I arrived in the meeting room earlier than the rest of the council members. It was a first for me and gave me a few minutes to organize my thoughts before they walked in through the back door and took their seats in front of me.

Jaabir had a smirk on his face. My hand twitched, itching to smack it from his mouth. He was the reason for all of this. If he hadn’t pushed his agenda onto the other council members, maybe they would have accepted Sophia right away. Now, I had to stand up in front of them and defend myself for no reason.

Qadeem, as head of the council, was first to speak. “Why have you called us to this special meeting?”

It was a formality, but stating the purpose of a meeting outside the regularly scheduled ones gave the meeting purpose and drive. And it was useful for the meeting minutes.

“I have called this meeting to discuss the wrongful ultimatum that you pronounced, forcing me to make a decision regarding my relationship with Sophia Holmes.”

“Wrongful,” Jaabir spat in a low voice.

My jaw clenched, but I didn’t give him the satisfaction of knowing that I’d heard him.

“Yes,” Qadeem said. “And we are under the assumption that you have a decision for us.”

“I do,” I said.

“Before you offer your decision, I want to be sure that you understand that whatever you say here is your final choice and that you understand the outcome of either decision,” Qadeem added.

“I understand.”

Qadeem sat back in his chair while Jaabir leaned forward, desperate to hear that I would either give up the kingdom or give up the woman that I love. In his eyes, either way, he won. Little did he know that I was going to win no matter what.

“Then proceed,” Qadeem said, opening his hand to give me the floor.

I stepped in front of them, making eye contact with each of them before moving onto the next. I was their king and like hell would I allow their old-school thoughts on how a king should live to dictate how I lived mine. I thought of Sophia, and the fleeting thought of her not being in my life made my chest tighten. I thought of telling Abir that I was stepping down after a month and now he had to have all the responsibilities while I went back to England to live happily ever after with Sophia. The image of his grief-stricken face made my stomach churn.

In the council’s eyes, they didn’t care that I was happy. They cared that I agreed with them, even when I didn’t. I channeled Father’s tough attitude when it came to fighting for what was right.

“I’ve decided to marry Sophia,” I said.

Jaabir crossed his arms, not hiding the wide grin on his face. The other members, including Qadeem, shook their heads, unable to meet my eyes. They didn’t need to look at me for me to see the disgust written all over their faces.

“You’ve left us no choice,” Qadeem said. “I am sorry to say that according to this council, the seat of the king has been revoked and—”

The doors to the room opened, and I whipped around to see Mother standing in the doorway. She was formally dressed in a white gown and hijab.

The council members were speechless. All except for Jaabir.

“This meeting is closed,” Jaabir said. “You know the rules.”

“The rules are about to be changed,” Mother said, unshaken by his words.

“Stop her!” Jaabir said to Qadeem.

“You will do no such thing,” I said to all of them. “At this moment, she is still your queen and outranks all of you. Now, you will sit and listen to what she has to say, or I will have the guard escort you from this room.”

Mother came to my side and lifted her chin. “Thank you, Luke.”

Jaabir shot daggers at Qadeem, who looked a little more shaken in a room that normally, he commanded. He didn’t speak, but a small nod of his head signaled for Mother to continue.

I was open to whatever she had to say, knowing it was in my favor. She hadn’t told me that she’d planned on barging into the room, and I wondered if she’d planned this ahead of time or happened to be passing by when she heard that the meeting was happening. Considering they were about to tell me that I was no longer king, she had the perfect timing.

“Luke is and will be your king until he takes his last breath in this palace,” Mother said, addressing the council.

“We gave him a choice—”

“You will not speak until spoken to,” Qadeem interrupted Jaabir.

Jaabir sat in his chair like a kid who had just been scolded by his mother.

Now he knew what it felt like each time he addressed me in the same manner.

“Luke may not be of the royal bloodline, but he is Erol’s and my son and will always be. Under our laws, you do not have the right to remove him as king for his decision to marry a woman outside of our culture.”

“It has never been done before,” Qadeem said.

“So, what?” Mother asked him. “This is why the laws were written as such. They are open to interpretation by the council and king. You are the checks and balances to the system. Just because one of you has a problem,” she shot daggers at Jaabir, “someone who’s had a problem for a very long time doesn’t mean there aren’t discussions to be had. Since when are ultimatums about wives any concern of the council? If you want me to bring you the definition of the council within our laws, I can do that. The interpretation is quite black and white on that subject.”

The council members shifted in their seats. I couldn’t be prouder of my mother for standing up for me. It was something I always wanted but never knew that I needed. I didn’t care that she commanded the meeting space where I was supposed to reign. We were a family, and treating the kingdom like that would be my legacy.

“When Erol and I chose to adopt a son, it was not something we took lightly. We knew we would change a child’s life and possibly be able to choose the successor to the throne.” She looked over at me and smiled, the way she used to when I was a child. When things seemed much simpler. When had I lost touch with that?

“We picked a boy that we felt, in our hearts, needed us as much as we needed him. You all worked with my husband and the previous king. You saw how big of a heart he had for this country. You trusted his choices. Why are you turning your backs on him now? He wanted Luke to become king in his stead. What would you say to him right now, face to face, if you had the opportunity? Would you tell him that he’d made the wrong choice with Luke?”

Mother paused, and none of the council spoke a word. The only movement was their blinking eyes of surprise.

“You’ve already seen what Luke can do with a company, one that has put a lot of money in your pockets. Why not allow him to rule as a happy king with the woman that he loves? A woman that I love and respect as well.”

Shooting her a look, she was as serious as I’d ever seen her. She did love Sophia, even in the short time she had gotten to know my fiancée. It was the same with me. Sophia managed to burrow herself into Mother’s heart as much as she did mine.

Mother bowed her head at the council, daring them to say something.

I looked at them too, hoping that they had something negative to say to my mother. We were a united front, and I would defend her as much as she defended me.

The council members glanced at each other while Jaabir kept his narrowed gaze on Mother and me.

I never thought it was possible that none of them would have anything to say. At the very least, I expected more of a fight from Jaabir. But even though he didn’t agree with many things, he did agree with Father. And Father’s wish had been granted. Were they about to dethrone me because someone stirred the pot? I was going to outlive all of them. The least they could do was work with me instead of against me.

“Nothing?” Mother said, resting her gaze on each of them. “That’s what I thought. Now, there will be a wedding at the palace tomorrow. You are all invited if you choose, since you are important friends of the royal family.”

The council members looked at each other, and I couldn’t help but smile. I’d come into the room expecting to tell them that I was marrying Sophia. I’d intended to come into work on Monday with a ring on my finger, but Mother’s admission gave a far greater reaction. One that I was happy I didn’t miss.

“Congratulations,” Qadeem said. There was no hint of anger in his voice, but I did hear a twinge of regret. Maybe he should remember this confrontation next time he wanted to listen to Jaabir and attempt to mess with my personal life.

“Come, Mother,” I said offering my arm to her. I wanted to pick her up and kiss both of her cheeks, but I would save the celebration for when we left the room. There was no need to rub it in their faces.

I pushed open the door, and someone yelped. I glanced back to see the council members shuffling out the other door.

“What was that?” I asked, just as I saw Sophia jump out from behind the door I opened.

“Sophia?”

She gave us a sheepish smile. “Sorry, I was eavesdropping. You opened that door faster than I could move.”

“What about Matt?” I asked. “Where is he?”

“He’s here somewhere,” she said. “I told the driver to get me back here as soon as possible. I heard only part of the conversation.” She turned to Mother. “Gia, you don’t know what it means to hear you say those things about us.”

Mother reached out and hugged Sophia. I wasn’t sure who was more shocked, Sophia or me. When Mother pulled away, she cupped Sophia’s cheeks in her hands. “You’re going to be the new queen. And I couldn’t be happier to pass that along to you.”

Sophia blinked away tears in her eyes. “Thank you.”

Mother squeezed my hand before shuffling down the hallway, getting back to whatever she’d been doing before coming into the meeting and rescuing me. With Father’s passing still in their minds, the council members couldn’t turn down the opportunity to honor their previous king. I wished I would have thought of it, but Mother’s speech was way more inspiring than mine ever could have been.

“My queen,” I said, slipping my hands around Sophia’s waist. We were completely alone for once, and there were no secrets between us. It was a strange, yet comforting feeling. From the beginning, there were lies and secrets either to each other or my parents. With everything out in the open, the path cleared for us to be together.

Sophia lifted on her toes to kiss me. I met her halfway and our lips pressed together. I put all the love I had for her into that kiss, and I hoped that she understood just how I felt for her.

“Thanks for risking your seat for me,” she said, leaning her head back. Her eyes darted between mine.

“I’d risk it all for you, Sophia,” I said. “I love you.”

She pecked me on the mouth, grinning. “I love you too, Luke.”