finally confronted her with the question of the hour.
“Well? Do I pass muster? Are you going to rent me a room?”
Slowly, she nodded. “Yes,” she said almost regretfully. “Yes, Adam. I’m going to rent you a room. At least for a little while.”
Moving in didn’t take any time at all. Once the bargain had been made, Adam used Elena’s telephone to make a few calls and soon his things were brought over from the hotel. He transferred Jeremy from the couch to the second twin bed in the little house. And before she knew it he was off for the palace, and she sat down to catch her breath and mull over what she’d done—and whether she was likely to survive this experience as the same person she’d been up to now.
There were so many reasons why she shouldn’t have done it. When she actually let herself dwell on the possible results that could apply, her heart nearly stopped. Here she was, playing with fire again. The last thing in the world she needed was a man hanging around, making her crazy. What was wrong with her? Just that morning she’d tried to avoid speaking to him. Now she was preparing to practically live with him! She had to be crazy.
She knew Gino would be furious. “You’re not like a regular person,” he would fume. “You can’t risk things like this with a stranger.”
Gino was one of her very best friends and had been for years. In the past she’d always thought his watchfulness a bit touching. Now she began to realize it was becoming patronizing and overbearing. As sure as could be, he would make plans to sleep on her couch to protect her. She’d better think fast to be prepared with reasons why that would be impossible. She didn’t want him there— and she wasn’t going to think about why that might be.
Still, she knew he was probably right. She did need protection—from herself.
That thought made her laugh, and she knew it wasn’t really true. No, she wasn’t yet that crazy. But she had to admit she was intrigued with Adam.
When she’d told Adam she’d never been in love, she’d been telling the honest truth. Growing up, she’d had the same hopes and dreams as all girls had, but that had always been tempered by the knowledge that she couldn’t expect to have the same sort of life her friends had. She was different.
Her mother and grandmother, when they were alive, had both agreed that she was different, but they’d emphasized the fact that she was special, not strange. She’d always known she had an exceptional talent for music. It came naturally. Her grandmother had been a soloist in the Nirolian National Choir when she was young and her mother had worked as a music archivist for years. She’d always known, one way or another, music would be her life.
And that had given her the strength to shy away from romance all these years. When her grandmother urged her to date one of the many young men who pursued her, she would laugh and shake her head. “The man for me will be unique,” she would say. “I’ll know him when I hear his voice.”
Was she dreaming or merely making excuses to fend off the advice? As she looked back now that young woman seemed utterly naïve. What did she think—her ideal man would walk into her life and she would know it by the sound of his voice? That was indeed dreaming.
She hadn’t liked the sound of Adam’s voice at first. She’d thought he sounded conceited and arrogant, and she’d hated the way he talked to his son. Now that she knew him better, she’d modified her judgement. But he still was nowhere near being that wonder man she’d thought she was waiting for.
Still, she had to admit he was stirring feelings in her she hadn’t known she had. When she’d touched his face, she’d felt a sense of wonder she’d never felt before. She wanted to touch him again.
And she wanted him to touch her. And that was where the danger lay. Just thinking about it made her gasp. She was going to have to be very careful.
Especially since, much as he appealed to her on a personal level, she was having doubts about his mission here. She was beginning to wonder if she could really get behind the effort to make him King. She loved her island home and she wanted a good king. And preferably one who loved Niroli, too. She was noticing more and more evidence that Adam might not be that person.
His attitude was very disturbing. At first, she’d noticed him take a crack at her homeland here and there, but she’d attributed that to his generally cynical outlook. It wasn’t until he’d been just about to leave for the palace that she’d found him saying things that had really set her back on her heels. Had he really meant them? And could she overlook his attitude?
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