Chapter 41 — The Proposal #2
He caught her and kissed her.
This kiss was nothing like their first.
There was no anger behind it.
No argument.
No confusion.
Only certainty.
When they separated, Alexander rested his forehead against hers.
“You said yes.”
“I occasionally do.”
“I may require witnesses.”
“Ask again and I will change my answer.”
He immediately stopped talking.
Amara laughed.
“Good decision.”
Alexander took the ring from the box.
Then he hesitated.
“May I?”
Amara looked at him.
“You're asking permission to put on the ring?”
“I am learning.”
Her expression softened.
“Yes.”
He slipped it onto her finger.
It fit perfectly.
Amara stared at it.
“How did you know the size?”
Alexander looked uncomfortable.
“Kellan.”
She stared at him.
“My brother helped you?”
“Under protest.”
“How?”
“I am not permitted to disclose operational details.”
“Alexander.”
“Your sister may also have been involved.”
“Which sister?”
“I have sworn an oath.”
“You are a terrible liar.”
“I am an excellent officer.”
“That was not the question.”
Alexander kissed her before the interrogation could continue.
It worked.
Temporarily.
They sat beneath the tree afterward.
Amara kept looking at the ring.
Alexander noticed every time.
“You like it.”
“Perhaps.”
“You've looked at it seventeen times.”
“You counted?”
“I am trained to observe.”
She leaned against him.
“Why didn't you use one of our royal jewelers?”
“Because I didn't want your father paying for the ring.”
“He wouldn't care.”
“I would.”
Amara understood.
This mattered to Alexander.
Not because her family's wealth threatened him, but because this particular object needed to come from him.
“How expensive was it?”
“Absolutely not.”
She laughed.
“Now who is saying no?”
“I have learned from an expert.”
They sat quietly for a while.
Then Amara asked, “When did you decide?”
“To marry you?”
“Yes.”
Alexander thought about it.
“I don't know.”
“That is not romantic.”
“You want the truth?”
“Always.”
“There wasn't one moment.”
She looked at him.
“I think it happened slowly. Somewhere between chasing you on my horse, arguing at the inn, nearly being killed by pirates, and realizing I was more frightened of losing you than of anything happening to me.”
Amara smiled.
“And you?”
“When did I decide?”
“Yes.”
“The first kiss.”
Alexander looked pleased.
She continued.
“I decided you were completely unsuitable.”
His expression collapsed.
Amara laughed.
“Then why did you kiss me again?”
“Poor judgment.”
“And after that?”
“Repeated poor judgment.”
Alexander pulled her closer.
“Remarkably consistent poor judgment.”
“Apparently.”
They returned to the palace much later.
They almost reached Amara’s private corridor before Queen Nalia appeared.
She looked at Amara.
Then at Alexander.
Then at Amara’s left hand.
Her scream could probably be heard in the capital.
“He did it!”
Doors opened.
Servants appeared.
Amara closed her eyes.
“Mother.”
Queen Nalia grabbed her daughter’s hand.
“Oh, it's beautiful.”
Kellan appeared at the end of the corridor.
“What happened?”
Nalia turned.
“They're engaged!”
Kellan looked at Alexander.
“You finally managed it?”
Alexander frowned.
“Your confidence was appreciated.”
Amara’s sisters arrived next.
Then a cousin.
Then another.
Within approximately two minutes, the private proposal had become a royal event.
King Adisa appeared last.
He looked at his daughter’s hand.
Then at Alexander.
“Did she say yes?”
Alexander nodded.
“She did.”
The King looked at Amara.
“Voluntarily?”
“Father!”
“I am confirming.”
“Yes. Voluntarily.”
Adisa smiled.
Then he embraced his daughter.
When he released her, he offered Alexander his hand.
Alexander took it.
“Congratulations, Captain.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.”
Adisa looked toward the ring.
“You chose it yourself?”
“Yes.”
“Good.”
Alexander waited for criticism.
None came.
Instead the King pulled him unexpectedly into a brief embrace.
“Welcome to the family.”
Alexander froze.
Then Kellan said from behind them, “You may regret saying that.”
The King laughed.
Alexander looked around at the growing collection of relatives filling the corridor.
“I suspect I already understand the risks.”
Much later, after everyone finally left them alone, Amara stood with Alexander on the balcony outside her rooms.
The city lights stretched below.
She held up her hand again.
Alexander smiled.
“Eighteen.”
“What?”
“Eighteen times.”
“You're still counting?”
“Yes.”
Amara lowered her hand.
“Idiot.”
“Future husband.”
She looked at him.
The phrase changed something.
Future husband.
Alexander seemed to realize it too.
He reached for her.
“Future wife.”
Amara smiled.
For most of her life, other people had assumed that being a princess meant her marriage would be arranged around politics, wealth, alliances, or duty.
Then she had been kidnapped by men who believed her choices meant nothing at all.
Now she stood in her own palace beside a man who had crossed an ocean with her.
He had not asked the King to give her away.
He had not asked for her fortune.
He had not asked for a kingdom.
He had simply knelt before Amara and asked one question.
And the woman who had become famous for saying no had finally given him the answer he wanted.
Yes.