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His grip in her hair tightened. ‘But this marriage, Solace? What about that?’
It had always been something of a bluff. She’d never been going to refuse, not when it would leave her in the same position, having to choose between staying for her son and leaving for herself. And she’d have to leave, because she couldn’t take Leo away from Galen. Not only when it would condemn Leo to the kind of life she’d had herself, but also it would hurt Galen immeasurably.
She couldn’t do that. Just as she couldn’t walk away from him. And it wasn’t to do with his power or the fact that he was a king or because of their chemistry. It wasn’t about the kind of life he could give her. It wasn’t even because he was Leo’s father.
It was him. She wanted to stay with him because when she was in his arms, she felt safe. When he looked at her, she felt as if she was worth something for the first time in her life. And when she spoke, he listened. She wasn’t invisible with him.
With him she was seen.
‘I’ll marry you, Galen,’ she said, then reached inside his trousers and found him, hard and ready and hot in her hands.
His body was tense, all his muscles rigid, and he murmured something sharp and bitten off as she slowly drew him out. His skin was smooth and velvety, and her mouth watered as she leaned forward to taste him.
He tightened his fingers convulsively as she licked him, tracing the long, hard line of his sex with her tongue. Then he growled her name as she took him into her mouth, taking him deep. His hands firmed and she let him guide her, because this was for him, after all, and she wanted to give him everything she could.
She let him direct her, sucking him hard and then softer, slower, her own fingers digging into his rock-hard thighs, dizzy and drunk on the taste of him.
She didn’t stop. She took him to the edge and when the climax hit him, it came hard and fast, his grip on her hair painful, his low, masculine growls of satisfaction making her own need build.
But she didn’t care about herself, not this time, because there was so much satisfaction in giving him what he needed. She hadn’t realised until now how good that would feel. So much of the time she had to put her own needs first, but taking care of his, taking care of him, satisfied something deep in her soul she hadn’t realised was there.
After a moment, Galen loosened his fingers in her hair and pulled her up into his lap, holding her with her head against his broad chest, and for a while they sat like that, content in the silence.
Then Galen said, his voice a low rumble in her ear, ‘Nine months before I was born, my mother had one night with one of the palace staff. She and my father were trying for an heir at the time.’
Solace went very still, staring at the white cotton of his shirt.
‘She died a few days after I was born due to complications from the birth. There were rumours about the affair, but no one knew for certain. No one except my father. A simple paternity test would have solved the issue of who my actual father was, but Alexandros was a proud man. He couldn’t stand the thought of anyone knowing his wife had been unfaithful, and he needed an heir, so he claimed me as his anyway.’
He was very warm, the tension gone from his muscles, an arm around her waist. She could hear the beat of his heart. It was fast.
So...what did all of this mean?
‘Alexandros never had me tested,’ Galen went on. ‘He didn’t tell me that there was a possibility he wasn’t my father until I was called back from Oxford after his stroke. That’s when he...disowned me. He told me about my mother and her affair, that it had always been clear to him that I wasn’t his son and my behaviour at Oxford proved it. Then he told me he was going to pass the crown on to my uncle, Kostas.’
Shock rippled through her, but she stayed silent. It was clear he still had things to say.
‘Kostas never cared about the people of this country. It was all about big business and making the rich richer while making the poor even poorer. I couldn’t allow that to happen. I couldn’t allow him to rule and so when Alexandros died before he could formally change the succession, I took the throne even though it might not be mine by right.’ He paused. ‘Everyone assumed I was the true heir and so I let them keep on believing that in order to protect Kalithera. Kostas doesn’t know the truth but Alexandros must have let slip something because he’d always been deeply suspicious of me. I cannot afford to give him any reason to question me or my rule, especially not considering my past, because if I do, if I have to take that test and it finds I’m not Alexandros’s son, then the throne will pass to him.’
Slowly Solace shifted her head and looked up at him. ‘But you don’t know for sure that you’re not Alexandros’s son?’
Galen’s deep blue eyes were impenetrable. ‘No. But if I’m not, I’ll have to abdicate in favour of Kostas. He’s already tried to block a number of the policies I’ve put in place to help tackle the poverty we’ve had here, and he’s made no secret of the fact he wants to turn Kalithera into a tax haven.’ His expression hardened. ‘I won’t have it. I won’t allow my country to be turned over to big business and criminals, and if I have to lie in order to protect it, I will.’ Anger glittered in his eyes now, the strength of his conviction finding an echo inside her too. She knew what it was to fight for something, to do anything you could to protect the things that mattered, that you cared about.
But still, that this would be the secret he was hiding had never even occurred to her, and she could see now why he hadn’t wanted to tell her. This affected not only the stability of his throne, but his entire country.
She studied his beautiful face. ‘You don’t have to take the test, surely?’
His expression betrayed nothing. ‘No, I don’t. But if questions about my paternity were asked and I refused to take a test, it would create doubt in people’s minds. There would be questions about my right to the throne, especially considering my past, and Kostas would take advantage of that. And of course, if they’d question me, they’d definitely question Leo.’
The shock spread out, ice water in her veins.
Of course. This affected Leo too.
‘Galen—’
‘That is why I cannot have any press looking too closely at me. It’s not just about what happened in Oxford, it’s about Kostas too. He’s tried to use my past against me before, to discredit my suitability to rule, and I cannot give him any more ammunition. That’s why I had to bring Leo here. I cannot have a son of mine, my DNA, living anywhere but with me. I have to go on as if I was Alexandros’s son, even if I’m not, because that’s the only way I can protect this country and the people in it.’
She put a hand on the cotton of his shirt, feeling the warmth of his hard chest beneath it. ‘But you might actually be his son, in which case none of this is necessary.’
