He'd realized a few days ago that Alea was very likely pregnant, but he'd wanted to give it time, to be sure, before they had to deal with the fact that they were on an island with no medical care. He'd been standing by the fresh water pool Lan had discovered, watching her smile and swim and kiss his partners and he'd just … known. She was carrying a child.
When they'd been rescued, he'd planned to keep his mouth shut until she figured it out. It was a woman's right to tell her men that she was pregnant, giving them the gift of a family.
He'd been so happy. Something deep inside him had settled as though he'd found a piece to his puzzle that had been wrenched out of place and had finally been made right. His child. His, Lan, and Coop's with Alea. And she'd looked perfectly horrified at the idea of being pregnant. Like it was her worst nightmare.
What the hell was wrong with his eyes? He stopped, the room turning blurry.
Fuck all. He was not going to cry. He didn't cry.
"Dane? Is Lea coming to the meeting?" Cooper asked, his voice drifting up from behind Dane.
Dane took a long breath and banished the unwanted emotion. He should have stayed calm, should have given her more time, but the idea that she thought they would be better apart had made him insane. Dane turned. "No. She's gone to her rooms. We can fill her in afterward."
"I thought she would want to come." Lan joined them in the vestibule that led from the residences to the section of the palace that held staff offices and conference rooms. The early evening air filled the vestibule, and he could smell the scent of jasmine from the gardens where he'd wanted to take Alea and propose when the time was right. They'd talked about it, the three of them. It was traditional for the royal family to become engaged in view of the gardens. The gardens were blessed once a year and had been for the last two hundred years. They were said to be a lucky place for love and peace.
Coop stopped, his eyes widening. "What the hell happened to put that look on your face?"
He'd lost his temper, and now he had to tell his brothers how screwed they were. "We had an argument."
Lan's jaw became a harsh line, his arms going over his chest. "She changed her mind about us. We're back here now, and she doesn't want to be with a bunch of broken down old soldiers, right?"
His brain had gone there at first, too. He couldn't blame Lan. "I don't think that's the problem, but she did ask to have us removed as her guard and basically told Talib that it would be best if she didn't see us again."
Cooper shook his head. "That's going to be hard since she's pregnant."
When had Cooper figured that out?
Lan's jaw dropped. His eyes bugged out. "Lea's pregnant? How the fuck did that happen?"
Cooper shook his head. "Okay, let's talk about eggs and sperm. When three boys love a girl very much … "
Dane stopped Cooper in his tracks. "This is serious, Coop. She really was trying to send us away."
Cooper shook his head. "She hasn't changed her mind. The press is just freaking her out."
Lan's calm broke, and a hopeless look filled his eyes. "I caused this, didn't I? I don't know anything about this royal shit. I'll just screw everything up. I almost did in Koror. I love her, man. I never loved anyone before, but I love her so damn much. I don't want to wreck her life. And I don't see what we can do. If she won't marry us, we can't force her."
Cooper's eyes narrowed. "No, but the sheikh can. I read up a little on their laws, and I bet Dane did, too. The sheikh can force members of his family to marry if he deems it critical to either state or familial relations. Alea being pregnant and unwed in this part of the world would be a huge scandal that could rock this palace. Shit, Dane. Did you pull him into this?"
Yeah, that was where he'd probably screwed up. "She didn't leave me a choice since she went to Tal without talking to us first. I'm not going to be eliminated from our child's life. And she needs us, too."
Lan stood a little taller. "Damn straight she does. I can learn the press stuff. I'll take a class or something. 'Learning How to Not Pound a Fuckwad 101.' Sign me up."
"I can't wait to see your notes from that class, Lan." Cooper turned back to Dane. "You were right to bring Tal into this. She's stubborn as hell. This way she can't refuse and tell herself she's doing it all for us. I think she would have fought to protect us, even if it hurt her."
Knowing Cooper and Lan were standing beside him gave him great strength. "I couldn't let her go into this alone, but I'm worried that she won't accept us now. We can force her to marry us, but we can't make her like it. Damn it, Coop, she's had all her choices taken away before. I hate to be the man who does that to her again. How the hell did she find out about how bad the press has gotten? I tried to protect her from it. I didn't want her to know what was going on with our families. How are your folks faring in all this?"