Becoming the Prince's Wife (Princes of Europe) Read Online Free PDF Page B

I’ve had an intimate relationship, but they live outside the country.”
    “Yet knowing you are betrothed has never stopped any of them from wanting to spend time with you?”
    “No. The women I’ve known haven’t been looking for permanency, either.” He smiled. “We’re like those ships passing in the night.”
    It sounded awful. Yet, since Berto, she hadn’t been looking for permanency, either, and could relate more than he knew.
    “I’ve warned my latest girlfriend our relationship could end at any time. You’re within your rights to condemn me, Carolena.”
    “I could never condemn you,” she whispered, too consumed by guilt over how she’d accidentally brought out Berto’s death to find fault with anyone. “You’ve had every right to live your life like any ordinary man. But like your uncle, it must have been brutal for you to have grown up knowing your bride was already chosen for you.”
    “I’ve tried not to think about it.”
    Her mind reeled from the revelations. “Does your betrothed know and understand?”
    “I’m quite sure Princess Alexandra has had relationships, too. It’s possible she’s involved with someone she cares about right now. Her parents’ expectations for her haven’t spared her anguish, either.”
    “No,” she murmured, but it was hard to understand. How could any man measure up to Valentino? If Princess Alexandra was like his sister, she’d been in love with Valentino for years. “Does she support your work as a volcanologist?”
    “I haven’t asked her.”
    “Why not?”
    “Up to now we’ve been living our own lives apart as much as possible.”
    “But this is an integral part of your life!”
    He sat up, chewing on the end of a blade of grass. “Our two families have spent occasional time together over the years. But the last time my brother was home on leave and went to Cyprus with me and my mother, he told me that Alexandra admitted she never liked the idea that I was a volcanologist.”
    “And that doesn’t worry you?”
    He studied her for a long moment. “It’s an issue we’ll have to deal with one day after we’re married.”
    “By then it will be too late to work things out between you,” she cried. “How often do you fly to Catania?”
    “Four times a week.”
    “She’s not going to like that, not if she hates the idea of it.”
    He gave her a compassionate smile. “Our marriage won’t be taking place for a long time, so I choose not to worry about it.”
    “I don’t see how you can stand it.”
    “You learn to stand it when you’ve been born into a royal family. Why fate put me in line for the throne instead of you, for example, I don’t know.”
    “You mean a woman can rule?”
    “If there are no other males. Under those circumstances, she must marry another royal so she can reign. But my grandparents didn’t have a daughter. Uncle Stefano should have been king, but he rebelled, so it fell to my father to rule.”
    Tears trickled down her cheeks. “How sad for your uncle.”
    “A double sadness, because though he’d abdicated in order to choose his own life, he was burdened with the pain of disappointing his parents.”
    “There’s been so much pain for all of you. And now your own sister and father have passed on.”
    He nodded. “It’s life.”
    “But it’s so much to handle.” Her voice trembled. Carolena wanted to comfort him but realized no one could erase all that sadness. She wiped the moisture off her cheeks. “You didn’t have to tell me anything. I feel honored that you did.”
    His gaze roved over her. “Your flattering interest in what I do prompted me to talk about something I’ve kept to myself for a long time. It felt good to talk about it. Why don’t you try it out on me by telling me what’s bothering you.”
    Her eyes closed tightly for a moment. “Let’s just say someone that I loved died and it was my fault. Unlike you, I can’t seem to move on from the past.”
    “Maybe you haven’t