“You’re wrong, Owen,” Delfyne was saying, and for a moment he thought she’d read his mind. “I don’t want more. I want less. Just for this summer, I want to be like everyone else. I want to see what other people see and to live like they do. If people know I’m a princess I can’t do that. All right?”
He frowned. Although he could see her point… “I may have kept your visit to myself but now that you’re here, this plan sounds like a recipe for disaster. I’ve never been good at pretense.”
“You don’t have to pretend. Just leave a few little things out. Like my title.”
He couldn’t keep from smiling. “Not exactly a little thing.”
“Just for this summer. After that—”
They would never see each other again. She would marry her prince, and he would go on with life here at the ranch that had sustained his family for generations. His life would be just the way he liked it. What happened at the end of her time here wouldn’t be a problem. But what was happening right now…
“If you’re worried about Andreus being upset—” she began.
Now he did laugh. “I promised to keep you free from harm, not to keep from upsetting your brother. He might not have told you this, but I pretty much drove him nuts most of the time we were room-mates. I’m stubborn, and so is he. Andreus isn’t the problem. I’m just trying to envision the pitfalls if I agree to keep your identity a secret.”
A light came into her eyes, and her lips lifted into a smile that made Owen’s breath catch. “Think of the pitfalls if you don’t keep me a secret. You said that your friend—Suze?—was a talker. If she talks and tells a few friends and they tell a few friends and then the newspapers find out, you’ll have half the population of Montana lining up outside your ranch.”
“You think?” he said, holding back a smile, wondering how far she would take this.
“At least,” she said, “Andreus told me that you like your privacy. I’m to behave and not annoy you.”
“Are you now?” Owen seriously needed to smile, but he fought the urge.
“I tend to be a bit impetuous at times, and that always annoys my family. Andreus asked me not to do that with you.”
“And you don’t think pretending you’re someone you’re not is impetuous?”
Delfyne bit her lip. “Do you?” She twisted her hands in her lap, and suddenly Owen was tired of teasing her. This situation hadn’t been created by her or by him. This had been Andreus’s idea, and much as he loved the man and owed him, it was a terrible one. Besides, she was right about all of his neighbors and the press coming to call if the truth came out. Heck, he had a ranch to run. He couldn’t spend his time dodging reporters. He did like his privacy.
No, he needed his privacy. If the press came calling, they would want to know about Delfyne but also about the man keeping her here. Then they would want a little history, and if they delved into his background, the tragedy of his past… He didn’t want anyone writing sob stories about how he’d lost his child and his wife and now a beautiful, unattainable princess had come to call.
Owen’s blood chilled at the thought.
“Who do you want to be?” he demanded suddenly.
She stared straight into his eyes. “Just Delfyne. That’s all. Just an ordinary woman.”
Oh yeah, people were going to believe that this woman was ordinary. She had a foreign lilt to her voice, skin like expensive silk and a body that would make even the tamest of men take notice. But he hadn’t been lying when he’d said that he wasn’t good at pretending. He’d leave that part to her.
“Here we are,” he said as he made the last turn and the house came into view.
“Oh my.”
Yes, that just about said it all, didn’t it? “Not exactly what a princess is used to.”
“It’s built of logs!”
“You noticed that, did you?”
“But…it’s also very big.”
That was being kind. The house meandered and had a huge wraparound porch. It filled up a lot of space.
“I have a habit of building when I need to think. Or not think.”
“You must need to think—or not think—a lot. Andreus never mentioned this.”
“Yes, well, I guess the subject of architecture doesn’t come up a lot in royal conversations.” But it was more than that, Owen knew. Andreus knew of the depth of the private pain that had triggered Owen’s building craze. He wouldn’t have spoken of Owen’s feelings to anyone without asking his friend’s permission first.
“And this is all for one person? I mean…that is…”
Owen held up one hand. “You know I’m divorced and that I lost my son. I have a housekeeper and cook, Lydia Jeffers, who comes by, but I’m the only one who lives here. The hands live in the bunkhouse. And yes, it’s a lot of house for one person. I justify the space by having a few gatherings here each year. The local cattlemen’s association holds their annual conference here and if my neighbors need overflow housing for their guests, I’ve been known to oblige them. Which means you probably make a good point about staying here incognito. I have a feeling that if your status becomes known, I’ll be overrun with unexpected guests.”
He parked in front and blew out a breath, then climbed from the Land Rover and circled around to assist Delfyne from the vehicle.
She beat him to it. “All right. If I get to be who I want to be, then I’m an independent woman for the next few months. No special considerations. I’ll open my own car doors and do…oh, whatever I like. All the things princesses aren’t allowed to do.”
The excited smile she gave Owen caught him by surprise, full-force. Damn, but what had Andreus been thinking sending his sister here to stay with a bad-tempered recluse like himself? The woman clearly belonged in the sunshine. Her smile practically sparkled. She all but danced up the porch stairs, then turned, tipped her face up to him and held out her hands. “Thank you so much, Owen.
You don’t know what this means to me. I’m going to be an anonymous, blend-into-life woman!”
Blend in? Owen didn’t think so. On this ranch she was going to stand out like a rose among thistles, and the way she was looking at him as if he’d just offered her the keys to a long-sought treasure…
Don’t even think about her that way, Owen told himself. He’d learned he didn’t have much other than money to offer most women, so getting entangled with a woman with a crown would be an act of major stupidity. No, the best thing he could do was to get Delfyne set up as he had promised her brother and then put a lot of space between himself and her.
“I’ll get your things inside and show you where your room is,” he said. “Your bodyguards can stay in the bunkhouse. I’ll tell my employees that they’re friends of yours who want to experience ranch life. It won’t be the first time I’ve had that type of guest.”
“All right. Owen?”
He looked up. She was staring at him in that direct, unnerving way she had. “What?”
“I know I said thank you already, but I want you to know that it wasn’t just a cursory expression of gratitude. I really do know how much my family owes you for allowing me to stay here. Beyond