In fact, though she was fourteen weeks pregnant and showing, she had only seen a doctor once, in part due to Jag’s paranoia.
The only doctor that Jag trusted had been dealing with family matters abroad. Jag would allow no one else to know of Rita’s condition. The doctor, who had made the initial house call to confirm the pregnancy and pronounce Rita exceptionally healthy before going abroad, vowed to return as soon as possible.
“As soon as possible” had still not arrived, though.
The ultrasound machine that they had tersely reminded Jag that he would need to purchase if he was going to insist that Rita never go to the clinic or hospital for care, had, however, arrived.
And the doctor was due next week.
Soon, she would see her baby for the first time.
And in the meantime, she had days filled with adjusting her work to her pregnancy and Jag.
The thought filled her with a sense of well-being. Even if things remained the way they had ended with her family of origin, Rita had found herself a family after all.
A week later, however, Rita was forced to reevaluate her sentiments as she looked at the brand-spanking-new three-dimensional ultrasound image that showed she was carrying not just one baby, but two.
“Well, that answers why you’re so huge!” the doc said with a chuckle. “I didn’t want to alarm anyone, but I was already considering the conditions that could have resulted in that...” The sentence trailed off as the hand moving the wand around in the mess of jelly on Rita’s abdomen stopped. “Oh, and there’s the smaller one again. Such healthy babies. Of course, healthy or no, this being a twin pregnancy means the risk is higher. That is just a fact. Therefore, you must be even more vigilant about eating right and getting proper exercise and sunlight. Not too much stress either, and no harsh chemicals. You may need to take a hiatus from your garage, Princess, and—”
Jag cut them off impatiently with the words, “What do you mean, healthy or not? How can she be healthy and high-risk at the same time? That makes no sense.”
Shrugging with a knowing smile aimed at the Prince, the doctor replied, “Twice the baby, twice the potential for complications, twice the development that could go wrong, twice the baby to safely deliver. A singleton pregnancy requires a woman to operate at the height of human endurance for months at a time. A woman carrying two babies is doing double that. But do not worry, my prince, our princess here is healthy and strong and so clever that I bet she’ll think of a brand-new way to deliver entirely.”
The doctor gave parting advice and left. Rita placed a cool palm on Jag’s thigh. “I can handle this.”
For a moment, he did not reply. She wondered if he was so lost in his worries that he had not even heard her speak. But then he smiled, kissed her forehead and said, “I have no doubt.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
THEPRESSCONFERENCEhad been moved up and his palace made as secure as it was possible to be with a fully functioning home office and the comings and goings of his staff, but Jag felt helpless.
How was he supposed to keep Rita and his children safe from his father, conduct his work, and keep her stress levels healthy for the next four months? And after that?
He couldn’t do it here.
Rita didn’t know it, but his father had been becoming increasingly aggressive in his attempts to breach the protective ring of security that Jag had established around her since the announcement of their marriage.
He had already attempted to get to her multiple times, and that was without even knowing she was carrying the future of the family line. Both of them.
Twice the baby, twice the risk.
He had to get Rita and their children out of his father’s reach entirely—had to make sure they were literally and physically outside of the range of a man who had already shown Jag that he wasn’t above using any means necessary, and then he needed to get rid of the threat altogether.
Even here, with his near-constant presence at her side and within the palace that had been built to ensure privacy and security, they were not protected enough.
Nothing could happen to them; he would not be able to function.
He trusted Rafida and his security team with his life.
He trusted no one but Rita with the life of his children.
And that meant there was only one option.
She wouldn’t like it, but there was only one place on earth that he could trust to be completely out of the reach of his father, one place where he could be certain that Rita and their babies would be safe.
“Pack your things,” he told her when he found her in her garage, his voice implacable and firm, before adding, “We leave in an hour,” and no further explanation.
There would be plenty of time to explain everything on their journey there, and she would have the rest of her pregnancy to come around to understanding exactly why they had to go.