Page 250 of Kneel Before Me

“Of course he is. He has a heart, just like you.”

“He is nothing like me.”

That was certainly true. Daphne didn’t dare respond. There was such fury in Maximus’s eyes—such hate. There was no reasoning with him right now, if there ever was.

“We had an arrangement,” he snapped. “You were supposed to belong to me. You were supposed to be mine.”

“I have never belonged to you.”

At her words, three things happened.

Maximus stood far too quickly, his hands reaching for Daphne. Out of pure instinct, Daphne stepped back, covering her stomach protectively with her hand. Then Gabriel let out a distressed, warbling cry, making them both freeze.

Immediately, Ella left to tend to him. In her absence, Maximus stared at Daphne. His eyes traveled slowly down her body, stopping only once they reached her stomach, where she hadn’t bothered to drop her hand. She did so now, but it was too late. She watched as Maximus’s gaze traveled behind her, falling on the singular wineglass on the kitchen table. Gabriel was still crying, his sobs peppered with Ella’s soothing tones. The noise was like a siren call.

Maximus’s eyes widened. Finally, he understood.

When his gaze returned to her, it was difficult to read. Daphne couldn’t tell if he was furious, shocked, or a combination of both. She held her breath as he said, “You…love him?”

Daphne blinked. “What?”

“You told me the night we met that you didn’t want to have sex again until you fell in love. You have clearly had sex and not with me. So you must love him. Do you?”

Daphne couldn’t possibly explain the crest—the series of events that led to her and Kronos sleeping together. But regardless of the unconventional circumstances under which it had occurred, there was no denying it. She had fallen in love.

“Yes,” she whispered.

Maximus seemed frozen in place, the ring still dangling, forgotten, from his fingertips. His gaze dropped once more to her stomach. “I would raise it as my own,” he whispered. “If you let me.”

Daphne stared at him. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. He had a child with another woman—a woman who was dead. And now, he wanted to raise another man’s child with her? Daphne didn’t believe it for a moment.

“I would do this with you,” he said when she remained silent. He stepped closer, grabbing her arms. “Just say the word, Daphne.”

More manipulation. More lies. She was getting whiplash from his mood swings. Maximus would never raise Kronos’s child. Daphne was shocked he would even stoop so low as to pretend he would.

“We could be together.” He was desperate now, gripping her arms so tightly it hurt. “I could—”

“You could what, Max? Be my husband? Raise this child? Don’t be ridiculous.”

“How is that ridiculous?”

“You know as well as I do that your father would never allow us to be together. That was the entire premise of our arrangement, remember? That’s the reason we agreed to date.”

“I already told you my father doesn’t matter. All that matters is how we feel about each other. I love you, Daphne.”

But it wasn’t enough. It took her wearing a low-cut dress for Maximus to compliment her. It took Kronos claiming her for Maximus to claim her himself. Maximus was always the last to realize her worth. But Kronos knew it right away. His attraction to her was not dependent on any external factors. It didn’t matter what she wore or who she talked to. Kronos wanted her the moment he met her, and he hadn’t stopped wanting her since. He was sure of his love for her. Maximus was anything but.

“You know how I feel about you, Daphne. You know I—”

“I do not feel the same.”

Finally, he fell silent.

“This has gone far enough,” Daphne said quietly. Her volume was purposeful; she wanted him to have to lean in, to hear her properly. “You have no right to tell me how I feel,” she continued, her tone far calmer than she felt. “And if you aren’t going to listen to me, this conversation is over.”

“This conversation is far from over.”

Once again, Maximus wasn’t listening when she said no. He was a man determined to be angry. Moments ago he had offered her the world. When she’d refused, he became angry.