Page 25 of Unknown Royal Baby

Her stare was accusing, as if she either didn’t believe in his memory loss or thought he’d used it as a convenient excuse to avoid her.

Exhaustion hammered him and he rubbed his temple where the shadow of that familiar ache threatened anew.

‘I’m sorry, Avril. I know this seems far-fetched.’

Almost as far-fetched as discovering he had a lover he’d forgotten and a baby. He drew a deep breath.

‘It seems you had a personal number for me, not one that was used by my staff. I lost that phone in the crash. The same with my email, I didn’t use a palace address. The royal staff weren’t involved in my British investments and it seems I channelled that work through you alone.’

Her eyebrows shot up. ‘Is that usual? For them not to know anything? I know I only had dealings with you but I’d assumed...’

What could he say? That he didn’t know? That he could only guess?

‘These UK investments are quite separate from everything else and clearly I’d decided to manage them on my own, with you on the ground here. I wasn’t investing public funds. I was using my own private capital, so there is no question of impropriety.’

‘I wasn’t suggesting that—’

‘Of course not.’

But he remained on edge at even a hint of suspicion, Hafiz’s innuendos that his priorities weren’t always for the public good fresh in his mind.

‘That’s why your staff were so eager to access my laptop? You really didn’t have backup?’

‘Of course I have. I just don’t seem to have made a note of where. It’s not in the cloud storage used for palace records, but then these weren’t public service documents. Remember, too, that everyone’s focus after the accident was on continuing the usual business of government after so much disruption. There was no reason to look for additional matters off the official books.’

If it weren’t so appalling it would be laughable. A king who couldn’t even retrieve his own business documents. Because he’d deliberately not wanted to involve the usual channels in these projects.

The few senior palace staff who knew the situation had been utterly discreet, because there’d been enough public anxiety following the crash that killed his father and injured him. For a while there’d been some doubt about how quickly he’d recover. Informing his people that their new king had a faulty memory would hardly inspire confidence.

If word got out about any of this it would be more ammunition for Hafiz, who seemed intent on undermining him.

All Isam knew for sure was that he’d been determined to pursue these investments as separate from any others he owned. He thought he knew why but ‘thought’ was a far cry from ‘knew’.

‘So...’ Avril drew the word out ‘...you didn’t come to London forme. You came to find out about the business.’

He inclined his head. ‘I came across a note that made me curious.’

He’d been trying to fill the gaps in his memory, trying to recreate his movements, but his diary had merely said ‘London’. Until he’d unearthed a handwritten note with her details, perhaps from when he’d employed her.

‘I had my staff investigate and they discovered you’d attended meetings with me.’

They’d also discovered he’d been paying her regularly for some time, which had made even his loyal administrator, Rashid, look askance, until they discovered they were salary payments, all above board, just not organised through the usual channels.

Her tone was sharp. ‘You investigated me?’

‘Not in detail.’ If they had, he’d have known in advance about Maryam. ‘I wanted to speak to you myself, rather than rely on others.’

Since being injured he preferred not to take reports at face value. He needed to assure himself that he understood the situations with which he dealt.

A bubble of mirthless humour expanded in his chest. His daughter and his ex-lover were far more than just a ‘situation’. They changed everything. For himself and for his nation.

‘We need to talk about Maryam.’

In other circumstances he might have waited to bring the conversation around to her. He was conscious that Avril still grappled with the news of his memory loss. He knew the feeling. Every day it was a challenge. And now he’d learned he had a daughter! Not even a year trying to acclimatise to the massive holes in his memory had prepared him for that.

The accident had taken his father from him, robbed him of his memory, and the chance to be there for Maryam’s birth. The chance, too, to know her mother better.

But self-pity and time were luxuries he couldn’t afford. He needed to protect Avril and Maryam. Their situation left them vulnerable and he couldn’t allow that.

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