Claiming His Replacement Queen (Monteverre Marriages 2)

gaze darkened. ‘Sorry, I couldn’t bear the thought of digging through half of the gowns in my case to find my own T-shirt so I stole one of yours.’

This image might very well be imprinted on his brain for ever, he thought with a cruel twist of his lips. She had never looked more tempting than at this moment, wearing one of his white T-shirts. The garment went to her mid-thigh, showcasing her long slim legs. But he was not a barbarian, even though the world claimed he was. Putting his libido firmly in check, he took a few steps away, just as they were interrupted by her assistants arriving to begin preparing her for the evening.

Cressida looked at him uncertainly. ‘Is everything all right?’ she asked with a frown. ‘I can have them come back if you need to talk?’

Khal paused, realising that he had just been about to launch into a very heavy conversation less than an hour before they were due to be seen in public. Cursing his own stupidity, he hastily assured her that everything was okay and excused himself to allow her team to go about their preparations. There was plenty of time to talk tomorrow, he told himself. One more night would not change matters. He went about readying himself, ignoring the niggling feeling that he was simply delaying the inevitable.

* * *

Cressida moved to the edge of the party; the air had become uncomfortably warm as more and more guests arrived. She had been told there would be a small gathering of Monteverrian dignitaries and wealthy society favourites in order to show that the royal family stood strong against the scandal. But it seemed half of the kingdom had arrived to get a glimpse of the Sheikh of Zayyar and his scandalous wife.

But as she breathed in the night air, looking at the beautiful ornate fountain and surrounding shrubbery, all lit up in pink and orange lights, she wondered if a husband who was simply understanding would ever be enough. Her mother had said that she and her father had experienced a burning passion in the beginning, then that passion had burnt out, leaving nothing but discontent and resentment in its wake. Without a true emotional connection, would she ever feel secure in her marriage?

‘It seems desert life suits you,’ a familiar voice came from behind her. Cressida turned to find her middle sister, Olivia, standing in the doorway, her silver gown sparkling like an angel. She couldn’t help it; she burst into tears just as Olivia’s arms surrounded her in an embrace.

‘What are you doing here?’ she half choked between sobs.

Olivia wiped one of the tears from her cheek, her classically beautiful features filled with concern. ‘We saw the news and we came straight here. Did you know about...the affair?’

Cressida filled her sister in on the entire story, beginning with her mother’s version of the affair, leading into her own discovery and Fabian’s subsequent emotional blackmail. Once she had finished, they sat in silence for a moment, Olivia shaking her head slightly.

‘This family is utterly insane,’ Olivia said simply. ‘I have never been more grateful for my new distance.’

Cressida smiled, leaning her head against her sister’s arm for a moment. Olivia had been the only person she had ever felt a true connection with in her family. Eleanor had always been too busy to entertain her, being the oldest and set to become Queen of Monteverre one day. But Olivia had taught her how to braid her hair and told her the latest gossip from school. She had always envied her sister for her natural beauty and easy elegance. She was talented too, having recently taken the reins of their grandmother’s literacy foundation after relinquishing her royal status.

‘You seem happy,’ Cressida said. ‘I’m glad.’

‘Roman is wonderful,’ Olivia said, a dreamy look crossing her features. ‘But I’m also feeling fulfilment from working for the first time in my life.’ She smiled widely. ‘But I’m sure you know all about that, having had years of freedom in London.’

Cressida thought of that time in her life; it seemed so long ago. ‘I do miss it,’ she said truthfully. ‘I envy you.’

‘You could always join forces with me; goodness knows I could use someone with your kind of language skills, Cress.’ Olivia’s eyes lit up for a moment before she frowned. ‘But, of course, you have your own set of responsibilities now. I doubt the Sheikha of a country has time to go travelling around the world teaching children to read?’

The sudden mixture of longing and disappointment that filled her chest took her by surprise. The idea of travelling, seeing the world while at the same time using her knowledge and expertise to teach... She sighed wistfully. But, of course, she had her life in Zayyar and her duties as Sheikha. That should be enough for her. She loved Khal and a small part of her hoped that in time he could come to love her too. But the thought of teaching...

Olivia cleared her throat beside her. ‘We could join forces to do a one off event with the foundation, maybe. It would be great to reconnect and spend time together.’

Cressida opened her mouth to speak, but at the same moment Khal decided to make his appearance on the terrace, followed closely by Roman Lazarov. Olivia’s Russian fiancé had once been Khal’s Chief of Security and best friend. It wasn’t exactly clear how he had come to be engaged to her sister, but it was obvious that it had made things strained between the two men. Khal looked from Cressida to her sister, an unreadable expression crossing his features.

‘Olivia was just telling me about her work with the literacy foundation,’ Cressida said brightly, covertly trying to swipe away the remnants of her crying episode from her cheeks.

‘It’s nice to see you again, Sheikh Khalil.’ Olivia smiled, nodding politely. ‘I was just trying to persuade my sister to put her amazing language skills to good use with the literacy foundation.’

A strange expression crossed Khal’s dark features as he looked from Olivia to her. ‘Cressida is very talented. She would make an excellent teacher.’

Cressida blushed. She had expected to feel some jealousy with Olivia, considering that her sister had been Khal’s original intended bride. But for some reason she did not. Maybe it was the way that Roman and her sister looked at each other, so full of love and happiness. Or maybe it was the fact that she still held out hope that Khal might come to look at her in that same way.

A commotion inside the doorway took their attention and Khal moved aside just in time for the terrace doors to swing open and Queen Aurelia to burst through them.

‘I’m done! I want divorce papers drawn up immediately in the morning,’ the older woman proclaimed, followed closely by Eleanor and King Fabian. A trio of guards closed the terrace doors, blocking out the scene from the rest of the party.

‘Mother, please. At least wait until tomorrow,’ Eleanor chided in her best peacekeeping voice as she took her mother by the hand.

‘I’ve waited decades!’ Aurelia exclaimed.

Cressida was shocked to realise that her mother was sober; she could tell by the lucidity in her eyes and the hint of colour in her cheeks. She could not remember the last time she had seen her mother look so awake and present.

‘Another grand debacle for the entire society to talk about,’ King Fabian said, bored. ‘I suppose it has been a few months since the last embarrassment.’ He looked pointedly towards Roman and Olivia.