Passion, Purity and the Prince. Annie West
Чтение книги онлайн.
Читать онлайн книгу Passion, Purity and the Prince - Annie West страница 11
‘So it’s the road that bothers you.’ Before she could answer he eased his foot onto the brake.
It was on the tip of her tongue to protest. He hadn’t been speeding. She’d enjoyed the thrill of the descent, instinctively sensing she was safe with such a capable driver. Disappointment rose as they took the next bend at a decorous pace but she didn’t contradict him. She didn’t want to try explaining the curious feelings that bombarded her when she was with him.
‘What’s this proposition you have for me?’
He shook his head, not looking away from the road as it curved one final time then disappeared like a dark ribbon into the forest at the foot of the mountain. ‘Not yet. Not till we’ve eaten.’
Tamsin tamped down her impatience, realising her companion had no intention of being swayed. For all his light-hearted charm she sensed he could be as immoveable as the rock on which his castle perched.
‘Tell me why you took this position. Being cooped up here in the dead of winter hasn’t got much to recommend it.’
Was he kidding? Tamsin slanted another glance his way and saw nothing but curiosity in his expression.
‘The place is beautiful. Its heritage listed for outstanding scenic and cultural significance.’
‘But you’ve barely been out of the castle.’
Tamsin stiffened. Had his staff been reporting her movements? Why? The unsettling discovery didn’t sit well with the sense of freedom she’d enjoyed.
‘I’d planned to explore. But once I got engrossed in my work and found Tomas’s chronicle, I never found time.’
‘You came to Ruvingia for the views?’ Disbelief edged his tone.
‘Hardly.’ Though the picturesque setting was a bonus. ‘It was the work that fascinated me.’
‘You don’t mind spending an alpine winter so far from family and friends?’
Tamsin looked away, to the dark forest crowding close. She was grateful for the heating which dispelled any chill. ‘My parents were the first to urge me to apply. They know how important my work is to me.’
They didn’t care about her not being home for the festive season. As far as her father, a single-minded academic, was concerned the holidays were simply a nuisance that closed the university libraries. Her mother, wrapped up in her art, found it easier catering for two than three. Theirs was a distant kind of caring. They were dedicated to their work and Tamsin, an unexpected child after years of marriage, had fitted between the demands of their real interests. She’d grown self-sufficient early, a dreamer losing herself in a world of books.
‘What about your friends? Surely you’d rather be with them at this time of year?’ He probed the sore point, making her want to shrink inside herself.
Tamsin had friends, but none were particularly close.
Except Patrick. She’d expected to see a lot of him over the holidays. Had expected their relationship to blossom into something wonderful.
Before she’d discovered what a gullible idiot she’d been.
She turned to find Prince Alaric watching her closely. In the dim interior light she sensed an intensity to his stare that surprised her. Why did this interest him so?
‘You don’t understand how exciting this job is.’ With an effort she pinned on a bright smile. ‘A previously unknown hoard of documents. The opportunity to be of real value, preserving what might otherwise be lost. Not to mention the excitement of discovery. The chance to…’ She hesitated, unwilling to reveal how important this job was at a more personal level.
This had been an escape route she’d gratefully seized. She couldn’t bear Patrick gloating over his success and sneering at her naivety. Plus there’d been her colleagues’ pitying looks.
It was also an opportunity to shore up her battered self-esteem. To prove that despite her appalling lapse of judgement with Patrick, she was good at what she did. Even, she admitted now, to show those who’d doubted her abilities they’d made a mistake promoting Patrick instead of her. His work was inferior but he had the charm to make the most of every opportunity. They’d soon realise their mistake but Tamsin wouldn’t be human if she didn’t want to banish her growing self-doubts with a coup of her own.
‘The chance to…?’
Tamsin dragged herself back to the conversation. What had she been saying? ‘The chance to be part of this exciting discovery. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity.’
‘But you can’t have known that when you applied for the job.’ His riposte was lightning fast. He speared her with a penetrating look before turning back to the road.
‘No, but I…’
She couldn’t tell him how desperately she’d needed to escape. Escape Patrick lording his new position over her; Patrick with his old girlfriend on his arm again. Her forlorn heart had shredded whenever she’d seen them.
‘I wanted a change. This sounded too good to miss.’ She sounded stilted, falsely bright, but she wasn’t about to bare her soul.
‘Too good to be true, in fact.’ His voice deepened on a curiously rough note. In the streetlights of the town they’d entered he looked stern.
Had he grown bored? He was probably used to more scintillating conversation. Tamsin was more than happy to change the subject.
‘Where are we going?’ They were in the old town, where roads narrowed and cobblestones glistened. Lights were strung between lampposts, giving the streets a festive air as pedestrians strolled, looking at decorated shop windows.
Tamsin wished she could be one of them. Away from prying questions. Away from memories that taunted her.
‘The winter market is on,’ he said. ‘We’ll eat and you can see some of the sights.’
Tamsin felt a flicker of excitement. The town looked quaintly romantic with half-timbered houses, brightly painted shutters and steep, snow-capped roofs.
But with a prince by her side relaxation was impossible. Instead she fretted over his mysterious proposition and the growing sense of something wrong. Why this interest in her?
A couple strolled hand in hand across the street, catching her eye. They were barely aware of anyone else, completely absorbed in each other. She felt a small pang of envy. Once she’d hoped she and Patrick…
Tamsin had never been close to anyone like that. Never experienced all-encompassing love, even from her parents. Never even fitted in, finishing school before her age peers and being so much younger than her university colleagues.
She turned away, setting her mouth firmly. She refused to pine for what she’d never had. One perilous venture into romance had proved what she’d always suspected. Love wasn’t for her. She just didn’t inspire that sort of affection.
But she had her work. That was compensation enough.
Alaric