‘You sent out your own agents?’
‘Of course, I did. They thought they had you two days ago. It was the closest they’d got. Maybe if the storm had lasted longer on the island, they would have caught up with you? But maybe they served their purpose in hurrying you home.’
Theo swallowed. Those two agents on the island that night were Rafael’s agents? Those two agents who’d set tempers flaring between Theo and the Princess, which had dominoed into them making love only to discover the Princess was a virgin, turning his anger upon her, when she’d never deserved it.
His throat was dry. But it was neither port nor a cigar he needed. It was to spell out the truth.
‘Your sister is a lucky woman, Prince Rafael,’ Theo said, ‘to find such a worthy husband. How did their engagement come about?’
He caught the arrows the Princess fired at him from her eyes.
The Prince snorted. ‘Simple,’ he said. ‘Count Lorenzo offered me the most money to take her off my hands.’
Theo laughed along with the Prince. ‘Genius,’ he said, raising his glass to him. The Prince, as he’d expected, drained his, clicking his fingers for a refill.
‘So, how much is the Count paying you?’
The Prince smirked. The Count laughed and interjected, ‘One hundred million dollars. US currency.’
Isabella interjected, clearly aghast. ‘You are that much in debt from your gambling?’
‘No, silly woman—but I need to be left with some play money after the dust has settled. Surely even you can appreciate that?’
‘Women,’ Theo said dismissively. ‘They have no concept of the price or value of anything.’
‘You see that, Theo? You are indeed my brother.’ The pair clinked glasses. ‘You understand how the world works.’
Theo fully understood how this man worked. ‘One hundred million dollars,’ Theo said, nodding. ‘That’s not bad.’
‘It’s excellent. And you made it happen by bringing her home.’
The Count was laughing. ‘I told you we appreciated your assistance.’
Theo could see the Princess fuming. He could almost see the waves of heat rising from her. Right now, he imagined her painting him as much of a bastard as her brother.
Hang in there, he wanted to say, but he could say nothing.
‘But one hundred million US dollars?’ Theo mused. ‘Is it anywhere near enough for such a prize? The Princess is of good child-bearing age, and to her credit, not entirely unattractive.’
The Prince spluttered. ‘What do you mean? Is it enough? It’s one hundred million US dollars.’
‘But what if you could do better?’
The Count jumped to his feet. ‘We have a deal!’
The Prince waved his hand at the Count. ‘Sit down, sit down. Tell me, Theo, my brother, how could I do better? It’s the best offer I’ve had.’
‘What if someone offered you double?’
Isabella’s head snapped up. Suddenly she was interested in what was going on.
‘Who is this someone?’
Theo let the silence settle. He took a sip of the mellow wine and this time he enjoyed it. ‘Me.’
Isabella gasped, standing up. The Count grabbed her arm, pulling her back down. The Count started spluttering. ‘We had a deal. Wehavea deal! The wedding is tomorrow. Prince Rafael, you can’t change your mind now.’
‘Shut up,’ the Prince snapped at the Count. Before scratching his chin and turning back to Theo. ‘Double, you say? Two hundred million US dollars.’
