Chapter 14
“You want to do what?” Dad asked, his hand on Mum’s knee tightening in concern.
I took a deep breath and looked between my parents. They were seated across from me in the sitting room of their suite while Knox leaned against the mantle, my silent support system. “I want to hold a competition to find a bride.”
“Want” was perhaps too strong of a word for how I actually felt, but that was currently beside the point.
I had gone to bed the night of Adelaide’s event angry with my brother for his behavior but expecting things to eventually blow over the way they always did.
Instead, Xavier had abdicated the next morning—had that really only been just over twenty-four hours ago?
—and I’d been left with a world-changing choice to make: Take up the position of Crown Prince and get engaged before my coronation on New Year’s Day, or pass the duty along to Rosie, who would be expected to find a husband when she came of age at eighteen.
Others might have pondered the decision for days. For me, it took only minutes. Not because of any secret hope of someday becoming king or because I underestimated the way my life was about to change, but because I couldn’t do that to my baby sister.
Rosie wasn’t even twelve yet, and though she was past the age of playing with her doll houses and the wooden figures Knox carved for her each year, I wanted her to maintain her innocence for as long as possible.
At thirty, I at least had a fully developed prefrontal cortex and could comprehend the decision I was making.
“Oliver, that can’t possibly—” Dad started, but Mum cut him off with a hand on his arm.
“Leroy, let’s at least hear him out. Oliver, darling, please continue.”
I cleared my throat, glancing at Knox, who nodded encouragingly.
This plan had taken most of the night to come up with, but I knew deep down that it was the best chance we had at salvaging this mess.
“We invite women from around Wexstone to participate in a holiday courting season. We’ll hold activities for me to get to know each woman, and the day after Christmas, I will propose to one of them.
“I know the media coverage is bad right now. But I think if we do this correctly, it could turn the tide for us there. We’ll make sure that it’s not just women from noble families—it could be anyone.
Perhaps we can ask some of the people we trust to recommend and sponsor contestants.
I know that you could easily arrange an engagement, and if this doesn’t work then that can still be an option, but this could be a good way to show the people that I’m interested in finding a partner who knows and understands the general population. Make me more relatable to them.”
My father ran his hand over his jaw with a glaze in his eye, deep in thought. Mum stood and walked behind the sofa, running her thumb over the edges of her cashmere cardigan. She bit her lip and looked back and forth between Dad and me.
“What do you think, Leroy?” she asked, a hint of eagerness in her voice.
“I…” He cleared his throat. “I don’t hate the idea. I think it would give us more time. And it would certainly narrow the dating pool for you.”
“Exactly,” I agreed.
“And we would be able to control the narrative a little more,” Knox chimed in.
“Honey,” Mum said as she came over to stand behind me, placing her hand on my shoulder, “I just want to make sure you are sure.”
I pursed my lips. “Is this how I pictured getting engaged? Absolutely not. But at least in this instance, I retain some agency in the decision. If you two arrange something, how much of a choice do I have?”
She let out a huff of air as she walked back to the sofa and started pacing again.
Dad ran his hand over his jaw again. “I’ll call a few people that I trust. Some of them have daughters who may be a good fit; others may at least know women they can recommend. I’ll let you know as soon as I hear anything.”
“And I’ll set up a meeting with Mirabel to start planning out activities,” Mum added with a nod.
And with that, we were in full-on planning mode.
I strummed the acoustic guitar strings one last time, playing the final note of “Living on a Prayer,” when I heard a knock on my bedroom door.
“Come in,” I called, knowing that it must be one of my family members. It was late and most of the household was already in bed or had gone home for the night.
“Hey,” Knox greeted as he opened the door. A copper streak darted in after him and beelined to my side. Eugene's cold nose nudged my guitar, making it play a soft note.
“Hey buddy,” I said, scratching Knox’s Viszla behind his ear after I set my guitar down.
Knox walked over and took a seat on the dark gray couch that sat across from my own.
“What’s up? I figured you guys would already be in bed.” I checked my watch, confirming the late hour: It was 1:00 a.m.
“I wanted to come and check on you before I turned in for the night. We really haven’t talked much about everything going on.” He leaned back on the couch and crossed one leg over the other.
I let out a long breath. How was I feeling? That was something I kept asking myself but hadn’t really had the time or the emotional energy to give it much thought. I knew that soon the high of everything would settle and I’d have to figure it out.
“Honestly? I’m not even sure.”
“Fair enough,” Knox replied. “Want to talk it out or just leave it for now?”
I ran my hands over my face. If there was anyone who I could and would want to talk this out with, it was Knox. He was my best friend, my brother. He never judged me for anything. He was my closest confidant and partner in all of this.
“Remember Adelaide Levy? We went to primary school with her and then she tutored me at uni?”
Knox let out a soft laugh. “Yeah, I remember you texting me about her.”
“Well, I had every intention of asking her out on a date the other night at the school’s fundraising gala.
” I leaned forward, placing my elbows on my knees.
I could hardly believe that had just been two days ago; a lifetime had occurred since then.
“Do you remember me telling you about how she never called me after that night right before commencement?”
“Of course. That was the stalker situation, right? And you figured that it scared Adelaide, so she never called you.”
“That’s it. Well, apparently, she never got the note that I left her. She thought I had ghosted her.”
“Mmm…” Knox hummed, connecting pieces together. “That explains why you were in the closet with her.”
I laughed. I couldn’t help it. It was like I was twenty-two again that night. I had been taken right back to uni and was ready to make all types of bad decisions with Adelaide.
“So, are you going to ask her to be a part of this courting competition?” Knox asked.
Fuck.
I wanted to. Badly. For years, I had held all the girls I had dated to the standard that was Adelaide. She was brilliant, kind, and altogether a wonderful person. She would be the perfect queen.
But I couldn’t ask her to be a part of this. A few days ago, I had simply been Prince Oliver. Now I was Crown Prince Oliver, the future king of Wexstone. She deserved more than to be put under the microscope of the media and everything else that was going to come with this competition.
I remembered what she had told me back in university about her former boyfriend, Lord Theo Wiltz.
He had wanted her to give up everything she loved to be with him and run his household and mother his children.
Asking her to marry me would mean that she would have to give up teaching, and I could never ask that of her.
It was clear from the event she had organized how much she cared about her students and her school.
It wouldn’t make me any better than Theo if I asked her to give that up to be with me.
Everything I was giving up by taking the crown and saving my family flashed before me.
The freedom to travel on my own schedule, take on passion projects at will, settle down with a woman I loved in my own time.
But at the end of the day, it was my responsibility by nature of my bloodline, if not my birthright.
But Adelaide? She needn’t feel that kind of pressure.
“I don’t know if I could,” I finally told Knox.
“Why not?”
“We just reconnected after so many years apart. I’m sure she hated me for most of that time. And then I had to leave abruptly—again. I just…Knox, she’s not like other women. As much as I would love her to do this, she deserves more.”
Knox nodded, clearly thinking. I could practically hear the gears whirring in his head. I sat in silence until he was ready to speak.
“You know what I’ve noticed, Ollie?”
“What’s that?” I responded, playing along.
“A common refrain from you is a belief that the people in your life deserve more, with the unspoken part of that being that they deserve more than you.” He leaned forward, pinning me with his sharp gaze. “Why do you think you aren’t enough for us?”
I opened my mouth, then shut it again, not sure how to answer him.
Knox continued, “Oliver, you’re one of the most selfless people I know.
You would give the literal shirt off your back to anyone who asked for it.
Hell, you’d give it to someone who didn’t ask for it because you are the one among us who notices things like that.
You work harder than almost anyone but never expect to receive any accolades in return.
You think that the things you do behind the scenes go unnoticed. ”
I swallowed past the lump building in my throat. He was right; I didn’t think anyone caught the small things I did quietly, because simply knowing the people around me were cared for was more important than any recognition.
He kept going. “But I see you, brother. I know your heart. You may think that this country deserves more or that Adelaide deserves more, but that’s where you’re wrong.
Wexstone is lucky to have you as the future king, and any woman who joins this competition would be lucky to have you as their partner in life. ”
I sat back, wiping a hand over my face and blinking back tears. My heart sat in my throat, making it hard to speak. “Okay, well. Way to make me want to cry, asshole,” I finally croaked out, sniffing as I shot him a crooked grin.
“Hey, I’m just stating the facts as I see them. So enough of this ‘everyone deserves more’ shit from you, okay? And, for the record, if anyone ever does make you feel like you aren’t enough, you’re free to send them my way and I’ll set them straight. Got it?”
Laughter bubbled out of me. I was delirious from exhaustion and couldn’t have said what, exactly, was so funny, but the chuckle quickly turned into a fit of infectious hysterics that Knox caught, too.
Soon we were both doubled over, our eyes streaming with tears of mirth.
Eugene leaped up from his place at Knox’s feet and spun in circles, giving three sharp barks before racing over to nudge at my elbow with his muzzle.
“Oh my God,” I said as we both finally calmed down. I wiped my eyes on the shoulder of my T-shirt and patted Eugene on his flank. “Thank you, Knox. I needed that.”
Knox stood, snapping his fingers to call Eugene to his side. “You’re welcome, brother. All of it is true. Just don’t forget it. Now, get some sleep. Things are only going to get crazier from here.”