How to Turn a Frog into a Prince - Bree Wolf Page 0,4

all right with him. It seemed, at present, he was unable to join in the joy clearly written on their faces.

Involuntarily, his gaze dropped…and came to rest upon the small, emerald ring resting upon Becca’s delicate finger. It felt like a knife had been run through his heart, and he couldn’t quite manage to keep that muscle in his jaw from twitching furiously.

Had it always done this? Or had it been Abigail’s betrayal that had brought it about?

“I’m so sorry,” Becca mumbled, her eyes soft and filled with sadness by the time Nathanial managed to look up once more. Her fingers twirled his father’s ring gently. “I will not wear it if it pains you,” she assured him. “I…I had not thought…”

For the first time that day, Zach’s face betrayed a sense of unease as he met Nathanial’s gaze. “Yes, Brother, please, tell us truthfully. You wrote that…but I didn’t stop to think that…” He swallowed hard.

Nathanial sighed. Neither did I.

In his initial letter, Nathanial had not only asked Zach to retrieve the ring, but he had also told him to give it to the woman of his choice. Still, it seemed neither one of them had considered what it would be like for Nathanial to see the ring he’d once given to Abigail upon the finger of his brother’s new bride.

Seeing it now, Nathanial couldn’t help but wonder what life would be like if Abigail had not given it away. Would they be married now? Would they be happy? Or would they have realized by now that what had been between them had not been enough? At least not for her?

Nathanial smiled at his new sister-in-law, doing his best to push away the bitterness that threatened to lace his words. “Keep it, dear Sister. May it bring you and my brother the same happiness that our parents found with each other.”

“Thank you, Nathanial.” A warm smile lit up Becca’s face. Then she drew in a deep breath, and the left corner of her mouth quirked ever so slightly. “We have a toad in our pond, and I’ve named her Abigail. I thought the name was fitting.”

Although Becca’s outright manner caught him off guard, Nathanial could not help but crack a small smile. “It does, indeed.”

Perhaps Zach had chosen wisely after all and would be happy for all the days to come.

Nathanial prayed it would be so.

Chapter Two

From Jamaica to England

England looked like a garment that had once shone in bright and vibrant colors, but which had since been washed away, leaving behind something utterly colorless.

Stepping out onto the deck of the Lady Charlotte, Charlaine Palmer lifted her gaze to the gray skies overhead, wondering if it would rain again. Thick, dark clouds lingered, blocking her view of the clear blue heavens she knew from her homeland. The wind blew strong, its chilling fingers touching her skin and raising goosebumps in its wake, making her pull her cloak tighter around herself.

So, this was it.

The place Peter had wanted her to go.

Drawing in a deep breath, Charlaine followed the other passengers as they headed toward the gangway that would lead them off the ship. Every now and then, eyes turned to her and she felt them sweep over her appearance with unabashed disapproval. Although Peter’s old friend, Pierce Byrne, Baron Markham, had provided her with every luxury she could have wished for, including a new wardrobe, Charlaine knew that one look at her sufficed to reveal her as an outsider.

Never would she be one of them.

Never would English upper society look upon her favorably.

And she had yet to set foot on England’s soil.

Indeed, she could act the perfect lady and, yet, all they would see was her ebony hair, her skin and eyes that were unlike their own. She was a foreigner, born and raised in Jamaica, a place that even after all she had lost still meant home to her. Never had she been anywhere else, a simple life in a small village with those she loved all she had ever wanted.

Only now they were gone.

Peter, too.

The thought of her dear brother-in-law still brought a tightening to Charlaine’s chest that reminded her only too well of the loss of her family years earlier. A sickness had swept through their village, claiming one life after another, until Peter had been the only one left to Charlaine. He had been born English and come to Jamaica as an officer in the Royal Navy. He had never meant to stay until the day