Read Online The Princess is Pregnant! by Laurie Paige - Free Book Online

reasoning the night she had followed him aboard his sailing yacht….
    “What?” she blurted, realizing everyone was looking at her.
    “Lady Gwendolyn expressed an interest in the international trade conference,” the queen said. “Perhaps, since both Jean-Paul and you attended, you could enlighten us on the proceedings there.”
    Megan’s mind went totally blank.
    “Accord was reached in several areas,” Jean-Paul said smoothly, distracting attention from her. “The princess and I discussed an open-trade agreement between Drogheda and Penwyck during the week.”
    Megan stared at him, unable to recall such a conversation at all.
    “Did you now?” the queen asked with a certain sardonic twist to the words.
    Megan thought her mother sounded amused. She caught a smiling glance between Queen Marissa and Lady Gwendolyn. A horrible thought occurred to her: perhaps her mother had shared her news with her friend. But no, the queen was very good with confidences.
    “But only in the most general terms,” Jean-Paul added diplomatically. “It would be up to the ministers of each country to set the policies and present them to King Morgan and Prince Bernier.”
    “But of course,” the queen agreed. “I’m sorry Amira couldn’t join us. I believe she showed you the gardens this morning?”
    “Yes,” he said. “We walked out on the moors, too. The heather reminds me of Silvershire.”
    “Prince Bernier has sent you on several missions of late. Do you miss your home while you are gone?”
    Jean-Paul smiled, his teeth brilliant against the tan of his skin. “The people more than the land,”he said softly. “My parents and I are close. My uncle, the prince, visits our home frequently.”
    “Family is important to you then,” the queen concluded.
    “Yes.”
    Megan nearly jumped when his hand touched her arm and followed it to her hand. He took her hand in his under cover of the table and held it as if to reassure her of his honorable intentions toward her and the child.
    A riot of emotion dashed around inside her like a robin chasing a butterfly. Flames licked her insides, whether from remembered passion or embarrassment, she couldn’t decide.
    Jean-Paul held her hand until the next course was served, then released it so she could lift her fork. She ate without tasting a morsel of the meat pie and tender summer vegetables. By the time fruit and cheese were served, she thought of nothing but escape. Her sister, Meredith, watched her from across the table with a perplexed expression in her eyes. Megan looked at her plate as much as possible.
    “Jean-Paul, will you join me for tea in my sitting room?” Queen Marissa asked when the meal was finished.
    Megan stared at her mother in alarm, but the queen only smiled gently and slightly shook her head, indicating Megan’s presence was not required. Swallowing her fears, Megan left the room with her sisters and the lady-in-waiting.
    After Lady Gwendolyn wished them good day and left the three girls in the royal family’s sitting room, Meredith turned on Megan.
    “What is going on?” she demanded.
    “What?” asked Anastasia, confused by the question. If the conversation didn’t include her beloved horses, she paid little heed to it. She was most like the king in temperament and athletic ability.
    “Nothing,” Megan replied to Meredith.
    “What?” Anastasia asked again, realizing that more was going on than met the eye.
    Meredith ignored the youngest sister, her eyes on Megan. “There is something between you and Jean-Paul,” she accused. “He covered for you when your thoughts were obviously elsewhere. I think he held your hand at one point. You and he did more than discuss trade agreements while you were in Monte Carlo.”
    Heat suffused Megan’s face as her sisters watched her with avid interest. “It’s nothing,” she said, but her voice quavered so even Anastasia detected the lie.
    “What is going on?” she now demanded.
    Meredith laughed in delight.