Carrying the King's Pride(17)
He worked his fingers into the knot of his tie and pulled it loose. “I know exactly what you’re going to say. What you just did.”
She blinked. “So you understand we need to negotiate how this is going to work?”
“Negotiate isn’t the right term.” He pulled the tie off and tossed it on top of his jacket. “Come to terms with our situation is more accurate.”
“I don’t have a situation. You do.”
He started undoing the buttons of his shirt. “You are carrying the heir to the throne. You are on Akathinian soil. You most certainly do have a problem to resolve.”
She stuck her hands on her hips. “You tricked me into coming here. This is a democratic nation. You can’t hold me here against my will.”
“A democratic nation in which I retain ultimate authority.” He stripped off his shirt and dropped it to the floor. “And I seem to remember you getting on that plane of your own free will.”
“Because you played on my sympathies.” Her eyes narrowed as he undid the button of his pants. “What are you doing?”
“Taking a shower so we can eat.” He stripped the pants off, dragging his boxers over his hips along with them. Her gaze dropped to that part of him she loved so much. “Unless you’d like to join me in the shower first?”
She shifted her attention back to his face. “No, thank you.”
“Later then.” He turned his back on her and headed for the shower. “Pour me a drink, will you? I’m tired and I’m in a filthy mood.”
* * *
Later? Sofía fumed. How about never again? She threw a mental dagger at Nik’s beautiful backside as he walked into the bathroom. He could not force her into a marriage she didn’t want. She was going to say her piece and leave.
His wet hair slicked back from his face, Nik joined her on the terrace a few minutes later. In jeans and a white shirt rolled up at the sleeves he didn’t do much for her equilibrium. He’d always been spectacular in a suit, but in casual clothes, he was all muscular, earthy male. Devastating.
She lifted her chin. “Why are we not having dinner with your family?”
He took a sip of the drink he’d poured himself and rested his elbows on the railing.
“I don’t think you’re ready for it.”
Her stomach tightened. “I’m sure they must be overjoyed to have me here. Your pregnant American lover who destroyed your alliance.”
His mouth thinned. “I think we should focus on the point at hand.”
“I’m not marrying you, Nik. There has to be some other way to make this work. Why can’t the baby stay with me in New York? We’ll do regular visits back and forth, and when he or she is older, they can choose whether they want to live in New York or Akathinia.”
He gave her a scathing look. “The heir to the Akathinian throne is not being raised in Manhattan. This child is a symbol of the future of the monarchy, one the people desperately need right now. Our child will grow up here. Learn the customs and intricacies of the country they will one day rule.”
“But I don’t want to live here,” she argued. “I have equal say in this decision, and I live in New York.”
“Don’t be naive.” His razor-sharp tone sliced over her skin like a whip. “We aren’t a stockbroker and an office assistant negotiating a custody settlement. I am the King of Akathinia. And if you think I’m letting you leave this country while you’re carrying my heir, you’re clearly deluded. Have the baby, then leave. It’s your choice. But the child remains here.”
The blood drained from her face, a buzzing sound filling her head. “You aren’t suggesting what I think you are.”
His expression was like the Hudson on a glacially cold day. “I’ve told you my preference. A child needs its mother. We are good together, Sofía. We were good together. We can make this work.”
Her heart started to race, a frozen feeling descending over her. He would take her child away from her if she didn’t agree to marry him. She knew that look. Knew he was dead serious.
She pulled in a breath, but the sultry, steamy air felt too thick, too heavy to deliver the oxygen she needed. Her head whirled, the strain of the past few weeks, of wondering what she was going to do, the press invading her every quiet moment, Nik’s threats, descending over her like a dark cloud. Inescapable. Unnavigable.
She set a palm to the railing and pulled in another breath, but it was as if the air was being sucked out of her. A layer of perspiration blanketed her brow as the dusky night spun around her. She distantly registered she was going to pass out a second before Nik’s arms closed around her, catching her before she could.