KRISTI GOLD - A Royal Wager - Persuading the Playboy King / Unmasking the Maverick Prince / Daring the Dynamic Sheikh

He finally ended the kiss and brought his lip to her ear, whispering something in French…a low, deep declaration that set her imagination on fire.

His respiration increased and his heart pounded against her chest. With one last thrust, his frame went rigid in her arms and he shook with the explosive force of his own climax.

She kissed his face, stroked his hair, held him close as their breathing returned to normal. But the return of awareness of what had happened—and what they hadn’t done—hit Kate with the force of an earthquake. She’d wanted to absorb his pain, escape their problems and make more memories—only to disregard the one thing that had been necessary to prevent creating more havoc in both their lives.

She knew the moment reality hit Marc when he muttered a harsh curse in English, one she had no trouble understanding. He braced his hands on the table on either side of her and kept his eyes lowered. “We didn’t—”

“I know.”

“Can you—”

“Get pregnant?” she finished for him. “Yes.”

“Bloody hell.”

Kate had mistakenly envisioned Marc’s words of love, not words of regret, after the tender moments they’d shared before this uncontrolled act. How ridiculous of her to think such a thing. How stupid of her to be so careless. She was a doctor. She knew the possible consequences, but so did Marc.

His remorse became all too clear when he slipped from her body and turned his back on her. “I do not expect your forgiveness for my total disregard for caution,” he said as he redid his slacks.

She couldn’t disregard the emotional wall he had erected, his distant tone.

Kate adjusted her clothes with trembling hands, unable to shake the seriousness of the situation. She hoped an attempt at humor might defuse the situation. “Well, we can now add offices to our list of places to avoid, along with sofas and kitchens. Maybe if we just sleep together in a bed, we’ll be able to control ourselves.”

When he faced her again, Marc’s stony expression told Kate her efforts hadn’t worked. “It doesn’t matter where we are, Kate. The only way we’ll avoid losing control is by avoiding each other. I can only assure you that I’ve never been this irresponsible. Never. It seems all I do is create one problem after another.”

Kate should be flattered by the fact that she’d driven him to such abandon, but she wasn’t, considering what it might mean in the long term. Considering he saw her—their lovemaking—as a problem, when she considered it a gift. “Look, if I happen to be pregnant, I don’t expect anything from you. But you have my guarantee I’ll love any child that belongs to me, whether you choose to be involved in its life or not.”

Anger turned his eyes as dark as moonless midnight. “Do you believe so little of me that you think I would abandon my own child? If that is so, then it would stand to reason that you don’t believe my claims that Cecile is not my child.”

Could things get any worse? “I do believe you, Marc. I just don’t want you to feel obligated to do anything you don’t want to do. And if you think we should avoid each other, then all you have to do is tell me. I won’t bother you again.”

“Kate, I want…” He hesitated then spun around and headed to the door. “Nicholas is probably waiting. I’ll ride back with one of the guards. We can discuss this later.”

Kate fought back a sudden rush of tears as she followed him into the hall. “Marc, we need to talk about this now. You can’t just walk away.”

“Are the king and his lady having a lovers’ quarrel?”

Kate and Marc turned simultaneously toward the end of the corridor. Mortification set in when Kate realized the annoying voice belonged to none other than Jonathan Renault.

How could they deny his allegations now?

Marc chose not to fight the sudden fury welling within him. In fact, he welcomed the wrath that he now directed at Renault with an acrid look, his hands fisted at his sides itching to wipe the smug look off the doctor’s face. “You are treading on dangerous ground, Renault. You have been since you made your erroneous assumptions known to the press.”

Renault looked Kate up and down before centering on her flushed face and kiss-swollen lips. “It seems my assumptions have been correct, although I assure you I’ve said nothing to the press.”

Marc took a menacing step forward. “ Menteur .”

“I am a liar? Forgive me, Your Highness, but are you not guilty of the same? You have lied about your relationship with Dr. Milner. Of course, I do understand your motivation. I cannot imagine the people of Doriana would accept that their king had taken a common putain as his lover.”

No one called Kate a whore. No one. “You low-life bastard.” Rage sent Marc forward but before he could land a fist on Renault’s ugly face, Kate grabbed his arm. “No, Marc,” she said. “This will only make matters worse.”

“Listen to your lover, Your Highness,” Renault said, cowering in the corner of the corridor. “I will press charges with the authorities if you lay one hand on me. I do not care if you are the king.”

Marc derived some satisfaction in the terror calling out from Renault’s eyes. “You’re right. I am not above the law. But I am within my rights to dismiss you from your position. I expect you to vacate the premises tonight and not return. And if I see you again, I won’t be so benevolent.”

“Are you threatening me, King Marcel?”

“I am saying I will no longer tolerate your insolence, Renault.”

“And I promise you will regret your decision.”

After the doctor scurried away, Marc crouched in the hall and grabbed his nape with both hands. He couldn’t remember feeling so drained and useless. He’d always shown great restraint when dealing with the likes of Renault and practicing care when it came to lovemaking. Tonight he had done neither.

He felt a gentle touch on his head. “Let’s go home, Marc.”

Home.

Marc didn’t feel as if he really had a home, a place where he truly belonged, at least not one where he was welcome… except when he’d been in Kate Milner’s arms.

Two days had gone by since the clinic fiasco and Kate had barely seen Marc except in passing. Again. She’d occupied her time with work and searching hospital records for any mysterious women who’d given birth six to eight months before, as Marc had requested. Yet she hadn’t come across any information that might lead to the identity of Cecile’s mother. All the children had been accounted for through pediatric follow-ups except for one, and that had been a boy. Most likely that child’s family had moved away, and it began to look as if Cecile had not been born at St. Simone’s hospital after all, which greatly complicated the investigation.

Kate decided she would have to start questioning the staff, if she could even begin to concentrate on anything aside from Marc’s troublesome, self-imposed withdrawal. Right now, she had to feed a very fussy Cecile.

“I am worried about my son.”

Kate looked up and centered her gaze on Mary. Obviously his mother shared her concern. “Marc’s worried about everything.” She made silly airplane noises while trying to slip the spoon of strained carrots into Cecile’s smiling mouth.

Mary reached over and swiped at the baby’s face after Cecile blew a raspberry, sending the orange pureed food all over Kate’s T-shirt. “He has much to be concerned about, but he will get through this with you by his side.”

Kate sensed Marc wanted nothing to do with her now, and that made her hurt in the worst way, right in the area of her heart. “He’ll get through it by himself. He’s a very strong man.”

Mary smiled a mother’s smile. “A very strong man who is fighting falling in love every step of the way.”