The Lost Princes of Ambria 06 - Taming the Lost Prince Read Online Free PDF

And if he thought she were trying to keep it from him, he might think …
    She shivered.
    “I … uh … I had a baby.” She forced herself to look him in the eye and not waver. “A little boy. I call him Teddy.”
    “Teddy?” He blinked at her.
    “Yes. He’s at my sister’s right now, down the hall. Maybe you can meet him tomorrow.”
    And she stared into his eyes, searching for doubt, searching for memories, searching for anything that would tell her he’d guessed the truth.
    CHAPTER THREE
     
    MAX’s reaction came a beat too late. Kayla knew he’d had a quick second to think before he let his natural instincts take over. What was he thinking in that flash of time? What was he feeling? His crystal-blue eyes didn’t show a thing. But that tiny hesitation did.
    “Teddy,” he said, sounding pretty normal. “You named him after Eddie, huh? Great.”
    He licked his upper lip quickly, then smiled and reached out to give her a one-armed hug. “Kayla, I’m so glad you have a piece of Eddie to hold on to. That is very cool.”
    He was looking right into her eyes now, seeming completely sincere. “I can hardly wait to meet him.”
    Glancing down, she realized, to her horror, that her fingers were trembling. Quickly, she shoved them under the hem of her sweatshirt.
    “How about you?” she said, a little breathless. “I guess you’re not married.”
    “Married!” His laugh was short and humorless. “You know me better than that.”
    “If Pellea has her way, you soon will be.”
    His deep, painful groan made her smile.
    “Did you meet anyone interesting at the ball?”
    “That wasn’t all the ball was about, was it?” His groan was louder this time. “Oh, lord, do you think she’s going to have more of them?”
    “Of course. You have to marry someone. The others are all paired up already. Pellea wants to get you settled as well.”
    His sigh was heartfelt as he leaned wearily across the little counter. “Why don’t you marry me? Then we can forget all about this nonsense and just be happy.”
    She looked away. The very suggestion sent something skittering through her like sparks from fireworks and she took a quick, gasping little breath, trying to suppress the feeling.
    Marrying Max—what a concept. Luckily, that would never happen, not even for the sake of convenience. There was no way Max could ever take care of her and her baby. It wouldn’t work. She’d been out in the world with him and she probably knew him better than she knew any other man, other than her husband. Max was born to be a bachelor.
    Even Eddie had said so. “Max will never get married,” he’d told her when she tried to have a go at a little matchmaking at one point. “He’s like those animals that die in captivity. They can’t be tamed. They can’t even be gentled. Leave Max alone. He’ll just break their hearts. And yours, too.’”
    Eddie was right, as usual. Max was not a man to hang your heart on. She shook her head and got up the nerve to meet his gaze again. “Sorry, Max. You’re going to have to walk that lonesome valley on your own.”
    His mouth twisted with a bit of pretended chagrin, but he wasn’t really thinking about what she’d said. His gaze was skimming over her face, searching in her eyes, looking for something in the set of her lips. She wasn’t sure what he expected to see, but it was disturbing, and she turned away, heading back to the living room.
    She could feel him watching her, as though his gaze were burning a brand into her back. She forced herself not to look, and finally he came after her and sank onto the couch.
    “Come and sit down by me,” he said.
    His voice was low and there was a new element in it … something different, something mysterious. She felt wary and her pulse stuttered and then began to move a bit faster. There was a sense of being a bit off-kilter. Somehow, the room seemed warmer. A new tension quivered in the air. Every time her eyes met his, the tension seemed