Live the emotion"

www.eHarlequin.com HARLEQUIN ROMANCEŽ

AVAILABLE THIS MONTH:

#3819 TO CATCH A GROOM

Rebecca Winters The Husband Fund

#3820 CHRISTMAS EVE MARRIAGE

Jessica Hart

#3821 A SURPRISE CHRISTMAS PROPOSAL

Liz Fielding

9 to 5

#3822 HIS CONVENIENT FIANCEE

Barbara McMahon

1 "I saw you walking on the grounds earlier, Signorina."

Max's accented English delivered in a deep masculine voice vibrated to
her insides. Its cadence sent a delicious tremor through her system even
though the night was warm. "I hoped you would come to the pool. Swim
with me."

His ardent demand was whispered with a pulsating urgency that said his
life wouldn't be worth living if she didn't consent.

"I'm not wearing a swimsuit."

"Does it matter?" came the breathtaking question.

With great daring, Greer slipped off her gold sandals, left her gold
watch and gold flame clutch bag on a table near the deep end of the
pool, then dove in headfirst-still fully clothed!

2 Dear Reader,

I came from a family of five sisters and one brother. The four oldest
girls were my parents' first family. There was a space before my baby
sister and baby brother came along.

My mother called the first four her little women, and gave each of us a
Madame Alexander doll from the Little Women series based on the famous
book by Louisa May Alcott. We may not have been quadruplets, but we were
close in age and definitely felt a connection to each other that often
meant we tuned into each other's thoughts as we sang, played, studied
and traveled together.

In our early twenties I recall a time when I took the train from Paris,
France, where I'd been studying, to meet oneģof my sisters at the port
in Genoa, Italy, where her ship ; came in from New York. She was
returning to school in Perugia, Italy. Some of my choicest memories are
our glorious adventures as two blond American sisters on" vacation along
the French and Italian rivieras, dodging Mediterranean playboys.

When I conceived The Husband Fund trilogy for Harlequin Romance, I have
no doubt the idea of triplet sisters coming to Europe on a lark to
intentionally meet some gorgeous Riviera playboys sprang to life from my
own family life experiences at home and abroad.

Meet Greer, Olivia and Piper, three characters drawn from my imagination
who probably have traits from all four of my wonderful, intelligent,
talented sisters in their makeup.

Enjoy!

Rebecca Winters

Book 2: To Win His Heart, Harlequin Romance #3827,

on sale January 2005

Book 3: To Marry for Duty, Harlequin Romance #3835, on sale March 2005

www.rebeccawinters-author.com

3 To Catch a Groom

Rebecca Winters

HARLEQUIN

TORONTO NEW YORK LONDON

AMSTERDAM PARIS SYDNEY HAMBURG

STOCKHOLM ATHENS TOKYO MILAN MADRID

PRAGUE WARSAW BUDAPEST AUCKLAND

4 If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that
this book is stolen property. It was reported as "unsold and destroyed"
to the publisher, and neither the author nor the publisher has received
any payment for this "stripped book."

ISBN 0-373-03819-4

TO CATCH A GROOM

First North American Publication 2004.

Copyright Š2004 by Rebecca Winters.

All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or
utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any
electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information
storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission
of the publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 225 Duncan Mill Road,
Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 3K9.

All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of
the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same
name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual
known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.

This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books ESSAY

Žand are trademarks of the publisher. Trademarks indicated with Žare
registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the
Canadian Trade Marks Office and in other countries.

www.eHarlequin.com

Printed In U.SA.

5 April 14, Kingston, New York

Greer Duchess could tell by tapping feet and shifting bodies that her
sisters were getting antsy. "We're almost through, guys. For November is
it agreed we'll go with Ginger Rogers Did Everything Fred Astaire Did,
But She Did It Backward And In High Heels?"

"Like I said before, not everyone who buys our calendars knows who
Ginger Rogers is," Olivia spoke up.

"It doesn't matter, does it? Piper's drawing is so wonderful they'll
still get the point," Greer murmured, making a unilateral decision on
the spot. She adored the stylized cartoons of Luigio and Violetta, the
two winsome Italian pigeons who were in love with each other.

Though Piper did the actual drawings, and Olivia headed sales, Greer was
the instigator and power behind their business enterprise.

"Moving on, here are the choices we narrowed down for December. Behind
Every Successful Man Is A Surprised Woman, and, A Man's Got To Do What A
Man's Got To Do. A Woman's Got To Do What He Can't."

Piper got up and stretched her softly rounded body. "I liked both those
sayings the first time you thought them up."

"I still like them," Olivia asserted. "Your clever mind never ceases to
impress me, Greer. You make the decision. We trust your judgment," she
said, rising to her feet on long, shapely legs. "Now we've really got to
go or we'll

6

be late for the reading of Daddy's will. We're supposed to be there at ten."

"Okay. Get the car started while I e-mail this to Don. It'll take me two
secs."

Within a minute the sent message appeared on the computer screen. She
felt relief that next year's calendar entitled, For Women Only, would be
printed and ready for distribution in May which was only a few weeks away.

Don Jardine, one of several guys she and her sisters had been dating,
was the owner of the print shop. He did a terrific job for them.

Unfortunately he kept hinting that he wanted her to take him seriously
because he'd fallen for her. But she wasn't in love with him. Lately
she'd found excuses not to go out with him anymore. If they could just
remain business friends...

All things considered, Duchesse Designs-her brain child inspired by
their only illustrious female ancestor and heroine-the Duchess of Parma,
a woman in advance of her time-was doing much better than her initial
conservative estimates indicated.

With orders from all over the country quadrupling since Christmas, she
and her sisters were going to make a substantial profit. For the first
time in five years they would be able to invest part of their earnings
while they put the rest back into their company.

Naturally that was going to mean more money for Don and make him happy,
too. Maybe happy enough to forgive her? She had yet to find that out. If
he sent a reply e-mail that she'd better take her business to someone
else, then she would have her answer.

After turning on the answering machine, she dashed out of the basement
apartment to join her sisters.

All the rituals of laying their beloved father to rest had been observed
except for this visit to Mr. Carlson's office.

7

It was a formality. Once it was behind them, they'd be able to channel
their sorrow by expanding their growing business.

Twenty minutes later they arrived at the law firm in downtown Kingston,
New York. The receptionist showed them into the conference room where a
TV and DVD player had been set up.

Soon after they'd sat down, Mr. Carlson walked in with a legal file
under one arm. He greeted them, shook hands, then took his place at the
end of the rectangular conference table.

"Your father asked me to read you a letter he wrote in his own hand." He
opened the file and drew it out. Once his bifocals were in place, he
cleared his throat.

"To my darling daughters Greer, Piper and Olivia, whom I've always
referred to as my precious pigeons. You came along after I turned fifty
and had despaired of ever giving your mother children-

"If Walter Carlson has assembled you for the reading of this will, then
it means my troublesome old ticker finally gave out and you've already
been informed that our humble home has to be sold to pay all the medical
expenses.

"I wish I could have left it to you, but it wasn't meant to be. At least
you aren't saddled with debts. Walt will pay the latest bills and is
taking care of everything. He's aware you need time to find another
place to live. Therefore he will be the one to let you know how soon you
must move out.

'My greatest sadness is that none of you has ever shown the slightest
inclination to marry. It worried your mother before she died, and it
upsets me even more. I remember her last words to you: find a good man
to marry right away and settle down to raise a family. My last words
echo hers.

"To that end I'm bequeathing $5,000 to each of you.

8

It's from the Husband Fund your mother and I created before she passed
away. You can spend it any way you want so long as it's used in the
pursuit of a spouse to help you enjoy this life to the fullest.

"You will receive those checks today. For this day and age it's not
much, but it's given with all my love. I know my girls will be fine
because you're intelligent, talented, resourceful and have created a
solid Internet business since college. However as you will discover when
you put this money to the proper use, there's more to life than earning
a living.

"To stimulate your thinking, I'm insisting you remain in Walt's office
to watch your mother's favorite classic. Humor me and make your old dad
happy. I want only the best for my beautiful girls. You and your mother
always were my greatest joy.

"Signed, Your loving, concerned father, Matthew Duchess, February 2,
Kingston, New York."

When Mr. Carlson finished reading the letter and looked up, Greer turned
her blond head to eye her fair-haired sisters seated around the table.

Because their dad's health had been deteriorating long before they'd
buried him six weeks ago, they'd already been through the most painful
part of their mourning period. Certainly with all the bills owing to the
extra health care costs for both their mom and dad, the idea of an
inheritance had never crossed their minds.

To find out their parents had left them any money at all came as a total
surprise. But the mention of a Husband Fund completely soured the gift
for Greer.

Not only that...she balked at the idea of being forced to view the film
their funny, dear mom must have seen too many times to count.

It was one of those Hollywood movies about three women who decide to get
married and scheme to find a

9

millionaire in the process. However their mother had never been able to
get Greer to watch it because Greer found the concept utterly absurd.

If a woman wanted that kind of money, she didn't need a man. All she had
to do was become a millionaire herself!

But their mother had been born in a different era with a completely
different mind-set about a woman's choices in life.

Being a hopeless romantic, she'd named her nonidentical triplets for her
favorite movie stars. In fact she'd raised her daughters on fairy tales.

Greer had never been a great proponent of them.

While Olivia and Piper swooned over the beautiful girl ending up with
the handsome prince just because she was beautiful, Greer often upset
her sisters by fabricating her own renditions.

She much preferred that the beautiful, innocent, helpless heroine use
her brain to figure out a financial scheme to buy the castle and lands
from Prince Charming who needed a lot more going for him than charm to
attract her and win her hand in marriage.

Greer had shocked their mother when she'd told her it was probably a man
who'd thought up all those fractured fairy tales.

It wasn't that Greer had anything against men per se. In fact she loved
to date and often tripled dated with her sisters. Don and his friends
had been the latest bunch of guys they'd gone out with as a group. But
she drew the line at a serious relationship.

There was plenty of time for marriage in the future. Her own parents
hadn't married until much later in life when they were finally ready to
settle down and have a family. That was good enough for her.

Many times Greer, the oldest of the triplets who'd always espoused the
"all for one, one for all" theory, had

10

told her sisters that getting married would spoil the fun of building
the business they'd started from scratch to see how far they could take it.

She glanced back at the attorney. "Do we have to stay and watch the film?"

"Only if you want your five thousand dollars. That was your father's
stipulation. If you choose not to sit through the viewing, I'm to give
the money to the cancer foundation in your mother's memory." His brows
lifted. "For what it's worth, I've seen it several times and enjoy it
more every time."

Greer rolled her eyes in disbelief, ready to bolt, but her sisters made
no move to leave. Deep down she knew why. As much as the three of them
hated the idea of being a captive audience to such a ridiculous movie,
they were faced with a moral dilemma.

Because of the restrictions about the money, it was no good to them and
would never be spent. But they couldn't walk out now. That would be like
throwing everything back in their parents' faces. The sobering
realization that they'd had the best mother and father in the world kept
them nailed to their chairs.

After crossing one long, elegant leg over the other, Greer waited while
Mr. Carlson, who had to be in his seventies, moved the TV closer.

Once he started the DVD, she sat back in the leather chair prepared to
suffer through another story no doubt written, produced and cast by men,
for men.

Not only was the movie much worse than she'd thought, Mr. Carlson was
glued to the screen, glassy eyed. Ten minutes into the film and Greer
had to bite her lip to keep from bursting into laughter.

Flashing her sisters a covert glance, she sensed they were having the
same problem. But out of respect for their father's wishes, they managed
to contain themselves.

11

When the show came to an end, a collective silence filled the room
before Mr. Carlson realized it was time to shut off the DVD.

He turned to them. "Would thirty days give you girls enough time to
vacate the house?"

"We've already moved to Mrs. Weyland's basement apartment across the
street from us," Greer informed him.

The girls nodded. "We left our home spotless."

"The keys are in this envelope along with a paper that lists our cell
phone numbers and the address of our new apartment." Greer pushed it
toward him before she shot out of her chair, ready to go.

He rose more slowly and handed them their checks. "You're as remarkable
and self-sufficient as your father always told me you were. Yet I could
hope for your sakes you'll take your parents' advice." He stared
pointedly at Greer. "Women weren't meant to be on their own."

The man's sincerity couldn't be doubted. But his comment happened to be
one of the twelve comments appearing on the calendar she'd thought up
last year featuring Men's Most Notable Quotes About Women. The calendar
had been an instant success.

Greer didn't dare look at her sisters or she would have cracked up on
the spot. Hilarity had been building inside her. She couldn't stifle it
any longer. They had to get out of there quick!

"Thank you for everything, Mr. Carlson."

So saying, Greer made a beeline for the door, clutching the check in
hand. Her sisters followed.

They hurried down the hall to the crowded elevator. By some miracle they
reached their father's old Pontiac parked around the corner before they
exploded with laughter.

Since Olivia had a better sense of direction than the others, she always
drove them when they were together.

12

"After the first close-up of Betty Grable, I thought we were going to
have to call emergency for Mr. Carlson!"

"That generation's hopeless."

"The movie was dreadful!"

"But our mother loved it, bless her heart."

"And Daddy loved her!"

"And we loved both of them, so what are we going to do about the-"

"No-" Greer blurted. "Don't say the 'H' word."

For the rest of the drive home they giggled like schoolgirls instead of
twenty-seven-year-old women.

When they pulled to a stop at the curb across the street from their old
house, Olivia looked over her shoulder at Greer who was seated in the
back. "Let's go get us a new car. This one already has 122,000 miles on it."

That sounded like her impulsive sister. "Right this minute?"

"Why not?"

Before Greer could negate the suggestion, Piper, the romantic, shook her
head. "With fifteen thousand dollars to put down, we could buy a new
house. What do you think?"

Greer, the pragmatic one, said, "I think I'm too exhausted to think." It
came out sounding grumpy because the Husband Fund money was untouchable
and they all knew it.

"Mrs. Weyland says we need a vacation," Olivia muttered.

Piper rested her head against the window. "I'd love to visit the Caribbean."

"Who wouldn't, but we can't go."

Both sisters bunked. "Why not?"

Greer leaned forward. "Because it's April. By the time we could get away
from the business, it would be June. I think we could run into a hurricane."

13

"How do you know that?"

"Our northeast distributor, Jan. She scuba dives there in February when
the weather is perfect."

"Then how about Hawaii?"

Olivia wrinkled her nose at Piper. "Everybody complains it's too
touristy. I'd rather go someplace more exotic, like Tahiti."

"The airfare alone would be exorbitant."

"So what's your suggestion?" Both sisters were waiting for Greer's answer.

"I don't have one, and you guys know why."

Olivia's eyes resembled the blue in a match flame when she felt strongly
about something. "Then we'll go through the motions of husband hunting
in some wonderful place like Australia where the beaches are reputed to
be the most beautiful in the world. Mrs. Weyland's right, you know? We
haven't had a break in several years."

By now Piper's irises were glowing an iridescent blue- green. "Daddy
didn't say we had to end up with a husband."

Greer could acknowledge she had a point. "You're right. All he said was,
you can spend the money any way you want so long as it's used in the
pursuit of a spouse. With $5,000 apiece, we should be able to go
someplace exciting for a couple of weeks. I'm all for visiting the Great
Barrier Reef."

"Or South America!" Olivia interjected. "Don't forget Rio. Ipanema and
Copacabana are supposed to be two of the most fabulous beaches on earth."

"Wait a minute-" Piper spread her hands in front of her. "Wherever we
decide to spend our vacation, I've got tins delicious idea how we'll
provide the bait to bring the men on fast!"

Olivia smiled. "I bet I know what you're thinking."

So did Greer. They'd all watched that idiotic film and

14

weren't triplets for nothing. "You mean turn things around by pretending
we're the millionaires?"

"Why not?"

Why not indeed. Greer realized it was a stretch, but if her business
projections held true, they'd be doing very well for themselves by the
time they were thirty.

"Guys-" Piper broke in with dramatic flourish. "We have a lot more going
for us than money. We're titled! Ladies and gentlemen, may I present the
Duchesses of Kingston!"

Brilliant.

So brilliant in fact, Greer was still staring at her talented sister in
wonder when Olivia suddenly blurted, "The Duchesse pendant!''

No one's "mind could leap faster from A to Z than Olivia's.

"Yes?" Greer prompted. "What about it?"

The pendant was a gold rectangle. It was encrusted with amethysts
surrounding a pearl-studded pigeon with a red- orange eye of pyrope garnet.

According to the story their dad told them, a court artisan fashioned
the pendant for the Duchess of Parma, otherwise known as Marie-Louise of
Austria of the House of Bourbon. On the back of the pendant was a
stylized "D" and "P."

When she died, one of her children inherited it, and then it was given
to a granddaughter who passed it down through the Duchesse line until it
fell into their father's hands.

In anticipation of their sixteenth birthday, Greer's parents had gone to
a jeweler who'd had two matching pendants fashioned using the original
for a model so each of their daughters could have the same memento.

"For your children to cherish," their parents had said, giving them a
loving hug and kiss along with the gift.

15

Eleven years later and their daughters were still single. Greer assumed
that one day they'd all be married and have families. She just didn't
know when, and couldn't have cared less.

"Think, my dear duchesses!" Olivia grinned. "Where is there a lovely
beach with a whole bunch of gorgeous playboys running around looking to
marry a titled woman wearing the family jewels?"

"The Riviera, of course."

"Of course!" Greer's sisters cried.

"Except that we came through the illegitimate line of the House of
Parma-Bourbon," she reminded them.

"Who cares? We are related!"

"Only if the story's true."

"Daddy seemed to think it was," Piper reasoned, "otherwise how would he
have ended up with the pendant?"

"Somebody could have made up a tall tale about it that grew legs down
through the years," Greer reminded her sisters. "Still, we do have it in
our possession, and no one's been able to prove we're not related.
Anyway, you've given me an idea.

"We know Marie-Louise went by three other titles; Duchess of Colorno,
Duchess of Piacenza and Duchess of Guastalla. So what if we each took a
title representing our relationship to her? We could outcon all the
playboys we want."

At this point her sisters stared in awe at Greer whose eyes reflected
the exact color of the Duchess of Parma violet.

The flower had been named for their ancestor who loved violets so much,
when she wrote letters she often left the imprint of the flower rather
than her signature.

A conspiratorial smile broke out on Olivia's face. "I say we start on
the Italian Riviera with one side trip to Parma and Colorno to see the
palaces where she lived.

16

Then work our way along the coast to the French and Spanish Riviera,
letting it be known we've been in Italy visiting our...royal relations?"

Brilliant! Sometimes Olivia's innovative ideas reflected pure genius.

Greer's thoughts leaped ahead. "We'll do business while we're there so
we can write off our trip as an expense on our taxes. It shouldn't be
difficult to find someone to translate our calendars into various
languages and distribute them for us. It might be the start of something
really big."

Piper's eyes gleamed. "In time Violetta and Luigio could become
household words all over Europe. Just don't forget we'll have to honor
Daddy's wishes by trying our hardest to snag a husband at the same
time," she reminded them.

"It'll be a piece of cake," Olivia declared. "As soon as we let it be
known we're duchesses, our unsuspecting victims will fall all over us."

"And we know why, don't we," Greer said with a definite smirk. "Because
they're nothing but a bunch of impoverished adventurers who prey on
wealthy women and prefer to marry a titled one if possible." One
delicately arched brow lifted.

"Their black moment will come when we smile sweetly and admit we're the
poor American duchesses. 'Sorry. No tiara.' So if they want to take back
their proposals..."

Piper shook her head at Greer. "You're wicked."

"Terrible," Olivia concurred.

"Not as terrible as they are. Just watch the bodies fall!" Greer eyed
her sisters with unholy glee. "Let's go inside and make our plans while
we eat lunch."

Piper was the first one out of the car. Olivia followed. "If we hurry,
we can apply for passports before the place closes today."

17

Greer brought up the rear. "Airfares are really cheap to Europe right
now, which is good news since we'll need new wardrobes."

"If we're going to do this thing right, maybe we should charter a
private yacht."

"I'm way ahead of you but I don't think we could afford it."

"It wouldn't hurt to find out," Olivia said. "Maybe if it were a small one?"

Once inside the apartment Greer hurried over to the computer in the
living room, which they'd made into their office. The girls hovered
around while she did a dozen searches of yachting services.

"Darn. I'm afraid they're out of our price range. So far the best we can
do is charter a crewed sailboat for twelve people. It's $5,000 a week
per person if the boat is full at the time of departure. That's no good."

Piper leaned over Greer's shoulder. "Just for fun, click to the crewed
catamaran listings. It's says they're cheaper."

When the information appeared on the screen, they studied the names of
the boats with avid interest.

"Look!" Olivia blurted. "There's one called the Pic

Greer

had already spotted the Italian word for pigeon. Their dad had always
called his daughters his "pigeons" because of the beautiful white
Duchesse pigeon the Italians had named in honor of the Duchess of Parma.
Just for fun she clicked to it. After the specifics popped up, she read
them aloud.

"This immaculate, white, fifty-one-foot sloop sleeps two to six guests.
Crew of three. Full amenities, three meals per day. $3,000 per person.
Ten days on the Mediterranean.

'Ten guys! Plan your own itinerary. The swift way to

18

get close to any beach. Contact F. Moretti, Vernazza, Italy."

Olivia nudged Greer. "That's what you call exclusive at the right price.
It must be destiny! E-mail them and find out if they have any openings
left for this summer or early fall."

"Do we care which month?"

They both shook their heads.

After sending an inquiry, Greer joined them in the kitchen. They
hurriedly ate sandwiches before rummaging around for their birth
certificates. *

Once those were found, they left for the passport office. En route they
stopped to get their passport pictures taken, reminding them they all
needed a new hairdo to go with their new duchess look.

An hour later they started for home. On the way Piper noticed a travel
agency. She told Olivia to stop the car so she could run inside and get
some brochures.

On the way back to the apartment, they almost got into an argument
because everyone wanted to savor the brochure on Vernazza. Greer had to
admit the place sounded like heaven.

One of the most unspoilt areas of the Mediterranean. To visit Vernazza
is to visit the Cinque Terre, a kingdom of nature and wild scents; five
villages suspended between sea and sky, clinging on to cliffs and
surrounded by green hills. Who visits Cinque Terre can choose between a
dive in the sea, a hike in the hills, a walk in the narrow "carruggi,"
or a boat trip to a sanctuary or to a seafood lunch.

Piper was the first to reach the computer after they'd entered the
apartment.

"We've got an answer to our e-mail!"

Greer and Olivia leaned over her shoulder while she read it to them.

"Thank you for your inquiry. Due to an unexpected

19

cancellation, the June 18 slot is available. Woohoo!" She jumped up and
down in the swivel chair.

"You are very fortunate since the twentieth is the date of the Grand
Prix in Monaco where we have docking privileges. If you wish to take
advantage, you must advise us immediately."

Piper swung around in the chair. "Monaco, guys. The playground of the
rich and 'wannabe' rich and famous. The Grand Prix! Think, Olivia- Maybe
you'll be able to see that dashing French race car driver you talk about
all the time. The one that puts Fred's nose out of joint every time you
mention him."

"It's Fred's fault if he introduced me to Formula I racing. Wouldn't it
be something to bring home Cesar Villon's autograph?" Olivia's eyes were
shining.

Greer was thinking it would be even more exciting to meet an Italian
from their own Duchesse family who could provide the documentation
proving their relationship to the Duchess of Parma.

"Piper? Find out if they'll accept another thousand a piece from us so
we can have the boat to ourselves."

'Ooh, I forgot about that, Greer. Good idea. I don't dare tell Tom about
this or he'll want to come along."

"What he doesn't know won't hurt him. It isn't as if you're in love with
him."

"How do you know?"

"Well are you?"

"Maybe."

"Then ten days away from him will prove it one way or the other. Right?"

"I suppose so." Piper finished typing the question and sent an instant
message.

While they waited for an answer, Greer studied one of brochures with a
map detailing the Mediterranean coastline bordering Europe.

20

Another shriek of delight came out of Piper. "They're willing if we pay
in full now."

"Before we commit, we've got to find out if we can get plane
reservations," Greer cautioned.

"I've already inquired." Olivia put her hand over the mouthpiece.
"Everything's booked solid into Milan, Rome and Bologna, but we could
still get seats to Genoa for June 16, returning June 29."

Greer looked at the map once more. "That's only fifty or so miles from
Vernazza," she estimated aloud. "We could take a train and find a hotel
for the 17 and 28. Book those flights for us, Olivia!"

Piper turned to Greer. "How do we want to pay for the boat?"

She pulled the wallet out of her purse. "Here. Use our business credit
card to pay the bill in full. Let them know it's the Duchess of Kingston
of the House of Parma- Bourbon making a reservation for an exclusive
party of three, and you want that information kept confidential."

When the deed was done, their laughter bounced off the living-room walls.

"That was good thinking, Greer. Now it's guaranteed word will leak out,"
Olivia murmured. "We'll have to arrive at the dock looking sensational."

"Oh-" Piper cried. "You just made me think of something else. Remember
that Paris elevator scene in the film about the American girl whose
fiance" falls in love with a French girl? Remember the knockout dress
she had on?"

Olivia's delicate brows arched. "Who could forget? We ought to be able
to find inexpensive outfits and beachwear like the ones she wore. Maybe
a hat or two? No one will know we didn't pay a fortune for them."

"Not if we wear our pendants," Piper inserted.

"Exactly. The men we're targeting survive by going after women with
jewels. Without a jeweler's loupe, they

21

won't be able to detect the fakes from the original." To this day Greer
couldn't tell the difference.

"Then it's settled! We'll arrive in Italy wearing our pendants and see
what happens! Since we have to stay at a hotel the first night we get
there, I say we make a big splash. What's the most exclusive one in Genoa?"

"Just a sec, Olivia."

Piper got busy on the Internet once more. ''Hmm. How about the Splendido
in nearby Portofino, first discovered by the Duke of Windsor. 'Preferred
by royals overlooking Portofino harbor, gateway to the Riviera.' Twelve
hundred Eurodollars a night for the three of us. It's about twenty- five
miles from the airport and they have limo service. Do you guys think
it's worth it?"

Both Greer and Olivia nodded.

"So do I. Let me check to see if there's a room available for the
seventeenth. By the time the twenty-eighth rolls around, we'll have had
our fun and can stay in a youth hostel if our funds are running low."

Greer's eyes narrowed. "A hostel will be the perfect place to invite our
'would be' husbands when we drop our little bombs."

Olivia started chuckling. "You have no heart."

"You're scary," Piper told Greer.

She gave them her innocent look. "Did Cinderella have a choice when the
carriage turned into a pumpkin on the way home, leaving her with one
glass slipper?

"Can we help it if all we'll have to show for our attendance at the ball
is the pendant we were wearing when we arrived?"

22 June 17, House of Lords, England

"My lords, we will begin by hearing the opening statement from Signore
Maximilliano di Varano of the House of Parma-Bourbon. He is the chief
counselor avvocato for the Emilia-Romagna Farmers Consorzio of Italy, of
which the Federazione del Prosciutto de Parma, a member, is the
appellant in the case brought against the United Kingdom Supermarket
Cartel, known as UKSC, represented by Lord Winthrope."

Back in the House of Lords for the second time in a year, Max got to his
feet, determined his appeal would force the case to be moved to the
European Court of Justice for a definitive decision.

"Thank you, my lords," he began with virtually no trace of accent,
thanks to an elite private school education that included four years at
Oxford and extensive travel in the U.S. and Canada with his cousins.

"To refresh your memories, Prosciutto de Parma, or Parma ham, has been
made in Parma from pigs reared in northern and central Italy since
Etruscan times. It is famous throughout the world with a name that is a
protected designation of origin.

"The Corona Ducale, a five-pointed coronet symbolizing the ancient Duchy
of Parma, is the outward guarantee of authenticity. According to Italian
law, it has to appear upon the product in whatever form it is sold to
the customer. If he buys a complete ham, or slices cut up at a

23

shop, it has to bear the brand. If he buys prepackaged slices, it must
appear stamped on the package.

"The second respondent, Prime Choice Affiliates, is a reputable food
processor in Herefordshire that prepares packages of authentic Parma ham
slices and pieces to be sold to the first respondent, UKSC, which sells
them to the public in its supermarkets. Unfortunately it's done without
the Corona Ducale on the package.

"The Federazione del Prosciutto de Parma maintains this is an unlawful
practice under Italian law, as well as European law, enforceable in the
courts of all the member states.

"In the present proceedings, the Federazione claims a continuing
injunction against Prime Choice Affiliates and the UKSC, restraining
them from marketing the packages as Parma ham until the European Court
of Justice can hear the case and make a definitive ruling. I now yield
my time back to Lord Winthrope."

When Max sat down, his assistant, Bernaldo, handed him a note.

With one ear taking in the QC's opening remarks, he read the message.
But his mind was focused on the case to the degree that it didn't
register until he'd read it a second time.

Your secretary in Colorno just received a call from the head of security
at Cristoforo Colombo airport in Genoa Sestri. You're to phone Fausto
Galli at 555 328 as soon as possible. It's a classified matter of great
importance.

Translated, it meant there was no crisis such as his own personal family
or extended family being injured in an accident or some such thing.
Relieved, he put the message in his suit pocket, making a mental note to
call Signore Galli back during the recess.

For ten minutes Max listened while the QC pontificated. Finally the man
came to the point.

24

"In my view there exists a fair argument that the supervisory role of
the Parma Federation in ensuring that only the genuine product is sold
as Parma ham, has been discharged once it leaves the Parma area. I yield
back to Signore di Varano."

Once again Max got up from the chair. "My lords, the issue here is
whether the Federazione del Prosciutto de Parma's prohibitions contained
in a legislative measure of a member state can achieve community wide
effect to the U.K. and elsewhere. Therefore I respectfully appeal this
case to the European Court of Justice. Otherwise it will continue to
remain at an impasse which achieves nothing for either party."

Following his remarks, presiding judge Lord Marbury announced a
fifteen-minute recess. Curious to discover what the call from Genoa was
all about, Max pulled the cell phone from his breast pocket and dialed
the number written on the paper.

He only had to wait two rings before he heard a male voice say, "Pronto.
Signore di Varano?"

"Si?"

"It is an honor to speak to you. I have some news that I know will be of
great interest to your family. Since you handle its legal affairs, I
felt it prudent to alert you first."

"Go ahead, signore."

"A half hour ago three American women passed through customs after
deboarding their flight from New York. My men detained them using the
excuse they were vetting incoming passengers for information due to a
suspicious person being aboard the plane. In truth, it was discovered
they're each wearing the Duchesse pendant."

"Each?" Max shook his dark head in exasperation. "That's impossible!"

There was only one pendant in existence, but it could be anywhere
because well over a year ago the Duchess of

25

Parma jewelry collection on display at the family palace in Colorno had
been stolen.

The pendant was the least valuable of the items taken in terms of
monetary worth, however its historical and sentimental value was
inestimable, especially to Max's family.

"Did you consult an expert?"

"Si. During the interrogation, photographs were taken. They were
enhanced for our forensics expert who compared them against the photo of
the pendant you had distributed to the police after the theft. They were
a perfect match."

Max blinked in astonishment.

"That's why I'm calling you, Signore di Varano. Do you wish me to
confiscate the pendants so they can be examined? So far the Americans
still don't know why they're being detained."

"That's good. Let's leave it that way for now. I appreciate your
discretion and quick thinking, Signore Galli. You've handled the
situation perfectly.

"However we've had many leads since news of the theft was made public
and a reward for its return was offered. So far all the leads have
turned out to be false. But I must admit this little joke initiated by
some brazen Americans was meant to draw attention for a reason. One can
only wonder why."

"My very thought, particularly since the joke gets even stranger."

The odd inflection in the other man's voice intrigued Max. "Explain what
you mean."

"They're sisters."

"You mean professed nuns?"

"No, no. They are the same age with the same birthday."

"Triplets?" You didn't see that every day. "How old are they?"

26

"Ventisette."

Twenty-seven and already leading a life of crime...

"Molto bellissima!"

Beautiful, of course.

"Their paperwork states they are the Duchesses of Kingston from New York."

Duchesses of Kingston?

Max flicked his gaze to Lord Winthrope. If such a title existed, the
esteemed QC would know who they were in an instant.

"Unfortunately I'm in London and can't return to Genoa before evening to
investigate this matter. Did you find out their purpose for being in Italy?"

"They claim to be on vacation with a little business thrown in. We
checked the information they gave us. It's been verified they're booked
at the Splendido tonight and have chartered a sailboat for tomorrow."

"From Portofino?"

"No. Vernazza."

A frown slowly replaced Max's smile. That little bombshell hit too close
to home to be a coincidence.

Two years ago he'd given the Piccione to his good friend Fabio and his
two younger brothers after their parents had been lost at sea in the
family fishing boat. The Morettis now made their living crewing for
tourists.

To his friend's credit and business prowess, he'd paid Max back every
last Euro, though Max had never asked or expected repayment. For twenty
months like clockwork he'd received a good-size installment with a note
of heartfelt gratitude from the man he didn't see nearly as often is he
would have liked.

Besides watching after his brothers, Fabio now had a wife and they were
expecting their second baby. Since they are the only sailboat charter
business in the tiny town which had been Max's backyard growing up, he knew

27

exactly where to find these Americans. That is if they intended to stick
to their agenda once they were freed to leave the airport.

"You may release them, Signore Galli, but have them followed and closely
watched. After my flight touches down I'll make contact with you."

"Bene. Arrivederci."

After hanging up the phone, Max wrote a note on his scratch pad. He
asked Bernaldo to hand carry it to Lord Winthrope. "Wait for his answer
and bring it back to me."

Bernaldo went off to do Max's bidding. He returned a few minutes later.
Max opened the note, eager to read what the other man had to say in
response.

Glad to be of help, Max.

Evelyn Pierrepont succeeded his grandfather as the second duke of
Kingston. He was primarily famous for his liaison with Elizabeth
Chudleigh, who claimed to be the Duchess of Kingston, but the Kingston
titles became extinct on the duke's death around 1733. He had no
children. Hope that answers your question.

Indeed it did.

Max lifted his head and smiled at Lord Winthrope who smiled back.

So...these American women weren't only audacious imposters, their
impudence showed a certain shrewdness to pick an English title that had
become extinct over two hundred years ago and pass it off as their own.

What kind of a game were they playing to come to Italy wearing pendants
identical to the stolen one? Where did they get such an idea? Why would
they do it?

"Much as I'd love to run to the room and change into my swimming suit,
I'm too tired."

28

"Jet lag's caught up with me, too. Let's go to bed. You coming, Greer?"

"In a minute-"

The magic of the balmy Genoese night held her in its thrall. She'd
always dreamed of coming to Italy. Though ninety percent of their
ancestry was English and Scotch- Irish, their father had favored their
Italian-Austrian roots. As a result he'd infected Greer with that love.

"Okay. Just don't make noise when you let yourself in."

"I promise," she said before their footsteps faded.

After several business meetings which might or might not produce a
foothold in Europe, followed by a late dinner, they'd taken a walk to
the San Giorgio church and visited the interior.

From there they'd strolled around the tropical gardens on the grounds of
the Splendido, a former sixteenth- century monastery. They'd finally
ended up at its outdoor pool overlooking Portofino harbor.

In Greer's opinion the view was worth a king's ransom. How their mother
would have loved this flower-scented paradise.

There were quite a few guests climbing in and out of the water. Waiters
moved around unobtrusively refilling champagne glasses. Every so often
Greer caught snatches of conversation and laughter from beautiful men
and women enjoying the elegant amenities of the privileged class.

As she stood next to a palm tree wearing her designer sundress in a
stunning tangerine color, her attention was caught by a man doing laps
with the speed and fluidity of a shark. A great black shark, if there
were such a thing she mused fancifully.

Glimpses of a bronzed, well-toned male physique and

29

jet-black hair kept her gaze riveted. Suddenly he levered himself from
the water onto the tiled deck.

The shark had legs.

Strong, powerful legs that propelled his tall, black trunk- clad body
past the admiring glances from women and the envious stares of men
toward Greer.

His total disregard of the surroundings testified to his inbuilt radar
system which had targeted its next victim. How easy her subconscious had
made it for him by sending out the message that she wanted to see if all
of him lived up to her image of the quintessential playboy.

All of him did...

From an aquiline face, whose Italian bones had been refined and molded
down through the centuries, gleamed a pair of black eyes that resembled
volcanoes erupting in the night sky. One intimate look from them beneath
expressive black brows and she felt as if her body had come too close to
the mesmerizing magma.

Burned alive would be the more accurate description.

The pulse in her throat throbbed so violently, she could feel it move
the pendant she wore around her neck like a choker.

She watched him watching it. He'd taken the bait.

Piper would be especially pleased to find out her suggestion to wear the
family heirloom had proved to be a winner their first night in Italy.

"I saw you walking on the grounds earlier, signorina." His heavily
accented English delivered in a deep masculine voice, vibrated to her
insides. Its cadence sent a delicious tremor through her system even
though the night was warm. "I hoped you would come to the pool."

Of course he did.

"I noticed you, too," she responded boldly, for once throwing her innate
caution to the wind. "That's why I didn't go upstairs with my sisters."

30

It was a lie. She hadn't seen him. He was too much of a predator to have
given himself away beforehand. Like his species, he'd lurked in the
depths until it was time to make his attack.

"Swim with me."

His ardent demand, whispered with a pulsating urgency that said his life
wouldn't be worth living if she didn't consent, decided her.

"I'm not wearing a suit."

"Does it matter?" came the breathtaking question.

She could have toyed with him a trifle longer and enjoyed every
provocative minute of it. But in the end she decided not to tempt fate.

"No."

The second she said the word, she saw something flare in the dark
recesses of his eyes.

Had she surprised him with her answer? To her knowledge sharks didn't
have human emotions, only instincts that led them to their nearest prey.

Well, here I am... Let's see how long it takes you to swallow me.

With great daring she slipped off her gold sandals, left her gold watch
and gold lame clutch bag on a table near the deep end of the pool, then
dove in headfirst.

Having lived along the Hudson River all their lives, their father had
taught Greer and her sisters to be strong swimmers. As a result, it was
their favorite sport which they enjoyed on a regular basis.

The bottom of this pool was tiled in a fabulous design. She swam lower
to get a better look, but was halted in her quest when a strong pair of
male hands found her hips and brought her swiftly to the surface.

She emerged with her neck-length hair plastered around her head, no
longer the picture of classic royal grace. Unfortunately that wasn't
what disturbed her. It was the

31

fact that her dress had ridden up to her waist, which meant nothing was
separating his hands from her skin except her underwear.

With his arresting face only centimeters from hers, she would have to
put on the performance of her life not to let him know how alarmed she
was by this shocking turn of events.

"We haven't been properly introduced. My name is Greer Duchess."

"Greer," he repeated softly. The way he pronounced it made even the hard
"G" sound beautiful. His slow white smile dazzled her. "Your name is as
unique as you are. What brings a beautiful American woman like you to
Italy?"

It was time to try out the story she'd rehearsed. "My sisters and I are
here to visit relatives."

"Ah, yes?"

"Yes. My ancestor was the Duchess of Colorno."

His black eyes flared in recognition. "You're referring to Maria-Luigia
of Austria of the House of Parma- Bourbon?"

So he knew his Italian history well enough to recognize the Duchesse
pendant! This was so easy it was scary!

She couldn't wait to tell Olivia and Piper she'd caught a real playboy
on her first night! Now all she had to do was play him for a while
before she reeled him in and got him to propose marriage.

When she unmasked herself, he would slip off the hook and swim away.
Then she would be able to enjoy the rest of this fabulous vacation
knowing she'd followed her father's stipulation about the Husband Fund
to the letter.

"Yes. That's right. My sisters and I are the American descendants from
her Duchesse line." No need to add "the illegitimate line" at this
juncture. "Now that I've told you

32

something about myself, I'd like to know who you are," she said in the
most seductive tone she could produce.

"Why don't you guess my name?" he came back in a deep voice that was
equally tantalizing.

As if to emphasize his remark, she felt his thumbs making lazy circles
against the nylon, increasing her awareness of him while they tread
water. Her insides turned to liquid.

She gazed at his incredible male beauty through veiled eyes and said the
first thing that popped into her head. "Luigio?"

His lips twitched, as if what she'd said had truly amused him. "No."

Greer had never been this daring in her life. But something about the
man was like an elixir in her veins, increasing her bravado. She flashed
him a brilliant smile. "This might take a long time."

He gave an elegant shrug of his broad Italian shoulders before drawing
her closer. "I've been in London on business. Now I'm on vacation for
the next week and would love nothing better than to spend every second
of it with you, bellissima."

Every second? That meant day and night. She just bet he would!

To her consternation she realized she would love the same thing. A
shiver of delight ran through her body.

She'd always heard the expression "carnal thoughts," but she'd never
understood their true meaning until now...

Greer could find no fault in this Italian heartthrob who had it all down
pat. Most likely he'd just left a woman in London and was now on the
lookout for his next conquest.

As long as she was the bait with jewels and a title, why not tease him
for a while longer first. She had an idea it would be a new experience
for him.

"Unfortunately my sisters and I are leaving for Vernazza in the morning
and won't be back."

33

"I know it well. Since you show no fear of the water, I would be happy
to take you to a secret grotto which can only be reached by swimming a
short distance beneath the sea."

She flashed him an artless smile. "Like Edmond Dantes who found Abbe
Faria's treasure on Monte Cristo, will I discover gold and silver and
precious pearls?"

His hard-muscled body stilled before he cocked his dark, handsome head.
Even wet, his vibrant hair had a tendency to curl. "Is that what you're
looking for?"

Again she had the oddest sensation that she'd said something unexpected,
something that puzzled him. "Isn't everyone searching for treasure that
will bring them ultimate happiness?"

"Ultimate happiness?" he murmured the words as if to himself, but his
gaze was playing over her features, dwelling on each feminine attribute
for heart-stopping seconds. "What is that I wonder?"

The philosopher emerging from the adventurer. He was a better actor than
she'd first supposed.

"Thanks to Alexandre Dumas, we do know one thing..."

"That's right," he whispered. His lips were so close she could feel the
warmth of his breath on hers. In reaction her toes curled against his
hair-roughened legs as their limbs tangled beneath the water. "Though
the Count of Monte Cristo had his revenge against his enemies, he didn't
find happiness after all."

"Except that Dumas's book was a tale of fiction," she countered.

Again his eyes glimmered like black fires burning on a distant hill. "If
you wish, I will take you to the island of Monte Cristo. It's not far
from Vernazza. Perhaps there you will find what you're looking for."

You mean you, of course.

34

She struggled not to laugh at the pure conceit of the man. "Perhaps."

"Does that mean-"

"It means...perhaps," she interrupted with a flirtatious smile. "Now I'm
tired and must say good night."

His hands remained fastened on her hips. "But it's not ate, and you're
too young to be tired."

"True, but we just flew in today, and were detained by the police while
we were going through customs. Three hours to be exact. It was very
exhausting."

"I'm sorry such a terrible thing happened to you in my country. Why
would the police do this?"

"The head of security said there was a suspicious person on board our
jet. He and his men took statements from the passengers who sat near
this person."

"Were you able to help?"

"I don't know. We tried to remember the people seated around us, but no
one looked suspicious to me. When we were finally let go, all we wanted
was to reach our hotel and go to sleep."

"Of course," he whispered with compassion. His eyes wandered over her in
intense appraisal before he said, "Momento-"

With one hand still possessively molding the curve of her hip, he
signaled a waiter, rapping out something in rapid Italian. The other man
nodded and disappeared.

Reading the question in her eyes, her captor explained, "I asked him to
bring you a robe to wear back to your room. Such a delectable sight
should not be for everyone's eyes."

Only yours, and you've been drinking your fill with unabashed enjoyment,
she thought. He played it just right, rhe lothario with a streak of
chivalry to keep him from being a complete cad.

35

"Thank you, Signore...Mysterioso," she improvised in her best Italian
which, sadly, left a lot to be desired.

A bark of laughter escaped his throat, the first unorchestrated response
to come out of him. In that millisecond of time she was allowed a
glimpse of what lay beneath the polished veneer and felt an emotional
tug totally foreign to her.

Not wishing to delve any deeper into her suddenly confused emotions, she
arched backward to escape his grasp and struck out for the shallow end.
That way she could use the steps and retain some semblance of dignity.

However he managed to get there first. In a surprisingly protective
gesture, he placed the extended white toweling robe around her
shoulders. She was quite amazed at the speed with which the waiter had
obeyed the stranger's command without question.

She raised violet eyes to meet the smoldering depths of his. "Thank you.
I was feeling a little vulnerable."

"Like Venus rising from the sea?" he suggested.

The second the words came out of his mouth, Greer could picture the
famous painting of the Roman goddess of beauty awakening from a seashell
without any clothes on.

Greer blushed at the shocking analogy and turned her head away. But he
made the situation even more explosive and intimate by lifting the
pendant and lowering his head to kiss the tiny pulse fluttering madly
beneath it.

"One day soon when we have no audience except the sun on our skin and
the sand beneath our bodies, I hope to see you exactly as Botticelli
created her," he murmured against her scented throat.

Between the sensuality of his remark and the brush of his lips branding
her heated flesh, she drew in an audible breath before wheeling away
from his grasp.

Trembling, she plucked her watch and purse from the

36

table where she'd left them. Before she could decide whether to wear or
carry her high heels, he'd looped his index finger through the gold straps.

"I'll escort you to your room. Not even the Splendido can guarantee the
safety of a woman on her own who looks like you. In your exhausted state
you would be no match for someone who would like to spirit you away to
some secret lagoon for the night..."

The image he'd created sent another shiver through her body, part
ecstasy, part fright.

Before this trip, the playboys Greer had pictured in her mind were
likable. Manageable. Easy come, easy go.

Maybe a little miffed to recognize they'd been conned, but gallant
enough to salute the girls as worthy adversaries who'd pulled off a
well-executed charade. No hard feelings as they made their charming
retreat from the playing field.

Up until this moment she'd been enjoying a game that had its nascence
back in Kingston two months earlier. But just now when he'd kissed her
and whispered his daring remark, she'd sensed a power shift.

Now he was the one dangling her as surely as he dangled her shoes from
his fingers.

Instinct told her this was a dangerous man, the kind you didn't lure
back to a youth hostel to tell him ' 'sorry, wrong duchess." He would be
the one to decide when he was tired of playing, then he would move in
for the kill. Until then he would keep her trapped in his sights, and
there'd be no place for her to hide.

A thrill of alarm caused her to walk faster.

When they reached the elevator where other guests were coming and going,
she was in a state of panic and used the brief interim to extricate the
hotel room key from her purse.

However by the time they'd exited onto the third floor, reason had
reasserted itself. She told herself it was lack of

37

sleep that had made her so uneasy. She would be leaving the hotel
tomorrow and since she had no intention of ever seeing him again, she
was even able to smile up at him with renewed confidence.

After the long transatlantic flight followed by a grueling three hours
detainment at the hands of the police, she hadn't been herself at all.
Otherwise she wouldn't have given a perfect stranger the green light to
pursue her.

For a woman to plunge into the pool with her clothes on in order to sink
her hooks into him, what else was a man like him supposed to think?

Tonight had been an experiment. A dry run. Whoops. A wet one, she mused
nervously to herself, realizing her emotions bordered on hysteria.

She'd blown it, but she'd learned from it. Tomorrow would be a new day
filled with more playboys and fresh possibilities.

The hotel room door was in sight. With one fluid movement she unlocked
it, but before she could slip inside, he left a kiss on the side of her
neck that set her whole body on fire. "Until tomorrow."

His promise sounded more like an avowal.

"Goodbye," she announced through the crack in the door before shutting
it hard and locking it.

Congratulating herself on making it safely to her room, she staggered
over to the nearest chair and held on while she attempted to recover
from her fright. Her clutch bag fell to the floor with a soft thud.

Too late she remembered he still had her shoes. No matter. She didn't
need them. In truth, she never wanted to see them again. She never
wanted to see him again.

38

CHAPTER THREE

The lights went on.

"Greer?" The second her sisters saw the condition she was in, they
scrambled out of their beds toward her.

"How come your dress is wet?"

"Where did you get that robe?

"Where are your shoes?"

The questions pelting her one after the other stripped her down to the
bare bones. This was no laughing matter. The only reason she'd escaped
at all was that he'd allowed it.

She could still see the mixture of triumph and mockery glinting from the
black depths of his eyes before the door closed, keeping him momentarily
at bay.

"Guys?" Never in her life had their faces been more dear to her. "I'm in
big trouble. We've got to get out of here now! I'll tell you about it
when we're in the taxi." She removed the robe and wet sundress.

"They only have chauffeur driven cars here at the hotel."

"Well we're going to call for a taxi. Will one of you do it please?" she
begged. "Tell them to be here in fifteen minutes."

"Where are we going in such an all-fired hurry?"

"Across the border to France. We'll drive to the nearest airport and
take the first flight leaving for anywhere that puts as much distance as
possible between us and hi- Italy," she amended.

"You've got to be kidding."

She shook her damp head at Olivia.

39

"I've seen that look before. She's not kidding," Piper whispered. They
followed her to the bathroom. "Does this have something to do with what
happened today when the police kept us so long?"

"No." She removed her watch, then her necklace, her skin still seemed to
burn where he'd kissed her.

"I detect the scent of a man."

At Olivia's adroit surmise, a distinct blush covered every particle of
Greer's skin. She was thankful for the protection of the elaborate
sculptured design on the glass shower door, although it reminded her of
the one on the floor of the pool.

The floor she never got to inspect at close range because she was
snatched away by a force that still caused her to tremble.

"I didn't think there was a man alive who could make you run."

"If you must know, I tangled with a shark."

"In the pool?" Piper blurted incredulously.

"This one had arms and legs..." And a masculine appeal that ought to be
banned from existence." Greer groaned inwardly as she washed the suds
out of her hair.

"Did he manhandle you?"

She reached for the tap to shut off the water. "Not exactly."

"Then he threatened you.''

Greer shivered. "Not in so many words."

"If you expect us to check out of the hotel tonight when we've only had
a couple of hours sleep, then you'd better tell us everything first."

Olivia was right.

After they left the bathroom, Greer grabbed two fluffy towels, With one
encircling her head, the other fastened around her body, she padded in
the other room after them.

Her sisters sat on their own beds cross-legged, waiting

40

for her. She sank down on the side of hers. "I-I have this horrible
feeling I'm not only in over my head, but there could be serious
consequences. It's my own fault of course."

She jumped to her feet, unable to relax. "In the beginning, the idea of
turning the tables on an honest to goodness European playboy sounded
very fun and challenging. That was until-"

"Until you met up with a real one tonight," Piper supplied.

Greer nodded jerkily. "There was this black-haired Adonis in the pool
who would put any Olympic swimmer to shame. When he got out-"

Images flashed before Greer's eyes. She couldn't believe such an
attractive man existed.

"Since you can't find the words, we get the picture." Olivia steepled
her fingers. "Did he throw you in the pool without your permission?"

Her face went scarlet. "No."

Piper leaned forward. "Did you fall in by accident?"

"No! It was nothing like that," she confessed in a quieter tone.

"Then what was it like?"

"If you must know, he took one look at the pendant and asked me to swim
with him. Everything happened just as we planned it back in Kingston.
There was this gorgeous playboy who knew who the Duchess of Colorno was.
He came on to me because of the pendant."

"So you just jumped in the pool with him?" By now their eyes had rounded.

"The Duchess girls don't jump, remember?"

Olivia's mouth broke into a grin. "Of course not. Still wearing your
clothes, you executed one of your graceful dives to make certain you
captured his attention."

"I guess," came her muffled admission.

41

Laughter filled the room, but Greer didn't join in. It was something
they noticed.

"So what happened next?'' Piper urged her to keep talking.

Greer kneaded her hands convulsively. "That's when everything went wrong."

"What did he do? Come on," Olivia prodded. "Let's hear it all, no matter
how embarrassing it might be. Otherwise we won't know how much trouble
you're really in."

"It's bad," she whispered. "Trust me."

That wiped the smiles off their lovely faces. "He didn't-"

"No-" Greer blurted. "But he could have done anything. My dress was
floating around my Waist and he was so powerful and so...so-" Heat
suffused her face.

Piper slid off the bed.' 'And you think that if you'd been alone with
him, he would have taken advantage of you whether you told him no or not?"

She drew in a sharp breath. "What I think is, that man goes where he
wants, when he wants, and does whatever he wants. Period. The pendant
seemed to have particular significance for him."

In the next breath she told them about the conversation in the pool,
leaving out the parts about both kisses which were too personal. They'd
shaken her so badly she couldn't discuss it, not even with her sisters.

"What's his name?"

"I have no idea."

Olivia rolled her eyes. "Greer-"

"I know," she muttered in self-deprecation, rubbing her arms nervously.
"It gets worse. I tried to outbluff him by pretending that I wasn't in
the most compromising position of my life. I flirted a little before
telling him I wouldn't

42

be in Genoa after tomorrow because we were going to Vernazza."

"You told him we were going there?"

"I'm a fool, Piper, and I know it, b-but that was before I realized how
dangerous he was. And after what he said about a secret grotto and the
sun and the sand and me rising au naturel from a seashell, my gut
instinct says he'll follow me there with the excuse he wanted to give me
back my shoes."

After his words to her at the door, Greer just knew he was the type of
man that would turn up again.

"It sounds thrilling to me," Piper murmured.

Olivia nodded. "Me, too."

"Guys-" Greer cried in sheer panic, "this man invented the
double-entendre. He's...dangerous."

"You're saying that because you've never met anyone so gorgeous in your
life, and you don't know how to handle your attraction to him."

"I'm not attracted, Piper!"

"Yes, you are," Olivia contradicted her.

' 'All right. But even if I am, he's the kind of man who's off-limits!"
her voice shook. "When we decided to spend the Husband Fund, we should
have stuck to the movie version we saw in Mr. Carlson's office and
targeted sensible men. It would have been a lot safer than making
ourselves the targets to wealthy playboys."

Olivia frowned. "Our plan worked in theory. You're just not used to
Italian men. It's perfectly natural for him to have been forward with
you. It's the way they're made."

"Olivia's right," Piper backed her sister up. "After all,

you are very beautiful, Greer. Don can't ever take his eyes

off you, but he's American, and American males aren't as

obvious. Look how long it took him to make his first move

toward you."

43

"Try six months," Olivia drawled. "Greer-maybe this stranger is totally
unscrupulous. Then again, maybe he isn't. You haven't given him enough
of a chance yet to find out."

"You had to be there, Olivia!" Greer snapped.

"Not necessarily. You said he has black hair. With you being so blond,
and having the most unusual violet eyes, it's no surprise he was drawn
to you. I noticed a ton of men staring at you all day today. He couldn't
help himself any more than they could. You did say he restrained himself."

Heat crept over Greer's body. "Not completely," she finally admitted.
"He kissed me in the pool, a-and at the door."

"I thought so," Olivia murmured.

"Did you kiss him back?" Piper prodded.

"Of course not! H-he didn't kiss my lips."

Her sisters eyed each other before Piper said, "That explains everything."

"What do you mean?" Greer fired back.

"You're a take-charge kind of woman. He knew that and found his way
around you. Sounds like you'll be getting a marriage proposal out of him
before long."

"I don't want a marriage proposal. I just want to get away from him.
Maybe we should just go home."

"We will, after our vacation is over," Olivia placated her. "Since we've
already paid the money for the boat and can't get it back, I say we put
the pendants away, drop the Duchess act and enjoy the rest of our trip
like any normal tourists."

"I second the motion," Piper concurred.

"But I already told the stranger I was related to the Duchess of Colorno."

"It's too late to worry about the fact that we made reservations for the
boat in the name of the Duchess of

44

Kingston," Olivia advised. "We just won't pull it on anyone else we meet"

"You're overreacting. However if or when Signore Mysterioso does show
up," she mimicked Greer's pronunciation, "and you still want protection,
he'll have to deal with all three of us."

"That's right," Piper chimed in. "Should he come round, we won't let you
out of our sight for a single second. How does that sound?"

"In theory, it sounds fine."

"Good. Now that we've got everything settled, let's go to bed and sleep
in until they throw us out. Okay?"

"Okay..." Greer's voice trailed, not nearly as confident.

Within a few minutes the lights had been extinguished and everyone had
crawled under their covers. Soon Greer could tell her sisters were dead
to the world.

It took a lot longer for her to succumb to the fatigue framing her body.
That was because neither Olivia nor Piper had ever been stalked by a shark.

She kept feeling the spots where his mouth had scorched her throat and
neck, imagining he'd actually taken little bites out of her.

"Nic? It's Max. I've got Luc on the line with me so we can have a
three-way conference call."

"Luc?"

"I'm here, Nic. Good to hear your voice."

"It's like old times."

Max's two cousins, Nic and Luc, the son's of his father's sisters, were
as close to him as brothers.

One aunt had married Carlos de Pastrana from Marbella, Spain. The other
was married to Jean-Louis de Falcon from Monaco. All three parents were
the direct descendants of the House of Parma-Bourbon and had married

45

royalty. Max felt as at home at their residences as they felt at the
Varano villa in Colorno.

Being between the ages of thirty-three and thirty-four, the Varano
cousins had spent every possible moment together growing up, be it at
school or on vacation. But five months ago tragedy struck, killing Nic's
fiancee and almost causing Luc to lose his leg.

The accident had robbed both cousins of the joie de vivre Max had
thought inherent in their natures. Much as he hated to admit it, he,
too, had been in a state of despondency even before the ghastly
accident. As far as he was concerned, if the three of them weren't
careful, depression would turn them into old men before their time.

He could use their company right now and was glad for any excuse to
bring them together.

"Forgive me for calling both of you at one in the morning, but this is
important."

"What do you mean forgive?" Nic fired back. "As I recall, I kept you up
half the night for weeks after the accident."

"And you spent the other half in my hospital room," Luc reminded him.
"Hearing your voice is like a muchlonged-for blast of fresh air.
Especially when all I do lately is go from bed to work, to physical
therapy, and then back to bed again."

"I couldn't agree more with Luc," Nic assured Max. "Thank God you've
called. Tell us what you need and you've got it!"

Max was going to hold Nic to that. "Do you two think you could give me
about ten days of your time?"

"Starting when?" they both demanded with such telltale eagerness, Max
had his answer. Gripping the phone tighter he said, "In about six hours
from now. It'll be a reunion I've needed."

Hard to believe there was a time when the three of them

46

had been young, inseparable and immortal. They hadn't believed the
problems of ordinary men would ever touch their lives.

"You want us to join you in Colorno?"

Encouraged by Nic's question he said, "No. Vernazza, aboard the
Piccione. I need you to help me crew."

Luc made a gruntlike sound. "With this damn cane, I'm afraid cooking is
the only thing I'm good for at the moment."

"You're reading my mind, Luc. Since you're still out of commission,
that's the job I'm assigning you. As we've learned from past experience,
if preparing meals was left to me or Nic, we'd all starve to death. Nic
can play captain."

"How come the Piccione?" Nic wanted to know. "You gave your boat to
Fabio Moretti a couple of years ago."

"That's true, and it's his by right. I received the last payment on it
several months ago."

"Good for him." A pregnant silence ensued. "So, I used to be fairly
adept at reading your mind, but this time I have to admit you've got me
baffled. What's going on?"

"Where are the Morettis going to be?" Luc asked.

"On an unexpected paid vacation."

"I take it this is some kind of emergency."

An image of the bewitching creature wearing what looked like their
family's prized pendant flashed through Max's mind.

Her gorgeous eyes could have been spilled drops from those very
amethysts. He pursed lips that could still feel and taste the flawless,
perfumed skin where her life's blood throbbed close to the surface.

"I'm not sure what it is, Luc. But I know one thing. We have to strike now."

"Strike? That sounds cryptic."

"We may have our first break in discovering the person,

47

or persons, behind the theft of the family jewelry collection."

An expletive came out of Luc. "My parents never stop talking about it."

"Nor mine," Nic murmured. "Just before I left Marbella for the bankers'
conference in Luxembourg, I heard Mama complaining to Papa because the
head of security hasn't come up with a single lead in the case. As far
as I'm concerned it's like we all said. Long ago the family jewels were
removed from their settings and are sitting in someone's strong box."

Or around the delectable neck of an American vixen without scruples.

"It might interest you to know that yesterday morning Signore Galli, the
head of security at Genoa airport, detained three American women on
entry because they were each wearing the Duchesse pendant."

After a collective silence, "There's only one pendant!" Then they
exploded with laughter.

That had been Max's first reaction, too. The jewelry collection was one
of Italy's greatest treasures. Whoever stole it from the ducal palace in
Colorno was the object of an intensive search.

For over a year now Italy's top investigators in conjunction with the
CIA, Scotland Yard and Interpol had been working on the case without
success.

"This Signore Galli's eyesight must be impaired."

"I don't know, Nic. The Duchesse pendant I saw a little while ago looked
like the genuine article."

Quiet reigned once more.

"You saw one of the pendants they were wearing?"

"I did, Luc. Up close and very personal, if you know what I mean."

The inference that Max had been with one of the

48

females wearing it didn't escape his cousins who after another telling
silence urged him to explain everything.

"These women, Greer, Piper and Olivia, are extremely beautiful,
twenty-seven-year-old blond triplets."

"Triplets?"

"Si. Not identical up close. Together they make an amazing sight. Their
passports say their last name is Duchess. They live in Kingston, New York.

"I found out they were planning to go sailing from Vernazza later today.
According to Fabio's records, the person who chartered the Piccione
called herself the Duchess of Kingston from the House of Parma-Bourbon."

His cousins' sounds of disbelief rattled the phone line.

"I did a little homework and discovered through an impeccable source
there is no such Kingston title in existence today."

"Which sister thought up the idea of capitalizing on such a blatant
piece of fiction?" Nic demanded.

"I have no idea," Max muttered. "Greer claimed her ancestor was the
Duchess of Colorno."

"Incredible!" Luc bit out.

"I agree the whole situation sounds unbelievable. I wouldn't have taken
any stock in Signore Galli's report if I hadn't followed the three of
them from the Splendido to the San Giorgio church and back. They were
each wearing a matching pendant. It's anyone's guess why, especially in
light of the theft."

"Why would they enter the scene of the crime wearing copies of the
genuine article unless they wanted to be caught for some reason?"

"I don't know, Nic. Perhaps it's an elaborate joke perpetrated by the
thieves to rub it in the family's face that we'll never find out who was
responsible."

"Or, it's possible one of the pendants they're wearing

49

is the genuine article and they're bargaining for bigger stakes," Luc
muttered.

"My sentiments exactly. To make this even more interesting Greer claimed
they were in Italy visiting their... relatives."

"Relatives-" Nic blurted. "We're the relatives."

"Exactly. Under the circumstances I thought you and Luc would like to
help me facilitate a meeting between long lost cousins."

"Go on," Nic urged. At this point Max had garnered his cousins'
undivided attention.

"We need to find out who they really are, why they're here. Are they
acting alone? If not, who sent them? What is their agenda? The only way
to get that kind of information is to use the old-fashioned method of
extracting information, if you know what I mean," he drawled. "I trust
you two haven't lost your touch."

"I like the idea of six 'kissing cousins' very much," Luc said, easily
reading Max's mind. "There's no place cozier than the Piccione for what
you're suggesting."

"Agreed. While we're crewing, we'll do everything we can to get their
undivided attention. Here's my plan. Nic? When Fabio first brings them
aboard, I want you to keep them entertained while I go through their
luggage and steal the pendants.

"We'll sail for Lerici. After dinner I'll take them on a tour of the
castle. That will give you and Luc time to fly to Parma by helicopter,
show the pendants to Signore Rossi for examination, and be back on board
the Piccione before my return with our guests.

"Depending on what we learn about the pendants, we'll know if we need
more time to get information out of these women, or call in the police
immediately and have them arrested."

Low laughter rumbled out of Nic. It was the first

50

genuine emotion Max had heard from his cousin since the funeral, a sure
indication he wasn't completely dead of feeling after all.

For that matter, Luc actually sounded excited about something which was
a huge change from his brooding apathy of late. Both cousins' reactions
constituted a plus Max hadn't counted on.

"I'll be honest and admit I'm looking forward to spending quality time
getting as close as possible to Greer Duchess." In fact Max was living
in anticipation. After tasting the satiny skin of her neck and throat,
not once but twice, he'd developed an instantaneous addiction for her he
needed to satisfy before the day was out.

"I'll meet you at the boat at seven," Luc declared.

"What about you, Nic?" After losing his fiancee, Nic hadn't looked at
another woman.

"I'll be there."

Good. Better than good. Nic had been in hibernation long enough. "I've a
feeling this is going to be like old times. Ciao"

The brochure described Vernazza as a jewel. But the picture of it hadn't
in any way prepared Greer to appreciate its spectacular beauty. The only
natural port village of five towns making up Cinque Terre had a cut and
polish like no stone she'd ever seen.

As she took in the brilliant facets of tower-shape houses clustered in
different levels against the steep cliffs, the stark blue clarity of sea
and sky made her eyes water.

She gasped at the range of color pitting forest and emerald-green
mountains against the yellow, pink and rose of the more elaborate
palaces and castles decorated by portals and porticos.

The delighted sighs coming from her sisters bespoke their mutual
entrancement of this Mediterranean master

51

piece the Genoese had protected against barbarians and Saracens
centuries earlier.

Greer longed to hike the narrow paths climbing dizzily from the small
square up the rocky face. But she would have to explore the town and
hidden Vernazzola stream at the end of their trip because they were
already late to board the sailboat.

Due to the thousands of tourists flocking to the Riviera for the Grand
Prix, there was a lineup at the train station for tickets. As a result,
Greer and her sisters didn't reach the stone jetty of Vernazza's small
harbor until three in the afternoon, three hours past the appointed time.

A dozen or more boats in various colors were moored on the sheltered
side of the dancing blue water. But there was only one catamaran. It
stood out from the others like white chalk on a new blackboard.

She couldn't wait until they were at sea.

Though the haunting stranger from last night hadn't been waiting outside
her hotel room door this morning with her shoes, or accosted her in the
lobby when they'd checked out of the Splendido, or shown up at the dock,
she still didn't feel safe.

Something about him had threatened her peace of mind in more ways than
she could explain, even to her sisters. Given the slightest opportunity,
she feared he might just devour her whole. Mind, body, soul, psyche-all
of her... gone.

It was an absurd notion of course. He couldn't really do that, yet until
the boat left the harbor, she wouldn't be able to breathe normally.

"Buon giorno, signorine,'' a male voice sounded behind them. Greer
jumped in reaction, fearing the worst. "I'm Fabio Moretti, the owner of
the Piccione. Welcome to Vernazza."

She heard her sisters introduce themselves. Piper gave

52

her a nudge. With her breath still trapped in her lungs, Greer turned
around.

Relief swamped her to discover a smiling, dark blond Italian of medium
height wearing blue trousers and a darker blue sport shirt. His hazel
eyes gave them an admiring glance before he shook hands with them.

"Which one of you is the Duchess of Kingston?"

"We all are," Olivia declared. Greer moaned inwardly.

He tugged on his earlobe. "Ah, because you are-how do you say it?
Treeplets. Capisce?" His head reared back in understanding.

Piper nodded. "But as we indicated in our e-mail, we'd like that kept
confidential."

"Of course. Just so you know, I arranged for a special chef for your
trip. He has cooked for several royals of the House of Parma-Bourbon.
Right now he's busy in the galley preparing dinner. You are in for a
very special treat while you sail on the Piccione."

Greer eyed her sisters in consternation before she looked back at him.
"You didn't need to go to all that trouble, signore."

"It was my pleasure. Though the people of Vernazza are Ligurians, the
Duchy of Parma holds a special place in our hearts, mine in particular.
If you'll follow me below, I'll introduce you to the captain who's
anxious to get underway.

"Don't worry about your bags. The first mate will bring them to your
staterooms. He'll be your steward and go through the boat safety drill
with you once you've cast off. Shall we board?"

They stepped off the dock onto the boat and started up the side stairs
after him. At this point Greer was feeling horribly guilty over the
whole Duchess deception and knew her sisters were, too.

Under other circumstances she would have loved to chat

53

with Signore Moretti, a local who might be able to shed light on the
story about the Duchess and her progeny. But at this juncture Greer
realized it wouldn't be prudent for several reasons.

His boat more than lived up to her expectations, diverting her attention
for the moment. Not only did it feel like an elegant luxury apartment at
sea, but it came loaded with a wind glider, snorkeling gear, fishing
gear, water skis, knee boards, sun mattresses... Anything and everything
to ensure a dream vacation.

Then Greer caught sight of a striking, thirtyish looking male in
sunglasses coming out the crew's quarters at the head.

Because of his well-defined physique visible beneath the indigo T-shirt
and white cargo pants he was wearing, he bore a superficial resemblance
to the tall stranger from the Splendido. Her

heart rose in her throat. But when he joined them in the main saloon
where there was more light, she realized her mistake.

This man's hair was straighter in texture and had brown highlights among
the black. His rugged features put her in mind of the group of proud,
handsome Castilians who'd flirted with them on the train as it had
passed through one tunnel after another.

The owner of the boat said something to him in Italian. When he removed
his glasses, she found herself looking into black fringed eyes the color
of rich brown loam.

"Buenas tardes, senoritas. My name is Nicolas, but please call me Nic.
We are always informal on the Piccione.''

A gorgeous Spaniard who knew it, and spoke Italian and English, too.
Impressive. Greer had been right about his origins.

Everyone said hello.

54

"It is indeed a pleasure to sail a boat with three such breathtaking
sisters who look alike, yet are so different." His gaze traveled over
each of them, but seemed to rest on Piper the longest. "Forgive me for
staring, senorita...

"Piper."

"Piperrre..." He seemed to relish rolling her name across his tongue.
"Your eyes are the same rare hue as the aquamarine waters along the
Riviera di Ponente. Muy muy bella."

Piper did have remarkable eyes. The trail of men who'd looked into them
and been smitten was miles long. Obviously she didn't have to wear the
Duchesse pendant to attract this man's attention.

Not for the first time did Greer regret last night's reckless,
impulsive, unquestionably dangerous escapade.

"Thank you."

"We're sorry we're late," Olivia inserted.

''No problem, senorita... ?"

"My name's Olivia."

He flashed her a seductive smile. It seemed not only Italian men, but
all European men in general, had a way of invading a woman's space like
nobody else, giving her no breathing room whatsoever.

To Greer's chagrin she discovered their captain, like the dark-haired
stranger from last night, had the kind of overwhelming good looks you
didn't run into every day, or every year. Or possibly never.

"As I was saying, senoritas, do not be concerned about the time. This is
the busiest season of the year and delays on land are routine. That is
the beauty of traveling by water. When there's no wind to fill the
sails, we have engine power to take us where we want to go. I know
places where we can be virtually alone."

Greer tensed at the unmistakable innuendo. "All we

55

require is that you follow the itinerary we worked out with Signore
Moretti."

She felt his slight hesitation before he said, "Naturally, senorita."
The assurance rolled off his liquid tongue, almost as if he'd sensed her
misgivings and could read her mind. Almost as if he was mocking her.
"But we will make one slight exception."

Greer knew it!

"Before we dock at Monterosso tonight, I thought you might enjoy a visit
to the port town of Lerici. There's a castle you should see."

When Greer didn't say anything, Piper filled in the uncomfortable
silence. "That sounds exciting."

Normally it would have sounded exciting to her, too, but for some reason
she couldn't shake, Greer wasn't sure she trusted the captain completely.

"I don't remember hearing your name, senorita."

Really. It was on the tip of her tongue to play the same game the
stranger had played with her last night and ask the captain to guess,
but she restrained herself. "It's Greer."

She saw intelligence reflected in those dark brown eyes studying her
with such unusual intensity it made her suspicious. Perhaps it was her
imagination, but the captain still reminded her a little of the stranger
from last night.

"Greer is an obscure yet charming diminutive of Gregorio, the first
Greek pope, yet you all have the gilt- blond hair of the Saxons," he
observed. "Why were you not given commensurate names?"

Commensurate? Who was this man?

"If our mother were alive, you could ask her." Ignoring her sisters'
frowns she said, "If you'll excuse us, we'd like to freshen up."

Signore Moretti who'd been oddly silent throughout their exchange said,
"There are three staterooms ready for

56

you with your own queen-size beds and private bathrooms. Before I leave
you in Nic's capable hands, allow me to show you."

Without casting another glance at the captain, Greer took the lead
behind the owner of the Piccione. Her sisters might be blinded by the
captain's charm, but Greer wasn't!

For a seaman, he possessed an amazing grasp of etymology. Too amazing in
her opinion. She felt like they'd jumped out of one proverbial frying
pan into a fire where things were threatening to get a lot hotter.

As if to add to her concerns, their plan never to be separated was
foiled when she realized the light, airy staterooms were located in
three different corners of the catamaran.

Each one contained fabulous oversize baskets of flowers, fruit and
chocolates, plus a well stocked minifridge with every kind of drink from
mineral water to soda and wine.

Everything was lovely. She had no complaints.

But by the time Signore Moretti had wished them a happy trip and
disappeared, she had the premonition something was wrong. When she
detected vibrations running through her feet, she jumped. They were moving!

It was too late to get off.

57

CHAPTER FOUR

Piper sighed. "I think Vernazza is more beautiful than Portofino, if
that's possible."

Greer's sisters had scrambled on top of the bed and were looking out the
porthole at the receding harbor.

"Admit the captain's the most beautiful man you've ever laid eyes on."

Greer knew of one exception to Olivia's observation, but she wisely
chose to remain quiet on that subject "Don't get too excited about him,"
she cautioned.

They both swung around, darting her a vexed glance. "What's wrong with
you?" Piper chided.

Olivia folded her arms. "You were rude to him a few minutes ago, you know."

"That's because something about him doesn't ring true."

"For heaven sake's, Greer. Just because he's attractive doesn't make him
a predator."

"I'm not talking about his looks, though they are exceptional. It's his
whole demeanor. Your eyes, Senorita Piperrre-" She did a faithful
representation of the captain. "They are like aquamarine waters. Your
name, Senorita Greer, is obscure yet charming- My gosh- The man's a menace!"

Piper grinned. "You mean he reminds you of the way the stranger talked
to you last night. I thought we decided that European males come on to
women much more directly, so we just have to learn to deal with it."

"Piper's right," Olivia argued. "The captain may be Spanish, but they
all have Mediterranean blood flowing

58

through their veins. It makes them different from the men we're used to
dating."

"I don't know, guys. I've a feeling our captain plays by a set of rules
we've never heard of."

"That's what you said about Signore Mysterioso."

"They remind me of each other."

"Greer-do you have any idea how paranoid you sound?"

"He's the one who sounds too educated to be doing work like this. If he
were a real sea captain, he would be running a naval vessel or a
passenger ship or something."

Olivia hunched her shoulders. "Maybe he does this for fun when he's on
vacation. What do we care? We came to the Riviera for ten days of fun,
plus the hope of meeting some authentic playboys."

Greer shook her head. "Technically we came with a definite plan to get
them to propose!

"Can you honestly picture that three-tongued Don Juan above deck
bringing himself to ask for a woman's hand in marriage? Even if he knew
the Hope diamond could be his?" she exploded.

''Probably not,'' Piper admitted.''But then he's the captain, so he's
not in the running."

"Then somebody needs to tell him that. I saw the way he was devouring
you with his eyes, as if you were a feast and he couldn't decide which
dish to try first."

"That stranger last night really freaked you out," Olivia said softly.

"The captain freaks me, too. Let's face it, guys. When we thought up our
absurd plan, we'd just gotten home from Mr. Carlson's office. It was
grief that made us delusional.

"I vote that when we dock at Monterossa tonight, we say 'thanks, but no
thanks,' and head straight for the train station. I don't care if we
have to stay there all night. Once

59

we're back in Genoa, we'll wait on standby for a flight home."

"Home?" Piper's brows knit together. "No way, Greer. It's too big a
waste of Daddy's money."

"We paid a trip cancellation fee," Greer reminded them. "I say we ask
for a refund. Of course we won't get all the money back, but it's better
than nothing."

"I came to see the Grand Prix."

"I realize that, Olivia, but there'll be another car race next year. You
can come again for the right reason, and on your own money. I just think
we're in over our heads here."

Olivia eyed her soberly. "You're serious."

Greer nodded. "What kind of a vacation will it be if the whole time
we're trying to have fun on this catamaran, we're fighting off a captain
who thinks he's God's gift for women and believes we're titled and
dripping in money and jewels? If you think Signore Moretti withheld that
vital piece of information from his crew, then you'd believe we're
sailing on the Caribbean!"

"You don't have to be sarcastic," Piper murmured, sounding hurt.

Olivia trained concerned eyes on her. "With all of us protecting each
other, the captain will be helpless to do anything, so I don't see the
problem. It'll be three against one. If we stick together, he can't make
a move we won't know about."

"Don't be so sure. He's runs this boat. You heard him say he knew of
places where we could be virtually alone. He wasn't kidding. We're out
of our depth here. They're not ordinary men. They know how to seduce a
woman."

"Then we'll have to be on our guard."

"You say that now, Piper, but they have ways of getting you to do things
you never planned to do."

60

Olivia drew closer. "Are you saying something else happened last night
we don't know about?"

Greer's heart pounded in her ears. "No," she confessed shakily, "but-"

"But you think you won't be able to hold out against him if you were
ever to see him again."

After her experience last night, she knew it would take a strong woman
to resist a man like him or the captain and secretly she just didn't
know if she could.

"Let's just say I don't want to find out." If she gave the dark stranger
one inch, he'd take ten thousand miles. There would be a price to pay
for carrying on a passionate ten-day affair with him. After it was over
she would return home alone where she would stay in pain for the rest of
her life.

No way... She was a Duchess, and a Duchess girl held out for marriage
and everything that went with it.

"Guys-we've enjoyed our moment of insanity pretending to be duchesses.
Now it's over."

"But not the whole trip." Piper stood firm. "We won't let the captain
take advantage of any of us. We'll room together the whole time. One of
those sun mattresses will work for an extra bed."

"I was just going to suggest it," Olivia murmured. "Now what do you say
we go up on deck in a few minutes and enjoy the view until dinner? I
don't know about you but I'm thrilled we have a French chef on board
who'll guarantee us a fabulous meal."

To lighten the mood she handed everyone some chocolate and pears, one of
their favorite fruits. "I figure we need a snack before the first mate
gives us the boat drill."

"I just hope he isn't anothe-"

"Give it up, Greer!"

At Piper's admonition, Greer bowed her head, not wanting to entertain
the possibility there could be another one

61

like the shark from last night swimming anywhere loose around this boat

It was such a troubling thought, she sat on the bed covered in a blue
print spread and munched away. In a few minutes she got up to dispose of
the wrappers and cores.

When she emerged from the spotless white bathroom loaded with all types
of soaps, perfumes, lotions and shampoo, she announced, "I'm going to go
to the stateroom on the other side of the boat where I saw my suitcase.
I'll be right back with it."

"Mine's in the other one. I'll go with you," Olivia said. Together they
slipped into the passageway and parted company by the stairs.

The vibrations had stopped, which meant it was the sails, not the
engine, that was propelling them. Greer loved the gentle rocking motion
of the boat. Under other circumstances, this would have been the dream
trip of a lifetime.

What an imbecile she'd been to touch the money their father had left
them. They'd all been imbeciles. Look what had happened because they'd
gone along with his ridiculous stipulation to try to find a husband!

Furious with herself, she flung open the door to the stateroom, which
had been left unlocked. When she entered, she expected to see her
suitcase on the floor, but it was nowhere to be found. The first mate
must have put it in the closet. She crossed the expanse and opened it.

A surprised cry sprang from her lips to discover her clothes on hangers,
her shoes neatly placed in separate compartments.

Her gold shoes.

Greer felt the blood drain from her face. There was the faint sound of a
click behind her. She didn't have to turn around to know who was
standing a few feet away, blocking her only escape route with the
greatest of enjoyment.

62

I know Vernazza well. Since you show no fear of the water, I would be
happy to take you to a secret grotto, which can only be reached by
swimming a short distance beneath the sea.

Noooooooooo- It couldn't be. She'd known he would show up at some point
on their trip, but not as a member of the crew aboard the Piccione! This
couldn't possibly be happening.

"Buona sera, Greer." His haunting voice sounded like the night breeze
swishing through the cypress trees, carrying the scent of lemon and
jasmine down to the sea.

"I couldn't sleep all night anticipating being with you again. It's the
only reason I was able to let you slip away, although I'll admit I came
close to carrying you down to the sea for a moonlight swim."

Get a grip, Greer.

You can't let him see what this has done to you. Brazen it out till
later. Play it cool.

She could hear her father's encouraging whisper, "Play it like a Duchess."

The thought of her loving parent gave her the courage to turn around and
present an imperious smile to the one man who could be her total
ruination if she didn't put an ocean between them in the next eighteen
hours.

She steeled herself not to react to the devastating sensuality he
emitted wearing one of those short-sleeved black crew necks. He'd tucked
it inside thigh-molding jeans that rode low on his incredible male body.

Greer flashed him an imperious smile. "Buona sera, signore. So the first
mate is last night's man of mystery."

"Life plays many tricks, does it not?"

"How did you know I would be aboard the Piccione?"

"As soon as you told me you were coming to Vernazza, I asked a close
friend of mine to keep an eye out for you. It must be fate that brought
us together without my having

63

to lift a finger to find you. Especially when I distinctly heard you
tell me goodbye through the hotel room door. That was cruel, bellissima."

Fate my foot!

She raised her chin to combat position. "You spend a lot of free time at
the Splendido?"

"Actually I haven't been there for over a year. If I hadn't noticed you
on the grounds, I would have left the premises and we would have been
like ships that never passed in the night."

"What if I hadn't gone to the pool?"

"Then I would have made inquiries until I found you, wherever you were."

Though she willed it otherwise, her heart ran away with her. "Are you
always this persistent?"

"About something I want? Yes." '"

Such an electrifying answer delivered in that deep tone, immobilized
her. "You want me?"

"Si, signorina," came his low velvety voice. "In every conceivable way."

His stark honesty was so shocking, she couldn't think, let alone breathe
normally.

"But then you already know that, Greer, because you feel the same way
about me," he added.

"You're very sure of yourself, aren't you, signore."

His black gaze studied her features relentlessly. "You would understand
if you could see your eyes."

"What about them?"

"You've heard the expression 'mirrors of the soul'?"

"So you believe my soul has been speaking to yours?"

"Loud and clear from the moment I saw you watching me do laps in the pool."

Greer couldn't refute that statement. The second she'd laid eyes on him,
she hadn't been able to look away. "Do

64

you use this same approach with every female stranger who looks at you?"

"I've never said it to another woman in my life." His voice throbbed the
way it had done at the pool last night when he'd asked her to swim with him.

Greer threw her head back and laughed. "I bet every American woman
you've spoken to like this has believed you."

"American?"

"Yes. They say the Italian accent to the American ear is the most
provocative sound in the world. I have to admit I find it pretty
irresistible."

Lines darkened his handsome face. "But you don't believe me."

"There isn't a woman alive who wouldn't want to. After all, you are
every woman's fantasy come true."

"Even yours?"

"Especially mine."

"Why is that?"

"My love affair with Italy began when I first found out I was part Italian."

"You mean through Maria-Luigia's husband."

Greer kept her smile in place.

This man had known exactly who the Duchess of Colorno was, which meant
he was playing dumb with her now on purpose.

Any serious student of European history, of Italian history in
particular, knew the Duchess of Colorno had two husbands, Napoleon
Bonaparte, and Count Von Reipperg.

She'd been on the verge of telling him she was talking about the
granddaughter of Maria-Luigia who allegedly had an Italian lover. But
she thought the better of it because this man was toying with her for a
definite reason.

"What about your ancestry?" she asked, effectively changing the subject.

65

He cocked his head. "You didn't answer my question. Tell me more about
the Italian side of your family. You have me completely enchanted,
Greer. I want to learn everything about you."

Everything?

Beneath the ardency of his words she could tell he was driven by a
curiosity separate from his desire for her. Of what real interest could
Greer's roots be to him?

She gave him the benefit of a full, unguarded smile. "I'm afraid I left
little to the imagination when I joined you in the pool. You've already
learned I can be impulsive, and that I love to swim.

"Isn't it nice that in this new century, the working class can enjoy
their time off at the Splendido in exactly the same way as the aristocracy?"

She'd posed the question while he pulled a life jacket from the footlocker.

He flashed her a mystifying smile. "That all depends on what you mean by
enjoy. The worker is there on borrowed time and limited funds which adds
a certain...edge to the experience." He moved toward her.

The first mate exuded an urbane sophistication that sat at odds with the
kind of job he did. He seemed too powerful a personality, too shrewd and
intelligent to take orders from anyone else.

Though he appeared perfectly at home on the boat, she was convinced he
ruled another world apart from this one.

"I wouldn't know."

"Who could blame you. After all, you were born to be the Duchess of
Kingston."

Though his silky observation had sounded totally offhand, Greer had the
sudden revelation he was after her for whatever he could get out of her.
Money...jewels...her virtue.

It shouldn't have shocked her. This was what she and

66

her sisters had hoped would happen when they came to the Riviera. But
now that he was calling her bluff in earnest, the charade no longer felt
like a joke.

To hide her dismay, she gave a careless shrug of her feminine shoulders,
drawing his attention to the periwinkle silk blouse that crisscrossed
the bodice.

His bold gaze dropped from her curves to the wide belt cinching her
waist. By the time his eyes took in the line of her matching skirt which
flowed from the flare of womanly hips, he'd managed to squeeze every
ounce of breath from her lungs.

"It seems criminal to have to cover up what nature has so exquisitely
endowed." Without asking her permission, he helped her into the jacket
and secured the front straps.

After the way she'd plunged into the water at the hotel, she supposed he
had every reason to believe she'd thrown maidenly virtue out the window
long ago.

Little did he know her primal instinct was to slap his face. For the
moment, all she could do was keep up the pretense until she could get
away from him.

Restraining herself she said, "Seeing you busy like this at your job
helps me understand why you were solicitous of my needs last night. Even
to the point of returning my shoes? Has anyone ever told you you would
make an excellent personal valet?"

With those words, she thought his patrician jaw hardened just a trifle.
"No. You're the first. Are you offering me a full-time job?"

"Would you take it?"

"I would for the right price and benefits."

Her pulses throbbed. "I'll bet you're expensive."

"But that wouldn't be a problem for you."

"You mean because I'm a duchess?"

His lips twisted in a subtle smile. "Some titles have no money or
property to back them up. But the pendant you

67

were wearing last night tells me you can afford my exclusive services."

It all got down to the pendant.

"Ah, but for how long?" she asked with great daring.

"For as long as we continue to desire each other."

Her body trembled. "I'm afraid you misunderstood me. I was talking about
valet service only."

"So was I. Shall we test out one of my duties to see if my work measures
up to your expectations?"

In the space of a millisecond he'd tugged on the straps he'd been tying
so that she fell against his hard, powerful body. Without the life
jacket separating them, her heart would have jammed into his.

His other hand cupped the back of her head where the gossamer strands
brushed his fingers. He had the kind of strength that made it impossible
for her to evade the insistent pressure of his male mouth. She was
prepared to fight him with all her might.

But when that mouth closed inexorably over hers, he didn't swallow her
alive in one gulp as she'd feared. Rather he played with her lips,
nibbled on them, tasted them slowly, each time coaxing them farther
apart, a little more and a little more.

After their exciting verbal skirmish, she felt a seductive rhythm
building like the flow of the tide, racing up the beach a little higher,
a little stronger. It filled all the aching spaces in her body which
yearned toward him of its own volition.

His mouth created such sweet ecstasy, pleasure pains never before
awakened came alive, demanding assuagement from the source that created
them.

The moans she heard turned out to be her own.

Moans of need, of desire she didn't know she could feel. She felt
helpless, beautiful. Alive. She didn't know herself anymore. He was
making her feel immor-

68

"Greer?"

Olivia's voice.

The door flew open. "Quick! We've got some- Greer!"

Piper's shocked cry reverberated in the cabin.

Greer wrenched her lips from the man who'd been kissing her into
oblivion and turned around in guilty reaction, but her senses were reeling.

Ironically her captor had to be the one to steady her in his strong
arms. It would take time to recover from an experience that had been a
breathtaking education in what really went on between a man and woman."

Buona sera, signorine."

"What's going on?" Olivia demanded in a quiet, yet chilling voice. Piper
looked ready to tackle him to the ground. Greer didn't know her siblings
could be this fierce.

Of course they wouldn't have had any success if they'd tried to restrain
him. The fact that he ignored their edicts and still held her arms
firmly in his grasp testified to that truth.

"I-it isn't what you think," Greer stammered. "You've misinterpreted
what was happening."

"That's right," he said in a suave tone. "Your sister and I were
getting...reacquainted. Last night there was so little time before she
ran off to bed, leaving me desolate."

Her chest heaved.

"Olivia? Piper?" Every breath sounded ragged, even to her own ears.
"T-this is the man I met at the Splendido last night."

After the way she'd carried on about him earlier, she couldn't believe
she was defending him now. However she drew the line at accusing him of
a crime her sisters assumed would have taken place if they hadn't barged in.

To her shame, nothing had gone on she hadn't let happen and he knew it!

69

The truth was, it had given her a perverse thrill to spar with him.
She'd loved baiting him. The last thing on her mind had been to scream
her head off at the first sight of him so her sisters would come running.

When they recalled this incident later, they would have to admit she
hadn't been struggling with him. Au contraire. She'd ended up being an
eager participant.

That's what was so mortifying-to realize how completely out of control
she'd been the second his mouth had covered hers.

He'd kissed her as if he were starving for her. Admittedly she'd kissed
him back with a matching hunger that seemed to have come out of nowhere
and sought appeasement only he could give.

Who knew how long their passionate interlude might have gone on if her
prolonged absence hadn't prompted her sisters to come in search of her?
She had only herself to blame for this latest disaster.

Piper made no move to leave. "Aren't you going to introduce us?"

"I don't believe we caught his name," Olivia murmured.

A betraying blush crept into Greer's cheeks.

"Allow me to do the honors," said the man whose mouth had done things
that were still sending out shock waves to the tiniest follicle of her body.

"I'm Max, the first mate on the Piccione. I saw the three of you out
walking last night. It was a beautiful sight, one I'll never forget."

His hands caressed her arms down to the fingertips, then relinquished
them. While Greer continued to tremble in reaction, he'd reached the
open doorway in a few athletic strides.

Before disappearing he said, "Signorine? Meet me on

70

deck in five minutes with the life jackets you'll find in the
footlockers of your staterooms. I'll show you how to fasten them
correctly. Knowing what to do will save your lives if, heaven forbid,
there should be an emergency on board."

71

CHAPTER FIVE

In the wake of his departure, Greer realized an explanation was in
order. She blurted, "What you saw was nothing more than the result of my
insulting him. Rather than fight him, I decided it might be wiser to let
him get it out of his system."

To her surprise, her sisters shut the door, then put a finger to their lips.

"What's wrong?" Greer whispered.

"Just listen," Piper whispered back. "Our pendants are gone." Greer
blinked. "We discovered them missing while we were putting everything
away in the drawers of our stateroom.

"I only opened my cosmetic bag to get out some sunscreen. That's when I
noticed the pendant wasn't there. I asked Olivia to look in her bag
thinking maybe I'd put it there by mistake last night, but hers was
gone, too."

"Since our bags never left our sight after we packed them this morning,
it means the members of the crew have to be jewel thieves who believe
they've stolen a small fortune," Olivia surmised. "Do you still have yours?"

Did she?

Galvanized into action, Greer ran to the bathroom where the first mate
had put her cosmetic bag. She opened it and found the little case she
kept it in. The pendant winked up at her.

"Mine's still here," she said in shaky voice. "He was probably in the
process of stealing it when I surprised him by accident."

The three of them stared at each other before Olivia said

72

to Greer, "We thought you were overreacting earlier, but now we know
your premonitions have been right about everything."

Piper had a far away look in her eye. "For the stranger you met last
night to show up today claiming to be the first mate, and then for us to
discover him kissing you like there's no tomorrow, it's obvious
something out of the ordinary is going on here, even if you are fatally
attracted to him."

Fatally attracted. That's what it felt like.

A shiver chased across her skin. "I knew it couldn't be a coincidence.
Remember my telling you how drawn he was to the pendant?"

"Yes. If all he'd wanted was to get you into bed, he probably could have
managed that last night."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Olivia," Greer said before averting
her eyes.

"We saw you in his arms just now," Piper pointed out. "You were hardly
fighting him off. No one's blaming you. Good grief. He looks like a god,
and it's perfectly evident he's attracted to you, as well. But he has
come on way too strong, too fast! As for the captain, you were right
about him. He's- He's-"

Greer groaned. "I know what you're trying to say." She took a deep
breath. "Let's face it. Signore Moretti has an interesting little
operation going here. It might be legitimate, but he gets lots of perks
when idiots like us charter his boat pretending to be something we're
not. We don't have anyone else to blame but ourselves for our loss. If
the parents knew..."

"We can't think about that right now." Olivia glanced! at her watch. '
'The first mate said five minutes. If you're not on deck in about twenty
seconds, he'll use the excuse to come down and find you. I suggest we hustle

73

topside on the double, pretend nothing's wrong, and talk about what
we're going to do later."

"Agreed."

In the next breath they hurried to the other stateroom for more life
jackets, then emerged into the dazzling late- afternoon sun for which
the Riviera was famous.

A mild breeze filled the sails imprinted with a stylized pigeon in
flight. It propelled the boat away from the postcard perfect coast
receding farther into the distance.

"Signorine?"

Every time Greer heard the deep resonance of the first mate's voice, a
current of electricity traveled through her body igniting her nervous
system. Except that this time she was on to him and the captain. They'd
been in the cockpit, talking. Plotting...

Some job those two had.

She wondered how many hundreds of wealthy women over the years, married
or not, had been swept away by their amazing looks and overpowering
charisma, never to be the same again. Never to recover their jewels again.

Science hadn't invented a vaccine to inoculate the male of the species
against the invasion of such spectacular foreign male specimens. There
was no known antidote. The best you could do was run for your life in
the opposite direction and never look back!

That was exactly what she and her sisters intended to [do tonight after
they docked. Until then they would have to stick together like Vienna
sausages in the can and bluff |their way through this last poker game.
Greer could only pray they escaped from their doomed adventure relatively

unscathed.

As her nemesis approached, the devastating white smile flashed convinced
her he could read her mind. She avoided his gaze while he inspected the
way her sisters

74

had fastened their life jackets. Once he'd given them a few pointers,
their drill began.

The boat and everything to do with it seemed to be a part of him, which
ironically she had to admit was reassuring. In twenty minutes they knew
where to find extra life buoys, a two-way radio, flares, fire
extinguishers, an ax, sea rations, water, tool and first-aid kits,
navigation lights, buckets, oars, the horn and a waterproof sea chart
with compass.

"Do the two of you know how to swim as well as your sister?"

They nodded.

"Nevertheless you'll do exactly as I say when you're playing with any of
the water gear. Even dive masters like myself or the other crew have to
be prepared for the unexpected, so we'll obey the rules to the letter.
Do you have! any questions?"

Greer had one. "Why are we sailing in the opposite! direction from
Monterosso where we're docking this evening?"

She'd planned that part of the itinerary herself. Monterosso had the
best beach of the Cinque Terre.

If this was going to be their last night in Italy, they would at least
be able to tell their friends they'd bathed! once in the waters of the
Mediterranean.

His black eyes impaled her. "You're very astute to realize we've made a
minor detour."

"You call 'due east' a minor detour, signore?"

His captivating smile might as well have caught hold of her heart and
upended it. "Didn't the captain tell you we're making a stop at the port
town of Lerici?"

"He mentioned it. What's so important?"

"A sixth century castle which is just magical. You and your sisters can
explore to your heart's content."

What a bald lie! This was a setup he and the captain

75

had obviously worked out over years of enticing rich women. Drop the
jewels off at Lerici, then proclaim innocence at a later date when it
was discovered the pendants were missing.

The boat proved to be the perfect vehicle. Seduction on the high seas,
their vulnerable captives at the mercy of their potent masculine appeal.

They had the moves and the jargon down so perfectly, they could do it in
their sleep-read each other's minds without conversing! Greer could read
the first mate's since it was as transparent as a bride's veil.

He thought himself as irresistible as Valentino, but he couldn't be more
wrong. Though he'd shocked the daylights out of her with kisses that
revealed her own sensuality-a sensuality she hadn't realized she
possessed, it didn't mean she wanted to repeat the experience.

You only had to be scalded once to know you should stay away from
boiling water.

"Since when does a captain take orders from his first mate?" she
challenged him. "Surely as long as you're getting paid the going wage,
your job has nothing whatsoever to do with the itinerary we decided on
weeks ago."

Her attention was caught by his hands which opened, palms upward, in a
gesture so typical of Italian men she couldn't look away.

"It was a mere suggestion, signorina."

And I'm the Duchess of Kingston!

"If we'd wanted to go on a tour of the paranormal, we would have started
out in Transylvania."

His eyelids lowered to half mast. "It was very wise of you not to travel
there. Even I, who do not have a drop of vampire blood in my veins, find
it increasingly difficult to resist taking a bite out of you myself."

At the mention of the word "bite," the spot where he'd

76

kissed her neck beneath the pendant began throbbing again. She fought
not to react.

On cue her instinct for self-preservation came to the fore. Her chin
jutted. "You can inform the captain we're not interested. Unless there's
something else you needed to tell us that could save our lives, we'll be
resting in our cabin until dinner's served."

After delivering her exit line she started walking toward the stairs,
all the while feeling his fiery black eyes on her retreating back.

"It's ready now," he called out unexpectedly. "The chef is waiting."

The girls followed her to the stateroom. "Let's eat so they don't
suspect anything, then we'll decide what we're going to do about our
situation," she whispered as they removed their life jackets.

By tacit agreement they moved to the saloon. It was nothing short of
amazing to see how it had been transformed. The table with an alencon
lace cloth had been set for three.

Greer noted the Waterford crystal, fine Limoges china and a centerpiece
of roses in reds, pinks and yellow. Her mouth watered the second she
detected the fragrance of a seafood dish escaping the covered tureen.

The door to the adjoining galley opened. They spied a cane before a
lean, hard-muscled male emerged. He was dressed in jeans and a gray
pullover with the sleeves shoved above the elbows.

When he lifted his head of short-cropped black hair, Greer looked into
the face of an olive-skinned Mediterranean man who possessed the kind of
dark, dashing looks that caused women to make utter fools of themselves!
No one knew about that better than she did.

If he weren't leaning so heavily on his cane, he would probably be as
tall as the two men on deck.

77

"Bonsoir, mesdemoiselles." His deep-set gray eyes assessed Greer and
Piper before traveling to Olivia.

There was no attempt on his part to apologize for studying her. His
intimate perusal of her face and figure was guaranteed to wring a blush
from the most hardened female. Greer had to give her sister points for
holding it back.

"You must be the one named after the Olivier."

"Then whoever told you that was misinformed," Olivia threw out with
gratifying sangfroid.

She'd sensed this gorgeous hunk of male was no chef. Not for this boat
or a royal family. If any member of this crew was legitimate, then Greer
and her sisters were the three good fairies!

His mouth curved into a wicked smile, verifying Greer's suspicions. "I'm
never wrong, mademoiselle.'"

"Really," Olivia mocked. "Well unless you required a cane from birth, it
appears you made a wrong move at least once in your life."

Whoa, Olivia!

His handsome face turned dark as a thunderhead, revealing a man who had
a dangerous look now that Olivia had struck him where it hurt.

It was patently clear that not only had the spoils been equally divided
ahead of time, she and her sisters were about to be served up for their
captors' delectation.

Not if Greer could help it!

"Monsieur Luc, is it?" she addressed him in her best bad French. "I'm
afraid there was a slight oversight on our part. We forgot to tell
Signore Moretti we're allergic to fish."

"It's a shame," Piper played along. "How sad that the beautiful dinner
you labored over so long with your bad leg has to go to waste."

On their way out of the saloon Olivia turned to him.

78

'What was it Marie Antoinette once said, 'If the passengers can't eat
fish, let the crew eat it'?"

Bravo, Olivia!

They walked with great dignity to their stateroom. Once they'd locked
the door behind them, Greer turned to her sisters. This time she was the
one to put a finger to her lips. "We've been had, guys."

'Tell me about it!" Piper whispered furiously.

Olivia's angry brows knit together. "It all started when we were
detained by the police at the Genoa airport. Three hours for what? In a
matter of a minute we told them all we knew which was absolutely nothing!"

"And when I met the first mate at the Splendido it certainly wasn't by
accident!" Greer muttered through gritted teeth. "When he called for a
robe, the waiter obeyed him instantly. How come?

"And why did he empty my suitcase? We didn't pay the kind of money that
entitles us to the services of a personal valet. I'm thinking our crew
has a friend on the police force."

"Of course," Piper cried. "You can always count on a small percentage of
the law being corrupt. Signore Moretti is probably in on it with them.
Scamming wealthy tourists is a great way to make extra money on the side."

"Absolutely," Olivia exclaimed. "When we told him the Duchess of
Kingston was making the reservation, he probably alerted the others who
told that pompous security guard to check us out when we went through
customs at the airport."

Piper nodded. "The moment he saw we were wearing the Duchesse pendants,
he informed his cohorts. They figured there was a lot more where that
came from and scrambled to get the boat ready."

"A chef who looks like him cooking for royalty-I don't believe that for
a minute!" Olivia raged.

79

Greer moaned. "When I think I told you to ask if we could have the boat
exclusively if we paid them another $1,000 apiece!"

Olivia shook her head. "They must have rubbed their hands with glee."

"Well they're not going to get away with it!" Piper declared. "When we
reach Genoa we'll go straight to the American Consulate and tell them
what's happened."

"You mean if we reach Genoa." Greer had been looking out the porthole.
"Take a look, guys. We're still going east, not west."

"Why aren't we surprised?"

The three of them stared at each other before Olivia said, "We'll swim
for it as soon as we get close enough to land or the nearest passing
boat. Which ever comes first." Piper's eyes rounded. "You know we
could?" "Of course we could. There's no current here as strong as the
one in the Hudson. If we wear some casual skirts and tops instead of
bathing suits when we go up on deck, they won't suspect anything,"
Olivia reasoned. "Especially if we keep on our sandals."

"Good idea," Greer said. "And we should all keep together so it looks
like I'll have to use clothes from one of your cases."

"That's fine. What about our passports and tickets?" Greer had been
thinking about that. "Leave them. We'll line our bras with the
twenty-dollar bills we brought with us. When we reach shore and tell the
police what happened, our abductors will be hauled in and we'll recover
our stuff.

"But just in case something happens and we don't get

our belongings or pendants back, I'll tuck mine inside my

bra so we'll have at least one heirloom left for posterity."

"Good thinking, Greer." Olivia walked over to the

80

baskets. "Better eat some more fruit and chocolate to give us energy,
guys. We're going to need it."

In twenty minutes they were fed, dressed and had worked out their strategy.

"Everybody ready with a life jacket?'' Greer whispered. They didn't plan
to use them, but would take them topside so it looked like they were
following the rules.

Her sisters nodded.

"Then let's go. Play it cool."

They couldn't have asked for a more calm, blue sea. Enough of a breeze
filled the sails for the boat to move without the help of the engines.
Conditions were perfect to escape.

Once they dived overboard, the crew would have to take down the sails
before starting up the engines to catch them. The girls planned to grab
that window of opportunity to swim beyond their reach.

All three of their captors were on deck. The first mate stood next to
the man named Luc who lounged against the cockpit's exterior where his
cane rested. No doubt they were both talking to the captain, relishing
thoughts of the night ahead.

Greer turned her head in the other direction to smirk. Relish away all
you want. It won't do you any good.

Following Olivia's lead, she and Piper purposely worked their way to the
bow. To her joy the boat appeared to be making for a headland. Another
fifteen minutes in the same direction and the girls would have no
problem swimming the rest of the distance.

Using their life jackets for pillows, they stretched out to enjoy the
sun. Though it was after seven o'clock, the rays still felt warm against
their skin.

No sooner had Greer closed her eyes than she sensed! the shark's
presence. A shark that could hunker down next!

81

to her. A shark that smelled of the soap's tang he'd used in the shower.

"What a tragedy you didn't stay in the dining room long enough to enjoy
the rack of lamb entree Luc prepared."

She sucked in her breath. "We can't eat fish, and I didn't realize he'd
prepared anything else. I'm sure it made a tasty meal for you," Greer
murmured without opening her eyes.

"His cooking is always a treat. You disappointed him by not eating it.
At the moment he's very fragile." What tripe was the first mate feeding
her now? "Why is that?"

"He was in a terrible accident and is lucky to still have both legs. In
spite of his pain, he prepared a culinary masterpiece for you. The least
you could do tonight before going to bed is ask one of your sisters to
thank him for his trouble."

You mean you want Piper or Olivia to join him in his bed and give him
comfort. Good grief! The man was transparent. Talk about a ship of fools!

"Are you saying he's one of those chefs who's known to get volatile when
he thinks he's been slighted?"

"That's the wrong choice of word, Greer. You and your sisters hurt him
with their comments just now. Do you want that on your conscience, too?"

"Too-" she blurted.

"&', bellissima. Your lips are to die for, but you stab me repeatedly in
the heart with your rapier tongue."

Greer didn't know whether to laugh or cry. One minute he frightened her
with his overpowering male charisma... the next minute he turned on an
irresistible charm that reduced her bones to jelly.

She couldn't keep up with him, and would probably have forgiven him
anything if she hadn't found out he was a thief."

82

"If that's all you came over here to tell me, then I'd prefer to
sunbathe alone."

"We're hardly alone, Greer, and with all those clothes on, there's
little of you exposed. Fortunately for me I have memories of last night
when I saw much more of the flawless skin you're wise to keep covered.
Those images will keep the fire burning hot until tomorrow."

An involuntary tremor rocked her body. "Tomorrow?"

"Um. The secret blue grotto I was telling you about is just outside San
Remo, the next stop on your itinerary."

"But you're not following our itinerary." She

peeped at him to see his reaction. For a split second she thought she
glimpsed the blaze of raw desire in his eyes before his lids lowered
like a shutter against a window.

"Until the Grand Prix is over, you will have difficulty avoiding the
wall-to-wall bodies as you try to wade ashore at Monterosso. In fact
with so many tourists, it will be impossible to see the Riviera di
Levante and do it justice.

"Since you seem to have a particular liking for Dumas, I thought tonight
you might like to visit the Villa dei Mulini, Napoleon's retreat while
he was in exile on the island of Elba."

Elba.

Just the word conjured up a bygone age of history and enchantment she'd
only read about in books.

Was he hoping the mention of Napoleon would cause her to divulge more
information about her royal Italian heritage so he could find out if
there were other pieces of jewelry for the taking?

"If you like, we'll snorkel at nearby Isola Pianosa in the morning. Its
sea bed lies in a preserved park no one] can enter without advance
permission. In my opinion it is] one of the most beautiful underwater
sights in the world.'

Which underwater sight was he really talking about?!

83

The one where he coaxed her into swimming au natural with him? And
afterward they would make wild, primitive love on some deserted beach
beneath a hot sun?

Yes, she could imagine it all, in full Technicolor. If he weren't a
scoundrel, she had a feeling he could talk her into doing just about
anything...

"After you've enjoyed brunch," he went on chatting her up, "we'll stop
at Monte Cristo Island and look for buried treasure. Who knows what
we'll find?" he drawled in that seductive way that could only mean one
thing to a predator like him. It sent a voluptuous shiver through her body.

"I know exactly what we'll find, signore. I did my homework before we
came to Italy. It's nothing but a pile of desolate rocks that I have no
desire to see. I prefer the humanity at Monterosso."

"Inebriated humanity," he came back quietly. "Tourists who have no idea
they're lying on a battlefield where an ancient Roman family fought
against the invaders from Pisa. But if that is your wish..."

"It is." On that note she turned on her side away from him.

Greer couldn't believe it when she felt his lips against the smooth stem
of her neck. She swallowed hard and stared anywhere except at him. He
didn't know the meaning of the word fair. The man had refined the art of
going for the jugular.

If she continued to resist him, she wouldn't put it past him or his
lusty band of thieves to haul them off the boat to the castle and lock
them inside while they made their getaway with the loot

Not only would it be a much needed balm to their dented male egos, it
would satisfy their idea of poetic justice for three upstart Americans
who'd given them such a hard time.

84

Except for one brief moment of insanity when Greer had known rapture in
his arms.

I have news for you, Max or whatever your real name is. You haven't seen
anything yet!

After a minute she lifted her head to meet her sisters' glances. By the
expression on their faces, they'd decided the town of Lerici, or
whatever, was close enough to reach. Max had started to make his way
back to his cousins; now was the time to carry out their plan.

Olivia gave the thumbs-up signal.

"All for one, one for all," Piper whispered.

In a great lunge they bounded over the railing into the warm, blue
water. Together they cleaved the gentle waves with swim-meet speed
toward the shore.

Max entered the cockpit with a grimace. Nic flashed him a questioning
glance. "What's wrong now?"

"Contact the harbor police and tell them to have a cruiser waiting at
the dock. Since nothing I've said or done has broken Greer down enough
to give me information, perhaps the threat of the law will put the fear
in her. I'm through playing games with the signorine. I want to know how
they got those pendants," he bit out moodily.

Nic had already started phoning when Max turned to Luc. "Keep a close
eye on our precious cargo while I go below to find Greer's pendant. Left
unattended, I wouldn't put it past our resourceful guests to grab the
kayaks and take off."

Luc frowned. "You think they'd go that far in order to get back to
Monterosso?"

"Further." Max chewed on the underside of his lip for a minute. "When
was the last time you saw a stone cold sober female wearing the Duchesse
pendant plunge headfirst into the pool of the Splendido with all her
clothes on?"

85

A gruntlike sound came out of Luc. "Point taken.'

After Signorina Greer's surprising display of passion in his arms a
little while ago, Max had assumed he had her exactly where he wanted
her. But it appeared he was mistaken. The enticing little vamp with the
amethyst eyes had been playacting the whole time.

Filled with a negative surge of adrenaline because her performance was
one he would never forget, Max left the cockpit first. His gaze flitted
automatically to the bow before he stopped dead in his tracks. All he
could see were three life jackets lying exactly where the women had left
them.

Luc saw what Max saw and moved fast for a man with a cane. "The kayaks
are still there. The women must have gone below for something. I'll check."

Perhaps Luc was right, but Max had already learned that the enigmatic
Duchess triplets played the game of life by a totally different set of
rules.

Following his gut instinct which was telling him something didn't feel
right, he retraced his steps to the cockpit where Nic was still on the
phone. He grabbed the binoculars, stepped back outside and lifted them
to his eyes.

Sure enough about a third of the distance from the boat to the shore he
saw three heads of gold bobbing up and down in the water. They swam like
a school of well trained dolphins. Surprise grabbed him by the throat to
witness such a stunning sight.

He moved inside the cockpit once more. "Our guests have jumped overboard
without their life jackets."

"Madre de Dios!"

"Your concern is wasted on them. They can swim like fish and will reach
the shore before long. Tell the police to draw alongside and pull them
out pronto!"

Another minute and Luc appeared with three passports and airline tickets
in hand "You were right, Max. I should

86

never have underestimated them. Take a look at this!" He opened Greer's
jewelry case. It was empty.

As pure revelation poured through Max, his mouth thinned to a white line
of anger.

"No one leaves a passport behind. Not unless they have an 'in' with
someone high up in diplomatic circles who can help them."

Nic's gaze locked with his. "That would have to be our jewel thief.
Someone operating in our family's inner circle as a friend who happens
to own a police commissioner or two?"

"Fausto Galli."

"Why not? He was the one who called you in London to tell you three
women had been detained at the airport wearing identical pendants."

"Such irresistible bait in more ways than one," Luc murmured.

Max sucked in his breath. There was little point in responding to Luc's
comment when it was a fact that needed no embellishment.

"That was their purpose, of course," Nic concluded. "The whole thing has
been a setup from the moment they made a reservation with Fabio."

"You're right. Their escape from the bow was no accident, either. Those
women are powerful swimmers, I have no doubt they left the boat to meet
a prearranged! contact at Monterosso in order to hand over the pendant!
Most likely someone handpicked by Galli."

Luc nodded. "It makes perfect sense. The jewel thief! plants the
original and two fake pendants on the women to confuse everyone. Then he
puts you on their trail so you will eventually catch them and put them
behind bars!

"Everyone will be happy and think the case is closed! You'll have your
pendant back, Signore Galli will find a

87

way to get the Americans' sentences reduced for good behavior, and in
the meantime-"

"And in the meantime the real culprit keeps the rest of the family's
collection and is free to go on stealing more jewels without fear of
suspicion," Max finished for him. "Your reasoning makes an incredible
amount of sense.

"Luc? Help me with the sails while Nic starts up the engines. On our way
to the dock, I'll make a call to Signore Galli and tell him that since
the theft took place in Colorno, the situation is no longer in his
jurisdiction."

"He's not going to like that," Nic warned.

"But there won't be a thing in hell he can do about it. Especially when
I inform him I've instructed the police commissioner in Emilia-Romagna
to make arrangements for the Americans and the pendant to be transferred
from the police boat to the jail in Colorno."

"Better tell the commissioner to split up the triplets so they can't
plan another escape. Their minds think alike which makes them
particularly dangerous."

"I'm way ahead of you, Luc."

Max's eyes glittered as he studied his two cousins. "Let the Duchesses
of Kingston get a taste of life in an Italian prison. It will give them
an education they've been needing. Then we'll deal with them in our own
time, on our turf and in our own way. Capisce?"

Several deep chuckles ensued.

"Sooner...or later," he drawled, "I'll come up with a plea bargain
they'll have to accept. We'll be able to flush out the thief
masquerading as our family friend, and that will be the end of it."

88

CHAPTER SIX

Greer looked through the bars of the cell at the overweight prison
guard. The commissioner in the main office had put him in charge of her.

"Is everyone around here crazy? The police were supposed to arrest those
wretched jewel thieves out on that catamaran. Instead they arrested my
sisters and me."

"That is not my problem, signorina."

Her hands formed fists. "In the United States every person arrested is
allowed to make a phone call to their attorney. If you won't let me use
a phone, then you phone him for me. I left Mr. Carlson's number with the
commissioner. I'll pay for it."

Her four, twenty-dollar bills were sopping wet along! with her clothes,
but they were still considered legal! tender.

"Everything in time, signorina. It's midnight and no business can be
conducted before morning."

"I want to see my sisters."

"That is not possible. Perhaps tomorrow."

"I'd like to know where we are."

"All in good time."

"I demand to know why you're keeping us here!"

"You women are always demanding something, as if this is a luxury hotel
instead of a jail. The Duchesse pendant missing since last year was
found around your neck." That should answer your question."

Last year? "You mean there's another one?"

"As if you didn't know, signorina."

89

'But I didn't! We didn't!" No wonder they were in trouble... "Listen-the
one I was wearing was mine!"

"How did it come to be in your possession? Can you answer me that? Did
it walk out of the museum at the Ducal palace on its own?"

"I'm trying to explain, and you're being very rude, signore.''

"You were very rude to steal it."

"How could I steal it when it was given to me by my parents?"

"And the Vatican City was given to me by mine."

"Go ahead and be as nasty as you want. I've told you the truth."

"So your parents stole it, is that what you're saying? The House of
Parma-Bourbon will be very interested to learn that piece of information."

"That's not what I'm saying. It was handed down in the Duchesse family
from generation to generation until it was given to my father by his
father!"

He threw back his balding head and laughed. "There is no Duchesse
family, signorina."

"If you'll look at my passport, you'll see my last name is Duchess,
spelled the American way."

"What passport? When the police pulled you out of the sea you did not
have one on you."

"We left them on the boat with our airline tickets because we expected
to have them returned when the police caught the real jewel thieves!"

"You Americans love a joke." He seemed to find everything she said
hilarious and started down the dimly lit hallway.

"Wait! Come back! Please!"

"Buona notte, signorina."

She heard a clank.

It was going to be a long night, and a damp one. The

90

police had supplied them a blanket which she still had wrapped around
her. There was another one plus a sheet on the cot against the wall of
the miniscule cell. No pillow. In the corner stood an old chamber pot.

Greer couldn't believe it. If all the people arrested had to spend a
night in a place like this, they'd probably think twice about ever
committing a crime again.

The stuffy cell wasn't cold or hot. Still, she felt so uncomfortable in
her damp things, she decided to take everything off and wrap the sheet
around her. Hopefully by morning her clothes would be dry.

Her poor leather sandals were ruined, but she wouldn't complain. Not
after the sign she once saw at the shoe repair which said, "I felt sorry
for the man who had no shoes, until I saw a man who had no feet."

She had to be losing her mind to think about that at a time like this.

There was no place to hang anything, so she spread everything out on the
cement floor including the damp blanket. After separating the money so
it would dry out too, she lay down on the cot.

The lumpy mattress had to be made out of straw, but she was so exhausted
it didn't matter. She stretched out on her side using her arm for a
pillow. Catching hold of the other blanket, she drew it over her head.
No telling what crawly creatures she'd be spending the night with.

Missing her sisters horribly, she knocked on the wall the way she
knocked on the front door at home to let them know she was there.

If one of them was lying on a cot on the other side of it, maybe they
would hear her and answer back. But after five minutes of bruising her
knuckles against the rough plaster, she gave up and closed her eyes.

Their plan to escape had gone without a flaw. It had seemed like destiny
when the police cruiser came along

91

side them and the authorities offered to help them aboard. But then fate
played a cruel joke. What happened next she didn't want to think about.

After handing them a blanket, the police took them to the dock, then
hauled them into a van without any windows and no explanation. They must
have been on the road several hours, only to be dumped here, her pendant
confiscated.

What a laugh Max must have had as he and his cohorts sailed away
scot-free, possessors of two pendants, one of which might be the
authentic piece.

Sorry, Daddy. You and Mother should never have left us money to ''try"
to find a husband. We're no good in that department.

The men who want to marry us, we don't want.

And the men we shouldn't want...

The memory of a certain male mouth closing over hers took her breath.
She pressed her sore knuckles against her lips, wishing she could drive
away the ache that had never left her body since he'd first kissed her.

"Signore di Varano! This is a great pleasure." "Commissioner? Allow me
to introduce my cousins,

Lucien de Falcon and Nicolas de Pastrana. We're here to

interrogate the prisoners."

"What a tragedy that sisters so beautiful have found themselves on the
wrong side of the law." Max didn't want to hear it. "Did you arrange
their cells the way I instructed?" "Yes. Of course." "How long have they
been here?" "Approximately two hours." "Good. Have they caused any
problems?" 'Problems? No. The one with the violet eyes was dismayed to
be shut up without knowing her crime. I must admit I was moved."

92

Despite his frustration over their incredible disappearing act, Max had
to struggle not to laugh. "Did you enlighten her?"

"Si!"

"How did she respond?"

"She protested her innocence. At that point they all protested their
innocence and demanded to phone their attorney long distance. The one
with the aqua eyes put a damp twenty dollar bill across my palm for a
bribe."

A sound bordering on a chuckle broke from Nic.

"The one with the flame-blue eyes informed me every prisoner in the
United States is given a square meal their first night in jail and she
was in need of one. It was very amusing as she clearly expected me to
comply with her wishes. She, too, handed me a damp twenty-dollar bill."

"Mademoiselle Olivier had her chance to eat earlier," Luc declared in a
cold tone, but Max noticed his cousin's lips twitching.

The commissioner glanced at the three of them. "All in all, the
signorine were well behaved. I have to admit I was surprised. They
didn't complain about not having a change of clothes or any makeup."

Women that beautiful didn't need makeup, but Max said something quite
different to the commissioner. "That's because these sisters happen to
be professional thieves."

"They must be to have carried off the jewelry collection without being
detected. Per your instructions I ordered the guards to take them to
different floors for the night where they've been put in isolation."

"Excellent. May I have the pendant please."

"Of course." The commissioner opened the drawer of his desk. The police
had put it in a bag they used for forensic evidence. He handed it to Max
who put it in the pocket of his jeans.

93

Now that he possessed all three, he would have them examined by Signore
Rossi who would know immediately which one was the genuine article.

"If you'll inform the guards we're ready to begin our questioning of the
prisoners." Three foreign beauties, alike in some ways, different in
others. Intelligent, unpredictable. And all of them...criminals.

The commissioner nodded and picked up his phone to summon them. No
longer smiling, Max told his cousins he'd meet up with them in an hour
before they returned to the villa. The balding guard beckoned him down a
hallway and through a door that had to be unlocked.

"She's in the middle cell of that corridor where there aren't any other
prisoners."

"Did she tell you anything you felt could be important?"

"Only that her parents gave her the pendant she was wearing, thereby
admitting that they must have stolen it. Of course she said it had been
passed down from generation to generation in the Duchesse family. I told
her there [was no such family."

'I see. Thank you for the information. I'll knock when I'm ready to leave."

"Bene."

In the shadowy light, the first thing Max noticed were sandals set out
to dry. Next to them lay her skirt, her [top, then her underwear. His
eyes traveled over each item [neatly placed in a row down to the
individual twenty-dollar {bills. Four of them to be exact.

He was intrigued by the way her mind worked. How orderly she was. There
was something essentially feminine about the arrangement. Very prim and
proper, yet oddly forlorn because it represented all her worldly
possessions.

When his gaze discovered her body cocooned in a

94

prison blanket and huddled against the cell wall on the narrow,
insubstantial cot, he experienced a strange tightness in his chest.

But the possibility that she'd heard voices when the guard opened the
outer door and she was only pretending to sleep, hardened his resolve to
get her.

"Signorina? Come! Wake up!" He rapped on the bars

She stirred and rolled toward him, still covered in the blanket. "Are
you going to let me make my phone call now?" By the sound of her voice,
she was still half-asleep

"To whom?"

"Walter Carlson.''

"Who is he?"

"My father's attorney."

"Why not phone your father?"

"I can't, he's dead."

Max blinked. His experience in the courtroom questioning hostile
witnesses led him to believe she was telling the truth

"Where does this attorney live?"

"In Kingston, New York. He'll vouch for my sisters and me."

"He'll have to do a lot more than that, signorina. You've passed
yourself off as a relative of the House Parma-Bourbon, and you're in
possession of the stolen Duchesse pendant. All of which constitutes a
major crime against the Duchy of Parma. I'm afraid you're facing a stiff
prison term."

Greer had heard that distinctive male voice before. Her eyelids
fluttered open. She sat up so fast, the blanket slipped to the floor.

In the semidarkness she could see the first mate's powerful physique
standing in the hall outside her cell. Moreover she could feel those
eyes of black flame scrutinizing her scorching whatever part of her skin
the sheet didn't cover.

95

With her heart tripping all over the place, she clutched the scratchy
material to her neck. "You have your nerve coming here when you're the
one who should be behind bars, signore."

"I'm afraid I wasn't the one caught wearing the pendant around my neck
when the police plucked you and your sisters from the sea."

"But you stole the other two pendants, so don't bother denying it!"

"I had no intention of doing so."

The man was amoral.

"How did you get in here? No-don't bother to answer that question.
You're all so corrupt there's no point."

"All?" His demand came out sounding like ripping silk.

"What part of that word don't you understand? ALL," she repeated. "Every
last one of you down to the captain, the chef, the owner of the boat,
the commissioner, the guard, the waiter at the Splendido. Need I go on?

"You're all members of that good old boy network. You scratch my back.
I'll scratch yours. It's sickening."

His fingers curled around the bars as if he'd like to get them around
her neck. "Since I saw pretty good evidence of the good old girl network
in operation today when you executed your escape from the Piccione,
that's a lot like the pot calling the kettle black, wouldn't you say?"

Her chin lifted a little higher. "I'd say your knowledge of American
sayings makes you out to be an even more worldly con artist thief than
I'd first supposed.

"But the last laugh's going to be on you when you try

to sell off those pendants and discover they're not worth

more than a couple of hundred American dollars a piece."

"And what about the one you were wearing when you

ram for it?" he reminded her. "Are you going to tell me it's only worth
two hundred American dollars, too?"

96

"What if I am?"

"No jury on earth will believe it. Not when you chose to leave your
passport behind, something not even silver and gold can buy if you
should happen to end up in the wrong country."

"This is the wrong country all right. Nevertheless, a passport can be
replaced, signore. A family heirloom can't..." Her voice trailed off.

"Ah-now we're getting somewhere."

"Getting somewhere? You're sounding more and more like a slick-tongued
lawyer with every word. Why don't you pick on a real criminal, like the
one the guard said stole a pendant from the museum?"

"Don't think we haven't tried," he admitted with breathtaking honesty.

"You know something? Though you'll probably continue to get away with
your perfidy in this life, you won't in the next!"

"Then I guess we'll burn together, signorina. If you recall we were
already halfway consumed by the flames in your stateroom today."

She swallowed hard. "Only a real playboy would remind me."

"There speaks a woman who instead of slapping my face enjoyed every
breathtaking moment of it. If your sisters hadn't chosen that moment to
interrupt us..."

"Yes?" Greer prodded. "Would you have made a honest woman of me and
asked me to marry you?"

After a pregnant silence, she heard a sharp intake of breath. "Is that
what this has been all about? Marriage?'

A smile of satisfaction broke out on her face. "For such a clever jewel
thief, I'm surprised it has taken you this long to figure it out."

97

Max was surprised, too. Stunned was more like it. He'd wanted a
confession, so why all of a sudden didn't it sit well with him?

He and his cousins had been forced to deal with fortune hunters all
their adult lives. So far they'd been able to spot them and take the
necessary steps to elude them. It was the unpleasant if not ugly part
that went with the territory of belonging to the House of Parma-Bourbon.

"So...the whole pendant business was a ruse to win an introduction that
could result in a marriage proposal?"

"Exactly. But I suppose it's poetic justice that the men we targeted
turned out to be several degrees more unscrupulous than ourselves."

Just when he thought he had things figured out, she said something that
shot his theories all to hell. "Then you admit the pendants are copies
of the original."

"Except for one of them."

"The one your family inherited."

"Yes."

Max cursed softly. This woman had the ability to twist him in knots.
"Which one of you was the mastermind behind that plot?" He might as well
hear the rest. In truth he'd never in his life been this frustrated and
entertained all at the same time.

"Our parents. But only indirectly," she amended.

"How indirectly?"

"We could only use the money from the Husband Fund our father willed to
us to go spouse hunting." Husband Fund? Spouse hunting? A bark of
laughter escaped his throat. "How much money?" "Oh, $15,000. $5,000 apiece."

"I thought the pendants were only worth $200."

"They are, except for the real one and I have no idea how much it's
worth. Since we're triplets, and there was

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only one pendant, our parents had two more made up just like it. They
gave them to us on our sixteenth birthday for us to pass on to our
future children.

"That was the whole point of the Husband Fund, of course. Mom and Dad
wanted to ensure there would be another generation of Duchesses. That's
something none of us is interested in yet."

Max's eyes closed tightly for a minute. Was this one of those cases
where her story had to be true because no one could manufacture such a
fantastic tale?

"Anyway, we used the fund for this trip and to charte the Piccione."

"Why did you pick the Piccione?" This ought to be good.

"Because Daddy always called us his pigeons. You know, in honor of our
ancestor the Duchess of Parma who had a pigeon named after her. It's on
our business logo.'

Just as he'd suspected, whoever had coached these triplets was
intimately associated with his family and its history.

''What, exactly, is on your logo?"

"The white Duchesse pigeon!"

More and more Max felt he was in the middle of some amazing dream. She
seemed to delight in weaving lies "And this business... what kind did
you say it was again?'

"I didn't. We own a company called Duchess Designs."

Max rubbed the bridge of his nose. "What is it you de sign?"

"Calendars. Actually Piper does the drawings and Olivia does the marketing."

"And what do you do?" This was getting better ant better.

"I do everything else."

"Like what for instance?"

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"Provide the research and keep the books."

"I see."

"I'm surprised you're asking all these questions. If you and your
cohorts weren't so obsessed with taking advantage of rich women, you
would have noticed our samples in the bottom of Piper's suitcase while
you were rummaging through our personal belongings."

He blinked.

"We passed out some to a few distributors in Genoa yesterday hoping to
expand our company to an international business."

So much information had been thrown his way, Max could scarcely digest
it, let alone decide what part if any of it was true. But he did seem to
recall Signore Galli telling him the signorine had come to Europe for a
little business, as well as pleasure.

The notes made by the police officers assigned to tail the women after
they'd left the airport would clear that up in a hurry.

"You still haven't answered my question about why you chose the Piccione."

"I've been leading up to that. When we got on the internet and were
looking at a list of catamarans to charter because they were cheaper
than a yacht, we saw that one of them was called the Piccione. It seemed
like fate, so we clicked on to it. As it turns out, it was the biggest
mistake we ever made!"

"Do not worry, signorina. If you cooperate, we might be able to arrive
at a bargain which will be mutually advantageous for all."

There was a prolonged silence. "I knew it!" Her voice came out sounding
more like a growl. "Admit that one of your cronies on the police force
tipped you off that three women wearing the Duchesse pendant would be
staying at the Splendido!

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"Admit you were up to no good following me and my sisters around!
Explain why the waiter obeyed you like a servant!

"Oh yes, and please explain if you can without lightning striking you,
how you could suddenly show up on the Piccione as the first mate if you
hadn't been orchestrating lucrative conspiracies like these for years!
Answer me that!"

Her challenge brought an effective end to a conversation that had held
him spellbound. There were a few dozen matters he needed to research
before he spoke to her again.

"All in good time, signorina."

"That's what the guard said. Typical male rhetoric. You don't fool me.
You came to the jail to find out if my sisters and I have more jewels
hidden away somewhere.

"Well you won't get that information out of me, not even if the
commissioner gave you a key to this cell. I'm warning you now, your
powers of seduction leave a lot to be desired.

"Any coward can manhandle a woman confined to a life jacket or behind
bars. I have to tell you I would have been a lot more impressed and
possibly more forthcoming if you'd tried your best technique while you
were escorting me back to my room at the Splendido.

"For a Riviera playboy, I have to tell you that on a scale of one to
ten, ten being the ultimate male, you came in a four. Unfortunately a
four still isn't passing. Even Don rated a five. Sorry."

"Don? As in Don Juan?" he scathed.

"No. Don as in Don Jardine, an American. I should have given him more
credit the first time.

"Arrivederci, Signore Mysterioso. Oh-before I forget. On your way out to
plot your next heist with your henchmen, turn off the hall light, will
you? I'd like to get some sleep."

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His body stiffened. "I guess you can try to rest, but for a woman who
has as much on her conscience as you do, I don't hold out great hope for
you. Ciao, bellissima."

His mood foul, Max went in search of his cousins. He found both of them
outside the door to the commissioner's office. When they saw him, they
stopped pacing.

"You look like the survivor of an explosion," Nic observed.

"I was going to say the same thing about both of you."

A nerve pulsed at the side of Luc's mouth where a tiny scar from the
crash was still healing. "You won't believe what I have to tell you. It
has to do with that old wives' tale concerning one of Marie-Louise's
granddaughters who supposedly had a liaison with a monk.

"Mademoiselle Olivia claims she and her sisters are the descendants of
their love child."

Max's jaw went slack. "That rumor was proven false years ago and few
people outside the immediate family ever even heard of it. Can there be
any doubt our jewel thief is someone operating from the inside? When we
wring a full confession from the signorine, we won't have to look far to
find the culprit."

"The story goes from one absurdity to another," Luc declared. "According
to our lovely jailbird, the granddaughter was purported to have suffered
a miscarriage. In reality she delivered a son whom the monk, her lover,
secretly christened with the last name Duchesse to protect his identity.

"He then arranged to have the baby taken to Corsica where it was raised
by a childless woman loyal to the Bonapartes. Inside the infant's
blankets he'd wrapped the pendant.

"Several generations later that pendant traveled to America where the
Duchesse name was changed to

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Duchess. It ended up in New York in the hands of the father of the
belles mesdemoiselles.

"Not wanting to slight his offspring, he had two more pendants made
identical to the original so they would each have one to hand down to
their posterity."

The sheer scope of the lie left all of them dumbfounded.

Max eventually glanced at Nic. "Did Signorina Piper tell you the same
fiction?"

"No-she fed me another lie," Nic said with asperity. "Something crazy
about these pigeon drawings she has done for their family calendar business.

"Get this-" he said in a burst of laughter. "They call the female
Violetta, after the Duchess. Since this fictitious monk who remained a
mystery for over a century had no first name, she and her sisters
decided to call him Luigio, a subtle distortion of the second half of
Maria-Luigia's name."

A flashback of a certain moment in the pool of the Splendido hit Max
squarely in the gut.

Greer-Your name is as unique as you are. Why don't you guess mine?

Luigio?

The whole time Max had been toying with her, she'd been playing him for
a complete fool!

"She says that one of her great-grandfathers, Alberto Duchess, served in
World War I in the Signal Corps. Are you ready for this?" Nic's eyes
appeared dazed as they traveled from Luc to Max. "He raised Duchesse
pigeons for a hobby.

"One of them carried a message that saved the lives of several hundred
men and received a medal of honor from Great Britain. Senorita Piper
says the medal is at home among their family mementos."

Max's dark head reared back. "Signorina Greer told me

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to look in her sister's suitcase and I would find samples of this calendar."

"Their luggage is in the car," Nic declared. "Do you think the samples
are really there?"

No one said anything or made a move to walk outside. Max suspected his
cousins were holding back for the same reason he was. But they couldn't
stand there forever smoldering with curiosity. It was four in the
morning and they were dead on their feet.

Letting out a curse he finally said, "Come on. Let's find out and get
this over with."

They made their way to the restricted parking area. Luc trailed because
at this point he was favoring his cane. They were the only people moving
about in the dark.

Max opened the trunk of the estate car they'd driven over from the
villa. The inside light made it possible to see enough without needing a
flashlight. Nic found the case with the initials PD on it and opened the
locks.

After feeling around her clothes, he produced a large square manila
envelope. As his cousin proceeded to empty the contents, Max found
himself holding his breath.

Out came six calendars.

Luc reached for one of them. "Men's Most Notable Quotes About Women," he
read aloud.

"For Women Only," Nic mouthed the title of another sample. Max grabbed
for a similar calendar and opened the cover to January's quote for the
month.

So Many Men... So Few Who Can Afford Me.

Sure enough, there was the female pigeon Violetta, dressed in a gown and
jewels. The male, Luigio, looking weary and dejected, tagged behind.

Max's eyes widened to realize they'd entered an exclusive designer shop
on one of the fashionable boulevards in Parma. Next to a pair of shoes,
a handbag and dress

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she'd drawn placards showing astronomical prices both in lire and dollars.

Astonished, he turned to February's quote.

Coffee, Chocolate... Men. Some Things Are Just Better Rich.

This time the two pigeons sat in an elegant pastry shop near the Teatro
Farnese in Parma drinking espresso and munching on their world famous
chocolate biscotti. While Luigio looked longingly at her, Violetta
played footsie beneath the table with a well-dressed Italian pigeon
wearing the ducale corona emblem. Incredible.

March's quote.

Don't Treat Me Any Differently Than You Would The Queen.

It was yet another drawing of poor, helpless, love- smitten Luigio
throwing down his cloak for the treacherous yet delectable Violetta who
was visiting Langhirano where you could see the very long, narrow
windows, shuttered and open-designated to ventilate the aging hams.

April's quote.

Behind Every Successful Woman Is A Woman.

His curiosity insatiable by now, Max studied each rendition with total
absorption. He came to November.

Ginger Rogers Did Everything Fred Astaire Did, But She Did It Backward
And In High Heels.

There was Luigio in a tux and top hat. Violetta wore a gown and high
heels while she danced backward on the staircase of the Palazzo della
Pilotta in Parma.

Like being mesmerized at the scene of a fire where you couldn't look
away, he turned to December.

A Man's Gotta Do What A Man's Gotta Do. A Woman's Got To Do What He Can't.

The irony of the quote twisted something unpleasant in his gut. Finally
he took in the sketch of the enormously

105

pregnant Violetta lying on a gurney in the Torrile Bird Hospital in
Parma while Luigio lay passed out on the floor.

Not that many of his own countrymen knew about the bird refuge his
family helped fund. Max was convinced Signorina Greer's research had to
be aided and abetted by someone on the inside.

He also had to admit the two pigeons exuded so much individual human
charm and personality, one could only marvel. This clever, stunning
creation based on bits of myth and reality would have universal appeal
for women, even for those ignorant of Parma or its history.

But the acerbic quotes he could imagine coming out of Greer's succulent
mouth, served with a contemporary sting, which he as a man felt like the
lash of a whip, had wiped the smile off his face.

"Look on the back." Luc's grating voice broke the unnatural stillness.
No doubt he and Nic were still smarting from the quotes, too.

Max turned his calendar over. At the bottom center was an oval with a
stylized Duchesse Pigeon and the words Duchesse Designs printed inside
the rim.

"The existence of the calendars doesn't mean they're innocent of the
crime," Luc proclaimed in a wooden voice. "A good liar always mixes in
enough truth to be convincing."

Nic exhaled sharply. "You're right."

By tacit agreement they put the calendars back in the suitcase. Max shut
the trunk before getting in the car to head for the villa. "As soon as
Signore Rossi arrives at his office later on this morning, we'll show
him the pendants. When we learn the truth about them, then we'll know
what to do with the signorine.'"

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CHAPTER SEVEN

Italy's top jewelry authenticate of their national treasures barely
glanced at the first two pendants front and back before declaring them
fakes. But the moment he picked up the third one, he got excited.

Max exchanged speculative glances with Nic and Luc before they followed
Signore Rossi to his worktable where he placed the pendant under a
special light. With his loupe he wore like a pair of glasses, he
performed a meticulous examination.

His finger tapped on it. "Yes," he said after several minutes, nodding
his gray head. "This piece has Tocelli's mark in the space between the
intertwining D and P on the back. Momento-" He reached for his workbook
containing photocopies and drawings of the Maria-Luigia collection.

Max's body grew more rigid as he watched Signore Rossi turn to the
section on the Duchesse pendant for final verification.

The news that the original had indeed surfaced again meant the theory he
and his cousins had come up with still held; Signorina Greer and her
sisters were part of a bigger conspiracy.

Which also meant that except for the calendars, everything else Max had
heard pour forth from her provocative lips in that jail cell was pure spin!

For some reason he couldn't fathom, he had to admit he was disappointed.
When he stole a glance at his cousins, their sobriety revealed a
startling bleakness that probably mirrored his own dark thoughts.

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The ticking of an antique clock added a dirgelike quality to the
unearthly quiet. Then Max heard a strange cry come out of Signore Rossi
who started to grow animated. He removed his glasses and rose to his
feet, staring at them as if he'd just seen a vision.

"How did you say you came by this pendant?"

"We recovered it from some Americans who were each wearing one when they
flew into Genoa-Sestri airport two days ago."

"Then this means the court artisan who was commissioned to fashion the
first pendant, secretly made a second one."

Max's thoughts reeled. He exchanged shocked glances with his cousins
before addressing Signore Rossi. "With all due respect, you must be
mistaken."

"No!" The old man shook his head emphatically. "This is the original
pendant. There can be no mistake. But it's not the same original that
was stolen with the collection from the museum. The Tocelli mark is
there, but more elongated. Come. See for yourselves."

In a matter of minutes Max and his cousins had witnessed irrefutable
proof that two authentic pendants did exist. As they eyed each other in
wonder, all sorts of new possibilities flooded his mind.

If the signorine had nothing to do with the theft, then it stood to
reason they'd been telling the truth about everything else. Furthermore,
with the possession of another original pendant, it could be used to
flush out the real thief.

"This is great cause for celebration," Signore Rossi exclaimed,
oblivious to their reaction.

"It's fantastic news, signore, but you must say nothing about it," Nic
cautioned in a grave tone before Max could. "Not until the person who
stole the collection is apprehended and the other pendant returned. Then
both can be displayed to the public."

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"We're certain someone with close ties to our family was behind the
theft," Max explained. "With this pendant, we might be able to lay a
trap for them, I'm sure they would want this one, too, but we'll need
your full cooperation."

Signore Rossi nodded. "Of course. Of course. What can I do to help?"

Luc's eyes had grown hooded. "No one outside this room must know what
we've discovered until we're ready to have it announced. That means you
can't say anything to anyone. Is that clear?''

"Si."

Max looked around. "Do you have something I can put the pendants in for
safe keeping?"

"Right here." He pulled several velvet pouches out of one of the drawers.

In an economy of movement Max put the original in one, the other two in
the second little bag. Once he'd closed the drawstrings and the pouches
were put safely away in his pockets, he took hold of the old man's hands
and shook them.

"One day soon we'll put the real jewel thief behind bars. When that
happens, you'll know the extent of our gratitude for your help and
cooperation."

After saying goodbye, no one spoke again until they'd gone out to the
car where Max eyed his cousins. "

Before either of you says a word, let me tell you about the Husband Fund."

"The what?" Luc's expression was comical.

"To quote Signorina Greer, it's a fund for husband hunting."

Nic shook his head. "Husband hunting?"

Judging by their reactions, the subject hadn't come up during their
interrogation of the prisoners.

"Of course it might be one of her colossal lies, but after

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looking at those calendars, I'm not so sure." His brows lifted. "Do you
two want to have a little fun before we get back to more serious family
business?"

While Greer was playing a game in her head to keep herself from going
crazy, a different guard came down the hall.

"Buon giorno, signorina. Did you enjoy your lunch?"

"It was the best toothbreaking roll I ever tried to bite into. I can't
wait to see what you're serving for dinner."

"That won't be for a long time." He opened her cell. "The commissioner
will see you now."

"How lovely of him."

She followed the guard through the door at the end of the hall and
around the corner to the commissioner's office. He stood up as soon as
he saw her.

"Sit down, signorina. Make yourself comfortable."

"I've been sitting on my cot for over-" She glanced at the clock.
"Sixteen hours now, and would rather stand, thank you."

"As you wish." He made that typical Italian gesture with his hands,
palms up. It reminded her of someone else she knew. Someone she never
wanted to see or think about again.

"I demand to be able to make one phone call to my attorney."

"That won't be necessary. It turns out the pendant your sister was
wearing was a copy of the missing Duchesse pendant. I'm sorry you were
incarcerated by mistake.

"The first mate of the Piccione has been very worried about you and has
stayed in constant contact. As soon as I told him you'd been cleared of
all charges, your sisters were released into the hands of the crew."

Noooooooooo. For all she knew Olivia and Piper had been kidnapped. She
was still entirely convinced the crew

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were jewelry thieves who didn't believe the girls had no money. They
needed help fast.

"He is waiting outside, ready to drive you to the dock at Lerici so you
can continue on with your holiday."

Her body froze. No way.

"I would like to use your phone please. I have money."

"As long as it's a local call, be my guest."

So that was how he was going to play it. "May I see your phone directory
then."

"If you need a taxi, allow me to take you wherever it is you wish to go,
Signorina Greer.'' The deep, familiar male voice speaking in heavily
accented English came from behind her.

Her back stiffened in response. "No, thanks." She was still facing the
commissioner. "The phone directory please, signore."

"But I insist," her enemy taunted her.

After no sleep, a crust of week old bread, a thimble of water and no
shower or change of clothes, Greer had run out of patience.

She wheeled around, noticing inconsequently that the black-haired god
was fresh shaven and wore a cream shirt with tan pants. The fact that
his clothes accentuated his well-defined chest and rock-hard legs only
increased her rage.

"I'd rather stay in here, thank you." So saying she marched out of the
office and down around the corner of the jail where she spied the guard
sitting at his post.

"Will you please open the door so I can go back to my cell?"

He flashed her a patronizing smile. "You've been released, signorina."

"I'll pay you to lock me in again." She reached down the neck of her top
and pulled out two twenty dollars bills to hand him.

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"You Americans-" He threw his head back and laughed.

So far every Italian man she'd met was in cahoots against her. This
grinning idiot was as awful as the balding guard from last night.

"If you'll appeal to me nicely," came Max's low, velvety voice over her
shoulder, "I'll give you something to prove you can trust me."

How did he do that? How did he make her traitorous body respond like a
kitten to cream when she knew one lick would be fatal?

Greer nodded her head in disgust before facing him once more. "Nothing
but the return of our pendants, our passports and airline tickets would
convince me there's the slightest shred of decency in you. Even then-"

"Yes?" he whispered huskily before pulling things out of the pockets of
his pants like passports and airline tickets. Last of all came- a little
velvet pouch. He handed everything to her. When she looked inside, she
counted three pendants.

How clever he was! Give her back their possessions knowing she would
never abandon her sisters, knowing they were still helpless. And only he
knew where they'd been taken by his two cohorts.

"You were saying, signorina?"

"I was saying that even then, it would be an empty gesture because it
would mean you'd had the pendants appraised and found out you probably
couldn't get more than fifty euros a piece for them."

"Seventy-five on the black market."

The temperature in her cheeks had shot up well over a hundred degrees.
"I rest my case."

He cocked his dark head. "I hope that was an olive branch of sorts.
Let's agree to agree we all got off to a bad start. You came spouse
hunting and were sadly

112

disappointed. My co-workers and I went treasure hunting and came up
empty-handed.

"But since Signore Moretti has already paid us our wages from the
Husband Fund your parents left you, why don't we start over again. I see
no reason why we can't all get along for the next nine days before you
have to fly home to Ron, was it?"

It gave her some satisfaction to know she'd dented his ego. Otherwise he
wouldn't have deliberately pretended he hadn't heard her say "Don."

"You mean there'll be no hidden agenda," she drawled with heavy sarcasm.
"We'll just do whatever comes naturally."

He put a hand over his heart. "You still don't trust me. I'm wounded,
signorina. At the risk of offending you, if you recall when I asked you
to swim with me at the Splendido, you didn't exactly turn me down."

"That's true," she admitted honestly. "However if I had, you wouldn't
have taken no for an answer. I saw where your eyes were looking. They
erupted like black fires when they recognized the pendant."

"If you'd seen the purple flames in yours while you were watching me
walk across the tiles toward you..." His voice throbbed. "I felt like I
was being consumed alive. There's nothing more flattering to a man."

"Too bad I had to open the cover of the book and find out you rated a
four. I'd thought an eight at least."

"And I'd thought the pendant worth a million. What do you say we bury
our disappointments and just be friends for the duration of your trip."

It was a trick.

No women could just be friends with men like the crew of the Piccione.
But it looked like she would have to go along with him a little longer
if she hoped to be reunited

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with her sisters. Once they were together, they would work out a way to
lose the crew and disappear.

"Why not?" She threw out her bluff. "As I've learned in business, you
win a few, lose a few."

She started walking back toward the main entrance of the jail. In a long
stride he'd caught up to her.

"I don't imagine too many men clamor for your calendars."

Good. He'd rifled through her sister's suitcase. She smiled in spite of
her issues with him. "You'd be surprised how many of them buy one to get
their revenge on the women who rejected them. Kind of a 'look at
yourself in the mirror' dark humor."

He reciprocated with a toe-curling smile of his own. "Has Don sent you
one lately?"

Don again. "He doesn't need to. It's his company that prints our products."

"The poor devil gets it on all sides. I'd rate him an eight for hanging
in there despite the odds."

"Don't feel too sorry for him. He manages to get his perks," she said as
she stepped outside into the hot afternoon sun. It was glorious,
liberating, after her windowless prison. "Where's your car?"

He put on his sunglasses. "In the alley around the side of the jail."

There were dozens of funny looking little Italian cars lined up like
sardines along both sides of centuries old buildings. He walked over to
a well-used blue Fiat with a bike rack. She noticed most of the cars had
bike racks. To her surprise he opened the trunk first and pulled out her
purse.

"Thank you," she murmured before putting the passports and other things
inside. To her relief her wallet, comb and lipstick were still there.

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"You're welcome. One thing I've learned about a woman. She doesn't feel
dressed without one."

There probably wasn't a man alive who knew more about things like that
than he did, but she wisely refrained from commenting.

He helped her into the front seat, then went around to the driver's
side. While she combed her seaweed washed hair and put on lipstick to
moisten her lips, he somehow, but she didn't know how, managed to get
them out of there in one deft maneuver without hitting anything.

They'd only gone two blocks when she saw a gleaming white palace
standing out from among the other architectural wonders. Her heart
started to pound with excitement.

She may not have been to Italy before, but she'd done enough research to
recognize it at once. Piper had drawn two of the calendar pages using
the palace and gardens for a backdrop.

"After last night's ordeal, most women would not be smiling. What is
going on in your mind, signorina?"

"The Colorno ducal palace. It was my ancestor's favorite summer
residence. To think I spent the night locked up in a jail within walking
distance of it. That'll be a story I'll tell to my children someday."

"You plan to have children, signorina?"

"Of course. Don't you? Someday I mean?"

"Not my own. No."

Not his own? Ask a silly question-

"The last thing I would wish to do is destroy a belief you've had since
childhood, signorina. But when your sister told Luc you were related to
the Duchesse of Parma through a granddaughter who had a liaison with a
monk, I thought it best you know the truth."

She turned a frowning face toward him. "What truth?"

"There was a rumor many years ago about a granddaughter of Maria-Luigia
who fell in love with a monk

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and bore his child. As it turns out, it was a political lie, spun to
discredit her so the arranged marriage to her betrothed in France would
not take place."

"How would you know something like that?"

"Luc is the one who can give you more details. He learns many secrets
while he prepares meals for his royal employers. I'm sorry."

She stared at her hands in her lap. "It doesn't matter. None of us quite
believed it, and Daddy wasn't entirely sure about it. Still, it made for
an exciting story."

"And now you have another reason to dislike me."

"I don't like or dislike you. You mean nothing to me, signore."

"Can I make this up to you by taking you on a tour through the palace
before we return to the Piccione! It's quite magnificent."

"I'm sure it is, but no thank you. I prefer to keep my fairy-tale dreams
in tact."

"So you intend to continue the legacy and hand down your pendant to a
daughter someday?"

"Yes. Why not. Only maybe I'll start a new rumor of my own."

He turned to her. "What rumor would that be?"

"Maybe the artisan who fashioned the pendant was secretly in love with
Marie-Louise. Maybe he fathered a son and gave him the last name
Duchesse in honor of the woman he could never have."

"That's a very romantic story, signorina. Of the two, I don't know which
I like better."

His mocking voice was the last straw. She'd been right all along. A
shark felt no emotion.

"Here. This will help to sustain you until we arrive at the dock." He
reached in the back behind Greer's seat and produced a bottle of soda.

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Warm orange soda. Ugh. But she'd be a fool to refuse it.

"Thank you."

"I know you Americans prefer ice. I'm sorry. Try one of these with it."

Like magic he'd produced a package of cookies. Chocolate biscotti, just
like the kind Piper had drawn in that one calendar picture.

After a swig of pop, she took a bite. "Um. They're good. Better than
potato chips. I can't stop with just one."

"Potato chips are one of the two things I like best about your country."

"You've been there?"

"Several times."

Funny to think of him in her part of the world and she never knew it.
The trail of broken hearts had to be legion. "What's the other?"

"The long legs on American women. I once saw a movie with Betty Grable.
Yours remind me of hers."

Her drink sprayed all over her cotton top.

"Are you all right, signorina?"

"Yes, of course. I just swallowed the wrong way."

"Soon we will reach the Piccione. There's a washer and dryer on board."

"All the comforts of home."

"That is true. It's my favorite home away from home."

"Where is your home?"

"Colorno. My family lives in nearby Parma."

No wonder he'd been able to bribe the commissioner! "Will we be passing
through there?"

"Only the outskirts I'm afraid. I must congratulate you on the research
you've done on Parma for your calendar business. I recognized every
backdrop immediately."

"Piper's a genius."

"I agree, but the drawings would not have come to life

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without all the details you unearthed. Genius appears to run in the
Duchess family."

"Thank you," she whispered. His compliment warmed her clear through. It
shouldn't have, not when he was a thief of jewels... and hearts.

"So does beauty," he filled in the silence. "I've seen you in every
condition, yet soaking wet, starving, in prison and exhausted, you are
even more appealing, if that is possible."

What was he after now? All this flattery was so unnecessary now, but she
had to admit the things he was saying made it difficult for her to
breathe normally.

When he reached down to take a cookie for himself, his hand brushed
against her thigh. Greer didn't know if it was intentional or not, but
her body reacted as if she'd come in contact with a live wire.

"Luc is preparing a welcome home feast for you and your sisters. I must
admit I'm looking forward to it, too. In all the excitement with the
police and the hours of waiting for you to be released, none of us took
the time to eat."

Of course not. They were too busy trying to find a buyer for the pendants.

She wouldn't believe any of his malarky until she saw her sister's dear
faces back on board the catamaran. Only when she'd discovered for
herself they'd survived their hideous night in that ghastly jail, would
she be able to take a normal breath.

As one kilometer after another unraveled around hills and bends, a
delightful smorgasbord of tiny hamlets, ancient villages and farms
filled her vision. If she weren't so worried about her sisters, she
could enjoy the fabulous landscape.

"Since dinner is quite a few hours away yet, I thought we'd stop here
and satisfy our hunger."

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After coming round a bend in the road, she was surprised to see what
looked like an open-air festival of some kind being held in a field.
There were all kinds of colorful booths and hundreds of people milling
around, talking and eating.

"What's going on?"

"We're at the Fiera de Parma."

"Fiera?"

''Si-fairground." He parked the car before trapping her gaze. "You're
not only lucky enough to be in the capital of Italy's famous 'food
valley' where Prosciutto di Parma ham and Parmigian-Reggiano cheese are
celebrated- you've been freed from jail in time to enjoy the
International Food Exhibition which is only held every two years. Come
with me."

When she remarked on the pungent aroma in the air he told her it was
white truffles, a local delicacy. Greer had reached the point of
starvation some time ago and didn't need to be urged to join him as they
moved about among the crowd sampling the delicious displays.

He fed her everything from emerald green olive oil on chunks of chewy
Italian bread sprinkled with cheese, to pale, paper-thin slices of
tender parma ham that melted in your mouth.

Every so often he popped a fragrant, fleshy black or green olive in her
mouth. As if that weren't enough, he stuffed her with ice cream and more
biscotti, giving her the true taste of exquisite Italian cuisine.

Yet more than the food was the excitement of feeling his arm around her
waist, his fingers brushing against her mouth, the play of his dark eyes
traveling over her face while he waited for her approval of something
she'd eaten.

This enigmatic stranger who seduced her with a soft caress, a quick
smile, a deep laugh, had created a dangerous

119

state of enchantment for Greer. She rebelled at the injustice of having
to return to the car...to painful reality.

Silence reigned as they made their descent to the coast where the
shimmering water reflected a cloudless sky. The distinctive multihull of
the Piccione stood out from the few fishing and rowboats still docked in
Lerici's small harbor.

He drove the car into a public area where other cars were parked and got
out. Greer grabbed her purse and ran ahead of the man she still didn't
trust and never would.

"Piper? Olivia?" Until they answered, she wouldn't put one foot on board.

All she got for her shouting was the captain. He stepped out of the
cockpit wearing sunglasses and a broad smile that ought to be fined for
being too captivating.

"Buenos tardes, senorita. Welcome back. Luc and I brought your sisters
home from the jail a few hours ago." Hours? "Senorita Olivia had a
headache. They both announced they were going straight to bed and didn't
want to be disturbed."

Olivia didn't get headaches.

"Prove it!"

"Momento," the man behind her whispered. "I'll ask them to come up on
deck so you'll know they're safe."

"Greer!"

Two blond heads suddenly appeared at the top of the stairs.

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CHAPTER EIGHT

Thank heaven!

Greer leaped on board and hurried toward them. They scuttled below to
the stateroom they'd used before. Piper locked the door, then they all
hugged.

Olivia took one look at her and said, "You've got stains all over you.
What happened in your jail cell?"

"Never mind that. We'll talk later." She held up her purse. "The
pendants are in here. Max gave them back along with our passports and
tickets. He also fed me royally."

"Luc served us a fabulous lunch after they brought us back to the boat."

"They've been exceptionally nice."

"Yeah...well we all know why don't we. They found out our jewels weren't
worth enough to bother with, so now they're ready to enjoy us for the
rest of the trip."

"I'm sure you're right," Piper muttered.

Olivia nodded. "They figure if they feed us and take care of us, we'll
be ripe for the picking after the sun goes down."

Greer stared at both of them. "I say we leave for Genoa right now."

"Amen. Everybody grab a suitcase. Let's get out of here before they cast
off!"

Greer was first out the door. She almost bumped into Max who grasped her
upper arms in a firm grip.

"Where's the fire?" His black eyes scrutinized her. "I thought you would
want to shower and rest after your ordeal in Colorno."

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Her proud Duchesse nose lifted in the air. It brought their eyes and
lips too close for comfort. "I don't need to rest."

He studied her mouth as if he were considering devouring it. What made
it so much worse was that she wanted him to.

"I was just coming to ask your sisters if they're ready for their
dessert yet. Luc told me to tell them he has made a special framboise
tart that will satisfy their sweet tooth."

"What sweet tooth?"

"The one you all share," he said in a husky tone. "There is chocolate on
your mouth from your last biscotti as we speak, bellissima." He brushed
at it with his finger before tasting it. The intimate gesture was a
reminder of everything they'd shared at the fair.

Crimson flags spotted her cheeks. "We've indulged ourselves long enough,
don't you think?" she said before realizing how that must have sounded
to him. "Now we're leaving."

Lines marred his handsome features. "To do what?"

"That's our business. Please move out of our way."

"Not until you tell me where you think you are going."

"Oh, I know where we're going."

A condescending smile broke out on his enticing male mouth. Prepared for
a knock down drag out, Greer was taken off guard when he unexpectedly
took a step back so she could proceed.

The girls followed her down the hall and up the stairs to the top deck,
all of them carrying their suitcases.

At a glance she could see Luc untying the ropes. Vibrations ran through
her feet and legs, alerting her that the captain had started the engine.
Without hesitation she raced up the steps with her luggage and stepped
onto the dock. Piper and Olivia joined her with their cases.

The first mate walked toward them with his hands on

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his hips. His male beauty combined with his sheer audacity burrowed
deeply beneath her skin.

Unable to hold back her anger any longer she cried, "So...you were just
going to sail off with us after what you've done? No questions asked?"

His dark gaze pierced through to her insides, making her feel quivery
and out of control. She hated that feeling.

"We were going to follow your itinerary to the letter. Our first stop
for tonight is Monterosso."

"We were supposed to go there last night, but things turned out
differently, so we've changed our minds about continuing with this trip."

"I can see that. May I say one thing. Wherever you wish to go, there
won't be another train through Lerici for at least two hours. Even then
you probably won't be able to get on. It's possible you could end up
having to wait till four in the morning."

"Max is right," Luc spoke up. He and the captain had come to stand on
the dock next to their partner in crime. "That would be very dangerous
for three beautiful, unattached women. With the Grand Prix on tomorrow,
transportation is so bad it will be impossible to find a taxi."

"Every hotel room along the coast has been booked for months,
senoritas," Nic chimed in. "Tell us your destination and we'll take you
there in comfort on the Piccione without the waiting and the hassle."

The stranger's gaze was riveted on Greer. "I would like to try to make
up for the disappointment I gave you during our talk in the car."

"Which disappointment was that?" she fired. "There have been so many."

"When I told you that you have no Italian blood in you. I realize it
destroyed a dream for you."

"Max is right," the captain spoke up. "Your Duchesse name came from the
French 'Duchesne."

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"Really?" Greer broke in heatedly. "So our captain- cum resident
etymologist is now a professional genealogist, too?"

His white smile was an affront. "Si, senorita. They dropped the 'n' and
the final 'e' when they arrived in America."

Luc nodded. "I'm afraid the story about an Italian monk who made love to
the granddaughter of Maria-Luigia and gave her a son is pure
fabrication. We know the news hurts, mesdemoiselles."

The first mate's eyes never left Greer's. "Do not shoot the messenger,
instead tell me how I can take away a little of the sting, bellissima."

Oh, brother.

"Admittedly all six of us are liars," she began without preamble, "but
if you're being sincere this time, then give us the keys to your car so
we can leave for the airport."

"You're planning to return to the States without enjoying the rest of
your trip?" he inserted in a silky voice.

"That's not anyone's concern but ours," she declared. "We'll leave the
car in the short-term parking at the Genoa airport. You can pick up your
keys at the airline ticket counter."

"Why would you fly away now when we've only just started to get to know
each other?"

"I know all I want to know!" By now Greer's eyes were spitting purple
sparks at him. "With your good old boy network flourishing in this neck
of Italy, signore, I've no doubt you'll be able to manage perfectly well
without your car for three or four hours."

He tossed off one of those careless masculine shrugs that drew her gaze
to his remarkable physique. "Be my guest, Greer. We'll help you to the car."

Before she could countenance it, the three men took

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hold of their luggage and started walking toward the parking area beyond
the dock.

Her sisters flashed her a private message that said they didn't trust
the crew as far as they could throw them. Greer flashed them the same
message. This was way too easy. There was definitely something wrong
here. She could feel it in her bones.

"They could have pulled the distributor cap while we were in our
stateroom," Olivia whispered.

Piper nodded. "I guess we'll find out soon enough if it doesn't start."

"It's probably running on fumes by now," Greer theorized. "I wouldn't
put it past him to have tampered with the gauge so we'd never be able to
tell until it was too late."

"Or-" Olivia rolled her eyes "-the tires will all go flat the minute we
try to reach the highway."

"Then we'll drive on the rims as far as we can," Piper stated firmly.
"Olivia, you're the designated driver. I'll help navigate."

"I'll sit in the back and be quiet," Greer volunteered.

By the time they reached the Fiat, the men had put their bags in the
trunk. Refusing their offers for help, the girls got into the car. Max
handed Olivia the key. "Buon Viaggio, signorine."

"Goodbye!" the girls called out in unison.

Low and behold the engine actually started up.

As Olivia drove the car out of the parking area past-the three smiling
men, Greer's gaze was trapped by a pair of burning black eyes.

"Ciao, bella." He mouthed the words.

That place at her throat started throbbing again.

"Okay guys," she said once they'd reached the highway. "So far so good,
but something tells me we'll have problems when we reach Genoa airport."

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Piper's head swung around. "You're right. It's another setup to get us
in their beds. The crew will alert their buddies to be waiting for us.
They'll say we've stolen the pendant and the whole rigmarole will start
all over again. I wouldn't be surprised if they've got a friend tailing
us right now."

"Neither would I," Greer muttered. "One way or the other, they're
planning on a little fun in the sun with us. Did you see those Cheshire
cat grins they gave us as we were driving away?"

"Deep down they're furious the pendants turned out to be worthless."

"They're not going to leave us alone."

"It's time to call in the troops, guys."

"Tom told me they can get a flight on a military transport whenever they
want," Piper informed them. "He was hinting like mad at the time."

"There's just one problem with that," Greer cautioned. "If we send for
the guys, it'll be like telling them we're really interested in them."

"Maybe we should take our parents' advice and try to fall in love for a
change," Olivia muttered wistfully.

After a minute Piper said, "We could look at this as a final test. If
the boys can get here by tomorrow, we'll spend the rest of our vacation
on the Piccione with them. By the end we'll-"

"Be dead of boredom," Greer finished for her.

"That's true," Olivia agreed, "but the crew doesn't have to know that."

Greer started to smile and sat up straighter in the seat. "You're right.
Max isn't sure if there's a Don in my life or not. It would really frost
him if one of the men answering to that name showed up tomorrow tossing
a Frisbee around on the deck."

Piper grinned. "Especially in their military haircuts and

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fatigues. They have the kind of obnoxious attitude that'll drive our
crew right up a wall.",

"I love it," Olivia exclaimed, "but I guess you guys realize that if
they can come, we'll have to pay Signore Moretti more money."

"If we don't make a decision one way or the other, then we're stuck
alone for nine more days with three playboys who intend to play no
matter what!" Greer cried.

"Guys? Let's get serious here. I say we just get back home and back to
normal. We could ring Walter Carlson and use him to run interference for
us at the airport."

"Good idea," Olivia murmured. "I see a trattoria up ahead. We can pull
in there and make a credit card call."

When they reached the parking area Greer said, "You guys stay put
because we don't dare leave the car unattended. I'll talk to Mr.
Carlson. It's seven-thirty in the morning in Kingston. I doubt he'll
have left his house yet."

"Let's hope your right."

To Greer's relief it wasn't long before the wife of the owner of the
busy restaurant signaled her to come behind the counter to use the phone.

Greer's fortune seemed to be holding when Mrs. Carlson said her husband
was still home.

"Greer?"

"Hi, Mr. Carlson. Sorry to bother you, but this is very important."

"I heard you girls were detained at the jail in Colorno by mistake," he
said right off. "I'm so sorry, my dear."

She blinked. "How did you know?"

"When you gave the police commissioner my name, he got in touch with the
attorney for the House of Parma- Bourbon who rang me to verify who you were.

"We had a long talk about your background and the pendants your parents
gave you. After he explained about

127

the confusion over the stolen pendant from the ducal museum, he assured
me he would arrange for your immediate release."

Greer gripped the receiver tighter. "I wish the commissioner had told me
he was in contact with you."

"Though I'm sure it didn't seem that way to you at the time, the
Italians have a very efficient system."

The good old boy network you mean. Greer almost laughed in his ear.

"Are you girls all right now?"

"Actually we're not." Without wasting any more time, she told him about
their problems with the crew of the Piccione. "We're pretty sure they're
in league with one of the policemen at the airport. I'm afraid we might
be prevented from boarding the plane for our flight home."

"Don't worry, Greer. All you have to do is tell the head of security you
wish to call me if there's a problem. Just mentioning my name will
produce results."

Yeah. Sure.

"Thanks, Mr. Carlson."

"You're welcome, my dear. As I told you in my office, women weren't
meant to be on their own. The attorney for the House of Parma-Bourbon
agreed with me."

Greer was counting to twenty.

"Perhaps now after this unfortunate experience, you will believe me. As
I said, if you have any more trouble at all, give me a ring."

She was about to tell him the police wouldn't allow her to call anyone,
but it would be a wasted effort on her part. At this point she was so
furious, she couldn't think, let alone talk. "I will. Goodbye."

After hanging up the receiver, she marched straight out of the
restaurant to the car.

"How did it go with Mr. Carlson?"

She shot Olivia a speaking glance. "Remember my

128

quote, Don't upset me. I'm running out of places to hide the bodies?"

"Uh-oh."

"What did he say?"

"I'm afraid we're on our own, guys."

"You mean he was no help at all?" Olivia cried.

"He said all we had to do was tell the head of security to call him if
there was any trouble."

"Sure." Piper let out a defeated sigh.

Greer sat back in the seat. "Like I said, we're on our own. But I'll
give you the long version of our conversation on the way to the airport."

"Your presence does us great honor, Signore di Varano."

"Grazie, Signore Galli."

"What can I do for you?"

Except for an obsequiousness that was irritating, there was no sign the
other man seemed nervous or caught off guard by Max's unexpected
appearance at the custom's area of the airport.

"The three American signorine you detained two days ago have just
arrived at the short-term parking area of the airport in a blue Fiat."

Signore Galli's brows lifted in surprise. "I thought they were in the
custody of the commissioner at Colorno."

"I'm afraid he was prevailed upon to let them go."

The other man's eyes narrowed. "It would not have happened if I had been
in charge."

"I'm sure of that," Max said in an ironical tone. "Therefore I'm
enlisting your help."

"Whatever I can do."

"I have reason to believe one of the Americans is attempting to take the
original pendant out of the country."

His eyes screwed up. "You mean it is a different one from the three they
were wearing when they arrived?"

129

"Confidentially, I believe they are acting as messengers for the person
who stole the whole Maria-Luigia collection."

"You mean-" Max could hear the officer's mind working. "They wore the
fake pendants here, then got hold of the real one to wear back?"

"Si."

"That is very clever."

"So are you, Signore Galli. You have a nose for your profession."

The other man's face warmed with pleasure.

"However I must have proof," Max added.

"Of course, signore. As soon as they reach the outer doors, my men will
pick them up and escort them here. My office across the hall is at your
disposal."

If Signore Galli was acting, he gave a convincing performance of total
innocence.

"Grazie. Send the one with the lavender eyes to me first."

Without wasting another moment, Max entered the empty office. Once he'd
closed the door, he pulled out his cell phone and rang Nic.

"Where are they now?" he asked when his cousin acknowledged.

"Lugging their suitcases through the upper level to the doors. I never
saw three females so determined."

The Duchess sisters were headstrong all right. A breed of women all
their own. "You'll be happy to know Galli's men are ready and waiting."

"What's your gut impression of him by now?"

Max pursed his lips. "I could be wrong, but I don't think he's involved.
There was a kind of earnestness in his desire to help that didn't seem
feigned, but you can never be sure."

130

"That is true. I'll swing the car around in front of the terminal and
wait for you."

"Good. Expect us in about twenty minutes. Ciao." While he waited, he
lounged against the desk and phoned Luc who was standing by on the
Piccione. "How's the leg?"

"I picked up another prescription of pain killers. The pills should be
working any minute now. How are the belles mesdemoiselles?"

"According to Nic, obstinees comme d'habitude."

As both men were chuckling, he heard footsteps outside the door. "Sorry
to cut this short, but our lovely jailbirds have just flown in. A tout a
l'heure, cousin."

"Oui."

He hung up and waited with growing excitement to see the shocked look on
Signorina Greer's face when she discovered him inside the room. But
instead of the door opening, he heard a familiar female voice say,
"Knock, knock, Signore Max. Come out, come out, wherever you are."

He opened it and glimpsed a pair of eyes that glittered like amethysts
in the sunlight. But the mocking smile on that luscious mouth of hers
was all he needed to see black.

"Sorry to spoil your surprise. I'm afraid the man of mystery revealed
his true colors a long time ago." "Basta, signorina." Signore Galli
warned in a forbidding voice. "Enough! You do not know to whom you are
speaking."

The man came to Max's defense so quickly, he was convinced Fausto Galli
was simply a dedicated agent doing his job.

"Of course I do! I may not have been told his real name, signore, but I
know him very, very well. He is the shark who has been biting at my
heels since I made the unfortunate mistake of swimming in these waters.

"He's the one who took me for a little roll beneath the

131

waves to soften me up. There's nothing he enjoys more than playing with
his victim for a while first. A little nip here, a little tuck there."

A surge of adrenaline exploded inside Max's body. "Touche, Signorina
Greer- Acid-tongued and predictable as ever." He looked at Signore
Galli. "Grazie. I'll handle this from here."

"Handle what?" she lashed out. "You've got us where you want us. No more
games. Do your worst so we can go home."

Pleased to see she'd lost some of her cool, he smiled. "I'm glad you
recognize there's no escape. Signore Galli? If you will please instruct
some of your men to accompany the other signorine to the front of the
terminal with their bags, I'll escort Signorina Greer myself."

"Of course."

Without waiting for a response from her, he picked up her suitcase, then
cupped her elbow to guide her down the hall. She shook off his hand as
if it had scalded her and walked ahead of him. It gave him the
opportunity to watch her long, beautiful bare legs move faster and faster.

Even without a shower or fresh makeup, and still wearing the same pink
skirt and top she was dressed in when she dived overboard last evening,
she moved with a feminine grace that was stunning to watch.

Her sisters arrived at the Fiat first. While Nic helped them into the
back seat, the security men loaded the bags in the trunk. Max opened the
front door for his proud Duchesse pigeon as he'd started to think of
her, then he went around and got behind the wheel.

The silence was palpable throughout the drive from the terminal to
Genoa's harbor. From time to time he caught Nic's grin through the
rearview mirror.

Just for the fun of it he turned on the radio to a music station that
played a lot of songs in Italian and English.

132

As soon as he heard an old Dean Martin classic, he turned up the volume
and sang along.

"When the moon heats your eye like a beg pizza pie, that's amore. When
the moon starts to shine like you've had too much wine, you'll know
you're in love..."

"Oh please-" the woman sitting next to him moaned before bursting into
uninhibited laughter.

It was totally unexpected and it enchanted him. She enchanted him.

By the time they could see Luc waving to them from the boat, her
sisters' uncontrollable laughter had joined in. But his senses were only
attuned to her.

"I would do more tricks for you if it would make you laugh like that
again, Greer."

"A bilingual shark who sings off-key. I underestimated you, signore.
Better to hear a woman laugh than cry, eh?"

"I would never wish to make you cry." "What do you wish, signore?"

"To help you and your sisters enjoy the rest of your vacation."

"No. You want us to help you enjoy your vacation. Admit it!"

He and Nic got out of the car and assisted their guests to that part of
the pier where the boat was moored.

"I admit there is nothing we would enjoy more than to spend nine more
uninterrupted days and nights in your delightful company. But you're
wrong in assuming that we're on vacation."

She stood there with her arms tightly folded at her waist, not willing
to step one foot on the Piccione. "That's right. The security guard
works hard at spotting rich women for you. You work hard at relieving
them of their unnecessary jewels. When you've exhausted that avenue, you
work hard at seducing them. I forgot."

133

"You wound me again, bellissima." Her

head reared back, giving him an even better view of her provocative
mouth. "That's another lie. I don't see a mark on you."

"The deepest ones are hidden, but we're digressing from the point."

"So there is one?" she derided.

"On the surface, Luc, Nic and I are guilty of everything you've said."

"Tell us something else we don't already know."

"Gladly, Greer. We're working undercover to find the person or persons
who stole the Maria-Luigia jewelry collection from the ducal palace in
Colorno. It's one of Italy's greatest treasures and the object of an
intensive search that has involved the CIA, Scotland Yard, Interpol and
Italy's top investigators.

"Perhaps now you can imagine that your arrival in Genoa wearing three
identical Duchesse pendants, drew a collective gasp from not only
Signore Galli, but the hundreds of other security people who've been
involved in this case for over a year.

"If the American agents had done their part before you left Kennedy
Airport, you would never have been allowed to board your plane. Needless
to say, their intervention would have spared you all the unpleasantness
you've been forced to suffer in the last forty-eight hours.

"From our point of view however, the Americans' lapse in security did us
an inestimable favor. Though you've been cleared of any wrongdoing and
are free to go-as you found out when you spoke to your attorney from the
trattoria-you've unwittingly provided us with a valuable piece of
information the jewel thief doesn't know about yet.

"Here is the point you were so charmingly urging me to make, Greer. We
would like you to stay in Italy long

134

enough to help us lay a trap for him, or her, or them. Whoever it is...

"You don't have to cooperate, of course. It might even be dangerous to
do so, though we'll do everything in our power to protect you. "If

your answer is no, I will drive you to the airport right now and send
you back to New York first class on the next plane leaving Genoa.

"If your answer is yes, we will go below for a meal and discuss our
strategy in detail." His gaze took in all three of them. "The decision
is yours, signorine."

Greer eyed her sisters, not knowing what to believe. She eventually
flicked the first mate another suspicious glance. He stood there with
his long powerful legs slightly apart, his hands clasped in front of him.

"If you're on the level, why didn't you just say all this at the airport
in front of the head of the security?"

"Signore Galli may be one of several security people operating on the
wrong side of the law. We're not certain who we can trust, perhaps not
even the commissioner at the jail in Colorno. That is why we pretended
to be members of the crew of the Piccione."

"I knew none of you were who you claimed to be," her voice grated.

"You're no captain!" Piper blurted.

"Nevertheless I have done a lot of sailing in my life, senorita."

"And you're no chef!" Olivia accused the man named Luc.

"Non, mademoiselle. But I like to cook now and then."

"If you showed us identification, we'd never know if it was fake," Greer
practically hissed the words. "Are you going to tell us Signore Moretti
is your superior?"

135

The first mate's eyes had narrowed to slits. "No. A personal friend. He
lent us the car."

"And the boat?"

"Yes."

"Of course he did. Everybody has a friend who owns a catamaran worth
close to a million dollars who just lets you take it when you want."

"You watch too many American movies, Greer."

"No-that was our mother," she snapped.

"We'd still like to see your ID," Piper insisted.

Without hesitation the men pulled out their wallets and passed them
around. Greer was still staring the shark down when Olivia handed her
the first one.

Nicolas de Pastrana, Marbella, Spain: six-three. Brown hair, brown eyes.
Age thirty-four. Gorgeous photo.

The next one came around. Lucien de Falcon, Monacoville, Monaco. Whoa:
six-two. Black hair, gray eyes. Age thirty-three. Another gorgeous photo.

Greer's hand trembled when Olivia handed her the third wallet.
Maximilliano di Varona, Colorno, Italy. Maximilliano- Hah! He's
six-three. Black hair, black eyes. Age thirty-four. No photo of him
could be as breathtaking as the real thing.

The way European names were put together could be misleading. All of the
men had a "de" or a "di" following their first names, which could mean
nothing more than the fact that they were the son of so and so. Or it
could be a sign they were part of an important family. Take your pick.

No doubt these exceptional male hunks had handpicked their fake names
for a reason. One she and her sisters would never know about. She lifted
her head and handed him back his wallet.

"I still don't believe a single word you say."

136

He chewed on his lower lip. "Would it help if I told you I'm chief
counsel for the House of Parma-Bourbon?"

"You mean you're the one who had a long talk with my father's attorney?
The one who affected our release from the prison?" Greer let out an
angry laugh. "And would it help if I told you Piper is really the
Duchess of Guasfalla, Olivia is really the Duchess of Piacenza, and I'm
really the Duchess of Parma?"

"Come on, Greer," he said in a thick toned voice. "Let us put the jokes
aside."

137

CHAPTER NINE

'You know who I am."

She blinked her eyes with great exaggeration. "I do?"

"You as much as admitted it in your jail cell."

"I did?"

"You did, mademoiselle," Luc asserted. "Max told me and Nic all about
the Husband Fund, so there's no use denying it."

Nic nodded. "The calendars are the proof, senorita. To be more specific,
the scene in the pastry shop in Parma?"

"You mean where Violetta didn't give Luigio any of her chocolate
biscotti? What does that have to do with anything?"

"They weren't the only two characters in that picture," the first mate
inserted. "There was a third character recognizable due to the ducal
corona emblem."

"Oh that- He was just the local pompous peacock strutting about town in
his fancy duds trying to impress everyone with his family title. You
know...the symbolic, typical, flamboyant Italian male, all puffed up
with self-importance.

"If you took careful notice, Violetta was only toying with him to make
Luigio jealous. She really adores Luigio who suffers from a private
tragedy he keeps to himself. She's determined to find out what it is.
Deep inside she really admires his humility. But we've gotten off the
subject again."

"That's another touching story, Greer," Max said, sounding oddly
violent. "I'm surprised you're not a writer."

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He moved closer to her, invading that circle of space she needed to
think clearly. "But you're right. We've strayed from the main line of
questioning. Are you going to tell me you didn't admit to using the
Husband Fund to go spouse hunting?"

"I admit it, but I still don't have a clue who you are."

"You mean you just picked me out of a group of candidates?"

"I might have done if you'd been lined up on the stage at a bachelor
auction. For a guy who's been over the hill for thirteen years, you're
still not half bad."

His hands were no longer clasped in front of him. They'd formed fists at
his side. "Over the hill?"

"Yeah. After twenty-one all men go downhill, but as I said, you're still
pretty well preserved even if you have some gray hairs at the temple.
However, getting back to the point I was trying to make before you
interrupted me, I thought I saw a shark in the pool of the Splendido.

"No one could have been more surprised when I discovered it had legs and
had started walking toward moi. If you recall, I waited until I was
asked before joining you for a swim."

His features took on a chiseled cast. "So what you're saying is, you
were so desperate to find a husband, you were willing to go after the
first male who approached you, not knowing one thing about him? Not his
name? Not his background?"

"Wow!" Her eyebrows lifted. "You sound just like Daddy. I wouldn't be
surprised if you faked your age along with your name on your driver's
license. Are you sure you don't have a daughter tucked away somewhere?
You know-do as I say, not as I do?"

There was an uncomfortable moment of quiet before he said, "Positive."

Puzzled by his brief, quiet answer she said the next thing

139

that came into her head. "I knew you were a good swimmer. Does that help?"

"That's important to Greer," Piper interjected. "That's how Don got her
to go out with him in the first place."

"Larry had a phobic reaction to water. That's why he could never get to
first base with her," Olivia explained.

"Guys- Signore Maximilliano doesn't want to hear about my love life any
more than I want to hear about his."

"Then you admit that a man over the hill can still have one," he
insinuated. It was a borderline sneer.

"Of course. And you've already told me about yours. It's the one thing
to come out of your mouth I believe with all my heart."

His lips suddenly twitched. "When did I tell you about it?"

"You said, and I quote, 'If there's one thing I know about women, they
don't feel dressed without their purse.' You certainly couldn't have
made a statement like that unless you'd had prior knowledge.

"But if we could possibly tear ourselves from the riveting subject of
your frantic love life, I'd like to know how you thought up such an
amazing name for yourself. Obviously it was coined from the bloody days
of the Circus Maximus.

"But it truly is fantastic. I mean, if there is an honest to goodness
Maximilliano who's a due or something equally pretentious running around
Parma, does everyone really have to call him by his whole name?"

To her surprise, all three men exploded with laughter. The full-bodied
kind that brought tears to their eyes.

"Very well, Greer," he said as soon as quiet reigned once more. "It's
clear we've reached a stalemate, a term you as an American will
recognize from your own courts

140

of law. In the case of Duchess Di Varano, trust is lacking on both sides
of the Atlantic."

"That was brilliant, signore. I couldn't have said it better myself."

He gave an almost imperceptible aristocratic bow that to her surprise
seemed instinctive. "Knowing and accepting that fact, I'd like to offer
a plea bargain."

"Plea away, signore."

The corner of his compelling male mouth lifted. "We really are trying to
catch a jewel thief."

She squinted up at him. "I can believe that. A collection of jewels
falling into your hands might not make you as rich as the Count of Monte
Cristo with Nic and Luc here impersonating the Count of Cabalconti and
company. But you'd at least have enough to cover taxes on all the money
you make under the table so to speak."

His smile broadened. "Good. We're making progress."

"Are we. How nice."

"Come to Monaco with us on the, Piccione," he urged, his eyes focused on
her mouth. "A handful of people we've considered prime suspects will be
there for the Grand Prix. With your help we might be able to flush them
out."

"We need your help," the captain spoke up.

"No way, Jose," Piper responded. "The next thing we know we'll end up at
the mercy of some potentate from outer Mongolia! Greer's right. You'd
sell us to the highest bidder for profit."

"Then I have another suggestion," Luc interjected. His gaze had traveled
to Olivia. "Since you are such an excellent driver, you take your
sisters to Monaco in the Fiat.

"We'll sail the Piccione to the Port d'Hercules and join you at my
apartment. That way you won't have to fear we've pirated you away to
some distant shore, never to be

141

seen or heard of again. I have to admit that would be a great tragedy."

One look at Olivia's eyes and Greer could tell her sister was tempted.
She'd dreamed of seeing the Grand Prix for years.

"It's a good plan, signorine." The so-called Max had spoken again. "Give
us tonight and tomorrow. Then we'll put you on the plane home from Nice."

"What exactly do we have to do?" Greer demanded.

"Just be the people you were when you came to the Riviera. We'll
introduce you as the Duchesses of Kingston. There is no such English
title anymore, but most people wouldn't know that, so don't change one
iota of your story." His eyes flamed like black tires, reminding her of
the first time she'd seen him at the pool. "Wear one of those filmy,
floaty concoctions I hung up in your closet."

Her legs almost buckled from the sensuality in his tone and look. "And
the Duchesse pendants of course," she added.

"Of course."

"And when we're not being used for bait, what other plans do you have
for us?''

His elegant shrug fascinated her. "Whatever your heart desires. A
private dinner and dancing on a palace patio dripping with
bougainvillea, followed by a swim in a secluded lagoon."

Goose bumps broke out on Greer's skin. As for Olivia, her eyes were
glowing a hot blue.

"Instead of swimming, I'd rather go on to a club where some of the
Formula I drivers are parrying and get their autographs."

"That could be arranged Mademoiselle Olivier."

"What about you, senorita?" Nic asked Piper.

"I'd rather go to bed early, then get up at dawn and

142

walk around making sketches of everything for a new line of calendars I
have in mind."

"I'll prepare a picnic for us. While you draw, I'll feed you."

"Just no olives, Spanish or otherwise."

He threw his head back and laughed. "I promise. Only chocolate truffles
and pastries. I happen to be a chocoholic myself."

For once Greer's sisters wouldn't look at her.

They were caving. But who could blame them? Whoever these men really
were, Greer and her sisters had no business being around them.

"Where exactly is this supposed apartment of yours, Monsieur Luc?"

He flashed Greer a silvery glance. "I will draw you and your sisters a
map." For a man needing a cane, he got around with amazing speed and
returned from the cockpit with paper and pencil in hand.

Greer could just imagine where his diabolical map would lead. Probably
straight to the island castle where poor Edmond Dantes had been imprisoned.

"Don't worry, Greer," the dark stranger interjected. "You won't have to
drive as far as Marseilles. In any case, the Chateau D'If is now a museum."

Flame scorched her cheeks. He was doing it again. Reading her mind.

Luc handed Olivia the paper.

Greer smirked at Max. "X marks the spot."

His heart-stopping smile was in evidence once more. "You may even find
your ultimate treasure there."

Her eyelids narrowed. "It's always about the treasure, isn't it,
signore." She wheeled around. "Come on, guys. Let's go."

She picked up her suitcase and started walking toward the parking area.
By the time she'd reached the car, her

143 143

144

you drive, it was very clever of you to notice we were sailing in the
wrong direction yesterday."

"We know how much you'd love to visit Elba an Monte Cristo."

"Your sacrifice was heroic."

Greer took a steadying breath. "So was yours. I know how much you were
looking forward to telling Fred an Tom you skied on the Italian and
Spanish Riviera."

"So we'll water ski some more with the guys when we get back home." -
"Yeah."

"Yeah."

"It'll be fun."

"Sure it will. The Hudson Riviera."

"At least it's safe."

"Yeah."

"The guys never pull any surprises. They just ski."

"Yup."

"They don't try to be something they're not."

"Nope."

"They wouldn't know how."

"Nope."

"They speak one language."

"Football."

"Yup."

"I bet Tom doesn't know Pope Gregory was Greek."

"He isn't Catholic."

"Nope."

"Fred hates Italian food. He says olive oil makes him sick."

"Yup."

"I bet Don's never heard of Spanish olive oil."

"Nope."

"It's for sure he doesn't have a clue Venus rose from the sea. He thinks
it's a planet."

145

"Yup."

"They're sweet."

"Yup."

"They're boring."

"Yup."

"They're looking for a wife."

"And the crew of Piccione are looking for a one-night stand," Greer
reminded them. "I for one don't plan to give in when I don't know one
thing about Maximilliano, even if that is his real name, which it
probably isn't."

"But you know the chemistry's there," Olivia stated. "That's something
neither of you can fake."

"So now I'm supposed to let desire take over?"

"Not completely. Just enough to wangle a marriage proposal out of him.
That was the whole purpose of the Husband Fund. If you hang in there,
then you won't have to pay back the $5,000 after we get home."

"Is that what you're going to do with Luc?"

"I'm thinking about it. I could always grab his cane and beat him over
the head if he tries to force himself on me."

"They don't need to force themselves on women," Piper muttered. "If
anything, I would imagine it's the other way around. We're probably such
an anomaly, it has made them chase after us.

"But I know this momentary thrill they're feeling won't last. The second
we let them catch us long enough to wangle a proposal out of them,
they'll run so fast we won't have to dump them."

"Piper has a point," Olivia said over her shoulder.' 'Before we left
Kingston, you were the one who reminded us we had to try hard to find a
husband, Greer.

"To be honest, at this point I'd rather be wined and dined for the next
twenty-four hours than have to go home and work my head off for another
$5,000 only to have to give it back to Mr. Carlson."

146

Greer stared blindly out the back window. "Mr. Carlson's an idiot. Can
you believe he actually bought all that gobbledygook about some attorney
for the House of Parma-Bourbon clearing us?''

"Still, he was Daddy's attorney," Piper reminded her. "And Daddy did
stipulate what the money was to be used for."

Yup. There was no way of getting around that salient fact. Greer frowned
to see that her sisters were ninety-nine percent won over to the idea of
carrying out their original plan.

"Has it occurred to you the crew might sail off into the sunset and
never be seen again?"

"No-" they both said at once.

It was a dumb question since it would never occur to Greer either.
"Okay, but don't cry foul to me if we discover them waiting for us at
some disreputable bar on the waterfront where they hang out with the
handiest female upstairs."

"Greer!"

"Don't be so touchy, Olivia. I'm only thinking of the movies I've seen
about undercover agents and their sleazy apartments."

"I think we all recognize these playboys aren't secret agents," Piper
declared. "So where do we go from here?"

Olivia smiled. "Let's leave the car and the keys at the rental place.
Since the crew enjoys undercover work, let them figure out where to find
it."

"Yeah."

"Yeah."

Once again they found themselves driving on the outskirts of Genoa.
After making several inquiries they spotted the sporting goods store
pointed out to them. However there wasn't a rental bike to be had at any
price.

147

"So we'll buy the cheapest ones they have and take them home on the
plane with us."

By the time they'd purchased helmets, gloves, and water bottles they had
to fill with bottled mineral water, they'd each spent $900, which they
put on their company credit card. The salesguy was so happy to make an
easy sale, he let them use the store bathroom to change into clean
jeans, cotton sweaters and sneakers.

They helped each other put on their pendants. After stuffing their
pockets with passports, tickets and wallets, they were ready. Olivia
left the car parked around the side of the building in an alley with the
key under the front floor mat.

Greer didn't shed any tears over their clothes and luggage sitting in
the trunk. It had all been a huge mistake.

After looking at the brochure map, they estimated that if they went ten
miles an hour, they could reach the town of Alessandria by nightfall. It
lay in a northwesterly direction toward Switzerland where they would fly
home from Geneva.

There were a dozen little stops they made to rest and snack, but on the
whole they weren't unhappy with their progress. The locals waved to them
from their fields and farms.

Hardly a man drove by in a car or a truck who didn't try to carry on a
conversation with them and throw them kisses. They must have heard the
word "bellissima" a thousand times if they heard it once.

Obviously Maximilliano came by his amorous ways from the same gene pool
as his countrymen. So why couldn't she smile and laugh off his attention
the way she did all the strangers along the road?

Halfway to their destination Piper's rear tire went flat. They took it
off, then got out her patch kit to repair the tube. That's when trouble
started. Every male or group of

148

males who drove by in either direction decided to stop and help.

There must have been ten to fifteen guys young and old standing around
creating a bottleneck. One truckful of guys was really pushing it. Talk
about being chatted up!

Various offers were thrown out to drive them into town. Most of it was
said in Italian of course, but Greer didn't need a translator to get the
gist. More guys kept stopping. They were gathering like an army of ants
attacking a grain field.

Then suddenly Greer saw Max's tall, powerful body striding toward her
with Nic and Luc not far behind.

Like Moses parting the Red Sea, he rapped out Italian in such a
forbidding fashion, the crowd of aggressive males dived for the nearest
car or truck and drove off. In that instant, her heart thudded against
her rib cage.

He picked up her bike with one hand like it was a toothpick. "Luc must
not have drawn you an accurate map."

"On the contrary. It was marvelously detailed. A child could have found
its way. However we decided the Grand Prix was overrated and thought why
not see Switzerland instead to avoid the crowds."

"Since this is your first time in Europe, you had no way of knowing you
can't go anywhere in summer without bumping into a crowd. Or creating
one..." he added in his low, velvety voice.

"I'd like my bike back."

He'd started walking toward the Fiat with it. "All in good time,
signorina," he announced after he'd put it in the rack on top of the car.

"You have no right to follow us and commandeer our transportation."

When his black eyes flashed right then, she felt the same authority
emanating from him that had intimidated the crowd and sent his poor
countrymen running for cover.

149

"Not only is your safety our top priority, we have a responsibility to
Fabio Moretti who lent us his boat and his car for our undercover work.
Though you didn't realize your Husband Fund escapade would involve you
in the center of an international criminal investigation, you no longer
have the luxury of throwing caution to the wind.

"If you were to meet up with some unscrupulous men who wouldn't let
anything stand in the way of taking what they want, or worse..." He
paused for emphasis. "Fabio could ultimately be the one held liable for
something that wasn't his fault. And all because you entered into a
contract with him."

He was speaking like a lawyer again.

"Since the death of his parents, Fabio has run a respectable business.
He has two brothers, a wife, a child and another child on the way who
depend on him for their survival."

She didn't flinch. "Don't you dare lay that guilt trip on us. How do we
know you're not as unscrupulous as the men you're talking about?"

"You don't. But I can assure you that if we had been the kind of men
you're describing, you would have been taken directly from the airport
to the magistrate of the Genoese court and incarcerated in a prison for
months while you awaited trial."

Who was this man?

"To think a female with such skin and eyes, such a beautiful body and
intelligent mind as yours, has no softness in her." His gaze pierced
hers. "I once suffered a great surprise and disappointment, Signorina
Greer. Until now, nothing else has ever come close to it..."

Greer had to admit she was surprised at how deep the wound he'd just
inflicted had penetrated. Possibly to the core of her soul.

"Where are you taking us?" she asked in a dull voice.

150

"To Vernazza, signorina, where you will sign a legal form in front of
witnesses that releases Fabio Moretti from any and all obligations to
you. At that time, your $12,000 will be refunded in cash, never mind
that he lives hand to mouth to make ends meet and will suffer for the loss.

"But that won't be your problem will it. You'll be free to ride your
bikes all over Europe and reap the whirlwind if that is your desire."

Before long the six of them were on their way back to Genoa and the
Piccione. With Luc at the wheel, Olivia at his side, the forty miles the
girls had covered in four hours only took twenty-five minutes to retrace.

Nic had pulled Piper onto his lap, which left Greer sandwiched in back
between him and Max.

While the other two men tried to get her sisters to talk and acted for
all the world as if nothing was out of the ordinary, Max treated Greer
to a debilitating silence. It enflamed her that he'd placed the blame
for the unbreachable wall of anger and mistrust between them solely at
her feet.

But by the time they were back on the boat, the fear that he'd spoken
the truth about Signore Moretti had been eating at her conscience.

"Guys? We've got to talk!" Once they'd assembled in the same stateroom,
which was beginning to feel like home away from home, she unloaded on them.

After relating the thrust of her bitter conversation with Max, Piper
said, "I'm not sure what's true and what isn't, but I do know one thing.
None of those men who stopped to help us fix our bikes did it out of
altruism. In fact that one truck load was so aggressive, I was really
beginning to get nervous, you know?"

"We all were," Olivia murmured. "Let's be honest and admit we were
relieved the crew showed up when they did. There's fright, and then
there's fright."

151

Piper nodded. "With the crew, you're scared you might actually start
believing all the words that come out of their mouths in half a dozen
languages."

"Liking it you mean," Olivia amended. "With those men in the truck,
you're just plain scared."

Greer's sisters had put their finger on the dilemma plaguing her since
the night Max had asked her to swim with him. He could have behaved
exactly like those men in the truck. Because of her instant and
overwhelming attraction to him, she would have been helpless to deny him
anything for long.

But he'd let her go. Not once, but three times. The last being in the
jail cell. He'd known how vulnerable she was last night, both physically
and emotionally, yet he hadn't taken advantage of her or the situation.

Like a revelation it came to her that his actions weren't those of a
despicable brute who preyed on defenseless women. But they were the
actions of a man searching for answers, determined to find them.

Though Greer didn't know who he was, or what he did for a living, the
close call on the road this evening showed her the situation for what it
was.

Whether he was a jewel thief or not, seduction was the last thing on his
mind. The pendant had been the catalyst to bring them together.

If there really was another pendant like the one their dad had given
them, and it had been stolen along with a priceless jewelry collection,
no wonder alarm bells had sounded when she and her siblings had waltzed
through customs wearing "hot" merchandise.

At this juncture Greer was prepared to believe that once the crew had
accomplished their business in Monaco, they would put her and her
sisters on a plane home.

Familiar vibrations caused her feet and legs to tingle, alerting her
they'd cast off. "Guys? I'll be right back!"

152

To her sisters' astonishment, she dashed out of the stateroom and
through the hall to the upper deck.

Genoa, the bejeweled lady of the Mediterranean, was receding in the
darkness which had enveloped the coast without her being aware of it.
Greer could still make out Luc's physique as he coiled rope.

She turned her head to discover Max securing the bikes next to the
kayaks. If he felt her presence, he didn't acknowledge it until she'd
come within touching distance of him. Then he lifted his dark head and
their gazes collided.

His anger had dissipated, but in its place she sensed a new aloofness
emanating from him. It was the kind he might show any stranger rather
the woman he'd kissed with unbridled passion two days ago.

If anything she should be relieved by this seemingly professional
detachment. It was what she wanted. Yet her mouth had gone strangely dry
and her heart was behaving like a single engine plane spiraling out of
control as it hurtled toward the ground coming up to meet it.

"Whatever you wish to say, tell it to the captain, signorina. He pilots
this boat, not me."

Her awareness of him made it difficult to breathe.

"But he listens to his first mate. Please inform him that we're going to
spend the next few hours transforming ourselves into the Duchesses of
Kingston.

"After we've reached Monaco, we plan to make such a stunning entrance,
even you will blink and wonder if you've been wrong about our not having
a drop of royal blood in us whether it be Austrian, Italian or something
else."

153

CHAPTER TEN

"Oh...you guys..." Olivia's voice shook with emotion. "Just look at that
sight..."

It was a Monagasque fairyland all right, with the Grimaldi royal palace
glowing like the crowning star on the Christmas tree.

From the balcony of the gorgeous villa overlooking the street where the
Formula I cars would race tomorrow, Greer and her sisters feasted their
eyes on elegant old palaces and buildings with wrought-iron railings,
wonderful roofs with thousands of orange tiles laid at all angles in
multifaceted splendor. There was a veritable panoply of painted walls,
architectural detail, friezes, scrollwork everywhere one gazed.

Farther below lay Monaco's fabulous harbor twinkling with lights from
the myriad of small white boats including the Piccione and stately
yachts the size of soccer fields. Possessions of the world's wealthiest
princes and sheiks.

Piper sucked in her breath. "I'm looking and I still don't believe it.
Smell the flowers. They're everywhere. Jasmine and rose. Lavender."

It was the stuff dreams were made of all right, Greer mused in awe. Yet
this nineteenth-century provencal villa named Le Clos des Falcons was
breathtakingly real.

So was the black limo with its royal falcon crest which had whisked them
and the crew from the port. Where others couldn't go, they were allowed
entrance past barricades, guard rails, fences and gates erected for the
world's most famous car race.

154

Olivia nudged Greer in the ribs. "What do you think of Luc's sleazy
waterfront pad now?"

"Obviously he has friends in very high places."

"It feels like we're in a beautiful dream."

Greer smiled at her sisters. No doubt she was walking around the
sumptuously furnished room wearing their same, starry-eyed expressions.

"If mother could see us in our knee-length white chiffon and pendants,
that's exactly what she'd say."

Piper stared at Greer. "We look like identical triplets tonight. It
really shows since we're wearing the same hairdos for a change. Wouldn't
she love it? Mom always begged us to dress alike on special family
occasions."

"I can hear Daddy now," Greer murmured. "Are these my three darling
duchesses all grown up?"

Olivia's eyes went teary. That started Piper and Greer. Everything was
still blurry when she heard a distinct rap on the outer door of their
private suite.

Assuming it was the maid who'd been waiting on them since their arrival,
Greer went to answer it, unprepared for the sight that awaited her.

There stood the heartthrob of the century. No doubt about it. Max would
win the prize hands down.

He probably heard the moan that escaped her throat, but she couldn't
help it. In black and white formal evening wear, this tall, black-haired
Italian with his striking aquiline features left her speechless and
trembling.

His black eyes roved over her in male admiration. Yet the fire she'd
always seen burning in their depths when he looked at her was missing.
Extinguished if you like.

Greer didn't like, which was absurd. This man didn't mean anything to
her. He was an experience. A phenomenon of nature like the planet Mars
coming close to Earth for the first time in sixty thousand years, then
continuing its orbit to the far reaches of space.

155

Tomorrow night Greer's plane would follow its own orbit to another part
of the universe. The chance of their ever coming together again, even
for an instant, wasn't astronomically possible.

- "Buona sera, signorina. In five minutes we'd like you and your sisters
to come down the staircase at the end of the hall. There's a drawing
room off to the right where you'll be introduced to a group of people.
Just play along with the conversation wherever it leads."

She got a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. "What if we make a
mistake?"

"You won't if you just play at being your unique self which you do
superbly."

The acid comment was meant to wound. It found its mark.

"When the time comes for the guests to withdraw to the dining room for a
midnight supper, I'll make our apologies and we'll both leave. At which
time I will say goodnight."

Greer shivered because beneath his civility she sensed he was still
furiously angry with her.

"As for you, signorina, you look exceptionally beautiful tonight. Since
you will have served your purpose for us with the grace of Violetta
herself, you'll be left alone to do whatever you want. The limo's at
your disposal. Just tell the maid and she'll arrange it."

"We heard that," Olivia whispered after the door closed in front of
Greer's face.' "I take back what I said. He's scarier than any man I
ever met."

"We shouldn't have bought those bikes," Piper murmured. "I think it
insulted him. Maybe it's an Italian thing. You know what they say about
travel in a foreign country. In some places it's polite to burp after
you eat, in other places it isn't."

"Baloney!" Greer spun around. "It's a male thing. He

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didn't get his way the minute he snapped his fingers, so now he's having
an Italian temper tantrum."

"I think you're having one, too. Your face is all splotchy. It proves we
do have some Italian blood in us despite the mean things they said to
try to discredit us."

"Thanks, Olivia."

"Don't bite my head off. We know you're disappointed."

"About what?"

"About his intention to leave you strictly alone after we've done our
part downstairs," Piper murmured.

"I couldn't care less."

"That's not what your eyes are saying. But don't worry. I'm going up to
bed right after, too."

"So am I."

Greer's gaze shot to Olivia's. "I thought Luc had arranged for you to
visit a club to meet some Formula I drivers."

"That's out of the question now."

"Why?"

"When I told him Cesar Villon was the only driver I was interested in
meeting, he demanded to know why. I asked why he cared. He didn't
answer, but his whole mood darkened after that."

"Sounds like he's as jealous as Fred," Piper reasoned.

"No. He's just an egocentric French male who thinks the world begins and
ends with him. You know how the French are. His eyelids go all hooded."
She imitated him, laying on the French accent. "He becomes the
melancholy philosopher's philosopher. He's seen it all, done it all, and
he knows it better and has suffered it longer than anyone else."

Whoa, Olivia!

"The captain's the one who knows it all," Piper insisted. "He's got what
I call the Castilian superiority

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complex. You can't say one thing that he doesn't know more about it, and
he's the authority. There is no other above him. In his spare time he
makes up Spanish crossword puzzles of the highest difficulty."

"Did he tell you that?" Olivia questioned with a chuckle.

"Not yet. I'm waiting. It has to be on his resume somewhere."

"Piper!" Greer was laughing, too.

"Do you know he thinks I'm a chocoholic? So of course that's what I am,
right?"

"All three of us are," Olivia muttered.

"Never mind that. It's what he thinks and says I am, I can't abide. You
can't win an argument with him. It's impossible. He's always one step
ahead of you. That Spanish brain is like a steel trap, stored with
obscure trivia he pulls out at a moment's notice.

"He thinks he's spending tomorrow morning with me so he can impress me
with more of his vast knowledge." Her cheeks glowed a hot red. "Get
this- He says I'm the only American woman he ever met who can converse
with him on a halfway intelligent level.

"Well guess what? This dimwit American has gathered enough of her
scattered brain not to go anywhere with him in the morning or any other
time."

"You won't say that after you've spent five minutes with him again,"
Greer reminded her, "but let's not worry about that right now. It's time
to go downstairs and do what it is we're supposed to do."

"I still don't know what that is," Olivia complained.

"You heard Maximilliano." She loved to say the name, wondering if it
really was his. "Just play ourselves."

"I think that was meant to be an insult."

Greer glared at Piper. "You only think?"

They made their way through the villa, which felt more

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like a palace. There was a striking man in elegant evening clothes
waiting at the bottom of the curving staircase. When he smiled up at
them, Greer realized it was the owner of the Piccione!

What was going on? The girls recognized him immediately and rolled their
eyes at Greer.

"Buona sera, signorine. You were lovely before. Tonight you take my
breath away."

Anger over this whole charade emboldened Greer to say, "You look pretty
smashing yourself, Signore Moretti."

He flashed her a smile that could have meant anything.

Sure he was just a poor catamaran owner... One furthermore living hand
to mouth who would be held liable if anything happened to the lovely
signorine.

The man had a great thing going here. If there really was a Signora
Moretti and child, Greer felt sorry for them.

"When the other party had to cancel their reservation for the Piccione
at the time of the Grand Prix, it became your lucky day, did it not?''

"The experience of a lifetime," Piper said through gritted teeth.

Olivia's hand went to her throat in a dramatic gesture. "We still
haven't recovered. It's like we're moving through an amazing dream."

Nightmare you mean.

He chuckled. "I'm very happy to hear it. Shall we go in? I'll introduce
you to a few guests." He opened one of the ornate floor to ceiling doors.

Greer bunked. A few people? She'd been aware of chamber music, but not
voices. There had to be at least seventy beautifully dressed guests
congregated in groups around the elaborate appointments of the drawing
room! If the crew was there, she couldn't tell.

"Fabio!"

An attractive dark blond woman wearing a stunning

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oyster toned designer dress, left the people she'd been talking to and
hurried across the parquet floor with her handsome escort to kiss
Signore Moretti on either cheek.

The other man, evidently her husband, stood a few inches taller than
Fabio with enough gray in his black hair to make him distinguished. Both
looked to be in their early sixties.

A spate of Italian broke from all three of them, giving Greer the
impression they were close friends who hadn't met for a while. But then
nothing about this trip had been as it seemed. What was the line, "We
are all actors and the world is our stage"?

"Rina? Umberto?" Fabio spoke up. "There are three sisters I want you to
meet," he explained in English. "They chartered the Piccione for this
time slot. When I found out who they were, I decided to keep it a
surprise until tonight."

"So much alike, yet the eyes are so different." The woman smiled warmly
as she and the other man studied each of them. Then her dark flashing
gaze that put Greer in mind of the great black's, suddenly locked on the
pendants. She let out a cry that brought her husband's arm around her
shoulders. All conversation in the room ceased.

With a chuckle Fabio said, "No, Rina. You and Umberto are not
hallucinating. May I present Greer, Piper and Olivia. They are the
Duchesses of Kingston of the royal House of Parma-Bourbon, anxious, to
meet their long lost family."

His announcement created a shock wave of interest throughout the crowd.

"Because of the theft of the Maria-Luigia jewelry collection, there was
some unpleasantness when the signorine came through customs a few days
ago wearing the Duchesse pendants.

"You, will be happy to know it is all cleared up now.

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Signore Rossi has determined that one of the pendants they're wearing is
the other original made by Tocelli for Maria-Luigia."

"Other?" The word echoed throughout the room as everyone looked at them
in astonishment.

' 'For some reason yet to be uncovered, the artisan fashioned two
identical pendants. Therefore it appears that the myth about an
ancestral line making its way to America is not a myth after all."

What? But the crew said-

"Signorine? May I present your many distant relatives. First of all,
Rina and Umberto, the Due di Varano of the House of Parma-Bourbon."

Greer and her sisters let out a collective gasp that was even louder
than the cry of the other woman, the woman they'd just been introduced
to who could be none other than Max's mother! The resemblance to both
parents was unmistakable.

But that meant the first mate was the son of a d-

"Come, signorine." Fabio started ushering them around the room. "Meet
your hosts for this evening, Violetta di Varano, Umberto's sister who is
the wife of Jean-Louis, the Due de Falcon of the House of Bourbon."

Another due? Luc's mother was named Violetta?

Noooooo.

Olivia's groan coincided with hers. Luc's parents smiled broadly. "An
exquisite surprise," his father murmured before kissing their hands with
the kind of dashing charm bequeathed to their injured son.

Greer was still reeling with shock and rage, unable to take it all in.

"Standing next to them is Maria di Varano, the second sister of Umberto
who is married to Juan-Carlos, the Due de Pastrana of the House of Bourbon."

"What a thrilling moment for the Varano family," Nic's

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mother responded with genuine pleasure. "Niccolo will have to sort all
of this out for us. He's the expert in the family."

A hysterical laugh emerged from Piper's throat. Thankfully Fabio
continued to sweep them along, making the introductions of the rest of
the guests, one of whom could possibly be the person responsible for the
theft of the ducal palace jewelry collection. Undoubtedly Signore
Moretti was watching everyone's reactions, which he would report to the
crew.

There was no sign of them yet.

It was a blessing, particularly since she suspected her sisters were on
the verge of strangling someone with their bare hands. Greer would be
the first in line, and she knew which neck she wanted to start with.

The three of them drew close together for a second.

Olivia drew in a noisy breath. "Luc de Falcon is going to wish he didn't
need a cane because when I get hold of--"

"Signorine?" came Fabio's voice. "Last but not least, may I present
Isabella di Varano, wife of Giovanni di Luccesi-"

"And my only sister."

Of course.

The grand entrance of Maximilliano the Magnificent himself!

"This is very exciting," the dark-haired beauty exclaimed.

Isabella was as gorgeous as her brother, but Greer refused to look at him.

She couldn't fathom any of what was going on. In truth she was only
barely functioning.

"If all of you will excuse our bellissima Duchesse cousins," Max spoke
in a vibrant voice that would have penetrated the farthest corners of
the room. "They need their

162

rest after spending a miserable night in the Colorno jail while I worked
out the legalities with the police."

The crowd's sympathetic reaction couldn't possibly have been orchestrated.

"Following their release they chose to take a grueling four-hour bike
ride in the hot sun to see the countryside of their ancestors.
Unfortunately they ran into some trouble that required my help again."

Greer stole a look to see if he'd been struck by lightning yet. What a
horrible mistake that turned out to be. His black eyes were laughing at her.

"I'm quite sure they're at the point of exhaustion, but as the chief
commissioner confided to me, they charmed the guards and handled their
harrowing ordeal with all the dignity and spirit of the former Duchesse
of Parma herself. Signorine? May I be the first to say, welcome to the
family."

His mockery in front of God and all these witnesses who were clapping
after such an amazing speech was too much.

"Thank you," Greer said to everyone with a smile. "It's been a pleasure
to meet everyone." Her sisters said virtually the same thing before they
all murmured their good-nights.

She made her exit out the door with the kind of poise her parents would
have been proud of. The girls weren't far behind. After reaching the
foyer, they flew up the staircase to their suite like a bunch of homing
pigeons.

Once the door was locked Greer turned to her sisters hot-faced. "We know
we're not related, so how dare he mock us like that. Now that we finally
know which way the wind is blowing, we'll see who has the last laugh.

"No way are they going to get the satisfaction of bundling us up in the
royal limo and shipping us back to America like so much unwanted
baggage. Obviously that was their plan as soon as they were through
using us."

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Olivia wore a set jaw. "We came to see the Grand Prix and that's what
we're going to do."

"We can escape off the balcony," Piper muttered. "It'll be a cinch. I
saw a little portico just below it. From there we can jump to the ground
and merge into the crowd before they discover we're gone."

Greer marched over to her suitcase. "This operation calls for jeans and
T-shirts, but we'll have to be wearing our travel suits when we ring for
maid service." Within a few minutes several of them appeared at the door
to carry the luggage to the limo.

"Thank you. We'll be right down."

The second the door was closed, they peeled off their suits, hung them
in the closet, then put on their casual clothes and sneakers.

They met at the balcony. "One for all, and all for one," Piper whispered
before going over the railing first. It was like deja vu, except that
instead of water, they landed on pavement.

Piper was off like a shot between two villas across the street. Olivia
followed close behind. Greer brought up the tail as they discovered a
narrow alley farther on and started running like crazy in the direction
of the harbor below.

The crowds of spectators waiting all night to see the race roamed the
streets and alleyways, impeding their progress. But it no longer
mattered because she and her siblings blended with the crowd.

Farther down when they came out on the main street again, they passed a
set of bleachers with a huge "Villon" banner fastened across the top.
Olivia stopped in her tracks. "You guys-"

"We know. We saw it, too."

"Let's find out if there's room for three more."

Whether it was because they were triplets, or because the gods were
smiling on them, a group of exuberant

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French guys probably in their late teens and early twenties seemed only
too happy to let them squeeze in next to them.

They spoke little English which made it amusing. In every other way they
communicated like mad. Olivia's knowledge of Cesar Villon's racing
statistics enamored her to them. Greer and Piper just smiled and
pretended they were hard-core fans, too.

For the first time since the girls' arrival in Europe, they were treated
like royalty. The one named Simon fed them ham filled brioches. The
other ones named Gerard, Jules and Philippe, supplied drinks and treats.
They carried pocket transistors that picked up all the information about
the drivers and the cars. Excitement ran high.

Then came the first rays of the sun and with it the roar of the race.
Screaming engines permeated all of Monaco, loud, close, far and soft.
Between the unintelligible reporting of the announcer over the
loudspeakers plus the echo of the cars bouncing off the buildings and
hills, the thrill of the sport was like a fever in the blood.

Fans dotted the scene before them like bits of pepper in a pasta dish.
Some were draped over balconies, others hung out of windows, still
others looked through the holes in fences all along the route. When
Cesar Villon roared by, there was an explosion of noise that probably
broke a few eardrums.

Greer looked over at Olivia who was being hugged by one of the guys in
the excitement of the moment. She nudged Piper who put her lips to her
ear so she could hear her. "Seeing Villon whiz by has made this trip for
our sister."

"I'm glad one of us can go home with a good memory." Greer's temper was
still as hot as a firecracker.

"When do you want to head for that youth hostel Simon told us about. I'm
ready to pass out from lack of sleep."

"You're not the only one. Let's go."

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They called to Olivia who nodded and started making her way toward them.
The guys tried to talk the three of them into staying. The only way
Olivia could persuade Gerard to let her go was to tell him to come by
the hostel that evening. By then they'd be ready to party.

"He drew me a map, guys," she said as soon as she reached the aisle of
the bleachers. "With this crowd it's about an hour's walk from here."

"After yesterday's bike ride, it'll be a piece of cake."

Max instructed the helicopter pilot to fly over the Piccione again.
Since it had been determined that their prize pigeons had flown off the
villa balcony while he and his cousins had been picking Fabio's brains
for information about the guests' reactions to the news, there'd been no
trace of them. Not at the Nice airport, not at the train station.

"Every police officer had been given a description and was told to call
in at the first sign of them. Where in the hell could they have gotten
to so fast without being detected?"

His cell phone rang. It was Nic who'd been working with the police on
the ground. "Did you find them?"

"No. We've checked with the concierge of every hotel. There's been no
report of seeing them at the reception counters. They haven't asked for
a room. What about the boat?"

"Fabio says they haven't stepped foot on it," Max muttered.

"Dios!" Nic thundered.

None of them wanted to entertain the thought that the women had been so
desperate to get away from them, they'd asked a lift from some predators
who had no interest in racing and only came to Monaco for just such an opp-

166

"Hang on, Nic. Luc's calling." He put him on hold and clicked to Luc.
"Any news?"

"They're seven blocks from the villa!"

"What?" His heart practically leaped out of his chest.

"I just saw them on the TV screen while a cameraman was panning the
lower portion of the route chatting with fans. They're being very cozy
with a bunch of enamored college guys sitting on some bleachers bearing
a Villon banner.

"Mon Dieu- I don't know where my mind has been not to think of that
first! The stand is next to the corner of the Rue de Cypres. If I didn't
have this damn leg holding me back-"

"You have your leg! That's the most important thing, and it's going to
get better. Because of you, we now know where our pigeons have come to
roost. Nic'll round them up. In the meantime I'll instruct the pilot to
fly over the area so I can keep an eye on them. I'll call you back as
soon as I know anything more."

He hung up, gave the pilot new instructions, then clicked on to Nic and
told him the situation.

"I'm on my way now with the police," his cousin responded with a noise
in his throat that sounded oddly emotional to Max. Was it possible Nic
was coming back to life after all these months?

Max waited till the helicopter had reached the desired vicinity. Using
his binoculars, he zeroed in on the stand in question, but he didn't see
the face he was looking for. No hair of spun gold. The knowledge that
the women had already fled the scene hit him like a kick in the gut.

"Keep circling," he rapped out to the pilot while he waited for Nic to
arrive. In a few more minutes his cousin approached in a police car,
followed by two more patrol vans. He and half a dozen officers got out
and started

167

interrogating everyone on the bleachers. It seemed to go on a long time.

Eventually he noticed four of the spectators being escorted to the vans.
Good. They knew something!

Before long Max received the call he'd been waiting for. "Nic?"

"The women have gone to a local youth hostel on the Avenue Prince Pierre."

Unbelievable.

"Our witnesses refused to cooperate until we threatened them with a
night in jail for obstruction of justice. No doubt they were planning to
meet them there later for a few nights on the road together," his voice
grated.

Max ground his teeth so hard, pain shot through his jaw. "How much lead
time do we have on them?"

"Probably forty minutes."

"It's enough for Luc to set things up the way we want. I'll meet you
back at the villa."

After clicking off, he phoned Luc and let him know what was happening.

"Leave it all to me, Max. By the time you both get here, we'll be able
to relax and catch some sleep before tonight."

Sleep? What was that?

Since the moment he'd followed Signorina Greer inside the San Giorgio
church in Portofino where he'd first glimpsed her face in the
candlelight, he'd felt an unprecedented stirring in his blood.

The sight of her distinctive profile, the texture of her skin giving off
a glow of natural pearls, those violet orbs- all had kept his legs
planted in the shadows where he could feast his eyes on her without
detection.

She had a lovely body. In the flattering sundress, she was the essence
of classic femininity. The kind that would grow more beautiful when she
became a mother.

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Haunted by that image, he'd left the church ahead of her, hungry and
restless for the one thing in life that would always elude him.

"Max?"

"Yes?"

"Are you all right?"

"Of course."

"If you say so, mon ami." There was a click as he replaced the receiver.

169

CHAPTER ELEVEN

"We don't have individual rooms, mesdemoiselles. Our dorms have four
bunk beds each, eight people to a room. Right now we only have four beds
left in the whole center."

"Is it an all women's dorm?"

The receptionist at the Centre de Jeunesse Pierre shook her head. "We
don't make distinctions here."

Of course not.

Greer turned to her sisters. "I don't think I can go on without some sleep."

"I can't, either," Piper murmured. "You can bet these are the only four
beds available in Monaco."

"I don't see we have a choice, guys," Olivia declared.

"Agreed." Greer pulled out her wallet and handed the receptionist the
credit card. At the rate they were spending money, there would be no
profit to bank at the end of the year.

So far they were out their designer luggage, their wardrobes, their
bikes and $15,000 they would have to give back to Mr. Carlson. If it
hadn't been for the generosity of Simon and the boys, they would have
been forced to buy breakfast, too.

The woman handed them three sets of clean sheets, blankets and pillows.
"You're in dorms four, five and six upstairs."

They wouldn't even be in the same room. "Thank you."

At the top of the stairs they paid a visit to the rest room before
moving on to the dorms. To their relief, each one

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was empty. Naturally no backpackers would be hanging around here. Not
while the most exciting event in the world's most romantic spot was
happening right outside the building.

All the bottom bunks had already been claimed by other guests. Olivia
looked around her dorm. "If our luck holds, no one will show up until
tonight. By then we'll have had our sleep and can head for the train
station."

"Let's set our watch alarms for 7:00 P.M. That'll give us a good few
hours to recuperate."

They hugged Olivia goodnight, then went to their separate dorms. Somehow
Greer found the strength to climb up the ladder and fix her bed before
collapsing on top of it. Yet five minutes later she was still awake.

Max's last words to the guests in the drawing room kept running through
her mind. Welcome to the family.

His mockery, meant as the final affront before he put her on the plane
home from Nice had been particularly hurtful.

Greer knew why... She was in love for the first and only time in her life.

Hot tears gushed from her eyes. She buried her face in the pillow. It
was a good thing her sisters weren't in the room. They'd never seen her
cry over a man before. And they never would!

When next she became cognizant of her alarm going off, she was so out of
it she rolled off the mattress to get up like she usually did, then
screamed to feel herself falling.

"Oh!" she cried out again when a pair of strong masculine arms caught
her before she went splat on the floor.

"Easy, signorina."

"Max!"

She blinked several times while she tried to figure out

171

if she was awake or dreaming. Right now the black eyes staring into hers
at such close range were alive with flame.

"How did you find me? What are you doing here?" She was so in love with
him and so cross with him at the same time she couldn't see straight
"Where are all the other people?"

"What other people? Don't I even merit a 'grazie' for saving your life?"
he whispered against her lips, nibbling them as if they were delicious
morsels he couldn't resist.

She groaned because he was kindling the ache that had never gone away
since he'd first kissed her. Rivulets of desire coursed through her body
which yearned toward his. She was trembling with needs he'd brought to
life, needs that would never go away.

"Put me down first and we'll talk about it," she begged in a breathless
voice. This close to him she couldn't think.

His mouth roamed over her face, her nose, her eyes, her hair. "I can't
do that, bellissima. I've learned that the only way to get anywhere with
you is to keep you in my arms. I want you, Greer. I want you with a
hunger you couldn't possibly comprehend."

His mouth was doing the most incredible things to her. In his arms she
was learning the meaning of rapture. When they got tangled up with each
other on the narrow lower bunk, she couldn't tell where one kiss ended
and the next one began.

Ecstasy. That's what it was like being kissed by Maximilliano di Varano.
Ecstasy.

Her fingers twined in his raven-black hair and she found herself
covering his face and throat with her mouth, savoring everything male
about him while she worshipped the differences between them.

"You were right to call me a shark," he whispered huskily as he caressed
her throat with his lips. "I'd like to take bites out of you in order to
make you a part of me.

172

"But if I did that, then you would be consumed, and I would go mad with
hunger because there wasn't any more of you, anywhere. Let me take you
back to the Piccione where we can be alone and I can love all of you,"
he begged with primitive longing.

Back to the Piccione'} For only one night?

In that moment her heart dried up like winter's last prune.

Deliberately misunderstanding him, she leaned over him, pressing his
cheeks with her palms. Pain like she'd never known before intensified
the purple glow of her eyes.

"You've made me so happy, I'm frightened. Do you think you could talk
Fabio into letting us take the Piccione on a long, long honeymoon? I
want to go to Elba, Monte Cristo and a hundred other islands with you. I
want to experience everything with you.

"You've set me on fire, and now I'm the one bursting from the love I
want to shower on you. I want to be all things to you. I want to live
with you night and day.

' 'I want to have your babies,'' she cried against the male mouth that
had transformed her. "Beautiful, brilliant, wonderful babies just like
their father.

"You won't be doomed to swim forever alone, searching for me but never
finding me. Once we're married, you can make love to me whenever you
want. Whenever I want. Whenever we both want, for the rest of our lives
if we want. How does that sound to you, my darling?

"You are my darling you know," she kissed the corner of his mouth, the
lashes of his eyes, the lobes of his ears. ' 'Don't you know a hundred
lifetimes from now I will love you even more than I love you right now?

"Yet I can't imagine it being any stronger than it is at this very
instant. There's no man who comes close to you,

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Max. I love you. I love you to the depth of my soul." Her voice throbbed.

"I honestly didn't know love could make me feel like this. I didn't
realize," she whispered, her breathing shallow. "Kiss me again so I'll
know this is real."

She sought his mouth once more with soaring passion. "I can't wait to be
your wife. I realize we haven't known each other very long, but it
doesn't matter. Not when you've found your soul mate."

Staring into the black depths of his eyes she said, "We are soul mates.
I knew it when you asked me to guess your name, knowing such a task
would have been impossible. It was the most thrilling moment for me
because I knew you wanted the experience to go on and on and never be over.

"I wanted it to go on and on, too. More than anything in my life I
wanted to swim in the moonlight with you. But my feelings were too
intense that night, too raw. I felt like one of those white-hot stars
out in space ready to implode. Oh Max, I-"

"Greer-" he spoke her name in a gravelly voice, shifting her aside so he
could get to his feet.

His breathing sounded ragged. The broad chest beneath the cream knit
shirt he was wearing rose and fell visibly, like he'd just run a
marathon. She'd terrified him.

That was the prophecy she'd made to her sisters months ago. It had come
true. She knew he would run once he thought marriage was on the cards.
But it hurt with a pain from which she would never, ever recover.

She slid off the bottom bunk. "What's wrong, darling?"

He rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. His face was a study in
agony. She had no idea he could look that way.

"I forgot I was dealing with a woman who has obviously never been to bed
with a man before."

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Really. Her inexperience stuck out that badly? She'd thought her wild
response to him was probably more uninhibited and reckless than any
initiated woman he'd ever made love to before.

"No," she answered in a bright tone. "I haven't. I've never had the
slightest inclination until I saw you get out of that pool and come
walking toward me as if you wanted to devour me. Since then I haven't
been able to think about anything else but marrying you and making love
with you for the rest of our lives."

After a long, palpable silence, "Greer-" he said her name again. The
ultimate playboy of the Riviera seemed to be choking on monosyllables.
It had to be a first for him, so why wasn't she jumping up and down with
glee?

He raked a hand through his hair. "I'm afraid taking you out to the
Piccione isn't going to work after all."

He'd finally been able to spit out the words, but they emerged sounding
like a tormented whisper. How weird!

With the entire female population throwing themselves at him from every
direction, why was it causing him such upheaval? Why such suffering to
deny himself the pleasure of a one-night stand with a virginal American
from the wrong side of the tracks?

"What do you mean?" she cried out in spurious alarm.

When he didn't say anything else, she decided it was time to help him out.

"Why don't you just admit you would love to make love to me, but not if
it means getting hitched first!"

"Greer-"

She laughed. If her sisters had been present, they would have called it
her cruel laugh.

"Take it easy, Max. It's not the end of the world. You're off the hook.
You always have been."

His dark head reared back, exposing his hard jaw. "Explain that remark."

175

Putting her hands in her back pockets, she smiled up at him. "I'll be
happy to. At the jail when I was telling you about the Husband Fund, I'm
afraid so many other matters were discussed at the same time, I left out
the most important part."

"Which part?" he demanded in a chilly tone.

Greer cocked her head to the side. "This'll take a few minutes. Would
you like to sit down first?"

Like a magnificent colossus, he remained standing there.

"Fine. Have it your way." She flashed him another sunny smile. "My
sisters and I never worried about getting married, but our parents did."

His scowl was quite frightening. "We've been over this ground before."

"True, but there's more. Unfortunately you have to be patient because
I'm a woman, and you know how women are. They have to lay everything out
and build up to it, analyze it, discuss it, and dissect it to death
before they get to the point.

"It's just one of the great differences between the sexes men have so
much problem with. Especially a man like you."

His mouth thinned. It delighted her, even if the withered prune which
had been her heart was dissolving fast.

"As I was saying, our parents were concerned enough about the situation
that during Mr. Carlson's reading of a letter our father had written to
us, Daddy asked us to watch a movie about these ladies who try to find
millionaires to marry."

"I've seen it," he interjected in a low voice.

"Of course you have. Anyway, the whole idea was to put ideas in our head
to find a rich man and settle down.

"The film was a complete turnoff."

She paused. "You're pacing. Why don't you sit down? I told you this
would take a while."

176

If looks could kill. "Go on."

' 'The loss of both our parents who needed constant nursing care over a
couple of years was harder on us than we thought. After Daddy died, we
moved across the street to a basement apartment so the house could be
sold to pay the bills. I guess we didn't see that we needed a break
until our landlady suggested to Piper we could use a vacation.

"But you know how it is when you're a workaholic, because that's what we
are. We loved college, love our work and find it much more stimulating
than anything else we do.

"So...until Mrs. Weyland brought up the idea of a vacation, we really
hadn't entertained the thought. But with $15,000 suddenly in hand, it
sounded kind of fun to go somewhere exciting. If only the money didn't
have to be used to find a husband which none of us wanted.

"That's when Olivia reminded us we were the Duchesses of Kingston, so
why not pretend we were the millionaires and see how many men we could
get to propose?

"Piper picked up from there and said why not wear the Duchesse pendants
to bring the really hard-core playboys out of the woodwork?

"Both their ideas were brilliant. At that point I merely suggested that
we vacation on the Riviera if we wanted to hit the jackpot. When any of
those phony playboys actually did propose, they would disappear back
into the woodwork as soon as we told them we were the poor Duchesses
from Kingston, New York, with no titles, no money, no lands.

"Then we could go home as free as the air to breathe having had a
fabulous time visiting the home of our ancestor and maybe picking up new
markets for our calendar business."

By now Max's eyes resembled shards of black ice. He

177

shifted his weight, making her aware of his intimidating height. "So if
I had proposed-"

"If you had proposed fair and square, I would have told you the truth
about myself knowing you would bail."

"Which was exactly what you wanted to happen."

Ah hah. His Italian ego had been dented again.

"I thought I'd already made that clear. But to reiterate, yes! That's
exactly what we wanted to happen. Don't you see? We would have obeyed
Daddy's stipulation to try and find a husband.

"Could we help it if in the end our eager suitors took back their
proposals when they realized there was no gold at the end of the rainbow?"

She flashed him her diabolical smile. "I certainly didn't have to worry
about you though, did I. Maximilliano di Varano baled ahead of time
because you don't need to force a woman to have her, and you're not
stupid. Otherwise you wouldn't be chief counsel for the House of
Parma-Bourbon even if you are the son of a due."

"Grazie, signorina," came his brittle reply. She could envision him
making that slight little aristocratic bow.

"You're welcome." Her brows lifted. "You want to know something really
ironic? We even planned our scheme so that on the last night of our trip
when we unmasked ourselves, we would arrange to do it at a youth hostel
just to prove our point.

"I had no idea it would be this one, though. Our original plan was to
end up on the Spanish Riviera where we would lure our opportunistic
playboys to a hostel, the last place they would think where we were staying.

"Unfortunately nothing went the way we expected and I was denied the fun
of telling one of those losers, 'Sorry. No money. No tiara. What? You
mean you're taking back your proposal? Well don't go away mad. Just go
away.'"

His expression had darkened as if there'd been a total

178

eclipse of the sun. "What if one of those...losers hadn't bailed?"

She laughed. "The kind of men we planned to target were safe bets. But
wearing the pendants threw a monkey wrench in the works. Are you
familiar with that expression?

"I can see that you are," she said when there was no answer. "The point
is, we never did have a chance to meet a real playboy. All we've met up
with so far is the good old boy network. Its members don't count."

"So there's an age?"

"Absolutely."

"How old's Don?"

Don. Again?

"He's the right age, but he's not a playboy. He's a fine man who wants
to marry me and have a family. Six little boys who will all grow up to
be football players."

"What's wrong with that?"

"Not a thing if you love football, which I don't mind. Sometimes it can
be pretty exciting. But I'd prefer not to be looked at as a breeder."

"Breeder?"

"So-there is one vagary about American English you haven't run into yet.
You have no idea how pleased I am to hear that. Piper complains that Nic
claims to know everything about everything."

"You were saying?" he reminded her in a gruff tone.

"I was saying that I would prefer to be looked upon as a woman first.
Complete. Total, in and of myself! I mean, what if I couldn't have
children? Would that suddenly make me less desirable in his eyes? And
even if I could turn out a football team for Don, what if they were
girls instead of boys? Heaven forbid! Who would watch the football games
with him in his old age?"

One of Max's black brows dipped. "A minute ago you

179

told me you wanted to give me wonderful, brilliant babies like their
father."

"That was different. You were kissing me and telling me you wanted me
with a hunger beyond comprehension. You had no expectations except to
enjoy me like a piece of chocolate. I liked that. You weren't looking at
me as the mother of creation."

His eyes narrowed on her face. "But you admit you'd like to be a mother
one day."

"Well, yes. One day. Of course by the time I'm ready to get married,
I'll probably end up with someone who's been divorced and has children
of his own."

"I thought you wanted to marry me."

"I do," she said honestly, "but I also have brains in my head, and eyes
that can see you're not for sale at any price. Otherwise you would have
married a woman of your own station and breeding years ago."

"You're right. There's a reason why I didn't."

"I'm sure it was a good one," Greer asserted. "Tragedy is no respecter
of persons."

"Tragedy?"

"Yes. You're the one who said some wounds weren't visible. I got the
impression you were trying to tell me something. You truly are Signore
Mysterioso.

"However there are things about you I do know. For one thing you're not
a man who plays around with other women while your wife is home trying
desperately hard to pretend it doesn't bother her.

"For another, you don't take advantage of foolish virgins. On the
contrary, you rush about saving them from a fate worse than death while
they're trying to make an escape on their bicycles.

"Furthermore, I don't think you're the type to carry on with married
women behind their husbands' backs. You

180

don't need to when every eligible maiden in Parma would sell her soul to
be the woman in your life.

"All in all I think you're quite a rarity, Signore di Varano. For a man
that is. And now it's time for me to go find my sisters. We have a plane
to catch."

He shook his handsome head. "Not quite yet. By now they're aboard the
Piccione waiting for you."

"For such an honorable man I must say it was very cruel of you to
welcome us to the family in front of your parents and relatives after
Signore Moretti told that lie about our pendants. For that I will never
forgive you." But really she just couldn't forgive him for not loving her.

"Careful, signorina-sometimes all is not as it seems."

"Meaning what?" she grumbled.

"I'll let Nic tell you this evening while we enjoy our meal on deck."

"And then will you give us our freedom?"

"I will do better than that. When the celebration is over, I swear an
oath on the graves of your beloved parents I'll take you wherever you
wish to go."

She didn't think the mention of her mother and father was a subject Max
would bring up if he weren't being sincere.

"Very well then. I'm ready."

He opened the door of the dorm and escorted her down the hall to the
stairs. "Do you know one of the many things I find fascinating about you
is your ability to travel light?"

"Normally I don't," she said as they left the hostel. H§helped her into
his car parked around the side.

After they'd driven off he turned to her. "The point is, you're adaptable."

"I am when I'm running for my life." His

deep chuckle resonated to the tips of her toes. "That was some
disappearing act you did off the balcony."

181

"Did the three of you tape our escape and then watch reruns until you'd
decided we'd had enough sleep?"

"No, signorina. We waited in the limousine to spirit you back to the
boat for a midnight supper."

She couldn't help laughing at that admission. "Which Luc prepared of
course."

"Actually it was Marcel, one of their chefs who wasn't very happy no one
showed up to eat his masterpiece."

Uh-oh. "How did you find us?"

"Luc saw you on TV enjoying yourselves with a bunch of hormone-riddled
fans. They were so taken with you, Nic had to get the police to threaten
them with jail time before they would admit where you'd gone."

"You're kidding! They were very nice to us."

"That's only natural since they expected to join up with you tonight for
more fun and excitement."

She bit her lip. "They fed us breakfast."

He gave her that wounded look again. "All along, my cousins and I have
been prepared to see to your needs."

"Unfortunately we didn't know until a little while ago that we weren't
going to be served up as the main course to fill your needs."

His rich male laughter filled the interior.

"Whose idea was it to serve us petrified bread in the Colorno jail?
Remember you are under oath, counselor."

"That was different."

If all traces of Greer's heart hadn't disappeared, his grin would have
made it flip-flop as they wound their way to the port. Everywhere she
looked, the rich and famous were dancing the night away to music coming
from the dozens of nearby yachts and boats.

Monaco was in full party gala. So was the festive deck of the Piccione.
The boat sat sheltered beneath one of the many blue canopies. She
discovered her sisters and Max's

182

cousins sat eating with an unexpected dark-haired guest who bore a
superficial resemblance to Luc.

When Max introduced her, the man who appeared to be in his midtwenties
got up to shake her hand.

"Greer Duchess, meet my younger cousin, Cesar. You will know him as
Cesar Villon."

Villon? Her gaze flitted to Olivia's in confusion.

"He's Luc's younger brother," her sister murmured, looking completely dazed.

"The race car driver-" Greer cried softly. That meant-

"Oui, mademoiselle."

"But if your last name's Falcon?"

"It is, but Villon is another family name I use on the track." He exuded
the same devilish charm of all the Falcon men.

"I see. My sister is a great fan of yours. It's a thrill to meet you. We
saw you whiz by the stand early this morning. How did you fare in the
race over all?"

"I came in second."

"That's fantastic. Congratulations."

"Merci. At first I was not happy about it, but since Luc introduced me
to your sister, I have discovered all is not lost. She wanted to wait
until you arrived, but now that you are here, we're going to move on to
a club where a party is being held in my honor. I would like it very
much if you joined us."

"Perhaps later, Cesar," Max answered for her. "Right now Signorina Greer
and I have a little celebrating of our own to do."

"Ah oui?"

Everyone's gaze swerved to Max. Greer couldn't imagine what he was
talking about, but when she turned to him, he was staring pointedly at
Nic. "Did you tell them yet?"

"No. As Cesar said, we were waiting for you."

183

"We're here now." Max helped Greer to a place next to Piper, then he sat
down next to her, keeping his arm around the back of her deck chair. She
could feel his heat through the material of her T-shirt. It melted her
insides till they ran like butter.

Nic's Castilian white smile gleamed in the candlelight. Luc's dashing
features on the other hand were as somber and remote as she'd ever seen
them.

"Senoritas, when Fabio Moretti announced that one of you was wearing an
original pendant like the one in the Maria-Luigia collection that is
missing, it wasn't a lie to smoke out the thief."

Her sisters gasped, but Greer jerked her head around to stare at her
host for verification.

"It's true," Max claimed. "Therefore, it's entirely possible that you
are our distant cousins. In time Nic will solve that particular mystery.
For the present we intend to catch the people responsible for the theft.
That's one of the reasons why I said welcome to the family. But there is
one more."

Suddenly he grasped her hand so that everyone could see. His actions
caused a pounding in her chest that almost knocked her off the chair.

"As I told Greer the other day, life plays strange tricks. Once a long
time ago it played a bad one on me. Then very recently, while I was
defending a court case in the House of Lords, life played a good trick
when I received a phone call from Signore Galli at Genoa airport.

"To make a long story short, it brought Greer Duchess into my life. I
knew I loved her the moment I first laid eyes on her in the San Giorgio
church."

He was there?

"But I wasn't sure she would have me if she knew I couldn't give her
children. An old soccer injury put my spleen out of commission and that
was that."

184

Greer's breath caught, but she couldn't stop the tears that welled in
her eyes for the disappointment he'd had to suffer knowing he couldn't
father children.

"Tonight she took away my fear and asked me to be her husband."

"Greer!" Her sisters sounded ecstatic.

"I hope that's a sign of approval," he kept talking, "because I'd like
everyone here to know I've accepted her proposal."

Max-

"No details have been worked out yet. No date has been set. We need the
rest of the vacation on board the Piccione to get to know each other. To
my knowledge we haven't even shared a meal together."

His gaze swerved to her sisters. "Since your parents aren't here, do I
have your permission to marry her? I know this must come as an enormous
shock."

Olivia shook her head. "No, it doesn't."

"Not at all," Piper concurred. "We knew it was a fait accompli when we
caught her kissing you in the stateroom."

"She just doesn't do things like that," Olivia confided.

"The minute we heard she dived into the Splendido pool to join you, we
realized our plan had worked and it was only a matter of time."

Greer froze in place. "What do you mean your plan worked?"

"Who do you think gave Daddy the idea for the Husband Fund?" Olivia said.

"Until you caved first, there was never any hope for us. Since you've
always been the cautious one, we decided something drastic had to be done."

"You're kidding! You mean from the very beginning, you let me believ-"

"If everyone will excuse us," Max interrupted, pulling

185

her straight out of the chair into his arms. "I'd like to take my
fiancee below and make this official."

When they reached the stairs he crushed her against him, kissing her
passionately. "You know I love you," he whispered against her lips. "I
wanted you for my wife when I first saw you in the church. My life would
be nothing without you, Greer."

"Now you tell me," she teased. "But since you've demanded so nicely..."

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Falling in love with an Italian aristocrat...

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The Husband Fund:

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03819