the amount of forgiveness that you receive from the royal family. Also, I think that you overestimate Stellan's grandmother's power. Whether she likes it or not, Stellan and I have been making decisions mostly on our own. She's losing a lot of her steam these days.”
I bite my lip, glancing between Nika and Margot. “If you are here to talk me into going back, you are mistaken. Lars is better off without me. He's better off finding a girl that he can settle down with that will not create as much political drama as I will. As soon as that story comes out…”
Nika cuts me off. “It's been out for three days.”
I don't quite know what to say to that. I flush and cover my eyes and with my hand, shaking my head. “Of course it has. Because the royal press office has absolutely zero chill.”
“I just talked to Stellan this morning about how I was going to try to find you and make you come back with me. He didn't seem opposed to it. I think that you spent fifteen years waiting for the other shoe to drop, thinking that you did something terribly wrong. And you didn't. I mean… Maybe it wasn't on the up and up, but it really wasn't that bad.” Margot scrunches her face up.
“And you were a child,” Nika adds. “You didn't have that much of a say in whether or not you started a new life or not.”
Margot nods. “Ja. Everybody is on your side. Everybody that is not Stellan's grandmother, of course.”
“Who sucks, by the way,” Nika says.
I give my head a tiny shake. “I'm so glad that you guys came up here. I am glad that Lars is okay. But I'm not going back. I can’t.”
Margot and Annika look at each other, Margot sighing. She cast an eye over my outfit, looking me up and down. “Do you have any more comfy clothes?”
“Well, I have the ski shop right down the street,” I hedge.
Margot looks at me, dead serious. “I will need to go hit that store up. Because I'm not coming back without you. So if I have to get comfortable, that's what I'll do.”
Nika pulls out her cell phone and starts scrolling through this screen. “I'm ordering new clothes for all of us as we speak. One of my assistants is going to drive them here. No arguments.”
I cross my arms, frowning at both of them, and get ready to make my case.
36
Lars
I am glowering as I stare down the length of the polished dining room table, pushing my cheek out with my tongue. At the other end of the table is Momse, looking quite tense. I make a gesture, ready for her to start explaining herself.
“So? The papers have got Pippa's story. I believe that you have been working behind the scenes and pulling the strings, whatever you need to do to make Pippa look bad. How can you defend yourself?”
She looks affronted. “Lars, I think if you just put aside your attachment to Pippa, you'll see that she was never the right girl for you anyway…”
I slam my hand down on the table, my eye twitching. Momse looks at me, her eyes widening just a little bit. “There's no call for that, is there?”
I ignore that. “So you essentially have no justification for your actions. Blackmailing my fiancée, bullying her, driving her out of Copenhagen… This is all part of your plan?” I shake my head, disgusted. “The only reason I even agreed to this meeting today was to give you one last chance to explain yourself.”
My grandmother stands up from her chair, walking over to the window. “I know that it seems like I'm intruding. But really, I have to make sure that my grandchildren have the best chances for continuing the royal bloodline. I went wrong with Stellan. Annika got away from me too. So you are my third attempt at trying for the best outcome.”
She shrugged, turning and looking at me innocently. “You can't blame me for wanting to make sure that everything goes right. And I knew the second that you said that you were engaged to Pippa that she couldn't make you happy. Not really, not in the long run.”
I raise for my chair, sighing. “Well, it doesn't matter now.”
A little smile crosses her mouth. “No, I suppose it doesn't. With Pippa gone, we can focus on finding you a more suitable girl.”
I shake my head. “No, you misunderstand me. It doesn't