Gunfire could be heard across the open field. Max and Lily stood side-by-side as they watched the soldiers in the Class “A” formal uniforms firing their weapons into the air. 

When the 21-gun-salute was finished, the king took to the podium in front of the freshly built Triolan War Memorial. The tall, black, granite monument listed hundreds of soldiers who died during wartime from the creation of the country five hundred and fifty years ago to the present. 

Two rows of the crowd were filled with the families of fallen soldiers who were there to hear their family member’s name read.

The king took the front of the makeshift stage set up in front of the memorial. “Welcome, my fellow Triolans. On behalf of the royal family and the Triolan government, I want to thank all of you for coming out today for the official unveiling of the Triolan War Memorial. I know that many of you have lost loved ones in the past wars our country has been involved in. Today we honor those soldiers for their sacrifice. I know that all of you are used to me speaking at events, but today, I thought you might want to hear from your Crown Prince, Maxwell Gerard Beaumont.”

Silence greeted Max as he switched places with his father. At least they weren’t hurling insults at him as they had last week. He adjusted his coat firmly around his body, took in a deep breath before he spoke. 

“Most of you know that my younger brother, Prince Gregory, was killed when his airplane went down during the war in northern Europe five years ago. Not a day goes by that I do not miss my brother, and his loss is felt by the entire royal family. I hope, however, to honor him by serving our country as king one day, supporting our military, and never forgetting the sacrifice Triolan soldiers have made to keep our country independent. Today, this memorial stands as a reminder of that ultimate gift.” 

Respectfully, the crowd clapped as Max stepped back, took the giant scissors from one of the nearby workers, and cut the ribbon tied around the memorial.

Next, the king stepped forward and slowly read the names out loud of the fallen Triolan soldiers. As each name was read, Max could feel emotions stirring inside him. Between losing Lily, and then two years later his brother, Max had kept moving, not wanting to care about anything or anyone ever again. But as the names continued to tumble from his father’s lips, Max realized he wasn’t the only one who had suffered a deep loss. In his grief, he had acted foolishly, focusing on numbing the pain rather than dealing with it.

Once the ceremony was officially over, Max stepped down from the stage and made his way over to the widows, widowers, and orphans of the men and women who had lost their lives in service of the country. 

“Thank you for your family’s sacrifice,” Max said, taking the first woman’s hand and shaking it. 

“Thank you, your Royal Highness,” the woman said, tears pooling in the corner of her eyes.

Max made his way down the two rows of families, greeting each of them personally to thank them. By the time he reached the end, the crowd had dispersed, and people were walking around the memorial looking at the names on it. 

Lily found Max staring at the name of his brother. She reached out and placed her hand on the side of his arm. “You did a great job speaking during the ceremony. I also noticed you talked with the families afterward.”

“It was the least I could do,” Max said in a quiet whisper.

“Are you all right?” Lily asked with concern.

Slowly, Max nodded. “I’m fine. I just didn’t expect today to be as difficult as it was.”

“It’s understandable, considering your brother and how he passed away. His loss was felt by all of us, but I know you were especially close to him.”

Max turned to face Lily and tried to force out a smile, but the gesture didn’t change how he felt inside. There was a hollowness. He had tried to fill it with partying, women, and expensive toys and vacations, yet none of it had worked. Now that he understood why he had behaved the way he did, Max realized he needed to make peace with the reasons that caused him to act out in a negative way. 

“It’s more than just the loss of my brother. I’m realizing there’s a lot of things I haven’t dealt with.”

“If you ever need to talk about any of it, I’m here for you, Max.” Then she added softly, “We could also pray together. I know you’ve never been much for religion, but God cares too.”

“Thank you for the offer. At the moment, I can see Patrick waving to us. It must be time to go. My father has plans for me to go over some legal documents this afternoon.”

He could see the disappointment on her face, but somehow, he couldn’t bring himself to pray. The guilt over his past decisions was plaguing him. He didn’t feel like he deserved God’s mercy or forgiveness, though from his childhood years of attending church, he knew God offered both of them freely.

Max pushed the thoughts away and guided Lily over to join the rest of the royal family before heading back to the palace.

Lily couldn’t stop thinking about her time with Max at the war memorial ceremony two days ago. She had seen a side to him that confirmed what she witnessed at the children’s wing opening. Max cared about people; however, he had become an expert at hiding it. Yet, the more time he spent in Triola performing his royal duties, the more the kind side of him was emerging, and the playboy was taking a backseat.

Now that he was letting the real Max out—the one she knew was always there below the surface—she could see a happy future with him. The more time she spent with Max, the more she realized she wanted things to work between them.

Today was a great step in that direction. It seemed her prayers had been answered. She had been happily surprised when Max agreed to go to church with her the day before. 

As she dabbed on her perfume, she turned to look in the mirror. Lily wasn’t sure when it happened, but she wanted her appearance perfect for Max. The plum knee-length dress she was wearing would be a hit with Max.

Rather than travel to the church separately, Max had offered that Lily, along with her family, travel with them via the royal limo. Her parents had been pleased, wanting nothing more than to blend the two families together. 

“Remember, keep that smile on your face at all times,” her mother whispered to Lily as they left the palace and made their way down the sidewalk to the waiting limo.

“Aren’t you afraid my face will freeze in that position if I do it for too long,” Lily teased. 

“That wouldn’t be the worst thing,” her mother stated. “Then I wouldn’t have to keep reminding you.”

“That’s enough, Maranda,” her father chastised his wife. “Liliana is doing a fine job of holding up her end of the bargain. You don’t need to constantly harass her by inspecting every little thing she does.”

“But that is a mother’s job,” the countess objected. “She needs me to correct her.”

“She’s not a child anymore,” the earl stated firmly. “And shouldn’t be treated as one. She’ll be a married woman soon enough and doesn’t need her mother treating her like a child while she starts her own family.”

Lily was surprised to hear her father defend her so fiercely, let alone stand up to her mother. He usually let her take the reins in guiding the family.

As the chauffeur opened the car door, Lily gave her father an appreciative smile before sliding into the seat next to Max. 

Once everyone was situated in the limo, the vehicle wove through the streets of the Triolan capital. 

“You look amazing in that dress,” Max whispered against Lily’s ear. “Did you pick the color out for me?”

Lily nodded. “I know how much you like it.”

“I’m guessing you chose that perfume for the same reason; the combination of lavender and vanilla is enticing.”

As Max’s breath tickled the skin at the edge of Lily’s neck, she realized that although she had set out to appeal to Max, she hadn’t banked on him doing the same thing. The proof was in every aspect of his appearance; from his dark hair being styled to the side the way she liked it, to him wearing a bow tie which she preferred. Add in Max’s intoxicating scent of cedar and spice, and it was clear they were both wanting to please the other.

“It smells almost as good as your own cologne,” Lily mumbled back, leaning in closer to Max. She liked the feel of his hard frame against her own soft one. 

“It’s good to see the two of you getting along so well,” the king stated with a smug grin. “It seems this arrangement isn’t turning out as bad as you both thought it would be.”

Lily shrunk away from Max, embarrassed she had forgotten they had an audience. 

“I daresay, I think they’re smitten with each other,” Lily’s mother agreed. “Who would have thought things would take a turn like this?”

“I did,” the queen stated with pride. “The chemistry between them is undeniable. It has been since they were teenagers.”

“You knew about that?” Max inquired with shock.

“Of course I did. I am the Queen of Triola. You don’t think I kept track of my eldest son while he was at boarding school?”

This time, Max’s face flamed red with chagrin as he stuttered out, “I… I had no idea.”

“Don’t underestimate the women in your life. It’s the folly of most men,” the queen stated, crossing her arms and glaring at her husband out of the corner of her eyes.

The limo pulled up in front of the First Methodist Church of Triola. A few moments later, Harry arrived to open the door and help everyone out. The group made their way into the church. All eyes were on them as they made their way down the aisle. At the front, a pew was reserved for the royal family. They invited Lily and her family to sit with them, which Lily’s parents accepted with exuberance.

The service order was structured just as she had remembered from her childhood. The congregation sang traditional hymns before the reading of scripture, and the sermon by the pastor came last. Lily hadn’t attended such a formal service in quite a while, opting for more modern churches while traveling abroad. Even so, the people were friendly, the music was inspiring, and the message about letting go of the past and accepting God’s forgiveness was wonderful.

After the service ended, the royal family, along with Lily’s family, conversed with other church members. Joseph was present and made sure to come up and say “hello.” She could tell he wanted to spend more time with her than that, but she had quickly made an excuse to use the restroom. She had been avoiding him since returning home. Not only because of how he felt about her, but because she didn’t want him asking her questions about Max.

By the end of the morning, Lily was grateful they were leaving and would return to the palace for brunch.

“What did you think of the service?” Lily asked as they made their way towards the waiting limo.

Max paused several moments before he answered. “I had gone today with the goal to please you and my parents, but truth be known, the very subjects the reverend spoke about are areas I have been struggling with for weeks now. I have been troubled by my past choices and unable to accept that God would forgive me for them. I realize now, I was letting my guilt cloud the truth.”

“What do you plan to do about that?”

“I already did something. When the reverend asked if there was anyone that wanted to pray for God to forgive their past and accept His help for the future, I raised my hand.”

“You did? I’m so happy,” Lily said with a smile. Before she could help herself, she was throwing her arms around Max and hugging him. “This is the best news.”

Max’s own arms wrapped around Lily, pulling her close. Around them, she could hear several gasps along with whispering voices. She knew it was in response to her reaction, but at the moment, she didn’t care. All that mattered to her was that Max was finally right with God.