The Prince's Pregnant Challenge (The Royals of Monaco, #2) (6 page)

“Of course, did you think I wanted to share a bed with you?” Liane asked.

“Who wouldn't?”

Liane groaned and rolled her eyes. He thought the whole world revolved around him. It was pathetic.

“Can we stop for food?” Liane asked the driver.

“Can you not wait until we get back to the palace?”

“No, I want to eat right now,” Liane replied petulantly. Since she was pregnant, she got so hungry that it was unbearable and having to spend time with Jean Pierre only made her want to eat more.

The driver felt awkward. He did not know whether to stop or not. “So...are we stopping?” he asked hesitantly.

“We are,” Liane said. The driver pulled up near a row of restaurants. Liane opened the door without waiting and went into the burger shop while Jean Pierre remained in the car. Liane ordered herself two meals. She felt ridiculously hungry.

Growing impatient, Jean Pierre went into the shop to find Liane sitting at a table and clearly on her second burger. He frowned as he approached her. “Just how much are you eating?” he asked her.

“You try being pregnant and then see if you can be so judgemental,” Liane shot back. Jean Pierre sat down at the table with her and snatched a French fry.

“Well, could you eat faster?”

“Take a taxi if you are so impatient,” she told him as she finished off her burger. It would be so much better for her if they went their separate ways.

Jean Pierre narrowed his gaze at her. He had never taken a taxi in his life and he was not going to start now.

“No, thanks,” he said and grabbed her milkshake. Liane smacked his hand and took it back, setting it out of his reach as she glared at him.

“Not this time,” she snapped.

“Relax, lady,” Jean Pierre laughed. Liane frowned at him. It was not a laughing matter.  She finished her meal and stood up.

“You pay for it,” she said to Jean Pierre and left the restaurant. Jean Pierre sat there speechless before reaching for his wallet. She was certainly a woman full of surprises. He paid for her meal and followed her to the car.  He expected her to say thank you or explain herself but she ignored him. He shook his head, as the driver pulled away. He never knew what to expect from her.

***

P
rince Louis found Macee sitting outside in the courtyard. He wanted to see how she was handling everything with her sister. The past two weeks had not been easy for any one of them. He kissed Macee before they sat down for dinner. The maids immediately served their dinner and poured them wine.

He asked Macee how Liane was coping with everything. “Presently, she is trying to avoid Bridgette,” she replied. After the recent turn of events, Bridgette had been allowed back into the palace to visit. Liane knew that if she were to run into her, there was going to be more name calling. 

“I don’t blame her,” Prince Louis replied. On more than one occasion, he had come across the two women in a heated argument.

“The women is diabolical,” Macee declared. “Whatever she has against my family, I will never know,” she added. The prince took Macee's hand and kissed it. He hated how Bridgette treated her family. Macee smiled at him, “How are you?” she asked. She did not want to speak about that hateful woman any longer.

“Under a little stress.” The prince had something he needed to tell Macee. He stopped eating and looked at her.

“What is it?” she asked him. She could see that there was something on his mind.

“Father wishes to abdicate early.”

Macee gasped and dropped her fork on the plate. She knew that she was to be queen one day but she had thought it would not be for another ten years or more. “What? Why?” she asked. She was not ready. She had only just become the crown princess. Prince Louis smiled at her.

“It is not like it will happen tomorrow, relax ma cherie,” he said to her. He could see the panic on her face.

“How early?”

“He has not stated a date but he is seriously considering it.”

“Considering is good. It means his mind can still be changed.”

Prince Louis laughed. “You will still be queen one day,” he told her.

“Yes, but not now. When that time comes, then I will be more suitable for the part.” She still had classes with Charles on a regular basis, although he was more respectful to her now that she was the Crown Princess.

After dinner, Macee and Prince Louis retired to their chambers. The prince pulled Macee into his arms and started kissing her, as Macee reached for the remote and switched off the lights. Prince Louis stopped kissing her and started laughing. “Are you still shy?” he asked her. Macee giggled as she wrapped her arms around his neck. She was still shy around her husband and did not feel comfortable when the lights were so bright. Reaching for the remote, he brought the lights up a little, casting the room in a soft glow.

“How’s that?” he asked. “No brighter than candles.” At Macee’s shy nod, he scooped her up and carried her to the bed. As he laid her down, he quickly followed. In such a short time, he had grown to love his wife very much and it pleased him greatly that he was the only man to have ever touched her. He looked forward to spending time with her and making love every chance they had. And given how rocky their relationship started, he was determined to make up for lost time.

Reaching for her ponytail, he tugged the band off as her hair cascaded around her shoulders. He loved how it curled wildly. As she reached to straighten it out, he stopped her. “Don’t,” he told her. “You’re lovely.” Macee wasn’t sure she would ever accept some of the things he told her as she blushed profusely, unsure what to say. Smiling, the prince reached for the buttons on her blouse. “I’ve always wondered how far your blush will go,” he told her as he slowly unbuttoned her blouse. Chuckling, he kissed her gently. “Perhaps, one day, I’ll make your entire body blush.”

Too embarrassed to speak, Macee grabbed Louis’ head and pulled him toward her. Kissing him, she wrapped her legs around his waist as she pulled him against her. “Someone is happy to see me,” he said against her lips.

“Shut up and make love to me, husband,” Macee replied as she kissed his face.

“Only because you called me, husband, will I comply, but I do intend to find out,” he told her as he kissed her eyelids. “Exactly.” He kissed her cheeks. “How far.” His hand swept up to grab her hair and tilt her head. “That blush will go,” he finished as he kissed her neck. Macee gasped as she tilted her head farther. Oh, how she loved this man, she thought.

As the prince continued to tease and lightly kiss Macee, she began to grow impatient. While deep down, she knew that he was doing it on purpose to get her to be more responsive, she also knew that it was working. Pushing against his chest, he slid off her as he lay on his side watching her. Sitting up, Macee turned her back to him and started to get undressed. Suddenly, she had an idea. Turning her head, she looked at him over her shoulder. “Don’t go anywhere,” she told him before she ran to the bathroom.

Now what was she up to now? He wondered. Sitting up, he removed his shirt and quickly undid his trousers, pulling them off. Lying back, he looked up as the door opened. Macee stood uncertainly in the doorway looking at him. Dressed in a sapphire blue baby doll nightie and matching short robe, she struck a pose, as she blushed. “Do you like?” she asked tentatively.

Holding his hand out, he smiled as he waited for her to join him. Taking her hands, he turned them over as he kissed both palms. “You look beautiful, ma cherie,” he told her. Tugging on her hands, he pulled her onto the bed as she landed on top of him with a yelp. Her eyes widened as she felt his arousal against her stomach. Cupping her face, Louis wondered how he could be so lucky as he kissed his wife deeply. Sliding her robe off her shoulders, he tossed it aside.

Rolling over, Macee found herself underneath him as he continued to kiss her. Oh, she could definitely get used to this, she thought, as he slid the straps of her gown down her shoulders. As he exposed the tops of her breasts, he kissed them both. Bringing one hand up to cup her breast, Macee sighed loudly as her breast seemed to grow against the palm of his hand. Her nipple felt painful as he rubbed lazy circles around it with his thumb. Sliding down her body, he loved the feel of the silk against his skin. If he had his way, he would dress her in silk all the time. Lifting the hem of her nightie, he was very pleased to see that she wasn’t wearing any panties. Looking up at her, Macee refused to look at him as he watched her blush creep down her chest. His wife was definitely full of surprises, he thought as he kissed the inside of her thigh.

He could smell her arousal as he moved his head closer. Licking slowly up her slit, he found her clit as he sucked on it gently. Macee tossed her head from side to side, as she clutched at the sheets. She still wanted to kick herself at how long she waited before they finally made love for the first time. This man could do things to her insides that made her toes curl. As he continued to suck and lick at her clit, Macee felt that now familiar sensation start to grow deep inside her as pleasure pulsed throughout her body. As the pressure grew, her hand found its way to the back of his head as she lifted her hips. Sliding his hands under her, he cupped her hips as he pulled her tight against his mouth. With a cry, Macee arched against him, as her orgasm hit her. Holding her tight, he drank his fill as Macee continued to buck against his mouth. Sitting up, he wiped his mouth as Macee opened her eyes. They quickly darkened when she watched him stick his fingers in his mouth and lick the remainder of her orgasm off them.

Lifting her legs, he put them against his shoulder as he entered her. Her muscles were still convulsing from her first orgasm and she was so wet. Groaning, he wasn’t sure how much he could take as he began to stroke in and out of her rapidly. Throwing her arms over her head, Macee lifted her hips as she met him thrust for thrust. Her sudden look of surprise at her second orgasm sent him close to the edge as he shortened his thrusts. One, two, three more strokes and he held himself tight against her as her muscles clenched around him, milking him with each outward stroke.

Collapsing next to her, he pulled her tightly against him as he nuzzled her neck. “I love you, ma cherie,” he told her as he kissed her.

“And, I love you, Louis,” she told him as she yawned. Chuckling, he reached for the blanket to cover them both as Macee drifted off to sleep.

M
rs LeBlanc came to the palace to meet with Liane and Jean Pierre. As they sat down for lunch, she handed them photos of the house she had purchased for them. It was close enough to the palace and to the LeBlanc home that Liane would have help if she needed it and Mrs LeBlanc could be close to her future grand baby. Despite everything that happened, she was overjoyed to become a grandparent and couldn’t wait until Macee and the prince made their announcement. Jean Pierre said nothing as he just sat there listening to her talk. Liane wondered if it was really necessary for them to live together.

“Aren't you going to say anything?” Mrs LeBlanc finally asked. She had been speaking for a while and no one was responding to her. Liane shrugged her shoulders.

“Do we really need to live with each other?” Liane asked.

“Of course, you do,” her mother snapped. Liane looked back at her food and kept eating. Her mother had been snapping at her a lot lately. Jean Pierre picked up the pictures and looked at them. The house appeared to be spacious and there was plenty of room for them to have separate quarters.

“Thank you,” he said even though he did not mean it. He was not sure what else to say. Mrs LeBlanc turned to face Jean Pierre. She had yet to speak with him about the pregnancy.

“Just what were you two thinking?” she asked. Liane dropped her fork. She was tired of being asked that question.

“We have been explaining ourselves since the start. Please stop asking,” Liane said through gritted teeth.

“Excuse me? I should just shut my mouth and not ask?” her mother demanded.

“That is exactly what I am saying, mother. We have already explained ourselves. Repeating it over and over until we are blue in the face will not help anything. What’s done is done.”

Mrs LeBlanc sighed. She knew her daughter was right but it did not stop her from wondering exactly what was going on in their heads at the time.

“You need to wear wedding bands,” Mrs LeBlanc said.

“Excuse me?” Jean Pierre asked. It was bad enough that he was married to Liane, now wedding rings? This was preposterous.

“Yes, you have to wear wedding rings. What, did you think you could carry on with your promiscuity?” Mrs LeBlanc demanded. She was very aware of Jean Pierre's activities and now that he was married to her daughter that would all end.

“That was not what I was thinking at all,” Jean Pierre began.

“Good, because you will be faithful to my daughter and you will treat her right. Do you understand me, young man?”

Liane almost choked on her food. That was not the speech she expected from her mother. No one was supporting this union or anything about it. It was simply damage control. Up until now, no one had mentioned fidelity or feelings.

“Yes, ma'am,” Jean Pierre replied with a sigh. Were all the LeBlanc women this difficult to get along with, he wondered.

“Tomorrow, I will send someone over with rings for you to pick out,” she told them as she stood up to leave. Jean Pierre turned to face Liane.

“That is your mother,” he said to her as if it were a bad thing.

“She is better than yours,” Liane replied smugly. He made a face at her.

“Are you still eating?” he asked as if she had eaten way too much.

Liane picked up her water glass and threw it at him before storming out. He jumped from his seat, as the water splashed on his pants. He deserved that and more, she thought as she left the dining room. He was lucky she only stopped there. She went to fetch her sisters, as she had had enough of Jean Pierre and her mother. They were driving her crazy.

Liane found her sisters in the palace garden. Francesca was sitting on the bench, as Macee lay on the grass looking at the sky. Liane sat down next to Francesca. “Your highness, should you not be sitting on the bench like a proper lady?” Liane asked Macee. Macee looked up and frowned at Liane for calling her, your highness. Liane smiled and rubbed her head.