Page 59 of Pregnant With His Majesty's Heir

His throat dried and his brain blurred so the bustle towards the exit took him by surprise. He looked at his watch. The event was ending.

Lucien drew Aurélie closer. ‘Are you tired? If you prefer we could go straight home instead of to supper with the others.’ He’d enlisted his friends’ assistance to enter and leave together in the hope that any paparazzi wouldn’t single Aurélie out for special attention. That would come soon enough but she was understandably skittish about the press.

Brilliant eyes met his as she gave him a stunning smile. The impact would have rocked a lesser man. His hand tightened on her elbow. It would be selfish to hope she’d opt to go straight to bed—

‘I’d love to go to supper with your friends.’ Aurélie lowered her voice. ‘I’ve had such a lovely night I don’t want it to end. I’d forgotten how much I like being with people.’

That reinforced his assessment of her personality. Her warmth as she’d chatted with customers that first night wasn’t solely because it was her job. She was genuinely interested in them.

Then her forehead creased. ‘Unless you’d rather not. You’ve had a long day.’

She was worried abouthimbeing tired? She was the one carrying their baby. A thought which turned him on as much as it evoked protectiveness. Now her concern was liquid warmth in his already overheated body.

‘Oh, I think I’ve got enough energy for a little moreexcitementtonight.’ His voice dropped as he took her hand, running his thumb across the centre of her palm and the sensitive skin of her wrist. Satisfaction surged at her shudder of response.

Her eyes glowed and her lips parted and Lucien cursed himself as a fool for playing this suggestive game as his arousal tightened his trousers.

‘Come on, Aurélie. The others are ready.’

The group walked from the gallery half a block to a restaurant tucked into an old hotel renowned for exquisite and innovative food. The evening was convivial and they enjoyed the camaraderie of the group.

It was good to relax with friends, putting aside for a couple of hours the burdens of kingship. And when he draped his arm around the back of Aurélie’s chair and she leaned closer he didn’t even try to find a definition for the upswell of emotion that flowed hot and strong inside.

Even the photographers in the street failed to destroy his good humour.

And when they reached the castle tower where Aurélie had shared his bed for almost a week, his sense of well-being grew.

‘I like your friends,’ she said as she unpinned her hair and a froth of fiery waves cascaded around her shoulders.

‘I’m glad. They like you too.’ He pulled her in and bent his head, burying his face in that mass of lilac-scented waves. Aurélie smelled like spring. Could that be why he craved her so badly? Until she came he’d felt he faced endless winter.

His arms tightened, hauling her close. ‘I love your hair.’

He felt a second’s surprise at his choice of words. He wasn’t a teenage girl wholovedthis or that. But it was true, he did love her hair. And her soft skin. And...

‘Really? It’s very bright. And I have to work to keep it under control. Pinning it up tonight took ages.’

Lucien drew back enough to meet her dark eyes. ‘It’s perfect. It’s vibrant like you and I love the curls. Do you have to pin it up?’

‘It looks tidier that way. More formal.’

He watched her chew her lip, something she hadn’t done all evening.

Because they were talking, obliquely, about how royalty looked and she wasn’t at ease with the idea of becoming a queen. The change from the confident woman earlier this evening made him pause.

Lucien straightened and slipped his hands down to capture hers, threading their fingers together.

‘Start as you mean to go on.’

‘Sorry?’

‘It’s something my uncle used to tell Justin. That when the time came for him to inherit the throne he should start as he meant to go on.’ He paused, realising that for the first time he’d spoken of them without that awful catch in his chest. ‘He said each new monarch had to forge his own way, make his own rules and be comfortable with his choices. He was all for moulding the job, as he called it, to suit changing circumstances and generations.’

‘I don’t understand.’

‘It’s natural you’re overwhelmed by the idea of becoming royal. But in my family it’s viewed as both an honourable obligation and a job. We’re bound by it but each generation makes it their own.’ He paused, realising how important this was and that he wasn’t explaining clearly.

‘For instance, I know you were concerned tonight was too soon to be seen in public with me. But I intend to be your husband. There’s nothing to be gained by hiding you away from the press. I’m not ashamed of you or our baby.’ Lucien felt his chest rise. ‘Vallort, and the press, will grow accustomed to us being together. That’s something I won’t bend on.’

---