Page 34 of Baby Daddy Protector

“Ugh. And he’s got enough allies in the government to back him up. He’s also smart and good at PR.” All my energy and enthusiasm from earlier deflated, leaving me feeling vulnerable and exhausted. I slumped in my seat. “What else is he cooking up, I wonder?”

“I don’t know, but I do know what I plan to do. With your permission, princess.” He looked at me, his blue eyes warm and earnest. I nodded. “Good. First, I want to freeze the current security measures and up the protection for you and your father. The baby coming will only invite more death threats.” My eyes widened, and he reached over to take my hand, giving it a comforting squeeze. “Don’t worry, I’ve got it covered.”

“But I do worry, that’s the problem,” I said, pulling free. “I worry that I’ve become too dependent on you. I realize it’s your job to protect me, but what do I do afterward?”

Annie carried over a tray with our food and placed it down. Both Z and I thanked her, staying silent until she’d walked away.

“Es, I’m only trying to help here,” Z said, placing his napkin in his lap before slathering fresh butter onto his bread.

“I know, but I need to be strong myself. I told Greaves to pull security from the palace to use if needed at the Christmas Markets. That order stands. We cannot cancel the markets. Not this year. Too much is at stake.”

“Exactly!” Z said, before lowering his voice again. “Too much at stake. That’s exactly why weneedto cancel them, or at least cut them in half. Listen, we need more time, more information, before you make any final decisions here.”

“No. I don’t. The Christmas Markets are a Prylean tradition. The country needs them, and it’s my responsibility to act in the nation’s best interests. We’ll do it my way.”

“Even if your way leaves your father at risk?” Z asked, his lips compressed. “Please don’t make me do this. I don’t want us to fight about this. We need to display a united front, now more than ever. But if it means keeping you and your father safe, I will do whatever it takes.” He sighed and hung his head. “Even if it means going over your head to Greaves to make it happen. I know the rules. If the head of security has reason to believe a monarch’s life is in danger, they can petition to have even the ruler’s orders changed.”

“You wouldn’t,” I said, stopping mid-bite of bread, my eyes narrowed and my tone accusatory. I liked Z, far more than was wise, but I would not put up with being pushed around. Not by him, not by anyone. “Don’t cross me.”

“Then don’t make me do it,” Z countered, standing firm. “Just think about what I said. I love a good Christmas Market myself, but not at the expense of you and our baby or the king’s safety.”

Hungry as I was, I couldn’t take another bite of the delicious soup until I dealt with this mess. I tamped down my anger and did my best to respond calmly. “Look, I appreciate the difficult position this puts you in, but I will not give up on this. Prylea does not have a history of violence or attacks. The threats are an attempt to create anxiety and discord to destabilize our country, and that’s something I can’t allow. Canceling the markets would only give credence to Silvester’s narrow-minded, nationalistic cause in the eyes of the people. He’s trying to rally everyone to his side through fear—but I’m going to counter that with authority and tradition. I’m the daughter of the king, and I’m carrying our next ruler. I intend to make an announcement tomorrow to the public about our son. That, along with the festivities surrounding the Christmas Markets, should put an end to his machinations once and for all.”

Z gave a derisive snort and shook his head, his expression peeved. “Well, it will put an end to some things all right, quite possibly including you.”

“Don’t be so dramatic.” I glanced over to see Annie and the kitchen staff doing their level best to ignore the fight raging between Z and me, though I’d lay money they were all eavesdropping shamelessly. Still, I wasn’t giving up this battle now. “What can he do? Silvester’s greedy, but he’s not stupid. If he tried to pull something now, he’d be caught.”

“Not necessarily.” Z’s tone was ice cold. “The guy’s pissed. He’s not thinking rationally about any of this at this point. And what if he’s already laid the groundwork for a coup, huh? Maybe he already got it all in place before we returned and he’s just waiting to spring it on us. A chaotic Christmas Market seems like it’d be the perfect place, at least to me. But then what do I know, right? After all, I’m not a native Prylean. I don’t understand your traditions.”

I barely avoided a wince at him throwing my words back in my face. “That isn’t what I meant. And if he does have something planned, you’ll discover it. That’s your job and you’re the best at what you do. That’s why you’re here, isn’t it?”

A muscle ticked near his tight jaw. “You’re not thinking clearly, princess. Perhaps your hormones have—”

Yep. That did it. An audible gasp came from the kitchen staff as I tossed down my napkin and rose to my feet, spine straight and shoulders squared. “Excuse me? My hormones have nothing to do with this. I am Princess Esme, her royal highness of Prylea. You are my fiancé and the head of my security team, but you have no power here to make judgments about me or my decisions. If you’d care to continue in either of those roles, I’d suggest you remember that.” My stomach cramped as another thought occurred, sending what I thought I knew about the man before me careening down a different path. Gaze narrowed, I stared into his chilly blue eyes. “Is that why you agreed to marry me? Did you think that by becoming my prince consort that you’d gain political power here? I sincerely hope not, because I can guarantee you that won’t happen. The papers you signed guarantee that. How dare you come in here and deign to think you control me? I thought this was an equal partnership between us, one with respect, but it appears I was mistaken. Consider yourself hereby removed from your position as head of my security team.”

“Wait a damn minute!” Z rose to his feet as well, dots of crimson lining his high cheekbones. “I meant no disrespect and you know it. We’ve both talked about all the changes you’re going through with this pregnancy, and I’ve never once doubted or questioned your abilities. You can’t fire me. You’ll never find anyone more passionate about protecting you or our baby, or this country. No one. Es, please. I—”

“Sir?” A guard stopped in the doorway to the kitchen, out of breath. “I’m sorry to interrupt your lunch, sir, but I thought you’d want to know right away. There’s been a bomb scare at the Christmas Markets.”

I gripped the edge of the table tightly as my world tipped on its axis. Z immediately rushed to my side and eased me back down into my seat, kneeling beside me as I took several deep breaths to regain my equilibrium. “Was anyone hurt?” I demanded.

“No, your highness,” the guard said. “Luckily, the military bomb squad was able to defuse it without incident.”

“Thank goodness.” The blood pounded in my ears and heat prickled my cheeks. Z had his hand on the nape of my neck, stroking gently as if settling a spooked horse. His whispered words offered soothing comfort, and that was the problem. I’d become too dependent on the comfort he offered, to the point where I’d allowed him to cloud my judgment when it came to ruling my country. That was unacceptable. Slowly, I pulled free of his touch and forced myself to stand once more, ignoring the weight of his stare burning through me. I concentrated on the guard instead. “Can you take me to the security offices? I’d like to be briefed on the latest developments, please.”

The guard’s gaze darted from me to Z then back again. “Of course, your highness. Allow me to escort you.”

Hard as it was, I left Z behind in the kitchens and followed the guard to the busy command center of palace security, not looking behind me to see if he accompanied us.

Inside the briefing room, the walls were lined with computers and monitors and men talking on Bluetooth headsets to various law enforcement officials.

“Over here, your highness,” the guard said, directing me to an open station where I could sit and watch everything happening on the monitors in front of me. The line of security men bowed as I passed them. At last, I was able to concentrate on the images flickering on the screen before me while the guard explained what was happening.

“There,” he said, pointing toward a spot in the upper-right-hand corner of the screen. “They found a homemade incendiary device in that trash can near the train station. As I said, the squad was able to diffuse it without incident. From what we’ve been told, it was crudely made and most likely wouldn’t have detonated anyway, but better safe than sorry.”

“Yes,” I murmured, still staring at the screen. This was exactly why we needed more manpower at the markets, and this gave me the perfect argument to all but ensure my father would agree to pulling guards from the palace to accommodate my wishes. A sense of vindication swelled inside my chest, along with confidence. I could do this on my own. Rule the country, raise my child. If this was any indication, my instincts were exactly on target. I could only hope that signaled that I would get the job done and do it in style. I swiveled in my chair to face the guard. “I’d like to schedule a press conference for later this afternoon. We can reassure people about what happened here with this bomb scare and then I have a few personal announcements to make. Can you coordinate the security arrangements for me with the staff, please?”

The guard’s eyes widened slightly. “I can, your highness, but shouldn’t Mr. Raybourn—”

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