Forbidden Love

Chapter 4

-Maxon's POV-

When I arrived back to the palace, I went straight up to my room, not wanting to speak to anyone. I signed the check for all of the people in the bar. I still wanted to pay them for their time, even if the evening did not go as planned. Afterwards, I sat in bed and tried to think of all of the things I could have done to make things better, but there wasn't anything. It was a big secret and it took a lot of courage for me to tell her. I had to make sure she was someone that would be able to see past the prince and still see the person I was. I loved her. That's why she deserved to know the truth. There wasn't anything more I could do. I told her when I was ready to tell her.

Maybe she just needed time to process. That's it. It's a lot to take in and she probably just needs time to think about it. That is what she said after all. I mean, if we ever got married, she would be second in line to be queen, which is quite a big life change for her, or for anyone. She could handle it though. She's head strong, courageous, and really smart. She would handle the role of queen, not sure how she would adjust to all of the rules of royalty though. She's so stubborn. Not that it's a bad thing, just that it probably won't be the most admirable quality to have when in a palace. Maybe we won't have to live here in the palace. If my brother takes the throne, I won't have to and I would be free to go anywhere and take America with me, if she wanted. She would probably enjoy that more.

It starts to make me think about the girls coming in for the Selection in a few weeks. In two weeks, 35 girls lives will change forever because they will be chosen to come to the palace to compete to marry my brother, James. I can't imagine how he must be feeling. I got out of bed to go see him. Maybe talking to my brother about something else would help me process the evening. I walked to his room across the hall from mine and knocked on the door.

"Hey, little bro," he said with a smile when he opened the door. "Come in."

I walked in the room and sat in the chair across from his desk while he sat behind his desk.

"So how did it go tonight?" he asked me. So much for changing the subject.

"Not well. She was hurt."

"What? Why?"

"Because I kept a secret from her. For over a year, I lied to her about who I was and she felt betrayed by that. She said that she needed some time alone to think about things. I understand where she is coming from, but I don't see any other way I could have done it. I mean, I had to make sure that she was someone that I could trust. It just took me a longer time to trust her than she did me."

"Did you tell her that? Did you explain why you did what you did?"

"Yeah, I did. I tried everything."

"Well, look at it from her point of view. What if you found out she was pretending to be someone else the entire time you knew her? I'm sure it can be a lot to take in. Just give her time to process. I'm sure she will reach out when she's ready. Just don't force anything."

I thought about what he said for a minute. I guess he was right. It is a big secret to keep and when she calms down and has time to come to terms with it, things will get better. "You know, for someone who has never been on a date, you give good relationship advice." I joked with him.

"Thanks. I've been researching how to deal with women in preparation for the 35 girls coming my way next week."

I laughed. "Yeah, that must be rough. How are doing with that?"

"Good, I think. I think I'm ready to find a queen. A partner in running the country. I'm just not sure how ready I am for a wife." He paused for a moment, not sure what to say next. "How did you know?"

"How did I know what?"

"That your girl was the one. The one that you could trust anything with."

"I don't know really know. It's just a feeling, I think. I just really wanted to tell her. When you meet her, you'll just know."

"You give good advice too little brother."

"I had a good role model." We stood up and gave each other a hug before we bid each other goodnight and I left the room to sleep this day away. But I couldn't sleep that night. I lied awake thinking of her, considering my brother's advice and holding onto hope that he was right.