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‘Then this happened, out of the blue,’ she said slowly, praying that his valet or her lady-in-waiting wouldn’t come in and disturb them—because Xaviero had never talked to her like this before ‘And there was absolutely nothing you could do about it’
‘No My fate has been sealed,’ he said, with an air of finality, and then his face darkened ‘And yet I have no right to express any kind of dissatisfaction withinsensible in what seems like a cruel enactment of our mother’s demise? And if I’m honest—really honest—weren’t there times in our childhood when I wanted the dom, not Casimiro What is it that they say,’ he added bitterly ‘Be careful what you wish for’
Cathy flinched, praying for the right words as she saw the deepening of the painful lines etched in his face Soht make him see the positives in a life he would never have chosen for hiether they could learn a different way of living—if he was prepared to give it a try? But before she could speak, there was a gentle tap on the door and Xaviero opened it hi there
Black eyebroere arched in impatient query ‘Yes, what is it?’
‘Highness, your guests have arrived’
Xaviero nodded, wishing for a brief and crazyin the soft, scented oasis of her garden, drinking wine from those ridiculous cheap little tu for the impossible—because hadn’t he learnt by now that duty always came first? And how could he expect Cathy to adhere to that principle if he found he was trying to shirk it hiht down’ He turned to her ‘Ready?’
‘Yes’ She hesitated ‘Xaviero, thereyou could—’
‘Forget it’ Although soft, his tone was emphatic ‘It doesn’t matter’
She wanted to say that it did—but her heart sank as she saw the now familiar cool mask back in place and she sensed his confidences of just aerased fro her closer to hi distinctly unsettled Insecurity flooded through her as she realised she hadn’t been i his frustration at his life here at all And ould happen if that frustration built and built?
Side by side they walked into the anteroo and Cathy carefully composed her face to prepare herself for the inevitable scrutiny She was used to this by now—the way the wo to decide whether she was fit to be ible prince
This was the part of the evening where she and Xaviero again went their separate ways—she to chat to the wives of the visiting delegation and to sip at a glass of water She had given up taking wine before or during the row too pink and uninhibited and sos she really wanted to say
It’s as much a prison for me as it is for Xaviero, she realised suddenly as they were led into dinner, to opposite ends of the formally decorated table
She watched Xaviero during theto him despite her determination to respond enthusiastically to the man seated next to her Fro out a silent question—occasionally, he would even toss her a slow smile And Cathy are that she seized on these little cru would a piece of meat
She saw the sultry wo smile—and, to be fair to Xaviero, he didn’t respond to it at all No telltale silent flirtation in return But that was because they were nehen she was still co to hih of her What would happen when that wore off—as people always said it did?
Trapped within the confines of their largely separate lives—ht not Xaviero choose to dabble a little elsewhere, as royal hout history had been inclined to do? The opportunity was always there for theer to bed a prince that discretion would be guaranteed Why, didn’t weak and ambitious men sometimes even offer up their wives as some kind of noble sexual sacrifice?
Maybe that was another reason why he had chosen a corateful to beWas he expecting her to turn a blind eye to his indiscretions as royal wives were fa her heavy fork down before she did so it on one of the porcelain plates