I can’t help but feel a rush of anxiety every time I think about seeing him. How am I supposed to act? Can I hug him? Definitely not kiss him. Do I pretend we’re just acquaintances?
“Raea?” Cassia asks from my side.
I’ve zoned out again. I’m supposed to be searching for an assistant to take over my social media and ensure I’m posting and sharing more, so that I appear active and focused.
I let my gaze fall to the three photos and bios projected above the table. This is who the team has narrowed it down to. Someone trustworthy and able to create an image for me. This is what I wanted, though. I’ve been asking for months to have someone take over, except now it feels wrong.
“Anneli.” I gesture toward the lady at the center. She has kind eyes, is a little older than I, and looks like someone I could be friends with. After all, she’ll become part of my ladies. My handmaid, Mera, and mychamber ladies, Zhel and Aza, are the closest things I have to sisters. So, yes, Anneli will fit in with them—I think. I hope.
One of our guards opens the door and bows, welcoming Queen Priana and Prince Anders of Okenen and his staff. Queen Priana enters first, her navy gown clinking on the tiled floor as the gemstones sewn into her train drag behind her. My father welcomes her with a familiar embrace.
Ryker enters beside her a moment later, dressed in a black cashmere sweater with the sleeves pushed up to his forearms and navy pants, looking like my wildest dream. He looks the part of the prince about to take over the kingdom.
The second our eyes lock, a blush spreads across my cheeks, and I’m on my feet, giving a polite curtsy, which only makes his lips tilt up. He isn’t looking at anyone else in the room, only me, and it doesn’t go unnoticed. My father steps between us, breaking my line of sight as he pulls Ryker into a hug. They pat each other’s backs like old friends.
My father gestures for me to come forward, and when I meet my father’s gaze, he nods subtly. Ryker’s hands twitch at his sides as if he’s fighting the urge to pull me into his arms. I can’t say I’m not feeling the same way, but he doesn’t need to touch me to leave a mark. His presence alone is a brand on my soul.
“Hi, Princess.” He bows deeply with a wink that flushes my whole body.
“Hi,” I whisper back, wishing we were alone.
With all eyes on us, and the room unnaturally silent, I step to the side, bowing my head to the Queen. That familiar sensation that I’ve met her before strikes me as odd, but I still can’t pull those memories forward. At least I can explain it away.
“Such a beauty you’ve become, dear,” Queen Priana says, taking my hand in hers. Our party turns for the room and I find my seat again.
A chair is pulled out across the table from me, but my father insists that Ryker take the open one to my right. His team finds open seats around the large table, with the Queen at the opposite end of thetable from my father. Introductions are made. His publicist, Kaes, already knows Cassia. She’s about the same age, in her late twenties, with long black hair and big, wide eyes that tilt up. She’s beautiful. Maya, his social manager, appears to be in her late thirties, with deep bronze skin and short black hair that brushes her shoulders.
“Well, let’s not waste time,” Hanson, the palace’s lead publicist, starts. I’m pretty sure he hates me right now. “We have a problem on our hands, and one that doesn’t look good. How do we spin this?” He somehow looks down at me from across the table, his overgrown silver brows pinching as his pointed chin lifts.
My fingers tangle nervously under the table. Ryker takes my hand in his, that little current not overwhelming me, but soothing me in an instant.
“Well, I’ve been thinking about the optics,” Maya replies. “What if we turn them into the darling couple that everyone wants to see end up together?”
Hanson snorts, but my father responds, “How?”
It’s Cassia who responds, saying, “We narrate their story. A real one. They’re in love, but they know they have a duty and responsibility and won’t risk their Bonds.” She looks at Ryker and me. “You two make more appearances together. We want to show them you have a united front for ensuring the future of both kingdoms.”
“And we do a live Q&A. Let the kingdoms ask their questions. Obviously, we choose which ones to answer, but we want everyone to fall in love with them and focus on being young and in love.”
Hanson looks about two seconds away from bursting a blood vessel. “Her duty is to Treon and her Bond.” He stands. “Excuse me, but if I may be blunt.” He looks at my father, who nods. “These two are putting both kingdoms at risk. What does a future look like if the king and queen of two kingdoms become one?”
“A powerful one,” Ryker responds. “I won’t deny my feelings for Raea, and I won’t risk her Bond. I’ve made that clear from the beginning.”
“But you’re setting a new precedent. Our nobility falls in line because we stick to the rules,” Hanson replies coolly.
“And what of the other matches over the last nine hundred years where royals Bonded?” my mother asks as she gracefully strides into the room. The entire atmosphere changes with her presence. She holds herself tall as she moves not to my father’s side, but behind Ryker and me, settling her hands on our shoulders. “There is precedence for royals marrying and Bonding.”
Hanson looks like he’s sweating now as his features soften. “But my Queen,” he gulps, “those royals were not the heirs. They were second in line.”
It’s my father who responds, “So a new one will be set. That’s how it goes. If these two Bond, then who are we to argue? Raea and Anders’ Bond will be studied by our lead scientists. In the meantime, we will push this story.” He looks at Ryker and me. “Do either of you object? To push your love story, that is?” His lips twitch as if he’s fighting a smile.
Ryker squeezes my hand in question as he looks at me. “Any objections, Princess?”
I roll my eyes and then face the room. “I won’t lie, but I don’t object to the story either. Prince Anders and I are friends who share a strong Bondandare still loyal to our individual kingdoms. For now, we are getting to know each other, and when my ceremony happens—if it happens—then we will go from there.”
My mother squeezes my shoulder before moving to my father’s side.
Hanson pats his forehead with a handkerchief. “Well, I guess we need to come up with a response to the allegations then.” He pulls open the article in question, causing me to cringe. It’s the same leaked photo, but the headline claims Ryker and I are sleeping together, citing a source from Taeolyn who has seen us entering and exiting our dorms together at all hours of the night.Not untrue.But we aren’t sleeping together, sexually speaking.
