“It would be different if you were marrying George, of course,” the queen went on. “But George does not share Eddy’s destiny. Only one of them is the future king.”
Hélène should have known that agreeing to raise her children Anglican wasn’t enough. “You’re saying that I must convert?”
“Now thatwouldsolve this conundrum!” Victoriaexclaimed, as if she hadn’t been the one to suggest it. “Though I wouldn’t want you to take such a momentous step without consulting your conscience.”
Hélène bit her lower lip. All her life she had been a Catholic, had counted rosary beads in church and prayed to the Virgin Mary. Catholicism felt like a core part of her, as deep-rooted and familiar as her own name.
She weighed her faith against her love for Eddy, and there was simply no question.
“I will convert for him.” Her parents would be livid, but Hélène would deal with that later.
Feeling the slightest bit wicked, she added, “Will Your Majesty serve as my confirmation sponsor?”
Victoria chuckled at her boldness. “I would be delighted.”
Then, to Hélène’s shock, the queen looped an arm through hers and led them back in the direction they’d come, her cane apparently no longer needed. “You are a breath of fresh air, Miss d’Orléans. And to think you were under my nose this entire time! I had never considered you before because of your father’s…complicated position,” she said tactfully. “Not to mention the question of religion. But if you are willing to make such a sacrifice for Eddy’s sake, then I have no choice but to give you my blessing.”
Relief flooded Hélène’s chest. “Thank you, Your Majesty.”
When they reentered the sitting room, Eddy was pacing by the window.
“Eddy, my dear,” the queen said warmly, “I find that I like your fiancée almost as much as you do.”
That word,fiancée,spoke volumes.
Eddy’s eyes widened, and he rushed toward them. “Grandmother! Does that mean we have your blessing?”
“Yes, but I’m not the only one you will need to convince. Parliament must approve of your marriage as well. Which means we need to start winning minds to our side. Eddy, you must come over for tea soon with Arthur Balfour, Lord Salisbury’s nephew, and I’ll ask Emily Russell to get her husband involved….”
Weneed to start winning minds,Victoria had said, as if she was now fully invested in their relationship. Indeed, she looked positively twenty years younger at the thought of taking on her Parliament.
Hélène met Eddy’s gaze and saw that he was smiling just as broadly as she was. It was really happening, she thought, in a dazed sort of wonder. They were getting married.
Which meant that Hélène was the future Queen ofEngland.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Alix
ALIX DIDN’T NORMALLY MAKE Ahabit of attending the Princess of Wales’s Tuesday at homes; she saw enough of her family while she was in town without deliberately seeking them out. But her thinking had changed now that Nicholas was staying at Marlborough House.
Plus, she was eager to hear Eddy’s account of his meeting with the queen.
Alix had deliberately left Buckingham Palace beforehand, fleeing with Amelia, the parlormaid, to wander the streets of Piccadilly. She had trailed along the sidewalks for several hours, studying the goods in store windows without really seeing them. So much depended on what happened between Eddy, Hélène, and Grandmama right now: her own future as well as theirs.
When she finally judged it safe to return, the palace butler greeted her with an opaque “Her Majesty is waiting foryou.”
Alix’s heart pounded as she approached the sitting room. She had braced herself for the worst—but to her surprise, and relief, her grandmother merely peered at her over her spectacles and said, “I hear that it is all over between you andEddy.”
Whateveritwas, itnever really began,Alix thought. Aloud she said simply, “I am sorry to have disappointed you, Grandmama.”
“You should be the first to hear that Eddy asked for permission to marry Hélène d’Orléans.”
Alix gasped with the appropriate amount of shock. She understood that she wasn’t supposed to know this yet—that Eddy’s plea had hinged on Victoria’s thinking she was the first to hear their secret. As Alix had hoped, Grandmama had clearly been swayed by the impulsive romance of it all.
“Hélène? Really?” she asked.
Her grandmother nodded. “I have decided to grant them my blessing. I always thought thatyouwould be good for Eddy, but I am beginning to think that Hélène will, too. She is certainly headstrong…though perhaps that is not a bad thing. Already she has inspired Eddy to take the most drastic action I’ve ever seen him take. The way he stood up to me, the conviction with which he spoke…” Victoria trailed off, pensive.
