Page 35 of Passion and Deception

“Maggie, I am ruler of Ditra, a very powerful country. That means everyone in my family, including you and Nadia, are in danger from my enemies.”

Enemies? She’d never considered that Ramit could have enemies. Hadn’t he said something along these lines earlier? “Who would want to hurt me or Nadia? She’s just a baby!”

“I told you earlier, Maggie. Many people would use one or both of you to get to me, to influence my decisions or the direction of my country’s development. I don’t mean to scare you but…”

“Well, you’re doing an excellent job of it!”

“…but I need to keep you both safe. And…” he sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.

“And what?” she snapped, not enjoying this conversation at all. “What, Ramit? You’ve already broken into my house and told me that we have to come with you, fly off to a foreign country. What more could you say that would be worse than that?”

He smiled grimly. “We need to marry. Immediately.”

Marry Ramit? She had no idea how to respond to that. All she knew was that…nothing. At this moment, she wasn’t sure of anything anymore.

“No, Ramit. I need you to leave, and I need to get ready to return to work in a week.”

“I’m afraid that’s not possible.” He took a step forward, and Maggie backed up, startled and overwhelmed. “Maggie, you are in danger. Nadia is in danger.” He looked towards the hallway. “You just told me that I needed to do something that I didn’t like because it would benefit our daughter. Now I need you to do the same.” He stepped closer, relieved when she didn’t step back again. “I promise, I will make this transition as easy as possible.” He tilted his head slightly. “Or as easy as I can. Once you are back in the palace, in Ditra, then you will understand that this is a good thing. I will ensure that you have everything you could possibly want.”

Maggie stared up at him, her heart thudding. “I want to stay here.”

He smiled faintly, but the expression flitted away. “Except that.”

“But…why?”

“Because you, and our daughter, have power over me.”

She shook her head, confused. “You said that before and it didn’t make any sense! What does that mean? I don’t feel powerful. If anything, I feel that you’re dictating everything.”

“It might seem like it now, but once we’re back in Ditra as my wife, you will have enormous power.”

Maggie stared at him, unsure of what he was talking about. “What if I don’t marry you?”

“Then you will still be showered with everything you could possibly want. And you would still have a great deal of power over me.” He glanced at Nadia cradled in Maggie’s arms. “But our daughter will be ridiculed and rejected.”

“No!” she whispered, pulling Nadia closer. “Absolutely not! I won’t allow Nadia to be hurt!”

“Then come with me. Marry me and I will guarantee that you will never want for anything in your life.”

“What about my house? What about my friends?”

He looked around, then at her. “You won’t lose your house or your friends. And you can see them whenever you’d like. They can come to Ditra to visit, or you can go to them. I’m not imprisoning you, Maggie. I’m offering you riches beyond anything you’ve ever imagined.”

“But…why?” she pleaded. “And why the rush? If you want to marry me, then why can’t we get to know one another better first?”

“Because of Nadia. We need to marry so everyone will accept her. My culture has very strict views about children born out of wedlock. So, the marriage has to be done in secret. My people will ensure that the world will assume that Nadia was conceived after our wedding.”

“That’s…crazy! The world doesn’t care about children conceived out of wedlock anymore. This is all just…overwhelming. I need more time.”

He sighed. “Unfortunately, we don’t have time. That’s the one thing I can’t give you. We need to leave, Maggie. Now, before my enemies discover the existence of you or Nadia.”

Nadia started fussing, obviously sensing the growing tension. Automatically, Maggie started bouncing, trying to soothe the fretful child.

“I don’t understand, Ramit.”

He moved closer, but didn’t touch her. “Maggie, I need you to trust me.”

She snorted. “I trusted you a year ago and look how that turned out.” She moved around him, walking down the hallway to the family room. “No, I can’t trust you. I don’t really even know you, Ramit.”

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