Luca stood slowly, easy elegance in all his movements. He adopted an expression of hurt. “I don’t remember saying anything about flirting. I would never offend a foreign princess with such a suggestion.”
Natalie’s eyes narrowed, and she turned to march toward the other side of the hill—a move that would have been more effective if Luca didn’t easily match her stride, grinning down at her as he kept pace. The man was both infuriating and impossible to shake.
“Do you really mean to shadow me everywhere I go?” she asked icily.
“Not at all,” Luca said promptly. “Say the word, and I’ll leave you to stand in state alone on the top of the hill.”
Natalie glanced at the occupants of the other picnic rugs—none of whom showed any inclination to leave their settled positions.
“Fine,” she said with what grace she could muster. “If you must follow me, you can occupy yourself by telling me about the city.” She pointed toward the buildings below them and the various landmarks that were visible from a distance.
Luca grinned and launched into guide mode, his tales about his city proving both informative and interesting. Natalie might even have forgiven him for being the wrong prince and allowed herself to feel grateful for his presence, except that she kept catching him laughing at her with his eyes. He seemed determined to infuriate her, though she had no idea why he was treating the supposed Arcadian princess in such a fashion. He certainly made it impossible to adopt a proper princess manner back to him.
Whatever his reasons, she was relieved to lose him in the throng of courtiers descending the hill at the end of the event, and she resolved to avoid him as much as possible in future.
Her resolution proved difficult to keep, however. As Luca had predicted, a seemingly endless number of the younger members of court took turns hosting events for their peers and the visiting princess. And as Natalie had feared, the young courtiers continued to hold her at arms’ length, their conversation painfully polite and shallow.
To make matters worse, Leo was rarely present, and she concluded that he could only be guaranteed to turn up to events he was personally hosting. Even Rose failed to appear more often than not. Only Luca reliably attended each event, his words—whether teasing or serious—always accompanied by the laugh in his eyes that told her he viewed her as a game.
Natalie would have happily relinquished Rose’s identity several times over if it wasn’t for the intrigue of the note and her concern over the upcoming meeting. It was the only thing that drove her through each exhausting day.
CHAPTER 7
When the end of the first week brought a ride along the coast—this time hosted by Prince Leo—Natalie donned her riding habit with relief. She would finally have the chance to have a proper conversation with the elusive crown prince.
Her good spirits rose even further when the riders gathered in front of the palace, and she found no sign of Luca in their midst. Rose had already promised to help Natalie position herself beside Leo during the ride, and if Luca was absent for once, then her path was clear.
The groomsman leading the ride called for the riders to gather up. Natalie released a pleased sigh and directed her mount forward. But a flicker of movement to one side caught her eye, and she looked around in time to see a final, belated rider appearing from the direction of the stables.
Luca.
Her hands tightened on her reins, causing her mare to whinny and dance in place. She forced her grip to relax, but her eyes lingered on the straight form of the prince.
The problem, she told herself with a savage mental voice, was that he looked far better on horseback than anyone had the rightto look. And when he caught her gaze across the crowd—andwinked—her pulse took off in defiance of her furious mind.
She looked away. She refused to find anyone so thoroughly bothersome to be pulse-racingly attractive. Her heart rate needed to get itself under control. There was no reason for such foolishness. The two royal cousins looked strikingly similar, and yet the sight of Leo on his horse hadn’t sent her heart into foolish spasms.
She forced her eyes to stay fixed on Leo, taking note of his excellent seat and his firm hands on his horse’s reins. He clearly knew how to ride every bit as well as Luca—No! She would not allow her thoughts to circle back to that tiresome man. She finally had the chance to make a favorable impression on the crown prince, and she refused to let Luca get under her skin. The man was clearly doing it on purpose—and finding it amusing!
Despite the grooms and guards clearing a path for them, the riders had to thread their way through the city in single file, passing the docks and heading north beyond the edge of the city. There, the coastal road allowed room for two to comfortably ride side-by-side, and everyone regrouped. The ride was intended for pleasure, so the groom at the front set a comfortable pace that allowed the riders to converse easily and admire the view of the sea.
As promised, Rose maneuvered her horse neatly, ensuring Natalie and Leo ended up riding together.
The crown prince smiled at her. “How have you been enjoying the whirlwind of court events? I did try to convince my people that you don’t need to be occupied every waking moment, but they seem determined to outdo each other.”
“I would have enjoyed the events more if you were there.” She gave him her most endearing smile.
He looked regretful, but she suspected the emotion was only skin deep. If he’d really wanted to be there, surely he could have found a way.
“I gave my cousin strict instructions to make sure you were well entertained.” He glanced behind them to where Luca was riding with Rose. “I hope he hasn’t been shirking his duty.”
Natalie tried to think of something diplomatic to say and failed.
“Not that it was a burdensome order,” Leo said quickly, seeming to realize his possible misstep. “I believe he’s been enjoying himself greatly.”
Natalie ground her teeth together. One of them had been having a marvelous time, certainly.
Silence fell between them.
