“Yes.” The king cut him off. “They reported back to me that the man was exactly what he seemed to be. And despite how Mara feels about photographs I had no choice—my agents sent me pictures of Mara with him. In all of them it is obvious Mara is in love, the kind of love I have prayed she would someday come to know. But the man...the pictures showed a man who did not betray his emotions. A man who shielded them from the eyes of the world. A man after my own heart.” The faint smile had returned. “Except for one picture. One picture, and then I knew almost all there was to know of this man and how he felt about Mara.”
Trace’s voice was husky when he said, “I’m surprised you didn’t eliminate him then and there.”
The king’s brows drew together in a frown. “Is that what you truly think? Can you honestly believe anything is more important to me than Mara’s happiness?”
Trace’s jaw tightened, and he took a step forward, his stance a challenge. “You don’t give a damn about your blue-blooded sister taking up with an American bastard who doesn’t even know his father’s name?” he threw at Mara’s brother.
“I knew that about you even before Mara told me she loved you. I knew that about you as soon as you were assigned to guard her.”
“And it didn’t matter?”
The king shook his head. “Once upon a time that may have been important. But there is one thing that trumps where you came from and who your father is or is not.” His eyes bored into Trace with intensity. “You would give the blood from your veins to keep Mara safe. Not because it is your job, but because she is your world. Yes?”
Trace swallowed hard. He didn’t want to answer, but he couldn’t help it. “Yes.”
“That is the only way to judge a man’s worth where a woman is concerned.” The king was breathing harder now with the force of his emotions held sternly in check. He didn’t say anything more until he had regained his iron control. His next words shocked Trace.
“But I had to be sure, for Mara’s sake. I could not trust in just that picture, not with Mara’s whole future at stake. I had to test you.”
Comprehension dawned swiftly. “You son of a bitch,” Trace said, anger flaring. “You were behind the kidnapping attempt.” The king inclined his head. “You sent men... What if something had gone wrong? What if—”
The king interrupted him. “I could not take the chance that something would go wrong. So I did not send men. I led them.”
Trace stared in disbelief, but then the meaning of the soft curse the assailant had uttered when the princess was injured sank in. It is Andre’s favorite curse, the princess had said long ago. Now it made sense. “You led them? You did that to your own sister? You terrorized her? You risked her life by having someone hold a gun to her head?”
“There were no bullets in the gun—she was never in danger.” A muscle twitched in the king’s jaw. “That is, she would not have been if she had not tried to save you.” He shook his head. “I did not expect that—not from Mara. She took me by surprise when she jumped for the knife—that is how she was injured. I had no intention of killing you, but she did not know that. I had not expected that kind of bravery from my little sister.” His face softened again, and a smile of admiration played over his lips. “When that happened I knew she loved you more than I had ever imagined.”
Trace had known, too. Wasn’t that when he’d realized he had to break it off with her, before it was too late? And not just because he’d thought he was a target, but because she was willing to risk her life for him?
“But just as she did not know the truth, you were not to know she was never in danger,” the king continued, “That would have defeated the purpose. I deliberately planned the attack for a night when the other two bodyguards were away, so only you were there to rescue her. But did you not question why the two active alarm systems were so effectively disabled, yet the passive alarm system was left activated?”
“Not at the time,” Trace admitted. “Not until afterward, when I had time to think it over and assess everything. You wanted me to know she was in danger.”
The king nodded. “I tested you the only way I could, and then I knew for sure you were the man for Mara.” His smile faded. “So I will ask you again. Why is Mara here alone? Why is she grieving as if you are dead?”
Trace was still trying to come to terms with everything the king had just told him, trying to put all the pieces into their new places in his mind. Trying to comprehend the single-mindedness, the ruthlessness that could put Mara through that ordeal. Love that is cruel to be kind, he thought. No matter the cost. Because the end result is worth any price. He steeled himself to answer the king’s question. “If she’s grieving,” he said, “it’s because I sent her away. Because I told her...” His throat ached. “I told her I didn’t love her.”