Page 52 of Revelations of A Secret Princess

Her mouth twisted in a smile that held no humour. ‘Not to the palace. Nor to myfamily.’ She drew a sustaining breath, remembering how frightening it had been, hustled from the airport by a team of anonymous men who wouldn’t even speak to her, much less tell her where she was going. ‘I was taken from a private airport to a convent on the other end of the island. I was kept on the estate there till after the birth. My only contact with my family was a note from my father saying he’d see me after my little problem was resolved.’

‘And you agreed.’ Was Jake’s anger directed at her or her father? Suddenly tired, Caro didn’t care.

‘Of course not. I walked out several times. When that didn’t work I tried to sneak away. I didn’t get far. His security team had the place under surveillance and they were very...efficient.’ Even now the sight of her father’s minders made her feel sick in the stomach. ‘I had no phone or computer and my friends didn’t know where I was. My father said nothing but I discovered later that“sources close to the royal family”hinted I was recuperating from an unspecified health condition.’

Caro saw the flash of confirmation in Jake’s expression and knew he’d read those rumours that she’d been in rehab or recovering from a breakdown.

Sitting, recounting those days was too much. She got to her feet and paced to the window, clutching the curtain as she looked across the royal gardens, lit with thousands of lights for tonight’s party. Her father would be furious at the scandal she’d caused. Already gossip would be in full swing.

But now the prospect of his temper didn’t make her cringe. She wouldn’t give in to his bullying any longer now she had something to fight for. Ariane.

‘I gave birth there.’ It was easier speaking about it with her back to Jake. Despite her father’s wishes, Caro had resolved to raise her baby, even if it meant leaving St Ancilla with nothing. But she’d underestimated her father and her weakness after the birth.

‘It was long and difficult.’ She’d lost a lot of blood and drifted in and out of consciousness. ‘I never heard the baby cry. I didn’t see her, just the midwife’s back, taking her away. They told me she was stillborn.’

Caro swallowed and unlocked her stiff fingers from their death grip on the curtain. She pressed her hands to her stomach, remembering the terrible anguish of that night, fighting the urge to bow her shoulders and curl in on herself.

She focused on the garden illumination and the strains of music in the distance.

‘It took a while to recover. Afterwards I refused to return here, except for official events. I made my home at the far end of the island, working with children.’ Caro cleared her throat, striving for a lighter tone. No need to explain that after losing her baby, she’d been driven to connect with other children.

‘Recently I was contacted by the younger of the two midwives who’d been at the birth. She’d just had her first child and...’ Caro faltered then made herself continue. ‘She said she’d always felt guilty about what happened that night. But it was only when her daughter was born that she knew she had to tell me the truth. She said my baby was alive. That it was taken away, she assumed for adoption.’

Caro forced down the tangle of distress choking her throat.

She’d have to do better than this when she confronted her father. The knowledge gave her the energy to turn and look at Jake.

To her surprise he was no longer sitting, but stood mere paces away, on the other side of the window. His expression was unreadable yet he radiated tension. It hummed from him, making the hairs on her arms stand up.

‘You know the rest.’

His hooded gaze raked her. ‘I have the resources to check your story.’

Because even now he didn’t believe her? The knowledge sent adrenaline buzzing through her, as if she’d taken a shot of spirits. A laugh emerged from her dry mouth. ‘Is that a warning? Go ahead. The more corroborating evidence, the stronger my claim to Ariane.’

It was the wrong thing to say. That half-lidded stare turned laser bright and, despite her resolve, trepidation scuttered down her backbone.

But Caro was done with giving in to bossy men. She wanted her daughter and no one was going to stop her. She met Jake’s narrowed eyes with determination.

Jake gritted his teeth, refusing to argue. Time, and the best investigators and lawyers, would give him the ammunition he needed. No matter what had happened in the past, Ariane was his niece and she needed him. He’d protect her with his life.

Yet Caro Rivage muddied the waters with her story. He’d felt anger and sympathy stir. Dangerous undercurrents when this woman was his rival for Ariane.

She was challenging, dangerous. Around her his emotions became stronger, more unwieldy.

Through her story he’d felt horror, sympathy and outrage but even now he didn’t know whether she’d manipulated him. Her story was far-fetched and he wanted to dismiss it as fantasy. Except no one was that good an actor. He’d not only seen but felt her distress and pain.

There was a chance her story was true.

When she’d talked of her lying scum boyfriend her expression had revealed bitter betrayal and Jake had felt the urge to smash the guy’s face. His skin crawled at the idea of her father keeping her captive, cut off from friends.

As for stealing her baby... Surely no father would do that!

Yet Jake knew that simply having children didn’t make someone a caring parent. His mother was a case in point.

Had Caro given him a sob story to win him over while she found a way to get Ariane? Watching that challenging stare, he was torn between doubt and the desire to believe.

And desire of a different kind, for carnal pleasure. Their quick coupling hadn’t eradicated it. Instead it was as if one taste of her no-holds-barred passion left him addicted.

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