“No. Of course not. But perhaps, you can look and see if my staff were so kind as to provide you with a swimsuit, and we could go down to the ocean.”
“We never do things like this.”
“I know. But this is the time for us to explore things we’ve never done. That is the purpose.”
“Yes, so you said. I just didn’t think it extended to long walks on the beach.”
“Why not? Perhaps you will discover we enjoy it. Perhaps it is something we will want to do with our child.”
Her smile turned sad. “You do play dirty.”
“I will play however I must. If I can make myself seem indispensable to your vision of a happy family, then I’ll win. I’m not above using any means necessary.”
“I did not take you for being cutthroat, Kairos.”
“I hide it well. I rarely need to use it. My title insulates me from much pushback. From much criticism at all. Even if it exists, the teeth aren’t sharp enough to do me any harm.”
“Will you be wearing a swimsuit? I’m wondering if I can look forward to a show.”
“I suppose it would be impractical of me to attempt to swim without one.”
“Okay, now I’m starting to fear that you’ve been body snatched. My husband is talking about spending leisure time on the beach. And also, participating in recreational activity.”
“No, sadly for you, I remain Kairos. I have not been snatched and replicated by a more biddable man. But if nothing else, I hope this proves to you that even if it is not in my nature to behave a certain way, I can try to change. I can try to accommodate your needs, even if I don’t understand them perfectly.”
She nodded slowly, and he had a feeling that she found something in his speech unsatisfactory. But then, that was not terribly unusual.
“All right, I’m going to go change. I’ll meet you back down here,” he said. Because if he joined her in her room, they would never leave.
Not that he minded. But he supposed it ran counter to appealing to her emotions.
“All right. Let’s see if either of us can rise to the challenge of being leisurely.”
* * *
Whoever had done the shopping for Tabitha’s wardrobe deserved a raise. That was all Kairos could think as he walked behind her on the beach, taking in the sight of all the bare skin that was on display for his enjoyment. It was a white bikini, one that scarcely contained her perfect figure. The sort of thing she would never have worn on a regular basis.
But this was not a regular basis. This was outside the status quo. And he meant to take advantage of that.
For the moment, that meant admiring Tabitha in her bikini.
“You’re staring at me,” she said, not looking back at him.
“How do you know?” he asked, feeling a stirring of humor in his chest.
Such a rare feeling. He felt light, happy almost. Yes, things were unsettled between them, but the chemistry they were exploring was off the charts. And right now, he was on a pristine, private beach and she was barely clothed. There was nothing to dislike about the moment.
“I can feel you looking,” she said.
“I was not aware you had a sixth sense, agape. I learn more secrets about you every moment.”
“I don’t have all that many.”
He caught up to her, keeping pace with her strides. “But you do have some?”
“I told you the biggest one,” she said, the humor leaching from her tone as she said those words.
“Are there more? Surely there must be. You are not defined by one traumatic event. Tell me. I want to know more about you.”
“I was born in Iowa.”
“I don’t know anything about Iowa.”
She laughed. “No one does. Join the club.”
“Did you like it there?”
She laughed. “Do I still live there, Kairos?”
“No. But one cannot be the queen of Iowa. So I suppose in your case, you did not have to dislike it to leave.”
“The queen of Iowa does have a nice ring to it, though.”
“Perhaps not as elegant as the queen of Petras.”
“Perhaps not.”
He leaned closer to her, taking her hand in his, pausing for a moment when she went stiff beside him. “Tell me more.”
“My mother was single until I was eight. Then she married my stepfather. You know how that ended. It was... It was not all bad. She wasn’t. He wasn’t. He was...the only father figure I ever had. He was kind to me.” She closed her eyes. “I remember once he bought me a present for...no reason. My mother never did things like that.” Her eyes fluttered open again. “But they were very wrapped up in each other, and I was an only child. Mostly, it was lonely.”
“What about friends? Didn’t you have friends?”
“Some. People studying advanced subjects in school. Other students who actually enjoyed getting good grades.” She paused, a fine line creasing her brow. “Someone came to speak at the school when I was young. A doctor. She had grown up in the area, with no money, nothing. It was a very poor town, and seeing someone come out of it and do what she did was inspiring. She told us that if we worked hard enough we can all achieve it. She talked to us about scholarships. About the kinds of things we could hope to find if we needed to succeed on merit rather than on status or money. I felt like she was speaking to me. I was smart, but we had nothing. My resources were all inside of me. And I was determined to use them. It was all I was given on this earth. I didn’t want to waste them.”
“From where I’m standing, I would say you didn’t.” How had he ever seen this woman as soft? She was pure steel. Brave as hell. She was braver than he was, truth be told. All he’d done was fall into line with what was expected of him. She had defied expectation at every turn. Had been brought into this world with no opportunity and from it had fashioned herself into royalty. He imagined there were very few people who could say the same.
“But you don’t get into good universities without hard work,” she said.
“I would imagine not. I got in with a pedigree.”
“People do, but I got in by being exceptional. I had to be. There’s so much competition for scholarships. Especially the type I needed. Full rides. Living expenses paid. I needed every bit of help I could scrounge up for myself. My mother went to prison for killing my stepfather during my last year of school. But I just...kept working. I was so close to being eighteen, social services sort of let me be. And I...stayed in the house by myself.”
“Tabitha...” His heart ached for her. For this woman who had been so lonely for so long.
“It was all right. I mean, it wasn’t in some ways, but in others... I could study in peace. I just kept going to school. And when I got to university, keeping what I had was dependent on maintaining a near-perfect grade point average. I could never afford to have boyfriends. Couldn’t waste any time or energy on parties. I had to be single-minded. And I was.”
“And a year into school you decided to move to Petras to take a job as my assistant,” he said. “Why exactly?”
“As I said, I wasn’t after a university experience. I wasn’t about making friends. I wanted to secure my future. The internship allowed me to complete my classes, and to gain the kind of work experience that most people would give a body part away to acquire. To work for the royal family? For someone with my background that’s more valuable