Page 21 of Lorenzo & Lily

His blood chilled to ice, but he kept his grip steady. It wouldn’t do to show her how afraid he was for her and, selfishly, for himself as well. He was terrified of losing her to some unknown serious illness, and he just couldn’t imagine his life without her. “I don’t know. I wish I did. You’ve no idea how much I wish I did. How much I wish that my power, such as it is, could do you some good.”

He gave her a hard kiss, her lips yielding to his immediately, her body pressing closer. “You listen to me, Mrs. Santoro.”

A grin split her face; she loved it when he called her that.

“We’ll find out what’s happening to your brilliant, gorgeous body. I promise you.”

“You don’t make promises lightly,” she reminded him.

“No, I do not.” He brushed his thumbs against the apple of her cheek. “I do want you to think about something, however.”

She frowned slightly. “What?”

His words were careful and considerate; he’d been rehearsing the speech in his mind for weeks now. “I would very much like you to consider telling someone else.”

“Alex–”

“Don’t answer now. Just think about it. For those times when I can’t go with you to the doctor’s or to the hospital, I want someone we trust with you, holding your hand and supporting you.”

She bit her lower lip, and rolled it between her teeth. “Well, er, there are other people who know.”

He blinked. “Who? And why the bloody hell aren’t they with you now?”

She turned her face and his hands fell away. “Cat and Grace. They know. I-I was upset one day, when we were holed away in the bunker during the threat against Cat and the family. I told them both what happened.”

“And you don’t think either of them would come with you in my stead?”

“They would,” she said quickly. “Of course they would. It’s just, well, Cat’s trying to get her fashion line going, and she doesn’t live at the palace anymore.”

“She’s maybe an hour outside the capital, darling,” he said, though he felt the pang of his twin sister’s absence more than most. “You know she’d come.”

“I know, and I know Grace would come, too. But she’s had a difficult past with her own health problems and, well, I just couldn’t ask it of her.”

“You can. You just won’t.”

She started shaking her head, but he continued speaking.

“Then why not tell your mother? You know she’d be discreet.”

“She would, but the press wouldn’t.” Another sigh. “If she came with me to a hospital or charity event, it would look odd.”

“Only if you let it. Look, the press will make of you whatever you want them to. If you show that going around with your mother – whether you’re there on royal business or no – is standard for you, then they’ll accept that. If you honestly wouldn’t feel comfortable asking your mother, fine, but stop inventing reasons to keep people from helping you.”

Her mouth opened as if to speak, then shut again. She blinked, then sagged a little in her seat. “I suppose I am doing that, aren’t I?”

He cuddled her close again. “Not intentionally, but you are doing it. You’re not alone, not now, not ever.”

“Your Highnesses,” a voice rang out over the intercom. “We’ll be landing in Masillia within the next few minutes.”

Damn it, he wanted more time with her. There was never enough time these days. “Are you sure you’ll be all right on your own today?”

“Positive.” She leaned up and pressed a soft kiss to his lips, stirring his blood. All it took was a whiff of her scent, the barest touch, even the barest thought to arouse him. “Will you be all right today?”

He pressed his temple against hers and took a deep breath. “Yes. Yes, I will.”

“It’ll be hard trying to get through to Lorenzo.”

“Yes, but we’ll do it. He’s never dealt with something as politically contentious as a dock strike before, and we all just want to make sure he can handle it. He can’t use teasing laughter or anger to solve this. Maybe it is a bit much, all of us coming down at once to provide support. The truth is that I haven’t seen him much since our wedding and I miss him, and I want to help him.”

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