Page 31 of Twins For His Majesty (Royally Tempted #1)

I N THE END , they learned the truth of Phoebe’s father quite by accident. Or perhaps it was yet another example of the hand of fate exerting itself over their lives, driving them towards a future that was truly and utterly complete.

Some years after they’d reached out and grabbed their happiness with both hands, Octavio was meeting with a group of advisors and politicians.

He had worked tirelessly to restore the country to a state of good government, and these men were amongst his most trusted team members.

Some of them had even served in his parents’ government and parliament.

One in particular, he found he relied on quite heavily, in terms of counsel and advice, a man whose wisdom always seemed to be just what he needed to hear in the moment.

But there was something else about the man that held Octavio’s attention, something familiar that he just couldn’t place.

It was at the end of the meeting, when Rafael Herrera was packing up to leave, and Octavio couldn’t help but notice a certain efficiency to the man’s movement that was almost graceful.

He felt a frisson of something spark in his belly.

‘Would you stay a moment?’ he asked, his voice slightly hoarse, his heart racing with the possibility…

but surely it was extremely unlikely. The name was not the same, and he’d known this man for years.

But perhaps Rafael might have a relation, a brother, who shared the same name as Phoebe’s father?

Or perhaps he was being fanciful; seeing ghosts out of a desperate need to help his wife.

Though she was happier than he’d ever known another human to be, at times, he caught her looking into space and frowning and he’d understood where her thoughts had taken her.

‘Of course, Your Majesty.’

‘Please, call me Octavio,’ he invited, because this was going to be a very personal conversation. ‘I wanted to ask you something—something quite unusual.’

‘Anything, of course.’

He was not going to just come out and say it though. ‘Have you ever been to New Zealand, Rafael?’

The other man looked a little taken aback. ‘Is there a reason you ask, sir?’

‘You know my wife is from there.’

‘Yes, naturally.’

Octavio frowned. Rafael Herrera knew the Queen was from New Zealand and he had undoubtedly seen pictures of her.

If there was a similarity between them, wouldn’t he have noticed it himself?

Then again, according to Phoebe, her father had never known she’d even been conceived.

It was a stretch to think he might have been able to make the connection without knowing one existed.

‘For some time, she has been looking for her biological father. All she had was his name and the fact that he was from Castilona. Once, we thought we were close—a man was found matching the physical description, name and approximate age, but he had never been to New Zealand.’

Rafael was standing very still, and Octavio’s skin lifted in goose bumps all over.

‘What is her father’s name?’ he asked with urgency.

‘Carlos Guttierez.’

‘I need—I’m—’ Rafael looked around, quite helpless. Octavio moved quickly, grabbing a seat and placing it behind the older man.

‘Sit,’ he urged.

He collapsed into the chair, dropping his face into his hands.

‘And her mother’s name?’

‘Jennifer James.’

‘Jenny,’ he whispered, groaning. ‘Dear God, Jenny.’ He looked up at Octavio, his eyes huge. ‘I didn’t know.’

‘Why don’t you start at the beginning, and if it checks out, I will bring this to my wife.’

He found her in the rose garden, a picture of serenity, surrounded by their children, books and blocks, and his heart tightened.

Silently he signalled for the nanny to take over—a nanny they had screened and found to be a paragon of love and kindness, just the sort of person one would wish to care for their children when busy with official engagements.

‘ Querida? We need to speak.’ He drew her to a private part of the garden and they sat together on a white timber bench.

‘Back then,’ Octavio explained carefully, after the initial shocking announcement had been made, ‘your father did not work as a diplomat—he was a spy, involved in some very dangerous missions. He was holidaying in New Zealand and when he travelled, he always did so under a different identity. His work was very dangerous, and it didn’t enter his mind that it would cause a problem for your mother.

He says they were careful—she was on the pill, they used protection, he had no reason to think there was even the slightest chance you had been conceived. ’

Tears filled her eyes. ‘I cannot believe this. And you say you know him?’

‘I’ve worked with him for years,’ Octavio admitted. ‘My parents knew him, querida .’

Phoebe gasped.

‘A couple of years after returning from New Zealand, he stopped his work as an operative and joined the parliament. He quit once my parents died and Mauricio became King and then returned shortly before my coronation. He is on a committee of advisors I meet with regularly, and I have no doubt, my darling love, that he is your father.’

Tears ran down her cheeks.

‘He is very upset,’ Octavio admitted. ‘He intentionally left no way for your mother to contact him, though he asked me to tell you that, had his life been different, he might have left everything behind to be with her. He says that though their affair was brief, he’s never forgotten her.

’ Octavio hesitated. ‘He is married now, though, and has children from that marriage.’

Phoebe blanched, and then squealed. ‘You mean I have siblings ?’

Octavio’s relief was immense. He wasn’t sure what he’d expected, but her delight in this was more than he’d hoped.

‘Yes, darling. Two sisters and a brother, and though Rafael and I agree you must decide how you’d like to proceed, he asked me to let you know that he couldn’t wait to meet you, and that he knows his wife and children will feel the same way. ’

‘I can’t believe it, Octavio. We have family. Extended family. And a family who can tell us about my mother and about your parents. Can you believe we are really this blessed?’

He stood then, wrapping his arms around her. ‘I can, my darling. I really, really can.’

And they were blessed, and a great blessing indeed to the country of Castilona.

Before this happy, happy conclusion to their story though, there was a hardship for the royal couple, one that they navigated, side by side, and with the help of cousin Xiomara.

Like all expectant parents, every prenatal appointment was a time of deeply mixed emotion.

Happiness and excitement, mixed with fear and adrenaline, because it was so easy to believe that something might go wrong.

Phoebe though had become somewhat complacent. After all, these babies were so ‘meant to be,’ they’d been conceived almost as if willed into existence by fate and angels.

So when she lay on the bed for her twenty-week ultrasound, her stomach covered in goo, the last thing she expected was to see lines of concern on the obstetrician’s face, and the announcement that he would need to consult with a colleague.

The director of the clínica , Lola Garcia, attempted to distract them, but it was an impossible task. All Phoebe could think about was the unmistakable signs of worry on the doctor’s features, and her whole stomach had turned into a tangle of knots.

After receiving the news that parents dread, that indeed, there were medical complications with their pregnancy, Octavio’s first call was to Xiomara. His cousin was his closest ally, aside from his wife, the one person he could rely on, always, to have his back.

‘Help me, Xiomara. Help me. I’ll do whatever it takes…’

‘And so will I, Tavi. Leave it with me. Everything’s going to be okay. I promise.’

And Xiomara left Castilona with that promise heavy in her mind. Everything would be okay, because she’d damn well make sure of it…

* * * * *

Keep reading for an excerpt from Forbidden Fling with the Princess by Amy Andrews .