Claimed: Gowns & Crowns, Book 3 Read Online Free Page B

Clark couldn’t?”
    Stefan followed her gaze, following the tiny form of Nicki as she crested one wave and swooped into the curl of another, drawing more applause and cheers as a line of tourists formed at the vendor’s stand to try the windsurfing boards for themselves. Nicki, oblivious to all of it, watched the wind and the water, her body taut, her energy focused. She was in her element, and she took his breath away.
    There was no way he was going to endanger her life, however, no matter what the queen commanded.
    But the queen wasn’t finished yet.
    “Give me one good reason—one—that she isn’t the ideal cover for you, and I’ll consider relenting,” she said. “Otherwise, the yacht is already being prepared, Stefan. I expect you to be on it tomorrow—with Nicki Clark.”

Chapter Three
    “Nicki, I really don’t know about this.”
    Nicki kept her head beneath an enormous bath towel for a second more, schooling her expression. By the time she emerged, and was ready to face the three scowling women who sat around her suite, all of them girded for battle.
    Well, girded might be overstating it. Lauren, the one who spoke, was standing by a chair, as if sitting was out of the question during such an important conversation. Lauren Grant was the heiress to an international hotelier fortune, and had grown up used to running the show. She and Nicki got along because Nicki usually let her—or ignored her if her opinions were inconvenient. But Lauren was serious this morning, and Nicki knew why. She’d confided in Lauren about her possible heart condition a week ago, when Lauren had questioned her usage of beta blockers. It would have been foolish not to disclose the worst possible scenario—that Nicki might possibly have a slowly dying heart—but she’d told Lauren not to worry, that there’d be lots of notice if anything was truly wrong.
    This wasn’t exactly true of course, but Lauren hadn’t pressed before. She did now.
    She’d clearly told the others too.
    Emmaline sat with her hands earnestly folded in her lap. Earnest was what Emmaline did best. Nicki couldn’t help thawing a bit as she caught her friend’s eye and smiled, watching her brighten with the strength of the connection. Across the room, Fran also caught her attention. She tilted her head and Nicki held up a hand to forestall whatever she was going to say.
    “No need to shrink me, Fran. I know what you’re thinking—what you’re all thinking. And you’re right. This is a simple trip but it could turn crazy at any moment. And not even for any grand reason, but the simple reality of going to a foreign country and running into all the problems that could entail. But seriously, this is not that big of deal. It’s not like we’re going to have people chasing us with guns.”
    “You could,” interjected Lauren darkly.
    “I won’t,” Nicki shook her head. “Have you seen the royal yacht? It’s practically a cruise ship. We’re going to sail down to Alaçati big as life, and give our validation to the windsurfing expo they’ve got going on. It’s good PR for Garronia, a nice goodwill gesture for Turkey, and the guards they’re sending along are going to ask all the questions they need to ask while Stefan squires me around as if I’m some sort of VIP. Which is hilarious, but that’s beside the point.”
    Emmaline bit her lip. “He’s not especially happy about you going, you should be aware.”
    Nicki snorted. “I think the ‘No, absolutely not, she can’t go,’ to Jasen at lunch was a good indicator of that. But honestly, that’s for them to figure out.” She gave her best “I don’t really care” shrug, perfected after years of being denied opportunities by her hypochondriac mother, who’d perfected the art of the flop sweat before anyone in the family had actually fallen ill. Once she reached her senior year in high school she’d shed a lot of those restrictions, but then her father’s heart attack and