‘Prince Rafaele is correct, Father,’ she said, trying to ignore the heavy warmth of Rafe’s hand against her hip. ‘We did speak about it last night and I’m... I’m still coming to terms with his change of heart.’ She glanced at the Prince with a look just short of panic, hoping that King Jaeger had indeed rung for coffee—or perhaps something stronger.
‘Sometimes a man doesn’t know what’s important until it’s about to be taken away.’ Prince Rafaele gave her an indulgent smile. ‘When Alexa informed me of your plan to marry her off to Lord Richton, I couldn’t let that happen. If Alexa marries anyone, she’ll marry me.’
Alexa swallowed at the possessive note in his voice. What would it be like if he truly meant those words? If he actually wanted to marry her for real? And why had that thought even entered her head? She wasn’t looking to turn this into a love story. No matter how well he could kiss, Prince Rafaele was completely the wrong kind of man for her.
‘This is all very surprising,’ King Jaeger said reasonably. ‘Why don’t we take some time to think about it and agree to meet next week to—?’
‘No.’ Her father cut the King’s offer off before it was fully formed. ‘If your brother wants to marry my daughter then the wedding will be held at the end of the month.’
In three weeks!
Her father’s words sounded like a death knell in the quiet room. Alexa swallowed hard. This was only meant to be a temporary engagement, not an actual marriage.
‘That’s not possible,’ she choked out. ‘I...that is to say, we...’
‘This isn’t a game, Alexa,’ her father interrupted tersely. ‘Of his own admission, Prince Rafaele has already experienced cold feet and I will not have another Santarian royal make a fool of you by pulling out at the last minute.’ He turned to square off against the Prince. ‘If you want my daughter, those are the terms.’
Fully expecting Rafe to run from the room like a man with the devil after him, Alexa wasn’t surprised to hear him say, ‘The end of the month doesn’t work for me. I have a new club opening on that weekend and I have to be there.’
‘There you go,’ she said, breathing a sigh of relief. ‘Now why don’t we—?’
‘The weekend before then,’ her father challenged.
Alexa felt Rafe go dangerously still beside her. Her father didn’t move either; his chin jutted out at an angle she knew meant that nothing would get him to back down. They were like two stags facing off against each other over unclaimed territory. Only she was the piece of precious veld they were fighting over.
Deciding she had to do something to defuse the tension in the room, Alexa stepped towards her father, only to have Rafe’s hand firm on her hip to hold her in place beside him.
‘Tight,’ he murmured, his hard gaze flicking from her father’s to hers. ‘But so be it.’
* * *
‘So be it? So be it?’
Somehow Alexa had convinced her father that she needed a moment alone with her fiancé. She moved out of his arms now, and rounded on him.
‘Are you completely mad? Why did you say that to him? Why did you agree with his terms?’
‘Breathe, Princess,’ the Prince ordered curtly, ‘before you pass out.’
She wasn’t going to pass out. She w
as going to... Alexa groped for the edge of the sofa behind her and all but fell onto the cushioned seat. She was going to pass out.
‘Here.’ A glass with amber liquid in it, not unlike the horrible Scotch she’d sipped the night before, was thrust in front of her face. ‘Drink this.’
‘It’s too early for alcohol.’
‘It’s five o clock somewhere in the world. If you don’t drink it, I will.’
‘Have it.’ Alexa took a deep breath, her palms against her belly to settle the pitching sensation inside. ‘I’m too much in shock to drink it.’
‘Why are you so shocked? You’re the one who asked me to marry you in the first place.’
‘I asked you to cooperate in a fake engagement, not enter into a real marriage.’
‘And why was that?’ His eyes were like blue granite when they met hers. ‘You weren’t surprised when your father initially disapproved of you marrying me. Was this just an act of rebellion on your part? The perfect, pampered little princess, lashing out against authority by becoming engaged to the Rebel Prince?’
‘No!’