I try to keep my patience, but there are some things I can’t let slide any longer.

I cross the room in three strides, reaching the door before her and blocking her way.

“You’re not leaving this palace,” I tell her. “I forbid it.”

Her eyes narrow. “You forbid it?”

I realize immediately that this was the wrong tack to take with her, but it’s too late now. I must stand my ground.

“We’re married,” I remind her. “And now you’re carrying our child. Why do you refuse to live here in the palace with me?”

“I’m not refusing,” she says. “But my work—”

“Damn your work! We’ve only seen each other a handful of times in the past three months. Everything changed the moment we were married, and not for the better. If I’d known you’d behave like this, then I never would have—” I snap my mouth shut, cutting myself off.

But it’s too late.

“You never would have what?” Victoria demands. “You never would have married me in the first place?”

“If this is what you consider ‘married,’ then no, I wouldn’t have signed up for this,” I tell her honestly. “I thought we’d be building a life together. Not two separate lives on opposite sides of the world.”

She’s silent, staring at me with an intensity that makes me uncomfortable. But I won’t budge. This needed to be said. Especially now that everything has changed.

“And yes,” I say, “maybe it would have been more prudent to wait to tell my brother. But I don’t think you quite grasp how much this child will affect my family—it’s important that they know. It’s more than just our lives that will be changing—the future of Montovia hangs on this. And if we… If we lose…” I can’t bring myself to finish the sentence out loud. “If something happens, then I still want them to know. I won’t be able to hide my pain from them. Keeping your pregnancy a secret wouldn’t save us any heartache. It wouldn’t keep such an event from being the single most devastating thing I’ve ever experienced. And if you think I could hide such a thing from my family, then you don’t know me very well.”

Her eyes fall, but her jaw is still tight.

“I’m not asking for this to be a secret,” she says. “I just want some privacy, at least until we know a little more. This will be hard enough without having to answer everyone’s questions. Without this pregnancy being the center of discussion in this palace for the next eight months.” She pauses, and her bottom lip trembles slightly. “I’ve never been so terrified of anything in my entire life. I want to be excited and hopeful, but I can’t. I’m just afraid. All of this could be ripped away from us so easily.”

“And if it is, we’ll figure out how to deal with it,” I say, though I find it difficult to even consider the possibility right now.

She shakes her head. “It feels…inevitable. Like I’m just waiting for the other shoe to drop. I…I’m not sure I’m strong enough for this.”

I reach out and cup her face, brushing my thumb against the line of her jaw.

“You’re the strongest woman I know,” I tell her. “No matter what happens, we’ll find a way through it, together.” I frown. “We will be together, won’t we? Victoria, my love, I understand how much your work means to you, but to have you all the way over in the United States at a time like this…”

“Someone has to look after your little sister,” she reminds me.

“Nicholas is there. And if he can’t keep her stay out of trouble…well, Sophia is old enough to learn the consequences of her actions. The most important thing right now is you—you and the child you carry.” I pull her closer. “I want to be a family with you, Victoria. And I don’t know how to do that when we’re far apart.”

She buries her face in my chest. “I know. I just…”

“Are you really so unhappy here in Montovia?”

“No.” She shakes her head against my chest. “I’m not unhappy. Not at all. It’s just…this is your country. Your home. Your job. Your…everything. I wanted—needed—something that was mine. Just mine. I love you, Andrew. So, so much. But I don’t want to lose myself just because I’m your wife now.” She tilts her head back, looking up at me with tear-filled eyes. “And now that I’m pregnant, there’s even more pressure. The entire country will be watching me. Hell, the entire world will be, even more than they were before. It’ll be hard enough without all that attention, and if anything goes wrong…”

“Then better to have you safe here, hidden away at the palace, than off in America.” I brush her hair back from her face. “Victoria, it’s not my intent to make you feel like a prisoner here. But this isn’t something either of us can do on our own. I want you here with me—no, I need you here.” I release her and drop down to my knees. “Please, Victoria. Please, stay here.”

I wrap my arms around her waist, pressing my face against her belly. It’s still the same size it always was, but it holds the world inside it now.

“Please,” I beg her. “I will do whatever it takes to make you happy. Whatever it takes to keep you safe. Just stay here. Let’s do this together, side by side.”

Her hands drop to my hair, and she’s quiet for a long time. I kiss her stomach, already in love with the life inside.

“I’m scared,” she whispers to me.

My lips pause on her stomach. I nuzzle her with my nose instead. “Me, too. More terrified than I’ve ever been in my life.”

Her fingers tighten in my hair. “And you’re right. We shouldn’t do this alone.”

“Does that mean you’ll stay?” I ask, looking up at her.

She nods. “Yes. Yes, I’ll stay.”

I practically leap to my feet, catching her up in my arms.

“I love you,” I murmur into her hair. “I love you so much.”

She clings to me. “I love you, too.”

And on Christmas Day, God willing, we’ll have someone else to love, too.