Page 117 of Modern Romance June 2025 5-8

‘No!’ He pulled her high against him and the impact of soft femininity against urgent arousal almost undid him. He clenched his teeth. ‘What I need isyou.Allof you.’ He watched her turn rose pink, lips parting. ‘Besides, I’d never be able to concentrate on the meeting. I’d be in a stupor of sexual satisfaction.’

She slid her hand over his lapel, pouting. ‘So what do you suggest?’

‘I’m sure I can finish early. In the meantime we’ll have to be satisfied with a kiss.’

‘Not what I want to hear, Your Majesty, but I suppose it will have to do.’

‘Believe me, Your Majesty,’ he murmured against her throat, feeling her shiver, ‘it will be worth waiting for.’

Inevitably he was late for his meeting, but Lena had insisted on combing his tousled hair and removing the lipstick smudges. Fortunately Matthias and his new team had used the time to brief the attendees, so in the end the meeting finished in good time.

Benedikt should dally with his wife during business hours more often. Now he’d put the time to good use, getting through some of his mail.

But his thoughts were of her as he settled at his desk.

They worked well together. She lightened his darkness and called him on his autocratic tendencies. Matthias tried but had to concede if Benedikt pushed the point. Lena conceded nothing.

He opened his emails, a flagged message catching his attention.

Urgent. Confidential. Legitimacy of Sovereignty.

Benedikt’s heart missed a beat then quickened as he opened it. He read the missive quickly then again, testing every word, ensuring he didn’t miss any detail.

Finally he sat back, heart pounding and adrenaline thundering. This changed everything.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Annalena hurried downthe corridor. Her old laptop had died and though IT had promised to fix it quickly, she’d belatedly realised there was an urgent item she’d promised to read.

Shecouldhave made do with her phone but instead made for her husband’s office.

Any excuse to see him!

Once that would have disturbed her, now it made her smile. Where once there’d been distrust, now there was intimacy, emotional intimacy. Trust and, with it, hope.

Hope that their convenient, dynastic marriage had become something more meaningful.

She hugged that hope to herself as she turned a corner. Benno respected and cherished her. He might not realise it but he’d changed, as she had.

How much she’d changed! She remembered opening her eyes and seeing the world altered. Because she’d finally made sense of her feelings. Benno was complex, with faults and strengths. He wasn’t always right and he still tended to think his way was the best way, but he listened and he genuinely cared.

He understood how she thought and, so often, how she felt. They’d both been trained to keep emotions hidden and sublimate their own wishes for the greater good. With Benedikt she felt trulyseenfor the first time.

He could be so tender, so generous. So lovable.

She was in love with her husband!

Instead of her thinking that a disaster, it gave her hope for the future.

Look at the trouble he was going to, converting a more modern part of the palace into their private accommodation. Far from the state rooms, it would be comfortable and streamlined, with no overblown ornamentation, and it would have an unrivalled view of the pretty walled garden. He knew how much she loved that.

With a rap on the door and a smile on her lips, she entered, only to discover the offices empty. Matthias and Benno were absent.

Huffing a sigh of disappointment she made for Benno’s desk. He wouldn’t mind her logging on to access her mail.

He mustn’t have gone far for the screen was still on. She settled in the chair, about to minimise that screen when something caught her eye.

Urgent. Confidential. Legitimacy of Sovereignty.

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