Royally Rebellious: An arranged royal romance (Resplendent Royals Book 1)

Chapter 6

My father summoned me to dinner at the palace. I had a swanky condo overlooking the sea and rarely came by unless my presence was requested. Attendance was never optional, of course. When my father rang, we came. My brother was still on his honeymoon—lucky bastard—and got out of it.

“How are you?” Mamma asked.

“I’m well, Mamma,” I replied. “You?”

Father said, “I was told you stayed out of trouble while in Belgium.”

“Yes.” I lied.

Of course, I had gotten up to something. I had only gotten away with it.

“Good. For once, you followed orders.”

“You’re welcome. Now, can we cut the shit, Dad? Why did you call me here?”

“Rikard, please!”

My father set his jaw. “I would like you to go to Neandia on Thursday. You can have dinner with the royals there, attend a trade summit, and be a good boy. If you can do that, I will allow you to spend some time on the yacht this summer. I need to believe you won’t cause the family too much disgrace.”

“Really?” My ears perked. “Well, that’s great! I mean, there are things I’d rather do but… if that’s all I must?—”

“There will be more, of course. But I would like you to go.”

“What is the catch then?” I groaned.

“You will meet with Queen Alexandra and get to know her.”

“I saw her this weekend—we barely spoke. She’s awful.”

“She is a nice girl,” Mamma said. “Her mother was a dear friend, and her grandmother remains your godmother?—”

“I know that. She seems prickly. We did not hit it off. She implied my French was poor?—”

“And it is compared to a native speaker’s. Which she is.”

“Well, then what is the hope for us?”

“She speaks perfect English. Stop putting up walls, Rick.”

Father bellowed. “It would be good for you to settle down and stay out of trouble. She is a perfectly nice girl, not ugly, and young. She is well-behaved—unimpeachable—and would make a good wife.”

“No, no, no, no. You handpicked Marie for Mikkel. That isn’t going to happen here.”

“It worked out!”

“Mikkel is awkward and complicated. Marie puts up with him because she likes to be spoiled. She tolerates him. They aren’t in love. I have been in love,” I insisted. “Even if you won’t hear it. If I marry—and that is if—I want it to be about love, not because I am forced.”

“You loved someone who?—”

“Loved me?” I asked vein in my neck bulging. “I still love her. I’d run off with her and leave all of this behind if it wouldn’t cost you everything. I do care about this family, believe it or not!”

“Show it, then.”

“August,” Mamma said. “He’s allowed to love her. He is not with her. We don’t need to rehash this again.”

Mamma loved us. She was always good to us. She was a mother before anything else in this world. Without her, I would have been toast ages ago. My father had it up to his neck with me more times than I could count. I knew he wanted the family to live on. That’s why he cared so much, but he took a sledgehammer to me and my self-esteem more than he knew. I had a heart. My mother cared for us, and she knew I was sensitive.

My father dropped it.

“I hit bottom,” I said. “I will give anything a shot. However, I am unconvinced that I could ever love a woman like that.”

“And why? Because she is a kind, sweet person?”

“No, Pappa, because she is an uninitiated baby who struggles to relate to people. She’s practically a nun! If I marry her, I will be obligated to have children with her. If I’m not attracted to her, that isn’t going to happen.”

“You haven’t even given her a chance,” Mamma said. “Queen Margaux spoke highly of her. She and I both believe you deserve someone kind and would benefit from someone like Alexandra.”

“This is a ridiculous arranged marriage!” I shook my head.

“It works for many. We live in a bubble?—”

“Pappa, you, and Mamma fell in love! You cannot talk?—”

“And my parents didn’t have the benefit, son. Get over yourself!”

I sighed, rolling my eyes.

“They fell for one another eventually,” Mamma continued. “And you could, too. No one is forcing you into this. She’s not perfect—nor are you—but she is open to meeting you. You certainly don’t have to marry her. Just think about it as a blind date.”

“Exactly,” Pappa added.

“Pappa, it’s nothing like that when the stakes are this high.”

“How is it different from any other date, son?”

I couldn’t give the actual answer to that question as I planned on bedding any woman I went out with. I didn’t find Alexandra remotely attractive at our first meeting. She was nothing to write home about. I bet she was a cold fish in bed. I liked my women enthusiastic, willing, and adventurous. I didn’t want to have to teach her everything.

She’d probably never been properly fucked—if at all—but I wasn’t in the business of playing daddy and raising her. No, she either had to come to me a fully formed woman or I would back right out. I could go to get my father off my back. Maybe she was the sweetest girl, but that alone would not hold me. I’d bore of her and hurt her. I may have been a prick, but I was done with hurting other people like that. I was making amends. She deserved better.

“She’s a nice girl,” Mamma said again. “She’s young, yes, but maybe that is what you need—someone young and sweet who can see all of you as a person rather than prejudge you.”

“You want me to pull the wool over her eyes.”

“Not quite,” my father said. “But you are much more saleable if you are a good boy. She doesn’t know much about you. Hopefully, you didn’t anger her on your first meeting.”

“I didn’t, no.”

I may have, but how would I know? It certainly wasn’t a good first impression, but also not the worst.

“I will give it an honest try,” I promised. “I will only say I find her unremarkable.”

“You may change your mind after you give her a chance,” Mamma said kindly. “Instant attraction is rare. Pappa and I loved one another, but we also grew much more as a married couple. It wasn’t lightning in a bottle at first sight.”

“Yes, possibly, but also unlikely. Best I can do is try, Pappa. What advantage is this to us? There must be something else?”

“The advantage would be I would be able to sleep at night knowing you are in a place where you cannot get into much trouble. Celeste runs that palace with an iron fist, and you’d get away with nothing.”

“Gee, you’re making this sound better and better, father!” I dripped with sarcasm.

I did not know my godmother well, but rumour had it she kept the princesses under lock and key for years before Alexandra came of age. She was a hardass. Of course, if I had little Alexandra wrapped around my fingers, I would have an easier go of it. Alexandra might give me the best chance yet.

“You can decide for yourself, but make a choice, son. And think about what you are doing with your life. Now, you can leave.”

I looked at my mother. She looked down, pained to be there. I wanted her so badly to say something. She was the only one left who saw the good in me. Pappa thought I was a big fuck up.

I left, unable to say more. I stormed out, past Martin, who caught up. We took the car back to my place. He was silent and sensed my seething disdain.

“They want me to go to Neandia to marry me off to this boring young girl,” I scoffed. “Martin, what the fuck do I do?”

“What if you don’t?” Martin asked.

“My father will cut me off. He all but said it.”

Martin let out a rare wince. “Well, it could be worse. Neandia has some beautiful countryside.”

“She is a child. I’ve seen her. It could not be worse,” I groaned.

“Is she hideous?” Martin asked.

“No. She’s not hideous. She’s not ugly. She’s… judgemental and stuck up. And far too young for me. She didn’t seem to like me at the ball. I didn’t make a good impression. I don’t blame her, but we are no love match.”

“Neither were Mikkel and Marie at first but I would say they’ve done well.”

“They’ve barely been married. It’s not how I wanted this to go.”

“How so?”

“Me in contrived royal matrimony with a woman ten years younger than me? A woman who is square and boring? It sounds stupid but I want to fall in love—mad love. I did before but it was all wrong.”

“I didn’t like my wife when I met her,” Martin chuckled. “But she’s been the best thing that ever happened to me.”

“What was wrong with her?”

“She was always right.”

“Hate women like that,” I groaned. “How did you fix it?”

“She fixed me. She is usually right,” Martin said. “Her foibles became things I didn’t only endure but adored. You will never know what is possible until you try. You can fall in love again.”

I stared out the window.

“Martin?”

“Yes, sir?”

“Thanks for saying ‘again’. Thanks for acknowledging it.”

He had been the first to do so. It was sad that the one person who saw me was my paid bodyguard.