Page 30 of Royal Resistance

I’ll have to remember that. In the meantime, I will do what I can to make her smile. To laugh. To help move her past this resentment that clogs her heart.

I can do that. I will do that.

“Tell me what you need. What you want, and I’ll make it happen,” I promise.

Selene takes a shaky breath. “I want to be a queen,” she says. “I want to marry you.”

10

Selene

Three weeks later

“Who marries a man in three weeks?” Courtney demands. “Especially a king!”

Magnus doesn’t want to waste time, so the wedding happens three weeks later.

Duncan—who is so efficient and capable of organizing Magnus’s life that I often wonder what my role will be—came up with the plan to say that I was an old friend and that we reconnected at the ball. That we were in a rush to start our life together.

Which is partly true. The friend part, even though we were more like acquaintances.

The rush part… most days, I’d like to slow down to have a chance to learn more about Magnus. Each day I find out something new about him—like his fascination with mead, his love of Tim Hortons coffee, and how he starts every conversation by asking me what I’ve been doing for fun.

We talk a lot during those first weeks. When I’m in Ottawa for the first week closing down my life, we talk twice a day—a quick good morning call, and a longer one in the evening. Magnus uses those as getting-to-know you chats, asking rapid-fire questions out of nowhere. Favourite food, movies, books and colours. Best childhood memory, Christmas present, and best friend in elementary school.

He refuses to talk about any monarchy business until I move into the castle. I don’t blame him. I’m sure he wants to know he can trust me before he starts sharing secrets.

After I leave Ottawa, I spend the two weeks leading up to the wedding in Battle Harbour. I make a point of visiting the town every day—even if it’s only to stop in at Coffee for the Sole—and I meet a few people.

The rest of the time, I’m secluded at the castle with wedding plans.

It’s a small ceremony.

I don’t know how it could be anything else with only three weeks to plan.

And most of it falls on me, with Duncan and Diandra helping. Magnus tries to be involved, but he’s prepping for an international summit later in the month and isn’t capable of switching back and forth to talk about flowers and music, and questions about if I really need more than one bridesmaid.

He says he’d rather talk wedding than environmental concerns, and I believe him.

I’d rather talk about the environment.

After I accepted his proposal—if you can really call it that—I returned to Ottawa. And that’s where I tell my father that I will be marrying the king of Laandia.

He is surprised, to say the least. “Do you love him?”

I want to laugh at the question because it’s only Papa’s newfound happiness with Lorraine that leads to the question. He was more than ready to accept my marrying Darren, not to mention any of the other offers over the years, without love in the mix.

“No,” I tell him, and muffle the little voice in my head that chimes in with “Not yet.”

I’m not in love with Magnus, but I like him. That’s good enough for now.

“It’s no different from me marrying Darren,” I add.

“But you loved him.” Is that a wince at the word? Did everyone think Darren was a terrible idea? I know it now, but a wave of embarrassment rises at the thought of the world doubting my choice.

“I didn’t. I may have loved his vision of us, but I don’t think I ever loved him.”

“Are you marrying Magnus for the throne?” Papa asks, surprisingly forthright for him.