How to Propose to a Princess Page 5

  They left the building and walked back to his office. “There’s a restroom inside, where the two of you can freshen up, Princess.”

  “Thank you. I’ll be right back.”

  She went inside first. It thrilled her to have met the man who’d given Nico a real home and family until he’d turned eighteen. Fausta thought him and his wife remarkable people.

  To give them time alone, she went back to the car and reached for another soda while she waited. The two of them talked and laughed. She got another lump in her throat when she saw them pat each other’s shoulder.

  “You made a hit with Angelo,” Nico said after he got back in the car and they drove away.

  “He was so nice. I can understand why you love visiting him. How do you have his last name since you haven’t referred to him as your adoptive father? Or did I miss something?”

  “They wanted to adopt me even though they had four children. I told them I’d rather not belong to anyone because I wanted to find my birth parents. Deep down I didn’t feel worthy of love when my own parents didn’t want me. People just automatically thought I belonged to them and the name stuck.”

  Whoa. He didn’t feel worthy? Fausta was only now beginning to understand how much being an orphan had impacted him. Not many children would have turned down the opportunity to be adopted yet go on repaying them for their kindness.

  He glanced at her. “I wouldn’t blame you if you think that was strange and ungrateful of me, but I assured them I’d work triple hard for them to earn my keep until I could leave at eighteen. I’ve been sending them money ever since I became a doctor.”

  “Not strange, Nico. Just amazing that even at the age of twelve, you were so fiercely independent. It’s made you into the man you’ve become.” His comments had raised more questions she wanted answers to, but now wasn’t the time.

  Nico eyed her. “From here we’re going to visit a couple. I want you to meet Enzo and Pippa. They’re expecting us and have done everything for me since I started working for Angelo. In truth Enzo has been my savior and mentor.”

  “Savior?”

  “He owns the land where Angelo works the pig farm, but let me back up. Angelo came to the orphanage to find a boy he could train who would help on the farm. He chose me and was given special permission to let me live with his family on the farm and go to school with his children.

  “I was chosen, but I had to be interviewed by the owner before I could be hired. It seemed that one of the owner’s grandsons had died at the age of twelve. I guess I was a reminder of him and he developed an interest in me. He often dropped by the farm to talk to me and we became friends.”

  “That’s very touching.”

  “In time he took me to his home for visits and saw to it that I got the best schooling. After I turned eighteen, he paid for me to attend college and medical school in Turin. He and his wife have always had a doctor to take care of them, but I made him a promise that I would also be their personal physician for life after I graduated.”

  Fausta was dumbfounded by what he’d just told her. It answered so many questions about how he’d gotten from A to B. “Where does he live?”

  “In the foothills of Biella not far from here.”

  They’d reached the outskirts. “So, they’re the people you take care of.”

  His dark eyes gleamed. “I visit them every couple of months and always look forward to it.”

  They drove through the town and up a winding road through the lush foothills to a picturesque estate. When an imposing castello appeared through the trees, Fausta drew in her breath.

  “I’ve been here before!” she cried softly.

  He’d pulled up in the courtyard and had turned off the engine before looking at her. “I know. You told me you’d been to Biella the night we went to dinner.”

  “But I mean this is the estate where my mother brought me and my sisters for a visit. I recognize the distinctive crenellated walls and the belfry.”

  Nico’s eyes played over her. “You’re sure? How old were you?”

  “I was around ten. Donetta was thrilled because the owner had some beautiful horses and let us ride. Of course, I’m no champion like my sister. She has a room full of trophies.”

  “It’s true Enzo is a great horse lover. Let’s go inside.”

  But no sooner had Nico opened the passenger door for her than a man with white hair who was probably in his eighties wearing casual clothes came outside to greet them.

  “Nicolo—” she heard the man call out before hugging him fiercely. She was struck by the love between the two of them.

  As the old man turned to her, he let out a strange sound. “When you told me you were bringing someone with you, I didn’t know you meant Princess Fausta Rossiano!”

  “Am I missing something here?” Nico looked confused.

  The older man moved toward her. “The last time I saw you and your sisters, you were just young girls. It must have been fifteen years ago.” He smiled. “The older one rode like the wind.”

  Fausta smiled back. “I just told Nico I remember coming here. You’re Duca Enzo Frascatti of Piedmont, the local magistrate of the area. You’re the good friend of Prince Lorenzo, my father’s cousin!”

  Nico stared at her in wonder.

  “Indeed I am. Lorenzo and I are the best of friends. He’s the one who advised me to buy a new Sanfratellano stallion from the king’s stables in Vallefiore. To think your sister is now the new king’s wife! It’s a small world, my dear.”

  “It certainly is. I’m thrilled to meet you again after all this time.”

  Enzo reached for her hand and kissed the back of it. “This is a joyous day. Come inside and we’ll all catch up. My wife, Pippa, and I have lunch waiting for you. She’s in a wheelchair and not doing that well, but she’s always eager for the next visit from our Nicolo.”

  Fausta’s gaze fused with Nico’s. She could tell he was bursting with questions. So was she!

  Nico grabbed his medical bag. Together they followed Enzo inside. He walked them through to the main dining room of the sumptuous castello Fausta remembered, where his wife sat in her wheelchair at the table. Nico led her around.

  “Pippa? Do you remember Princess Fausta? She’s the person I brought with me today.”

  The white-haired older woman studied Fausta out of eyes dimmed by the years. “You were a precious little girl who loved all the animals. My how you’ve grown up into a beautiful woman.”

  Fausta blushed. “Thank you, Duchessa. It’s so kind of you to have us for lunch.”

  “Nonsense. Nico is like a son to us. Why don’t you be seated so we can talk.”

  Nico held a chair for Fausta. After they sat down, the staff served them lunch.

  The duca raised his wineglass. “This is a very happy day. I’d like to make a toast to our Nicolo and the princess. To your health and other things.”

  After they’d sipped their wine, Pippa eyed Fausta. “When our grandson died, Nico came into our lives and brought us happiness. Did he tell you we wanted to adopt him?” Fausta’s eyes met Nico’s for a moment. Everyone loved him. “But he was so stubborn, he wouldn’t hear of it.”

  Except that Fausta knew the real reason. Nico’s origins had made him feel unworthy of love.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  THIS OUTING HADN’T turned out as Nico had expected. Fausta fit in seamlessly with Enzo and Pippa. They were all of the same world.

  Except for having been born to an unknown man and woman who gave him life, Nico had been beholden to the nuns at the orphanage, the farmer and the duca for being allowed to thrive on this earth. Even though he was now a doctor and could earn his daily bread from here on out, Fausta’s father was still pressuring her to marry a prince. It didn’t matter to him that his daughter had been dating Nico.

  For the rest of lunch he talked about his
practice and answered their questions about how he and Fausta had met at the hospital. Afterward he gave Enzo and Pippa a physical before he and Fausta left to drive back to Domodossola. Her bodyguard’s car followed at a distance.

  She turned to him. “Are you able to tell me what happened to Pippa?”

  “Last year she fell in the shower and broke her hip. The fall injured both knees and she’s in a lot of pain.”

  Fausta decided she shouldn’t ask about Enzo.

  “What would they do without your help? You can tell they love you so much.”

  Nico flashed her a glance. “The feeling’s mutual. Luckily their married children live close by and take them to Turin to see their regular doctor when it’s necessary. I like to look after them because I love them.”

  “They’re lovely people.”

  “I know they enjoyed your company and remember your visit years ago. Did you see the way Enzo beamed when he saw you?”

  She nodded. “But Angelo was so kind too. Imagine him and his wife taking you to their hearts! It’s a wonderful thing they did for you. Their generosity makes you believe in the goodness of the human spirit.”

  Nico smiled. “Angelo couldn’t get over the way you, a princess, gathered that piglet in your arms like it was a baby.”

  “It was a baby.” They both chuckled.

  The extraordinary woman seated next to him blended in wherever he took her. Today had been a day out of time. Fausta was such great company, he could wish it would go on forever and he had to face the truth. He’d never been in love. But after meeting and being with Fausta for the last two weeks, he knew he’d fallen in love with her. It had happened so fast, he couldn’t believe it.

  Yet in acknowledging it to himself, it only made him more conflicted. They were relishing each other’s company now, but even if she accepted him for who he was, her royal heritage hung between them like a barrier that could prevent them from moving forward.

  Before she got out of the car, he needed to tell her what was on his mind. She needed to understand that the visit with Enzo had underlined a problem he could no longer ignore. He pulled in the parking area and shut off the engine. Two other cars were outside, but no one was around except the palace guard.

  Her eyes darted to him. “You’ve been quiet for the last little while. I can tell something’s on your mind. I would invite you in so we could talk. But since I know you’ll turn me down like you did before, I won’t.”

  He eyed her in frustration. “Fausta—”

  “I saw the look on your face when you realized my father’s cousin had a connection with Enzo. I know what you’re going to say,” she interrupted him. “Before long my father will learn through Lorenzo that you and I spent a whole day in the country together and visited Enzo.”

  His lips thinned. “That’s right. Say what you want, but I’m not a person on the king’s short list of possible suitors for his daughter.”

  “No, you’re not. But that’s all nonsense to me. I’ve told you how I feel about living a normal life.”

  “Even so, you’ll understand why I’m reluctant to go on spending more time with you when we know your parents couldn’t be happy about it.”

  She bowed her head. “I understand more than you think. Thank you for a beautiful day I’ll always remember. When we see each other at the hospital, we’ll agree to nod and walk on.” In the next breath she got out of the car faster than he could believe. “Addio, Nico.”

  As she walked toward the palace doors, he jumped out of the car and hurried toward her. “Wait, Fausta!”

  She wheeled around, her features taut. “Why are you prolonging this when you’re afraid to be with me?”

  “Afraid?” The breath caught in his lungs.

  “Well, aren’t you?” she asked.

  He let out a sound of exasperation. “It’s not fear! To continue pursuing you would be pointless for several reasons! But I didn’t mean for what I said to come out the way it did. Per l’amore di Dio, will you come back to the car and let me explain?”

  At first he didn’t think he was getting through to her. He stood there in agony until he saw her expression change. “I will for a few minutes.”

  “Grazie,” he whispered.

  After opening the car door for her, he got back in his side and turned to her.

  Fausta cocked her head. “What is it you want to say that I don’t already know?”

  “On the day I first met Enzo, Angelo came out to the pen where I was feeding the pigs. He said the owner of the property had come to interview everyone who worked on his land.

  “I didn’t know Angelo wasn’t the owner. He said Duca Frascatti was a great man whose family descended from a former Italian king and had riches I wouldn’t be able to imagine. He’d hired Angelo from the village to come and run his pig farm for him. It was a great honor. As such, Angelo told me I had to honor the duca like he was a holy person.”

  “Did that frighten you?”

  Nico frowned. “No, but it made me nervous. I didn’t want to say anything wrong for fear I’d—”

  “Commit a sin?” She smiled. “I saw the cross on the wall in Angelo’s office. I imagine the nuns put the fear in you. You poor thing.”

  Fausta understood a lot. “When the duca came, he talked to everyone, but when he interviewed me, he started to weep. I thought I’d done something wrong until he told me I looked like his grandson who’d drowned.”

  “That’s what Pippa said.”

  “What he said made me very sad. From then on, he asked if he could keep coming to see me and be friends with me. No one had ever taken a personal interest in me that way in my life. With Angelo it was different because I worked for him in a business-type arrangement. He wasn’t looking for another son.”

  “But he wanted to adopt you.”

  “I know, and I’ll never forget. Angelo was the best. As for Enzo, he was the one who talked to my teachers at the village school and took interest in everything I did. One day I was invited to the castello. When I look back now, I know Angelo didn’t like it, but he had no choice except to let me go.”

  “I bet he gave you a talking-to before you left,” Fausta surmised.

  Nico nodded. “He told me it was a great privilege no one was given unless they were also born of a king. He said that I had to be the one exception, but I mustn’t presume anything or expect such a gift to ever come my way again.”

  She stirred. “So that’s when you learned that there was a line drawn between a commoner and a royal, one you could never hope to cross.”

  “Exactly. You can imagine how Angelo must have felt today when he came face-to-face with Princess Rossiano, who’d driven here with me. I know he’s still trying to figure it out.”

  “He handled his shock very well. So did you when you found out I’d been to the castello before.”

  Nico nodded. “When I first saw the castello and entered it as young teen, I thought I’d died and gone to heaven. But instead of obeying Angelo’s counsel, I waited for the attention Enzo showered on me and went there many times.

  “Then came a day when he told me my grades at school were excellent, and he was sending me to the university in Turin. I couldn’t wait to go. I was overwhelmed by his generosity to me.”

  “Angelo probably couldn’t believe it,” she murmured.

  “I know he wasn’t happy about it. I admit I was surprised he didn’t want me to take advantage of the scholarship. He said I’d presumed too much and hadn’t learned my lesson. When he warned me that I could never belong to the duca’s world, it pierced me with pain and guilt.”

  “Of course it did!”

  “I knew he was jealous of the duca who could do things for me he couldn’t. It really hurt him when Enzo talked with Prince Lorenzo, who arranged to find me a position at the hospital in Domodossola.”

  “
That’s why you ended up in my country? I had no idea. How wonderful for you.”

  “I’m indebted to Enzo in so many ways, you can’t imagine. And even though I told Angelo I loved him and would always repay him for his kindness, I knew it was hard on him. But I saw the division between the two men in countless ways and knew what Angelo had said was true about that invisible line.”

  Fausta let out a deep sigh. “It is true, Nico. I found it out in my own painful way four years ago.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Forgive me if I accused you of being afraid. It’s because of an experience in my life that changed the way I look at everything now.”

  “Go on,” Nico urged. “I want to hear it all.”

  “Let me go back to the beginning. Tano, the chauffeur for my father, lives on the estate with his wife and children. His son Dego was my age. My first memories of childhood include them and my sisters. As we grew up, my friendship with Dego turned to love. We were excited to go to the university here in Domodossola together and eventually marry.

  “One day my father told me he’d sent Dego to Rome, Italy, to attend the university there.”

  A groan escaped Nico because he knew what was coming.

  “It turned out my father offered to the pay the college tuition and lodgings for Dego as a thank-you for their service to our family. With tears in Tano’s eyes, he praised my father for what he’d done. But the man had no comprehension that he might as well have cut the heart out of my body.”

  “Fausta—” With every revelation she was removing the scales from Nico’s eyes about her perfect life. It answered one question. She’d been in love with a commoner before. Deeply in love.

  “I was desolate, knowing immediately what had happened. My father had arranged everything. My sisters had warned me Papa would find a way to separate me and Dego, but I didn’t want to believe he could do anything so terrible. Within a year Dego had met and married a girl from Italy.”

  “I’m so sorry,” Nico whispered.

  She lifted her eyes to him. “It’s all in the past. When I got over the first wave of pain, I was furious with Dego because he didn’t fight for me. In my naivete, I’d thought he’d loved me so much, he would have found a way for us to be together and get married no matter what my father did. I hated it that he’d been so afraid.