Page 61 of Pregnant With His Majesty's Heir

A sexy sprite, with that nipped-in waist and curves his hands itched to touch, even now when he wrestled with incandescent rage.

Lucien shoved the chair back from his desk. ‘Something came up that the palace wanted me to see straight away.’

She moved further into his study, a symphony of soft curves and lithe lines that dried his brain despite the urgent need for action.

‘Something bad.’ It was a statement.

Lucien hesitated. His instinct was to shield her. Especially as it was his fault she faced this. If he’d been an ordinary citizen, not a king... But regrets were useless and Aurélie needed to know.

‘There are reports about us.’

‘Because we went out last night?’ She refrained from sayingI told you so. He’d been adamant that they shouldn’t wait till he announced their engagement for Aurélie to appear in public. That had felt too much as if he were hiding a dirty secret, instead of presenting the woman who’d be his wife.

He spread his hands, palms up. ‘And about our lunch the day before.’

‘With your friends?’ Her brow twitched as if her concern was about the intrusion into his friends’ privacy.

‘The press has had time to discover your name and nationality. They’ll be digging for more now.’

Aurélie clutched the front of her robe with one hand, her chin going up. ‘It was inevitable, I suppose.’

Regret was temporarily eclipsed by admiration. His woman had steel in her spine.

Lucien couldn’t stop himself. He stepped in, wrapped an arm around her waist, plunged his hand into the thick mass of her glorious hair and kissed her full on the lips. Fire ignited as their lips fused. Their bodies aligned as the kiss deepened and Lucien was tempted to carry her back to bed.

But he couldn’t be so selfish. He had to work with his staff to refine their PR strategy. To make things better for her.

Breathing heavily, he drew back enough to meet Aurélie’s eyes.

‘Is it really that bad?’

‘It’s not good. I’d suggest staying in the castle today. No one will bother you here.’

‘I see.’ Her gaze meshed with his. ‘Thatbad.’

Lucien shrugged, but his shoulders felt stiff. ‘It will get better. I’m going now to meet with key staff about our media response.’

‘What can I do?’

Once more it hit him that he’d struck gold with this woman. They mightn’t see eye to eye on everything but she was resolute and courageous. His baby would have a wonderful mother. His country would have a wonderful queen.

‘Why are you smiling? I didn’t say anything funny.’

She frowned and Lucien hurried to explain. ‘It was a smile of approval, Aurélie.’ He stroked the back of his hand down her cheek. Soft as a peach but she had a core of strength he could only admire. ‘As for what you can do, rest up this morning. Don’t worry about the press for now. You’ve got tutorials this afternoon and when I come back tonight we’ll discuss how we’re to deal with this. Okay?’

Slowly she nodded and Lucien felt a tiny bit of the weight lift from his shoulders. By tonight he’d be better placed to discuss concrete options with her.

‘Walk me to the car?’ He slid her arm through his and smiled when she pressed close.

What he and Aurélie shared might have begun unconventionally but there was something genuine and strong at its heart. They’d make this marriage work, despite what the world said.

Aurélie entered Lucien’s study with a sense of trepidation. It was clear he didn’t want her viewing the media reports. On the way to the car he’d reiterated that it would be better if she ignored the press today and they’d talk it through tonight.

It must be very bad.

She settled at his desk and lifted the lid of his laptop. He’d forgotten to shut it down and it opened immediately to a list of media stories. There were lots.

Aurélie hesitated. But she wasn’t prying into state secrets. This was about her.

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