Page 74 of Not-So-Perfect Princess
Boots meowed, sounding sad as if he knew Julianna and her treats were gone.
Gone.
He’d let Julianna go so she could be happy. Now he was miserable.
Alejandro dragged his hand through his hair. He missed her already. He’d done everything on his own for so long and been self-reliant, but this past week and a half, he’d been in a partnership. One, he realized now, he didn’t want to end.
Everything in his life—Boots, La Rueca and his plans for the island—had become built around Julianna. He cared what she thought about things. He valued her opinion. He was happier than he’d ever been when he was with her. She was happy, too.
That had to count for something.
Would it be enough?
He hoped so because he realized that he was willing to fight for it. For her.
Letting Julianna go had been the wrong decision. One he regretted with his whole heart. Somehow he had to show her happiness and love were as important as her sense of duty.
I love her.
His heart pounded a ferocious beat. Feelings he’d tried to ignore burst to the surface. He staggered back until he hit the wall.
Alejandro wasn’t sure when it had happened, sailing or on the beach, but he loved Julianna. Body, heart and soul. He loved the way she could be so prim and proper, but yearn for adventure at the same time. He loved the way she sailed as if her life depended on it. He loved her smile, her laughter and her tears. He loved the way she made him want to be a better man.
He struggled to breathe.
Love might not always last, but they weren’t his parents. Julianna was too important not to at least try. The life Alejandro wanted wasn’t going to work unless she was a part of it.
“I’ve got to go after her,” he said to Boots. “I have to convince her we have a future together.”
Boots meowed.
Alejandro ran out the villa’s front door.
The sun rose as he drove up the windy road to the palace. No red sky this morning, just golden-yellow and orange rays. The beginning of a beautiful day, he hoped.
The only other car on the road was his security detail following him. No matter what time of day, they were always right there behind him. His father must have forgotten to tell them their services were no longer required.
Inside the palace, he ran through the hallway to her room. Yvette wasn’t sitting outside.
He knocked.
No one answered.
He knocked again.
“She’s not here.” Enrique slurred the words. He wore the same clothes as last night sans jacket and held a bottle of wine. “Julianna broke off the match. Alaric disowned her. She’s gone.”
Alejandro’s heart soared. If Julianna called off the wedding and gave up on doing her duty, that might mean she loved him. If she didn’t, he’d show her the feelings between them were real. “Where is she?”
“What is all the noise?” His father walked down the hallway in his robe and slippers. “Do you know what time it is?”
Enrique burped. “His fault.”
“Where is Julianna, Father?” Alejandro asked.
“I don’t know,” Dario admitted. “I offered to let her stay in the palace until she sorted things out, but she said it was time for her to start doing things on her own.”
“Is Klaus with her?”
“King Alaric forbid the bodyguard from going with her,” Dario said. “I thought Klaus was going to cry. Brandt is with him now.”
“Yvette?”
“She broke down.” Dario shook his head. “Elena is with her.”
“I must find Julianna, Father. I need to know she’s safe.” Alejandro had spent much of his life rebelling and retreating from his duty, wanting to be alone and doing everything himself. But not today. “I love her. I need to tell her that even if she doesn’t feel the same way.”
“She’s an ice princess.” Enrique swaggered down the hallway. “All that money gone. Gone. Gone.”
“Alaric took away Julianna’s passport so she’s on the island,” Dario said in earnest to Alejandro.
“It’s a start.” But where on the island would she go? She didn’t know anyone that well.
His father placed a hand on Alejandro’s shoulder. “I was wrong trying to control everyone. That is what drove your mother away. I didn’t want to lose you, too, so I wouldn’t allow her to take you. But I fear I have lost you anyway, Alejandro. We don’t always see eye to eye, but I hope you know I love you and am proud of the man you’ve become.”
