this immensely, but it was clear Dottie was stunned that he’d decided to come and get them. He knew in his gut her eyes wouldn’t have ignited like that if she hadn’t been happy to see him.
The teacher, Mrs. Pappas, urged the roomful of twelve children to stand and bow. Zoe stood up, but she turned and smiled at Dottie before saying good morning to His Royal Highness along with the others. Alex got a kick out of the whole thing as the children kept looking at Zoe, knowing he was her daddy.
He’d never seen his daughter this happy in his life, and he should have done this before now. It lit up her whole being. Dottie was transforming his life in whole new ways. Because of her influence, Alex wanted to give his struggling preschooler a needed boost this morning. But she wasn’t so struggling now that she had Dottie in her court.
He shook hands with everyone, then they returned to the palace. After changing into his swimming trunks, he joined them at the pool for lunch. With Zoe running around, he could finally talk to Dottie in private.
“How did my daughter do in class?”
“She participated without hanging back.”
“That’s because you’ve given her the confidence.”
“You know it’s been a team effort. While I’ve got you alone for a minute, let me tell you something else that happened this morning.”
Alex could tell she was excited. “Go ahead.”
“I arranged to talk with the directress about Zoe and was given permission to visit the other preschool class. One of the boys enrolled is an American from Pennsylvania named Mark Varney. He’s supposed to be in first grade, but his parents put him back in preschool because he has no knowledge of Greek and needs to start with the basics. The situation has made him unhappy and he’s turning into a loner.”
“And you’ve decided that two negatives could make a positive?”
“Maybe.” She half laughed. “It’s scary how well you read my mind. Here’s the thing—if you sanctioned it and Mark’s parents allowed him to come back to the palace after school next time, he and Zoe could have some one-on-one time here in the pool, or down on the beach. I’d help them with their lessons, but the rest of the time they could have fun together. A play date is what she needs.”
“I couldn’t agree more.”
“Oh, good! The directress says he’s feeling inadequate. If his parents understood the circumstances and explained to him about Zoe’s speech problem, he might be willing to help her and they could become friends in the process. That would help his confidence level, too.”
Alex heard the appeal in Dottie’s voice. “I’ll ask Hector to handle it and we’ll see how the first play date goes.”
Light filled her blue eyes, dazzling him. “Thank you for being willing.”
“That’s rather ironic for you to be thanking me. I’m the one who should be down on my knees to you for thinking of it. She’s a different child already because of you.”
“You keep saying that, but you don’t give yourself enough credit, Alex. When she saw you walk into the schoolroom earlier today, her heart was in her eyes. I wish I’d had a camera on me so I could have taken a picture. Every father should have a daughter who loves him that much. The extra time you’ve spent with her lately is paying huge dividends. I know it’s taking time away from your duties, but if you can keep it up, you’ll never regret it.”
He rubbed his lower lip with the pad of his thumb, staring at her through shuttered eyes. “That’s why I sent for Stasi to come home. With you showing me the way, I’m well aware Zoe needs me and am doing everything in my power to free myself up.”
“I know.” She suddenly broke away from his gaze to look at Zoe. “She’s waiting for us. Today we’ll work on the letter C. Her preschool teacher brought her own cat to class. The children learned how to take care of one. Zoe got to pet it and couldn’t have been more thrilled.”
Dottie had inexplicably changed the subject and was talking faster than usual, a sign that something was going on inside her, making her uncomfortable. When she got up from the chair, he followed her over to the edge of the pool and listened as she engaged his daughter in a conversation that was really a teaching moment. She had a remarkable, unique way of communicating. Zoe ate it up. Why wouldn’t she? There was no one else like Dottie.
Dottie was more than a speech therapist for his daughter. She was her advocate. Her selfless efforts to help Zoe lead a normal life couldn’t be repaid with gifts or perks or money she’d already refused to accept. The woman wanted his daughter to succeed for the purest of reasons. She wanted it for a stranger’s child, too. That made Dottie Richards a person of interest to him in ways that went deep beneath the surface.
Alex took off his sandals and dove into the deep end. After doing some underwater laps, he emerged next to his daughter, causing her to shriek with laughter. The day had been idyllic and it wasn’t over.
As he did more laps, his thoughts drifted to his conversation with Dottie last night. When he’d turned eighteen, his family had arranged the betrothal to Princess Teresa. However, until he’d been ready to commit to marriage, he’d known pleasure and desire with various women over the years. Those women had understood nothing long lasting could come of the relationship. No one woman’s memory had lingered long in his mind. Forget his heart.
When Zoe came along, their daughter gave them both something new and wonderful to focus on. With Teresa’s passing, Zoe had become the joy of his life. There’d been other women in the past two years, but the part of his psyche that had never been touched was still a void.
Enter Dottie Richards, a woman who’d buried a son and husband. He could still hear her saying she’d lost the great loves of her life. She’d experienced the kind of overwhelming love denied him because of his royal roots. He really envied her the freedom to choose the man who’d satisfied her passion at its deepest level and had given her a child.
Though it was an unworthy sentiment, Alex found himself resenting her husband for that same freedom. If Alex had been a commoner and had met her in his early twenties—before she’d met her husband—would she have been as attracted to him as he was to her? Would they have married?
She wasn’t indifferent to Alex. The way she’d kissed him back last night convinced him of her strong attraction to him. He’d also sensed her interest at odd times when he noticed her eyes on him. The way she sometimes breathed faster around him for no apparent reason. But he had no way to gauge the true depth of her emotions until he could get her alone again.
As for his feelings, all he knew was that she’d lit a fire inside him. In two weeks, even without physical intimacy, Dottie affected him more than Teresa had ever done during the three years of their marriage.
For the first time in his life he was suddenly waking up every morning hardly able to breathe until he saw her. For the only time in his existence he was questioning everything about the royal legacy that made him who he was and dictated his destiny.
His jealousy terrified him. He’d seen his brother’s interest in her. Stasi’s arranged marriage would be happening on his thirty-fifth birthday, in less than three weeks now. Until then it didn’t stop him from enjoying and looking at other women. But it had angered Alex, who felt territorial when it came to Dottie. That’s why he hadn’t let Stasi dance with her. Alex had no right to feel this way,
