Island Doctor to Royal Bride?

‘You look amazing,’ he whispered as his lips brushed the side of her cheek.

She patted her stomach. ‘Thank you, but I’m a bit nervous.’

He took a step back and offered out his arm to her. Right now, what he really wanted to do was kick the door closed behind them both, and keep Arissa all to himself. But this was all part and parcel of what he needed to do next.

He needed to introduce her to the other side of his life. The one that the world would normally see. Tonight was almost like a trial run. She still hadn’t told him why she wanted to stay out of the spotlight so much. He didn’t want to pry into her life. He wanted her to tell him when, and if, she was ready.

But tonight she would meet his mother’s friends and dignitaries from other countries. This ball was always less formal than any other thanks to the privacy surrounding it. He wanted Arissa to be comfortable in his home, and around his family, and this was the best place to start.

His brother and sister were already curious and had only been held off by his excuses of how much work he and Arissa were doing right now.

He smiled. He might have known his mother would manage to circumvent him in one way or another. And the fact that Arissa was currently wearing his great-grandmother’s jewellery gave him a feel for how much the Queen must have liked Arissa.

‘How did you find my mother?’ he asked.

She smiled as she slid her arm through his. ‘For a queen, she’s surprisingly like most mothers,’ she joked. ‘But you might have warned me how I was supposed to act around her.’

‘Like yourself,’ he said quickly. ‘And you didn’t need any warning. I knew she was going to love you anyway.’

He stopped at the top of the stairs. ‘I can see how much she likes you. That choker was my great-grandmother’s. It’s one of her favourites.’

Arissa’s hands went quickly to her throat as her eyes widened. ‘It is? Oh, wow. I had no idea. She never said.’

‘She wouldn’t.’ He looked down towards the ballroom. The music drifted up towards them and people were already circulating in the space below. The waiting staff wore red jackets and ties, or white blouses trimmed with red and black waistcoats. Silver trays were held aloft and the staff moved seamlessly amongst the guests.

Arissa shot him a sideways glance. ‘It all looks choreographed. Like some elaborate dance.’

He could sense her nerves and bent closer, tilting her chin up towards his. ‘You have nothing to worry about. Tonight is just about mixing with friends. You’ll get to meet some of the ministers from the surrounding countries.’ A bright laugh carried through the air and Philippe rolled his eyes. ‘And you’ll get to meet my Aunt Livia, who I guarantee will be the wickedest woman in the room.’

‘What about your brother and sister—and your father—what if they don’t like me?’

She’d never really seemed nervous like this around him before. He dipped his head and dropped a kiss on her lips. ‘They’ll love you. Because I do.’

For a second her pupils widened, as if she’d just taken stock of those words. He’d said them out loud without thinking. Something he’d never, ever done in the past. But before he had time to think about it any further there was a noise behind him.

One of the palace staff gave him a nod. ‘I’ll announce you,’ she said briefly.

‘Prince Philippe of Aronaz and Dr Arissa Cotter.’

Neither of them had time to think further as all the faces in the ballroom turned upwards to look at them. Arissa slid her arm into his elbow again and he put his hand over hers as they walked down the stairs.

He nodded at a few people on the way down, crossing the ballroom floor towards the area where the King and Queen and the rest of the royal family were congregated.

The crowd parted around them. His brother had an amused grin on his face. His sister was watching Arissa carefully. He could almost see her sizing Arissa up. His mother smiled approvingly and his father stopped the conversation he was in the middle of, to reach out his hands towards them both.

‘So this is the lady I’ve been hearing so much about. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Dr Cotter,’ said the King.

Before either of them had time to think, the King had kissed Arissa on both cheeks. His sister’s eyebrows rose in surprise then she stepped forward and held out her hand. ‘Grace Aronaz,’ she said, leaving the Princess title to the side.

‘And I’m the good-looking one,’ said his brother jokingly as he held out his hand to Arissa too. ‘Anthony.’ He gave Philippe a glance. ‘I think my brother has been hiding you from us all. Trying to keep you secret.’ He dipped down low and kissed Arissa’s hand. ‘It’s a pleasure to meet you, Dr Cotter. We hope we’ll have a chance to get to know you a little better.’ He stepped forward and pretended to whisper in her ear. ‘And I have a dozen stories on Philippe that you’ll be able to use as blackmail material on him.’

Arissa’s eyes were wide. Maybe she hadn’t expected such a warm welcome. But Philippe wouldn’t have expected anything else from his family.

‘It’s Arissa, please,’ she said finally. ‘And it’s a pleasure to meet you all.’

The music picked up tempo behind them. The King’s eyes gleamed. ‘Oh, it’s that time again. Right, I’m off to find old Aunt Livia, try and stop whatever trouble she is causing and sweep her around the dance floor while I tell her off.’

Philippe looked at Arissa’s surprised face. ‘I warned you about her. Wait and see—at various points, each one of us will take her around the dance floor before she ruins any of our diplomatic relationships.’

He watched as Anthony grabbed two glasses of champagne from a tray and moved over next to a blonde woman in a silver gown. Grace turned her attentions to an older woman and launched into a long story. And his mother gave him the slightest nod of her head, which he knew was approval.

He wasn’t embarrassed to admit the relief that flooded through his body. All of his family liked her—just as he’d known they would. He could only imagine the questions he’d get later when he was on his own.

He gestured towards the white and black dance floor. ‘How are your dancing feet? Do you trust me not to stand on your toes?’

She gave him a nervous kind of smile. Her shoulders had relaxed just a little. ‘I guess I could risk it,’ she said.

He led her to the dance floor and took her into his arms. It was perfect. The music. The dancing. The lights around them gradually lowered, leaving the ballroom illuminated by flickering candlelight. It was an illusion of course—they weren’t real candles, but no one really cared.

They toasted with champagne and ate some of the canapés that were offered. As the sky grew dark outside and the temperature in the ballroom rose, the doors to the gardens were opened. The cooler night air didn’t deter people from walking outside.

After her initial few minutes of nervousness, Arissa relaxed. Maybe it was the thought of meeting his parents and family, or maybe it was the whole intimidation factor of appearing at a ball with a prince.

She wasn’t used to the life that he had. He’d met Arissa in her own life where she was a capable and competent doctor. Rarely fazed and always able to deal with unexpected emergencies. He’d admired her tenacity and just how capable she was, keeping so many balls juggling in the air at once. Most of all he’d admired her ‘can do’ attitude.

Tonight there had been a flicker of uncertainty and something else. She’d gripped his arm tighter than she ever had before. Part of him hated that it was him that had put her in this position. He’d almost forgotten how intimidating this could all be to someone who hadn’t been brought up in this life.

But Arissa had handled things like a pro. She’d helped him manoeuvre a conversation with a difficult diplomat onto something much less flammable. She’d charmed a few of his mother’s friends. He tried his best to ignore the knowing glances they

all shot him, smiling and moving on to the next group.

By the time it was almost midnight, he was conscious of the fact Arissa was leaning on his arm. ‘You okay?’ he asked.

She was staring out at the gardens that had been lit tonight with some pale pink and pale blue lights. ‘We could have done with those the other night,’ she said dreamily.

‘But how would I have enticed you into the maze if everything was clearly lit?’ he teased.

One eyebrow rose. ‘You enticed me?’

‘I think so.’

She gave a shrug. ‘Okay, I’ll give you that. Maybe you did.’ She kept looking out into the dark. ‘It’s beautiful out there.’ She sighed.

‘It’s beautiful in here too,’ he said huskily. She turned to face him, his hands going to her waist. ‘You did great tonight. How do you feel?’

‘Tired,’ she admitted, then gave him a confused glance. ‘What—was this some kind of test? What if I hadn’t done great?’

He shook his head. ‘No. No test. I’d never do that. But this...’ he held out his hand to the ballroom behind them ‘...this is part of my life. It always has been and it always will be. I want you to be comfortable when you’re around me, and my family.’

She stayed still for a few seconds, her dark brown eyes staring straight at him. ‘Why?’ she asked in a croaky voice.

Part of him wanted to cringe. This wasn’t the place to have this conversation. He hadn’t even really thought things through. He was acting on instinct. But every instinct was telling him the woman in his arms was his highest priority right now.

‘Because I want you to stay,’ he said.

She flinched. She actually flinched and stepped back out of his arms.

Every part of him recoiled. He’d mistimed things. She wasn’t ready to hear anything like this. Or, worst case, she didn’t feel the same way.

Arissa put her hand up to her chest. ‘But I have things to do, Philippe. I have responsibilities back in Temur Sapora—you know that. I need to find a new job.’

His heart twisted in his chest. He knew all this. He’d known all this before he’d asked her to stay. He’d known all this before he’d told her how he felt.

He wanted to take the words back. Not because he didn’t mean them—but because she wasn’t ready.