Page 70 of Raul

When the SUV pulled up in front of her apartment building, relief swamped all other feelings.

“I wish…” Raul stopped and took a deep breath. “It was my fault, not yours. My apologies.” He held her gaze for a long moment. “You deserve more than I can give you.”

He leaned over to press his lips softly against hers. She closed her eyes to hide the tears swimming in them again. Suddenly, his hands were on her shoulders, pulling her hard against him as he devoured her mouth almost with desperation.

She grabbed his arms to bring herself even closer, the tears trickling down her cheeks even as she tried to envelop herself in this last heartbreaking kiss.

Because she could feel the goodbye.

He released her as quickly as he had embraced her. For a moment, his eyes burned with all the desire and yearning she felt. Then he reached across her to push open her car door.

She couldn’t help herself. She reached up to brush back a lock of his hair mussed by their kiss, the curling silk of it a poignant pleasure against her fingertips.

“I’m sorry,” he said again.

“Don’t be,” she said on a choked sob before she swung her legs out of the car and stepped onto the sidewalk.

Their gazes tangled for a long moment before he slammed the car door closed.

She trudged up the stairs to the building’s front door, keying in the code to open it. As she pulled the door open, she heard Raul’s SUV pull away.

Only then did she give in to the agony searing through her heart.

Chapter 16

Erica steered her car into the parking lot by the private hangar at San Ignacio International Airport. Turning off the ignition, she stared at the corrugated side of the huge structure.

She needed to get her head straight because she was taking Gabriel’s jet on a shakedown flight after the heavy maintenance it had undergone. She had to be totally focused.

Yet all she could think about was yesterday with Raul. Pain struck at her gut again.

She’d known their fling wouldn’t last. She had tried to brace herself for the inevitable end. It turned out she had done a shit job of that. The loss ached like the world’s worst hangover.

Even worse, it had ended in such a hurtful way. How could Raul not trust her? That twisted the blade even deeper as it hit her pride along with her heart.

She took a deep, shaky breath and yanked her thoughts in another direction.

She was still in shock about the truth of the new princess’s birth mother. Odette Fontaine was the most-hated person in Caleva because of what she had done to Erica’s beloved boss, Gabriel. Erica knew the prince had been the real target of the kidnapping and gruesome mutilation. And Raul paid for it with his terrible burden of guilt.

What she couldn’t understand was why Fontaine hadn’t told the media. It seemed inconceivable that Fontaine wouldn’t want to tell the world who her daughter was. Maybe she had some maternal feeling toward Grace and kept silent to protect her daughter.

Erica shook her head. She tried to imagine the supremely controlled King Luis having a fling with a psychopath. A flingso passionate it had resulted in a child. Of course, he had been younger then.

That circled her thoughts right back to the worst part of the revelation. The horror in Raul’s eyes at the fact that he had spilled the shocking secret to Erica.

She banged her head on the steering wheel. She hadn’t slept more than a couple of hours, which didn’t help her mental state.

She grabbed the huge travel mug of black coffee she’d poured before she left and swallowed down the last few gulps.

Today, she would have to depend on her copilot, Bertrand Laplage, to be sharp, because no amount of coffee seemed to help control her pain.

Four hours later, she steered the sleek aircraft back into the hangar while Bertrand jotted a last note on his tablet.

“The jet’s in good shape,” he said. “Ready for taxi service and the honeymoon. That will be a very nice vacation for all of us.”

Yeah, sitting on the beach of a private island in the middle of the Caribbean Sea with nothing to do but wallow in misery over Raul was her idea of a good time.

“Our first taxi ride is to New York,” she said, checking her tablet to wipe the thought away. “Two days from now.”