Page 45 of Stolen Princess's Secret

The girl breezed in when Tomas opened the door, carrying a laden tray piled high with food. ‘Da said to make it an extra special tray. He even wanted me to pick flowers, but you try finding roses in the mountains at this time of year, and besi—’ The young woman stopped abruptly, her lips forming a perfect O to match her startled eyes. She tried to curtsey, tray and all. The tray tilted and rattled alarmingly until Tomas rescued it and set it on the sideboard.

‘Morning, Caitlin. Meet my fiancée.’

‘Your—? That’s the Princess Royal!’ whispered Caitlin.

‘And also my fiancée.’

Caitlin slid him a beseeching glance and nervously smoothed her apron skirt. ‘What are the words? What do I call her?’

‘Your Royal Highness the first time you see her, and if you see her again the same day you call her ma’am.’ He was quiet with his directions, no fuss, and it seemed to steady the young girl.

If Claudia hadn’t already been besotted with him, his behaviour these past twenty-four hours would have made her so.

‘Your Royal Highness, ma’am!’

‘And now stand up,’ murmured Tomas, and Claudia wanted to put the girl at ease too, the way Tomas had, but the rich smell of cooked sausage and bacon was her undoing. She barely managed a nod before bolting to the bathroom and starting with the stupid morning sickness all over again. It didn’t matter to her brain or her stomach that there was nothing left to bring up. She would go through the motions anyway until her throat burned with the sour taste of stomach acid and she felt like a wrung-out rag.

An eon later, when she slid to her knees and leaned her head against her forearm on the toilet bowl, she saw a damp wash cloth dangling in front of her.

The hand holding the cloth didn’t belong to the girl.

Tomas settled on the floor beside her and lifted her into his arms as if she weighed barely anything at all. She tucked her head beneath his chin, too embarrassed and grateful for words.

‘I sent the breakfast away.’

‘Thank you. The smell...’

‘I figured.’

‘She’ll guess I’m pregnant.’

He made a humming noise that might have been agreement. ‘Is that something you want to hide?’

‘I’m undecided.’ Part of her wanted everyone to know now that Tomas knew, so she could go about changing her life to fit the circumstances. Part of her knew her reputation would take a hammering and it would reflect badly on the royal family—best to get it over with. And then there was Tomas’s reputation and new position to think of. ‘Do you want me to pretend I’m not pregnant until we’ve been married a while?’

‘I think we’re past that.’

Who knew pragmatism could be so attractive?

‘Let’s just shape our lives and the life of our child to best advantage. No lies, we’re just doing things our own way. Why wouldn’t we marry with a baby on the way?’ he continued.

‘Do you really want to do this?’ She was having second thoughts. That or her earlier thoughts were back to haunt her. ‘You’ll be trapped and resentful.’

‘I’ll be grateful and do everything in my power to prove my worth as a husband and father. You keep telling me I’m good enough to stand with you, so get out of my way and let me fight for us. I’m ready. Besides, I’m not the only one here whose life has been turned upside down.’ His voice had grown gruff. ‘Yours has been upended too. You get to bear this child, ready or not. You get me for a husband, whether you want me or not.’

‘I’m ready.’ Her love for the child growing in her belly was already a fierce and twisty force. ‘I want it all. Anyone who says you’re not good enough to stand at my side is going to get schooled on the many reasons why they’re wrong. I’ll slay all those demons and I’ll make you a believer, see if I don’t.’

‘Funny. You don’t look all that fierce, curled up here in my arms.’

The steady beat of his heart beneath her ear seemed like a good start. She closed her eyes and let herself relax. People thought she didn’t have nerves or insecurities. Even her brother saw her as some kind of indestructible force and, right or wrong, she tried to live up to the hype.

‘You know how we’re talking about our insecurities...’

‘I heard you talking about mine.’

Dry as dust, this man who’d soon be hers for life.

‘I have some too. People think I’m strong and fierce because I want to make a difference in this world and I’m prepared to make enemies along the way,’ she mumbled into the well-worn weave of his shirt. ‘I know how to fight and wait and play the long game and win. And sometimes being that person is easy and sometimes I run on pure bravado. I need—’ you, her helpful voice supplied, but she could be more specific, and less ‘—I would love to have someone who can lend me their strength when mine runs out. I’d weep with relief to know that you too will have our baby’s best interests at heart. I can let go and know you’ll do everything in your power to keep us safe. That’s a gift I’ve never had before and I’ll give it the respect it deserves.’

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