Page 109 of Raul
Raul’s lips tightened in a look of disapproval, but he said nothing. However, when he helped her cross between the two boats, he treated her as though she were an invalid, his strength like an oak tree for her to lean on. As soon as they were both aboard, the helmsman cast off the line and leaped across to the snorkeling boat.
She turned to Raul in surprise.
“Don’t worry,” he said, taking the wheel. “I know where I’m going.” He pointed to the seat beside his. “Make sure to stay here under the canopy where you won’t be in the sun.”
“How do you know I shouldn’t be exposed to sunlight?” She narrowed her eyes at him. “I thought even a prince couldn’t breach doctor-patient confidentiality.”
He shook his head at her. “I saw the box of antibiotics you were carrying when you got off the Guardia Maritima ship.”
“Oh.” Her prickliness was for her own protection, but that didn’t make it all right to snap at him.
He hesitated a moment, as though he wanted to say something more. Then he increased speed and pulled away. She turned to see Bertrand and Solange staring after her with shock on their faces. She lifted a hand to wave, and they returned the gesture in a baffled way.
Raul steered the boat in a graceful circle and gunned the engine so that it was impossible to communicate without shouting. Erica perched on the seat beside Raul’s, sneaking glances at his strongly carved profile. He caught her and gave her a dazzling smile before she could look away.
That smile had to be a good sign, right? He wouldn’t smile at her that way if he were here to relay some kind of bad news. What bad news would necessitate the Crown Prince of Caleva flying partway around the world anyway? The dragon had died? The eggs had been stolen again? Al-Buya was making trouble? All absurd.
She went back to admiring Raul. He handled the boat like a pro, but of course he would. When you grew up in an island country, you spent time on the water. And princes had fancy watercraft to play with.
The boat slowed, and Erica pulled her gaze away from Raul. They were entering a small cove, circled on three sides by white sandy beaches and palm trees, the water a brilliant turquoise, as it always was around the island. It reminded her of La Sorpresa de los Piratas off the coast of Caleva, except this cove wasn’t a perfect volcanic circle.
Raul killed the engine and scrambled forward to drop the anchor, pulling the boat to a gentle halt. Then he moved back to extend the canopy over the seating area in the stern.
“Now,” he said, rubbing his hands together in a nervous gesture. “I come bearing gifts. Why don’t you make yourself comfortable in the stern while I retrieve them from the cabin?”
Gifts?Qué locura! What craziness is this?He didn’t fly to the Caribbean to bring her presents.
He disappeared down the ladder before she could say anything, so she settled on the blue cushions of the long bench seat at the back of the boat. Her throat was tight with nerves, making her swallow a couple of times to try to loosen it.
When Raul came out of the cabin, carrying a large white rectangular box topped by a shoebox, her heart fluttered uncomfortably.
As he placed the boxes beside her on the cushions, he said, “These aren’t really gifts, I suppose. They’re more…replacements.”
Based on the dimensions of the box, she had an inkling of what might be in it. However, he wouldn’t have traveled halfway around the world to deliverreplacements.She wanted to tell him to cut to the chase and explain why he was here, but she also wanted to spend as much time alone with him as she could. It might be her last chance.
She picked up the larger box, untying the green silk ribbon and lifting off the top. Inside, bronze fabric shimmered, and when she lifted it partway out, she could see it was exactly the same dress she had worn to the wedding reception. The expensive gown that had been destroyed in the dragon rescue.
“It’s my dress.” She stroked the gleaming fabric in astonishment. “I can’t believe you found the same one.”
“You looked so beautiful that it was burned into my memory, so I could describe it in detail to Yvette. She got our personal shoppers to scour the internet for it.” He gestured to the shoebox. “Your shoes I retrieved from the inflatable, but they were soaking wet, so Yvette acquired a new pair.”
He had gone to so much trouble for her. And he thought she had looked beautiful. Could he be here to…No, it isn’t possible. She quashed the flicker of hope.
“I was going to send them to you,” he continued. “I owed you that for your help. But I decided to deliver them in person.”
She looked up at him, her chest clogged with emotion. “I love this dress, but I would never have bought myself another one. Thank you!”
“You looked like a goddess that night,” he said. “A magnificent warrior goddess who could control the elements. Sky, sea, and earth.”
Her breath whooshed out of her lungs, sucked out by the force of his words. He thought she was agoddess?He wouldn’t say that if he didn’t…
Then he pulled a small green velvet bag out of his shorts pocket. “This is an actual gift, something to remember our night of adventure by.”
As she took the present, he locked gazes with her, the blue depths of his eyes holding a plea that she couldn’t interpret. What did he want from her?
She unknotted the cord, tipping the bag’s contents onto her palm. A coil of gold chain gleamed in the sun. Attached to it was a pendant with an irregular gold frame and prongs holding a deep blue-green fragment. “Oh my God, it’s a dragon eggshell,” she said, brushing it with her fingertip to feel the tiny indentations of its natural texture. “It’s stunning. Extraordinary. I don’t know how to thank you.”
This was beyond a gift. This was rare and special. It had to mean more than mere gratitude, didn’t it? She looked up at his face, trying to read the emotions in the angle of his jaw and the slant of his lips, but all she saw was uncertainty, a quality she didn’t associate with Raul.
