The hospital deemed that Gloria’s injuries weren’t severe enough to keep her any longer, so before Antoine could leave to catch a plane back to London and before Mack could remember some kind of royal duty that would take him away from her, Gloria was dressed in borrowed sweatpants and a t-shirt, being wheeled down to the hospital’s main entrance, with Mack by her side.

“I can have Mom pack some of your clothes and ship them here,” Antoine said as he hailed a cab. “She’ll probably want to deliver them herself.”

Gloria let out a wry laugh. “Please tell her not to. I’m fine, really. I’m just on vacation now.” She proved her point by standing as the three of them waited for the valet to bring Mack’s car around. Her muscles protested, and her shoulder and knee twinged, but it was a relief to show a little strength again.

“I could take you shopping in Solrighavn,” Mack offered.

Gloria sent him a doubtful look. “Do you really want to spend your time chauffeuring a downed pilot around the mall and holding her bag while she tries on jeans?”

Mack’s expression flashed through emotions from pleasure to disappointment so fast that Gloria wasn’t sure what he was feeling until he said, “I don’t have anything else to do.”

“Even with your mother’s wedding coming up?”

His expression settled into a frown. “No.”

Gloria’s heart went out to him. There was so much behind that one syllable, but she didn’t feel it was her place to ask about it. At least, not until they’d spent more time together. She shrugged with her good shoulder. “All right. I’m all yours, then.”

That brought a smile back to his face. “Good.”

A chill zipped down her back. Another one-syllable reply that said more than an essay could.

“Take good care of my sister,” Antoine charged Mack as he headed to the cab that had pulled up to the hospital’s front door.

“I will,” Mack promised with a wave.

To Gloria, Antoine said, “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

Gloria laughed and shook her head. Her dear brother had an unfortunate reputation as a player, and judging by the sparkle in his eyes, he was encouraging her to have a royal fling on her vacation.

Not that she would mind. She glanced subtly to Mack as the valet who had just brought his car to the door handed him the keys. Mack didn’t scream “royalty”, but he was an attractive man with a fine physique. He had the kind of arms she wouldn’t mind having wrapped around her.

“Ready to go?” he asked, holding the passenger door open for her.

“My carriage awaits?” she joked.

He laughed as she lowered herself gingerly into the car. The sound made the tiny hairs on her skin stand up.

“Do you want to go shopping first or get settled in at the palace?” Mack asked as they pulled away from the hospital.

“There’s a question I never thought anyone would ask me in my life,” Gloria answered. When Mack sent her a sideways smile, she went on with, “I should probably go to the palace first and rest for a bit before shopping.”

“Are you sure you’re all right?”

She let out a mock impatient breath. “You’re just like my brother. I’m tough. I’ve been through worse. All I need is a nap and some paracetamol and I’ll be fine.”

“Glad to hear it.” Mack nodded, turning onto a main road. “Although I’m not sure how I feel about being compared to your brother.”

A flush of self-consciousness brought heat to Gloria’s face. “I only mean that you’re protective like him.”

Mack shrugged, a mysterious grin pulling at his lips. “When I have something worth protecting.”

It was all Gloria could do to keep her smile in check. Maybe the crash had scrambled her brains more than she’d originally thought. She wasn’t the sort to go all gooey on the inside over a handsome face and sweet words. She’d spent years serving alongside the kind of men that most women would have given their eye teeth to date without a single butterfly in her stomach. But there was something about Mack that drew her in, like her heart had already charted a course to him and all she had to do was guide herself in for a landing.

Although, considering how her last landing had gone, she wasn’t sure she wanted to hold on to that image after all.

“Is this the palace?” she asked as they turned off the main road and drove through a tall, arched gate in a nondescript wall.

“This is it.” Mack nodded. “Aegirians have never been all that ostentatious.”

“No, it’s beautiful,” she said, craning her neck to glance out the window at the 18^th century architecture.

“It’s big,” Mack went on. “My ancestors built more and more wings over the years. The original, medieval palace is still at the heart of the complex, but there are so many quarters and flats and offices in the palace complex that it’s more like a resort than a home.”

“But it’s still your home, right?” she asked, turning back to him as they drove through a courtyard and down a ramp that led to an underground parking garage.

“It’s absolutely home,” Mack said with a smile. There was a pause as he parked, then got out and dashed around the car to help her up.

Again, out of character, she took his hand and let him help her to stand rather than muscling through and doing it on her own. Something was definitely wrong with her. After all the times she’d fought to be taken seriously and to stand on her own two feet without help, letting a prince escort her from his sports car, through a small tunnel that felt like it might have led to a dungeon at one point, and into a luxurious home was not what she ever would have seen herself doing.

“Wow,” she said, looking around at the portraits lining the hallway. Her eyes popped even wider when the hall opened out to a vast living room or reception area with more modern floor to ceiling windows that highlighted an amazing view of part of the city and the harbor beyond. “This is incredible.”

“The advantage of being royalty is that you can claim the best views when you build your castles,” Mack joked.

Gloria laughed as she moved to stand by the window, looking out. The sky was so blue. It was a perfect day for flying. And the water was calm and clear. She wondered how Aegiria managed to keep their seas so clean. She wondered where her plane was under all that beauty.

The thought dampened her spirits. Mack walked slowly to her side, standing and looking out with her.

“Don’t you just want to get out there on a day like this?” he asked.

“Yes,” she sighed, then turned to him with a weary smile. “I intend to get back out there as soon as possible, injured shoulder or not.”

He nodded, his lips twitching into a smile as he turned to look back over the gorgeous scene. “I’ll see what I can do.”

Gloria’s heart flipped in her chest. She’d had people make promises to her before, but with Mack, she believed that he really would move heaven and earth to get her what she wanted. It was the strangest feeling, particularly given how short a time they’d known each other.

“You want to get back out there too,” she observed, wanting to peel back the layers of all the little shifts of emotion and hints of a deeper story she’d seen in him.

He smirked, suddenly tense. “I can’t. At least, I’ve been told what I want isn’t what a prince should want.”

Curiosity on fire, she turned to him. “What do you want, Mack?”

He glanced sideways to her. “I want a lot of things.”

A rush of what she had to admit was lust coursed through her, making her knees weaker than they already were. She told herself it was normal to have the hots for an attractive man, especially one with a title who had saved her life. She reminded herself that they were living in the twenty-first century, where no one would hold it against a woman if she felt like jumping in bed with a guy she’d just met. But she knew there was so much more to the wiggling excitement in her gut, and lower, than the need for a little, harmless release.

“Your Highness.” A no-nonsense, woman’s voice came from behind them.

The moment was interrupted as they both turned to find a middle-aged woman in a suit, with some kind of crest on the pocket, waiting at attention for them.

“Ah, Jenny.” Mack smiled, stepping away from the window and gesturing for Gloria to follow. “This is my friend, Miss Gloria Swann.”

“How do you do,” Gloria greeted the woman. She wasn’t sure whether to shake her hand or just nod. Jenny appeared to be palace staff, but she had as regal a bearing as any princess.

“Quite well, miss,” Jenny answered with a smile and a nod. “Prince Mikael informs me you’ll be staying with us in one of the guest suites?”

“Yes, thank you.” The buzz of unreality that surrounded the entire experience made Gloria smile.

“If you would care to come with me, I’ll show you to your quarters.”

Gloria exchanged a look with Mack as Jenny turned and led them off down another corridor lined with magnificent artwork.

“I’m never going to find my way around,” she whispered as they walked.

“Believe me, you get used to it.” Mack paused. “But I can draw you a map if you’d like.”

Gloria giggled—actually giggled. Something was definitely wrong with her, but she kind of liked it.

“I’ve picked out a suite for you near my own rooms,” Mack went on, still whispering, a light of mischief in his eyes. “So you won’t feel alone and overwhelmed, which can happen in a place like this.”

“That’s so considerate of you,” she smiled, wondering if there was more to his motivation than that. Hoping there was, really.

Their hands brushed as they walked. She had to fight the urge to slide her fingers through his.

“Here we are,” Jenny said as they reached an unassuming door with a small plaque beside it that read Freya Suite. “I hope you’ll find these accommodations acceptable.”

Gloria stepped through the door into a world that could have come out of a fairy tale. It wasn’t like a hotel room, it was an entire, luxuriously appointed flat, complete with magnificent view and furnishings that looked both comfortable and exquisite.

“I think I’ll recover in no time in a place like this,” she said, then turned to Mack. “Thank you for this.”

“Don’t mention it.” He smiled at her, nodded to Jenny, dismissing her, then turned back to Gloria. “Why don’t you get settled and take your nap, and I’ll come along later to take you shopping. We can grab some lunch while we’re out and about too.”

She grinned. “I think I’m going to like this vacation.”

Mack hadn’t been in such a good mood in months. His mother’s wedding and the family drama that surrounded it had been reduced to a buzz at the back of his mind. The fact that Marina hadn’t given him anything important to do for the wedding turned out to be a blessing instead of a curse. It meant he’d been able to take Gloria shopping, treat her to meals in some of Aegiria’s finest restaurants, and show off his country to her over the past few days. It meant he had a front-row seat for her speedy recovery.

“I’ve got a special treat for you today,” he said, holding the car door for her as she settled into his BMW three days after transferring from the hospital to the palace.

She laughed. “Mack, you’ve had nothing but surprises for me since I got here. Are you sure you don’t have anything better to do?”

“I’m simply fulfilling my obligations to improve international relations and demonstrate Aegirian hospitality,” he told her before closing the door and walking around to the driver’s seat.

“You’re going to make it so that I never want to leave,” she told him as he buckled his seatbelt and turned the key in the ignition.

His whole body responded to her comment. I hope not, he thought. Aloud, he said, “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

They left the palace and headed out of the city over one of the inland roads. In the last three days, they’d toured the major sites of Solrighavn and the harbor. He’d introduced her to most of his brothers, his mother, William and Cassandra, but they hadn’t hung around the whirlwind of family for long. Maybe it was selfish of him, but he didn’t want to share Gloria with his family. Not yet. And showing her around Aegiria gave him something satisfying to do instead of poking around where he didn’t feel needed.

“This is a special treat,” he said as they neared their destination.

“All of Aegiria is a special treat, if you ask me,” she said.

Her enthusiasm warmed him. He loved his country, and seeing it through someone else’s eyes gave him a newfound appreciation for it.

“Oh!” she gasped, sitting straighter as she looked out the window. “Are they playing cricket?”

Mack’s brow went up. Cricket wasn’t the reason he’d brought her to the Aegirian Air Force base, but if it fired her blood, he wouldn’t complain. “We’ve been trying to boost the sport’s profile in Aegiria recently,” he said. “Our football team has been doing well internationally, and now the aim is to field an international level cricket team.”

“I played growing up and in school,” she said, surprising him yet again. “And in the Air Force. My family is from the West Indies, after all. Go Windies!” She paused, blinked, and glanced into the sky as a small plane flew low overhead. “Wait, this is an airport.”

Mack chuckled. “That’s why we’re here.”

He drove around the edge of the field where the cricketers were playing, pulling into a parking lot beside a large hangar with the Aegirian Air Force emblem painted on the side. He felt like a kid giving a Christmas gift to a loved one as he cut his engine and jumped out to open the car door for Gloria. She’d long since gotten strong enough to get in and out of the car herself, but he liked at least attempting to be a gentleman anyhow.

“Where are we?” she asked as she got out and looked around.

“This is the Aegirian Air Force’s flight school,” he said.

Excitement filled her eyes as she took a few steps toward the modest runway and the collection of small planes waiting to take off. The joy that filled her face was beyond anything Mack had seen in ages. It radiated from her, filling him with happiness as well.

“I’m surprised that a country of this size even has an Air Force,” she said.

Mack chuckled. “If you can call a dozen small planes and a helicopter that work in conjunction with our police force an Air Force. They came in handy during the Second World War, though.”

“Prince Mikael, you made it.”

Mack turned to wave at an older man with grey hair and a cheery smile. “Carl, hello.” He gestured for Gloria to walk with him to the edge of the tarmac. “Captain Carl Gustavson, I’d like you to meet my friend, Miss Gloria Swann.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, ma’am,” Carl said, shaking Gloria’s hand.

“Gloria, this is Carl. He’s the head of the Aegirian pilot training school.”

Gloria’s face lit up. “It really is a pleasure to meet you.” She glanced to Mack before saying, “Did he tell you I recently left the RAF?”

“He did.” Carl grinned. “It’s always nice to meet a fellow pilot.”

Mack knew he’d scored major points when he saw the glow of respect and gratitude fill Gloria’s expression. But he had a lot more points to score before he could call it a day.

“Is it ready?” he asked Carl.

“Absolutely.” Carl winked at him.

Gloria glanced between the two of them, brimming with excitement and suspicion. “Should I be worried?”

“Not at all,” Carl assured her.

He gestured for Gloria and Mack to follow him onto the tarmac and around the area where several planes were parked. As soon as the bright red, antique plane peeked out from around newer model Cessnas, Gloria gasped.

“Oh my gosh, is that a Stinson Reliant?”

“It most certainly is,” Carl answered. “This one was formerly owned by your very own RAF and flown during combat missions during World War II. She’s been fixed up a bit over the years, but we’ve worked to maintain the integrity of the design while keeping her flight-worthy.”

“She’s beautiful,” Gloria said, approaching the plane as though she were in a church.

The excitement of Mack’s surprise was so intense that he couldn’t hold back. “Are you ready to take her for a spin?”

Gloria turned to him, mouth open. “You mean, I can fly her?”

“Not quite,” Carl said, raising a hand. “I’ll be your pilot today. You’ll want to let your shoulder heal up a little more before getting behind the controls again. Today you can get a feel for her, and once you’re back in fighting shape, we’ll talk.” He marched ahead of them to the plane’s open door, gesturing for Gloria to climb in.

Before she did, she turned to Mack. “You have no idea how special this is for me,” she said, blinking back tears.

Mack shrugged. “I have a guess.”

Without warning, she hopped forward and kissed him soundly. Mack was so taken by surprised that he didn’t think to do anything about it until she was already breaking away with a squeal. He raised his arms, but wasn’t in time to catch her and hold her close. With one last joyful glance in his direction, she rushed toward the plane, climbing inside.

Mack followed, feeling as though, for the first time in a long time, he’d done something right.