his own technique.

‘It’s a pity smiling doesn’t seem to be one of them,’ he went on, standing back to give her room to melt over his teasing. It had no effect.

‘Childcare isn’t a laughing matter, Lysander.’

Her wide-set eyes would have been beautiful if they hadn’t been focusing a stare on him that was as hard as sapphires.

The last few weeks had stretched Lysander’s patience so thin, it was practically transparent. He heard himself snap, like an elastic band that had been stretched too far.

‘Then that’s a shame. You’ll need a sense of humour if you’re going to work here.’

He regretted it instantly. Unleashing his bitterness wasn’t the way to win over rebellious women. Stepping in close to her again, he softened his retort by patting her gently on the back. ‘If only to put up with my short temper. So if you wouldn’t mind giving me a few moments of your time outside so we can discuss it, Nanny—?’

His hand slid sensuously over her ribcage on its way to become a support under her elbow.

‘My name is Alyssa!’

She jerked away from him so savagely, Ra’id gave a little cry of alarm. Instantly, she swooped down to comfort the little boy. Any angry remarks Lysander might have made at her overreaction died on his lips when he saw the way she reassured his nephew—that, and the way her shirt gaped a little as she bent forward. It gave him an illicit glimpse of her lacy bra as it cupped the creamy swell of her breasts. The view was so delicious, he forgave her everything.

It made him look forward to seeing a whole lot more of her, very soon.

Alyssa used a combination of psychology and her own novelty value to make tea a triumph. Comfort eating over the past few months had made her staid navy-blue nanny’s uniform a bit snug. This worked wonders on Lysander. She had his full attention, although it did tend to gravitate towards her breasts. To get him back on track she told him his good manners and charm would soon rub off on his nephew. Ra’id turned out to have a big appetite, and he was so astonished that anyone would stand up to him, he was easy to manage. Food was the perfect bribe. All Alyssa had to do was to make sure he got a healthy diet, and by keeping Lysander on side she would have all the backup she needed.

She was still smiling hours later as she left Ra’id’s bedroom that evening. She closed the door so quietly, it didn’t make a sound. She could have laughed with relief at the end of such an exhausting, perfect day, but didn’t want to wake her little charge. These first few hours in her new job had achieved what her holiday had failed to do—distracted her from the past and helped her to move into the future. It turned out she’d needed a new challenge, and she was relishing it. Ra’id was a real handful, but that was because no one had cared enough to teach him how to behave properly—until now. He was quick, clever, and underneath he had the makings of a dear little chap. Now she could relax for a few hours, and thank her lucky stars that she had gone with her instincts rather than her emotions. She had taken this position to save Ra’id from falling into the hands of some wage slave who was only interested in what the job prospects were. Now she was looking after him, everything would be fine. The only fly in the ointment was her unprecedented response to Lysander, but what with her past and his present she’d certainly never be silly enough to give into him—however wickedly tempting his smile might be … As she entered the suite’s sitting room she jumped violently when she saw that the object of her thoughts had made himself at home on one of the nursery’s low couches, his long legs stretched out beneath a table. A tray set for two with fine china and a steaming cafetiere waited in front of him, untouched. A dozen down-lighters around the walls gave the room a soft golden glow.

‘Thank you, Lysander.’ Alyssa kept her voice cool and professional, desperate not to show him how much his presence unsettled her. She preferred speaking to children rather than adults, but talking with Lysander was all too easy. She tried to concentrate on tidying the room, hoping her busyness would hide her nerves. ‘When you told me you never normally had anything to do with Ra’id, I thought it meant you didn’t have any interest in him. It was good of you to sit with us while he had tea in the main dining room. The different surroundings made him a bit uncertain, and that really helped him behave. Eating with you and other adults instead of being waited on alone will really help his manners. You’ll be a great example for him to follow. Is there any chance you could make afternoon tea with him a regular thing?’

‘It’ll be my pleasure, as long as you promise to always be there, too,’ Lysander purred.

The room’s low light gave his aristocratic features a shadowy mystery—but there was no mistaking the meaning in his eyes. During the meal they had all taken together Alyssa had been focused on Ra’id, but that couldn’t stop her feeling the warmth of Lysander’s interest. Alone with him now, she felt coils of attraction snake through her body. Tearing herself away from his gaze, she moved methodically around the room, picking up scattered toys and plumping cushions.

‘You must have given your army of attendants the slip,’ she said without looking at him.

‘I told them to leave me, yes,’ he said in a light, conversational way.

Remember, men like him gain your confidence, then abandon you when you’re at your most vulnerable. That’s how it works, Alyssa told herself firmly.

When the room was as neat as it was going to get, she couldn’t think of anything else to do to avoid his eyes except pouring the coffee. Trying not to let her nervousness show, she approached the table from the opposite side to where he sat. As she reached for the handle of the cafetiere his hand closed in on hers and he lifted it out of her grasp.

‘That’s OK. I’ll pour the coffee. You should sit down and relax, Alyssa. It’s been a busy day for you. And for me, too. You’ve given me plenty to think about.’

Until that moment Alyssa had been careful to keep her eyes on the tray, but that made her look up and question him. He was watching her with the exotic look of a well fed panther.

It’s bound to be some sort of line, but there’s nothing to worry about as long as I keep that thought in mind, she told herself.

‘What do you mean?’

‘The way you improved Ra’id’s behaviour right from the start, by laying down strict boundaries for him. That impressed me. I went back to my staff and put some ground rules of my own in place, to make my life more structured. My nicely pampered, trouble-free life, as you were quick to point out,’ he drawled, smiling at her in a way calculated to melt the stoniest heart.

Alyssa tried to resist, but the crafty way he recalled their first meeting started every muscle in her face working as she tried to avoid returning his smile.

‘I’d hate to be followed around by all those people the whole time.’

‘I do. But that’s the way my brother worked, and having all those staff hounding me from day one hadn’t given me enough time to devise a better system. I think better when I’m on my own. Clearing my mind by sending them all away for a while gave me the chance to work out a sensible routine for myself. And all it took was the sight of you, taking control.’ He lifted one of the little black and gold cups of coffee towards her. ‘Cream and sugar?’