Prince Charming Can Wait (Ever After) Read online

  Prince

  Charming

  Can Wait

  ***

  Ever After

  Book Three

  Stephanie Rowe

  "Rowe is a paranormal star!" ~J.R. Ward

  ***

  Praise for Darkness Unleashed

  "Once more, award winning author Stephanie Rowe pens a winner with DARKNESS UNLEASHED, the seventh book in her amazing ORDER OF THE BLADE series…[an] action-packed, sensual story that will keep you perched on the edge of your seat, eagerly turning pages to discover the outcome…one of the best paranormal books I have read this year." ~Dottie, Romancejunkies.com

  ***

  Praise for Forever in Darkness

  “Stephanie Rowe has done it again. The Order Of The Blade series is one of the best urban fantasy/paranormal series I have read. Ian's story held me riveted from page one. It is sure to delight all her fans. Keep them coming!” ~ Alexx Mom Cat's Gateway Book Blog

  ***

  Praise for Darkness Awakened

  “A fast-paced plot with strong characters, blazing sexual tension and sprinkled with witty banter, Darkness Awakened sucked me in and kept me hooked until the very last page.” ~ Literary Escapism

  “Rarely do I find a book that so captivates my attention, that makes me laugh out loud, and cry when things look bad. And the sex, wow! It took my breath away... The pace kept me on the edge of my seat, and turning the pages. I did not want to put this book down... [Darkness Awakened] is a must read.” ~ D. Alexx Miller, Alexx Mom Cat’s Gateway Book Blog

  ***

  Praise for Darkness Seduced

  “[D]ark, edgy, sexy … sizzles on the page…sex with soul shattering connections that leave the reader a little breathless!...Darkness Seduced delivers tight plot lines, well written, witty and lyrical - Rowe lays down some seriously dark and sexy tracks. There is no doubt that this series will have a cult following. ” ~ Guilty Indulgence Book Club

  “I was absolutely enthralled by this book…heart stopping action fueled by dangerous passions and hunky, primal men…If you’re looking for a book that will grab hold of you and not let go until it has been totally devoured, look no further than Darkness Seduced.”~When Pen Met Paper Reviews

  ***

  Praise for Darkness Surrendered

  “Book three of the Order of the Blades series is…superbly original and excellent, yet the passion, struggle and the depth of emotion that Ana and Elijah face is so brutal, yet is also pretty awe inspiring. I was swept away by Stephanie’s depth of character detail and emotion. I absolutely loved the roller-coaster that Stephanie, Ana and Elijah took me on.” ~ Becky Johnson, Bex ‘n’ Books!

  “Darkness Surrendered drew me so deeply into the story that I felt Ana and Elijah’s emotions as if they were my own…they completely engulfed me in their story…Ingenious plot turns and edge of your seat suspense…make Darkness Surrendered one of the best novels I have read in years.” ~Tamara Hoffa, Sizzling Hot Book Reviews

  ***

  Praise for No Knight Needed

  “No Knight Needed is m-a-g-i-c-a-l! Hands down, it is one of the best romances I have read. I can’t wait till it comes out and I can tell the world about it.” ~Sharon Stogner, Love Romance Passion

  “No Knight Needed is contemporary romance at its best….There was not a moment that I wasn’t completely engrossed in the novel, the story, the characters. I very audibly cheered for them and did not shed just one tear, nope, rather bucket fulls. My heart at times broke for them. The narrative and dialogue surrounding these ‘tender’ moments in particular were so beautifully crafted, poetic even; it was this that had me blubbering. And of course on the flip side of the heart-wrenching events, was the amazing, witty humour….If it’s not obvious by now, then just to be clear, I love this book! I would most definitely and happily reread, which is an absolute first for me in this genre.”~Becky Johnson, Bex ‘N’ Books

  “No Knight Needed is an amazing story of love and life…I literally laughed out loud, cried and cheered.... No Knight Needed is a must read and must re-read.”Jeanne Stone-Hunter, My Book Addiction Reviews

  Acknowledgements

  Special thanks to my beta readers, who always work incredibly hard under tight deadlines to get my books read. I appreciate so much your willingness to tell me when something doesn't work! I treasure your help, and I couldn't do this without you. Hugs to you all!

  There are so many to thank by name, more than I could count, but here are those who I want to called out specially for all they did to help this book come to life: Alencia Bates, Jean Bowden, Shell Bryce, Kelley Currey, Holly Collins, Ashley Cuesta, Denise Fluhr, Valerie Glass, Heidi Hoffman, Jeanne Hunter, Dottie Jones, Janet Juengling-Snell, Deb Julienne, Bridget Koan, Felicia Low, Phyllis Marshall, Jodi Moore, Judi Pflughoeft, Emily Recchia, Kasey Richardson, Karen Roma, Caryn Santee, Dana Simmons, Julie Simpson, Summer Steelman, Amanda Tamayo, Nicole Telhiard, Linda Watson, and Denise Whelan.

  And lastly, thank you to Pete Davis at Los Zombios for another fantastic cover, and for all his hard work on the technical side to make this book come to life, and for the most amazing website. Mom, you're the best. It means so much that you believe in me. I love you. Special thanks also to my amazing, beautiful, special daughter, who I love more than words could ever express. You are my world, sweet girl, in all ways.

  Dedication

  For all the non-biological families created by adoption, remarriages, and other beautiful ways of coming together. Family is created through the heart and the soul.

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Praise for Stephanie Rowe

  Acknowledgements

  Dedication

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Sneak Peek: No Knight Needed

  Sneak Peek: Ice

  Sneak Peek: Darkness Awakened

  Sneak Peek: Darkness Unleashed

  Stephanie Rowe Bio

  Select List of Other Books

  Copyright Page

  Chapter One

  The night was finally dark enough.

  Harlan Shea eased through the thick jungle, moving in precise and lethal silence. The air was heavy and wet, and insects buzzed around his head. But he didn't react to them. He just kept his focus on the decrepit, dark shack sitting alone in the hostile zone. His right hand was locked around the heavy knife that was the only weapon he dared use in the dangerous stillness of the night.

  Even a silencer would be too loud, with the kidnappers just on the other side of the trees, reveling in the fact that their ransom demand had been agreed to.

  Or so they thought.

  Behind him, he could feel the breath of his teammate Blue Carboni, but the other male was equally undetectable as they slipped into the deepest shadows of a land that didn't welcome people like them: mercenaries who worked for no government. They were private hires who snuck in and plucked the bounty from the hands of kidnappers before anyone even knew they were there. The last hope for families who had nowhere else to turn.

  He damn well never got tired of that moment when strung-out families got their first sighting of the person they'd feared they would never see again.

 
Harlan reached the front door and looked over his shoulder.

  Blue's face was painted black, and his clothes were dark. In the darkness, the whites of his eyes glowed brightly, but everything else about him faded into the night. Blue grinned nodded his readiness.

  Two men were not enough for this job, but as usual, it was all that could be afforded by the client. In Harlan's world, clients wanted miracles for nothing, and he and Blue had to find a way to deliver and keep themselves alive in the process. Not easy, but what else was he going to do? This was who he was.

  Harlan eased the front door open, and then leapt inside, striking before his presence could be detected. The man standing guard slumped to the ground, not expecting the attack. Harlan caught him before he hit the floor, and there was a muffled scream. Harlan glanced across the room as the young woman cowered against the wall, hugging a small boy to her chest, shackles binding them both. They were covered in dirt, and their eyes were wide with terror.

  For a split second, Harlan could only stare at them, the sight of the mother protecting her boy catapulting him back into his past. How many times had that been him with his stepmother, cringing against the wall as his father lurched through the door, ready to punish the world for the hell he was living? Memories raked at Harlan, and the woman scrambled backward away from him, dragging the boy with her. "Stay away from us," she hissed. "Get away!"

  Harlan blinked as her panic jerked him back to the present, and he shook his head to dismiss her fears. "We're here to rescue you," he told her as he shoved the dead guard out of the way. He moved swiftly toward them, but she scrambled even further back, not trusting him. He stopped, unable to risk her getting scared and raising an alarm. "Keep quiet," he warned. "We're on your side."

  "Stay back!" She held up a small knife she'd gotten from who the hell knew where. "I won't let you touch him."

  Shit! They didn't have time for this!

  "Hey." Blue moved past him, heading directly toward the victims. "My name's Blue Carboni. Your dad hired us. Let's go."

  Instantly, the resistance seemed to leave the woman. She shoved the knife into her pocket, trusting Blue without further words. Shit. What was up with that? It happened this way every damn time. The victims ran from Harlan and threw themselves into Blue's arms. No one seemed to believe Harlan was one of the good guys until Blue reassured them.

  Not that he cared whether anyone liked him, but sometimes it was a pain in the ass to have to wait for Blue to calm everyone down.

  As Blue knelt before the duo, skillfully freeing them from their shackles, Harlan turned away from the tearful rescue, easing back to the door and watching outside for signs that they had been heard. There was still low conversation and celebration from the kidnappers, but Harlan didn't buy it.

  The shadows near the cabin were too still. They'd missed someone.

  Blue came up behind him with the woman and the boy, but Harlan held up his hand to still them. Everyone froze, and Harlan searched the night. Then he saw a slight movement in the bushes to the right of the cabin. The soft brush of footsteps moving carefully. Investigating.

  Harlan indicated with a quick gesture to Blue. They knew the plan.

  They all waited as the footsteps neared. A shadowed silhouette appeared out of the bushes, a rifle raised high, aimed right at the front door. Swearing, Harlan eased back against the wall, Blue and the two victims behind him, using him as a shield.

  They waited, each step taking a lifetime.

  Finally, the front step creaked and a shadow moved across the entry. Harlan reacted quickly, striking hard while Blue and his charges rushed past him, heading for safety. The man's rifle hit the ground, but he got off a shout before Harlan silenced him.

  With a curse, Harlan leapt through the front door. Blue and the others were heading north, but Blue was slowed by his cargo. Harlan knew he had to give them time to get a lead. He took off south, running loudly, breaking branches, drawing the rest of the kidnappers after him. They were on his trail instantly, a good twenty men, too many for him to take on alone.

  He had to outrun them, and give Blue time to get the others to safety.

  Harlan put on a burst of speed, sprinting toward the distant cliff, toward the escape that he'd already mapped out. Bullets sizzled past his shoulder, and he let out a shout, just to let them know they'd almost hit him. It was too dark for them to see he was alone, and he ran hard and long, drawing them farther and farther away from Blue.

  Another shot blistered too close, and he felt the sting on his right arm. Swearing, he bore down, sweat pouring off him as he ran. He fired off a few shots, and shouts of pain told him he'd taken a couple out. Progress. Then he heard the roar of an engine, and knew they'd gone mobile. Not surprising, but not exactly the cooperative bad guys it would have been nice to run into for once.

  He reached the edge of the cliff and ran alongside it, drawing it out for as long as he could. Five minutes. Eight minutes. Over rocks. His lungs burning. Firing behind him as he ran. Seventy feet below him, the river ran hard, churning violently over rocks.

  A bullet bit into his shoulder and he stumbled, hitting the ground.

  Dirt kicked up all around him, and he knew it was time to bail. Not even bothering to get up, he rolled to his left, straight over the edge of the cliff.

  He twisted in the air as he plummeted, as bullets whizzed by him. He just managed to get himself perpendicular as he hit the surface of the water. The impact was brutal, but he immediately kicked back to the surface, fighting for air among the violent rapids. He had just gotten his head above the surface when he hit a rock, his skull cracking against the hard surface.

  Pain rang through him even as he grabbed a log careening past. He locked it under his arms and hung on, fighting with all his draining strength to stay afloat. His mind quickly assessed his options as he was tossed ruthlessly, as the jungle flashed past in a blur. A wave swamped him, ripping him off the log, and he was dragged under, filthy water pouring into his mouth.

  He kicked off a rock, and launched himself to the surface. His injured shoulder slammed into another rock, and then he was thrust again into the middle of the river.

  With a roar of fury, Harlan fought for the shore, losing half his progress with each yard he gained. It felt like hours, days, years, but finally, he was almost there. His feet hit solid ground and he threw himself onto the mud. He landed face down and didn't move, gasping for breath, his muscles spent beyond exhaustion, his shoulder throbbing.

  There was no sound of an approaching helicopter coming to pick him up. He'd gone miles past where they'd be looking for him. The only sound was the roar of the river, overwhelming all other noise.

  As he lay there, a grim awareness began to dawn on him, his mind filling with a memory that had been triggered by the woman huddling protectively with her son, like his stepmother had done with him so many times. An image flashed into his mind, a memory of the night so many years ago when he'd gone out into the woods behind his house, trying to find the family dog that had gone missing. How he'd come across his father, face down. Dead. His leg was broken, and he'd been unable to walk for help. So he'd lain there in those woods until he'd died.

  He'd been dead for weeks, and no one had gone looking for him, not even Harlan.

  No one had wanted to look for him. No one in the whole damn town had wanted to find him. Not even his own son. But the sight of that old man crumpled in the woods, forgotten in death, had been brutal.

  His father had lived for sixty-one years, and he'd died a nothing. No one had cared.

  As Harlan lay there, sucked into the grisly reminders of his past, he became grimly aware that if he died here, on the bank of this river, no one would know. No one would care. He'd never turned in a next of kin form, so the small-time private outfit he worked for had no one to call if he didn't come home from work today.

  Even his sister wouldn't know. He barely knew Astrid, though they lived in the same town now. Even she would have no idea what happen
ed to him, and probably wouldn't even notice for a long time that he was missing.

  Just like his father.

  Son of a bitch.

  He would not die forgotten like that scum had.

  He would not.

  With a growl of pain, Harlan shoved himself to his feet, staggering with weakness. Gritting his jaw against exhaustion and pain, he began to head up the river. He was going to make it home, and when he did, he was going to tell Astrid what he did all those times when he was out of town.

  Someone had to know.

  Someone had to know enough to notice when he died.

  ***

  "Congratulations!"

  Emma Larson blinked in surprise as she walked in the front door of the charming lakeside home of her friend Astrid Munroe...now Astrid Sarantos. Astrid had called her over at the last minute to babysit her infant Rosie, but instead of a baby, Emma was greeted with dozens of helium balloons, streamers, and the grinning faces of her two best friends, Clare Friesé and Astrid. She stopped in confusion. "What is this?"

  Astrid's outrageous auburn hair was tucked up in a colorful scarf, and she held up a champagne bottle. "Girl power, sweetie. You survived!"

  Emma was still confused. The dark wood beams had glittering stars hanging from them, and the huge stone fireplace was draped with a rainbow-colored "Congratulations" banner. "Survived what?"

  Clare held out two champagne glasses as Astrid popped the cork. It careened across the living room and smashed into the ceiling. "Getting divorced, of course!"

  "Getting divorced?" Emma echoed as Astrid poured the champagne into the glasses. She'd just received the final paperwork from the court in the mail that afternoon, but she hadn't even told her friends that she'd received it. She'd been back in Birch Crossing for more than two years, but the divorce had dragged out for a long time. Now that it was over, celebration was not what she'd had on her mind. It still felt too weird, not exactly celebratory. Yes, her ex-husband was not a good man, but to have the final nail in the coffin of your dreams was a strange, desolate feeling. "How did you know?"