“Raptors are incredibly important in our country. Each of the noble houses has one as their symbol. Your family is the merlin. A small but fierce bird. There are several well-known schools and programs that would be pleased to have you. And you would have the added benefits of our medical system for your father.” Rose looked up from her food. “There are many treatments available overseas your government has not allowed here.”

That gave me pause. More than anything she could have said tonight, that was the one thing that would make me seriously consider this craziness. From the look in her eyes, she knew it, too. I was being maneuvered. I didn’t like it, but at the same time, she made a good case. And I knew about merlins. They were amazing birds.

“I need to think about this.” I picked up my fork and pushed the potatoes on my plate.

“Of course.” Rose smiled and I caught a hint of victory in it. “Like I said, I will be here for a few more days. And if you decide to come, we can push it back a little so you can accomplish any tasks you’d need to do first. I’m sure you will want to speak with your father, as well.”

“Thank you, but I’m not sure I’ll be going.” I took another sip of wine. And then another. Oh good God. What would Dad say?

“I hope he will be able to come for the ceremony.” Rose sipped from her wine. “If you decide to take up the mantle, of course.”

If I decided, of course. I had a feeling it wouldn’t be that easy.

“If you come out, you’ll have to go hunting with me.” Alex nodded toward me.

“I’m not much of a hunter.” I racked my brain, wondering why he would think I would want to go hunting, but found it a little difficult to get past the fact he had asked me to do something with him. “I’ve only shot a gun a few times.”

He chuckled and the sound sent a wave of goose bumps over my arms. “No, I meant with birds. I own several hawks that are excellent hunters.”

“Oh.” That made much more sense. I scooped some of the food into my mouth, enjoying the flavors. Despite the crappy service, the Parallel’s food had lived up to the hype. “I’ve been a few times, but don’t have a bird of my own.”

“I’d be happy to lend you one of my birds. I’ve been away for a while, so it would be good to have help exercising them.” The corners of my mouth pulled up a little. He was being nice. There was no way he didn’t have a gamekeeper to help him take care of the birds while he was away.

“What do you have?” I pulled apart some of the bread I had asked the waitress to butter.

“Three Harris hawks.”

“Alex and his father are very large bird advocates in our country.” Rose tilted her glass toward her nephew. “He presented his first bill to the Lilarian council when he was twelve. He called for stricter punishments for the purposeful deaths of raptors and endangered birds.”

I looked over at Alex and felt my first true smile of the night. “That’s a pretty big proposal. Good for you.”

“Didn’t do it for me.” Alex sipped from his glass and smiled.

Chapter Four

Playboy Prince on the Prowl

—L.A. Chatter

When I asked for the bill, Rose waved it off. “You’re our guest. We will take care of the bill.”

“Thank you.” I didn’t want to offend her by insisting, even though it made me uncomfortable.

“I hope to hear from you soon, Samantha.” Rose looked over her shoulder and Duvall appeared from the shadows of the room. I tried to keep my face from registering my shock. The man gave me the willies. He handed Rose a card and a pen. She wrote something on the back and handed it to me. “Call me if you have any questions. That’s my direct line.”

“Thank you.” I tucked the card into the small purse I was carrying. I was sure Rose didn’t give out that number very often, so didn’t want to risk losing it.

“Off to bed then, for me. I’m not as young as I used to be. But don’t let that stop you and Alex. I’ve heard there are many interesting places in town for young people.” Rose held her hand out to me and pulled me close once. Softly she kissed my cheek and smiled. “It’s been a pleasure, my dear. A pleasure.”

“Very much so.” I bussed her cheek and tried to suppress the queasy feeling that surfaced when she suggested I spend more time with Alex. What the hell was I going to do with a prince? Good grief, even the voice in my head squeaked when I thought the word prince.

I watched quietly as Alex kissed his aunt good-bye before Duvall ushered her through the restaurant. I looked up into Alex’s amused eyes when he cleared his throat.

“Would you like to get a drink? The bartender seems rather knowledgeable.” His eyes slid over my body in a lazy perusal. “Or if you’d prefer, we could try somewhere else.”

“I probably shouldn’t.” The most attractive man I had ever met just asked me for a drink and I tell him no? I’m insane. I’m sure he was just trying to be polite. “I drove, so no more drinks for me tonight.”

“Ah.” He looked down at me and I felt small. Not in the personal sense, but literally small. The man was tall. “Well then, let me walk you to your car.”

“Thank you.” As we moved toward the entrance, he placed a hand on the small of my back. The warmth from his palm seeped through the thin material of my dress and made me shiver.