Page 1 of The Prince's Seduction

Chapter One

“You are moving to where?” Clara McKellar’s mother gaped at her in absolute horror. “Darling this is a bit of an overly drastic move. Don’t you think?”

Clara threw her mother a weary glance.

“I have taken the time to think things through mom, and I feel- no I know that I am making the right decision. I am moving to Saudi Arabia,” she declared with finality. She had always wanted to visit the Middle Eastern country.

Abril McKellar’s shoulders dropped.

“Dios, but that’s on the other side of the world,” she said. The thought of her youngest daughter moving so far away was difficult for her to digest.

“I know,” Clara mumbled. That was exactly what she wanted. She wanted to get as far away as she could from her life in Connecticut. She let out a sigh, after everything she had been through, she needed a fresh start worlds away. She was tired of the pitying looks she received from family and friends. There were times when she wished she could magically disappear into thin air. Her divorce had been final for almost six months now, for goodness sake. Clara felt that is was full time for everyone to stop feeling sorry for her. So what if she still wallowed in self-pity and grief? It was her own business and everyone else needed to stop making her feel worse about her situation.

“Your father is not going to be happy darling,” Abril warned. “And you know I am not thrilled either.”

Clara threw her mother a sugary smile and leaned in to give her a quick peck on the cheek.

“Well, the last time I checked I am a grown twenty-five-year-old woman, so I am free to make any decision I want.”

Abril huffed and sprang from her seat at the kitchen counter. She busied herself stirring her famous chicken stew.

“I don’t disagree, but maybe you are not thinking clearly. Such a big decision shouldn’t be made when you are… emotionally distressed.”

Rolling her eyes in exasperation Clara heaved a sigh. “My thinking and decision-making abilities are quite clear, mother.” She was upset that her mother brought up her emotional state. She wasn’t entirely wrong about her daughter being emotionally distressed. She did, after all, suffer extreme heartbreak. She had been married to Jonathan Grey for four years; since she was only twenty-one years old. Looking back, Clara now regretted not listening to her parents. They told her that she and Jonathan were too young to get married and that they should wait a few more years to be sure. But, the young couple had stars in their eyes and thought themselves too madly in love to wait.

Clara was a hopeless romantic and wore her heart on her sleeve back then. She was ecstatic to be swept off her feet by the young, handsome Jonathan. She’d had dreams of a riding off into the sunset with her one true love. She had pictured happily ever after with children and a white picket fence. But she had sadly been disillusioned, all too soon.

It had become obvious to Clara within the first year of marriage that she had made a mistake. She had tried her best for the next four years to hold the marriage together. Before she could realize that she was the only one making the effort, Jonathan announced that he was in love with his co-worker and Clara’s best friend. Apparently, they had been having an affair for two years. He wanted a divorce, immediately, so that he could marry Lauren.

Clara could still remember the shock, disgust, and devastation that she felt almost a year ago. How had she not seen the signs? There had to have been signs. Of course, she was so busy trying to make their marriage work that she probably wouldn’t have noticed if there had been flashing neon signs in her face. The betrayal of her husband and best friend was almost too much for her to bear, but she had given Jonathan what he wanted and signed the divorce papers. Why wouldn’t she? They had been long over anyway.

Clara made it her mission to avoid the two lovers, even though they selfishly decided to stay in Connecticut; always in her face. There were moments when she felt hatred for the two people she thought had loved her. But she realized that she couldn’t live with such hatred in her heart, it was not in her character. She had been tempted many times to warn her former best friend of what she was getting into with the spineless and immature Jonathan, but she decided that she would let Lauren find out the hard way. She deserved a shred of vengeance. Clara tried not to feel guilty about anticipating the moment when Lauren and Jonathan’s relationship crumbled. But at the moment, with the couple’s presence constantly in her face and the pity from everyone else around her, she simply needed to get away.

“My mind is made up mom, and I will not be deterred. Besides, I have already accepted a job there. I will be fine, more than fine actually,” Clara finished with a smile. Thanks to a connection she had in Saudi Arabia, she had gotten wind of the Princess needing a personal assistant, preferably from the western culture. She thought the job was perfect; she had years of experience as a PA and she spoke Arabic fluently. Everyone always wondered what good studying Arabic would do, but it sure came in handy now.

She had been obsessed with the Arabic culture since she was a child. Her childhood friend who was from Saudi Arabia had introduced her to the culture and she had fallen in love with the language, the history and the people. Amani had long since moved back to Saudi Arabia, but they remained in contact. It was she who suggested Clara visit her in the near future. Clara had run with the idea of visiting and decided- why not just move there? Of course, Amani had been shocked, but she immediately delved into finding Clara a job.

Abril let out a groan.

“Clara what if something happens to you over there? What if you get kidnapped or-or worse?”

“For goodness sake, mom, I won’t get kidnapped. Why would you even think that?”

Abril studied her daughter. She really was a beauty with her near-perfect bone structure, long luxurious chestnut colored hair, almond shaped hazel eyes and full lips. She had a small frame but the Latin genes that she inherited from her, blessed her with curves in all the right places. Abril knew that her daughter’s good looks would bring unwanted attention.

“Look at you. You will be a gorgeous young girl, alone in a foreign country. That is the perfect recipe for kidnap. What if some… Sultan sees you and decides to capture you and force you to be a part of his harem?”

Clara blinked once, and then burst into a fit of giggles.

“What? Someone has obviously been indulging a little too much in the fictional romance novels.” She continued through bouts of laughter, “Honestly mother, that scenario is not only ridiculous, but it is highly unlikely.”

“Stanger things have happened,” Abril defended. “Oh querida en el amor, sweetheart. You can’t blame a mother for worrying about her baby girl.”

Clara sighed.

“I know mom and thank you. But you don’t have to worry, really. I will be fine, I won’t be alone. Amani is there, remember? She will look out for me until I adjust.”

Abril was a bit comforted that her daughter had a friend in the country. But she was still troubled by the distance. She sighed in defeat. She knew there was no changing her daughter’s mind once it was set on something. She had always been as stubborn as a mule. Of course, she did get that particular trait from her mother.

“Have you told your sisters?”

“Not yet. I plan to get everyone together and drop the news this weekend. Then, I’m off to Saudi Arabia in two weeks.”

“So soon?” Abril gasped. “You should think about-”

“Save it, mom,” Clara said throwing a hand up. “I’m going and that is that.” I really need to get out of here, she thought. Two weeks wasn’t soon enough.

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