Cinderella's Forbidden Prince


 
 
 
 He grinned at her.
 Her heart seemed to skip a beat at the warmth of his smile. Her reaction was wholly inappropriate for the situation and she had to ignore how attractive the man was. He was her client. Not to mention a prince.
 “I felt the same way when I first saw the caves. Come around here, please,” he said, indicating his side of the table where schematics were laid out in front of him. “This shows where the caves are on Adysarina island. My favorite sculpture is in this cave.” He indicated with his finger. “Cave six. It’s a little bit off the beaten path, so if we did open it to the public, we would have to create a new roadway. I think it will be worth it. We could start with it, but I think I’ll build up your anticipation before I take you there.”
 “Oh, will you be coming with me?”
 Her heart started to race again at the thought of getting to talk with him, hear his ideas and stories about the island, laugh with him, be close to him.
 
 
 Dear Reader,
 One of my favorite parts of being an author is all the research I get to do. I loved exploring Priya’s passion for her work as a conservator. I only wish some of the caves and murals I describe in Cinderella’s Forbidden Prince existed. But the Ajanta and Ellora Caves are fortunately real. I was a teenager when I saw the awe-inspiring paintings and rock-cut sculptures. They really are incredible. A return visit is definitely on my travel list.
 I’ve always wanted to write about royalty, so I was really excited to have the chance to write a Cinderella story set on a fictional island kingdom.
 With Priya and Rohan’s story, I wanted to fully embrace the fairy tale. Priya has grown up believing she isn’t worthy of being loved. She needs someone open with his feelings to show her that isn’t true. Rohan is the strong, honorable prince ready to do his duty for the improvement of his country. Their connection is instantaneous, but at times it seems as though they aren’t ultimately destined to be together. It takes a strong couple like Priya and Rohan to fight together for the future they deserve.
 I hope you enjoy my modern fairy tale.
 Love,
 Ruby
 
 
 Cinderella’s Forbidden Prince
 Ruby Basu
 
 
 
 Ruby Basu lives in the beautiful Chilterns with her husband, two children and the cutest dog in the world. She worked for many years as a lawyer and policy lead in the civil service. As the second of four children, Ruby connected strongly with Little Women’s Jo March and was scribbling down stories from a young age. She loves creating new characters and worlds.
 Books by Ruby Basu
 Harlequin Romance
 Baby Surprise for the Millionaire
 Visit the Author Profile page at Harlequin.com for more titles.
 
 
 For Dev and El, who are my world
 
 
 Contents
 CHAPTER ONE
 CHAPTER TWO
 CHAPTER THREE
 CHAPTER FOUR
 CHAPTER FIVE
 CHAPTER SIX
 CHAPTER SEVEN
 CHAPTER EIGHT
 CHAPTER NINE
 CHAPTER TEN
 CHAPTER ELEVEN
 CHAPTER TWELVE
 CHAPTER THIRTEEN
 CHAPTER FOURTEEN
 CHAPTER FIFTEEN
 CHAPTER SIXTEEN
 CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
 CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
 EPILOGUE
 EXCERPT FROM FALLING FOR HER SECRET BILLIONAIRE BY REBECCA WINTERS
 
 
 CHAPTER ONE
 PRIYA SEN REVIEWED her file with the notes detailing the preservation and restoration project for the fourth time that morning. She’d already read them ten times a day since finding out, a week ago, she would be taking over the role of leader of the conservation team working on the murals in the royal palace on Adysara, a little-known island country off the coast of India.
 It was safe to say she already had the information committed to memory. But one last look over wouldn’t hurt.
 It was barely seven o’clock, but Priya had already been up for two hours. She’d woken to the sounds of unfamiliar bird calls.
 It had been late evening when she’d arrived on Adysara the previous day. She’d been exhausted after the fourteen-hour flight from England, followed by a two-hour ferry ride from India. Once she’d finally arrived at the building her co-workers were living in for the duration of the project, she barely had the energy to say hello to the others before flopping onto her bed and falling into a deep sleep.
 She woke up refreshed, rejuvenated and earlier than anyone else. She’d got ready, then rushed outside to breathe the island air. She immediately felt the sense of homecoming she always experienced whenever she was in India. Technically, Adysara wasn’t India and, technically, she was a foreigner, having been born and brought up in England, but something about this place claimed her. She felt like she belonged—something she’d never felt growing up.
 Now, after a quick breakfast of luchi and eggs, she was desperate to get to the palace and have her first look at the murals she’d pored over in photos.
 Her group’s quarters were in a wooded area about a mile’s walk from the palace, no doubt to make sure they were hidden from the view of the royal family. Although the team had a minivan, Priya was too excited to wait an hour until it would depart. Clutching the folder with nervous fingers, she walked towards the palace.
 It was only when the path took her out of the woods she saw the palace up close and personal for the first time. Four storeys of carved granite with large arched windows at every level. It was magnificent—and this was only the side view where the staff entered. She’d seen the front in pictures with its large central marble dome covering an indoor courtyard. The eighteenth-century architecture in the front and rear with its archways and turrets could rival Mysore Palace.
 She held her breath as she walked through the door, half expecting the security guards to apprehend her immediately and remove