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CHAPTER 35

DECK

WUV AND MER-WUGE.

For the next two weeks, my brother’s image was revamped from the inside out, and the bulk of the effort happened in our private quarters, where my mother and father got a whole different view of their oldest son.

They talked—something maybe they hadn’t spent much time doing before I’d come home and pressed the issue—and Lambert revealed the truth about his relationship with Celeste, and why he’d been willing to be seen as the Playboy Prince for so long.

His image began improving rapidly outside the palace as well.

After the Royal Day of Play, we celebrated the first-ever Knight for a Day.

The palace had a bunch of plastic commendation pins lying around, and Lizzy had the idea to knight common citizens for acts of heroism.

“But I don’t understand,” my mother had said. “There are so few opportunities to do anything truly heroic. How many people will actually appear for this?”

“Forgive me for disagreeing, Your Highness,” Lizzy said to my mom, “but there are so many opportunities to be an everyday hero.

"For example, when we were in Virginia, I was not doing a very good job. I mean, I was doing a good job as a guard, but Declan didn’t know that was my job. He thought I was supposed to be a PR consultant—at which I was terrible.

"But he didn’t want to see me fail, so he pitched in, came up with ideas for me, and even offered hands-on help so that I wouldn’t lose my job.”

“I bet he offered hands-on help,” Lambert muttered under his breath before I elbowed him hard in the ribs.

“So you’re talking about common heroics,” my mother said, nodding at Lizzy.

“Not common,” Lizzy clarified. “But everyday. I think that for those we love, we go out of our way and do heroic things every single day. This is an opportunity for people in the kingdom to recognize one another—knighting someone for a day as a way to honor their acts of everyday heroism.”

“Exactly. That’s exactly what I was going to say,” Lambert said, nodding.

“It’s exactly what you will say in the press release,” Lizzy told him, smiling.

“Well, that sounds lovely,” my mother agreed. “Plus, we can finally get rid of all those silly plastic pins.”

“Yes,” I agreed. “We have so little storage space here in the palace.”

My mother made a face at me, and I knew better than to push my luck.

Lizzy’s royal PR campaign was working.

Each day, more and more Murdan citizens posted about Prince Lambert—how much they admired him, how interested they were in his relationship with Celeste. People were beginning to speculate about how soon they might be announced officially as the new royal couple.

Mentions of my father’s illness were few, and we were working inside channels to shut down speculation on that front.

As far as the people of Murdan knew, there was no coronation in the near future, just a new era of royal openness and more royal activity than there had been in the past.

Despite the rosy outlook for Murdan, I was struggling. I wanted to be playing hockey, to be with my teammates. When John Samuels called one morning to check in, I felt a pang of longing I could only think of as homesickness.

“We miss. you, man,” he said.

“I miss you all too. Seems like you’re playing pretty well without me, though.” That was the worst part of it. Did they even need me?

“Hey, family first. You handle what needs handling. We’re just getting by until you get back.”

“Nice of you to say.”

“It’s the truth, brother.” John’s words soothed the ache inside me a little bit, and I knew he was right. At least about needing to focus on my family for right now.

When Lizzy’s campaign culminated in the announcement of the kingdom’s first National Date Night, the citizens embraced it wholeheartedly.

Giant movie screens were erected in public venues around the kingdom, and a romantic film was selected to play far and wide.

The palace lawn was covered with blankets and picnic baskets, couples and families lounging happily together. The royal family had our own spot at the front, discreetly surveyed by our guards, but still among our people.

Lizzy sat beside me, something that made me nearly giddy with happiness. We were not official in any way, but I knew that what I felt for her was real. There was a lot for us to figure out, but that hadn’t stopped us from settling into the guest quarters as if they had been offered to us. The quiet evenings I spent with her there only cemented my belief that we were meant to be together.

Nothing had changed since we were children.

Well, a lot had changed—but our hearts were the same, and they knew one another.

“This is very exciting,” my mother said, looking at all the people gathered around us, smiling and laughing before the movie began. “Lambert, son, are you feeling all right?”

Lambert did look a little sweaty and somewhat uncomfortable. I hoped he wasn’t going to barf like he had at his first royal event as a kid. I wasn’t sure why watching a movie would have him so green anyway. The lights around the perimeter of the lawn dimmed slightly, and the movie screen ahead of us flickered to life.

Where I had expected to see the opening credits, my brother’s face appeared instead. He wore his royal ceremonial uniform and faced the camera, looking serene and regal.

“Citizens of Murdan, I am so glad to see so many of you have joined us for this first annual National Date Night. Celebrating love is one of the best ways we can demonstrate gratitude, and gratitude—for the little things and the big ones—is one of the best ways to celebrate life. There are hardships. There are situations we wish we could change. But when we practice gratitude for the good things in our lives, it can make some of those problems feel less difficult.

“My love for my country cannot be understated, and that is why I wanted to share a very special event with you.

“You have all met Celeste, the woman I love. The woman to whom I have pledged my heart. And I wanted to share with you that she has agreed to become my bride. My wife.”

The lawn erupted into a gleeful cacophony of cheering, clapping, and shouting. In a short span, Lambert had won over the hearts of his countrymen, and they were all rooting for him.

Nothing brings people to your side better than a great love story.

“We haven’t chosen a wedding date yet,” Lambert continued, “but I hope that you will embrace Celeste as you do the rest of my family and make her feel welcome when you see her out and about.

“Thank you for all of your support and enthusiasm. And now, without further delay, let’s enjoy one of the most romantic movies of all time—The Princess Bride.”

My parents were staring at Lambert, clearly surprised by his little introduction. The citizens closest to us on the lawn were grinning in his direction, smiling at Celeste, nodding their heads, and offering their congratulations.

“I’m proud of you, son,” my father said to Lambert. “You have really stepped up these past couple of weeks. You’ve brought the country together, too.”

My mother and father exchanged a look, and I knew there was a chance they were thinking about the succession. Our PR campaign, after all, had been more about changing their minds than about changing the minds of our fellow countrymen.

Lizzy leaned against me as we watched the movie, laughing at the appropriate parts and clapping when the prince got his bride.

I didn’t pay much attention to the film, too focused on the woman in my arms.

My happiness was like a living thing inside me, growing constantly the more time I got to spend with Lizzy. There were things I needed to say to her, questions I needed to ask. I just hoped I could be as brave as Lambert had been these last couple of weeks.

First, though, I needed to find out what my future would hold.

If I had my way, Lizzy would be a part of it.

But if I was to be king, I knew there was a chance we’d have to say goodbye. Lizzy might not want to live the rest of her life in the spotlight, and I was certainly not going to drag her into it. For now, our time together felt precious and perfect.