you for breaking your promise. It’s not like you didn’t have a good excuse. But what happens next time when some foreign minister comes into town? Or the president? Or someone else more important than me? Lord knows that list is miles long.”
“Nora…,” I say again, stepping toward her, but she holds up her hand, stopping me.
“I get that you have responsibilities. I’ve had this ‘duty to the crown’ edict ingrained into my head every damn second since I stepped off that airplane. I know all about your duty. And, apparently, my sole duty is to provide an heir and a spare, making me feel like I’m nothing more than a walking uterus.”
“You’re so much more than that. You know that.”
“Do I? Because these past few weeks, you’ve done little to make me feel that, Anders. I’ve never felt so goddamn alone in my life. I left the only home I’ve known for you. Left my friends. For you. And now I’m going through this pregnancy, which scares me absolutely shitless. All. For. You.”
With each word she speaks, her voice becomes louder and more choked with emotion, tears falling down her cheeks.
“If I want to be with you, I have no option but to give you children. That’s part of the deal of marrying the future king, something I wish you’d have told me. After everything I went through last time…” She raises her face to the sky, her eyes glistening against the moonlight. Then she levels a stare back at me. “But I’m willing to put these fears aside. For you. Willing to sacrifice having my best friends at my side when I all but sell my soul to this monarchy. For you. What have you given up to be with me?”
I open my mouth, unsure what to say, but she answers for me.
“Nothing, Anders. You’ve sacrificed nothing.”
The vein in her neck pulses against her skin, her muscles taut, anger and despair mixing in a lethal combination on her face.
“I miss my home. Miss the stench of New York, even on garbage day. Miss my friends. But you don’t seem to care about any of that.” She pinches her lips together in a tight line as she crosses her arms over her stomach, seeming to shrink into herself. “Maybe your grandmother was right. Maybe I am too weak for this.”
“What do you mean?” My gaze flames with fury and surprise. “When did she say that?”
She shrugs. “At tea a few weeks ago. The ink on our engagement announcement was barely even dry when she pulled me aside to tell me I wasn’t good enough for you.”
“She doesn’t speak for me. You know that.”
“Just the rest of the royal household.” She throws up her hands. “Hell, the rest of this entire fucking country.”
“What do you want me to do? Walk away from this? Because I will. For you, Nora, I will.”
She swipes the tears from her cheeks. “I would never ask you to do that. As much as I can tell certain things about this life aggravate you, I saw your face as we were landing and you laid eyes on your country for the first time in a while.” She smiles sadly. “It’s the same way I feel when I see the Manhattan skyline. You love your home. You love your country. And when I walked off that plane on your arm and caught my first glimpse of Prince Gabriel, I realized you were born to be king. To lead. You said it yourself. You have the opportunity to do good not just for your country, but for all of Europe. Maybe even the world. After all…” She swallows hard. “With great power comes great purpose.” Her eyes lock with mine, a beat passing between us. Then she lowers her head. “But when I saw the photos of you with the Queen of England today, it finally hit me.”
“What did?”
She lifts her gaze back to mine, smiling sadly. “That the man I’ve seen during public events and in the media is a complete stranger to me.” Her chin trembles, her words as difficult for her to say as they are for me to hear. “That I don’t know you anymore. That I don’t know the man I’m supposed to marry in a few weeks.”
I step toward her, clutching her cheeks in my hands, swiping her tears away with my thumbs. “Yes, you do. You’re one of the few people who does know me. Who knows who I really am.