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Khal moved to Cressida’s side, taking her by the hand. ‘I think it’s best if we go back inside,’ he said quietly.
‘And leave them like this?’
‘They are adults, habibti. There is nothing we can do to change whatever is about to transpire. You will only put yourself in the firing line by being present.’
Cressida nodded at his sense, feeling a glow of warmth in the way he stood as her protector. She made to move with him towards the doors, whispering a quiet goodbye to her sisters as her mother continued to berate her father loudly in the background.
‘Hold on just a moment,’ King Fabian cut across his wife’s emotional tirade, his eyes black slits as he took a step towards Cressida. ‘As I’m app
arently about to suffer an embarrassing and probably expensive divorce, can I at least take it that you two lovebirds have decided to remain married after all?’
Cressida frowned at her father’s question—what did he mean, remain married? She looked up at Khal, seeing that same stressed expression that he had been wearing all evening.
‘This is not the time or the place, Fabian,’ Khal gritted.
‘I want it in writing that you will not nullify the marriage or the financial transactions that came with it, do you hear me? I want it iron-clad or I will make sure that your kingdom suffers every political roadblock possible.’
‘What is he talking about?’ Cressida turned to her husband.
‘We will speak in private,’ Khal gritted, his attention still focused on her father. There was a dangerous glint in his eyes, an awful ruthlessness that she had never witnessed before. It made her recoil slightly, taking a step back from him.
‘Cressida,’ he said sternly, ‘I will not discuss this here.’ He reached for her but was blocked by her two sisters, who moved in to stand at her sides.
‘What is he talking about...a nullification?’ Cressida asked, feeling her hands begin to tremble.
‘Parliament have undertaken a motion to dismiss our marriage contract on the grounds of forgery.’ Khal’s voice was emotionless as he spoke. ‘They are saying that because you deliberately withheld the truth of your parentage that I can choose to nullify the contract.’
Cressida felt the ground sway beneath her. ‘I see.’
‘I did not wish to discuss this with an audience.’ He met her eyes. ‘I think this is a matter that we should weigh up alone.’
Weigh up? He was discussing the possibility of ending their marriage as though the list of pros and cons was endless. Cressida thought that if she could actually feel her own heart breaking, the pain would be unbearable. As it was, she simply felt numb. ‘I don’t think we need to weigh up much. If parliament says that my parentage is unacceptable then you need to do what is right for your kingdom. I won’t contest any nullification.’
* * *
Cressida moved past her sisters and went through the terrace doors, needing to be alone before she let herself completely fall to pieces. She heard the commotion behind her but refused to look back, asking a guard to escort her to her suite. She heard footsteps thundering up the stairs behind them but ignored them, hoping her guard would do his job. Apparently the Zayyari guards only served one ruler, she thought wryly as Khal came striding in the door, slightly out of breath from his sprint.
Khal was silent for a long moment. ‘You won’t contest it...or you are relieved that it is a possibility?’
‘I think if either of us is relieved, it’s you. I am hardly the golden bride with political influence that you hoped for. I am steeped in scandal, for goodness’ sake. I can hardly make a speech without stuttering.’ She shook her head wildly. ‘I’m not my sister, Khal. I have tried to measure up as her replacement but I simply can’t. Maybe this is best for both of us, to end this now before we go any deeper.’
‘How much deeper can we get?’ he said, exasperated. ‘I know that this marriage did not start out in the most conventional way. I may have chosen your sister first out of convenience, Cressida, but I did not even know that you existed at that time.’
‘So if you knew about me, if you could go back and make the choice again, you’d choose me? The awkward, nerdy, antisocial anti-Princess?’ she said in complete disbelief.
‘I cannot promise that I would have chosen you, given my decision to enter into a loveless marriage. All I cared about was that my bride met criteria.’ He moved closer. ‘But I would never change you, now that I know the real you. Now that we have begun to share our lives.’
Cressida felt her breath catch in her throat at his words. Surely he didn’t mean that he didn’t want the annulment? Suddenly she wasn’t quite sure exactly who was arguing for or against their marriage any more.
He ran a hand across his jaw, shaking his head. ‘What I am offering you now is a real life time machine. A chance to change your future if you want it. Your sister has already offered you a teaching position. If you tell me that you want our marriage annulled, I will honour your request. My conscience would not allow me to hide this from you, much as I may have wanted to.’
‘You considered not telling me?’
‘God, yes. Why on earth would I want to give you a failsafe chance to walk away from this marriage? Away from me?’
‘I just presumed...your plans to have the perfect Sheikha have all gone up in smoke. I’m a walking scandal. Why on earth would you stay weighed down by the burden of me?’
He paused for a moment, the air between them frozen in time. Her heartbeat seemed uncomfortably loud in the silent room and she wondered if he could hear it.
