Page 50 of Promoted To His Princess

She took a breath. ‘Because he...cares for me, I think. And I will never be able to give that back to him. I will never be able to give him what he deserves.’

Something flickered over the king’s granite features. ‘You’re honest, I’ll give you that. And you’re right, he deserves more. He’s endured much these past few years and none of it has been easy for him. I don’t want to see him hurt.’ The king paused, studying her a little longer. ‘You should not have to give up the life you wanted either. Would you like to be given the choice, Calista? To stay or to leave?’

Did she? She wasn’t sure.

‘I can’t leave. He’ll follow me.’

‘Yes,’ the king agreed. ‘He will. In that case, after the party, come to me. I can help you to leave if you choose to, hide you from my brother, if that’s what you want. You and your child will be cared for, I give you my word.’

Calista stared at him, at his hard face, at the glitter of something fierce in the ice of his eyes. It was clear he cared about his brother as much as Xerxes cared about him.

Xerxes deserves better. He deserves better than you.

Something inside her dropped away. She felt dizzy and a little ill. ‘Yes, Your Highness,’ she said blankly, her lips numb. ‘I’ll consider it.’

He gave a nod. ‘See that you do.’

The door opened suddenly, and Xerxes came striding into the room.

He was dressed in the same uniform as his brother, black and gold, with medals and ribbons, but perhaps not quite as many as the king. He didn’t need them though. He was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen, the gold in his uniform echoing the gleam of gold deep in his dark eyes, the black highlighting the inky darkness of his hair.

The uniform fitted him to perfection, outlining his wide shoulders and narrow hips, his muscular chest and powerful thighs. He was every inch the handsome prince, radiating strength and authority, and his own special brand of lethal charm.

He is worth so much more than what you can ever give him.

Calista’s fingers were cold, so she curled them into her palms to warm them.

Xerxes stopped dead as he spotted Adonis, and frowned. ‘What are you doing here?’

His brother lifted a shoulder. ‘Merely saying hello to my future sister-in-law.’

‘Well, now you’ve done so, you can leave,’ Xerxes said gracelessly. ‘Goodbye, Your Majesty.’

Adonis’ granite expression betrayed nothing. He merely gave Calista one more piercing look before withdrawing from the room.

‘What did he want?’ Xerxes came over to her, reaching out and drawing her close, as if he couldn’t stop himself from touching her. ‘Was he threatening towards you? Disrespectful?’ His gaze was fierce. ‘I won’t allow anyone to upset you tonight.’

He was so protective. It made her ache.

‘I’m fine,’ she said, forcing the ache away. ‘He only wanted to make sure I wasn’t going to hurt you, I think.’

‘Hurt me?’ A smile curved Xerxes’ mouth. ‘Was he worried you might be an assassin?’

‘No.’ She didn’t want to tell him what the king had actually asked her. She didn’t want to have that conversation now. ‘Is it time to go?’

His gaze narrowed, as if he was debating whether to push her, but he obviously decided there was no time, because he nodded and held out his arm. ‘I’m afraid so. Try not to look like you’re heading to your doom.’

Calista tried to smile, to ignore the growing coldness in her stomach. She put her hand on his arm instead. ‘I’ll try, Your Highness.’

He reached out and cupped her cheek, bending to brush a kiss over her lips. ‘That’s Xerxes to you. Remember that.’

But it was impossible to remember that as he took her down to the ballroom, as they were introduced to the greedy eyes of society. As he moved, tall and strong, through the crowds, his charm and easy wit making people smile. Making them nod approvingly at him and at her, too.

He introduced her to people, whispered stories in her ear about them to help her remember names—a trick he’d learned in Europe, apparently. Some of the stories were scandalous, some of them clever, some of them designed to amuse her, but all were whispered with a smile, the boyish glint in his eyes that was for her and her alone.

It made the ice in her gut spread out, freezing the rest of her, hurting her.

Hediddeserve more. He was honourable and brave and strong. He was the kind of soldier she’d always wanted to be. The kind of son her father should have had. And he deserved someone who could make him feel the way he made her feel.

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