At His Majesty's Convenience / Her Little Secret, His Hidden Heir. Jennifer Lewis

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СКАЧАТЬ Walter. Worked here back when it was a hotel and always the first to know every bit of gossip. He probably spread the word.”

      “This building was a hotel?”

      “For a while. It had a few different lives while my family was in exile in the States. It took a lot of work to get it looking like this, and you were in charge of most of it.”

      Andi bit her lip, walking along carpet she may even have selected. Jake pointed to the third polished wood door in a long hallway, only a few yards from his. “That’s yours. It wasn’t locked when I came to get your clothes.”

      She tried the handle and it swung open. A neat, hotel-like room greeted her, with heavy brocade curtains and a small double bed. The dark wood furniture looked antique and impressive. She cringed at the sight of a pair of panty hose draped over the bed.

      “Um, maybe I should spend a little time alone here. See if anything jogs my memory.”

      “Sure.” Jake stroked her back softly. Her skin heated under her T-shirt as he turned her toward him and lowered his face to hers. All worries and fears drifted way for a few seconds as she lost herself in his soft and gentle kiss.

      “Don’t worry about anything.” He pointed to a dresser. “Your phone’s right there and you’ve always told me I’m programmed in as number one.” He winked. “I’ll head for my office to deal with this electrical supply situation that’s cropped up. Call me if you need anything, and even if you don’t.”

      Her fingers felt cold as he released them from his, but she couldn’t help a sigh of relief as she closed the door behind him and found herself alone in the room. At last she could … fall apart.

      Part of her wanted to run to the bed and collapse on it, sobbing. But another, apparently more influential, part wanted to pull open the drawers and search for signs of who she was. She tucked the stray panty hose back into their drawer, wondering if she’d taken them out when she was dressing in her evening gown. She wasn’t wearing any when she’d woken up in the morning.

      The drawer was rather disorganized, as if everything was just shoved in there without much thought. What did this tell her about herself? She frowned and pulled open the drawer above it. Three carelessly folded blouses and some socks gave no further encouragement about her organizational skills.

      The closet door was slightly ajar and she pulled it open. An array of colorful suits hung from the hangers, along with several solid-colored dresses and skirts. At least it didn’t look as messy as her drawers. She pushed some hangers apart and pulled down one of the suits. A medium blue, it was tailored but otherwise quite plain. She tried to smooth out a horizontal crease that ran just below the lapels. Another crease across the skirt made her frown. Why would a suit hanging in a closet have creases running across it?

      She pulled out another suit and saw that it too had lines running through the middle. A forest-green dress also showed signs of having been folded recently, and a navy skirt and … She stopped and frowned. All the items in the closet had crease marks running across them. Not deep, sharp creases, but soft ones, as if they’d been folded only for a short time. What could that mean?

      After she hung the suit back in the closet, she walked into the attached bathroom. A floral smell hovered in the air and felt reassuringly familiar. Her favorite scent? She recognized it—which meant it was a memory. Cheered, she examined the cosmetics arranged on a low shelf. There were a lot of lipsticks. She pulled one open and applied it. A rather garish orangey-pink that didn’t do her complexion any favors. She put it back on the shelf and wiped her lips with a tissue.

      She found the bottle of scent and removed the cap. Warmth suffused her as she sprayed some on her wrists and inhaled the familiar smell. Relief also swept through her that at least something around here felt familiar.

      The scent … and Jake.

      Excitement mixed with apprehension tickled her insides. How odd that they’d become engaged and she’d lost her memory in the same night. She couldn’t help wondering if the two things were related.

      Jake was lovely, though. He’d been so sweet and encouraging with her since she’d lost her memory. She was lucky to be engaged to such a kind and capable man. A bit odd that he was a king, but that was just one facet of him. Just a job, really. No doubt she wasn’t bothered by his royal status or she wouldn’t have become romantically involved with him in the first place.

      She picked up her hand and looked at her big diamond ring. It was beautiful and fit her perfectly. She’d feel comfortable wearing it once she got used to it.

      Once she got used to any of this.

      A knock on the door made her jump. “It’s me, Livia.”

      Andi gulped. Apparently she was supposed to know who Livia was. So far no one seemed to know about her memory except Jake and the doctor, but that was bound to change unless it came back soon. She smoothed her hair and went to open the door.

      It was the same red-haired girl from downstairs. The one who’d talked about her leaving. She had a huge grin on her freckled face. “You are a dark horse.”

      Andi shrugged casually, as if admitting it, even though she didn’t know exactly whether Livia referred to the engagement or her memory loss.

      “You never breathed a word. How long have the two of you been …?” Her conspiratorial whisper sounded deafening in the quiet hallway.

      “Come in.” Andi ushered her into the room. Livia glanced around. Andi got the idea that she hadn’t been here before, so they probably weren’t the closest of friends, but maybe she could learn something from her. She managed a smile. “We didn’t really want anyone to know. Not until we were sure.”

      Livia seemed satisfied with that answer. “How romantic. And after working together all these years. I never suspected a thing!”

      “I hardly believe it myself.”

      “So the suitcases were for your honeymoon.” Livia grinned and shook her head. “Where are you going?”

      “Not sure yet.” Jake hadn’t said anything about a honeymoon. Surely they had to have a wedding first.

      “This time make sure I’m not the last person in the palace to know. I know you’re always insisting that it’s part of your job to keep mum about things, but I can’t believe I had to learn about your engagement on the radio.”

      “What did they say?”

      “That you and Jake were out ring shopping in town this morning, and you told reporters you were getting married. Hey, let’s see the rock!” She reached out and grabbed Andi’s hand. “Wow. That’s some ring. I wouldn’t go on the New York City subway in that.”

      So Livia had come from New York, as well? That meant they’d probably known each other at least three years. Andi felt awful that she didn’t even remember her.

      Livia sighed. “And just imagine what your wedding dress will be like. You could probably get anyone in the world to design it for you. Some people have all the luck.”

      Andi was sorely tempted to point out that she had the bad luck to not even know who she was, but a gut instinct told her not to confide in Livia. She sensed an undercurrent of jealousy or resentment that made her reluctant to trust her.

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