Courting Carolina (25 page)

Jane let him lift her full weight as she slowly swung her leg over the saddle, taking note that Nicholas was probably correct about Jacoby’s performance, as the man certainly didn’t lack physical strength. Yes. Well. He could act like a simpering buffoon until the sun burned out; she was not living in the fifteenth century. She took the reins he handed her, gave him a coy smile as she gave the mare a kick, and realized it really was going to be a gentle ride when the horse couldn’t even work up a trot.

Jane shot Nicholas a speaking glare as she plodded past, then sucked in a fortifying breath. “So, Jake,” she said as the prince trotted up beside her while working to control his prancing stallion. “I’m just dying to hear all about the vast kingdom you’re in line to inherit.”

Because Nicholas wasn’t about to leave her alone with Jacoby—even though the prince was in no condition to make a pass—and because he wouldn’t let her gallop back to the resort alone to get help, either, Jane ended up riding the stallion and leading her mare—since the damn stallion kept trying to
mount
the mare when she tried leading it—while Nicholas held a groaning and hissing Jacoby in front of him on his horse.

She still wasn’t sure what had happened, but one minute the prince had been leaning quite far toward her—after they’d ridden around a bend in the trail far enough ahead of Nicholas that the buffoon felt safe to boldly steal a kiss—and the next minute all hell had broken loose.

Jacoby’s stallion had suddenly…exploded, rearing up with a loud scream of what appeared to be surprise. And already being off balance, the prince had gotten slammed into a tree as the horse bolted down the trail. Somehow managing to stay with the startled beast, Jacoby had then pulled back on the reins so hard, the stallion had slid to a halt on its haunches, and Jane had watched with her hands over her mouth as her Prussian suitor went flying over the horse’s head with an equally startled scream—which had ended abruptly when he slammed into another tree.

Nicholas shot past her at a flat-out gallop, and Jane didn’t know which surprised her more: what had just happened or that her stalwart protector had a large caliber, very modern-looking pistol in his hand. Nicholas had pulled his own horse to a sliding stop—his butt not even lifting an inch off the saddle—between her and the unmoving Jacoby as he scanned the woods on both sides.

“What in hell happened?” he growled, still scanning.

“I have no idea. One minute he was trying to steal a kiss, and the next minute his horse suddenly bolted, like something bit its ass.”

He finally looked at her, and in the blink of an eye Nicholas went from warrior to childhood friend, one side of his mouth lifting. “
Something
, Lina…or you?”

She shook her head. “I swear on Prometheus’s toes, I didn’t do anything. Um, do you think we should go see if Jacoby is still breathing?”

Nicholas went back to scanning the woods around them. “Did you happen to hear anything before something bit his horse’s ass?”

“Only a whiny voice whispering that my beauty makes Venus a hag.”

His mouth twitched again as he finally slid his weapon
inside his jacket—into a shoulder holster, she assumed. “The guy was comparing you to a
Roman
goddess? Maybe he is a buffoon.” He shrugged. “Titus must have invited him out of respect for his father, knowing Jacoby didn’t stand a chance of your picking him.”

Jane stood up in her stirrups to look past Nicholas at Jacoby’s still motionless body, then sat back down. “You intend to leave it to me to tell Jake’s father his son is dead because we were too busy discussing what happened to save his life?”

Nicholas gave a sigh and dismounted, then walked down the trail to the fallen prince. “He’s still breathing,” he said as he rolled him over. He shook his head. “But I don’t think you’re going to see his name on your dance card. His left knee is busted.” He suddenly stilled, then pulled out his gun as he rose to a crouch, his gaze going to the woods off to Jane’s right. “Dismount,” he quietly hissed without looking at her. “And lay flat on the ground.”

Jane immediately slid off her horse and lay down, putting a large tree between her and where he was looking, and stopped breathing to listen. They each held their positions for several pounding heartbeats, and then Nicholas suddenly stood up with a snort and shoved his gun back inside his jacket.

“Call your pet, Lina,” he muttered, gesturing toward the woods.

Jane rose to her knees and gasped in surprise. “Kitalanta!” she cried, jumping to her feet just as the wolf suddenly sat down a good twenty paces away, his gaze darting from her to Nicholas then back to her. “No, it’s okay. Nicholas is proud of your role in helping me escape the kidnappers. Come on, Kitty,” she petitioned, patting her knees when the wolf still didn’t move. “Nicholas, tell him what a good orca he is.”

Nicholas turned away and knelt down to Jacoby. “Kitalanta negated his good deed when he didn’t immediately come tell us where you were.”

“He’s my friend,” she snapped, rushing to the wolf. “Yes,
my loyal friend,” she murmured, dropping to her knees and giving him a fierce hug. “You don’t listen to Nikki; he’s just grouchy because he has to lug Jacoby back to the resort.” Jane leaned away to clasp Kitty’s face but stilled in surprise. “What’s that you’re wearing?” she whispered. She glanced over her shoulder to make sure Nicholas was occupied, then touched the braid of hair—which looked like
her
hair—woven into Kitty’s fur. Jane shot her gaze to the woods behind the wolf, her heart pounding with a mixture of excitement and dread as she gave another quick glance at Nicholas. “Did Alec put that there? Is…is he here?” she asked softly, looking around again.

Kitty leaned in and gave her a lick, then ducked his head with a grumbling whine, but Jane clasped his face again. “Listen carefully, Kitalanta; you must keep Alec away from Nova Mare. Can you do that, my friend? I’m afraid of what will happen if he’s caught trying to sneak onto the resort grounds, and Nicholas doubled the guards after Alec brought me my belongings. You have to keep him—”

“I could use some help over here.”

Jane stood up and turned to see Nicholas lifting Jacoby onto his horse. “What do you want me to do?”

“Go get his horse,” he said, nodding at Jacoby’s stallion pulling against its reins tangled around a branch down the trail.

Jane turned back to Kitalanta and nudged him with her knee. “Go on, now. Go keep an eye on Alec for me,” she said softly as the wolf took two steps then stopped and looked at her again. “And…and tell him I’m sorry,” she whispered, spinning away and running to the trail—only to glance over her shoulder to find that Kitty had vanished.

So that was how Jane and Nicholas and a groaning and hissing Jacoby ended up returning to Nova Mare later that afternoon, and Jane subsequently learned that Niall MacKeage had apparently decided picnicking with a princess didn’t hold a candle to sneaking off to Pine Creek with Duncan to meet more of his descendents.

It was also when, much to her delight, Jane realized that
of her six original suitors, she was down to four and a half—if she counted that Niall was only half-interested in becoming Titus Oceanus’s son-in-law.

Aeolus’s Whisper’s private dining room was abuzz the following evening as to why the five remaining warriors had been collectively invited to eat with the Oceanuses, as well as speculation about what had really happened to cause Titus to send Prince Jacoby home that morning. Jane sipped her wine to hide her wince as she remembered seeing Jake’s ribs wrapped so tightly it was a wonder he could breathe, his right eye swollen shut, and his left leg trussed up in a crude splint that wouldn’t raise any eyebrows when he showed back up in the fifteenth century.

She’d felt bad—but only a little bad—this morning when she’d given the Prussian a kiss on his battered cheek as he’d repeatedly petitioned her father to please let him stay. And she’d felt only a little more bad when she’d heard Jake actually break into sobs as Nicholas had carried him into the woods—only to return shortly after a loud clap of thunder had pulsed through the air and shaken the ground.

“It’s just as well,” Titus had said on a heavy sigh as he’d turned and walked away. That was all;
it’s just as well
. Those had been the only words he’d said to Jane since coming after her in the woods five days ago. No, he hadn’t spoken to her then, either—not that she’d gone out of her way to give him a chance.

It had been while she’d been watching him walk away that Jane had heard the helicopter start up, and nearly dropped to her knees when she saw it rise into the air lifting a huge lean-to. On the one hand that meant Alec must be well enough to work, but the ache Jane had felt knowing he was so close but so far beyond her reach had nearly crushed her. She hadn’t heard Nicholas when he’d walked up behind her, and had broken into huge sobs when he’d wrapped his arms around her. “I’m sorry, Lina,” he’d murmured into her hair before turning her around and holding her face to his
chest so she’d quit watching the chopper flying away. And then he’d simply let her soak his shirt, his silent understanding doing more to help her weather the storm than any words could have.

Jane took another sip of wine as she glanced around the long table taking up most of the private upstairs dining room—the restaurant being the only two-story building on the resort—and found herself feeling sincerely sorry for the five remaining men, knowing they were all going home losers.

She suddenly stilled, realizing only four warriors were present. So who had been foolish enough to ignore an imperial invitation to dine with the royal family? Niall was there, so despite being only half-interested he obviously wasn’t stupid. Sir Garth of the Round Table was there, and the Bedouin, and Aaron of Devonshire—which meant Soren the Norseman was missing.

Come to think of it, she hadn’t seen him all day. And that was unusual, since the Viking usually looked her up most mornings and tried to entice her to join him for a swim—in the freezing
fiord
instead of the nicely heated outdoor pool, the idiot.

She leaned toward Nicholas. “Have you seen Soren today?” she whispered.

Nicholas let his gaze travel the length of the table, his eyes stopping at the empty chair on the opposite side. “I saw him heading down the mountain just after dawn.
Alone
,” he said with a chuckle. He shook his head. “You would think he’d catch on and just swim in the pool with you.”

Jane leaned away, widening her eyes in mock horror. “And concede defeat to a mere woman?” She looked around the table again and sighed. “Why do you suppose Daddy put on this little feast?”

“Daddy?” Nicholas repeated, arching a brow.

Jane shrugged one bare shoulder and tugged on the front of her black strapless dress—that she’d worn just to scandalize the ancient-minded buffoons. “Henry’s been bugging me
to call Father
Daddy
, claiming it’s more modern and…affectionate.”

“And have you called him
Daddy
to his face?”

Instead of answering, she took another sip of wine.

Nicholas merely chuckled.

Jane never did find out why her daddy had called everyone together, because not five minutes after Titus had entered with Rana on his arm—causing everyone to rise to their feet—and Mac had entered with Olivia—causing everyone to rise again—all hell broke loose for the second time in two days when the Norseman came staggering into the dining room, his face a bloody mess.

And in another clap of thunder, Jane was down to three and a half suitors.

Chapter Fifteen

The mere hint of sound was enough to awaken Alec in a state of battle-readiness, although he was careful not to show any outward sign. But what really worried him was that the wolves weren’t alarmed, which led him to believe he probably wasn’t going to like his late-night visitor.

Cracking open his eyes to see the unusually tall man bathed in moonlight sitting on his food locker, Alec spread his arms out from his sides and slowly sat up. “Take your best shot, old man, because if your first blow isn’t fatal, it may well be your last.”

“I didn’t come here to kill you, MacKeage.”

“Then you’re a bigger idiot than I am.”

“My daughter wants you.”

Alec dropped his arms on a heavy sigh and pushed back to sit leaning against the rear wall of the shelter he’d set onto the site yesterday afternoon. “Look,” he said, “I was just a safe place for Jane to land for a little while.”

“Yes, safe,” Titus said gruffly, brushing at nothing on his pant leg, “and obviously quite caring.” He looked back at Alec and arched an imperial brow. “So much so that you
willingly risked your life protecting her, first from the kidnappers and then from me.”

“The way I hear it, you’re hoping your man Nick will take over where I left off.”

“Nicholas will marry Carolina if I ask him to, despite his feelings for her being those of a brother to a sister.” The old wizard leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees, his slightly glowing eyes somber. “And if another option doesn’t present itself
soon
, I will have no choice but to ask him.”