Page 56 of The Forgotten Queen
Marx brought his fingers to his chin as if he were really thinking over the timeline. “Since about four days ago.”
Two knocks hit the door. “Your Majesty, you wanted to see me?” Kase stood outside his office.
“Yes,” he said, leaning forward. “Elsbeth was just leaving.”
His secretary scowled as she turned to go.
“Thank you, Elsbeth,” Marx called after her. “You know you love me.”
Kase turned over his shoulder, watching as she shut the door behind her. “I still don’t understand why you chose such a grumpy secretary.”
“Elsbeth? She’s like a teddy bear.”
“A grumpy teddy bear,” Kase said under his breath. He took the seat she’d vacated.
“I found out the name and location of Sydria’s uncle and aunt,” Marx said. “I want you to pay them a visit, see what you can find out.”
“Whatever you want,” Kase said.
It was time Marx found out more about his wife.
Sydria
King McKane stood at the head of the dinner table, raising his glass. The queen mother, Princess Dannyn, King Marx, and Sydria all stared back at him with their own glasses lifted. The golden bubbles inside each cup danced up to the top.
“I’d like to take a moment to officially welcome Sydria to dinner, to Cristole Castle, and to our family,” Meldrum McKane said. He lifted his glass a little higher. “To Sydria!”
The others around the table repeated his sentiments. “To Sydria!” Then they each took a sip.
Sydria dropped her eyes. It was odd to suddenly be the center of attention, to have people toast toher.
McKane sat down in his chair, and immediately a team of servants placed plates of food in front of them. Each dish had a silver lid covering the top, preserving the heat from the meal inside. The head waiter nodded, and at the same time, each servant lifted the top off of his plate. A familiar smell wafted up to her as Sydria looked down—a rack of lamb drizzled with mustard shallot sauce.
“Dinner is served,” the waiter said.
Sydria turned to Marx, but he was already watching for her reaction.
His eyes glowed with delight. “Wow, what a coincidence,” he said.
She bit back her smile, not believing this was a coincidence even for a moment. The plan was to pretend like their marriage was going well, but a gesture like this was madebehindthe scenes. Its purpose didn’t benefit their fake relationship.
“It smells delicious,” the queen mother said.
Sydria picked up her fork and knife and cut a small piece of the tender meat. She swirled it around in the sauce and took a bite. Pepper, cream, and onion filled her tastebuds, bringing with it the feeling of excitement over a special occasion. It tasted as good as her mind remembered.
She hadrememberedsomething.
“How is it?” Marx asked.
“It’s amazing.”
“I’m glad you like it.”
She looked deep into his hazel eyes, the light of the room bringing out the brown circle of his irises. “It’s the sweetest thing ever.”
Itwasthe sweetest thing anyone had ever done for her.
He leaned in closer, whispering against her cheek. “Are we talking about the lamb right now?”
