Prince Charming

“About the money,” she began again. “We really should get this issue settled now.”

“I want to ask you a question first.”

“Yes?”

“Would you take money from me? Be completely honest, Taylor. Would you?”

“I would do anything to protect the babies. Anything.”

Her voice radiated with conviction. And still Victoria’s pride wasn’t completely soothed. “You aren’t just telling me what you think I want to hear, are you? You would really accept charity?”

“I would demand charity if I had to,” Taylor told her. She let out a weary sigh and threaded her fingers through her hair in an act of frustration. “Dear God, Victoria, I’ve already done things I never would have thought possible. I married a complete stranger just to . . .”

“You what?”

Taylor stood up and began to pace while she collected her thoughts. “It’s a long story,” she said at last. “I’ll explain everything to you tomorrow. I promise. For now, please accept the fact that you have one very special reason to stay healthy and do whatever it takes to survive in this confusing world, and I have two very special reasons. I’m too weary now to go into details, and I know you have to be just as exhausted. Let’s have a quiet supper and go to bed early tonight. I’ll answer all your questions after I meet with the bankers. All right?”

Victoria’s mouth had dropped open when Taylor admitted marrying a complete stranger. She was, in fact, rendered speechless. No wonder she called him Mr. Ross all the time. It was starting to make sense to Victoria now. The reason behind the marriage remained a mystery, however, and she found she was already becoming impatient for tomorrow to arrive.

She finally found her voice. “Yes, we’ll wait until tomorrow to have our talk. Just answer one more question for me now, please.”

“All right,” Taylor agreed.

“Do you ever get scared? I know it’s a foolish question. I was just curious,” Victoria blurted out when she saw Taylor’s expression. Her friend looked incredibly sad. “You radiate such confidence all the time. In truth, you’re a comfort to me. I always feel you’ll know exactly what to do . . . even twenty years from now.”

Taylor suddenly felt overwhelmed with fatigue. Her nerves felt frayed and she wanted more than anything to be able to let her guard down, if only for a minute or two.

She gave in to the urge. “Scared? Oh, yes, I get scared. Sometimes I’m so afraid inside I shake with it.”

Her voice trembled with emotion when she gave her confession. Sharing the confidence had been difficult for her. Victoria immediately felt guilty because she’d broached the topic.

“You are right,” she announced then. “We are both very tired. We’ll wait until tomorrow to have our talk.”

Taylor gave an abrupt nod. “And the money?” she asked.

“I will be happy for your assistance.”

“Thank you.”

“It is I who should be thanking you,” Victoria said. She stood up and smiled at her friend. She wanted to try to lighten her mood, for Taylor was looking as though she had all the burdens of the world on her slender shoulders.

“Tell me another story about Daniel Boone,” she requested.

Taylor was thrilled by the request. She immediately launched into one of her favorite tales about the mountain man. That story led to another and another, and only when her stomach started protesting did she realize how late the hour was.

“Mr. Ross is probably pacing the floor waiting for me,” she announced. “Tomorrow I insist upon giving Davy, Crockett equal time,” she added with a smile. “He also was quite a gallant figure.”

“Yes,” Victoria agreed. “And when you’re finished, I shall recite my favorite verse from one of William’s most famous plays.”

Taylor laughed. “I believe we are both quite peculiar,” she remarked. “You must be famished. I know I am. Your baby must have immediate nourishment. I don’t believe I’ll even take the time to change my dress. I’ll just run along down to my room and collect Mr. Ross.”

She started for the door, but Victoria stopped her with a casually given remark.

“When we were talking about finances, you said you would do anything to protect the babies. Do you remember?”

Taylor turned around. “Yes, I remember.”

“I’m pretty certain I’m only going to have one baby. I can’t imagine having two,” she added with a bit of laughter in her voice. “And twins don’t run in my family.”

Taylor smiled. “They run in mine.”

“Oh?”

“Georgie and Allie,” Taylor said then. “They’re twins.”

“Who do they belong to?”

“Me.”

Victoria looked stunned. She had to sit down before her knees gave out on her. “Yours?” she whispered.

“Yes,” Taylor answered.

“You have two babies?” Victoria asked. She couldn’t seem to take it in.

Taylor smiled. A knock sounded at the door, interrupting the conversation. Neither Taylor nor Victoria moved. “What I’ve just told you must remain in confidence a little longer. I’ll explain why tomorrow.”

She waited for her friend to agree before turning around to answer the door.

“Does Mr. Ross know about the twins?”

“Not yet.”

“Good heavens.”

“Exactly.”

“Are they his?”

Taylor continued on. She reached for the doorknob before answering. “They will be,” she called out. “If I need him to help keep them safe,” she qualified.

She opened the door and found Lucas standing in the entrance. He looked impatient, irritated, and completely wonderful to her. She couldn’t seem to get used to his size, she realized once again. The man towered over her, even when he was leaning against the frame of the doorway in such a relaxed stance, obviously meant to suggest he’d been waiting a good long while for her to open the door.

His frown didn’t bother her much. She was too busy noticing all the differences about him. He’d changed into a black jacket and black pants. The white shirt he wore underneath was sparkling clean and starched stiff, indicating to her that he’d taken advantage of the hotel’s amazing laundry facilities. The whiteness of the shirt made his skin look all the more bronzed.

She gave him a thorough once-over before looking into his eyes. His shoes were newly polished, his pants were definitely too snug, his shoulders seemed to have grown wider in the hour or so they’d been apart, and his hair was still damp, indicating he’d taken a bath. He smelled just as wonderful as he looked.

She let out a little sigh. Then she finally settled her gaze on his eyes. She decided the color was his finest feature. His eyes were such a dark, velvety brown, with a hint of gold in them. When he smiled, his eyes seemed to shine.

He was going to make a wonderful father. Lord, how she hoped he would come to love the babies. What if he didn’t or couldn’t? It was a chilling possibility.

Lucas was thoroughly exasperated with Taylor. He was about to ask her if she was finished with her inspection and didn’t she realize wives shouldn’t be looking at their husbands with such blatant curiosity, but something in her eyes stopped him from making any sarcastic remarks.

The smile was gone. She looked somber now, but there was something more he couldn’t quite put his finger on. Just as strange was his own reaction. He suddenly felt like taking her into his arms and telling her everything was going to be all right.

He wanted to protect her from harm. He wanted to keep her safe.

He wanted to grow old with her.

The appalling thought popped into his mind before he could stop it. Lucas could feel the noose tightening around his neck. Damned if he would spend the rest of his life with her. He straightened away from the door frame and all but glared at the woman trying to turn his life upside down.

Taylor’s manner also changed. She gathered her composure and forced a smile for h

er surly husband’s benefit.

She seemed to have just noticed his irritation. “Why are you frowning?” she asked. “Did you receive bad news?”

“No.”

“You won’t digest your food properly if you’re irritated while you eat, sir. I suggest you rid yourself of your unpleasant mood with all possible haste.”

He felt like throttling her. “Taylor, do you know what time it is?”

She shook her head. “I’ve been waiting over two hours,” he told her.

“You have?”

“Yes,” he snapped out. “What in thunder’s taking you so long?”

She lifted her shoulders in a shrug. She continued to stare into his eyes when she asked, “Have you been waiting long?”

Hadn’t he just told her he had? What was the matter with her? He expected an immediate apology. Yet she was staring up at him with a look that suggested she wasn’t even paying attention to the conversation. Her mind was obviously somewhere else.

Lucas decided he wanted her full attention. By God, he wanted an apology, too. And just as soon as she finished being contrite, he’d tell her how much he detested waiting on anyone for anything and that she’d best learn to be prompt from this moment on.

“Mr. Ross?”

“Yes?” he answered in a hard, downright mean voice. She knew damned good and well he hated being called Mr. Ross and yet she persisted with the formal address. He’d go to his grave before reminding her once again to call him Lucas.

She didn’t say another word for a full minute. He decided she was trying to find the right words to apologize. She probably didn’t like admitting she was in error, and since he’d never ever apologized to anyone in all his days, he found himself sympathetic. He decided to make it easy for her.

“You’re sorry, right?”

“Excuse me?”

“You’re sorry you made me wait. Don’t let it happen again. If you’re finished unpacking, we’ll go to supper now. I’m starved and I have a meeting I don’t want to miss in an hour.”

She didn’t know what he was rambling on and on about. Her mind was fully occupied with the question she realized she needed to ask him. Heavens, why hadn’t she asked him before? She immediately excused her own stupidity by telling herself she’d been too occupied with other matters. Besides, Madam had certainly asked him, or at least Taylor hoped she had.

The second he quit talking, she blurted out his name.

“Yes?” he said, thinking she was about to add a word or two to the apology he’d very nicely made for her.

“Do you like children?”

7

Brevity is the soul of wit.

—William Shakespeare, Hamlet

“Not particularly.”

She looked crushed. He didn’t know why she’d react like that. She wasn’t the one having the baby. Victoria was.

“Why don’t you like children?” she demanded to know.

Lucas was having trouble holding onto his patience. His sigh was loud. Then he shook his head at her, motioned her out of his way, and walked past her over to where Victoria was standing. In a gentle tone of voice, he asked her if she were ready to accompany him to the dining room.

He was being extremely solicitous. “There are two dining areas in the hotel,” he explained. “The Ladies Ordinary is for families and their guests. The other is for businessmen only. I hear the food is quite good in both rooms. Shall we go?”

Victoria blushed over the attention he was giving her. She took hold of his arm and let him escort her out into the hallway. Taylor followed along after snatching up the room key and making certain Victoria’s door was firmly locked.

Supper was a chaotic affair. Taylor didn’t eat much of the seven-course meal, for she was too busy watching all the Americans coming and going. The dining room was as busy as a train station, with the swinging door from the salon in constant motion. It was extremely noisy, too. The Americans, she noticed, had a rather peculiar habit of gulping down their food with amazing speed. Taylor felt very much like a country girl at her first fair. She tried to watch everyone at the same time. It was both exciting and wearisome.

Everyone proved to be extremely friendly. Men she didn’t even know greeted her warmly and tried to engage her in conversation. Lucas put a stop to that, however, with well-placed glares at the more effervescent strangers. He ran into two acquaintances who engaged him in a long conversation, and astonishing as it seemed to Taylor, she also bumped into a cousin of a cousin from London. She took the interruptions all in stride. Victoria didn’t. She paled considerably when a young woman from New York greeted her with the reminder that they had met at the Smithers ball the year before. She wanted to know how long Victoria would be staying in Boston, and before she was given an answer, she insisted they get together soon so that when she returned to London she could call upon Victoria’s dear parents and tell them all about her encounter with their daughter.

Victoria was very withdrawn on the way back to her room. Taylor assumed she was simply exhausted and in need of a good night’s sleep. Both she and Lucas accompanied her to her door. Taylor hugged her friend good night, and suggested she be ready at eight the following morning so they could have breakfast together.

Lucas was already late for his meeting. Taylor suggested he go on. She could certainly find her way to their room. The doors were numbered, after all. Lucas wouldn’t hear of it. He insisted on making certain she was under lock and key before he went anywhere.

They got into a rather spirited debate concerning the issue of safety in hotels. She felt she was well protected by the vigilant staff. He was certain there were evildoers lurking in every shadow just waiting to pounce on an unescorted woman.

The heated discussion ended when he opened the door to their suite. Taylor rushed through the opening and then came to an abrupt stop. She let out a whispered exclamation. “Oh, Mr. Ross, it’s quite lovely, isn’t it?”

He smiled over the wonder in her voice. He was a little surprised by her reaction, however, for he assumed she’d been raised in surroundings far more elegant than anything Boston had to offer. She should not only be used to luxury, she should expect it.

He couldn’t help but comment on her reaction. “I would think you’d take all this for granted by now.”

She shook her head. She was too busy looking over the room to turn to him when she answered. “I have learned, Mr. Ross, never to take anything for granted.”

Lucas shut the door, then leaned against it and folded his arms across his chest. He knew he was late for his meeting, yet he didn’t want to leave Taylor. It was the first time they’d been alone in a long while, and he found he wanted to spend just a few more minutes with her.

He liked looking at her. Her every expression was so genuine. Her reactions were damned refreshing, and even when she was disagreeing with him and making him crazed with her illogical, impractical opinions, a part of him was both pleased and amused by her stubbornness and her innocence.

He liked her enthusiasm. Now that he thought about it, he realized he’d never heard one word of complaint from her since the night he’d taken hold of her hand and escorted her out of the ballroom in London. She’d even been polite and agreeable when she thought they were going to drown during that godawful storm. The only worry he remembered her expressing was for her friend, Victoria.

Lucas let out a sigh. Taylor wasn’t at all what he supposed she should be.

She wasn’t paying any attention to her husband. She was too occupied exploring her surroundings to notice how closely she was being observed.

She thought the room was every bit as elegant as Versailles and made that remark in another whisper of awe. The carpet was the palest of blue in color and so thick and plush she felt as though she were sinking into it. She wanted to kick off her shoes and walk across the room in her bare feet, but she resisted the urge for it wouldn’t have been ladylike.

Directly in front of her was a lounging area. A gold-broca

ded sofa, decorated with blue pillows, faced the door, though it was still a good fifteen feet away. She immediately went over to test the sofa and found it was every bit as hard as a rock. She still thought it was quite wonderful. There was a low wooden table in front of the sofa. It had been highly polished. She couldn’t resist running her fingers across the top.

“I can feel the shine in this cherry wood,” she remarked, though she knew what she’d just said was completely illogical. It made enough sense to her, and she supposed to Lucas as well, for he didn’t argue the point with her.

Two pale blue high-backed chairs flanked the ends of the sofa. Taylor felt compelled to test both of them. She then declared they were extremely comfortable.

To her left were two wardrobes, identical in size and design. A door leading to the washroom was at the end of the adjacent wall. To her right was an arched alcove with drapes tied back against the sides. She could see the bed from where she stood. It was a huge thing and without posters. A gold coverlet decorated the bed. There were blue and gold pillows lining the headboard. The sleeping area had obviously been designed for intimacy, and it was, she decided, the most romantic chamber in all the world. With the drapes closed, privacy would be absolute.

Victoria would love it. She deserved such elegance and splendor. Taylor decided that as soon as Lucas left Boston, she would switch rooms with her friend. Taylor knew she would have to remain in Boston at least a week so that she would have sufficient time to purchase the rest of the things she would need in the wilderness. There was also the possibility Victoria would require her assistance in the purchase of a suitable home, and Taylor wasn’t about to go anywhere until her friend was settled.

“Do you want me to unlock your luggage or help you unpack?”

Taylor was surprised by the offer. Were American men used to doing women’s work?

“Thank you, sir, but no,” she answered. “I’m only going to unpack enough for four or five days. How long are you planning to remain in Boston?”