Page 32 of Royal Fling
“It’s not the same.”
“Of course it is.”
I turned my eyes toward my mother and raised an eyebrow.
“Can you honestly tell me that with a straight face. Come on, Mama. You know this better than Baba. He grew up a Crown Prince. You lived a normal life until you married him. I can literally go down to the pub and enjoy a drink without anyone batting an eyelid. I could never do that back in Elysia,” I told her.
She leaned forward on my desk, hands crossed in front of her, and she offered me her affectionate smile.
“I understand your concerns, August. I really do. But you’re not a normal person. You’re our prince. Your place is in Elysia with the rest of your family.”
“Why? Baba is still king, he’s still young and has no plans of stepping down. Why do I need to be back home? Why can’t I just stay here for now and do the work that I love while also enjoying a little taste of normal life?”
Mama put her hands in front of her lips as if she was in prayer—and for all I knew, she probably was praying for strength so she could deal with me.
“Because a prince belongs to his country, August. Your people need you. They need to see their royal family together, strong and present. They need to feel like their future king cares about them.”
“But…” I started, but I stopped.
I knew she was right. I knew she had a point. Many points, in fact.
We might be a constitutional monarchy, which meant we had no real power in the country, but we were still figureheads, and our work and lives offered comfort to our people and our work brought valuable resources and riches to our country.
“Besides, Phaedra has been asking about you,” Mama said, taking advantage of my silence.
“You know I don’t care about Phaedra,” I said.
“But she cares about you.”
I tilted my head to the side with a pout, staring at my mother.
“I’m not marrying my cousin,” I said.
“She’s so far removed she’s barely your cousin, August.”
“I’m still not marrying her.”
“Our future king needs to be married, August,” Mama insisted.
I closed my eyes and Luke’s face hit me like a deer in headlights. Our night together. Our bodies colliding and becoming one. That was what I wanted. That was what I needed. Not forced arranged marriages with third cousins I didn’t even like.
“We’re not living in the 1800s, Mama. I don’t have to be married to rule a country. Hell, I wouldn’t even rule, anyway. I’d just be invited to opening ceremonies, see my face on our money, and be honored with a mention on our anthem.”
“August you’re just being preposterous now, and you know it. It’s this place…” she looked around us as if it was my house’s fault for my words. “Living in London, away from home, in anonymity. You’re getting used to it, and it’s affecting your reason. Your father needs you back as soon as possible. That’s the end of the conversation.”
“No.”
Her pursed lips and hardened eyes told me she had had enough of me, and if that wasn’t obvious, her standing up made it so.
“So you didn’t come here to surprise me. You came to give me an ultimatum,” I said as she walked away, heading for the door.
She stopped on her heels and turned to face me again, her jaw dropping slightly, and her eyes widened.
“An ultimatum, August? You make it sound like I’m a dictator. I’m your mother and I care about you. We all do. Your family misses you.”
Damn. Way to make me sound like an idiot.
She was right. Of course she was. I had known this was coming, so I should have been prepared, yet I’d acted all surprised and childish.
