Chapter 24
NATE
N ate’s mind reeled as he tried to process what was unfolding in front of his eyes. His girlfriend, sweet Ellie, the down-to-earth woman who had changed his life was a princess. It didn’t ring true, no matter how many times he repeated it to himself.
What did it mean for them? He had no idea, though he couldn’t fault her for the lie. He’d done the same. His mind regressed to the night he’d told her. She’d accepted it so easily. This must have been the reason why.
She’d understood why he’d done it. She had been doing the same. Her words from that night echoed across his brain. I have something to tell you, too. She’d never had the chance.
Would she have told him then had the ride not stopped?
It didn’t matter. What mattered was this situation needed to be dealt with. And if she’d only lied about her name, not about her feelings, they could resolve this easily .
He loved her. And he wanted a life with her.
It didn’t seem like it would be that easy, though. Elena sparred with her father, their conversation veiled but hinting at things he couldn’t fully understand.
There was a hint of another man, a fiancé Elena vehemently rejected.
He had to know the extent of their relationship. His features twisted with fear as he asked the question. “Are you dating him?”
“No,” Elena said with a shake of her head as she twisted to face him, tears shining in her eyes. “We have only met once when I was seven.”
Her father filled in the details. “Elena has been promised to him since birth. She knows that full-well. This relationship is unauthorized.”
He screwed up his face at the words. Were there still arranged marriages happening in the world?
“Unauthorized?” Victoria shot back as she stepped forward. “Does this sort of thing still happen?”
Her father set his authoritative gaze on Victoria. “I will not debate the specifics of my country’s protocols. Elena, remove that ring and let us go.”
“I will not,” she answered.
His heart lifted as she defended their relationship. She’d said she loved him. And it looked like she meant it enough to fight for him.
“Are you saying you have no intention of calling off this farce of a relationship and returning to Eldoria to fulfill your duty?”
She raised her chin. “I will not call it off. I love Nathan, and our relationship is real.”
She shot him a pleading gaze, a silent question asking if he still wished for their relationship to continue. He answered by wrapping an arm around her and pulling her closer.
“Elena,” King Frederick said, his voice a warning. “I warn you not to test me.”
She interlaced her fingers through Nate’s. “This is not a whim, nor a game. Please, Father.”
“Neither is your duty to your country and your family.” The King’s words came across harsh and unfeeling to him. “You know the weight of the crown and the sacrifices it demands. I will not–cannot–allow you to forsake your responsibilities for a…momentary infatuation.”
“Momentary infatuation? That is not at all what this is. You have been listening to Julian far too much. He only means to sow trouble between us,” Elena pleaded.
“Julian is not a part of this,” the king shot back.
“Isn’t he? Is it not him who alerted you to my…unseemly behavior?” she asked.
King Frederick’s voice betrayed his irritation with the situation. “You are leaving me with little choice, Elena, though I had hoped to resolve this quietly for your sake and our family’s.”
“I cannot abandon my heart, nor pretend my feelings are fleeting. I will not. You must allow me my choice.”
The man glanced at his daughter, his features softening. Was he finally seeing the light? “I am sorry, Elena. Truly, I am. But the time for discussions has passed. You will return with me tonight. If you refuse…”
“If I refuse?” Her words came out meeker than he’d expected. Was she giving in to her father’s demands?
“I shall take the necessary steps to secure your future and the future of our kingdom.”
“That sounds like a threat,” Victoria answered. “And I–”
Elena stepped forward from his embrace, her voice shaking as she held back sobs. “I will go with you, Father,” she conceded, her voice barely above a whisper. “But please, give me a moment.”
“Make it brief,” he answered.
She twisted to face him, tears brimming in her eyes. “Nathan–“
“Ellie, don’t go, please,” he begged her. He couldn’t watch her walk away. What hold did her father have over her? Why had she given in?
“I have no choice,” she sobbed.
Victoria stepped forward. “Honey, if you need help, we have security, too.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Kingsley. But I haven’t a choice. You must know how deeply sorry I am. For everything. I…had the same misgivings you did when you gave me your fake name. But this is not how I wanted things to unfold.”
His heart broke at the words. There must be a choice.
She continued, a tear escaping to her cheek. “I only wanted someone to see beyond my crown. Please know my feelings for you are real and profound. I love you, Nathan. And I am truly sorry for any pain I’ve caused.”
He wanted to pull her into his arms and tell her he understood. He wanted to assure her that their engagement was real. That she didn’t need to leave. If she was walking away because she thought he was angry, he wasn’t. “Ellie–”
King Frederick cut off his words. “Elena, we must go.”
“I’m sorry,” she whispered again as she clapped a hand over her lips and hurried away from the gazebo.
“Ellie, wait!” He called as he started after her.
“Nate–“ his mother began, placing a hand onto his shoulder.
“No,” he said with a shake of his head as he shrugged her off. “No, I have to go after her. She can’t leave like this.”
He raced toward the house, tearing through it to the driveway out front. Elena already sat in the back seat of the car.
His eyes focused on her huddled form as he opened his mouth to call out. King Frederick stepped into his line of vision, holding up his hand. “I am truly sorry for the upset my daughter has caused. But it is time we leave.”
“No, wait. No, she–“
One of the men who had accompanied him earlier held Nate back from following him to the car. The man slid inside and another attendant closed the door behind him.
As the royal car disappeared into the night, taking with it the woman he loved, a part of Nate went with it. Emptiness settled in his chest, filled with questions, doubts and a piercing sense of loss.
His features twisted as he ran a shaky hand through his hair.
His mother’s gentle touch caressed his shoulders. “Let’s go inside.”
“No, we can’t…she can’t…”
“Nate, honey, we have to let them go. She chose to go.”
“He didn’t give her much choice.” He tugged his phone from his pocket and found her name. With trembling hands, he dialed her number and pressed the phone to his ear. It went to voicemail. The sound of her voice in his ear brought both comfort and pain.
He frantically sent her a text message, his heart twisting as he studied the recent thread. They had been so carefree, and now their lives had been ripped to shreds.
“Honey,” Victoria said, her voice soft.
“No, Mom, no. I have to talk to her.”
She nodded with a consoling smile. “Okay. We’ll…see what we can do about making contact but desperately calling her phone or texting her probably isn’t going to work. Why don’t you come inside so we can talk about this. ”
Nate stood frozen outside the front door, afraid to walk back into his house. It seemed like he was giving up. And he didn’t want to do that. He couldn’t do that.
“It’s okay, Nate. We’ll figure this out, okay?”
He blew out a shaky breath as he finally focused on his mother’s face and nodded. “Okay.”
She led him past the remnants of the party into the library, easing him onto the couch next to her as she rubbed his back. He barely noticed the rest of his family in the room as his mind went over and over what had just happened.
“Wow, tough break, bro,” Stephen said.
“Stephen, I think it may be best if you take Chloe home.” His mother’s tone was authoritative enough that no one would question it.
Stephen shrugged before he wrapped his arm around the blonde and led her from the room.
Nate clasped his hands, balancing his elbows on his knees as he rested his chin on his knuckles.
“Hey, Nate,” Maddie said with a weak smile as she perched on the coffee table in front of him. “I bet this is all going to work itself out.”
“Thanks,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper.
Her grin broadened, her eyes playful. “It’s sort of cool that your girlfriend is a princess though.”
“Maddie,” Victoria said, her voice a soft warning.
“What? It is. Nate could be a prince.”
Victoria patted her arm as she offered her a smile. “I think it’s time you headed up to bed.”
She rolled her eyes. “I always get dismissed when there’s good stuff going on.” She shifted her gaze back to Nate. “I’m sure it’ll work out.”
“Thanks, Maddie,” he said, tears stinging his eyes as he squeezed her hand.
She shuffled out of the room, leaving him alone with his parents.
“How are you holding up?” Charles asked as he eased onto the edge of an armchair.
“I don’t know,” he answered.
“I imagine you’re very upset–“
Nate leapt from his seat before his mother could finish. “Yes, but not with her. I understand why she did what she did. I don’t blame her. And I still love her. What I don’t understand is why she left.”
“It sounds like there are some other things at play here, Nate,” Victoria said.
“What? That weird, brokered marriage? I mean, what is that? Who promises their baby to someone?” He flung his arms out as he twisted to face his mother, the idea still incredulous to him.
Victoria flicked her eyebrows up. “I don’t know. I didn’t know that still happened.”
“Well, apparently it does.” He shook his head. “But why is she going along with it?”
“Honey, I’m not certain we’re going to find the answers to that. At least not tonight.”
He pulled his phone out again and toggled it on, hoping to find a message from Elena, but his notifications remained empty.
“Nothing?” Victoria asked.
He shook his head as he stared at the screen, praying a message would pop onto it. “Nothing.”
“Son, it sounded like they had several things to sort through together. She may be busy.”
His heart wrenched at the words as questions poured into his mind. When were they leaving? Was she already on a plane? Would she disappear completely from his life?
“Why don’t we try to get some sleep and discuss what we can do in the morning? Maybe you’ll even have heard from her by then?” Charles asked as he rose and clapped him on the shoulder.
“Get some sleep? Are you kidding me?”
“I know this is hard, but, Nate, there’s nothing we can do tonight. In the morning, I’ll call around and see if we can get a hold of someone. But sometimes the best thing to do is let tempers cool. Even when it’s hard.” Charles squeezed his arm as he offered a consoling glance.
Nate swallowed hard as he stared down at the phone, noticeably absent of messages. His father was right. What could he do? He had no idea where she was, and he was certain it would be impossible to get to her even if he did. He’d have to wait it out.
“All right,” he said, his voice gravelly.
“We’ll figure it out,” Victoria answered as she rose and pulled him into a hug. “Okay? This isn’t over. Just give it some time.”
Nate nodded before he left the room behind, his steps heavy and awkward. He closed himself in his room, the shock still coursing through him. He stared at his bed before he shook his head and collapsed in the chair.
With his tie loosened and his jacket discarded, he stared down at his phone again, this time toggling into his browser. A quick search of Princess Elena of Eldoria twisted his gut into a knot.
Image after image of her, poised, regal, smiling, filled his screen and sliced at his heart. He browsed a few articles about the royal family, pausing on a picture of her with her cousins. He recognized Prince Julian. No wonder the man had been so interested. He’d been a royal spy.
He scrolled further down the search list, finding a video. He pressed play, his heart wrenching as she sat primly across from the interviewer. “And I hear you have a favorite spot, Your Highness, and it is somewhat unique. Tell us about it?”
Her smile beamed. He’d seen that smile so many times. And he already missed it.
“Yes, I do,” she answered. “My carousel. I love it. I could ride it for hours. The music, the horses, the simple motion. It’s all so relaxing.”
The interviewer laughed and went on to ask her about riding real horses before the video ended. He pressed the phone to his chest as he leaned back in the chair, emptiness filling him. Would he ever hear her voice again or would he merely be reduced to watching her from afar like everyone else in the world?
His eyes started to close but before he drifted off, his phone chimed. A pang of hope sped through him as he bobbled it in a desperate attempt to see the message.
His eyebrows furrowed as he spotted an unknown number, but the corners of his lips turned up as he saw the name. Nathan–This is Caroline, Elena’s ladies’ maid. She is unable to contact you at the moment, but she wants you to know she is thinking of you, she is very sorry, and she hopes to have the opportunity to explain everything. Personally, I would ask you to hold out hope. HRH can be very persuasive when she feels strongly about something.
He stared at the words before he pressed the phone against his chest again. Would Caroline prove correct? Or was she giving him false hope? He hoped soon to find out.
He drifted off to sleep as he pondered the question.
A loud banging startled him awake the next morning. For a second, he awoke happy before it all came flooding back to him. He quickly checked his phone to make certain the message from Caroline had not been a dream. He breathed a sigh of relief when he found it on his screen as he rubbed at his stiff neck, the product of his night in his armchair .
“Nate!” Maddie shouted.
He crossed to his door and pulled it open. “Hey, I’m okay,” he informed her.
“Are you still in your tux?” She wrinkled her nose at him.
“Yes. I fell asleep in it, okay? Thank you, wardrobe police.”
“Well, hurry up and change into something normal. Someone is here to see you.”
He scrunched his features as he tried to make sense of her words. “Ellie?”
She shook her head. “No, but almost as good. Now, change, hurry up. I’ll wait for you in the hall.”
He bobbed his head as his mind raced. He tore off his clothes and replaced them with a fresh set before he hurried out the door.
“Whoa, whoa,” Maddie said as he hurried past her.
“What?” he snapped, annoyed at his own harsh voice.
“Your buttons are wrong, genius. You can’t go down looking like that.”
He glanced down at his shirt before he rolled his eyes at himself and fixed the problem. “Okay?”
“Yep,” she nodded. “Come on.”
Maddie led him to the library where he found his mother and father sharing a cup of tea with King Frederick. His heart thudded in his chest as the man rose, his authoritative eyes falling on Nate.
His mother offered him a tentative grin.
“Mr. Kingsley, I am pleased you could join us. Our last encounter was…less than cordial. I would like to apologize, firstly, and secondly, mention that I perhaps was…hasty in my response. I hope it will suffice to say that I have been shown the error of my ways.”
He lifted his chin as he continued, his hands clasped behind his back. “However, as you can understand, Elena’s position is not simply a matter of personal happiness, but of national importance.”
He tried to form an appropriate response, but his lips couldn’t form words as the king stepped closer to him, his demeanor softer than last night but still imbued with the weight of royal responsibilities.
“I propose a compromise that I hope you will accept. I would like to extend an invitation to you and your family to visit Eldoria. The trip would allow you the opportunity to understand more fully the duties and responsibilities that a future consort would undertake should he become part of the royal family. And, in addition, this will be an opportunity for us to grow further acquainted.”
He raised his eyebrows as Nate stood mute.
“What say you, Mr. Kingsley?” he prompted.
Victoria leapt from her seat, hurrying to his side. “If I may, Your Highness, am I to understand that this is not an approval of the engagement but that you are open to the relationship being pursued?”
“Consider it a period of mutual exploration and understanding. Should it be found that your son is capable and willing to embrace the duties that come with my daughter’s hand, then we may proceed with a discussion on the matter.”
Nate’s mind whirled. The way that had been closed so soundly last night now showed a small glimmer of being opened. Would it work? Did he have what it took to prove himself capable or was this merely a set up? A way to show Elena that he was not suitable?
He raised his chin. He loved her. And he had to take the opportunity. He had to prove that they were the right match.
Victoria set her eyes on him, silently prodding him to answer the question.
“I accept your invitation. I look forward to proving that I am both capable and more than willing. I love your daughter. And I want to marry her.”
The king offered him a fleeting smile. “Then we will be in contact with the arrangements.” He nodded at Charles and Victoria. “Mr. and Mrs. Kingsley, thank you for the tea. I look forward to conversing with you more.”
“Wait,” Nate said, his voice catching as he slid in front of the king to block his departure. “Can I see her?”
The man puckered his lips before he gave a slight nod. “We return to Eldoria this afternoon, but you may see her briefly. She is in the car–“
Nate didn’t wait for him to finish his statement before he was already out the door and racing headlong down the hall toward the front door. He burst into the bright sunshine beyond it, searching for her.
She stood near the back door of one of the cars in the convoy. A wide smile spread across her features as he rushed to her and scooped her into his arms.
“Ellie!”
“Nathan!” she answered as she threw her arms around him. “Oh, I am so sorry.”
“No, no, no,” he said as he pulled back from their tight embrace. “Don’t be sorry. I understand.”
She smiled up at him, tears in her eyes. “I felt so awful. I worried you would never want to see me again.”
“That would never happen. I was going to fight for you no matter what.”
She intertwined her fingers through his as she pressed her forehead against his. “I love you.”
“I love you, too. And I accepted your father’s invitation to visit. Ellie, I’m going to prove to them that we belong together.”
“You may have your work cut out for you, darling,” she said with a teasing grin. “My father is very difficult to please. But the fact that he even made the offer says he likes you.”
“Well, I’m going to make him love me.”
She giggled at the words. “That will take some doing, but I will tell you everything you need to know.”
“So, you can text me again?”
She nodded. “Yes. And I will. Nonstop. I promise.”
“I’m going to hold you to that,” he answered with a grin before he leaned in for a kiss.
Behind him, the king cleared his throat. Nate pulled back offering him a penitent smile.
“You should know public displays of affection are frowned upon,” he answered. “Though, as you will be separated for a time, I suppose I could look the other way for just a moment.”
She grinned at her father as he twisted to take in the view before she returned her attention to Nate. She caressed his cheek, and he cupped her face in his hands, leaning in to share a soft kiss filled with the promise of love and new beginnings.
To be continued…