Page 62 of The Prince's Green Card Scheme

My hands fly to my mouth and I let out a choked sob. “Really?”

“Really.”

Suddenly, I’m more vulnerable than ever. Everyone’s eyes are on me, boring deep into my soul, trying to decide what I’m going to do next.

Chloe squeezes my hand, and I turn to her. “I love you. I’m so sorry for all the lies. If you’ll still have me…?” She nods with a teary smile, and I turn back to my parents. “Allow me to marry Chloe. Properly. Allow me to give her the ceremony that she deserves, to express our love in front of everyone. I’m not afraid to shout it from the rooftops.”

I turn back to Chloe and sink to one knee. “Marry me again?” I ask, taking her hand and kissing her knuckles. I wish I had a ring, but for now the promise is enough. “Promise to be mine forever.”

“I promise,” she says, a tear tracing down her face.

I jump back to my feet and wrap my arms around her, kissing her on the cheek. She squeezes me tight, and I smile. This is perfect.

“Oh, and another thing,” I say, letting her go and turning again. “Chloe’s pregnant.”

My mother’s mouth drops open. She looks down at Chloe’s belly, then back at me. “Then we’d best arrange for this marriage to happen as soon as possible.”

“Wait,” says Chloe. “Please. Yes, Paolo, I will marry you. But, Your Majesty…” She hesitates and curtseys to my mother, and I see a flash of amusement behind my mother’s eyes. “Do you mind if we don’t do it straightaway? Unless me having a baby will cause some big scandal. I am happy to stand in front of everyone in the country and tell them that I’ll be faithful to Paolo forever, but we never had a chance to have a real relationship. Let us have that first. Let us fall in love the real way, then get married.”

I look at my parents. They look at each other. My father leans in and whispers something in my mother’s ear, and she nods. An eternity passes as we wait to hear what they’re going to say next.

Then my mother smiles, a real, genuine smile, the kind that she doesn’t give very often. “Yes,” she says. “I think that can be arranged.”

EPILOGUE

TWO YEARS LATER: CHLOE

My mother is pinning the last of my hair in place when there’s a knock on the door. “Come in,” she calls, then immediately stiffens. For a second, I think she’s going to throw a pillow at Paolo to get him to leave the room, but he raises both hands in surrender.

“Hey, Mrs. Fontana,” he says, grinning at her.

I thought he’d looked smart the first time we got married, but that was nothing compared to how he looks now. He’s wearing a perfectly tailored suit, a crisp bow tie, his hair styled so every strand is in the perfect place, his brown eyes sparkling with joy. He couldn’t be more handsome if he tried.

“You’re not supposed to be here,” says Mom. “And how many times have I told you to call me by my name?”

He throws up his hands again. “I’m just trying to be polite.”

“AndI’mjust trying to get my daughter through this wedding.”

“Mom, it’s okay,” I say, reaching out to put my hand on her arm. “They’re weird in Bellamare. They don’t really believe in the ‘badluck to see the bride before the wedding’ thing. And besides, we’re already married.”

“Sort of,” says Mom.

“And anyway,” interrupts Paolo, “I haven’t come to see either of you two. I missed my baby.”

As if on cue, Antonio blinks his eyes open. He’s been curled up on the huge armchair in the corner, asleep. I tried to get him not to, so he didn’t wrinkle his tiny suit, but he didn’t want to take the suit off, and he didn’t want to stay awake.

In the end, I relented and let him have a little nap.

“Da!” he calls out, opening his arms to make Paolo come to him.

With a grin, Paolo does, rushing towards our baby, sweeping him up in his arms and spinning him round in circles.

“Careful,” I sigh, and Paolo sticks his tongue out at me.

I knew he would be a good dad, and he’s spent the last two years proving that to me. I don’t think his mother has liked that it’s taken two years for us to be ready for the wedding, but now that I know her a little better, I can tell she likes me really.

Plus, she’s really good with Antonio.

---