“Now you have a reason to take deep breaths.”
“Or pass out.”
He chuckles against me. “Go have fun.”
Another kiss and he goes back into the kitchen with Charlotte while I head down to the gym where Althea is already waiting for me, sitting on her mat.
“Ah, good. You’re here. Let’s begin with a deep breath,” she instructs. I get into position only to start to choke on my own laughter. “Everything all right?”
“Perfect,” I manage. “Just swallowed wrong.”
She raises an eyebrow at me but starts with her breaths and I follow suit, inhaling deeply until fresh air fills every corner of my lungs.
“Exhale,” she instructs, and I obey, releasing the air slowly and feeling the tension drain from my body. We move through a series of poses, our bodies bending and stretching in harmony. This is not only good for my pregnancy, it’s been one of my favorite things to do since I moved into the palace.
“Your flexibility has improved greatly since we started practicing together,” Althea notes as we transition into a downward-facing dog. “Even with your pregnancy, you’re doing great.”
“Thank you,” I reply, my voice slightly strained by the position. “I want to stay in shape during the pregnancy.”
“I think that’s smart,” she adds with a small chuckle, nodding approvingly as I gracefully shift into a tree pose only to practically topple over since my center of gravity is off. “Despite that, you’re becoming quite the yogi.”
“Hardly,” I laugh, struggling to maintain my composure as my foot wobbles beneath me. “But I appreciate the compliment. You’re fantastic for my ego.”
As we settle into a seated twist, Althea’s expression grows thoughtful. “Speaking of compliments, I must say Charlotte has been a wonderful addition,” she muses, her eyes closing. “Sebastian seems to like her, which says a lot since he rarely likes anyone, and she has a lovely way with the children, doesn’t she?”
“She does,” I agree, warmth spreading through my chest. “We’re very fortunate to have found her. I feel like bringing in something positive can really help…battle all the negative things.”
“Is Sebastian still being standoffish?”
I shrug. “It seems to be improving a little.” Maybe.
Althea nods and I know she can see through me. “He’llcome around. He just needs to relax, and maybe having Charlotte here will help with that. Although I must admit, I was surprised to learn that the head of the royal guard had a daughter. Especially since he was never married and, as far as I knew, openly gay.”
My muscles tense involuntarily at her words, and I release the twist with a slight grimace. “What do you mean?” I ask, my voice betraying a hint of unease.
“Charlotte’s father is the head of the royal guard,” she clarifies, her brow furrowing in confusion.
“Yeah. I know. But what do you mean he was never married?”
“He wasn’t. At least not as far as I know. Did he adopt her?”
I blink and then blink again. “I don’t know. It was never mentioned, and it didn’t come up in her background check.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah. Oh.”
“Did it mention a mother?”
I shake my head. “No. Just…her father and no criminal past or anything. It didn’t go back that far now that I think about it. Just back through high school.”
“High school?”
I sigh. “What you call college here.”
“Ah,” she murmurs. “I’m sure it’s nothing. He must have adopted her.”
“Right.” Only my background check had every piece of information they could get on me, including both my parents’ names. My thoughts race as I try to make sense of this new information.
