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She wipes her nose and looks at me with so much helplessness it tears my heart to pieces. “Yes, you did. And what plans?”
“For the rest of our lives. Marry me.”
Hailey sniffles. “You already asked me that, and I said yes, remember? But your parents hate me. They want you to marry that other woman. I overheard you and Etienne talking. I don’t think I can go through with it if I and my family won’t ever be accepted here. I have my pride, you know. Let me at least have that.”
She’s not wrong about certain members of my family.
“Fuck ’em.”
“What?”
I repeat, “Fuck ’em. Marry me today, and fuck all of it.”
She shakes her head. “If you marry me to spite your family, that’s the wrong reason. And what will the king do then? Banish you? Cut you off? Do you think I want that on my conscience? I gotta tell you something. Growing up not knowing if my daddy left enough money to buy groceries after he hit the liquor store really sucked. But at least we didn’t have our dirty laundry splashed all over the internet. This monarchy shit? I’m sorry, but it’s the worst. Our relationship can’t survive under this much backlash.”
“It can, and it will. Because we love each other, and more than that, I don’t want to wake up tomorrow if you’re not in my bed. I don’t want to eat another meal if you’re not there. Every second that I spent away from you today tore at my heart. My physical heart ached for you, Hailey.” I emphasize my point by thumping my fist against my breastbone. Her lips curl into a smirk.
“You should probably get that checked by a cardiologist.”
I bark out a laugh that startles her. I take her hands in mine and study them as I keep going. “I don’t know if it’s enough, this love I have for you. But I do know that compared to wanting you, I’ve never wanted anything. I don’t care about power, titles, or land—none of it. I don’t care about being king. Wearing a crown sitting on the throne—none of that matters. Indeed, it matters less if you’re not next to me.
“And I’m sorry if I indirectly made you feel inferior or made you feel entirely dependent on me and my fortune. If that’s the case, you’ll like what I say next.”
Hailey’s face softens a bit. She licks her lips and gives me a slight nod to keep going while maintaining a rightfully skeptical air.
And that’s when I tell her my plan. The thing I was running to tell her about before I found her note.
She listens thoughtfully, filling my heart with hope that she’ll go along with it.
30
Hailey
It’s a good thing I already kind-of-sort-of met my public when we deplaned the plane yesterday because I’m significantly less nervous about appearing in the royal box in front of thousands of people.
“Your majesty, the street department estimates that a million people are on the plaza. Almost no one is at home today. Everyone has come for the official engagement announcement.”
Oh. Okay. A million. Not thousands, but a million people.
Sure. No problem. I take a steadying breath and scan my body. Nope, I’m still not as nervous as I was yesterday morning.
That might have something to do with the ring I absentmindedly twirl around my ring finger, hidden under my glove.
Torben’s hand sits at the small of my back, a slight touch that has come to mean so much to me. He’s letting me know he’s here. He’s not leaving.
The king and queen are also here, as well as Flora, Sig, and Etienne.
“I’m shocked that the second son is on time today,” the king says as if that second son is not in the room with us. I slide my gaze to Etienne, who’s lounging on the hotel sofa, half asleep. In fact, the king seems to be speaking to Kala, who has graciously agreed to go along with Torben’s plan.
Kala is standing stock straight, her face in an unreadable, benign smile, as always. She would make an excellent queen. If the current monarchs love her so much, they should appoint her. Knowing what I know about how things work in Gravenland, that will never happen. Unless… someone changes the rules and goes against tradition.
Which they should do.
Because let’s face it: monarchies sort of suck.
This is the first time the royal monarchs have been all in the same room as me since yesterday’s extremely awkward and rude breakfast. I shouldn’t have expected an apology. The queen and king chat excitedly with Kala. Sig paces, uncomfortable in his fine suit. Flora knits, and, every so often, pauses to text someone.
And then, it’s time.
