Page 148 of Modern Romance September 2026 Books 1-4

As always, the children’s hospital was the highlight, the point of her day where she felt as though she was capable of doing the most. Her presence really meant something to those patients and their families, and it meant something to Astrid to see the way her being there brightened their smiles.

The rest of the day was magical, exhausting and something she paid little attention to. All day, she thought of him. Imagined him. Walking into his building, her stomach stayed in the carpark basement for several reasons, not just because of the speed of the elevator.

‘Your Majesty.’ He was waiting just inside his palatial home when the doors swept open and she walked straight into his arms, dismissing the sense that she was suddenly right where she was meant to be. That was a fantasy. This whole thing was. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t just enjoy it for now.

‘Javier.’ She looked up into his face and her heart pounded against her ribs.

‘You’ve been busy.’ He pressed a finger to her chin, tilting her face towards his. ‘You must be exhausted.’

‘Yes and no,’ she answered truthfully.

‘Everywhere I went today, you were there,’ he said. For a moment, her heart sped up dangerously fast, thinking she’d been as much in his thoughts as he’d been in hers. Except this was different. Today, the media had covered her every move and, unless he’d assumed the life of a hermit, he wouldn’t have been able to escape that.

‘It’s a big event.’ She stifled a yawn.

‘Have you eaten?’

She shook her head. The dinner she’d hosted after the evening church service had been as busy as usual. With cameras filming her every move, she hadn’t wanted to risk being filmed masticating a piece of ham. Anja had prepared a small platter for her to nibble on between events, though.

‘Not much,’ she admitted.

He gestured deeper into the apartment and her pulse wobbled, as her eyes ran over the table that he’d set. Tall red candles, festive gold plates, cut crystal glasses and a comport in the middle, filled with sugar plums.

‘Did you do all this?’

He laughed. ‘No. I had someone do it. Does that make it less impressive?’

‘No. It’s so thoughtful.’ She reached up and took his fingers from her chin, lacing her own through them. ‘It’s beautiful.’

‘Have a seat, querida. I’ll bring you dinner.’

She moved to the table and sat at one of the settings, fingers templed beneath her chin as she watched him remove things from the oven and begin arranging food. The smell was incredible and when he brought the plates across, she saw several national Christmas staples.

She hadn’t been particularly hungry when she’d arrived, but just the smell of the food was making her stomach twist with need.

He returned to the kitchen to retrieve a bottle of champagne, which he opened with a muted pop, then brought to the table, filling both of their glasses.

‘Are we celebrating?’ she asked, softly.

‘I suppose we are.’

‘Christmas? Or something else?’

‘I saw my stepmother today,’ he said, voice impossible to read. Almost as though he was waiting for her reaction before showing his.

Only, she didn’t know how she felt. The childhood he’d described had infuriated her. The thought of Carlotta treating him like an unwanted boy who’d been foisted upon her, when Javier had done nothing wrong, made her want to cut the woman from any royal event in the future. But at the same time, she hated the thought of Javier seeking revenge. Mainly because it spoke of a broken heart, or a wound that still festered. She wished for him, more than anything, that he could simply move on and leave the past in the past. Then again, who was she to talk? The past, her loss, still controlled so much of her life. Her choices were guided by the lessons she’d learned that day. The knowledge that she never again wanted to know the pain of losing someone you loved. The solution? Never love.

And children? That nagging voice pushed, so Astrid closed her eyes to blank it. She would need to armour herself against that, she thought, but there was still time to prepare. Time to work out how she’d protect herself, even then. She could put measures in place, too, to safeguard her own family.

‘How did it go?’

‘As expected.’ His smile was tight. ‘She was furious.’

‘Which is what you wanted?’

He took the seat across from her, his body mimicking a relaxed stature that was contradicted by the tightness of his features. ‘Yes. For a long time, I did.’

She found she was holding her breath, waiting for him to continue.