Prince Ever After
A royal wagerPlayboy prince Roland DeSaunters is ready to live up to his royal legacy—by betting on his future. Winning the beautiful Valora Harrington in a poker game is a scandal waiting to happen. Lucky for him, Val has no intention of getting involved with the younger brother of the man to whom she was once engaged. But after sharing an earth-shattering kiss with Val, Roland is the one swept off his feet.An ill-fated engagement to a man she didn’t love convinced Val that finding Prince Charming wasn’t in her cards. That was before she was drawn into a passionate clandestine affair with the handsome bad-boy of the reigning family. With dangerous enemies plotting the noble dynasty’s downfall, are Val and Roland ready to gamble on an uncertain future? Or could a last-minute challenge lead to the biggest surprise wedding Grand Serenity has ever seen?
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A royal wager
Playboy prince Roland DeSaunters is ready to live up to his royal legacyâby betting on his future. Winning the beautiful Valora Harrington in a poker game is a scandal waiting to happen. Lucky for him, Val has no intention of getting involved with the younger brother of the man to whom she was once engaged. But after sharing an earth-shattering kiss with Val, Roland is the one swept off his feet.
An ill-fated engagement to a man she didnât love convinced Val that finding Prince Charming wasnât in her cards. That was before she was drawn into a passionate clandestine affair with the handsome bad boy of the reigning family. With dangerous enemies plotting the noble dynastyâs downfall, are Val and Roland ready to gamble on an uncertain future? Or could a last-minute challenge lead to the biggest surprise wedding Grand Serenity has ever seen?
âYou never know what people truly think about you when all theyâve ever heard was gossip,â she admitted.
âMisjudgments,â Roland commented as his eyes seemed to search her face for something she wasnât quite sure she possessed. âPeople tend to do that far too often.â
âI agree,â she said, her throat suddenly dry.
âHonesty is a beautiful thing,â he continued as he rubbed his hands down his thighs.
âIt can be,â Val replied. âOn the other hand, some people canât accept the truth as well as they can a lie.â
âYou want to know whatâs true at this very moment?â Roland asked.
Was he leaning closer?
Val clenched the napkin sheâd been holding more tightly in her hand.
âWhat?â she asked in response.
She didnât really think she wanted to know what Roland was going to say next, but at the same time, she didnât want this moment to end.
He was in fact leaning closer. Heâd planted a palm on the blanket to hold himself steady as his face neared hers.
âI want you,â he whispered.
She gulped, loudly. Then as she licked her lips impulsively, his gaze lowered to her mouth.
âYes, Valora, I definitely, unquestionably want you.â
Itâs time for the big royal wedding! I so enjoyed writing Rolandâs story because throughout the first two books heâs been in the background keeping his thoughts and feelings to himself. Well, Val has stepped onto the scene, and sheâs brought out every feeling Roland has been desperately trying to keep at bay. I love this couple so much. Neither of them imagined they would ever find someone special, and when they do, they almost still canât believe it. So it was very fitting to wrap up this trilogy with their love story. I hope you have enjoyed your time on Grand Serenity Island!
Happy reading,
ac
A.C. ARTHUR is an award-winning author who lives in Baltimore, Maryland, with her husband and three children. An active imagination and a love for reading encouraged her to begin writing in high school, and she hasnât stopped since.
To all the dreamers.
Contents
The breeze cut across his face like a million tiny pinpricks. Beneath him the engine purred like a satisfied female as the wheels smoothly took on another sharp turn on a road where there was only one laneâs worth of space.
Heâd traveled this road so many times before and most times at the same rate of speed. His fingers hugged the steering wheel in an easy embrace, his back and body comfortable against the smooth leather seats of the silver-metallic Jaguar XJ220. Night had fallen over the mountains and cliffs of the island an hour ago, and heâd itched to get out of the confines of his everyday dress clothes and the formal dining room of the royal palace. It reminded him of his teenage years. Prince Roland Simon DeSaunters tossed his head back and laughed.
Heâd been such a hellion back then. But eleven years ago didnât seem that long, surely not long enough for him to mature into the prince that everyone expected him to be. Heâd had too long to practice being reckless, adventurous and fearless, to bottle all that spirit and simply sit still as a member of the royal family of Grand Serenity Island. That wasnât Rolandâs speed at all.
His speed was fast. Fun. Borderline rowdy.
With that thought, he took another curve, going downhill as he headed into town. The moment heâd been able to escape the clutches of another tension-filled family dinner, Roland had climbed into his car and driven to the small house hidden in the clefts of the mountainside that he adored. It had been his first major purchase the moment heâd been old enough to spend a part of his inherited fortune without adult supervision. The house was a high school graduation gift to himself, although he hadnât actually been able to live in it until his four years in the Royal Seaside Navy had been completed. His place was located on the southern tip of the island, where construction had not yet reached. Therefore, this part of his homeland was still flanked with dense forestation. Two of the islandâs tallest mountains dubbed the Serene Mountains for their location thrust through the greenery.
