Royally Screwed

Chapter 23

SYLVIE

Louis hasn't left my side ever since he arrived in Cordelia.

We're sitting in his parents' study, Queen Olivia sitting at her desk on the chair, King Nathan leaning against said desk. Edmund is pacing worried around the room. He must have seen the news and flew back home. Only as he arrived, Dad had already taken me to the office to give me a lecture, and the plate broke. Edmund rushed at my side, cursed at my Dad, put me in the first car and we drove off. He hasn't mentioned the whole Louis and me thing once. I did notice the worried looks from time to time though.

"So, the newspaper know", Queen Olivia begins, looking at a bunch of newspapers on her table.

It's then I know I won't like the conversation. I sink my head back on Louis' shoulder, and he goes with his hand through my strands, soft brushes giving me some peace in this storm.

"It's because of Danny", Edmund tells us what all of us already know. His next sentence surprises me though: "I called Arlette Daily a few minutes ago. After a well-placed warning that they will lose their precious magazine if they don't fire him, Danny got fired this morning."

I look up at my brother, who was already staring at me. I can't help but let a tear roll down my face. No more lies. No more threats. Danny is gone.

"Thank you", I mouth at him.

He nods as if it were obvious he would do this for me.

"Yet the media storm is still in full force", King Nathan continues. "I know how this newspaper work. Once they got a piece of news, especially one as big as this, they won't stop. Not to mention the effect your relationship had on social media."

I swallow hard. This is all my fault. Louis can tell me whatever he wants, yet I know this is all my fault.

"Louis", I whisper in his ear. He turns to look at me, and I continue: "This is all my fault, baby. And I am so sorry. I can understand if you'd want to never see me again. I can..."

"Sylvie", he interrupts me. "I am not letting you go", his voice is firm. "I can't let you go. I love you, Trouble."

My world stops as his words fully hit me. "You love me?"

"I love you", he presses his lips on mine. This kiss is different than before. This kiss gives me all the answers I need, gives me the strength to fight for us and what we could be. "And I am sorry that I didn't tell it to you sooner."

"Louis", it's all I'm able to let out.

Before I wrap my arms around his neck and kiss him again. "I'm scared, but I think I'm falling for you too."

"I'll catch you, baby."

"See, that's exactly what we need", I can hear King Nathan say. I can understand he's the one to know best how media works. Before he married Queen Olivia and became a king, he used to have his own sports newspaper. Truth is, he still works for his newspaper too.

Queen Olivia seems to have gotten what her husband was pointing at, for her face lights up with an idea. "Louis, Sylvie", she says, getting our attention. We both turn to look at her, yet I can feel Louis taking my hand in his and curling our fingers. "The newspapers have only showed what they wanted. Snippets of who you are. When the people should see the truth. Denying that you were ever together seems impossible at this point, and I am not entirely sure you would even want that. But what you can do is show the public how deep your love is. Give the crowds something to talk about. But do it on your own terms."

"So what do you suggest we do, Your Majesty?", I ask.

"Oh, please", she shakes her hand in the air. "Call me Olivia. We'll basically be family in some time."

"Mom", Louis lets out, and I can see how red taints his cheeks now. I'm also like on fire.

"What? It's true", she shrugs matter-of-factly, winking at me. She then goes back to her planning mode, I can see it in the way her face expression got more serious. "Go out. Go somewhere together. Be yourselves. And if people don't recognise what you have as love, then they have for sure never opened a romance book in their lives."

A smirk enters my lips as she mentions romance books. Turns out that Queen Olivia, the Monarch of Cordelia, is a romance reader. She just grew more to my liking in the course of a few seconds.

"You like romance?", I can't help but ask. I still find it overwhelming that I'm having this conversation with her.

"Only like oxygen", she answers, returning my smile. "You should definitely stop by the palace someday, sweetie. We could watch a movie together or organise a reading party if you'd like."

Louis rolls his eyes amused as I nod. "I'd love that very much. Thank you, Olivia." Saying her name still feels odd, yet I'm sure I'll get used to it one day.

"Do you think the plan will work?", Edmund asks us, as he is eyeing his phone. "I'm getting more and more notifications. The people of the Parliament are getting worried."

"It has to", King Nathan answers. "Nothing sells better than a love story. That, of course, only if the two of you are ready to go public. Because once you do that, going back is quite complicated."

"What do you say, Trouble?", Louis asks me.

I think about it. Going back to before is out of the question. Not when the whole world already knows. And something inside me tells me I don't really want to go back to how we were before. Because I wasn't lying. Somewhere along the way I started losing my heart to Prince Louis Grayson Nathaniel West Estair-Dunn The Third. And as scary as that thought might be, it also feels so right. Like that's where my heart has always belonged. With him.

"I'm saying, where should we go?"