Chapter 12

Audrey

“I guess that’s the story.” Roman held the queen’s hand across the table, telling his own version of the messed-up truth.

“She couldn’t forget about me, traveled all the way to Penevia—fell in love with me, and after giving it some time, I’ve decided to give her a chance.”

Sure.

I glanced at the massive ring on my finger. Roman had gone all out for this.

Since we finalized our fake story, we had been waiting for the perfect time to tell the king and queen about our engagement. On the opposite side of me sat Queen Mary, Lord Crawford, and the most important man in the kingdom, King Edward.

King Edward bought the whole story, not questioning my intentions. He leaned in his chair with a father-like smile, delighted someone like Roman could ever settle down.

Queen Mary and Lord Crawford seemed a bit more hesitant, but Roman had already told me that wouldn’t matter because their doubts would get washed away by their greed to make Mars the crown prince.

“This could save the entire ki