“Your sister and I will wed,” Adriane said, speaking calmly as he sat across from Rafe.
Rachel was irritated as she watched the two men puff up their chests. Shouldn’t she be the one speaking? What she would say, though, was a bit of a problem, for after wanting nothing more than to leave for the past week, she was now confused by her desire to stay. She’d probably start off by expressing her disgust for the ludicrous display of testosterone in front of her.
Before she could say anything, Rafe jumped in again. “She hasn’t agreed to marry you. Rachel wouldn’t do that without talking to her family first.”
“Did you bother to ask your family’s permission before proposing to your bride?” Adriane countered.
“They all love Ari.”
“That’s not the point. Rachel is an adult who can make her own decisions. She doesn’t need your blessing in order to be married.”
“Well, she sure as hell needs to agree, and not be forced to marry you!” Rafe thundered.
“She carries my children,” Adriane thundered back.
Rafe sank back at Adriane’s words before he turned his head in Rachel’s direction.
“Children?” he asked.
“I’m having twins,” she admitted, as a smile turned up the corners of her lips and she fought back tears. Finally, she was telling Rafe something firsthand. Well, sort of, since Adriane had been the one to blurt out the word children. She was glad that her brother was sitting down.
Rafe was stunned speechless, something she’d never seen before. It was almost enough to make her giggle — almost, but not quite. Not with the amount of tension in the room.
“Are you happy, Rach?”
Was she happy? No. There was too much pressure weighing down on her right now. But she was glad to be carrying her twins. She felt protective, felt like a mother. She was looking forward to meeting them. By then, she would have a clear plan of what she wanted to do.
“I’m not unhappy, Rafe. I already love these tiny babies growing inside me.”
“I think you need to just come home with me. You need your family right now,” he advised her.
Rachel saw Adriane tense at those words. It was obvious he wasn’t going to allow that to happen without one hell of a fight. Would the battle be worth it? Rafe could get hurt or even killed trying to protect her. Then, she would never forgive the father of her children.
“I will come home soon, Rafe. I promise you. I want to spend time with mother, and I need my sister and best friend. Oh, my gosh!” she exclaimed as her eyes widened.
“What?” he asked, tensing with concern.
“I have been so wrapped up in myself this week, I haven’t even thought of poor Ari and the wedding. Adriane told me the wedding was put off because of this situation. I’m so incredibly sorry, Rafe. That shouldn’t have happened. How is she doing? Are you both OK?” she asked as she stepped up to him.
“We are both fine. I want to make her my bride as soon as possible, but she won’t go through with it without you. That’s just another reason for you to come home with me,” he said.
“Oh, Rafe.” Talk about feeling torn.
As if Adriane understood her indecision, he popped in with a proposal.
“We will hold the wedding here. It would be my honor to host it in the royal cathedral.”
Both Rafe and Rachel turned toward Adriane, who was looking quite pleased with himself for finding an adequate solution to the problem.
“Your family can all be guests here at the palace,” Adriane continued. “Then Rachel can also visit with her mother. I am quite certain our mothers will get along remarkably well. They will probably drive the staff crazy,” he said with a fond smile. It was obvious his mother had a special place in his heart. That was something that was certainly in his favor.
“Having the wedding here would be too much trouble for everyone here,” Rachel said, but she really liked the idea. She would have those she loved here, and at the same time, she’d have even more time with Adriane. It would help her discover whether she could comfortably leave her children with him for holidays or summer breaks. After all, if he wanted to be a dad, she would be in the wrong to deny him those rights, as painful as not having her children around during those times would be.
“Of course we can. I am the king and can do as I wish,” he said with a wink.
“Could we, Rafe?” Rachel asked, turning to her brother, her eyes lit with excitement at the thought. It would be quite romantic, in her opinion, to see a wedding on the palace grounds.
“I would have to talk to Ari,” he said hesitantly, annoyed that he was being backed into a corner.
“Oh, you don’t have to wait. I’ll call her right now,” she said, but her eyes narrowed as she turned to Adriane. “I can call her, right?” she asked with a clear threat in her tone.
“Of course. Be my guest,” he said as he gestured grandly toward an antique writing desk.
Rachel marched over to the phone and picked it up, dialing the number and expecting to get the operator. When the call went straight through, she sent another withering glare Adriane’s way. Did the man have a timer set for when the calls could go through and when they couldn’t?
That would be another discussion the two of them would have.
Ari was thrilled at the idea of a royal palace wedding, and the two girls laughed as they reconnected. Then Ari insisted on talking to Rafe so she could get the transportation arranged.
By the time Rafe got off the phone, it was obvious that he was going to do what Ari and Rachel wanted.
“It looks like we will have our wedding here. How quickly can it be arranged?” he asked.
“As soon as your family arrives, the women can speak to the palace coordinator. It could be arranged in less than a week if you’d like,” Adriane said, relaxed now in complete satisfaction because he’d managed to get what he wanted.
“Good. We’ll come back to the discussion of my sister leaving when this is all over.”
“I look forward to it,” Adriane said.
Challenge issued — challenge accepted.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
“IF SEX COULD be bottled, labeled and sold, Shane’s picture would be the image on the glass.” Lia was watching him emerge from the ocean and fling back his head, his dark strands gleaming as the droplets of cool ocean water soared toward the sky.