still swirled in his mind and heart. Everything had happened so quickly, and with such deadly finality. Each decision he made seemed a matter of life and death.
“I’m not going to pressure you into anything.” Lani spoke softly, gazing off to one side. “I never wanted to. It’s your decision, and now you have all the facts.”
AJ took in a deep breath and straightened his shoulders. “I committed myself to Rahiri tonight, and to you, and I stand by my decision.” Conviction filled his heart. “Your courage in choosing to tell the truth gives me every reason to trust you as my wife.”
Lani blinked, obviously embarrassed by his words. Her cheeks still shone like roses.
“But you really are far too beautiful for your own good.” He managed a snarl as he said it.
Lani shrugged and shot him a wry smile. “That’s what my aunt Freda used to say. She said girls like me end up in trouble.”
“And you did.” She looked startled, eyes suddenly wider. “By joining the Rahiian royal family, I mean. Life in the palace isn’t all eating bonbons and being fanned by faithful servants.”
“No, there are the big parties, the long banquets. It’s exhausting.” A smile brightened her eyes for the first time since her revelation.
“Lucky thing we’re both young and strong enough to handle it.” AJ found his hands once again itching to reach out to her. “Maybe we can make a go of this marriage thing. Heck, we might even enjoy it.”
Her eyes shone in the dim light of the bedroom. AJ picked up one of the hands dangling at her side, and pressed its softness between his palms. “The more I get to know you, the more I like you.”
She bit her lip. “And I like you, too. That’s why I couldn’t lie to you.”
He frowned. “The big question is whether we can lie to everyone else.”
“For some reason that doesn’t bother me.” Lani’s smooth brow furrowed slightly. “It’s no one else’s business where our child comes from. It’s between you and me that the truth is important.”
AJ stared at her. “You know, that makes perfect sense. If we’re married, it’s our child. Vanu’s gone and he’s not coming back, so he’s not being cheated out of anything. We’ll raise the baby as ours, with all the love and affection we’d shower on any child we have.”
Lani’s hand stiffened. She bit her lip, then peered into his eyes. “I just had a thought. What if we do have more children and you find yourself wanting the oldest child that really is yours to inherit the throne instead? Things could get complicated.”
AJ stared at her for a moment, trying to understand her dilemma, then he laughed. “I’m not an Egyptian pharoah with a desire to dominate the world. I will certainly not start interfering in matters of succession other than by bowing out for the next person to take over.”
Lani’s smile returned. “I had to ask, but I believe you. You don’t seem like that type.”
Though Vanu would have been. The unpleasant thought pierced the warm mist of happiness that had drifted back into the room.
AJ picked up Lani’s hand and kissed it, trying to dispel the image of Vanu that hovered suddenly in his consciousness. Would his cruel older brother haunt him for the rest of his days as he raised his child?
Lani’s hands, so soft and scented like lilies, filled his senses. She sighed as he pressed his lips to them.
No. Vanu could not cast darkness over his life from beyond the grave. He was dead and gone, in the past, and AJ would let him stay there. He and Lani would make a bright future for themselves and their child.
He lowered her hands and looked into her eyes. Mysteries glistened in their golden depths. He didn’t know where this marriage would lead them, but the adventure invited him to climb aboard. He kissed her softly, his lips just brushing hers.
Lani tilted her chin, pressing her mouth to his as her lashes lowered. AJ wound his arms around her slim back, holding her close. Tension fled his muscles as he let himself sink into her softness. She sighed and writhed gently against him, her passion natural and soft, not like earlier when she’d seemed—desperate.
He let his fingers roam lower, to cup her firm backside and caress her long, elegant thighs. Fantasies of having those thighs wrapped around him heated his blood. Lani’s fingers dived into his hair and slid under his collar, making his skin hum with arousal. He could feel her nipples tighten under her dress, and he knew she was aroused, too.
His fingers prickled with the desire to peel off her silk gown and bare her golden skin, but a powerful instinct deep in his gut told him to wait. He pulled back a few inches and smoothed her dress. Her belly quivered slightly beneath his touch.
Lani was recently widowed, pregnant and obviously alarmed and confused by the strange dilemma she’d found herself in. This evening’s events were enough to give anyone whiplash, and he didn’t want to rush headlong into steamy sex—Well, he did, but that would only make the situation even more explosive and unpredictable.
He needed to be strong for both of them. “I’ll sleep here in your bed tonight.” She blinked at him, those golden eyes still wary. “But we won’t make love.”
Her cheeks flushed. Relief or disappointment? It didn’t matter. Or maybe it was the word love
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