The Forbidden Prince Read Online Free PDF

would find a way to achieve any dreams she had.
    Weirdly, it made him feel proud of her...
    He’d also seen her pride. He’d deliberately searched for the least expensive item on the menu because it was obvious that Mika didn’t have unlimited funds. He’d picked up on that, when she’d said she had waited a long time to own that precious camera, as easily as he’d been able to absorb communication from a glance. And he’d seen the way she’d reacted. It had reminded him of that curious little creature he’d come across for the first time when he’d been at his English boarding school—a hedgehog that curled itself into a ball to protect itself so that all you could see were prickles.
    But Mika had relaxed again now. And she could eat ... There was real pleasure to be found in the company of a female who actually tackled food like a boy. There was no picking at a low-calorie salad for Mika. She was attacking her big slices of pizza with so much enthusiasm, she had a big streak of tomato sauce on one cheek.
    This was so different from anything he’d ever experienced. The only note of familiarity was the offer of the best table the restaurant had to offer—and another table would have been found, of course, for the discreet security personnel who were never far away. Photographers would have been shut outside for the moment but his female companion would have excused herself possibly more than once, to make sure she was ready for them later, to touch up her make-up and check that there were no stains on the figure-hugging evening gown she was wearing.
    Imagining any of those elegant women he’d dined with in the past with food on her face made it virtually impossible to hide a smile. Raoul also had to resist the urge to reach out and wipe it clean with his napkin. Or maybe just his thumb. He could imagine how the prickles would appear again if he did, though. He already knew Mika quite well enough to know that she would not appreciate being treated like a child.
    â€˜It’s good, isn’t it?’
    â€˜ So good.’ Mika eyed the remaining slices of the pizza but reached for her beer first. She frowned at Raoul when she put her glass down. ‘What’s funny?’
    The smile had escaped. ‘You’ve got a moustache.’
    â€˜Oh...’ With the back of her hand, Mika erased the foam above her lip. The gesture captured the streak of tomato sauce as well. ‘Better?’
    â€˜Mmm.’ But Raoul was still smiling. He’d never sat a table with a woman who would use her hand rather than a napkin and it was quite possible he’d never enjoyed a meal quite this much, either.
    â€˜Tell me more about this OE you’re on... Do you have an itinerary?’
    â€˜Not really. I find a place and a job and work until I’ve saved enough to go somewhere else. I’ll be here for a while longer after investing in that camera, but it’s a good job and I love it here, so that’s okay.’
    â€˜What’s your job?’
    â€˜I’m in hospo.’
    Raoul blinked. Maybe his English wasn’t as good as he’d thought. It took only as long as that blink for Mika to realise his lack of comprehension and rescue him.
    â€˜Hospitality. I’m a waitress in a café down in Positano.’
    â€˜And that’s a good job?’
    â€˜It is when you’re travelling. It’s easy to get work and nobody’s too bothered about permits or anything. You can get paid in cash, too. It’s what most people do on their OE. Part of the rite of passage, even. Everybody should work in hospo at least once.’
    â€˜Why?’
    â€˜Because it changes the way you see the world. You get to see the best and worst of people in ways you wouldn’t believe. And it changes how you see people who work in the kind of jobs that usually make them invisible—you know what I mean?’
    Raoul nodded slowly but his