Luckily, having spent her youth avoiding the guards and servants, she knew her way around the palace. She slipped into the hallway. A quick check both ways let her know that the coast was clear. Her gaze latched on the French doors at the end of the hallway. Although freedom was within reach, she forced herself to walk at a reasonable pace.
She inhaled a deep breath, hoping to calm her rising nerves. All she wanted now was to escape the curious looks and the inevitable questions regarding her showing up as Luca’s date. When her hand grasped the brass handle, she glanced over her shoulder. So far, so good.
She let herself out onto the patio that was surrounded by the royal gardens. She looked left and then right. All alone. She breathed her first easy breath all evening. Whatever had made her think that coming here would be a good idea?
She moved to the far end of the patio and leaned her palms against the cold concrete balustrade supported by dozens of tiny pillars. The entire palace was a work of art. And just now the gardens were aglow beneath the full moon. It was breathtaking—
“There you are.” Luca’s voice came from behind her.
The breath caught in Elena’s throat. She’d been so close to making a successful escape. Why had she stopped? Maybe because she knew this would be the last time she would be welcome at the palace. Once word got out about all her ill-advised activities, no one would want her around—most especially Luca.
Steeling herself, she leveled her shoulders, plastered a smile on her face and turned. “Luca, I didn’t hear you approach.”
“And I didn’t hear you say anything about sneaking off into the night.” His dark brows were drawn together.
“Who said I was sneaking away?”
“I did. And you were.”
The smile was getting harder and harder to maintain. “Really, Luca? Sometimes you imagine too much.”
“Don’t try to brush me off. I know you, Elena. You put on a pretty good show this evening for the other guests, but I can see you aren’t happy.”
“Of course I’m happy. I’m honored that your sister still thinks so highly of our childhood friendship to invite me to such an event.”
“Annabelle likes everyone.” And then, as though he realized how that might sound, he added, “But you meant a lot to her, especially when our mother died.”
Elena had tried her best to be there for both Luca and Annabelle, but he’d pushed her away. It was as if overnight Luca had built a wall around himself and no matter how hard she tried, there’d been no scaling that wall. Eventually she gave up.
“I don’t belong here,” Elena said.
“What? Of course you do.”
She wasn’t going to argue with him. Her gaze strayed to the sweeping steps that led to the garden. “I made an appearance, and now it’s time that I go. Please tell your sister I had a good time.”
Luca crossed his arms over his broad chest. “Tell her yourself.”
The abruptness of his comment caught her off guard. “I...I will.” A written message would be so much easier than a phone conversation where inevitable questions would arise. “I’ll drop her a note tomorrow.”
“This isn’t about you fitting in. It’s about us. Isn’t it?”
She met his unwavering gaze. “Why would you think that?”
“Because I really screwed up in Paris. It was all a big mistake. I wasn’t myself that night. And if you give me a chance to make it up to you, I swear it’ll never happen again.”
The more he tried to explain, the more his pointed words poked at her hope that they’d get past this awkward stage. But now she knew the unvarnished truth. And it was worse than she’d thought.
Having no response for him, she turned to continue walking.
“You can’t just walk away,” he called out.
Why did he have to keep pushing? He wasn’t going to like anything she had to say. It was best to keep moving. She took another step.
“Elena, what is it going to take for you to forgive and forget?”
She turned, catching the frustration written so clearly on his face. “You don’t understand. The past can’t be that easily erased.”
“What are you saying?” He stepped closer to her. “Elena, what is going on?”
Elena pressed her lips together. She’d said far more than she’d intended at this juncture. And now she’d aroused Luca’s suspicion. There was one thing that Luca excelled at and that was ferreting out the truth. If she didn’t get out of here soon, her secret would be out. And this royal scandal—the earl having a baby with a commoner, the daughter of the help—would be the talk of the palace and beyond.
She knew it would happen sooner or later, but she’d been hoping for later, after Annabelle’s moment in the spotlight. After all Annabelle had been through tracking down her mother’s murderer and then being held at gunpoint, her friend deserved this bit of happiness.
“I’m not leaving here until you talk to me,” Luca said. “So out with it.”
“I just meant we can’t pretend that night didn’t happen.”
He didn’t say anything for a moment, as though he were considering the sincerity of her statement. “I understand. But I don’t want to lose our friendship.”
Before she could say a word, the sound of voices and approaching footsteps interrupted. Elena glanced past Luca and spotted Prince Alexandro alongside another of Luca’s cousins. The prince glanced up and surprise flashed in his eyes.
“I’m sorry. We didn’t know anyone was out here,” Prince Alexandro said. “We’ll go.”
“No. Stay. You aren’t interrupting anything,” Elena hastily responded.
The prince’s gaze moved between her and Luca. “You’re sure?”
Luca hesitated and then nodded.
“Good,” the prince said, approaching them. “Luca, we need you to settle a disagreement.”
The men quickly got into a heated discussion about the upcoming European football season. Elena immediately tuned out the conversation. She wasn’t a sports fan unless it was auto racing. There was just something about a hot guy and a fast car. Her mind immediately conjured up Luca in a sleek racecar. The image definitely worked for her. But just as quickly as the image came to her, she dismissed it.
With the men now deep in conversation, Luca had his back to her. She took advantage of the moment to follow through with her original plan to steal away into the night. Trying to act as casual as possible, she quietly strolled down the steps and entered the garden.
When she reached the other side of the garden, she slipped through the gate and entered the open field illuminated only by moonlight. At last, she was free.
With her hand splayed over her midsection, she said, “Don’t worry, little one. We’ll tell your father. The time just has to be right.”
* * *
A late-night phone call was never a good thing.
In Luca’s case, it always meant that his life was about to take a turn for the worse. He doubted tonight would be any different.
“Father?”
“Luca, you answered.” Surprise rang out in his father’s