Getting Ready

As I stepped back into our room, I was seething at my father. I’d told him countless times to keep his nose out of my business. He had his own life to manage, and I’d built mine from scratch.

He’d never meddled before, but the mere idea that he was watching my every move was infuriating. I knew what I was doing, how to lead my people, without someone spying on me and reporting back to him.

I grabbed the phone and ordered our food. Then I moved into the bedroom where my beautiful angel was still sleeping in our enormous bed.

Sitting next to her, I brushed away a few strands of hair that had fallen onto her face, then gently kissed her cheek. She stirred, her eyes fluttering open to reveal the face I’d fallen in love with the moment I first saw her.

“Morning, baby. Did I oversleep again?” Shay squinted at the sunlight pouring into the room.

“It’s okay, you needed the rest. But I have some bad news.” I hoped she wouldn’t be upset.

She sat up in bed, her gaze fixed on me. “What’s wrong? You look really pissed off.”

Sighing, I ran my hands through my disheveled hair and nodded.

“Yeah, we have to go back to Italy. My dad has planes ready for us and he needs me home for some business. I’m sorry to cut our vacation short, but it’s a family matter.”

Her eyes met mine. I gave her a small smile as her hands reached out to cradle my face.

“It’s okay, baby. If your dad needs you, then we’ll go. I’ve never been to your homeland and I’d love to see it.”

I chuckled softly. “It’s a beautiful country, but I’m afraid we might not have much time for sightseeing. I’ll do my best to show you some of my favorite places, but we’ll be busy with business.

“And I don’t want you leaving my dad’s house without me. He lives in a massive castle with heavy security, but I don’t want you outside the walls.”

Her eyes widened. “He lives in a castle?”

Damn, I hadn’t told her about all of that yet. I nodded slowly.

“Yeah, in my country, there are different ranks in our line of work. You have enforcers, leaders, lords, and then a king who rules over everyone.

“My father is at the top, the king. I left to build my own empire, but I can’t surpass him until he retires or dies. As his successor, I’ll take over when that time comes.”

Shay’s eyes were locked on me as I spoke, and I could see her mind racing. “So, we’ll have to move to your homeland and live there in the future?”

There was a knock at the door. I got up to collect our food. After setting the trays on the table, I turned back to Shay.

“Shay, to answer your question, yes. Eventually we’ll have to move there because that’s where the main headquarters are. We’ll come back here often for business, but our primary home will be there.”

She sank into a chair, accepting her plate from me, but only pushed her food around. I knew this was a lot for her to take in; I hadn’t had time to explain how everything worked in my world.

“Please don’t hate me for this. I wish things were different, but I was born into this life, destined to become a king. I’m like a prince waiting for his turn on the throne.”

“Zane, I wish you’d told me all of this sooner. I didn’t realize you were, like, next in line for a throne. I don’t know how to run a place like that. You were raised in this life, you know what’s expected. I don’t.”

I took her hand and tilted her face up to look at me.

“Shay, I know I should have told you, but since we’re going home, you can talk to my mom. The wife’s role isn’t much more than keeping the house running smoothly and being a badass when needed.

“People fear the king and queen because of their titles, but they also respect you for who you are.

“My mom was thrust into her role just like you will be. My dad ran his own crew until his father died, then he stepped up, just like I will. My mom had to learn the ropes, just like you will.”

I placed my hand on her stomach, now showing a tiny baby bump. I smiled.

“We’ll raise this child the way they need to be raised. If we have a son, we’ll raise him like my parents raised me. If we have a daughter, she’ll be cherished, loved, and raised to be feared, as a princess should be.”

She laid her hand on mine, but her smile didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Yeah, I can see why you’re so feared and why you want to continue the legacy.”

“Baby, please. Try to understand. I would have told you everything over the next few days while we were on vacation.

“I knew you needed to know what our future held, and I was trying to figure out the best way to tell you.”

She pushed her chair back without taking a bite of her food.

“Zane, it would have been nice to know all of this before you proposed.

“I knew you were in charge of your current operation, but telling me I have to move to a completely different country and raise our children there was not what I was expecting.

“Just leave me alone right now. I need time to think about all of this.”

Shay got up and stormed off into our room.

~Shit! Am I going to regret this? What if she leaves me with our child? No, you idiot, she loves you and wouldn’t do that. Would she? Damn, I’m such an idiot for not telling her the whole truth.~

I stuffed a pancake into my mouth, even though what I really wanted was to bang my head against the table. I tried to focus on my breakfast, but all I could think about was how much I wanted to kick my own ass.

Shay reappeared, all dressed and dragging her suitcase behind her.

“Shay, come have some breakfast. We’ve got a long flight ahead of us, and then another—”

“Enough! I’m going back to the house, but that’s it. I can’t handle all of this right now. I need time to think.”

I felt my anger rising, but I tried to keep it in check as I stood up and walked over to her.

“You’re coming with me. I can’t leave you alone right now. This is worse than what happened with Luca, and I won’t leave you unprotected while I’m halfway across the world. You’re coming with me, and that’s final.”

She looked up at me, her eyes filled with confusion and hurt. “You know what? I don’t really care what happens to me.”

That was the last straw. My anger exploded out of me like never before. I pinned her against the wall, my body shaking with rage.

“You don’t care what happens to you and our unborn child? Don’t push me to do something we’ll both regret. You’re coming with me and staying at my dad’s house where I know you’ll be safe.

“Do you understand what I’m saying?”

The fear in her eyes told me I’d gone too far. She started to cry. “Yes, I understand.”

Shit! Now I felt like an ass. I stepped back, wrapping my arms around her and pulling her away from the wall, letting her sob into my bare chest.

“Shay, baby. I’m sorry, but I can’t lose you or our child. Please try to understand where I’m coming from. I love both of you more than my own life.”

I took her hand, gently rubbing the ring she wore.

“This ring is proof that I want you to be safe. When I’m out there, I need to know you’re not in danger.

“Take your time to process all of this, but please understand that keeping you safe is my top priority. I can’t focus on my work if I’m worried about you.

“I need to know you’re safe and sound, and that you won’t be taken away from me again. It nearly killed me each time, and I can’t go through that again. I love you with everything I have, and I need to know you’re safe.”

She looked up at me with those eyes I loved so much. “I’m sorry too. I should have thought before I spoke. I would never want to put either of us in danger. You’d be worried sick about us.”

“Thank you. Now please eat your breakfast while I pack my things. We have a long flight ahead of us.”

I let her go, and she walked over to the food while I gathered my things. We finally got ready to leave, met everyone else in the hall, and headed to the cars waiting outside to take us to the airstrip.