She didn’t really want to. It was one of her least favorite parts of royal life. Any of the times that she had been called upon to be part of the face of her country. Not because she didn’t love her country—she felt deep affection for it, but she did not enjoy being in front of people. Still, the idea that he had, to present some kind of stony announcements to all the citizens of the country, with her sitting silently beside him like exactly what she was—a trophy representative of the revolution, and not a human being—was not going to do what he hoped.
“I think that we should say you and I have been working together on diplomacy. On easing things between our countries, healing divides. Even my father won’t want to come and make trouble if I do that. I think that’s been part of the problem. He hasn’t known how to extricate himself from what until now had proven to be a very unpopular regime. Now that you’re back, and you’ve had so much success, it’s incredibly obvious that hewould’ve been making a mistake marrying me off. I can fix that for him.”
“And you want to do that?”
“No. I don’t. But what I would like to do is make sure that my freedom is assured. By doing that, I need to bring my father on board with this arrangement. And I truly believe that we might be able to do that if I say the right things now. If I make it clear that my father supported your revolution, even if quietly.”
“It is a lie.”
“Of course it is,” she said, moving up closer to his desk. “Of course it’s a lie. But I was raised in this. This backstabbing, treacherous life. What I learned when I was taught manners and elocution was to look for the truth and meaning between the words. Manners hide all types of sins. They make it so a person can smile at your face while stabbing you in the side. I did not make it this far in royal life without understanding that.”
At least here that could matter. At least now she could use it. She felt a small measure of power now, in this moment. To finally be able to use the skills she’d honed and hidden in the palace. She was not the Fern she’d found at the convent now. But she was not the Fern she’d been in Cape Blanco either. It was like the two were coming together, and were stronger for it.
“A trade. We make your father look better than he is, and then he will not be able to interfere negatively with the marriage without damaging the reputation that you’ve created for him.”
“Exactly. You and I have been working together on diplomacy.”
She took a step closer, and for some reason her heart began to beat faster. “We began to develop feelings for each other. You are a man who has sworn to protect his country above all else.”
“Won’t that make our divorce more difficult?”
Her breath hitched. “Yes. It will. But I think it will also make everything seem like a better story. You don’t want to present yourself as a man made of ice.”
He shifted slightly, then stood up from where he was sitting. She had truly forgotten how large he was. She barely came up to the center of his broad chest. He looked like a relic from another time. One of his Viking ancestors brought forward to this moment. All he was missing was a broadsword.
“I do not mind my enemies thinking that I am made of ice. You will be seen as a vulnerability—you realize that, don’t you?”
“Do you have faith that you can protect this country?”
“Of course.”
“Then you must have faith that you can protect me. People would prefer if you had a vulnerability. It makes you that much more human. You said yourself, your ancestors initially brought their women here to keep them safe.”
“I believe that was more about possession than feelings.”
“Why do you think that? Humans have always found a way. Through all of history. We are a testament to that. We’ve found so many ways to survive. Even when it seemed pointless. As for me, I found a way to dream, even though my future seemed certain. Wouldn’t you rather know that a leader had a spark of passion inside of him?”
He turned toward her, and even though there was still space between their bodies she felt enveloped by him. His presence was nearly overwhelming. Magnetic. He looked like a king. Like a man who was born to sit on the throne. The truth was, he was the kind of man that would instill confidence in anyone. Looking at him, it made her want to vow loyalty to him. To hide underneath his protection. Very suddenly, the idea of freedom felt frightening.
Don’t falter now.
She took a sharp breath. “Don’t be afraid to show them your humanity. It is the lack of true humanity in the man who ruled before you that made him frightening. The ability to turn it on and off. You don’t need to be charismatic. Be you. With a hint of a beating heart.”
The truth was, he was charismatic. Just not in the way that many would define it. Perhapsmagneticwas the better word.
“I will let you tell the story of us, then.”
He gestured toward two chairs by the fireplace, where there was a stand in place for a camera.
“It is already hooked up to the broadcast channels, and to official online accounts. You and I are set to go on in one minute.”
She didn’t have time to protest, because he put his hand on her lower back and led her to the chair.
His hand was large, hot against her lower back, and she couldn’t recall if she had ever had such close contact with a man as she had with him.
In fact, she had seen no man at all for the last three years, and she would have said that was a boon.
But suddenly she was very aware of him. The press of that palm against her back. And then she turned away from him and sat in the chair.
