Free The Lost Princes of Ambria 06 - Taming the Lost Prince by Raye Morgan

her about it.
    But he would have to.
    “You haven’t said anything to her about this?”
    “No.”
    She nodded. “Explain it to her just like you did to me.”
    He looked skeptical. “I don’t think she’ll buy it.”
    “If it’s the truth, what else can you do?”
    He gave her a baleful look and shook his head. “Run away?” he suggested, only half joking.
    “Never,” she said firmly.
    He looked weary. “You know, this is just a guess. I don’t have any evidence. I’m not sure this is the exact thing pulling their chain. For all I know …”
    “You’ve got to tell her. Right now.”
    “Right now? But …”
    She dug for her mobile and held up a hand to stop him. “I’ll see if she’s in,” she said, punching in Pellea’s office number. “She’s not there,” she said after a moment. “But her message says she’ll be right back.”
    Leaning on the stone guard wall, he was watching her from under dark, lowered lashes. “You’re bound and determined to make sure I do the right thing, aren’t you? And by that, I mean the ‘royal’ right thing.” His eyes narrowed further. “You remind me of a prison warden I once knew.”
    She looked up at him, doggedly set in her goals. “I’m going to make you into a prince,” she said coolly. “And you’re going to like it.”
    He didn’t smile. His blue eyes looked as cold and hard as sapphire stones. “Or else I’ll bow out,” he said softly.
    Holding his gaze, she shook her head slowly. “Over my dead body,” she promised, enunciating each word carefully. “You’re sticking this out, mister.”
    He stared a moment longer, and then his lip began to curl. “Damn,” he said huskily. “Do you know how sexy you look when you’re giving me orders?”
    “Oh!” She turned and started away, furious with him again. Was he ever going to take anything seriously?
    “Hey.” He caught up with her and grabbed her upper arm, pulling her around to face him. “I’m sorry. I’m sure you thought that was condescending, didn’t you? I didn’t mean it that way. I was just being honest.”
    She glared at him. “Be honest with Pellea. She’s the one who counts. And believe me, she’s ready to give you every chance in the world. But you have to level with her. Come on.” She linked her arm with his and gazed up at him, intense and a bit anxious. “Let’s go on over to the office. She ought to be back any minute. And you can tell her yourself. She’ll listen.”
    He gave her a skeptical look. “She’ll try to see my side of things?”
    “Oh, absolutely. She’s really very understanding.”
    “I really don’t understand any of this and what’s more, I won’t have it!”
    Kayla recoiled. She’d never seen Pellea so angry. She glanced apologetically at Max, but he was scowling at the queen. Oh, brother, did she ever regret forcing this little conversation.
    They had come back to the office and found Pellea just arriving, a sheaf of papers in her hand. Obviously, she’d had news. She’d greeted them both the way someone thoroughly annoyed might, and as things were going, that did seem to be exactly what she was.
    Pellea took a deep breath, closed her eyes and tried to calm herself. “All right. I’m going to try not to shout. That sort of thing is never becoming in a queen.” She gestured at them, slipping into her desk chair. “Sit down. We’ll do this the right way.” But her eyes flashed at Max. “Now tell me again, what exactly have you heard from Mercuria?”
    Every muscle he owned seemed to be locked in stone. “As I said before, not much.”
    There was a hard line to his mouth that Kayla didn’t like. She knew he resented being talked to the way Pellea had done, but she could also see that he was holding back. She only prayed that he was in control of his emotions. And that Pellea was, too. Sinking into a chair, she tugged on his sleeve to get him to sit down, too.
    “I do have some calls in to some people and a friend is