Forever Us

Chapter 16: Avery

Another week had gone by, and things were beginning to slow down before spring arrived. The days weren't as cold as in January, snowdrops were beginning to bloom around town, and the ice was starting to melt away.

"Amber, I still don't understand why I had to come –I'm not ready to run into him, yet," she said before they went inside.

"I know, but I need someone to bounce off ideas with, and dad said he could watch the bakery for the morning –besides, I already asked Damien and he said that Philip was busy all day today, so you won't even have to see him."

"Okay," she sighed, "what do you have in mind?"

"Well, I wanted to tie in the private garden with this year's Spring Gala."

"Yeah, that sounds great," she agreed, as they headed to the gardens.

She hadn't been to the palace since the breakup, but Sophia told her that the mood had been quite tense since that day and that Philip spent most of his time working in his room unless he had to attend an engagement or a meeting.

Sophia had also apologized to Avery several times, explaining that it wasn't her intention to come between them, but Avery wasn't hurt at the situation, she was hurt that Philip hadn't trusted her enough to tell her the truth from the beginning.

"Actually, you can go inside first," Amber stopped, "I'll go tell Lillian we're here."

"Sure," she replied.

When she opened the wooden door, she stopped to look at the breathtaking scenery displayed in front of her; from the finely pruned hedges framing the flower beds along with snowdrops and primroses scattered all around the floor, to the flickering fairy lights wrapped from the base of every tree all the way to the highest branches.

But all the way at the back, Philip stood looking in her direction. His expression softened as their gazes finally met, she wanted to turn around and leave but her feet were frozen in place, and she didn't know what to do.

"Hey," he approached but she backed away, "listen, I know you said we were over but you need to hear what I have to say first, and if you still think the same afterwards, I promise you, I'll back away from your life."

"Philip, I don't think–"

"Please, Avery," he pleaded, "just this once?"

"Okay," she said.

"Okay, so... the reason I was so hesitant to tell you everything at the beginning was because I couldn't bear the thought of losing you, or pressuring you into something you would be unhappy with, and ultimately, I didn't want to scare you off –I wasn't sure if it would be too much too soon for you."

"Why didn't you come to me earlier? Why didn't you trust me, Philip?"

"I was afraid that if I brought it up, it would've changed things between us, and that even if you loved me, you wouldn't want this lifestyle for yourself. But if there's one thing, I need you to know is that I want to wake up next to you every day of my life. And I want someone who teaches me to be a better person, a better brother, and leader, someone who could tell me off when I'm wrong, and who I could share a piece of a simpler life with, and honestly, I can't wait to start a family with you."

Her heart was beating a hundred miles an hour and a fluttery sensation erupted in the pit of her stomach.

Then, he took a gentle but firm hold of her hand, and stood on one knee in front of her before pulling a ring out of his pocket, "Will you, Avery Llyn, make me the happiest man alive by becoming my Queen, my companion, the mother of my future children, my best friend, but most importantly my wife?"

After hearing what he had to say, she didn't need to think about it twice, the answer was right in front of her. She looked down at him and suddenly all her fears and worries began to drift away and for a breathtaking moment nothing else mattered but the two of them.

A smile spread across her face for a brief second before nodding, and he instantly put his arms around her waist bringing her closer to him and pressing his lips to hers.

"My heart belongs to you, Philip," she held his face in her hands after he slid the ring on her finger.

"And mine belongs to you," he replied, with adoration laced between his words.

She couldn't believe what was happening, she had come to the palace to help Amber brainstorm ideas for the upcoming spring gala and now she was engaged to the man she loved with her whole heart.

Cheers erupted from the door and just as she turned, she saw everyone; from Amber to Damien, Nick, Sophia, Lillian, and Joseph, who came in to congratulate them with smiles and tears of joy on their faces.

"Congratulations, Miss, Your Highness," a staff member said before turning back and walking away.

"What is it, Joseph?" Philip asked.

"Your father is requesting Avery at his study."

"You're not going there," Philip turned to her, but she felt capable of handling whatever he was planning to throw at her this time.

"Philip, If I'm going to be a part of this family, I don't intent on avoiding him forever or hiding in every corner of this place, and this is something that I need to do on my own, you understand right?" she looked at him, and even though he didn't want to agree, he nodded.

Amber and Nick left soon after that to the bakery, along with Sophia and Damien, who headed to the orphanage for a visit.

"Come in," he called out after she knocked on the door.

Loui got up from his chair as she entered the study, and signaled for her to take a seat in front of him. He looked tired, and by the look of the dark circles under his eyes, it might've meant that he wasn't getting enough sleep at night. His whole demeanor seemed down compared to his proud look a couple of weeks ago.

He caught sight of the ring on her finger and a lingering look plastered his face, "I chose that ring for my dear Leah," he said.

"I would've loved to meet her."

"Yes, she would've been delighted to meet you."

"I'm sorry, but can I know the reason why you called for me?"

"I asked you here to– I guess... I owe you an apology."

"What?" she asked, confused.

"You see, once when I was Philip's age, I shared his desires of a more normal life, and soon I met someone who I thought had good intentions, someone like you. But they were only interested in one thing only..."

"I am so sorry you had to go through that, Your Majesty. But I can assure you that I have no intentions of ever doing anything to hurt Philip and I hope, despite what you may think of me, that you know my feelings for your son are real."

"I now understand that I have overstepped my role as King and as I was recently reminded, I'm soon to step down from my role, and I won't have what I once dreamt with my late wife; I also know how wrong I've done things since she passed."

Avery tried to put aside everything he'd said to her, and make a move to better their relationship for Philip, knowing that in the near future they will be family as well, and she didn't want to create a big hole between them that neither could cross and reach out.

She took a deep breath before saying, "I never wanted to come between you and Philip, and I know how much he looked up to you and how much it hurts him to not be able to share things with you anymore."

"I will do better by him, by both of my sons," he said, and Avery nodded in agreement, "Congratulations on the engagement."

"Thank you, Your Majesty, I hope I won't disappoint anyone."

"Well, I'm sure Philip must be waiting impatiently for you, so I won't detain you any longer, and thank you for listening."

"Again, thank you for the apology, Your Majesty. And if you don't mind me giving you some unsolicited advice, I would start by making it up to Damien, he deserves it," she said before closing the door behind her and walking away with a smile on her face.