Page 75 of Fit for a King

I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn’t notice the car had turned off onto a narrow road, or that our vehicle was no longer part of the motorcade. We’d been traveling back toward Valoria, I thought, but out my window there were cliffs that dropped off into the sea, and it was so familiar and unexpected that I gasped.

“This isn’t the right way,” I said, but Nicholas didn’t utter a word as I leaned forward in my seat. My pulse kicked up several notches as the small village I’d grown up in came into view.

But this wasn’t on the schedule, and it definitely was out of the way.

I turned to him slowly, and there was an almost nervous look on his face.

“Why are we in Whitefall Cliffs?” I asked.

“You said you haven’t seen your family in years.”

I stared at him, waiting for him to look at me, and then he lifted his head.

“So I thought we could go.”

For a second, I couldn’t find the words. There was no way Nicholas had decided to make a detour, and definitely not for me.

I felt a sting behind my eyes and had to look away, back out the window where we were turning onto the road my parents lived off. “I…” I shook my head, a flood of emotions filling me. “Thank you.”

He didn’t say anything as the cottage appeared at the end of the lane, small and gray—it had been blue at one time, but the weather and salt spray off the sea had made it fade over the years.

“Will it be okay to arrive unannounced?” Nicholas asked as the car drew to a stop by the front door.

“As opposed to calling them and telling the king is stopping by?” I chuckled just thinking about the mayhem that would cause. “I think the shock will be much more welcome than the stress of prior knowledge. But it’s kind of you to be concerned.”

“Of course.” He inclined his head, polite façade still firmly in place, and while I knew he was doing it to create some kind of distance between us, I hated it. “After you,” he said when he tapped on the window of his car and his security opened the door.

“No. This might be my childhood home, but you’re still the king. My parents would be appalled if they saw me exit this vehicle before you. After you, Your Majesty.”

Nicholas shook his head but didn’t argue further. He stepped out of the car and I followed after. He stretched his neck from side to side, then turned in my direction, and just as he opened his mouth to say something, the front door to the cottage opened and my mother appeared on the stoop.

In a plain navy skirt, white blouse, and matching apron, she looked every inch the housewife she was. When her eyes locked on to the man standing in front of her, they widened and she lowered her head.

“Y-Your Majesty,” she stammered, and moved into a low curtsy. “I didn’t realize it was you who was out here.”

“Please, don’t worry yourself,” Nicholas said, stepping forward and reaching out a hand to where she would see it. “I should’ve announced my arrival.”

He glanced back at me, a brow raised. Maybe a little heads-up would’ve helped. But I knew my mother, and she would’ve been a wreck for a week if she knew the King of Valoria was planning to stop by her home.

“Oh no.” She shook her head, still not looking at or touching him. “It’s my pleasure to host Your Majesty whenever he wishes.”

“Then please, let me apologize for the surprise. I merely wanted to keep it a secret from your son, Noah.” He waited patiently, and when she finally raised her head, he added, “He’s missed you terribly.”

Her eyes shifted to where I stood. “Noah…”

“Mum.” My smile came easy then, wide and full of joy, as she finally took hold of Nicholas’s hand as though she might fall from the shock of seeing me.

“How are you here? Why?” She blinked several times before looking back to Nicholas. “Is something wrong? Is he unwell?”

“No,” Nicholas said, then clasped both of her hands between his. “Nothing like that. Noah mentioned he hadn’t seen you for a long time, and I thought we could rectify that on our way back to Montclair.”

If my mother thought it odd that the king was calling me by my first name, she didn’t say. Then again, her shock at seeing us both standing there was likely overriding it.

“That’s very kind of you, Your Majesty. But I must confess, our home is not near fit for someone of your⁠—”

“I’m sure your home is lovely.” Nicholas stepped aside and gestured for me to join them. “Noah?”

My breath caught at the emotion swirling in his eyes when he looked back at me, a mixture of kindness, joy, and sadness that made my heart ache as I stepped up beside him and turned to my mother, drawing her into my embrace.