Page 23 of Impossible Heir for the King

That she hadn’t instantly said no was oddly enough for now. He didn’t want her polite acquiescence. He wanted her to give him some lip again. He wanted that quite literally.

He inwardly groaned. The sudden single-track groove of his mind and the endless ache to pull her into his arms and kiss her was appalling. But the desire didn’t spring from any goal to seduce her into saying yes. But to make her simply feel good. He wanted to give her pleasure.

So much for staying away from her. Yet it seemed she couldn’t help reacting to their chemistry either. Which meant they might have to deal with it head-on at some point. It just had to be more thought-out and considered. She needed to understand the boundaries and limits of any relationship they embarked upon. So did he. It would solve several problems. Including the believability of their sudden marriage. Beautiful, warm, yearning, sensual. He’d lost his head for her warmth and innate sensuality...

But she was far more vulnerable than he’d realised and he didn’t want this destroying her. He couldn’t bear to see that happen again.

At least they’d had some moments of laughter in there. Maybe he could build on that instead.

‘I’ll just get the food Aron has prepared.’ He fetched the small trolley Aron had left in the shade and lifted the silver domes that protected the simple salads. Fresh fish rested on ice.

‘I use a table top grill to cook the fish,’ he said. ‘It’s very thinly sliced so it only takes moments. Are you hungry?’

‘To be honest I’m starving.’

‘I’m sorry, I should have considered that sooner.’ He gestured to the table. ‘Juice? Sparkling water?’

‘You don’t want a glass of wine?’ she asked.

He shook his head. ‘You’re not—’

‘Don’t let that stop you from having any.’

‘I can cope without pleasurable indulgences for a while, Maia.’

Her startled gaze shot to him. Yeah, she was definitely thinking along the same lines as he was. All the time.

He’d have a whisky when she’d gone to bed and he could ease the tension in every single muscle. For now he had to just stop bloody staring at her.

‘Maybe I’m not the spoilt jerk you want to see me as,’ he said.

‘You’re a little bit spoilt,’ she muttered mutinously.

‘Yeah, well you’re a little bit stubborn.’ He sighed. ‘Neither of us is perfect, apparently. But we can both try our best, right?’

She nodded.

‘I apologise if you were expecting something more Michelin five-star with fancy sauces. We keep things simple here.’

Fresh salads. Fresh caught fish. Fresh sliced fruit.

‘Aron seems old to be working still,’ she commented as he put the fish on the searingly hot grill.

‘Aron suffered great loss in his life,’ Niko said quietly. ‘He likes to be busy. But a maintenance team comes each week for a day to turn the place over. They leave meals for the week for him too. Chopping a handful of tomatoes and raking a few leaves is the extent of his work, really.’

‘You’re protective of him.’

‘Yes,’ Niko said.

‘He’s worked for you for a long time?’

Aron knew everything. And he was as guilty, as hurt, as Niko was because of what had happened not just to Niko’s aunt but his mother as well. Aron had loved them too. He had failed them too. In that Niko and Aron had each other.

Niko sighed. ‘He is very loyal. He made a lot of sacrifices.’

Maia lifted a fork to her mouth and tasted a small morsel. Her eyes closed briefly.

‘This needs nothing more. It’s naturally delicious. Where did you learn to cook fish like this?’

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