Pregnant with the Prince's Child (8 page)

He gave her a completely skeptical look. “You’re lying.”

“No, I…”

“You heard about him maybe being the lost prince and you came running back to cash in on some of that glory. Am I right?”

She glared at him. “No, you are not right.”

“Then why haven’t you told him who you are?”

In order to explain that, she would have to tell him about the marriage and how she’d destroyed it with her own foolish actions. She couldn’t do that. Instead, she went on the offensive herself.

“I’ve already gone over all that. And you have a thing or two to explain, yourself.” She used an index finger to poke at his chest as she made her points. “Why haven’t
you
told him the truth about your parents? Why haven’t you told him that your parents have passed away?”

Kylos’s dark face registered shock at that. He looked visibly shaken and he took a step backward, away from where Janis stood. “What? What are you talking about?”

“I saw the death certificates.” She gestured toward the drawer in the desk. “Mykal just told me a few minutes ago that he wants to write a letter to them. So he obviously doesn’t know. Why haven’t you told him the truth?”

He was backing away now. “You know why. He can’t take the shock. It could kill him.”

“That’s your story and you’re sticking to it, huh?” She glared at him. “That excuse sounds a lot like mine, doesn’t it? Funny how you didn’t buy it when it was coming from me.”

He muttered something but she wasn’t listening.

“It looks to me like we have a standoff,” she announced, hands on her hips. “You keep your secret and I’ll keep mine. Okay?”

He appeared defiant, then grudgingly agreeable. “Okay. For now. We’ll see.” Then his eyes narrowed and his confidence seemed to return. “In the meantime, I’m going to look into your background, Janis Davos. Why do I have a sneaky little suspicion that you have things to hide?” His dark eyes glittered maliciously. “Who can I talk to about you? Anyone at the castle?”

Hoping he was just trying to shake her, she fought back with sarcasm. “I don’t know. Why not try Queen Pellea? She seems to be my best friend there.”

Moving forward, he grabbed her arm, twisting it painfully. “Listen, you little tramp,” he began, but the sound of someone clearing his throat in the doorway stopped him cold and he pulled away from her.

They both turned to see Griswold trying to look as though he hadn’t seen a thing out of order.

“Your visitors are here, Mr. Marten,” he said formally. “Perhaps you had better come and see to them.”

“Oh.” He headed for the door, leaving her behind, and she breathed a sigh of relief, rubbing her arm and watching as Griswold turned away with barely a glance at her.

Kylos was a real problem. She knew she shouldn’t be goading him. She was probably going to regret it. But he was so obnoxious, she couldn’t help herself. Turning on her heel, she made her way back to the room where Mykal was.

She’d forgotten all about the water pitcher and breakfast, but luckily, Griswold had already brought him a plate of eggs and fried potatoes and he was eating with gusto.

That made her feel better instantly. He would get healthy again, she was sure of it. She settled back to watch him eat and listen to him talk about simple things that needed little or no response. He seemed to have forgotten about writing a letter to his adoptive parents, and she didn’t want to remind him. How sad and awkward that would be. But he seemed so free and easy, she could almost fool herself into thinking this was like the old days as she laughed at some silly joke he’d made. And then something would remind her that her heart was broken and she would lose the glow for a moment or two. But all in all, she just loved being with him.

She took the used plates to the kitchen and was surprised to see Kylos ushering a nice-looking older couple down the stairway. But she was hardly shocked when he treated her like a servant in front of them, leading them away quickly to another side of the house. What a strange one he was.

The castle called. An ambulance had been scheduled and would soon be on its way. A castle physician called and suggested that Mykal take his pain medication before making the trip to guard against jostling that was bound to happen. He made a face but accepted the pills with good grace once she’d explained the reasoning behind it.

“Okay,” he said. “Just one more time. After this, it’s going to take a stake through my heart to get me to take any more.”

She counted out a dose and gave it to him. He washed it down with water and looked at her with sad eyes.

“I’m ready for this to be over and done with,” he told her. “I’m going to give my permission to go ahead and operate. Let the surgery begin.”

That startled her. “No,” she said anxiously. “Wait until you get a proper evaluation before you make up your mind. Don’t make any rash decisions now.”

“Why not?” he said cynically. “What have I got to lose?”

“Everything!”

Looking at her, he grinned and before she realized what he was doing, he’d reached out and taken her hand, pulling her closer. “Okay, my beautiful guardian. I’ll take your word for it.” Bringing her hand to his lips, he kissed her in a courtly fashion, then looked up earnestly. “And anyway, you’ll be there to help me make the right choice.”

Slowly, she shook her head. “I don’t think I should go to the castle with you,” she said breathlessly.

“But I thought you worked for the castle.”

“Not really. I’m…” What was she exactly? What could she say? Suddenly, she wanted to tell him the truth.

“Hey, how’s this?” He pulled her hand to his chest. His eyes sparkled with something close to his old charm. “I command you to come with me.”

She looked into those eyes for a moment, then rolled her own, half-laughing. “Oh, brother.”

“You can’t defy me.”

“Oh, yeah? Watch me.”

He pretended to frown fiercely. “We have dungeons for people like you.”

“Only at the castle. Where I’m not going.”

“Of course you’re going.” He thought that over for a moment, then gave her a disgruntled look. “What good is it going to be being royal if I can’t throw my new power around?”

She smiled, loving him. “Maybe being royal isn’t all its cracked up to be these days,” she teased. “Maybe you’re going to have to get used to some limits.” And just to show him that she had some of her own, she slipped her hand back out of his and moved a little farther from the edge of the bed.

It wouldn’t be long before the ambulance arrived. And then she would have to make good on her decision not to go to the castle with him. It was really the only choice. They couldn’t go on like this. She couldn’t live this lie any longer. She only hoped she could stay strong and determined enough to follow through with it. In the meantime, she began to look at him for evidence the pain medication was working. He wasn’t acting as though anything was bothering him much, but she didn’t notice him getting sleepy, either.

“How are you feeling?” she asked him.

“Stiff. My back is aching, but not as badly as it was earlier.”

“Are you getting drowsy?”

He grimaced. “A bit. It’s coming on. Don’t worry.”

“I just want you to be comfortable on the trip,” she reminded him.

He nodded, but his mind was obviously on something else. He searched her face. “So how did you become a guard, Janis?”

She hesitated, but decided to try to get closer to the truth if that was possible. “I’m not really a guard. This assignment just kind of fell into my lap.”

He nodded. “I have a feeling you did some military work during the war. Am I right?”

Her breath caught in her throat. Could he be beginning to remember? “Yes.”

“Special forces? Or intelligence?”

She laughed, shaking her head. “Why would you think that?”

“Instinct. The kind of things you say. The way you handled Kylos. The way you look at me, as though you know what I’m thinking before I think it.”

She smiled. “So you think I can read minds?”

He shrugged. “I wouldn’t put it past you.” He raised an eyebrow. “So am I right?”

She nodded slowly.

“Good. Then you are just the woman I need.”

“Really? In what way?”

“Talent and training. I have something I’d like you to do for me.”

“What is that?”

He met her gaze with his own and stared hard. “I want you to find my wife for me.”

Her heart stood still, then raced so hard she thought she would keel over. “Uh…did you remember getting married?” she asked breathlessly.

He shook his head. “No. But it seems I did.” He gestured toward a wooden box sitting on the dresser. “They gave me all the effects I was carrying with me when I was brought in, after the accident. I finally took a look at it a few minutes ago. You look, too—you’ll see what I mean.”

Rising, she went to the box and opened it. Inside she saw his wallet, his keys and his wedding ring. Their wedding ring. Her heart began to pound. She turned to look at him.

“You were wearing this ring in the accident?” she asked. That didn’t seem reasonable. They had exchanged rings in their wedding, but they only wore them at home, when they were alone. Their wedding had been a secret that could have resulted in them both being fired from their jobs if they’d been found out. And after the fight they’d had, after what he’d said, why would he have been wearing the ring? She stared at him, completely at sea.

He shrugged. “So it seems.”

“But…” She pressed her lips together to keep from saying something she would regret.

“Kylos doesn’t know anything?” She only asked in order to see what he would say.

“No. We didn’t have much contact over the last couple of years.” He shrugged. “At least, not that I remember.” He looked into her eyes. “You’re wondering where my wife is, aren’t you?” he said sensibly. “I don’t know. I feel like something must have happened. That’s why I want you to find her.”

She was numb. What on earth could she say to that? “What if she doesn’t want to be found?” she murmured, then wished she hadn’t.

“You’ve got a point,” he said, looking sleepy. “If she still wanted me, she would have shown up by now, wouldn’t she?”

“Oh! Not necessarily. Maybe she doesn’t know what happened.”

“Maybe.” He flexed his back and grimaced at the pain. “There are a lot of screwy things going on with this whole issue. For instance—look at the ID in the wallet.”

She pulled the wallet out and opened it, but she already knew what it would say. There it was, a picture of Mykal, and the name John Blunt on the card. John Blunt. It was a name she knew well. It was the name he’d been going by as he infiltrated a local shipbuilder’s union in the small seaside city of Pierria where they had both been working undercover.

So Mykal had been racing down a road on that old rattletrap motorcycle he loved with his John Blunt identity card in his pocket and the wedding ring he owned as Mykal Marten on his finger. It didn’t make any sense.

“When was your accident?” she asked him, her mind working a mile a minute. “Where was it? Do you know?”

He shook his head. “About two months ago. And somewhere in Granvilli territory, from what I’ve been told. But I don’t know where exactly.”

She stared at him. Certain things were beginning to put up little red flags in her thinking. “How did they find your real identity?”

“It took a while. I was in a Granvilli hospital for a few weeks, I guess, and then I got transferred to the royal side in a prisoner trade. It seems they figured out I was a spy for the royals.” His smile was endearingly crooked, but getting more and more sleepy. “I only wish I could remember. It sounds like I was living quite the life over there.”

“Yes,” she said softly, holding the memories close. “You were.” She stared at him for a long, trembling moment. This had gone on long enough. Her resistance was melting. He had to know the truth.

But he didn’t seem to notice what she’d said. He shook his head as though to clear it and looked at her through squinted eyes. “So will you help me?” he asked, his voice getting slurred. “I just have this aching void inside, and I feel like, if I could find her, if I knew who she was, I could fill this emptiness. And maybe find a reason to care whether I survive these operations or not.”

“Oh, Mykal.”

She went to him. She couldn’t help it. She slipped right onto the bed beside him, being careful not to put any pressure on him in any way, but taking his face between her hands and kissing him firmly on the lips.

He kissed her back and she clung to him, so hungry for his affection, so thirsty for his taste. It was heaven to hold him.

But she had to pull away so that she could tell him the truth.

“Mykal,” she said softly, touching his beloved face with the palm of her hand and looking into his eyes. “I know where your wife is. I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you right away.” She took a deep breath and plunged in. “I’m…I’m the one. It’s me. You and I were married about four months ago.”

He was staring at her but his eyes were blank. She bit her lip, disturbed by his lack of reaction. Frustrated, she leaned her head back on the pillow and stared at the ceiling as she talked. She couldn’t look at him. She didn’t want to see growing awareness in his eyes as he listened to her.