A ready-made family…
for the princess?

Princess Beatrix knows widower Duke Rez turned away from high-society life to raise his daughter. But Bea needs his help to dispel vicious rumors circling the palace. Summoning Rez, she never expects him to bring baby Evi. The little family is a painful reminder of her own infertility. But when attraction sparks between them, dare Bea hope that her future might include motherhood?

HEAT LEVEL: closed door love scene

Reviews

This tender contemporary romance will have readers swooning and eager to see these kind characters find their happy-ever-after in the second “Princesses of Rydiania” book from Faye (His Accidentally Pregnant Princess).
— Amanda Toth Library Journal

Read an Excerpt

Buzz-buzz.

The sound startled him. His phone didn’t ring much because he’d pushed most everyone away after his wife’s death. The first thing that came to mind was that something was wrong.

When he removed the phone from his pocket, he expected to see his mother’s name on the caller ID. But instead it was Princess Beatrix. Why in the world would she want to speak to him?

And then he sighed. How could he have forgotten about the wedding? Her brother’s royal wedding. And if his memory was correct, it was in a couple of weeks. He knew he should be more on top of these things since he was the best man. But when Istvan had asked him to stand up for him, Rez had told him that with being a single parent he wasn’t the best choice. Istvan had insisted he totally understood. Istvan assured him that he just wanted his childhood best friend there with him on his big day.

Rez pressed the phone to his ear. “What may I do for you, Your Royal Highness?”

“Rez, you know you can just call me Beatrix.”

The sound of her gentle voice swept him back in time to a point where they were young and carefree. He missed those days and he found himself missing the Princess too. He highly doubted she’d called to catch-up on life. Although it wouldn’t hurt to extend the conversation just a little.

“It’s been a while since we really talked and I wasn’t sure how you would feel about me taking such liberties. After all, I seem to remember you getting upset with me for calling you—”

“Stop. I remember,” she said dryly.

Her seriousness only egged him on. “So then you don’t want me to call you Bizzy-Bea?”

“Definitely not.” Her voice held no sense of humor. “How about we go with Beatrix?”

Beatrix was almost as bad as Your Highness. It was so proper and the Beatrix he remembered used to be all smiles and giggles. She’d been full of sunshine and rainbows. She’d been the little sister of his best friend and too young for him back then, but he always knew she’d one day grow into a beautiful woman.

But there was a part of him that wanted the carefree girl of their youth back because he could use some sunshine in his life. “Or Bea.”

There was a noted pause on the other end of the phone. He imagined her pursing her lips together as she tapped her foot. The image made him smile—something he didn’t do unless in the presence of his daughter.

Bea expelled an exasperated sigh. “Or Beatrix.”

It was so good to speak to her. He let out a laugh. He couldn’t help it. When had Bizzy-Bea grown up to be so serious? And then he realized it really had been too long since he’d felt the elation of a genuine laugh. When Enora had died, his happiness had been buried with her. Laughter had been sucked into a vacuum and lost in the darkness.

“Rez, the reason I called is because the wedding is in trouble.”

“What?” His amusement was long forgotten. “What’s going on?”

“You’re probably the only person in Rydiania that hasn’t read the gossip.” When his phone buzzed, she said, “I’ve sent you the link.”

He lowered his phone and put it on speakerphone before he looked at the link. “I don’t know why anyone cares what the Duchess Tales has to say. They’re forever making up nonsense.”

“It’s more than that this time. Read it.”

He clicked on the link and began to read.

Princess-to-Be Banished!

He read the headline again. Beneath the all-caps headline was a photo of Indigo, Istvan’s fiancée. Rez was confused. Someone had made a big mistake. Indigo was about to be welcomed into the royal family with open arms.

This royal watcher has some big news for all of you. I have it from an excellent source that Prince Istvan’s intended bride is the daughter of a thief, who stole from the crown years ago. The thief, along with his family, was banished not only from the royal court but also from the entire country of Rydiania.

You’ve heard it here first. This duchess has sworn to keep you up on the latest with the royal family and I am doing just that.

You might ask how something like this could have happened. Well, you aren’t alone. I assure you, I am hard at work on securing the nitty-gritty details on how this fiasco could have happened.

Did Indigo deceive our lusciously handsome prince? Or was the Prince hoping to carry off this illegal affair in public, hoping us royal watchers wouldn’t catch on?

Surely poor Prince Istvan has been duped by the conniving princess-to-be, who wasn’t even supposed to be in this country. Did she really think that by using her mother’s maiden name she would get away with this level of deception?

Keep reading, my lovely watchers, as I will share the details as they unfold.

This was outrageous! Preposterous. And perhaps a bit worrisome.

“The palace should go after the Duchess for slander and defamation.” Anger pulsed through his veins. “The case should be announced loud and clear as a warning so no one else tries the same thing.”

“I don’t know. It would be up to the King and Queen. Anyway I need, erm… We need you to come and stay at the palace. I think it’s going to take all of us to keep this wedding on track.”

The palace was a few hours south of his country estate. It was too far for him to conveniently commute back and forth with the hope of spending quality time with Evi. If he was to help, he’d need to stay at the palace. He hadn’t left his home since his wife died. And yet he felt compelled by the great debt he owed Istvan.

He took the phone off speaker and pressed it to his ear. “You really think me coming there will help?”

“I do. You didn’t see Indigo’s face when she first saw those headlines. She was utterly crushed. And you know how much my parents hate scandal.”

Was he ready to reenter society? His presence at the palace would be exactly that. There would be paparazzi lurking at the gate keeping track of the comings and goings of palace guests. The thought of dealing with the press knotted up his gut.