Page 11 of Pregnant at the Palace Altar

She let out a shaky breath. Perhapstwothings were gratifying, because she was not immune to him, and while immunity would be best for both of them, he got a perverse thrill out of her reaction all the same.

“I will have a tray of food sent up at once. I know what you like after all.” In concerning detail. He dropped her hand and turned on a heel. If he stayed, he would be tempted.

And it would not do to be tempted.

Just yet. After all, if they were to be married, it would not be quite so necessary to endeavor to keep his hands to himself. They were bound forever now, and why not take the simple pleasures of that when they were pleasurable indeed?

It was too easy to remember that night. The way a simple kiss had turned into a heat that had consumed him.Thathad been a mistake, but it no longer needed to be.

They were to be married.

He had to push those thoughts away as he strode to the kitchens looking for Mrs. Markis, who had been the head of the kitchens since he’d been a boy. He found her already up and serving Zandra in the small dining area that was meant for staff.

“What are you doing up andhere?” he demanded of his sister.

She raised an eyebrow. “I could ask you the same.” But she shrugged. “I am hungry and I did not wish to wake Lysias. I was going to make myself some tea and a snack, but Mrs. Markis insisted on handling it.”

“I did not expect you back this evening, Your Majesty,” Mrs. Markis said with a curtsy. “I’ll make up a plate for you at once.”

“A tray, Mrs. Markis, to take back to my rooms, if you would be so kind. And ensure there are no olives on it, if you would.”

She nodded and moved quickly back to the kitchen.

“You love olives,” Zandra said, staring at him speculatively.

Diamandis did not justify this comment with a response.

“Where did you disappear to for most of the day, brother?” She smiled at him innocently.

Like she already knew.

He narrowed his eyes. “What do you know?”

“I suppose Lysias heard some whispers that you’d taken a surprise trip to Athens. No one could quite fathom why you would do such a thing.” Zandra took a bite of cookie and smiled at him. “Except me, of course.”

“Perhaps I simply went to Athens to obtain your wedding present.”

She shook her head. “You went to see her, and you went to find the truth. So?”

There was no point wasting time. Zandra had her suspicions and by tomorrow he had to have everything perfectly in place. He would have to work around the clock. “Katerina and I will be married quickly.”

“How quickly?”

“As soon as everything is in place. She is very concerned about image and gossip, so we will have to concoct a bit of a story. You’re one of the few people who know the truth, Zandra. I’ll need you to go along with it.”

While his sister was often irreverent, her gaze was serious as she nodded. “What’s the story?”

He explained the fake Athens marriage that he would make real. The health issues he would invent. As long as there was a paper trail, no one could prove him wrong.

“Ask Lysias to help you. He’s excellent at all those illegal things.”

Diamandis scowled. He did not care forillegalmethods, but he had no doubt Zandra was right. “Very well,” he said through gritted teeth, though it added another person who knew the truth. But if there were two people he had learned to trust since he’d taken the crown, it was Zandra and Lysias.

And Katerina.

Zandra finished her cookie and studied him. “You know, if you need to do it quickly... What if you just...tookourwedding?”

“What do you mean?”

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