Luis (Royal Caleva #2)

CHAPTER 11

“I can’t believe he lives here,” Grace murmured as their guide, Clara, led the group of vet students and their chaperones through a stone great hall decorated with heraldic banners and medieval weapons.

Their journey to Caleva had been marked by one amazing luxury after another. To start the trip, all eight of them had been picked up at the vet school and transported to the Des Moines airport by a private van. After the short flight to Chicago, they had been escorted to the first-class lounge, where they had dined and drunk champagne for free while they waited to depart for Caleva. The eight-hour flight on Calevan Airlines had been spent indulging in and exclaiming over all the amenities in first class.

At the San Ignacio airport earlier that morning, they had been met at the gate by Clara and whisked through Customs in a special line before boarding another elegant van. As they drove from the airport into San Ignacio and up the cliff to the castle, Clara had pointed out all the notable sights along the way. Eve caught glimpses of the lavender vaho hibiscus glowing against gray basalt walls, but the van windows were closed, so she couldn’t smell it.

Now they were getting a brief tour of the castle on their way to being greeted by the minister of Agriculture. “We are in the oldest part of Castillo Draconago, which was built in about 1510,” Clara said. “This hall is used for formal ceremonial events. Your welcome reception is in a newer and more hospitable wing built in the 1600s.” She paused to let them gawk at the stone walls and vaulted wooden ceiling high above their heads.

As Clara marched them down another hallway, she explained that they were now in the wing of the castle that was Caleva’s version of the White House, where King Luis and his ministers had their official offices. At the mention of his name, Eve’s pulse gave a little leap, and Grace’s eyes lit up as she gave her mother an excited smile. The air seemed to grow more vibrant at the thought that Luis was somewhere nearby.

Clara opened a door and gestured them through. “This is the Salón de los Lirios. Please help yourself to the food and beverages.” She glanced at her watch. “The minister will be here in fifteen minutes. There is a bathroom through that door.” She pointed to an oak door set in the paneled wall.

The salón featured tall arched windows, several comfortable seating areas delineated by vivid Persian rugs, and portraits of what Eve guessed were previous rulers on the walls. On one side of the room stood two long, carved wooden tables laden with elegantly arrayed food and drinks, behind which stood several servers wearing black trousers, white shirts, and teal vests and ties. The teal was a shade known as Calevan green, as she had learned on the flight over. It evoked the skin color of the native Calevan lizards.

Although they had all eaten on the plane, the students made a beeline for the food and drinks.

“I suppose we should make sure there’s no alcohol over there,” one of the veterinarians said with a worried look. “Some of the students took full advantage of the free booze on the plane.”

Eve watched the group piling their plates with food. “I think they’re overawed enough by the castle to stay sober, but I’ll check with the servers.”

She strolled over to the beverage station and asked about the offerings and was assured that none contained alcohol. The server suggested she try a pineapple drink that was a Calevan specialty. She found it deliciously refreshing with subtle touches of mint and lime.

The students were clustered in one seating area, devouring their tapas, when the door swung open and a small brown-haired woman dressed in a burgundy pantsuit burst into the room. She was followed by a tall, thin young man in a gray suit.

“Bonjour! I am Adeline Arnaud, Caleva’s minister of Agriculture,” the woman said in a voice that made all the students jump to their feet. “This is my assistant, who will be your liaison during your stay.” She smiled, and her stern face became beautiful. “We are excited to have you all here because a veterinary college in Caleva has always been a goal of ours. Now, I wish to meet you, so please come here and introduce yourselves.”

Eve liked the woman’s no-nonsense approach. Since the two vets looked taken aback, Eve shepherded the students over to meet the minister, introducing them one by one. The two vets joined them, and soon everyone was chatting in a single group.

The door opened again, and a gray-haired man, dressed in a dark suit, announced in an authoritative voice, “His Majesty King Luis!”

The room fell silent, and excitement fizzed through the air. Grace threw Eve a nervous look.

Luis strode into the room, dressed in a navy suit, pale blue shirt, and red tie, and as always took possession of every square inch of the space. His smile seemed to add extra megawatts of illumination as he said, “I wanted to welcome our delegation of veterinary education experts.”

Eve suddenly realized that all the Calevans in the room had sunk into deep curtsies and bows. She quickly emulated them and gestured that her other compatriots should do the same.

“A pleasure to see you, Ministre,” Luis said. “I heard that you were here with our new arrivals, so I took a few minutes to add my welcome to yours.”

“We are honored, Votre Majesté,” the minister said, looking stunned. She recovered quickly. “May I introduce them to you?”

His gaze swept the rapt faces turned toward him, but he gave no indication that he recognized Grace or Eve. “That would be delightful.”

The minister marshaled them into an orderly line to make the introductions. Eve made sure she was at the beginning of the line so that she could demonstrate to her fellow Americans how to curtsy when meeting royalty. She mentally crossed her fingers that they would follow her lead. All of them had received instructions on proper Calevan etiquette, but she wasn’t sure they would remember when dazzled by the king’s presence.

“May I present Eve Howard, a veterinary technician at the university’s clinic,” the minister said, her memory impressing the heck out of Eve.

“Your Majesty,” Eve said, curtsying before placing her hand in his to shake. That warm, strong grip felt so familiar and so delicious.

There was an intimate twinkle in Luis’s eyes, and he gave her hand a slight squeeze. “Thank you for coming to advise my countrymen, se?ora,” he said. “I hope you will find your stay here interesting and rewarding.”

“We are happy to be here,” she said.

And her turn was over.

The two veterinarians, both men, came next, and Eve was relieved to see that they made very creditable bows. If the students muffed their obeisances, they were young and would be forgiven.

She watched Luis as the students cycled through, suspecting that Grace also got the extra twinkle and squeeze because her polite smile widened a bit. Otherwise, he was clearly a king, warm and socially graceful, but with a profound distance between him and the others in the room.

Eve felt a quiver of unease. She had sensed his power in Iowa, but now it was on full display. Even the self-assured minister’s manner changed to pure deference when addressing Luis. In the casual settings of their previous interactions with him, she and Grace had not grasped the full implications of his position. Now they were on his home turf, and Luis dominated it.

“My apologies, Se?or.” The man who had announced Luis’s presence appeared at his side again. “We must depart for your next meeting.”

Regret flashed across Luis’s face as he said farewell to the starstruck group of grad students and vets. “We will meet again at the reception later this week,” Luis said. “Until then, adios.”

As the door closed behind him, Eve felt as though the lights dimmed and half the oxygen left the room. She would have been worried except everyone else looked like they felt the same way.

As the students chattered about meeting the king, the minister came to stand beside Eve and the two vets. “I am very encouraged that the king is taking an interest in this project,” she said. “Your group’s presence seems to have put it on the fast track.”

Eve got the impression that the minister was mentally rearranging her schedule in order to attend the planning meetings now that the king had given the future vet school his personal attention. She hoped the minister wasn’t disappointed when she found out the real reason behind this delegation’s visit. Although Luis was waving the temptation of founding a school in front of Grace’s nose, so maybe it would happen.

Clara appeared and rejoined the group. “If you would like to enjoy some more food, please go ahead. We’ll be showing you to your rooms soon.”

That seemed to be the signal for the minister to exit. The students revisited the catering tables before plunking down to eat and talk.

“I’ve never stayed in a castle before,” Joe Murphy, one of the vets, said.

“Not to mention never meeting a king before,” his colleague Ezra Keenan agreed.

Eve glanced around the antique-filled room. “It’s pretty overwhelming, but it’s only two nights here, and then we get to stay with normal human beings in normal surroundings.”

Eve didn’t share the fact that they were being scattered among Calevan households to give Luis, Raul, and Grace a chance to spend time together without being seen. She and Grace would be staying at a house Luis owned, and he would join them in the evenings. Exhilaration and nerves shimmied through Eve at the thought of seeing Luis again.

At the same time, she worried about the effect on Grace. Her daughter had a good, sensible head on her shoulders, but it was hard to withstand the barrage of enticements a king could conjure up. Hell, Eve was having a hard time resisting them, and they were only tangentially aimed at her.

She and Grace had talked about some of the implications of going public with her royal blood, but of course, neither of them had actual experience of what it would be like. All they could do was make intelligent guesses. Eve had encouraged Grace to talk with Prince Raul about his daily life. Assuming the prince embraced his half sister.

A few minutes later, the door opened again to admit three people dressed in the deep green that seemed to signify palace staff.

Clara stood. “You are now welcome to accompany your guides to your rooms.”

A young woman stepped forward and called out two student names. When her charges joined her, she said, “Please follow me,” and led them out of the room.

“I will escort you,” Clara said to Eve and Grace. “We will wait just a little longer before we go.”

Eve and Grace exchanged questioning looks, but Eve didn’t ask why. This whole trip had been so carefully orchestrated that she assumed there was a good reason.

“I hope you are enjoying your visit so far,” Clara said. “Tomorrow morning, you will have a tour that includes the lily fields and the research facility working on preserving our local fauna, in particular, the Calevan dragons. In the afternoon, you are scheduled to meet with various officials from the Ministry of Agriculture to begin discussions about the veterinary school. When that is done, you will be free to wander the streets of San Ignacio. If you would like a guide, text me, and I will arrange for one.”

“That would be great,” Grace said.

“We may go to your suite now,” Clara said after everyone else had been escorted out.

She led them through so many corridors that Eve was thoroughly lost by the time they came to a halt in front of a carved oak door. Clara pulled two key cards out of her pocket and pressed one against the black pad on the door. The lock clicked, and she swung the door open, waving them through in front of her.

They entered a wood-paneled sitting room with three tall windows, furnished with rose velvet sofas and comfortable-looking armchairs upholstered in a floral fabric. Flames danced in a fireplace surrounded by burgundy-and-cream-painted tiles. A Persian rug lay on the polished wood planks of the floor, and a giant vase of vaho hibiscus stood on the desk between the windows, the fragrance wafting into Eve’s nostrils.

Clara gestured to a basket sitting on the coffee table in front of the sofa. “You’ll find tapas and dulces there and a bar in that cabinet, but you can ask the palace kitchen for anything else you would like. Your phones should have the intercom numbers programmed in them already. Just tap the castle icon.”

She strolled to a doorway beside the fireplace. “One bedroom is in here. I believe we put Grace’s luggage in this one, but feel free to swap.” She crossed to the opposite side of the room to indicate a door near the window. “The other bedroom is here.” She approached the desk. “You’ll find paper copies of your schedules here, but they are also on your phones, of course.”

Clara tapped the papers before she continued. “A palace staff member will be here to take you to dinner at seven. You do not need to dress up. You will be eating with each other in an informal dining room. We thought you might wish to relax after your long journey.” She paused. “May I help you with anything else?”

Eve and Grace looked at each other and shook their heads.

Clara gave them a wide smile. “We are happy to have you here in Caleva.” And then she was gone, the door closing behind her with a solid thump.

Grace spun around, taking in the elegance of the room. “Oh my God, this is amazing!” She dashed through the door into her bedroom. “Mom, you have to come see this bed!”

Eve followed her to find a canopy bed hung with billows of rose damask with flowers woven into the fabric. The two tall windows were layered with the same damask as well as swaths of floral-printed silk. “It’s quite…spectacular,” Eve said.

Grace laughed. “It’s ridiculous, but I kind of love it. Let’s see what your room looks like.”

“Whoa! This is even crazier,” Grace said, stopping in the doorway.

Eve’s bed had a huge headboard carved with twining lilies, a canopy made of tapestry woven with more lilies, and draperies of rose velvet. The windows sported tapestry valances and moss-green velvet panels with cream silk undercurtains. Eve ran her hand over the quilted green velvet bedspread, finding it so soft to the touch that it had to be woven out of silk.

“Check this out,” Grace said from the closet door she had pulled open. “Your clothes are already hung up in here.” She closed the door and turned with a grin. “If we wanted to switch rooms, I bet they’d come up and move our clothes.”

“Do you want to swap?” Eve asked.

“No, I was just imagining what would happen.” Her grin disappeared, and she perched on one of the carved wooden chairs. “If I become a princess, I might have a suite like this here in the palace.” She looked around. “It’s not exactly cozy.”

“You’d get used to it,” Eve said, but she didn’t feel like she belonged here either. These overwhelming rooms were Luis’s first miscalculation in his efforts to win over his daughter.

“I’m not so sure,” Grace said before she jumped up. “I need a real drink, and then I’m going to take a shower. Let’s go raid the bar.”

They had enjoyed a couple of glasses of excellent wine before trundling down to meet the rest of their group in a comfortable—and not overly formal—dining room. Everyone was exclaiming over their rooms, the palace, the food, and the incredible level of service. As Eve listened to the descriptions of the guest rooms, she realized that she and Grace were the only ones with an over-the-top suite. Neither she nor Grace shared that fact with their colleagues, of course. More wine flowed, and by the end of dinner, all of them were ready to go back to their rooms to sleep.

As Eve thanked their guide and closed the suite’s door, she heard two pings, one from her phone and one from Grace’s. Grace pulled hers out first and read something before she looked up with happiness dancing in her eyes. “Luis wants to know if he can stop by to see how we’re doing. He sent the text to both of us.” She didn’t ask how Eve felt about it before typing something back. “I told him that would be great.”

The exhaustion dragging on Eve evaporated at the thought of being able to see Luis without concealing their prior relationship. At the same time, she remembered the deep curtsies and bows of all the Calevans in the room when he had entered. The Luis she had gotten to know in Iowa now seemed to be someone beyond her reach.

Another message pinged, and Eve read it herself this time.

Luis wrote, I will be there in five minutes. Do not be surprised when a panel in the wall opposite the fireplace opens. Castles have convenient secret passages.

Grace dashed to the mirror by the door to smooth her hair. Eve barely stopped herself from doing the same. Her daughter turned away from the mirror with a twist to her smile. “Is it strange that I’m nervous about seeing him again? All that curtsying and bowing at the reception made me understand what a big deal he really is.” She shrugged. “He was so normal back in Iowa. Now, he’s the king.”

“Oh, sweetie, I understand,” Eve said. “He is still your father, though. No amount of pomp and circumstance can change that.”

Yet she was glad that Grace was beginning to grasp what being the daughter of a king would mean to her life.

A loud click sounded from the side of the room, and the panel swung inward, revealing a dimly lit doorway. Luis stepped through, and the panel closed. He was dressed in the same clothes he had worn earlier, minus the suit jacket and tie.

“Grace, hija mía!” He opened his arms and strode to where Grace stood, enveloping her in a hug. “I wanted to do this the moment I saw you this afternoon. I am so happy to have you here.” He skimmed his hands down to her shoulders to hold her away from him as he examined her face. “Have you been well taken care of?”

“We’ve been treated like royalty,” Grace said with a sly grin.

Luis laughed, the deep, rich sound vibrating through the air. “I hope that’s a good thing.”

Damn the man, he knows exactly how to reel Grace in.

“And you, Eve.” He turned to her. “It is a pleasure to welcome you to my home.”

“It’s a heck of a home,” Eve said, waving at the opulent room.

Luis grimaced. “I am sorry about the overblown splendor. Since the secret passage connects this suite with my quarters, it allows me to visit without observers.”

“I always wanted to live somewhere with a secret passage,” Grace said. “It’s very mysterious and romantic.”

“Several of our early queens would not find it so romantic,” Luis said. “This is where my long-ago predecessors would house attractive guests so that they could visit them clandestinely.”

“Why two bedrooms?” Grace asked.

“Ah, the husband would be installed in one, and the wife in the other,” Luis said.

“The husbands didn’t mind?” Eve asked.

“In those days, they didn’t have much choice if the king coveted their wife. Better to be cuckolded by royalty than tossed into the dungeon,” Luis explained. “Some men even considered it a useful way to curry favor with the king.”

Eve had a vision of Luis gliding into her candlelit bedroom, his long legs clad in tight breeches tucked into tall boots, his broad shoulders covered by a ruffled shirt open halfway down his chest, a long brocade dressing gown billowing out behind him. She was dressed in a translucent silk nightgown, her hair loose around her bare shoulders, waiting for him… A shimmer of heat sparkled through her body.

“What about the female guests?” Grace asked. “Did they have any say in the matter?”

“Probably even less than their husbands,” Luis said.

Eve felt guilty about her sexual fantasy. Those women hadn’t necessarily wanted to sleep with the king, not like she did.

“Please, let us sit.” Luis gestured to the sofa in front of the fireplace.

“Would you like something to drink?” Eve asked, thinking she could use something to cool off her overheated imagination.

“Cold water would be most welcome,” Luis said, settling into an armchair.

When Eve glanced at her daughter, Grace shook her head before she sat on the end of the sofa closest to her father.

“Tell me what you think of Caleva so far,” Luis said, leaning toward his daughter.

Grace launched into an enthusiastic description of the sights they had seen, thanking her father for flying them there first class.

He waved a hand in dismissal, but it clearly pleased him that she had enjoyed it.

When Eve brought him a tall glass of water with ice, he accepted it with a warm smile of gratitude before his focus shifted back to his daughter. Eve was happy to let the two of them talk, so she snuggled into a wing chair, kicking off her shoes and curling her legs under her. The flickering fire, the music of Grace’s soprano and Luis’s baritone voices, and her exhaustion made her lean her head against the chair’s high back in drowsy contentment.

“We are putting your mother to sleep.” Luis’s voice held a thread of apology. “I should leave you to rest from your journey.”

Eve sat upright. “No, please don’t go. It was so nice to sit here listening to the two of you talking.”

Now that her eyes were open, she noticed that Luis had relaxed in his own chair, leaning back and stretching out his long legs, which he crossed at the ankles. He wore the shiniest wingtips she had ever seen. Of course, he had a valet to keep them that way.

“No, I am being selfish.” He straightened his posture and folded his legs in to stand. “But before I go, I have a small gift for each of you.” He reached into his trouser pocket and brought out a small velvet bag. “To welcome you to Caleva.”

He unzipped the bag and poured something shiny into the palm of his hand. “For you, hija mía, in honor of your heritage.” He pinched up a gold chain between thumb and forefinger to display the golden pendant dangling from it, a fiercely snarling Calevan dragon with glittering emerald eyes.

Grace stood and held the pendant against her palm to admire it. “He’s the dragon on your coat of arms. I love it!”

“It is now your coat of arms as well,” Luis said. “May I put it on you?”

“Yes, please.” Grace turned and twisted her hair over her shoulder so Luis could lift the necklace over her head and fasten the catch behind her neck.

“It’s perfect.” Grace pivoted and kissed her father on the cheek. “I will treasure it always.”

Luis kissed Grace on both cheeks in return, his eyes ablaze with happiness.

“And for you, Eve.” Luis pulled out another pouch and tilted the contents into his hand. “A Calevan lily. Our miraculous flower that stops dementia.”

He held up the necklace, and it sparkled in the firelight. The lily’s dark red color was created by tiny rubies.

Oh God, he was going to want to put it around her neck. And she couldn’t wait.

She uncurled her legs and stood. “It’s lovely.” And far too fancy for her, but she would keep it someplace safe.

He looked a question at her, and she mutely turned her back to him, flicking her hair out of the way as Grace had. His scent wrapped itself around her right before he brought the necklace in front of her. The temptation to lean back against his tall, strong body was overwhelming, but she kept herself from swaying.

Then his fingers were brushing against the sensitive skin of her nape, and electric desire zinged through her to coil between her legs. All too quickly, the clasp was closed, and his touch was gone.

She dropped her hair over the still-tingling spot and touched the lily as she turned. “Thank you for the beautiful gift.”

He brushed his cheek against hers, which sent more heat skimming through her. “It is a joy to have you both here in my country.”

Grace looked up from delighting in her necklace. “Will you come back here tomorrow night?”

“Wild horses could not keep me away,” Luis said, and Eve heard the truth of it ring in his voice.

Grace linked her arm with her father’s. “I’ll walk you to the door.”

Eve tracked them across the room. Grace had fallen for her father, hook, line, and sinker. To be fair, Luis was equally enamored of his daughter, but he had been inclined that way before he met her.

A pang of jealousy intertwined itself with the happiness in Eve’s heart. She would be sharing Grace from now on, and not with just any father, but with one who commanded the resources of an entire country. She would have to stand strong to balance Luis’s influence. She might even have to fight to have a significant role in Grace’s life going forward.

She would also have to fight her insane attraction to Grace’s father.

The secret panel closed Luis into the dimly lit corridor with its bare stone walls. He could hear Grace’s voice through the wood, but he could not distinguish her words. She sounded happy, though. Almost as happy as he was to have her here. For a moment, he stood with his head thrown back and his eyes closed, basking in the knowledge that his daughter was here in Caleva. It felt as though his family was complete at last.

As soon as Grace and Eve moved to his cliff house, he would bring Raul to meet his half sister. They would have the time and privacy to get to know each other there. He was certain they would like each other because they were alike in so many ways. Responsible, hardworking, perhaps even driven, intelligent, and occasionally snarky. He smiled at the last, imagining them one-upping each other at the dinner table.

Now he had to persuade Grace and Eve to move from Iowa to Caleva. He did not fool himself that Grace would come to a distant country without her mother. They were a cohesive team, bound by a palpable love. He envied Eve that but hoped he could achieve almost as strong a relationship—albeit of a different quality—with Grace over time.

Which meant that he needed to control his problematic attraction to Eve. When she had curled up in the wing chair, with a sleepy smile and her head tilted against the side, he had been struck by a nearly overwhelming desire to kiss the exposed side of her neck, where the skin had been painted gold by the firelight. Even worse, he had wanted to scoop her out of the chair and carry her into the all-too-nearby bedroom to undress her and emulate his randy ancestors. Instead, he had limited himself to a single chaste air-kiss, although he had savored the warmth radiating from her skin and the delicious scent of woman combined with the citrus aroma wafting from her hair.

His history with women—other than the carefully vetted and very discreet liaisons he occasionally indulged in—was terrible, so he needed to stay away from Eve. He could not afford to alienate his daughter’s adoptive mother. Grace would be upset and might feel the need to choose sides. Luis had no illusions about whom she would choose.

Yet he found himself imagining what Eve’s glossy red hair would feel like if he buried his fingers in its curling mass. Thrusting his hands into his pockets, he forced himself to turn away from the suite that held so much that he wanted.