Page 29 of The King's Fake Bride

“I think we should start with the allegations that Amy is only marrying you for your money and the power that comes along with being queen. Amy, what do you have to say to this?”

Amy pales, looking to me, her mouth opening and closing a couple times. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Leaning over, I press my lips to her temple. “There was an article put out about you.”

Amy forces a smile onto her face as she looks at Taryn and then the audience. “I don’t know what this article says about me, but I’m here because I love Xander, and we decided that it was time to take our relationship public.”

I grin and lift her hand to my mouth, kissing her knuckles. “If anything, it took too much time to get her to accept the ring.”

Taryn claps her hands, a fake smile on her face. “The two of you are cute together, but the country is wondering if this is really love or if there’s a scheme in the works. It wouldn’t be the first time a woman came abroad to marry a king. Now, I must wonder if the death of her parents and her grandmother play into this, or if it’s a scheme she came up with before they died.”

I whip around, glaring at Taryn. “I love my fiancée. I don’t know what the hell you think you’re doing making these accusations, but this is the last time I’ll be making an appearance on this show.”

Amy is frozen as I get to my feet. I tug her hand lightly and she snaps out of it, getting to her feet and following me off the set.

The crowd starts booing, but whether it’s for us or Taryn, I don’t know or care.

Jorge steps in front of us. “What do you think you’re doing? Get back out there and salvage this.”

I drop Amy’s hand, stepping between her and Jorge. “None of that was on the approved list.”

“You had to see this coming. If the two of you can’t take it, then clearly you both need a thicker skin. This is what the media does.” Jorge crosses his arms, glaring around me at Amy. “If she can’t handle this, then that’s her problem.”

“Maybe her media training should’ve been more extensive than two days,” I say, looming over him until he takes a step back. “Or maybe we should’ve known that Taryn saw the article and was going to ask questions that weren’t on the list.”

Jorge glowers at me. “You should’ve been prepared for these questions. You know what journalists do when they get information that could give them a career bump.”

“No!” My voice cracks through the backstage area. “We’re not going to blame me or Amy for this. You were supposed to have this under control. You were the one who assured me that Taryn was a good interviewer and would stick to the list. She made this mess, so I suggest you speak with her about how to clean it up.”

Amy steps around both of us, running for Daphne when she appears at the end of the hallway. Daphne hugs her tight, whispering something to her and guiding her down the hall.

I take a step back as people start to gather around. “Fix this.”

“I’ll fix this one, but I suggest you do something about Amy,” Jorge growls. “One wrong move from her, and this entire situation is going to blow up in your face.”

CHAPTER 12

AMY

Itake a shuddering breath, trying to hold back the tears that spring to my eyes as I watch another clip of my name being dragged through the mud.

I have nearly two dozen missed calls from Gabby, but I can’t explain what’s happening yet. Not to her.

She’s going to be disappointed that I didn’t tell her myself, and then she’s going to want to hunt down everyone online who has something negative to say about me.

Xander walks into the library and takes the phone from my hand, setting it on a high shelf. “No more. We’re not going to sit in here feeling miserable when we could be working towards making things better.”

“I don’t see how anything is going to get better.”

He pulls out his own phone and puts on a slow tune that reminds me vaguely of the way an autumn night feels. It’s as if the melody is made of colorful leaves drifting on the wind.

“It’s time to teach you one of the traditional dances. We’re going to be expected to do it at a charity event that’s coming up.” Xander holds out his hand, already looking light on his feet, though all he’s done is take a step forward.

I’ve never felt more incapable of doing something in my life.

There hasn’t been a single time where I’ve danced in a way that doesn’t involve rolling my hips and hoping it’s enough to convince someone to buy me another shot. One more drink to convince me that I can dance and that I’m not making a fool of myself.

And now I’m sober, and I’ve never felt more uncoordinated in my life.

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