He reached over and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. A wonderful shiver fluttered down her neck as he cupped her cheek with his hand.
“You know, your portrait of me really did fulfil the brief rather well, don’t you think?”
He smiled wryly, and Everly looked at him, confused.
“Wasn’t the brief the mundane to the beautiful?” she asked.
He nodded.
“Well, I seem to remember, not all that long ago, you called me old and boring.”
They both laughed, and Edward stroked her cheek tenderly with his thumb.
“I am happy to be old and boring, as long as I can be old and boring with you,” he said.
Everly nodded, leaning in.
“I’d like that,” she said.
Edward drew her to him, and they kissed as though they were the only two people in the room.
Epilogue
Everly gave her mom and dad one last hug before grabbing Edward’s hand and following him down a carpeted hallway.
“Good luck, hon,” her mom shouted after them.
She turned back and saw her mom and dad being ushered away by Edward’s parents, who had already offered copious amounts of tea and cake while they waited. It had been a flurry of activity in the few days since the competition had ended. Edward had flown her parents over from Kansas and, now that all the others had vacated the townhouse, they were living there with Everly. They had settled in almost immediately, taking trips out to the city’s bright center and spending all day browsing the sights—each of them wearing a constant expression of delighted surprise, as if they couldn’t believe their luck.
Edward had started making amends with his family. It wasn’t going to be an easy or quick fix, but he knew that the first step was the hardest. And now that the full extent of Valeria Baudelaire’s meddling had been revealed, they were both far more inclined to listen to their son.
Today was the first day the two sets of parents had met, and so far it was going swimmingly. Everly had to admit that having their first meeting at Buckingham Palace was one of Edward’s finest ideas. What was there not to like about being in a palace? The mood was one of celebration and joy.
Edward held her hand tightly as they approached the reception room where she would meet the Queen. Everly had been stressing relentlessly about what she was going to wear, and in the end Edward had taken her shopping at Carroll’s and bought her the softest cashmere dress, which stroked her skin in all the right places and made her blue eyes pop. She felt like a billion dollars and a big bag of nerves all rolled into one.
The enormous room reminded Everly of their trip to the Royal Opera House, with splashes of reds and golds and marble everywhere. The Queen rose from a large, throne-like chair and greeted them both as they walked through the doors. Everly couldn’t quite believe she was meeting an actual queen, but Her Royal Highness was dressed in casual clothes and was utterly down to earth. She gave a sweet, wrinkled smile as Everly approached her.
Everly curtsied the way she had been practicing since the day she knew she would have an audience with Her Majesty, careful not to trip over her own legs. Then Edward and Everly sat together on an ornate sofa opposite the Queen.
“Everly Simpson, thank you for agreeing to meet me.”
Her voice was just as Everly had imagined, soft but firm, and as well-spoken as anyone she had ever met.
“I would like to congratulate you on your achievements since arriving in England. And, of course, prior to that. I have taken great delight in your work, especially your portrait of my grandnephew here. As such, I would like to offer you a position at the palace, as a royal portrait artist.”
Everly let out a huge lungful of air. Her face flushed with pride.
“Ma’am, what a wonderful offer,” she squeaked. “Thank you.”
The Queen smiled gracefully, then continued.
“You may stay in your quarters here in London, and of course your parents are welcome to stay too. The house is yours.”
Everly’s heart almost burst, and she bit her lip to fight away the happy tears.
“And lastly…” The Queen took a sip of tea out of a delicate china cup, then leant in with a smile and a twinkle in her eye. “You and Edward have my blessing.”
Edward reached over and took Everly’s hand from her lap, squeezing it tightly. Neither of them wanted to lose control in front of the most important person in the country, but Everly could see the tears in his eyes through the tears in her own. He turned to her, smiling. And right there, all at once, Everly knew that he would be her Prince Charming forever.
Her life was going to be a pretty picture after all.
About the Author
Katie Evergreen loves writing romance novels, and drinking tea. Quite often she is doing both at the same time. She currently lives in England, where she dreams of bumping into her own billionaire, or even a real-life Prince Charming. The MY BILLIONAIRE A-Z is her first series of novels, and she’d love to know what you think! Feel free to get in touch on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or at her website, katieevergreen.com. Thanks for reading! :-)
Also by Katie Evergreen
My Antisocial Billionaire
My Bereaved Billionaire
My Christmas Billionaire
My Dashing Billionaire
My Extreme Billionaire
Continue Reading…
… for the blurb from the next book in the My Billionaire A-Z series, MY EXTREME BILLIONAIRE.
One of the most famous—and notorious—billionaires on the planet, Devlin Storm is a household name. Genius designer, infamous playboy, and extreme sports enthusiast, Devlin loves nothing more than living dangerously—whether on the ski slopes, or on the dating scene. But while attempting to pilot his helicopter over the Alps on the eve of one of the worst storms on record, he realizes that when you live this close to the edge, things can go very, very wrong.
Darcy Jones is desperate, she has to find work soon or risk losing everything. When she hears that the one and only Devlin Storm is looking for a new assistant, she leaps at the chance—even though everybody warns her of his reputation as a man who’s mad, bad, and dangerous to know. She thinks she’s found her dream job—especially as Devlin is so attractive. But when a storm brings their helicopter down in the middle of the mountains, the dream quickly turns into a nightmare.
A woman who has always been afraid of adventure—and of love—who finds herself in the middle of both. A man whose extreme reputation hides a tragic past, who secretly wants nothing more than to meet his true soulmate. They may start as enemies, but sometimes all it takes to find love is a savage snowstorm, a dangerous mountain, and a desperate fight for survival—not to mention a log cabin with a roaring fire.
The fifth book in the My Billionaire A-Z clean romance series, My Extreme Billionaire is a dangerous ride into romance and adventure—where the thing that gets your pulse racing and steals your breath away isn’t nature, but love.
Available for preorder soon!
My Dashing Billionaire: A Clean Billionaire Romance (My Billionaire A-Z Book 4) Page 17