Julien, who sits across from me, smirks as he pointedly looks at the ring on my finger. “Nice ring, sister.”
Everybody turns to look at me.
My cheeks grow warm. “Damek proposed.”
Julien snorts. “Duh, you’ve been planning your wedding for two months now.”
“She means that I properly proposed, not just signing an alliance, but I got down on one knee and asked her to be my wife.” Damek looks at me with love in his eyes.
I look up at him through my lashes.
Julien makes a loud hacking noise. “Gross. Can you two not flirt in front of me?”
I laugh but abruptly cut off when a chair scrapping echoes through the room. I glance up to see Kaine getting up from the table. He whispers something to my dad though I can’t hear it over the laughter and conversation in the room and then he storms off. He’s likely just leaving to interrogate the prisoner but the action still hurts.
I’m pretty sure he just wanted to get away from me. Even after all this time, he’s still so mad at me.
How can he be mad when I was doing what I was supposed to do? I did whatheinstructed me to do. Though, if I’m being honest, it was only a matter of time before I fell for Damek.
Julien makes a joke about a ‘ball and chain’ that makes Paul laugh so hard that he snorts. Only Julien could make a kingsnort.
Once Paul stops laughing, he turns to my father. “Michael, while I am here, there is a change to the alliance I would like to make.”
Dad sits forward. “A change?”
Paul smiles widely, looking at me and Damek for a moment before shifting his gaze to my father. “As you know, when a couple gets married, the person who leaves their clan also gives up their right to rule and they’re queen or king in name only.”
Dad nods.
“A couple of months ago, when Damek first told me he wanted to marry Madeline, he insisted that he didn’t want Madeline to be a queen consort. He wanted her to rule by his side equally,” Paul says.
My stomach knots at his words.
Damek argued for me to ruleequallyat his side.
“At the time, I told him no. There was no way that I would agree to that. It went against all of our traditions.” Paul glances at me. “I am sorry, Madeline. At the time, I didn’t see what my son did.”
I try to smile, hoping to show him that it’s fine, but my head is spinning.
Damekreallyloves me. And I think he may have loved me for far longer than I’ve loved him. Why else would he go against his nature and argue for a one year engagement? Why else would he try to give me equal rights to rule? He didn’t have to do that.
Paul turns back to Dad. “I know it is unorthodox, but when Damek and Maddie one day take over the Rune Clan, I would like for them to do it as equals.”
I sit back in my chair, feeling completely stunned. When I look at my dad, he’s rubbing a hand along the scruff on his jaw, a small smile playing on his lips.
Dad looks at me. “Madeline, what do you think?”
What do I think? What does it matter what I think? I’m so stunned, I don’t think I could get my tongue to work if I tried.
Julien, who usually stays quiet during meetings like this unless it’s to deliver a well timed comedic relief, leans forward. “Maddie, you were born to rule. I know you doubt yourself, but you’re amazing. I see it, Damek can see it, King Rune can see it. We all believe inyou.”
“I admit, I had my doubts before I met you,” Dad says, his gaze on me. “When I was flying to get you, I questioned if it were the right thing to do. But I wanted to meet you so badly and I knew it was the perfect excuse. But from the moment I met you, I knew you’d be perfect for the job. You’re excessively kind hearted and that is rare in a ruler.”
Still, I don’t know what to say. I look from Dad to Damek, wonderingwhyhe would fight for me to rule equally. I was satisfied to be by his side as a consort.
“Is this truly what you want?” I ask. “It’syourbirthright. I don’t want you to do something that you’ll regret.”
Damek shakes his head. “I will never regret this decision. I know that it is right. I want our sons and daughters to know that I fought for you to be my equal. I want them to know that they’re worth more than what society expects of them. And I want them to know it is possible to find love, even in a marriage of alliance.”