Tangled Up in Princes (Royal Romances Book 1) by Molly Jameson

The shot showed reporters swarming a small cluster of people. Edward recognized Carrie's father. He was using his hat to swat away reporters as he tried to shield his wife and daughters from the mayhem. Airport security seemed to be having no better luck keeping the hungry press hoard at bay.
    "Sources report that our own prince isn't the only one with whom the woman dubbed the Skanky Yankee has been intimate of late. It's reported that Carrie MacCallum's sister, Amanda, called off her wedding to millionaire mogul Phillip Rhys-Cooper after witnessing Carrie's shameless advances. We have no word on the state of the obviously strained relationship between the sisters, but a spokesperson for the Rhys-Cooper family says that Phillip deeply regrets the cancelation of his wedding, and vows that he never encouraged Carrie's advances."
    "Phillip would never speak to the press about something so personal," Jamie shouted at the telly.
    Dinah's report was interrupted by a fellow reporter's shouted inquiry as Carrie and her family passed.
    "What's it, lovey, the prince not have enough money for you? You had to steal your sister's catch?"
    Carrie looked up then, and Edward's heart felt like it stopped beating. She'd been crying. Instead of the outrage he'd expected to see on her face, he saw pain, and worse, embarrassment.
    He couldn't help the groan that escaped him. He pulled out his phone to call Martin. Surely, there was something he could do, some shield or buffer he could offer her.
    "What are you doing?" his father barked.
    "She needs help. I have to do something."
    "Oh no, you don't"--his father leaned across the table and plucked the phone from Edward's hands--"Adding more fuel to that fire will only cause a conflagration. Surely you can see that. There are more important matters to attend to than the plight of some American who is even now on her way out of the country."
    Jamie started to speak, but their father jabbed a finger in his direction.
    "I will tolerate no more of such outlandish behavior from either of you."
    He pointed from Jamie to Edward.
    "From any of you. It has been a very long time since a ruling monarch disowned one of his children --"
    "Victor!" their mother exclaimed.
    "And it would give me great pain to be the one to resurrect the practice, but we are at a critical juncture in the history of the crown. I will not”--he pounded the table with his fist--"go down as the last English monarch."
    With that, their father stood. Obediently, his children rose as well and watched him walk out of the room.
    Edward's mother stopped him once the others had gone.
    "You must understand the strain he's under."
    "I do understand, of course, I do. Nevertheless, I should have offered Carrie some form of protection. She never asked for this. She didn't deserve this."
    He shook his head.
    "It's no matter now. She'll be leaving, and likely she's glad of it."
    "Edward, have you feelings for this woman?"
    What was he to say to that? He wouldn't lie to his mother, but if he told her the truth—that, yes, he felt more for Carrie than he'd ever felt for any woman--then there would be more attention focused on Carrie, and he'd wager that attention from his mother would make the paparazzi look like friendly chums from one's nursery days. Soon, Carrie would be back in America. She'd be rid of him and all the attendant complications. She'd have the freedom she deserved, the freedom that could never be his.
    "She doesn't deserve what's happened to her."
    "Perhaps not, but, Edward, if she can't handle it, then she isn't the woman for you."
     
     

Chapter Seven
     
    Carrie watched a pair of size eleven bamboo knitting needles go flying across her store, followed by a ball of pink washable wool yarn.
    "I can't do this!" came a high-pitched voice.
    Carrie was pretty sure she knew who the culprit would be. Ella had been taking lessons from Carrie for six months now and still hadn't mastered a passable purl stitch. Normally, Carrie wouldn't