Scandal With a Prince Read Free Page B

chocolate is my favorite.   And second, I ate far too much of the main course and need time to digest. You spoil me."
    “Impossible.   It was only halibut.”  
    “No dish is ‘only’ with you, Santi.   It’s why you were hired.”
    Santi ignored the compliment and swirled a beefy hand in front of her face.   “Your expression says that something is amiss.   Tell me.”
    She shook off his words even as he said them.   “You know better than that.   It’s only that duty calls before dessert.   I need to ensure the fireworks team is ready before we send the guests upstairs."
    Santi gave her an exaggerated look of doubt, then made her promise to meet with him in the next few days to share any comments she heard about the meal.   "It's good for business to know what our guests desire,” he explained quietly.  
    "It's also good for your ego.”
    He shrugged one shoulder, the casual gesture in contrast to the sudden seriousness of his gaze, which traveled beyond her.   “I was not expecting royalty tonight.   But if I can satisfy him…well, again, it would be very good for business.   It is good that he is here.”
    His words were a revelation.   She needed to view Stefano much as Santi did, not as a powerful man to be feared or as the sexy father of her child to be desired, but as a business prospect.  
    “I’ll get feedback once the speech is over, then meet you tomorrow afternoon to discuss everything."   She grinned at the chef.   "If it makes you feel better, why don’t you send a few slices of leftover mandarin cake up to my suite?   I’ll enjoy it when this is all over, and you know Anna would be over the moon.”
    He waggled his eyebrows to indicate that he'd already done so.   At that moment, the manager finished his dinner speech to thunderous applause, so Megan excused herself and slipped out the ballroom doors while Santi returned to the kitchen.
    Once free of the dining room, she paused to inhale deeply of the lobby’s fragrant blooms in an effort to clear her head and focus her energy on making the rest of the evening a success.   She could dwell on her run-in with Stefano tomorrow.   Resolved, she removed a stray cocktail napkin from one of the lobby tables, tossed it into the trash, then crossed to the elevator and punched the button for the roof deck.   Halfway up, she bit back a curse and hit the button for the twentieth floor.
    While she'd done what she could to protect herself, she needed to protect Anna.
    The door to her suite flew open at the same time she slid her key card into the lock.   A smiling face greeted her.   “Mom!”
    She couldn’t help but laugh at Anna’s exuberance.   “What in the world are you doing?”
    “I heard the elevator ding and figured it was you.   Santi sent us a ton of dessert!”   Anna let go of the door to race toward the suite’s small kitchen.   “Come see!   Or did you have some already?”
    Sure enough, the dark granite countertop was covered in beautifully plated slices of white cake topped with Santi’s signature mandarin orange sauce and garnished with strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries.   “Santi deserves a thank you note later,” Megan informed her daughter.  
    “I know.   I’ll write one tomorrow morning.”   Anna climbed onto one of the barstools at the counter’s edge and eyed the cake. She tucked her thick hair behind her ears, then looked up, her green eyes pleading.   “Grandma said I could have a slice after I finish my homework, but it’s going to take forever.   Do you think I could have half a piece, since my homework’s halfway done?   It’s not even due until Thursday.   Please?”
    “I’m not going to overrule Grandma,” Megan said.  
    “Ha!” Bill Hallberg’s voice came from the sitting area around the corner from the kitchen.   “Told you, Anna.”
    “But Grandpa—”
    “Oh, fine,” Megan’s mother, Joan Hallberg, said as she walked into the kitchen, waving a