Page 31 of Promoted To His Princess

He wasn’t wrong. The food smelled so good and it was making her feel light-headed. Irritated both at herself and at him, Calista began to eat, trying to ignore him as he ripped a piece off the bread with those long, competent fingers and buttered it for himself, slathering it in honey.

It made her wonder if he had a sweet tooth, and then immediately she was irritated yet again at herself for even wondering about it in the first place.

She didn’t care if he had a sweet tooth. She didn’t care about him.

What she was going to do was eat, then tell him in no uncertain terms that marrying him was impossible and that she needed to go back to the palace before anyone realised she was missing.

And the baby? What are you going to do about that?

That she would work out later.

‘So,’ he said at last, after she’d eaten at least two pieces of bread, numerous rashers of bacon, and three pastries. ‘Let’s hear your objections to marriage.’

Calista took a sip of her orange juice, surprised he was giving her a voice. ‘I thought my objections didn’t matter?’

‘They don’t. Nevertheless, I’d still like to hear them.’

He was honest, she’d give him that.

She sat back in her seat and gave him a level look. ‘I’d have thought it was obvious what my objections were.’

‘It’s not obvious, which is why I asked you to tell me.’

She held up a hand, ticking them off on her fingers. ‘First, you’re a prince and I’m a palace guard. Second, I have dedicated myself in service to my country and there is no room in my life for anything else, let alone a husband. Third, we don’t know each other, let alone love each other. And fourth...you didn’t even ask me what I wanted to do.’

Xerxes’ dark eyes gave nothing away. ‘And what is it that you wanted to do?’

That was the issue. She didn’t know, not when it came to dealing with the child. Children had not featured anywhere in her future plans for herself and never had. Neither had a husband. All she’d wanted was to serve her country, be the kind of loyal, true soldier that her father...

Oh, God. Her father.

Cold crept through her, winding deep into her heart.

‘I want to serve Axios,’ she said, trying to ignore it. ‘That’s all I’ve ever wanted to do. And perhaps be promoted to the king’s guard. I...hadn’t thought of children.’

Xerxes didn’t move and yet a sense of threat radiated suddenly from him, the powerful force of his will pushing against her. ‘You’ll be keeping it.’ There was a whole world of certainty in those words that left no room for argument.

Of course. She hadn’t considered her options, had she? And adoption was one of those options. But as soon as the thought occurred to her, something twisted in her gut.

Could she really give this child to someone else? Abandon it to suit herself and her own needs?

You’ve put yourself first before and look how that turned out.

No, she’d followed her mother that day after school because she’d been suspicious. It didn’t have anything to do with her own anger because Nerida had cancelled a much anticipated shopping trip.

And she’d been right to be suspicious, as it had turned out. She’d seen Nerida kissing a man who wasn’t Calista’s father, and so she’d gone home straight away and told her father.

She was a good and loyal soldier, exactly as he’d said.

It certainly wasn’t a betrayal simply because you were furious and hurt.

Calista forced that thought away, looking down at her stomach, still flat though perhaps a little softer than it should have been. There was a life inside there, a son or a daughter to protect and defend.

Realisation moved through her, shifting to certainty. Yes, she was a soldier and a soldier’s duty was to protect. She’d dedicated her life to her country, but there was room for a child, too. She would make room.

She wouldn’t be her mother, walking past the daughter she’d once said she loved more than life itself and ignoring her as if she wasn’t there. Never speaking to her again, not even after the divorce.

She wouldn’t abandon this child the way her mother had abandoned her.

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