The Crown Prince's Bride (Royal Duology 2)

“It’s perfect. And I’m glad you handed off some of the duties to Lucy. She’s a great organizer and a little less official as far as the palace is concerned. Perfect for making Rose’s family feel at home.”

Imogene arrived with the four oldest children. “Papa!” Max came forward, bouncing on his toes. “Alex and I had a sword fight today!”

“Is that what you were doing out in the garden? I saw lots of commotion.”

“It was fun.”

Emilia was standing close to Stephani. “Oh, Tía Stephani, your dress is beautiful.”

“Thank you, Emilia. You look lovely as well. Is that new?”

The girl nodded vigorously. “And I have a new one for the wedding tomorrow, too.” As an aside, she reached over and pulled Alice closer. “And so does Alice. And she has shoes that look like ballet slippers.”

“Oh, that sounds beautiful. I hope you’re enjoying your time here, Alice.”

Alice answered and the little girls then exclaimed over Stephani’s rather high heels. Raoul couldn’t help staring at her toned calves as she turned her heel this way and that. He also noticed that Emilia said something funny and Stephani dropped an easy kiss on his daughter’s head. She cared for his children, and they loved her, too.

Because she was family. And too often he treated her as an employee.

“Shall we go in?” he asked, and offered her his arm.

“Oh. Of course.” She smiled up at him, then turned to the children. “Gentlemen, perhaps you could escort the ladies to the dining room?”

Max and Alex rolled their eyes but stepped forward. Alex immediately held out his arm for Alice, which left Max with his sister, but other than a put-upon sigh, nothing was said. Raoul laughed and nodded at Imogene, who would retire to the nursery with the baby over the dinner hour.

He put his hand over Stephani’s as it rested on his forearm. “Nice work. Do you suppose Alex and Alice have a budding romance?”

She chuckled. “At their age? I doubt it. Alice is still at the ‘boys have germs’ age.”

Raoul was laughing as they entered the dining room, and several pairs of eyes turned in their direction.

He hesitated for a moment and looked down at Stephani, who was smiling and beaming. Beautiful.

It felt very right having someone on his arm again.

CHAPTER FOUR

Lucy had seated her next to Raoul.

Stephani didn’t make a fuss or move any place cards around. She simply took her seat after all introductions had been made with Rose’s family. Raoul was on her right, Alexander at the head, and across from Raoul was Mr. and Mrs. Walters, lovely people who were still obviously agog at their surroundings. Alice and Emilia sat with them, along with Rose’s siblings and Rose and Diego. On the same side of the table as Raoul and Stephani were Lucy, Brody, and the two boys.

At first it was slightly awkward, but then Diego fired up his charm, the second course arrived with more wine, and everyone loosened up a bit. Stories of the bride and groom popped up with regularity, and even Alexander chimed in with tales of Diego’s antics as a small boy. Stephani laughed with the rest, though she caught some rather intense stares from Rose’s sister across the table. Rose had warned her that Hayley was a tad resentful of others’ good fortune when she’d become a single mother as a teen. Regardless, Stephani found Alice to be a lovely child, she clearly loved her aunt, and she and Emilia had a

lready forged a friendship. It wasn’t worth worrying about.

“Having a good time?” Raoul murmured in her ear.

“It’s like the big family dinners we used to have, remember? Only a bit more formal.”

He nodded. “Ceci’s family was good that way. Lots of food, wine, teasing.”

“Do you never hear from her father?” Ceci’s mother had passed on years earlier, just after Emilia’s birth, from cancer.

Raoul shook his head. “The odd phone call. I’ve invited him over many times, but I think he finds it too hard without Ceci here.”

“But he’s missing out on the children.”

“I know.”