United By Their Royal Baby

She nodded. ‘I suppose there’s a wedding and a baby in our future then.’

‘For the sake of our kingdoms.’

He said it as a reminder to both of them of what was at stake. They had to put their feelings aside and focus on protecting their kingdoms.

She straightened her shoulders, an expression fierce with determination on her face, and repeated, ‘For the sake of our kingdoms.’

* * *

Xavier made his way to the roof of the Aidaraen castle, more than a little annoyed that Leyna was there when she should have been in her library, preparing for their meeting together. They’d agreed the previous evening to hash out the details of their arrangement there. And, since it was something neither of them really wanted to do, the least Leyna could have done was to make sure she kept to their plan.

As he climbed the stairs, though, he realised that he should be glad she wasn’t at the beach. He’d struggled with the memories when they’d been there together the night before. In the clear light of day—after the sleepless hours he’d spent thinking about it—he knew that seeing her in the place that had always been theirs had been partly responsible for the spell that had taken over him.

The other parts he didn’t care to think about. But, since he’d made a pact with himself the night before, it didn’t matter anyway.

The more he thought about it, the more he realised the roof of the castle was the perfect venue for the type of conversation they needed to have. Private, secure. But his thoughts stalled when he walked through the door.

The usually empty space now held a round table in the middle of it. The table was set for an intimate date, with red and pink flowers in the centre and an ice-bucket with champagne cooling just beside it. Each corner of the rooftop held a potted tree and colourful plants, green and bright, as though they’d been there since the beginning of time.

His eyes then moved to the woman who stood beside the table, and his gut tightened.

Leyna wore a simple white dress that was cut in a V at her neck and flowed gracefully down to her ankles. It was perfectly respectable. Or it would have been, he thought, if it had been on anyone else.

On her, the demure dress looked as if it was designed to be torn off. Thrown aside by hands—his hands—in order to roam over the slim curves of her body as his lips took hers, his tongue tasting whether she was still as innocent as she’d been when he’d first kissed her at fourteen, or as alluring—as seductive—as she’d been the day she’d said yes to his proposal.

He clenched his fists and though he knew he ought to make his way to her, he moved back. It was a futile attempt to distance himself from the memories. From the attraction. From the consuming need his body ached with when he saw her, tempting him to suggest they try for a child the natural way.

Why was it so difficult to ignore? He had the best reasons not to want her. She’d broken his heart, damn it, and trampled on its pieces when she’d walked out of his life. He’d even promised himself that he would try harder. For his kingdom. For Erika.

He had the best reasons, he thought again, and still they didn’t seem to be enough. Not when he had a compelling reason for them not to be.

He took in the classically beautiful features of her face, framed by tendrils of golden-brown curls. The rest of her hair was tied at the top of her head, almost making a crown, he thought. The casual style seemed no less royal than the elegant, swept back one she’d worn the night before.

She was still as captivating, as breathtaking as she’d been when he’d first fallen in love with her. And damn her for it.

‘What’s all this?’ Xavier said, refusing to wince when he heard the sharpness in his voice.

‘Well, you said we need to make our kingdoms believe this,’ she said mildly. ‘There’ll be a helicopter flying over the castle in about thirty minutes. They’ll take pictures, which will accompany an article suggesting we’ve been seeing each other in secret for the past month.’