Page 41 of Lorenzo & Lily

“We won’t.”

His daughter would have his last name. “Lily–”

“Her name’s already Santoro.”

He sucked in a breath. “What?”

“I don’t know if being a princess means it has to change to something else, but I put your name on the birth certificate.”

He was still breathless. “What?”

“I know it was risky. I almost didn’t do it, but I wanted her to have your name. After I broke things off with you, I moved here to Masillia. No other royals lived here then, as you were still recovering in Valentia. I gave birth at a Masillian hospital, and no one there blinked an eye when I told them her name. I suppose few seem to think about the fact that the royals have a last name; fewer still seem to know it’s Santoro. You’re usually referred to as Prince Lorenzo or Captain Lorenzo in the press. No one connected the dots or, if they did, they kept it quiet. I mean, it’s not as though anyone knew we were together. It was always a secret.”

He could hear the pain in her voice. They had kept it a secret, partly because his convalescence had been a secret as well. If they’d announced their relationship, the press and public would have known their prince had been wounded, which mission he’d been wounded on, and that he was suffering from PTSD. The public scrutiny would have been unbearable while he recovered.

He reached over and took her hand. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize how much it would hurt you when we keep our relationship a secret. I certainly wasn’t ashamed of you.”

Her voice had gone breathy again. “Really?”

“Really and truly. I just didn’t want either of us in trouble, especially since patients and volunteers weren’t allowed to fraternize. I actually couldn’t believe an angel had somehow fallen in love with me. I know I don’t deserve you, but I really hope you’ll consider a future with me. I can do better, I promise.”

Her mouth was agog. “You think thatyoudon’t deserveme?”

“No, but I am glad you gave Liliana my name anyway.” Why did he feel so proud knowing his daughter bore his name? “That’ll make things a little easier for her. We can discuss her first name tomorrow night.”

“I’ll talk to her about it in the morning. But, Lorenzo, we should talk about this.”

“About the move? Yes, you’re right.”

“No, about what you said, about thinking you don’t deserve me.”

He just couldn’t handle her response right now. What if she agreed with him and called the whole thing off? “We’ll discuss it tomorrow night, all right? Regarding the move, I’ll have some men and women come in the morning. They’ll pack everything up for you. All you need to do is tell them what stays and what goes. If you want to sell any of it, let me know and I’ll arrange it. You’ll keep the money, of course. We could also donate the items, if you prefer.”

She paused a beat, then nodded. “Okay. I’ll think about it.”

“Just tell me, or tell the movers if you want to donate it; they can drop those pieces off after they move everything else.”

“What about my lease? I still have seven months left on it.”

“Would you approve my paying it off for you?”

She pursed her lips. “I don’t know.”

“If it’s important to you, then you can pay me back later. Let me do this for you. Let me help you.”

After a few moment’s deliberation, she nodded. “All right. Yes, but I’ll pay you back. Will the movers unpack everything for me, too?”

“They can. I don’t want box cutters lying around where Liliana might be, but otherwise I’ll leave that up to you.”

“I’ll think about that, too.”

“While you’re thinking, consider the fact that all my brothers, plus my sister-in-law and other family are all staying at the castle with me. They’ll want to have dinner with both of you tomorrow, if you’re not too exhausted.”

Her hand went to her hair. “I couldn’t possibly.”

He pulled her hand away. “You could possibly. You’re beautiful, remember?”

“Thank you,” she whispered.

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