Page 46 of His Princess Brat
“What girl?”
“Bethany.” Just saying her name pissed me off. “She’s telling everyone. If she thinks insulting Pita is the way to win my affections, she can kiss my ass.”
“Bethany,” Mazi said flatly, “is a bitch, a troublemaker, a narcissist extraordinaire, and she likes to lie. A lot. Everyone knows it too.”
“Yeah, well, Pita is right now locked in her room, crying. It’s all I can do to remember Bethany is a woman so I don’t punch her out.”
“I’ll take care of it.” Mazi waved his hand. “It’s not a big deal, or at least it won’t ruin her, if that’s what you’re afraid of. Her mother won’t be happy, but other than that...” He thought a moment, then conceded, “Well, it might make finding a husband a little harder.”
That wave of comfortable relief that I had been feeling vanished, and there it was again. That short, sharp punch that hit my gut and robbed me of my breath. “I’m sorry, what?”
“She has to rule,” Mazi told me. “Her mother sent her here to bag a husband. You... you didn’t know?”
“She hadn’t mentioned, no.” Probably because we’d been too busy having sex. I ran both hands over my shaved head, feeling nothing but stubble and a lot of regrets. “Have I just ruined her chances? Please tell me I didn’t hurt her.”
“To be honest, I doubt there’ll be any consequences at all. Unless, of course, she starts growing a little Azid baby bump in the next couple of months.” At my crestfallen look, he said, “Single moms on the throne aren’t exactly smiled upon, even in twenty-first century Africa.”
“Oh, my God.” I buried my head in my hands. “Could she lose her kingdom over that?”
“I don’t know,” he softly said. “She’s got a younger brother, but he can’t inherit. There’s still a lot of prejudice toward same sex couples here, and he’s been very open about his current relationship. No way will their mother let Bahar be ruled by two kings, so they’ll probably do a search among the family lines to see if there’s a distant relative with a clear claim to rule. If not, Bahar could potentially collapse into civil revolt as unsuitable claimants move to take the throne by force.”
“Oh, my God,” I moaned again. I never would have touched her had I known.
Except, noble as that knee-jerk thought was, it was also a lie.
I’d have touched her. I have spanked her, made love to her, claimed her for my own all over again, exactly as I had already done, because no way would I have been able to help it. She was Pita. My sassy little princess with a mouth that inflamed and intoxicated me with every breath she took.
I hadn’t used a condom with her either. Normally I was religious about those damn things. With everyone else but her, apparently.
“What am I going to do?” I asked, more to myself than to him.
“What do you want to do?” Mazi just as softly countered.
I shook my head. “Nothing. I can’t do anything. I don’t have any options.”
“Don’t give me that shit. There’s always options. What would you do if she weren’t a princess?”
That was easy.
“Take her back to the U.S. with me, put a baby in her belly if she doesn’t already have one, and be happily in love with her for the rest of my life.”
Arching both eyebrows, Mazi shrugged, as if to say, so what’s wrong with that?
“Because she’s a princess!” I exploded, already knowing what he was going to say. “I can’t ask her to give up everything to come to America and live with me in obscure poverty! That isn’t fair or right! I have no job. My car is held together by duct tape and chicken wire. My apartment is smaller than her walk-in closet. I—”
“Wait, why don’t you have a job?” Mazi interrupted.
I could have kicked myself. I forgot. There was a reason I hadn’t wanted to share that little detail with him during my time here. “Because Lisa slapped my ass and I whipped hers. Don’t ask me to be sorry about it. I’d do it again.”
Eyebrows arched as high as they could go, Mazi said, “Wow. Wish I’d been there to see that.”
Glaring at him, I threw my hands in the air. “Dude, I love you, but I came looking for advice and you don’t have any. Your advice-giving skills suck.”
“Why the hell do you think I wanted you to come to Osei so badly?” he called after me as I stormed from the room. “I was seeking yours!”
I walked back to my room, furious with myself. I had no idea how, but I had to do what was best for Pita and I had to make this right.
What if I’ve made her pregnant?
