Rescuing the Prince

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She’s devoted to helping children. He’s never had to worry about anyone but himself. Can a playboy prince and a social worker get their happily-ever-after?

When Prince Henry Somerset, the third in line to the kingdom of Durham, runs out of gas on a country road, a young woman driving an old truck stops to help him. Beneath her cold demeanor, Henry sees an intriguing woman whom he’d like to know more, but when she recognizes him, she’s quick to ask for his royal sponsorship.

Adrianne Blake is no stranger to disappointment. Now in charge of a pilot program at the community medical center, she’s in dire need of help or dozens of children depending on her will suffer. Despite Prince Henry’s playboy reputation, meeting him could mean the solution she’s been hoping for.

As Adrianne works side by side with Prince Henry to bring success to the program, she realizes there’s more to the man than her first impression. But as problems arise threatening everything she’s worked for, is their new friendship enough to allow their feelings to grow into something more?

You're gonna love this modern take on a sweet royal romance with a bad-boy prince reforming himself trope! Meet the Somersets, heirs to the royal throne of Durham, as they find forever-after love in this contemporary royal romance series. Perfect for fans of Once Upon a Prince,A Christmas Prince, and The Prince & Me!

Henry Somerset pulled the car to the side of the road as it slowed to a stop. He looked at the gas gauge, confirming what he already knew—empty.
Three hours away from the palace and he’d forgotten to fill up the tank. Again. He should have learned his lesson by now and carry a gas can in the trunk, but he’d forgotten that as well.
He looked around him, then grabbed his smart phone. Out of service. Of course. As if one thing wasn’t enough. He wasn’t exactly stranded, but how long would it take before another motorist drove by on this deserted country road?
At least the scenery was worthy of a website feature, with its rolling hills, verdant vegetation, and pristine lake in the far background. Maybe he’d seen it somewhere before, since it seemed vaguely familiar to him. The Crown’s Ministry of Tourism probably used a picture of this place to entice travelers to visit the Kingdom of Durham, well-known for its landscape variety despite the small size of the country.
Or maybe he’d passed by this way before without making a stop. It wasn’t the first time he’d given his bodyguards the slip.
He let out a long breath and passed a hand through his hair. He’d gone for a drive to escape a lecture and would surely get another one when he returned. Just barely twenty-six years old and still getting reprimanded like a teenager. In all honesty, he deserved some of the lectures, not that he would admit it out loud to anyone.
With Alex’s wedding to his American fiancée, and Stefan’s engagement to his finally announced, the pressure was on Henry to settle down like his older brothers, to do something worthwhile. Oliver had his horses, Emma volunteered her time in Castlebridge, and even Charlotte was busy with her literacy efforts in South Africa. His parents, his grandmother, the royal advisers—everyone had something to say on the subject. It didn’t help that his nickname with the press was The Playboy Prince, as if it were his fault the ladies loved him. What could he do but love them back?
The thought brought a wry smile to his lips. He couldn’t help the way he looked any more that he could renounce his birth right. Of the first, he took good advantage; of the latter, he tried to escape his responsibilities often enough.
In truth, he’d been avoiding getting tied up to a charity project. But Mother knew him well and had given him an ultimatum—find something worthwhile to sponsor or she’d find him something herself. And that would be even worse.
He had to find a project, and fast, because Mother would deliver on her threat. Henry had learned his lesson the hard way.
Henry passed a hand over the back of his neck. How could he even begin to find a worthy cause to champion? There were so many to choose from he wouldn’t know where to start or which one needed it most.
Instead of thinking about it, he’d fled the palace, only to land himself in the middle of nowhere on a country road, surrounded by hills and not much else. Someone would eventually come looking for him when he didn’t show up—they always did. All he had to do was wait.
After climbing the closest hill in a fruitless search for cell coverage, he returned to the car and pulled up the hood for the universal sign that he needed help. Should he wait or go looking for the nearest village first? The last one he’d passed had been at least fifty miles before. How much walking would he have to do for the next one? It was only May but the sun beat high and strong, and he didn’t have any water with him. Maybe he’d stay put instead.
He pulled open the passenger side door and sat inside, then reclined the seat all the way down and adjusted his sunglasses. A short power nap wasn’t a bad idea.
When the rumbling sound of a diesel vehicle reached his ears, he sat up, trying to orient himself. With the hood lifted, his vision was obstructed and he couldn’t immediately see from which direction the sound had come. As he stepped out of his car, an older model pick-up truck passed him by on the side of the road without slowing down.
Henry took off after it, waving his arms and yelling at it to stop. Just when he thought he’d lost his chance, the truck stopped with a lurch.
As he approached the passenger-side window, he glimpsed a person wearing denim overalls in the driver seat, and was surprised to find a woman. He’d expected an old man to match the vehicle, not someone young and attractive.
He pushed his sunglasses up his nose. “Hello there,” he said with a smile.
A pair of light brown eyes met his, suspicion and distrust momentarily startling him. Did she fear him? Hoping to dispel any uneasiness, he kept a pleasant expression and lifted his hand in a friendly wave. Quickly, the young woman reached over and pushed on the old-fashioned button to lock the door. The window was rolled down halfway and was probably a manual one or she might have pulled it up already.
Henry took a step back, not wanting to alarm her further.
“Yes?” she finally said. “Can I help you?”
Her voice had a low timbre, the kind he liked to hear in whispered conversations. He was used to such tones from sophisticated women dressed in short skirts, women who affected their voices on purpose to sound sexy. From the way she dressed, he had a feeling the driver at the wheel was not that kind of woman.
Henry gestured back at his car. “I ran out of gas and my phone is out of service.”
“There’s never service in this area,” she replied matter-of-factly.
She wore a black T-shirt under the overalls and her hair had come loose from the low ponytail at the back of her neck. Her hair was a honey color between dark blonde and light brown, and her eyes were not light brown as he’d initially thought, but an unusual shade of green in the early afternoon sunlight bouncing inside the cab.
“I’m Henry. And you are?”
“In a hurry,” she said in a flat tone.
Henry hid a smirk. She had spunk and her eyes shone with a hint of defiance. His interest rose. When was the last time he’d met a woman who didn’t trip over herself to please him? All the women he met did.
But not this one, and he wanted to know more about her. If she’d let him.
As he looked around, his eyes fell on a couple of gas canisters in the open back of her pick-up. “You wouldn’t happen to have any gas in these cans, would you?”
“One has diesel and the other one is empty,” she said in the same tone as before. “Look, I can call someone for you when I get to Little Wengert. I happen to know they have cell service there.”
“How far is Little Wengert from here?”
“For me, about a half hour. For others, five to ten minutes longer than that.” There was that boldness again.
Henry quickly calculated the distance. “If you call someone for me, it’ll take them almost four hours before they show up. But if you give me a ride to the gas station to fill up that canister, I can be on my way in one hour or less.” He added a smile at the end, the kind that had always worked to get him out of tough spots.
“That crooked grin is not going to work on me.” She rolled her eyes then reached for the gear stick. “I’ll make sure someone knows you’re here.”
Henry stepped forward, scrambling for something to say that would keep her from leaving. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I really need help.”
“And I’m really not in the habit of picking up strange men on the side of the road,” she said with a tone of finality.
He’d been called worse things. He cocked his head and removed his sunglasses, then waited for her to recognize him.
Whatever reaction he’d been expecting, the shock in her face was not it. His smile fell a little.
She brought a hand to her mouth and covered a gasp. “Prince Henry,” she said in a low tone.
He nodded slowly. “It is me. How about that ride?”
“Seriously?” she said, after staring at him for a long moment.
“Well, I’m not really a stranger, am I?”