Page 60 of Revelations of A Secret Princess

Caro wasn’t sure whether to be pleased. She should be. It meant he trusted her. Yet given her deep-seated, confusing feelings for him, ‘friend’ was such a lukewarm word.

‘Of course.’ Looking into his eyes, she felt a zap of energy that warned she was vulnerable to this man. Hurriedly she gathered her wits. ‘And now? What happens next?’

Caro would call her friends in St Ancilla and her lawyer, to warn them the King would be on a rampage when he discovered she’d left. She didn’t think he’d take out his wrath on them but he could be unstable when crossed.

‘Next?’ Jake’s smile was easy. ‘We’ll work it out one step at a time. There’s no rush. For now concentrate on the fact you and Ariane are safe.’

Caro swallowed. He didn’t want her thanks yet he gave her so much, refuge when she needed it most. They still had to work out Ariane’s future. Ostensibly they were on opposing sides, yet Jake treated her as someone to be protected.

The knowledge stirred the most poignant feelings. Here was a man she could respect as well as...

‘And us? Is there an us?’ Instinctively she lifted her chin, ready to pretend it didn’t matter if he said last night’s passion had been a mistake.

Jake’s face turned unreadable.

She’d give anything to know what he thought. Did he regret having sex? Was it gauche and embarrassing to mention it now they’d moved on from those moments of heightened emotion?

She wished she knew one-night-stand etiquette.

‘Do you want there to be?’

Caro had imagined this morning that confronting her hectoring father would take all her courage. Yet, looking into that piercing gaze that gave nothing away, her heart thudding against her ribs, she discovered her courage could still be tested.

She craved more of what she’d experienced with Jake, that soul-searing passion that went beyond anything she’d known. Yet with everything so uncertain—

‘It’s okay. You don’t need to answer now, Caro. Shall we take that one step at a time too?’

She slicked her dry lips, searching for the right words when a shout made her turn.

Rounding the corner of the castle were Jake’s secretary Neil and Ariane, hopping beside him.

Abruptly it hit her, the fact that she was here, safe for now from her father’s machinations and with her daughter. Her incredible, lovely daughter. Caro’s breath shuddered through her as relief and joy filled her.

‘Come on, Caro.’ She felt Jake’s hand warm at the small of her back. ‘It’s time to see your little girl.’

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