I can still taste Mila on my lips as I head up toward my mother’s apartment.

I didn’t plan that kiss, of course. It was totally off the cuff, like everything in that little press trip. But it was a good political move, a really good political move.

Right now, the royal family can’t be made to look like it’s a stodgy group that’s too good for the press. They’ll wreck us in the coverage and we’ll just look even worse than we’ve always looked. We can’t risk that, so I decided to go ahead and hold a little press conference right there in the forest.

I think it went over well. I didn’t give any big or detailed answers, but I tried to say something to absolutely everyone. And then there was the kiss at the end. So far, we haven’t done much press at all, and that’s been on purpose. I’ve wanted to give Mila some time to acclimate to this place, but now it’s time to get her out there. She’s beautiful and I know she looks damn good on my arm. Plus, she’s an American, and as much as people think they hate foreigners, they’re going to like her story. She was born poor just like them and now she’s part of the royal family. It’s going to win some serious points for us. I can already see the headlines: Prince Makes Peasant Into Princess. They’re going to eat that shit up.

I probably didn’t have to kiss her. But fuck, I really wanted to. I really couldn’t stop myself. It’s part of what we agreed to, kissing for the cameras, and I couldn’t wait a single second. I had to have another taste of her, and that was a good opportunity.

I know I left her a little breathless, which is what I wanted. She’ll be thinking about that kiss the next time she takes out the royal scepter to help make her feel good.

I take a deep breath as I get off at the third floor. My mother’s apartment is on the far side of the floor, so I have to walk quickly. My father and my mother don’t live in the same room anymore, but it’s not because they fight. In fact, they’re the most happily married couple I know. It’s simply what they do. My father works late hours, and my mother has a million projects of her own. Their separate apartments started as separate offices, but slowly they evolved into what we have today. My father still comes to my mother’s room at night if they’re not busy and they sleep in the same bed like any other married couple, but unfortunately the King and the Queen are far from normal. They couldn’t be, even if they wanted to.

I knock on my mother’s door and her staff lets me inside. Queen Ana is sitting at her desk, frowning at her computer screen.

“Did you kiss Mila in front of the press earlier?” she asks.

I laugh. “It’s already online?”

She nods, her mouth a tight line. “Just posted a minute ago.”

“That happened just now. They’re fast these days.”

“Says here you answered questions?” She gives me a look. “You’re not supposed to do that.”

“I know, mother,” I say. “But they ambushed us when we were walking in the royal forest. I couldn’t turn away from them, it would have looked bad.”

She nods and reads for a moment then sighs. “Well, the coverage is good, at least. And the picture is flattering.” She turns her screen for me to see.

In the picture, I’m kissing Mila deeply. The headline reads, Happy Prince Kisses Happy Princess.

“Perfect,” I say, sitting down in the chair in front of my mother’s desk. “Exactly what I wanted.”

She nods again and turns the screen away. She clicks a few times then turns to me. “Do you know why I called you up here?”

“No,” I say. “Nobody briefed me.”

“It’s about your fiancée.” Mom doesn’t look happy, and I have a sinking feeling. “I did some research, you know.”

I give her a little smile. “You mean you hired someone to look into her?”

“Exactly,” she says. “Apparently, there’s no evidence that you and Mila ever had a relationship before coming here.”

There it is. Frankly, I was wondering when she’d ask this question. I expected it sooner, but then again, Mom’s been busy lately. I didn’t think my father would care enough to look into Mila, but I knew my mother would. She’s always thorough. Queen Ana is a serious force.

“That’s because we didn’t.”

I have to admit, I like the look on my mom’s face when I say that. It’s half disbelief, half amusement. “Are you joking?” she asks.

“Nope,” I say, shaking my head. “It’s true. We got engaged just before coming here.”

“Oh, Branimir,” she says, sighing. “I thought you were just being discreet with her.”

“That’s what everyone else will think,” I say. “But you might as well know the truth.”

“What did you do now?” she asks, clearly not happy.

“Hear me out,” I say. “The crown is in trouble. It has an image problem. I have no spouse and no heirs, and father’s popularity isn’t outweighing all the grumbling about the monarchy being outdated. We need to do something drastic to start over.”

“So you thought you’d, what, lie to everyone?”

“Exactly,” I say. “I’m the Prince returned to his land with a pretty American girl who comes from a poor family. It’s a great story, mom.”

She watches me, her face tight and hard to read. “How will this help?” she asks.

“I’m humanizing the monarchy,” I say. “People will love the story of the Prince that takes the poor foreign girl and turns her into a Princess. And they’ll love Mila.”

“What happens when they all find out that it’s fake?” she asks.

“They won’t. We’ll go back to America, they’ll forget about us, and then we’ll quietly break up. Meanwhile, we’ll have already helped father’s image problem.”

I can tell that Mom doesn’t like this plan, not at all. “You’ve done some stupid things, Branimir, but this? It’s irresponsible.”

“Trust me, Mom. Mila is an asset to the crown.”

“I hope so.” She shakes her head. “I didn’t expect this to be such a serious meeting. I have to go speak with your father in fifteen minutes.”

“Don’t tell him,” I say.

She blinks, surprised. “You want me to keep this from him?”

“Please,” I say. “He’ll try to stop it. And when he does, he’ll ruin it. The damage is already done, mother. We can wind back the clock. We’re going through with this whether or not father wants to.”

She watches me for a second before sighing and standing. “I’ll think about it.”

I stand up. “Thank you,” I say.

“Come to dinner tonight. Some of your cousins will be there.”

I roll my eyes. “The royal cousins?”

“They’re nice,” she chides me.

“They’re rich, spoiled, and boring.”

“You’re rich too,” she points out.

I grin at her. “But I’m not boring.” She sighs and I kiss her on the cheek. “I’ll see you tonight.”

“We’ll talk more about this later, Branimir. Until then, be careful, don’t do anything stupid.”

“I never do.” I grin at her and leave her office.

I don’t know what she’s going to do now, but I feel like a weight has been lifted. I’m so happy to finally have told her. I knew she’d find out sooner or later, and I’m glad it’s sooner.

Now I just have to hope she can see my reasoning. If my father knows, he’ll ruin this and make it worse. I know my mother can keep this to herself. She is the head of the nation’s spy agency, after all, which is a little known thing. She’s both Queen and head spy, though of course the average person isn’t meant to know that part. But it means she knows what she’s doing, and she’ll see that I’m right about this.

I hope, at least. Only time will tell. Now I have to get ready for a boring dinner with the cousins, but at least Mila will be there. And things aren’t so bad when she’s around to share them.