She was in, she told herself with a growing sense of anticipation as she looked around the room.

When Deboque walked out of prison in two days’ time, he’d be very pleased.

Chapter 2

“Oh, Hannah, I’m so glad you agreed to visit awhile.” With her arm hooked with her new friend’s, Eve strolled behind the backdrop at the theater. Her body remained slender during the early months of her pregnancy, but her dress was cleverly cut to conceal even the slight weight gain. “Alex doesn’t find it as necessary to pamper me to death now that you’re here. He finds you so sensible.”

“I am sensible.”

Eve’s low chuckle flowed into her easy Texas drawl. “I know, that’s the beauty of it, but you’re not always telling me to sit down and put my feet up.”

“Men sometimes look at pregnancy and childbirth as a traumatic disease rather than a fact of life.”

“That’s it exactly.” Delighted with Hannah’s dry wit, Eve drew her into her office. With Gabriella so often in America and her own sister visiting only rarely, Eve had indeed yearned for another woman to relax with. “Alex keeps expecting me to faint or get overly emotional. I never felt better in my life, except perhaps when I was carrying Marissa.”

Tossing back her fall of dark hair, Eve perched on the edge of her desk. Here, at least, she could still claim some measure of the privacy she’d given up when she’d married a prince. Though she never regretted the sacrifice, she always enjoyed stealing a bit of her own back.

“If you hadn’t come, I’d have had to fight him tooth and nail to continue working. He only agreed because he felt you’d keep a close eye on me when he’s busy.”

“Then I won’t disappoint him.” Hannah took quick stock of the office. No window, no outside access. With a smile, she chose a chair. “You know, Eve, I really admire you. The Fine Arts Center always had a good reputation but since you took over here, this theater has become one of the most important in Europe.”

“It’s what I’ve always wanted.” Eve looked down at the diamond-encrusted band on her finger. Even after two years it sometimes astonished her to find it there. “You know, Hannah, some mornings I’m almost afraid to wake up; I think that I’ll find out it was all a dream. Then I look at Alex and Marissa and think, they’re mine. Really mine.” Her eyes clouded a moment with both fear and determination. “I won’t let anything or anyone hurt them.”