Leopold retreats from the room, closing the door behind him. I rub my forehead before dragging myself over to the edge of the bed and throwing my feet over the side. I was hoping Victoria and I might have each other one more time before we were forced to face the real world again, but it looks like that won’t be the case.

I feel her move behind me. A moment later, I feel her against my back, and her cheek rests against my shoulder. I pull her arms around my waist, wanting her close to me.

After a couple of seconds, a long, slow breath escapes her. “We can’t keep pretending—”

“There is no pretending,” I insist. “We will find a way to be together, Victoria. And I don’t mean with you as my mistress.”

She tries to pull her hands back, but I close my fingers over hers. Beneath my palm, I can feel the pearl of the ring I gave her last night.

“Promise me you’ll keep it with you,” I say.

I don’t have to specify what I mean by it. She hesitates for the slightest of moments before saying. “I’ll wear it around my neck. But Andrew, I still think—”

“Don’t think,” I say. “Just trust me. There is nothing to think about. You know, deep in your heart, that we were put on this earth to be together. Thinking doesn’t come into it at all.” I release her and force myself to stand. “You should know by now that I am a very stubborn man. And I don’t intend to change that now.”

I look back at her just in time to see the smallest of smiles on her lips. “You are pretty damn stubborn.”

“Especially when it matters.” I grab my clothes from the ground. There’s no reason to put on my entire formal suit again, but the pants and shirt should at least make me decent for breakfast. “But you can be pretty stubborn, too.” I straighten and look at her. “You aren’t planning on leaving the moment we part, are you?”

I can tell by the way her gaze slides away from mine that she’s been thinking about it again. In an instant, I’m on my knees in front of the bed, taking her hands in mine.

“Please stay,” I say. “Trust me.”

“It’s not a matter of trust,” she says. “It’s a matter of doing the right thing. For Montovia.”

In spite of myself, I feel a smile pull at my mouth. I raise her fingers to my lips. “And that, my love, is how I know I’ve made the right choice.”

She gives me a quizzical look. “The right choice?”

“In you. That’s exactly how a queen would think.”

At the word queen, all of the color leaves her face. “Andrew, I’m not—”

“You are,” I say. “You are…exactly as you should be. Trust in that, Victoria. If you can’t trust me, trust in the fact that you were born to be here. Montovia is better when you are here.”

“I’ll try,” she says.

“Besides,” I say, trying to lighten my tone. “You can’t miss the Salt Festival. It is our biggest celebration of the year. You’d be a fool to miss it. And you, Victoria, are not a fool.” With everything going on, I’d nearly forgotten about it until Leopold mentioned it a few minutes ago. The Salt Festival—named for the salt mines that were once Montovia’s primary source of income, but known simply as ‘The Festival’ to most of our citizens—lasts for several days, filling our capital city with celebration and energy.

That almost earns me another partial smile. “I’ll think about it.”

I let my thumb slide over her ring one more time before rising to my feet. “Please do. You won’t regret it.”

I continue to pull on the pieces of my suit, and Victoria grabs her own clothes. Once we’re dressed, I go over to her and pull her into my arms one more time. I kiss her passionately, and she slides her arms around my neck and kisses me right back.

“I’d sooner die unwed than marry anyone else,” I say.

She doesn’t respond, only kisses me once more.

When I can finally bear to pull away from her, I say, “We should return to the palace.” Part of me wants to get a promise from her, an assurance that she won’t leave the moment my back is turned, but I have to trust her. I’ve asked her to trust me, after all.

When we step into the cottage’s parlor, I’m surprised to see Leopold and Elle still sitting on the small sofa. In fact, Doctor Parker is sitting on Leopold’s lap, laughing as my brother kisses her neck.

It takes them a moment to notice us. When they do, my brother grins at me.

“Took you long enough to get dressed,” he says. “We figured if you two were going for another round, we might as well enjoy ourselves while we waited.”

Elle’s cheeks bloom pink as she scrambles to her feet. “Ignore him,” she says. She goes over to Victoria, extending her arms. Victoria leans into the hug, wrapping her arms around her friend.

Eleanor Parker is a lot larger than she was the last time I saw her. She’s still sporting a glow, but whether that’s due to her condition or something else, I couldn’t say—in truth, I’ve never seen any couple as happy as my brother and Elle seem to be.

My eyes shift back to Victoria. We have a chance at that sort of happiness—assuming I can solve this predicament we’ve found ourselves in. While the two women chat and catch up, I turn back to my brother.

“So you’ve decided to join us for breakfast after all?” I say.

“I decided it was good for me to exercise some of that princely responsibility you and Father are always on about,” he says, still grinning. “I need all the practice at responsibility I can get before the little one gets here.” He shoots one more glance at the women before stepping closer to me. His expression sobers slightly. “Besides, I’m not letting you face that jackass King Max alone. He didn’t really threaten war, did he?”

“Unfortunately, yes.” I rub the back of my neck. “I think I talked him down from anything that extreme, but he’s still angling for a royal wedding for his daughter. And he’s still insisting that we hand over rights to the Amhurst Valley for the offense we’ve caused him—”

“That fucking bastard is trying to take advantage of you,” Leopold says.

“You don’t think I realize that?” I say. “He’s trying to use my debt to him as leverage. I know I fucked up that night in Prague, but that in no way entitles him to the valley. Or to a wedding for his daughter. Poor Justine doesn’t even want any of this. That man is…” I stop myself before I say things about our neighboring monarch that I might come to regret.

Leopold, on the other hand, has no such qualms. “He’s a fucking rat, that’s what he is. His country will be better off when he’s dead.”

“You can’t just say things like—”

“I can. I’m not afraid of him. And neither should you be. This is all over a fucking poker game. It’s not like you’ve broken any international laws or treaties or anything. This is fucking ridiculous, that’s what this is.”

“I know,” I say. And that’s exactly why I won’t let it keep Victoria and me apart.

“He’s not interested in compensation. He’s trying to cheat you. Hell, I wouldn’t be surprised if his son cheated in that poker game. The entire family is completely corrupt.”

“What if Prince Reginald did cheat you?” I didn’t realize the women walked over to us, but Victoria is suddenly at my elbow. The look in her eyes echoes her question. “Is there a way to prove it?”

“Only if he admitted it himself,” I say, shaking my head. “And there’s no way that will ever happen.”

“But there has to be some dirt on him,” says Elle. “If he’s as shady as you say, then he’s probably done a few things he’s trying to hide.”

“She has a point,” Leopold says. “He’s trying to use your one stupid mistake to try and blackmail you. But fuck, he’s probably done something far, far worse. Many things.”

“Even if he has,” I say, “he’ll never admit it. Rest assured, he’s buried any indiscretions—”

“He’s here in the palace,” my brother reminds me. “We have the advantage here. I’m sure we can find something—”

“And you forget who you have on your side,” Elle says, beaming. “Victoria’s been a celebrity reporter for years—and she’s spent a lot of that time focusing on the royals. If anyone can dig up dirt, it’s her.”

I glance at Victoria, who looks uncertain. “This isn’t exactly the sort of reporting I normally do—”

“And we know he’s fond of gambling. And drinking,” Leopold says, rubbing his chin. “Perhaps I can tempt him into a game—”

“Reginald might have questionable ethics, but he’s not a fool,” I remind him. “He knows better than to engage in that sort of activity while he’s a guest—”

“Are you kidding?” my brother says. “He’s as cocky as they come. And he thinks he has you under his thumb, which will make him careless.”

“That doesn’t matter at this point,” I say. “I made the mistake, and I must—”

“And you shouldn’t have to pay for one night of stupidity by marrying that bastard’s sister. Or by signing over the Amhurst Valley,” Leopold says. “Honestly, the timing is perfect. Think about it—the Festival starts in three days. It’s the biggest party Montovia has all year. Alcohol is flowing freely in the streets. Everyone’s wearing masks. If anyone in this country is going to do something shady, it’s then.”

I shake my head, exasperated. I know my brother means well, but if he thinks Prince Reginald is foolish enough to engage in any sort of debauchery on Montovian soil, while his father is deep in negotiations in which he firmly believes he has the upper hand…well, perhaps it is a good thing that my brother usually stays out of diplomatic matters.

When I glance over at Victoria, though, I see something in her eyes I didn’t before—something that looks almost like hope.

“What exactly are you proposing?” I ask Leopold. “That we invite him to the festival and hope he does something we can use against him? I’d prefer not to resort to blackmail—”

“Maybe we can convince him to have another game of poker,” Leopold says with a shrug. “Or yes, maybe we can catch him doing something he doesn’t want people to see or know. I don’t know yet—but trust me, we’ll think of something.”

“This is a ridiculous way to handle an international disagreement—”

“This whole thing is ridiculous,” Victoria says, suddenly speaking up. “I almost can’t believe I’m saying this, but Leo is right—there has to be a way to use Reginald’s own questionable morality against him. And I want to help.”

I turn fully to face her. Part of me wants to continue arguing—I still believe this is a foolish idea—but the other part of me is inspired to hear her agree to such absurdity for the sake of us—and Montovia.

“Do you have an idea?” I ask her.

“Not yet. But I will. We will.” Her eyes shine up at me. “This whole time, you’ve insisted on fighting this battle by yourself. But this is about us. About everyone in this country. And I want to help. It’s my battle too.”

I want to yank her against me and kiss her, but I won’t—not in front of my brother and Elle. Still, I feel myself fighting a smile as I turn back to the others.

“I’m still going to try and solve this in a more diplomatic way,” I say. “We have three days until the Festival, and I’m sure I will be spending most of it in meetings with Maximilian.”

“If you come to an agreement in that time, then great,” Leopold says. “But if you don’t, we’ll find some other way. Victoria is right, Brother—this isn’t just your fight.”

I look back over at Victoria, and the way she smiles up at me makes my whole body feel light.

“You’re right,” I say. “It isn’t.”