Determined to Protect, Forbidden to Love by Beverly Barton

Author:Beverly Barton [Barton, Beverly]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction
Publisher: Harlequin Mills & Boon Ltd.
Published: 2011-11-17T20:06:09+00:00

BETWEEN CUSTOMERS she printed off the information she’d found on the Internet about Estaire and Ducharme, including the lineage of the Valcourts back to the first prince of Estaire. She’d also found an article on the Falkenberg royal family, although it was in German. With the help of a German dictionary, she was attempting to translate it.

She wasn’t making much progress.

She was happy to put it aside when one of her favorite customers dropped into the store at eleven-thirty. Stoop-shouldered, his skin freckled and weathered from the sun, Otto Gascon made a regular habit of dropping into the Book Nook to browse on Mondays and Thursdays before joining his cronies for lunch and an afternoon of chess.

Rory didn’t know much about him except that he was in his seventies, retired and a widower. He lived in her neighborhood and she occasionally saw him walking on the beach or sitting on a bench with a plaid blanket covering his lap, reading a book.

His watery-gray eyes met hers warmly. His brow was damp with perspiration as he doffed his straw hat with a gnarled, blue-veined hand. “Good morning, young lady. You are looking hale and hearty. I’ve come about a book.”

Rory laughed as he handed her a newspaper clipping from his wallet. Every week without fail, Otto brought in a review clipped from the book review section of the paper and requested a book. “I hope we have it.”

She wasn’t surprised to see he wanted a biography of a famous news anchor. Otto’s reading tastes leaned toward biographies, travel, books about the world wars and the occasional political thriller. “We don’t have it in stock yet, but it should be any day. I’ll set one aside for you.”

“Wonderful. I’ll just browse in case something tempts me.” He glanced down at the counter at the travel books and the German dictionary. “Are you plan ning a trip?”

“Actually, I’m trying to translate an article.”

“Do you speak German?”

Rory grimaced. “No, that’s what makes it hard.”

“Perhaps I could help. I’m a little rusty, but I should be able to manage. My wife was from Germany.”

“You never told me that.” Rory slid the article toward him. “Would you?”

Otto nodded. “Ah, I see. It’s an interesting choice in articles, although it’s three years old. It’s about King Wilhelm of Ducharme. He was asked when his son Prince Laurent, then twenty-seven, would succeed him to the throne. The king responded that he doesn’t believe in making his son wait until his death, but that he would like to see his son married and settled with children before he assumes the responsibility.”

Ice encased Rory’s heart. Sebastian had told her about the feud, but he hadn’t mentioned this.

Was Prince Laurent determined to marry her for altruistic reasons and the good of his country, or because his father was holding the treaty over his head and it was the only way he could get the crown?

Did it matter?

Otto peered at her. “May I ask what spurs your interest in Ducharme and King Wilhelm? Ducharme is a beautiful country.

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