He didn’t think he’d seen his mother look so tired before. “You could use some dinner and rest too. Don’t overdo it.”
She smiled and patted his cheek. “Thank you, Alexander. I’m okay though.”
He nodded and headed for his parents’ bedroom. Their apartments were a lot like his and Rebecca’s but on a much larger scale. More rooms, more space, more, more, more…rooms certainly befitting the king and queen and all their children; they had all lived here until they’d become adults and received royal apartments of their own.
He knocked gently on the door. “Papa? It’s Alex.”
His father’s voice was gruff and muffled from behind the door. “Come in, my son.”
The door opened with a soft click and a slight creak. When he stepped inside, he searched for his father and found him not in the bed but relaxed in a chaise near the window, papers and a tablet in his lap, a coffee service and more papers on the table beside him. He had changed into his pajamas and there was a blanket over his lap, but he was decidedly not ‘resting’ as his mother assumed.
Alex walked across the room and gave his father a kiss on each cheek too, then sat down and took his father’s hand. He hadn’t been able to see him all day, though they’d spoken several times on the phone to start implementing the funeral plans. “How are you managing, Papa?”
His father squeezed his hand, then let go to hand him some papers. “These came through from the Council before my mother’s death was announced. I’m afraid I’m not in the right space to deal with them diplomatically, so perhaps you could take care of it.”
“Of course.” Alex glanced through the papers and wasn’t surprised. It was another bullshit initiative that was meant to remove healthcare protections for people who needed it most, while the richest wouldn’t be affected. These kinds of proposals came through a few times during each Council session, but the timing of it would make it easy to dismiss.
As a royal family, particularly one who actually governed as well, it was a balancing act. They needed the support of the rich because of their power and influence, but the majority of Vallerians weren’t in that position. Creating a strong and lasting middle-class was one of Alex’s goals, though his father had made some strides towards that too. Proposals like this had to be squashed tactfully.
“It’s nothing we haven’t seen before, Papa. I swear they must take the previous proposals and change a few words to make a new one.”
“I know, and the timing should work in our favour. We can easily pause the Council session for mourning.”
Alex nodded. “Yes, I’ll take care of it. I’m sorry, I should have thought of that earlier myself.”
His father patted his arm. “Don’t worry, my son. I have no doubt you or your staff would have realized it eventually. I’m merely trying to clear out anything pending.”
Alex messaged Tavin to set up a Council meeting for tomorrow morning. “Send me anything you don’t want to deal with, Papa. I can delegate to the others if needed.”
“Thank you. I was planning on asking for your help anyway, and this makes it easier. I’ve asked your mother to offload some of her work to Rebecca, but she thought I should check with you first.”
“She should ask Rebecca, not me.”
“I know, and your mother will reach out to her, but I’m sure this morning was a shock to her. Your mother has been giving her more responsibility of late, and she wants to make sure she isn’t overwhelmed already. Rebecca isn’t the type to complain, but she might have said something to you.”
Not always. “She hasn’t said anything to me, but I don’t think she’s feeling overworked. I’ve seen her when she has been overly stressed, and she isn’t like that now. On my way out, I’ll let Mama know she can contact her. You know Rebecca wants to help in any way she can.”
His father nodded and sighed. “She was a good choice, my son.”
The back of Alex’s neck prickled. Where was his father going with this? “I don’t know that falling in love with her was a choice, Papa.”
“Well, perhaps falling in love isn’t a choice, butstayingin love is one. You could have let your feelings fade, made a different choice and not pursued her at all. Even after you pursued her, either of you could have made the choice not to work at it, or to grow apart instead of growing and learning together. Love is choosing each other every day, choosing to work at it, choosing to want it, even through the rough times.”
Alex couldn’t deny that, but his father’s words weren’t about him and Rebecca. “Is there something going on with you and Mama?”
His father waved that away. “No, no. Nothing like that. I was thinking about my own parents. They really loved each other, and they had some very trying times.”
“Not to mention a very trying son and heir, from the stories Nonna used to tell me. You didn’t ‘calm down’ until you met Mama, according to her.”
His father smiled. “Oh, yes, I did have my share of fun, though my parents never saw it that way. I never thought about that until you became a teenager, of course. You were so different from me at that age.”
“I took after Mama and was more…restrained, or cautious if you prefer. Cat took after you, I’m guessing, and was far more social.”
“Yes, I suppose that’s true, though my siblings were far worse than me in their own ways. I was still too hard on you.”
A warmth spread through his body, a feeling of finally being understood and his pain acknowledged. “I understood why, even though I didn’t like it. I was more upset at how everyone else got away with so much worse than anything I did. I suppose it made me more…I don’t know, afraid to try things or open myself up to people, specifically women, though being royal also fed into that. I was so worried about doing something wrong. I still am in some respects.”
His father took his hand and squeezed it. “I’m sorry, my son.”
