CHAPTER 14 Rio
I wait until Tanzi”s brothers and the rest of my family go to their rooms to freshen up for dinner – another all family gathering…oh joy – to talk to the two dads in private.
Their glares indicate they do not appreciate how much restraint I have shown dealing with both of them so far.
”Let”s go into my study,” my father says.
I shake my head, in no mood to give into his power move. He has enough of an advantage having this discussion here in the palace. We aren”t going into his private sanctum for it.
I lean back on the sectional. ”I”m good here.”
A flicker of respect glimmers in Miguel Menendez”s gaze. Then he fixes it on my dad. ”This is fine.”
Father”s mouth tightens infinitesimally, but that is all the evidence he gives that our refusal to fall in immediately with his plans displeases him. ”You realize your actions have put our family in a difficult position. You were all but engaged to Giannetta Bellini.”
”About that,” Miguel butts in. ”Explain how you were able to get my daughter pregnant while in a relationship with another woman and why I shouldn”t beat you to the point of death for doing so?”
At least he”s giving me the benefit of the doubt. His fury this morning is understandable in light of the tabloid stories circulating about mine and Tanzi”s elopement.
Royal Heir Abandons Marriage Plans to Run Away with Billionaire Heiress
Prince Vittorio Follows in Playboy Brother”s Footsteps
Prince cheating on fiancée before the wedding?
He made sure I saw the headlines while Tanzi was occupied consoling her mom about a lack of a formal wedding. I told him they weren”t true, but until now, there has been no time to expound on that.
”First, I am not and have never been in a relationship with Giannetta Bellini.” I glare at my father ”I told you I wasn”t interested in her. Any impression she, or her family had to the contrary is all on you.””
He”s the one that pushed the idea and if those headlines hurt my wife, I won”t forgive easily.
”Because of this girl just out of college?”
”She”s exactly two years and eight months younger than me.” There is no culture in the world where that is considered a significant gap after the age of consent. ”And at twenty-two, Tanzi is a woman not a girl.”
”Who you did not have the guts or the courtesy to approach me for her hand in marriage,” Miguel slots in.
I refrain from rolling my eyes. Barely. ”I won”t tell her you said that. Tanzi isn”t a piece of property for you to give away. Your daughter doesn”t need anyone”s permission to marry—”
”But you do,” my father inserts.
”Perhaps, but as I said, if you attempt to exercise your power to dissolve the marriage, I will abdicate my place in the royal family and marry her all over again.” Not that my father decreeing the marriage invalid would hold legal sway anywhere but Isole de Rei.
But I am making a point.
”Let”s get back to the other woman,” Miguel says.
”There is no other woman,” I tell him between gritted teeth. ”Even if I was not in love with your daughter, I would have no interest in marrying Giannetta Bellini.”
”You never gave the idea due consideration,” my father says with disapproval.
I don”t like disappointing him. Or my mother. But I”m not living my life to please them either, so it is inevitable.
”I am not your heir,” I remind him. ”I”m not even the spare. Who I marry has no bearing on the throne of Isole dei Re.”
”Is that what this is about? You not being the first or second born? Do you think you are less important to me and your mother, or to this country, as your sister and brother are?”
”Yes. And before you go all emo dad on me, I am okay with that. I prefer a life over which I have more control.”
Emo dad? Miguel mouths.
I grimace. My father locks it down well, but he”s a passionate man and every bit as capable of over dramatizing as my grandfather. It runs in the family. Something Tanzi has to look forward to.
”A life away from your home.” My father”s already unhappy visage goes darker. ”Do you think we have not noticed how much time you spend away from the palace?”
”It”s normal for an adult child to move out on their own. You and mom may live in the same palace with your father, but your brothers and their families don”t.” Whoever demanded their presence for this confrontation didn”t do me any favors.
My guess is my grandfather. My father would have preferred to keep the situation under wraps until he heard my side of the story. But none of us was given that opportunity because of whoever leaked the story to the press.
My marriage is still a secret as far as the media is concerned, but me taking Tanzi to the Caribbean on one of our private jets is now common knowledge. Losing their job will be the least of their problems for whoever told a reporter about the trip.
How many of my brother”s exploits got blown up in the press the same way? We thought we plugged the leaks, but we were wrong.
”You are as much a part of the crown as your sister or brother.” My father”s return to an earlier point while ignoring the valid one I made is textbook negotiation tactics.
The problem here is that there is no negotiation. I”m not giving Tanzi up. Ever.
”Not true. Elena is your heir. She is the Crown. And until she has a child, Adamo is her heir. Pivotal to the Crown. I am a prince of this country, but progeniture of the Crown is not dependent on me.” And if it was?
Tanzi and I are ahead of the curve. We”re already pregnant.
Being the youngest of triplets is a pain in the ass. Because there is no actual difference in ages, but the birth order dictates behavior in a big way. But the single benefit is that I am not key to the Crown.
”You had to know that eloping would cause more trouble than it resolves,” my father changes the subject again.
Good call. Pushing to prove his point requires him being willing to acknowledge there could come a time that neither of my siblings is around to become monarch. And my dad is never going to speak that thought into existence.
”That is not possible,” I assure my father. ”No matter what the fallout, Tanzi and I deserved a private wedding that was about us.”
Yes, more for Tanzi”s sake than mine, but I”m not giving my dad any ammunition against the woman I love.
”Our marriage is not about her dad”s billionaire empire.” I give my father-in-law a harsh look. ”And it”s not about my family royal lineage. Our marriage is us.”
”Do not be na?ve, son. Royal marriages do not happen in a vacuum. Marriage alliances are arranged for a reason.”
”That reason isn”t good enough to justify arranging them any longer,” I say urgently. ”Just because you and mom started off as an arranged marriage, and turned out for you because you fell in love, that doesn”t mean your children want, or should be forced, to endure a marriage of convenience.”
My dad winces and there is a memory lurking in his gaze he”s never shared. The press treats my parents” marriage like a love match, but it wasn”t one. I don”t know when they fell for each other, or what came before, but I doubt it was anything like my instantly intense relationship with Tanzi.
”Think about it,” I urge my father. ”Elena deserves to pick out her own husband.”
”That is not—”
I interrupt my father in a way I i never do. ”She is not a fool and would not marry someone who would make a poor consort to the queen.”
Honestly? I would not blame my sister for following in my footsteps and keeping a relationship secret from the family until she is ready to make it permanent.
Living under the microscope of being a modern royal is not easy. Yes, there is a reason I spend so much time away from Isole dei Re. Because I am not as well-known as my siblings outside of it.
My sister because she is heir to the throne and my brother because he can”t seem to stay out of the tabloids.
I can live the normal life of a corporate shark when I”m away from the country that only sees me as a prince.