Chapter 24 #2
“That’s not what I meant,” Charlotte said gently. “I meant do you understand that what you’re feeling—what you both are feeling—is not going to go away simply because it’s inconvenient?”
Eddie stared at her, clearly not expecting this response. “Charlie…”
“I’ve watched you for the past three days, watched you perform your duties and attend your meetings and smile at all the right people. And you’ve been miserable, Greg. Completely, thoroughly miserable in a way I haven’t seen since right after Mum died.”
The mention of their mother seemed to hit Eddie like a physical blow. He closed his eyes, struggling for composure.
“But then,” Charlotte continued, “I saw you in that alcove with Special Agent Puller, and for a moment, you looked like yourself again. Happy. Real. Alive.”
“Bash,” I said. “My name is Bash.”
“Bash.” She extended her hand, and it made me smile. “I’m Charlotte, but my brother and my friends call me Charlie.”
I saw this for the olive branch it was. “Pleasure to meet you, Charlie.”
“Likewise, Bash.” Then her smile faded and she looked between us, her expression thoughtful rather than condemning. “So let me ask you this: what do you want to do about it?”
The question hung in the air like a challenge.
Eddie opened his eyes, meeting his sister’s gaze directly for the first time since we’d entered the room.
“I want to be with him. I want to wake up next to him every morning and fall asleep in his arms every night. I want to build a life with him, have a future with him, maybe even marry him someday. I want all the things I shall never be permitted to have.”
His voice broke on the last words, and I felt my heart shatter for him. This was the first time he’d articulated his desires so clearly, so completely, and hearing them laid out like that made the impossibility of our situation feel even more crushing.
“Why can’t you have them?” Charlotte asked.
“Because I’m fourth in line to the throne.
Because I have obligations and duties and expectations that don’t include falling in love with my American bodyguard.
Because Father and Uncle Henry have already chosen Lady Margaret as my suitable wife.
Because what I want doesn’t matter compared to what the family needs. ”
Charlotte was quiet for a long moment, and when she spoke again, her voice was soft but determined. “What if it did matter? What if there was a way to make it matter?”
Eddie stared at her. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about the fact that times are changing. Public opinion is shifting. The idea that royals have to sacrifice their personal happiness for duty is not as accepted as it used to be. People want authenticity now, not performance.”
“Charlie, you can’t be serious.”
“I’m completely serious.” She leaned forward, her expression intense.
“Greg, you’re fourth in line. Fourth. Even if something happened to the king—which god willing, it won’t—you’d still be unlikely to inherit.
And the public loves you. You’re young, charming, genuinely committed to charitable work.
If you were to find love with someone unexpected, someone real rather than suitable, I think the public might surprise you with their support. ”
I listened to this conversation with growing amazement. This wasn’t what I’d expected from a member of the royal family—this willingness to consider breaking with tradition, to prioritize personal happiness over institutional expectations.
“But Father—”
“Will be furious. Initially. But I would think that ultimately, he also wants you to be happy, even if he doesn’t know how to show it.”
“Uncle Henry will never accept it,” Eddie said.
“No, but does he have to? He cares more about the stability of the monarchy than anything else, and as long as you indicate you will continue to fulfill your royal obligations, he will have no choice but to accept.” She looked directly at me for the first time since I’d entered the room. “Bash, what do you want out of this?”
The question caught me off guard. I’d been so focused on Eddie’s impossible situation that I hadn’t really considered my own desires as part of the equation.
“I want to be with Eddie. However that looks, whatever that means. I want to support him and protect him and love him for as long as he’ll let me. ”
“Even if it means giving up your career? Your life in America?”
That was the easiest question so far to answer. “With all due respect, I gave up my life as I knew it the moment I fell in love with your brother. Whatever happens now, I can’t go back to pretending none of this happened.”
Charlotte nodded as if this was the answer she’d expected. “And you understand what you’d be signing up for? The scrutiny, the public attention, the constant pressure?”
“I’ve gotten a taste of it this week, and it will be hell. But losing Eddie would be worse.”
“Good.” Charlotte stood up, beginning to pace. “Because if you’re going to do this, if you’re really going to fight for this relationship, you’re both going to need to be completely committed. There won’t be any half-measures or trial periods. It’s all or nothing.”
“Charlie, what are you suggesting?” Eddie asked, hope and terror warring in his voice.
“I’m suggesting that you tell them the truth. Tell Father and Uncle Henry exactly what you told me. That you’re in love with Bash, that you want to build a life with him, and that you’re not willing to marry Lady Margaret or anyone else.”
The silence that followed was deafening. Eddie stared at his sister like she’d suggested he set himself on fire. “That’s… That’s not possible,” he whispered.
“Why not?”
“Because they’ll disown me. Cut me off completely. I’ll lose my title, my position, my family…”
“Not me,” Charlotte said softly. “You won’t lose me, Greg.”
Eddie’s eyes grew misty. “Thank you.”
She nodded. “But yes, you may lose some things. But not the things that actually matter. And Greg, if you don’t fight for this, if you marry Margaret and spend the rest of your life pretending to be something you’re not, you’ll lose yourself completely. Is that really preferable?”
Looking at Eddie’s face, I could see him wrestling with possibilities he’d never allowed himself to consider. The idea that he could choose love over duty, that he could fight for what he wanted rather than accepting what he’d been given.
“I need to think about this,” he said finally.
“Don’t think too long,” Charlotte warned. “The engagement conversation is going to come up again, probably soon. And once you’re officially engaged to Margaret, your options become much more limited.”
She moved to the door, then paused with her hand on the lock. “For what it’s worth, I think Mum would have wanted you to be happy. Really, truly happy. And if that happiness comes in a form the family doesn’t expect… well, she never was one for following expectations either.”
After she left, Eddie and I sat in silence for a long time, both of us processing what had just happened.
The conversation had changed everything and nothing—we still faced the same impossible situation, but now we had an ally, and more importantly, we had permission to consider possibilities we’d never dared imagine.
“What are you thinking?” I asked finally.
Eddie was staring at his hands, his expression unreadable. “I’m thinking that my sister might be right. I’m thinking that losing everything else might be worth it if it means I get to keep you.”
He looked up at me then. “I’m also thinking that I’m absolutely terrified,” he added.
Hell, so was I. I reached over to take his hand. “I would say that’s completely normal under the circumstances.”
Eddie squeezed my fingers, and for the first time since we’d arrived in England, he looked like Eddie again rather than Prince Gregory. “So what do we do now?”
“Now,” I said, “we figure out how to fight for this. Together.”
Nothing had changed, and yet in that quiet room, with Eddie’s hand in mine and the promise of his sister’s support, I felt something I hadn’t experienced since we’d left North Carolina.
Hope.
It was dangerous and maybe foolish, but it was real. And after everything we’d been through, real was enough to hold onto.