Page 1 of The Duke

Chapter 1

Seraphina thought she had prepared herself to see Trane, thought she could walk calmly, speak in a normal voice, and pretend he did not affect her. But as soon as she entered the door to King Nico’s wedding reception, she knew her pretense would never be possible. Her eyes found him right away, and he found her. It didn’t help that he stood up abruptly when she entered. His eyes warmed her wherever his gaze travelled over her body. And he was shocked to see her, that much was obvious.

She smirked. Perfect. She loved to keep people on their toes. The day she became predictable was the day she changed her name and moved to the arctic just to keep things interesting.

No matter how much Seraphina had tried to brace herself, she still almost teetered over in her heels.Curse these high spikes.Surely a man invented such a torturous device. She gripped her camera and concentrated on remaining upright.

Franco put a hand at the small of her back. “Steady boss.”

She swallowed and nodded. “Thanks.” She was here to do a job. Proving she was more than just Princess Seraphina, the eldest Rolana daughter meant she could succeed as a reporter, meant that her journalism degree mattered. She held the camera up to her face and started snapping shots of anything. After about twenty or so, she slipped the strap over her arm, took out her notebook and pulled a pencil from behind her ear.

She had never been able to respond sensibly where Trane was concerned. She dared the quickest flicker of a glance in his direction. Subtlety, never his strength, he still stared at her.

The room was lavish. White folds of silk hung from the ceiling and draped this way and that, billowing to create the sense of dancing in the clouds. Though the party was many hours in the making, only the diehards were still here and out dancing, Seraphina had wanted to make an appearance, represent her family. None of the other four siblings could attend and her parents were aging and rarely left their summer estate.

She had a second motivation for coming. A shot at a feature in tomorrow’s paper. The wedding was the story of all stories in any of the nearby nations. And she wanted some first-hand shots that others might not have taken.

A quiet voice inside told her that all this baloney about a feature story and family duty were just elaborate excuses to run into Trane.

Was she that pathetic? Would she take him back if he came begging? No. She wouldn’t. Ok, maybe she would, if he were serious. She couldn’t help craving the sweet torture of seeing him, even from across the room. Oh brother, her intentions were clear as a foggy day across the Mediterranean.

Franco cleared his throat. “Weren’t we going to do interviews?”

They hadn’t moved. Two steps into the room and Trane’s gaze had stopped her cold.

“Of course.” She looked anywhere but at Franco. Or Trane.

“You could just go talk to him and get it over with.”

She looked at Trane again and hissed, “Stop talking about him.” When Franco shared her gaze in Trane’s direction she added, “Don’t look at him!” When he ignored her and looked anyway, she waved her hands, “Franco!”

And then because they looked ridiculous and because Trane and King Nico Valdez had seen it all, she adjusted her camera strap and said, “Come on.”

She lifted her head, placed one spiky heel on the floor in front of the other as she walked with a confidence she tried to feel.I am a professional.She repeated over and over until she at last arrived in front of Trane.

She took a deep breath and held out her hand, and said, “I am a professional.” She bit her lip in dismay and wished to turn around and hide.

Nico laughed and turned away. Which made her feel more ridiculous.

“No, I mean, hello, Trane. Congratulations, your majesty.”

But Trane just stood there, dark wavy hair, perfect broad shoulders, tanned skin. His eyes drank her in; he never could hide what he was thinking. It made her want to step into his arms like she used to. But the rest of him seemed frozen. A part of her was thrilled that even if he never called or texted like he used to, he enjoyed her when she was right in front of him.

Lucan kicked his foot but Trane did not move. This couldn’t get any more awkward. She cleared her throat. “So, I was wondering if I could get a shot with all the brothers?” She smiled and held up her camera.

This seemed to break Trane out of his trance.

“Seraphina. Good to see you.” He reached for her hand and brought it to his mouth.

His soft lips, pressing against her knuckles left a tingle on her skin. She felt a ridiculous urge to give her hand back to him for a repeat gesture. His eyes watched her. He hadn’t yet looked away. Not really. Her face heated with a rush of exhilaration at the close attention.

She cleared her throat. “How about you stay sitting, just as you are and I’ll get a shot of the dance floor behind you and our lovely new queen out there.” She loved Jo. What a wonderful fresh new figurehead. Watching her move, she chuckled, “That woman has more energy…”

Nico chuckled, “She’s fantastic.” His eyes, following his new wife told Seraphina all she needed to know about the love he felt. The sight made her smile and a wistful sort of butterfly fluttered around in her stomach. Perhaps someday she would find a man to adore her with his eyes.Like Trane was doing. Except, she amended, he would need to do the other things that mattered too.

Franco nudged her, and she got to work. She snapped shot after shot of the incredibly photogenic group. And then took quotes from each brother. Then, because she wanted more time with Trane, she said, “Let’s get a quick shot of the Duke and Tripp.” Tripp jumped up. He was not often featured anywhere, but she appreciated his quiet way with people. And she had a personal interest in his efforts to save the oceanic wildlife. She stood them together, Tripp in front of Trane. “We’ll call this, The Duke’s Brother.” She smirked. Tripp shrugged, “It’s as good a title as I’m going to get.”

Lucan snorted, “As if Prince isn’t enough of one.”

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