Regina stared atthe negative ovulation test with disbelief. She’d been tracking her ovulation for nearly a week and with no success. Her ovaries had decided to forgo her usual cycle and refused to release an egg.
Since her first period, everything about her cycle had been textbook. A twenty-eight-day cycle starting off with three days of light menstruation. That meant two weeks later, she should’ve been releasing an egg. It was now three weeks after her cycle and still, every single test she’d taken had said no.
Stress.
This had to be about the stress of becoming queen. Aléx had done all he could to make this transition smooth for her. Her presentation to court had been an informal (for royalty anyway) event in the throne room where only high-ranking members of court were present. He’d also set up an interview with the two of them to introduce her to his people in lieu of an exhausting media tour and in-person events. Still, the added pressure must be getting to her if her cycle was this off.
Disposing of the test in the private bathroom of her new office at her lab, she decided she wouldn’t stand there obsessing about this. She’d put in a call to her ob-gyn back in the States. Hell, she’d fly back if the doctor advised an examination. She needed to figure this thing out one way or the other.
It made no sense to involve Aléx until she had facts to help her understand what was going on. Until then, she had this beautiful new lab her husband had built for her from the ground up.She’d lose herself in experiments to calm herself down and keep herself focused.
She worked for hours, formulating, testing, reformulating and retesting relentlessly. She didn’t stop until she started to feel hot.
“Damn, working under these lights must be getting to me.”
She pulled off her lab coat before grabbing more of the polyethylene glycol to get this next trial underway.
She continued to work until the building ache in the back of her head began pounding, and she had to reach for a nearby stool to sit down.
Just as she sat, her phone rang. The sight of Aléx’s name on the screen made her smile through the throbbing.
“Good evening, Treasure. I was under the impression that my queen would be having dinner with me tonight.”
“Of course I am. I still have another hour before I need to leave.”
His reprimanding tsk put her on notice.
“You should’ve left an hour ago if we were going to dine at home.”
“That can’t—” She looked down at her watch face to see that Aléx was telling the truth. She had missed dinner. That’s probably why her damn head was hurting her so bad. “I’m so sorry, Aléx. I got caught up in the lab.”
“I guess it’s good your sister told me you tend to work so long that you often forget to eat or drink. According to her, it’s not uncommon for you to become hypoglycemic when you get caught up in whatever you’re working on.”
The click of her lab door drew her attention away from the phone. She found Aléx walking through it, holding a large paper bag in his hand.
“You really are amazing. My head is killing me, and I’m feeling a bit dizzy. Whatever you’ve got in there had better have a decent amount of carbs.”
“Will chef’s garlic butter pasta, that you love so much, do?”
If her head wasn’t pounding, she would have squealed in response. “Absolutely will. Let’s just take it in my office. We’re breaking all sorts of regulatory statutes by bringing food into the lab.”
She stood up, and he held the door for her. When she made to take her first step, her vision began to swim. She glanced up to meet Aléx’s eyes and found his face sharp and tight with panic.
“Regina?”
It was the last thing she heard before everything went black.
Aléx was king of all he surveyed. His word was law, and his will was absolute, and yet none of that mattered in this moment. That absolute power he had was rendered useless as his wife lay in the hospital ward of the palace.
Her beautiful rich brown skin looked slightly ashen against the stark white sheets of the hospital bed in the center of the room. She had an IV in her right arm and a blood pressure cuff on her left. There were electrodes underneath the hospital gown she wore with wires protruding out of the collar.
The beeps of the medical equipment joined together like the notes of an orchestra. Only this time, any change or movement in their music could mean a detriment to his wife’s health.
He moved from the corner where he was hovering, needing to be closer to her, to touch her, to remind himself that she was still here, still with him.
Nothing in life had terrified him more than seeing her collapse in front of him, her head bouncing slightly off the hard tile of the laboratory floor.
He’d activated the panic alarm on his phone, and within seconds, security was in the room, assessing the situation andcalling for help as he’d gotten down on the floor and cradled Regina’s limp form into his arms.
