Page 15 of The King's Fake Bride

“Yes. If you agree to be my fake fiancée and then marry me, you can have a bakery, all costs covered. It would be good press for you too. We would have to do interviews, and I could tell everyone watching about the bakery you plan to open.”

Amy shakes her head. “If I do this, I wouldn’t want you to talk about the bakery. I would want to know that it’s successful because I’m good, not because my fake husband is the king.” She clutches the sheet a little tighter. “How long would we have to be married?”

“We’d be engaged for six months, and then we would have to be married for two years. Long enough to make it look like we did love each other, but we had problems and just couldn’t work them out.”

“And what problems do you think we’d have?” Her smile is teasing as she turns around, opening one of the doors and leaning against the doorframe.

The warm breeze blows in around her. As it does, the sheet billows out around her, the slit opening and showing off her long legs.

“I think we’d decide that I was too invested in my job as king, and though you love the country, it’s become too much for you to handle. I’m an absent husband at best.”

“Ah, is that another part of why your reputation is so bad?”

I roll my eyes. “Not quite. I’ve never been married before, and serious relationships have never been my thing.”

“You’re not going to cheat on me if we get into this.”

“Does that mean you’re going to do it?”

CHAPTER 6

AMY

Idrum my fingers on the desk, my tablet propped up on a stack of books in front of me. My stomach is tying itself in knots as I wait for Gabby to answer the call.

This is the last thing I want to do right now. I was supposed to be there for her bachelorette. I should’ve been able to make it to Mykonos without a problem.

“Hey,” Gabby says, her tone bright and cheery, words slurring together a little.

“Sounds like you’ve been enjoying the wine.” I smile and twist the tablet a little, making sure that she can’t see Xander lounging on the bed behind me. “I’m sorry that I missed the trip. I’m going to make it up to you as soon as I can.”

Gabby gives me a hazy smile, waving her hand. “Don’t worry about it. We’ll be getting on the plane in a few hours. It’s fine that you’re still home. We can video chat when I get back.”

I bite my bottom lip. “Well, actually, I’m not home.”

That seems to sober her up quickly.

“What do you mean, you’re not home? Where are you?” Gabby’s tone is stern, reminding me of when she scraped me off the ground after my parents died.

Does she think that she has to do that again? Have I really let my life fall that far apart?

I rub the back of my neck. “I didn’t make it to Mykonos, but I made it as far as Katastinia and got stuck here. I might have met a guy, and since I have some vacation time still booked, I was thinking of staying in Katastinia and doing a little sightseeing.”

“With him?” Gabby asks, wiggling her eyebrows before bursting into a fit of giggles. “I bet the only sight you’re going to be seeing is his bedroom.”

“We’re not in his bedroom right now. We’re in a hotel.” I can’t help the smile that crosses my face. “I know there’s a lot I missed out on this weekend, and I’m sorry. It’s not going to happen again.”

“I know it’s not, but you need to stop worrying about that and have some fun. I haven’t seen you look this happy since before your grandmother passed, and even then, it was like you were just moving through a fog.”

“It’s been a long few years.” I force another smile and lean forward on the desk. “I’ve got to get going, but I’ll call you later and let you know what’s been going on.”

“Keep a diary of all the dirty details. You’re going to have to tell me everything.”

I grin and shake my head. “I’m not going to keep some journal for you to flip through when you get tired of the absolute filth you read. You’re just going to have to use your imagination.”

Gabby boos. “You’re no fun.”

“Bye, Gabby.” I laugh and wave to her as she blows me a kiss. “Have a good flight.”

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