Sutton could feel the frustration pouring off of Liz. He’d overstepped by claiming she was an adulterer like Gunthry and the scum he called friends. Kingsley had told him that Liz had been a prisoner in her own home for many years. Sutton’s only excuse was the pain from her rejection decades ago was still sharp, and he’d lashed out. He’d also needed to say something to distance himself, or he would’ve kissed her then and there. He needed to keep his head on straight. The duke’s men were detained by his SEALs and private security team for the time being, but Sutton knew that Gunthry had others at his disposal who were probably even now on their way to intercept him.

He angled up the ramp and out of the parking lot, rushing onto the city streets.

“We’re not in America,” said Liz calmly, pointing at the street in front of them.

Sutton zipped over to the proper side of the street, but didn’t reply. Why did Liz have to be so maddeningly appealing? It was hard to think straight with her around. Things had never been like that with Jean. Sutton had married her on the rebound from Liz, thinking he wanted a companion and someone to have children with. Jean had no desire for either and Sutton had been thrilled when the divorce was final and she’d gotten the settlement she craved and had never come back again. After that, he’d thrown himself into raising his son, Doug. Life had been great for them, and the years had passed quickly. Of course, there had been nights he ached for Liz, but he’d always been a master of self-control. Who knew she could dismantle that self-control simply by being herself?

“Sutton.” She quietly said his name and put her smooth fingers on his arm at the same time.

Sutton couldn’t help but groan as he shifted the car into a higher gear, increasing the speed. He ignored her voice and her touch.

“This is a mistake.” She tried again.

They were a mistake? “Yeah, you made that glaringly obvious when you married the duke while I was deployed.”

Liz pulled her hand back and let out a cute little gasp. Sutton couldn’t resist glancing at her. She was picture perfect and completely off limits to him.

“No, I meant you taking me away like this. The duke will come after us. I don’t want you hurt.”

Sutton let out a harsh laugh. “There you go again, assuming your squirrelly duke can best me.”

“You and your barmy pride.” She shot back at him.

Sutton laughed again. He couldn’t help it. He liked her feisty.

“All you’re doing is prolonging the inevitable,” she said. “He’ll find me, and then he’ll kill me. Kill us both. If you take me back, I can deal with it without you having to suffer.”

Sutton braked for a red light and turned to look at her in the darkened interior. Her blue eyes were large and afraid. That monster truly had her fearing for her life. He wanted to tear James apart for the hurt he’d inflicted on Liz. Sutton wanted to protect her until his dying day. He shook his head. He couldn’t get all idealistic about this. He was protecting her for River and Ally and exacting his revenge on the duke. When James was brought to shame and ruin, Liz would be safe to live out her life. A life Sutton had no part of anymore.

He gave her a cocky grin. “Don’t worry about me, Duchess. I’ve been waiting a long time to make things right between me and the duke.”

Liz rolled her eyes and folded her arms across her chest. That silver dress was much too appealing on her lovely frame. “Barmy male pride,” she muttered.

Sutton gave her a dry chuckle. She had no clue how his male instincts were firing toward her at the moment. If she did, she’d probably call him something a lot more intense than barmy. Let her think it was just about him winning against James. That would hopefully keep him safe from falling for her again. And maybe the Queen would give up her crown to a pauper in his fantasy world.

* * *

Liz sat back in the plush seat of Sutton’s Airbus. It was nicer than her and James’ Gulfstream. This passenger compartment didn’t seem to be as large as the Gulfstream’s, but there were probably other cabins. She supposed she shouldn’t be surprised. Sutton came from family money and had obviously been successful with his investments or business ventures. Sutton was impressive for many reasons that had nothing to do with his money, power, or handsome face. She loved his dry humor and how smart and caring he was. Unfortunately, he obviously didn’t care for her anymore.

An ache lodged in her throat. If only she could’ve chosen him instead of the duke all those years ago. The icy way he was treating her now showed he had no desire to forgive and forget those years and that pain. Or maybe he simply wasn’t interested in her anymore. Maybe he didn’t know she was divorced now. She wanted to tell him, tell the world, instead she watched the adorable redheaded flight attendant fawn over him. Did a man like 008 ever get used to the female adoration?

The flight passed slowly as she agonized over Ally and River being safe and wished she could rein in this intense draw to Sutton. She couldn’t stop herself from staring at him. It was even harder because they were facing each other across the main cab, each in their own leather recliners. He worked on a laptop for far too many hours while she tried to distract herself with the magazines the flight attendant brought her and then the film she put on for her. Liz had said she didn’t care which film it was, and the girl had put on the most recent James Bond. Now that was cruel, being twenty feet from an even better version—her 008. The man she’d loved her entire life.

The film ended just as they stopped to refuel in New Jersey and converse briefly with a customs agent who came onboard. With a sly grin for Liz, Sutton produced her passport, though she had no idea how he’d obtained it. Within minutes, they lifted off again, and Sutton returned to studiously ignoring her. What could she do to get him to look at her again? To love her again?

Stop it, Liz. She forced her eyes closed and said a prayer for River and Ally’s safety before praying she could sleep. She slid her chair into the fully reclined position and squeezed her eyes shut. It felt good to stretch out, but then something else hit her. For the past ten hours, she hadn’t been afraid. She’d been worried about River and Ally and much too interested in Sutton’s every move, but she hadn’t felt the suffocating blanket of fear that had become such a part of her life she barely noticed it anymore. Sutton’s protection made her feel light and airy. Even if he never loved her like she did him, she had this gift of safety. Even more importantly, Ally was safe.

Tears of relief and gratitude squeezed out of her closed lids. She wanted to rush over and hug Sutton for giving her this taste of freedom, this reprieve from her life. Sadly, she doubted it would last. The duke would win in the end. He always did. She hated that Sutton would now be a target for him. For this brief moment, she was going to savor this feeling of protection and safety.

And freedom. The plan with the divorce papers had been in the works for months. It was supposed to coincide with Ally’s escape to Hawaii. When James had discovered where Ally had gone, and brought her back, Liz’s world had come crashing down. It had taken a few days to recover and decide that she wouldn’t remain married to that monster for a minute longer than necessary, even without a firm escape plan for Ally in place.

She thought back to last night when Kingsley had come home with James from the House of Lords. Kingsley was all smiles as he explained to her that he’d mentioned to James that he was helping her invest the billions Liz had received upon her father’s death. Liz had put on a face of controlled panic, acting as if it was an unspeakable shock that James had discovered her fortune, yet she was putting on a brave face anyway. The fear had been real, because if James had so much as skimmed a single one of the documents, the entire ruse would have been exposed.

James had kept his politician smile in place, an ugly glower in his eyes, as Kingsley explained to Liz that he needed both her and James to sign the paperwork to be joint owners on the funds. Little did James know that he’d actually signed his own divorce papers. He trusted Kingsley completely, and the plan she and Kingsley had come up with to get him to sign the papers made James love Kingsley even more. He assumed he was gaining access to several billion more pounds, as if he needed more money.

Now that she and Ally were free, she wondered when the court would serve the real papers to James and inform him he was divorced. She allowed herself a happy smile. Divorced. What a beautiful word. Thank heavens for Kingsley taking that risk and for the judge who agreed to finalize the papers yet not send them to James until they gave him the word. She owed Kingsley so much.

Content in her safety and happy thoughts, she started feeling drowsy when the scent of sandalwood and musk washed over her. Wanting to open her eyes, yet not daring to, she tried to regulate her breathing and just enjoy smelling him. A blanket draped softly over her and then Sutton’s hands tucked the blanket gently around her waist.

Liz’s breath caught, and her eyes flew open. She glanced up and saw he was hovering right above her. Liz stared into his lovely blue eyes. Blimey, he was a beautiful man. She was drawn up into him like he was a tractor beam. As he stared deeply into her eyes, she felt herself arching up. Her body tingled with anticipation as he planted his hands on either side of her abdomen and leaned closer.

The door in the wall behind Liz’s seat opened, and Sutton straightened so quickly a small cry of dismay left Liz’s lips. She clapped a hand over her mouth but not before she caught a small, knowing glance from Sutton. He conferred with the attendant then returned to his seat and flipped open his laptop again.

Liz wilted into the reclined chair. Twenty-five long, lonely years, dreaming of and longing for Sutton’s kiss. Why did this missed opportunity hurt so much? What was one more day of waiting to touch his lips? Yet something in Sutton’s bearing told her the kiss would never happen.

* * *

Sutton focused diligently on his laptop screen, hardly able to read the correspondence from Barry and Kingsley. They had some brilliant ideas about taking down the duke. Yet all Sutton could think about was the feel of his hands brushing the sides of Liz’s firm abdomen, staring into her blue eyes, and her vanilla scent permeating his entire being. Blast her lovely scent.

He clicked on an urgent email from Kingsley and finally was able to banish thoughts of Liz for a few seconds. The message was about Sutton’s admiral in the Royal Navy, the man who commanded him to go on the mission that resulted in Sutton being dishonorably discharged. Kingsley had found proof that Admiral Hale had received hefty payments over the years from none other than the Duke of Gunthry. Sutton had always known Admiral Hale was dodgy. When Sutton had taken the fall for attacking and annihilating a village on a Micronesian island that was supposed to be a terrorist cell but turned out to have no affiliations with any terrorists, Sutton knew it was Hale that had set him up. The paperwork and commands that Sutton had received all disappeared, even the ones he’d kept in his personal cabin.

So Gunthry had been behind it the whole time. Why? Sutton glanced up quickly at Liz. Her eyes were closed. She might have been sleeping, but he didn’t think she was. Gunthry had always wanted Liz. Not just because of her beauty and poise but also her immense wealth. More digging from Kingsley’s banking contacts had shown that Gunthry had danced a fine line between bankruptcy and wealth until he married Liz. He’d taken her money and built a very successful shipping empire.

Hmm. Sutton reclined into the leather seat though inside he seethed. The duke had pursued Liz for years and set Sutton up to be dishonorably discharged so he could steal her. Still, something didn’t quite fit about his theory. Gunthry and Liz had been married a few weeks before the incident in the Pacific and Sutton’s subsequent discharge. Maybe it had been enough to turn Liz against him for the duke to simply tell her that Sutton was going to be stripped of his commission as he planned the future event with Admiral Hale. Yet Sutton didn’t think Liz was that shallow. She’d loved him. Of the few things he was certain about in this world, Liz’s love throughout their late teen and early young adult years was one of them.

He studied her lovely face as she rested. If only he could’ve had a sample of her lips. He drew in a long breath and then pushed it out. Every ounce of self-control was required to keep his backside molded to the leather chair. She was finally here, with him, and all he wanted to do was hold her, kiss her, tell her he’d loved her every minute of his adult life.

Sutton blinked and focused back on the computer screen. He wasn’t a twenty-year-old fool anymore. Liz hadn’t chosen him, and he couldn’t change that. However, he could be in control enough not to beg her to choose him now.