The Prince's Forbidden Cinderella

KIM LAWRENCE lives on a farm in Anglesey with her university-lecturer husband, assorted pets who arrived as strays and never left, and sometimes one or both of her boomerang sons. When she’s not writing, she loves to be outdoors gardening or walking on one of the beaches for which the island is famous—along with being the place where Prince William and Catherine made their first home! Books by Kim Lawrence A Passionate Night with the Greek Claimed by Her Greek Boss Jet-Set Billionaires Innocent in the Sicilian’s Palazzo Spanish Secret Heirs The Spaniard’s Surprise Love-Child Claiming His Unknown Son A Ring from a Billionaire Waking Up in His Royal Bed The Italian’s Bride on Paper Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk. The Prince’s Forbidden Cinderella Kim Lawrence www.millsandboon.co.uk ISBN: 978-0-008-92856-8 THE PRINCE’S FORBIDDEN CINDERELLA © 2023 by Kim Lawrence Published in Great Britain 2023by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental. 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Trademarks marked with ® are registered with the United Kingdom Patent Office and/or the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market and in other countries. www.millsandboon.co.uk Note to Readers This ebook contains the following accessibility features which, if supported by your device, can be accessed via your ereader/accessibility settings: Change of font size and line height Change of background and font colours Change of font Change justification Text to speech The loss of control was dangerous, because the woman who had instigated this kiss was in his employ. Kate worked for him. Marco had crossed a line and didn’t even bother rationalizing it because it was a waste of energy. Instead, he went into damage control mode. It wouldn’t happen again, he told himself. The few extra feet of physical distance he created seemed a sensible backup plan. When she spoke, he registered she sounded dazed, appalled even. “Did I start that?” Could her action have been construed as an invitation to whatever was supposed to follow? She had no words to describe the kiss. She hadn’t known a kiss could feel like that, that she could feel want and need in her bones and skin, right to the soles of her feet. “Yes, but I finished it, and it is...” he said, his steely eyes seeking and finding hers, “...finished.” He said it for his benefit as much as hers. For Sally, who dedicated her birthday to raising money for a cause close to my heart. Thank you! Contents Cover About the Author Booklist Title Page Copyright Note to Readers Introduction Dedication CHAPTER ONE CHAPTER TWO CHAPTER THREE CHAPTER FOUR CHAPTER FIVE CHAPTER SIX CHAPTER SEVEN CHAPTER EIGHT CHAPTER NINE CHAPTER TEN CHAPTER ELEVEN EPILOGUE Extract About the Publisher CHAPTER ONE RENZOI WAS OFTEN referred to as a jewel, and it was rare for those enjoying their first glimpse of the island kingdom from the air to disagree. There was one airport on the island, and the coastal route from the international airport hub to the walled city capital of Fort St Boniface was considered by many to be one of the most beautiful stretches of road in the world, beloved by film crews over the years, and by those with a head for heights, the nerves for hairpin bends, and a love of dramatic seascapes. Many travellers who arrived on the island took the less dizzying option of a transfer on one of the water taxis that ferried their passengers across the glittering waters of the grand harbour. You could no longer gawp at the luxury yachts moored in the deep water as they were now floating, with their billionaire occupants, in a brand-new purpose-built marina on the opposite side of the island, contributing to the island’s thriving economy and reputation as a haunt for the rich and famous. These days the only obstacles to negotiate on the short crossing were a few sailing and fishing boats. Part of the charm of St Boniface was that it remained a working harbour. The short crossing offered the best view of the walled capital with its towers and domes. Dramatic though the capital’s architecture was, it was the royal palace centrepiece, rising like the top tier of a wedding cake above the medieval sprawl of picturesque narrow streets and cobbled squares, that everyone wanted to be snapped outside. In daylight hours the sparkling stretch of water swarmed with brightly painted speedboats. Even as the sun was replaced by stars and a full moon, several continued to work the stretch, ferrying groups of eager tourists staring with wonder at the illuminated fairy-tale castle with its dramatic dome and myriad towers. One such vessel held no tourists,