Accidentally Royal_An Accidental Marriage Romance

by R. S. Lively

She nods.

  "It's been a long time since I was part of a big family, but I know how much it can mean to someone. Before my parents got divorced, I would spend time with my mother's side of the family a few times a year. I was really young, so I don't have too many memories of them, but I can remember playing with my cousins, and that I had aunts and uncles. When my mother left, all of them vanished from our lives. My father told me once that it wasn't my fault, that they didn't leave because of anything the two of us had done. They separated themselves from us because they wanted distance from my mother. That never made any sense to me."

  "Do you miss them?" I ask.

  She shakes her head, but even as she admits this, she looks sadder.

  "No," she says. "It's like with my mother. I don't have many memories, and those I do have are from so long ago I'm not even completely sure if they are actual memories or something my brain made up from Dad telling me stories. I don't feel anything for them, but I do miss the idea of having more family around. I've always wanted to experience a big, tightly-knit family.” Piper takes a breath as if preparing to admit something difficult. "I don't know what any of this is going to mean long-term, but I can't deny Aurora the chance to know her family and her heritage.”

  I smile, feeling my shoulders fall forward and relax. I know there are challenges ahead. We still have to find a balance for Aurora’s life that will straddle two countries. And I’m unsure if I can ignore the feelings I still have for Piper. Those feelings are something I'm going to have to work out. But we've taken a step in the right direction. Convincing her to return to Cambria with me is one challenge I've overcome. We'll figure out the rest as we go.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Christian

  I don't want to give Piper the opportunity to change her mind, so I make a call, and by the next morning we are headed to Cambria on my family’s private plane. Tabitha came over this morning before we left to say goodbye, and was understandably startled by everything Piper told her. The cautious, almost cold way Tabitha reacted to me makes me nervous about what’s waiting for us at home. I hate feeling like this. We're grown adults, but I'm still worried about what my parents will think of her – the woman I met in an airport, slept with repeatedly for two weeks, and then left back in the States before knowing she was pregnant. That does not make the strongest foundation for familial harmony, especially when one of the families rules a country with traditions and rules that date back hundreds of years.

  I can see Piper has the same worries, so I'm trying to stay as outwardly positive as possible for her. The last thing she needs is to feel like she's going into this as an outcast.

  "How are you doing?" I ask, glancing over at her.

  I remember how she looked on our first flight together. Her dark brown hair and emerald-green eyes drew me in from the first time we met. I knew nothing about her then except that there was a very good chance she had on cute underwear, and that she was traveling with several years’ worth of condoms. But even in her abject, irrational terror, I thought she was irresistible. I wanted to reassure her then, and that hasn't changed. There's just more to it now.

  "I'm fine," she says. "We've gotten past take off, and we're still a couple of hours till landing, so we're in the good part."

  I laugh.

  "Way to see the silver lining."

  "Nailing it."

  There's still an awkward tension between us. We seem unsure of how to navigate being back in the same space, but not in the same relationship. Rather than experiencing things together like we did last year, it's like we're orbiting each other at a distance. We're both cautious, but in the rare moments when our eyes meet, the heat and attraction between us are still obvious. My body remembers her, and even the slightest whiff of her perfume is enough to make me hard, but I also find myself missing the way she felt curled against me at night as we talked before falling asleep.

  "Aurora is doing well," I say, if nothing more than to keep the conversation going. "She doesn't even seem to realize anything's different."

  "I guess that comes along with being a month old," she says. "As long as you have food and access to a clean diaper, life is not going to change much. It's probably pretty easy to go with the flow."

  She looks over at me like she wants to ask something, but turns away again.

  "Piper? What is it?" I ask.

  She hesitates again.

  "Are they going to like me?" she asks. "I mean, I know that doesn't really matter. That's not the point of the trip. We are going so that they can meet Aurora, and how can you not adore her, but... How are they going to respond to me? I’m so nervous."

  I've never seen Piper look so unsure of herself, and I want to gather her up in my arms and comfort her. Instead, I go over to the leather bench where she sits, and sit down beside her. I reach for her hand, tucking it into mine. The feeling of her skin against mine reminds me of the rush of the days we spent together, and I meet her eyes. There's a flood of emotion behind them, and I speak to her carefully, wanting to reassure her, but also knowing I have to be cautious with what I say.

  "Don't worry," I say. "I know it sounds pretty daunting that you're going to meet the king and queen of a country, but it doesn't have to be. Just don't think of it that way. You're just meeting my parents, the grandparents of your child. That's all. Don't think of them as anything, or anyone, else."

  "That's easy for you to say," she says. "You're a prince. You have no idea what it's like to meet someone more important than you."

  "They're not more important than you," I say. "They're just people who were lucky enough to be born into certain families. That's all."

  "Yeah, but Christian, you were born into a certain family that has absolute rule over an entire country."

  "They're going to love you."

  "You really think so? I know I can… be a lot at first."

  I chuckle and nod. There's no way I'm going to try to deny that.

  "You can," I say. "But you've gotten better about it. You're calmer than you were before Aurora was born. You seem to have less of a temper. It doesn’t really matter what they think of you, anyway,”

  Even as I say it, I wonder how much I actually believe it. I know the primary purpose the two of them are coming to Cambria with me is for my parents to meet Aurora, but I can't pretend they won't take the chance to evaluate Piper as well. After all, this is the woman who carried my child without telling me, but also brought their only grandchild into the world. Just like I told Piper before we left, she's a part of their lives forever now, and they'll want to see how she fits into them. I hope they'll like her, and that they'll accept her for who she is.

  I'm optimistic about bringing her home. It was formal and traditional, but the communication from them requesting I bring Aurora back didn't sound angry, or even forceful. Sending out messages like that is something my parents do routinely, to the point that I've often teased them about their inability to use modern technology effectively, so I didn’t think too much of it. Talking to them was the real gauge of how they were feeling about the situation. When I spoke to my mother on the phone to let her know we'd be arriving today, she was pleasant. There wasn't any hint of resentment or plans to reach back into the history of the monarchy and imprison Piper in a tower somewhere. She even sounded excited to see us. It might not be as bad as either of us are thinking. Maybe things will go smoothly, and they will love Piper. Then we can start building a future together.

  Well, shit. This isn't going well.

  To say my reunion with my parents wasn't exactly a happy one would be a tremendous understatement. The moment we arrived at the palace and I brought Piper to the apartment of rooms set aside for her, Frederik came and said my parents wanted to see us. I knew they would be anxious to meet Piper, and especially Aurora, but the way he said it didn't sound like he was looking forward to presenting us. Instead, there was dread in his voice. He isn't the most positive person I've ever encountered, but his tone was ominous, even fo
r him. Piper went to pick Aurora up from the bassinet she was resting in, but Frederik stopped her.

  "They only wish to speak to the two of you," he said. “I'll send a nanny to sit with her in case she wakes up."

  "A nanny?" Piper asked. "They sent for you twenty-four hours ago, and they already have a nanny here?"

  "My parents like to be prepared," I told her.

  The fact that a nanny was sitting in the room with the baby, though, is the furthest thing from my mind now as we stand in front of my mother and father. We are in one of the parlors, and both of them look tense and angry as they scrutinize us. My mother grips a cup of tea, though she hasn't taken a single sip of it since we came into the room. Instead, she's holding it like a weapon. For all I know, there could be acid in the cup, and she's waiting for the right moment to spring it on us. It would be diabolical.

  "I don't understand," Piper says. "How did this happen?"

  My mother's eyes cut to her, before sliding back to rest on me.

  I might have just cast my mother as the next James Bond-style supervillain, but any remaining humor is now gone. I won't let her treat Piper so dismissively.

  "Answer her, Mother," I say. "She asked you a question."

  "What is it that you want me to say to her, Christian? I already told you the situation."

  "No," I say. "You told us there are rumors circulating about us."

  Somehow in the span of one day, everything has changed. We arrived back to Cambria with my parents in an uproar, and I feel like we've been tossed headlong into the chaos, without either one of us knowing what the hell is going on.

  "That doesn’t even begin to cover it," my mother says. "The tabloid media has started publishing stories that there's a new illegitimate royal baby produced through some lascivious affair with an American."

  "How could they have found that out?" Piper asks.

  My mother eyes her again.

  "I don't know," she says, a slightly vicious edge to her voice. "Someone must have leaked the story."

  Subtlety has never been my mother's strong suit, but even if it was, it wouldn't take much for Piper to detect the thinly veiled shot at her.

  "I didn't say anything," she says. "I didn't even know that Christian was a prince until yesterday. Your son decided to leave that minor little detail out when we met." Piper looks at me. "That very well could be the issue. We weren't exactly trying to hide, or conceal your identity. Any number of people could have recognized you and taken a picture of us without us realizing it. I wouldn't have even thought to pay attention to other people when we were getting to know each other."

  The comment sends warmth through my chest, but an instant later, it disappears.

  "Getting to know each other?" my mother says. "That's an interesting way to put it. I'd venture to say you knew each other pretty well by the night you met."

  "Cut it out, Mother," I snap. "There's no need for you to talk to Piper like that. She didn't even have to come here. She's not one of your subjects. She came here because I asked her to. Your demands don't mean shit to her."

  "Watch how you talk to your mother," my father says.

  He's always been the quiet one of the two, but the brooding quality to his anger still holds hints of the wild streak he had when he was younger. Many people have said I'm exactly what he would have been like if his father hadn't gotten him under control when he was young.

  "Do you have any idea what this could do to the family, Christian?" My mother asks. "We've already been through so much, first with your brother, then with your father's illness. The future King having some sort of mindless fling with a woman while on holiday, then having a child he didn't even know about, is just unacceptable. This could cause a scandal with unimaginable repercussions. Having public opinion turn against you before you are even crowned would be disastrous."

  "Why do you keep talking about Papa like he's on his deathbed?" I ask. "He's going to be King for a very long time. I don't need to worry about public opinion turning against me right now."

  "Of course, you do," she says. "It doesn't matter whether you become King twenty years from now, or tomorrow. How people look at you, what they think of you, matters. The trust and faith they'll have in you as their ruler starts before you ever ascend. But you're not just threatening your own reputation. You're dragging us into it as well."

  "So, what are you saying?" I ask. "You want me to just send them back, and pretend they never existed?"

  "No," my father says, speaking up for the first time. "We want you to get married."

  I see Piper's mouth fall open out of the corner of my eye. She looks at me, then back at my father.

  "Get married?" Piper squeaks.

  "You can't be serious," I say.

  "We're very serious, Christian. This situation isn't acceptable for a Crown Prince, and you have to think about the baby. An illegitimate child can't be in line for the throne. As is, Aurora will have no claim to her heritage or her inheritance. She would be a total outcast. These stories are only going to get nastier, and more invasive. They'll go out of their way to humiliate Piper, and shame you."

  "I don't care about any of that," Piper says. "This isn't even my country. I don't care what they say about me, or what they think about my choices. And to be honest, I don’t think you care either."

  My mother looks shocked.

  "What do you mean by that?"

  "We supposedly came here so you could meet your grandchild, but you requested we leave her in a bedroom with a nanny rather than bringing her to you. You don't care about meeting her. All you care about is damage control. You don't want your son to be some sort of sensational news story. That's not the point of me being here, though."

  "You obviously don't understand," my mother says. "This child is royal…"

  "I don't care about my child being royal," Piper says. "That wasn't why I came here. I'm not willing to let her be some sort of bargaining chip, and I'm not going to marry a virtual stranger because you command me, so we can save your family's reputation."

  I'm shocked at the way Piper is speaking to my mother. I've never heard someone speak to her that way. My father watches quietly, and I see a hint of admiration in his expression. At the same time, I can see Piper winding up, and I know she's about to get even angrier. I need to calm her down before the situation gets worse. I take a step toward her, and rest a hand on her back.

  "That's not what they're saying," I tell her.

  "Yes, it is," she says. "They want us to get married because they think it's the right thing to do. But not for us. They think it's the right thing to do for you, and for how the public sees your family. I'm not going to do that, Christian." She looks at my parents, and then back to me. "I want to go home."

  "Piper…" I start.

  "No, Christian," she cuts me off. "There's nothing more for us to talk about. I came here so that my daughter could have a chance to know her family, but I don't want her to know this. If this is what being a part of this family is, then I'm enough for her. You need to take me home in the morning."

  She turns and walks out of the room. I want to follow her, but I feel like she needs some time to breathe. I turn back to my parents.

  "Thank you so much," I say." I can't tell you how much I appreciate the warm welcome."

  I don't bother to wait for them to respond. Changing my mind about leaving Piper alone, I head directly for her rooms. The nanny opens the door when I knock, and by the look on her face, I can tell she is another victim of Piper's wrath. Dismissing her, I walk into the first room, then make my way to the bedroom. Piper is inside, pacing back and forth across the thick carpet.

  "Did you know they were going to do that?" she demands as soon as she sees me.

  "Of course, I didn't. Do you really think I'd bring you here if I knew they were going to do that?"

  "Maybe," she says with a shrug. "I don't know anything about you."

  I take a step toward her.

  "Yes, you do. You ac
t like just because I didn't tell you who my family is, that nothing we experienced together means anything anymore. I'm still exactly the same person I was when we first met."

  Piper shakes her head. The anger has faded from her face, but it's replaced with sadness.

  "I need to go home, Christian. I just want to go back to my house and my life. I had everything figured out. I just want to pretend none of this happened, that I never came here."

  "I know," I say. "I know you do, but you can't. This is happening, and we have to deal with it. I'm sorry they treated you that way. There's really no excuse for it. Just give them some time. Try to understand what they are going through."

  "What they're going through?" Piper asked, some of the anger returning to her voice.

  "Yes," I say. "You just said you had this all figured out. That's because you had a chance to figure it out. You got to find out about Aurora, and go through your pregnancy, and make all those decisions. You had that time to get used to how your life was going to change. They didn't. They just found out they have a grandchild, and then the mother of that child and their son are suddenly being dragged through the mud. It's all coming at them pretty fast, and you have to admit it's overwhelming. They didn't handle it well. I'm not trying to say that they did. But I'm not sure how well anyone would respond to all this happening at once."

  She lets out a long sigh.

  "What am I supposed to do?"

  I reach for her hands and take them in both of mine.

  "Stay," I tell her. "Just for a little while. Give them a chance to process all of this. Introduce them to the baby. They'll soften up. We'll figure everything else out from there. We'll figure out how to handle all the publicity in a way that's right for us. It'll be pretty obvious that there's a new baby, but we’ll handle it."

  Piper

  I feel like the world is closing in around me. My thoughts are moving so fast, I can't seem to get them under control. I force myself to think through what Christian just said. Feeling his skin against mine as he holds my hands brings me out of the chaos and back into the moment. Finally, I nod. I have to be realistic. This turn of events isn’t something I could have ever possibly imagined happening, and it's definitely not what I wanted for my life, but I can't deny that I don't have many prospects at home. Life back there is tenuous, and was long before Christian showed up. At least being here will keep me away from that for a time. As long as I'm in Cambria, I don't have to worry about what I'm going to do next, or the type of future my daughter and I will have.