LukeFor the last hour of the banquet, I wanted nothing more than for it to end so I could go up to my room with Sophia. While it would have been nice to make love with her, after the full day of activities, I was mentally and physically exhausted. I had attended numerous banquets at the palace throughout my life, but obviously, this one was different. Typically, I was able to enjoy myself. I never shirked my responsibilities, but most of the time, Father was the center of attention. Everyone wanted to talk to a king more than a prince.With Father gone, I got a glimpse of what being king would be like. It wasn’t hard, but it was exhausting. I figured it would get better over time. Sophia made it a little easier.If I were to take the throne, I wanted her with me. I knew that now, more than ever. She spoke eloquently to our guests, and with her charm and wit, she could handle an intelligent conversation, rather than being the silent partner that Mother tended to be when she was with F
LukeI knew she meant to ask if there were any more funeral events, but I wanted to be honest with her about what was going to happen. I didn’t want to blindside her after the council decided. This was the last chance for us if she wanted to be by my side for the rest of our lives.“There will be a council meeting tomorrow,” I said.“Tomorrow?” she asked. “A little soon?”“Not really,” I said. “We will mourn for a while, but business needs to be handled by the next heir. And that heir is to be chosen the day after a ruler is buried.”Sophia was silent for the rest of the walk over to my room. I really didn’t want to have this conversation when both of us were dead on our feet, but if not now, when? I had to put my cards on the table, no matter how much I didn’t want to.When we reached my chambers, I helped Sophia out of her dress. I couldn’t help my hands from roaming around her body. She wrapped her arms around my shoulders and peered up at me. Without any words between us, we knew
SophiaThe morning came too swiftly for me. I had waited up for Luke to come to bed, but I must have fallen asleep. I’d heard the bath running, so I assumed he needed more time to himself. I supposed telling someone you love them and having them not say it back was cause enough to stay away from that person. I still didn’t know what possessed me to keep quiet about my feelings. He had just lost his father for Christ’s sake. The least I could have done was told him I loved him. It wouldn’t have been a lie.Luke was still fast asleep next to me, and I wondered if he even bothered to wake me when he came into the bedroom after his bath. His hair was mussed, and it took much of my strength not to reach out and touch it. Had I ruined our chances completely?I had the urge to shake him awake and tell him how I felt, no matter what the cost. I still wasn’t up to the idea of becoming a queen, but he should know how I felt.I stared up at the ceiling for some time, willing Luke to wake up. But
SophiaLuke was a smart man. Even if he hadn’t told me, last night should have alerted me to what he was going to do. He wanted me to tell him that I loved him and that I would be the queen he needed at his side.Stupidly, I rejected him on the eve of the most important day of his life. He’d already had a pretty shitty day with the funeral, and I had turned him down.I leaned against the stone railing, peering down at the palace grounds. While I doubted Qatar ever had a Western queen, Luke had trusted me enough to offer the position. He pushed past tradition and went for what he wanted. That was me.I blew out a breath. He chose me. He trusted me. And I went and broke his heart because I couldn’t utter the words that were deep in my own heart.Whirling around, I started down the hallway again. I knew what I had to do. There wasn’t anything in Dallas other than a job with a boss who didn’t appreciate me. I could bring Matt to the palace as much as I wanted, but other than that, I wasn’
LukeSaying goodbye to Sophia wasn’t going to heal the ache in my heart. I stood in Father’s office, watching her roll her suitcase out of the palace and out of my life for good. It was the hardest decision of my life. I knew that if I went out there, I would pull her into my arms, kiss her, and tell her it was all a mistake.But I couldn’t. With Father gone, I had to step up in his place. Losing Sophia and my happiness was my sacrifice for my family. I’d spent too many years denying my place in the kingdom. Too bad Sophia couldn’t have wormed her way into my life sooner. We would have had more time. We could have built a relationship, and she would have had the space in her heart to love me. At that point, we could have made it work.Her admission last night was my deciding factor. I couldn’t be with her if she was uncertain about our fate together. I didn’t blame her at all, but the timing was off for us.Sophia turned so quickly that I could have sworn I’d said her name aloud.Inst
LukeMother knocked on the door, and Abir and I turned to face her.Her hands were clasped in front of her, and her face was almost fully concealed by her headscarf. I could’ve sworn I saw a hint of a smile on her lips. No doubt, she had already figured out what happened between Sophia and me.That fact was confirmed when she said, “You did the right thing, son.”Abir snorted and left the room. Mother glanced over her shoulder at him, then turned back to me.“I don’t need a lecture, Mother,” I said, turning to the windows. While I knew life was short and all that, I had no time for hearing how she had been right about Sophia. I wasn’t ready to go into the details of our final encounter. I doubted I ever would. It would be one of the only scars in my life, other than my parents’ deaths. It would forever be a part of me and offer a place and time of reflection, but that was it.“I’m not lecturing you, Luke,” she said. “I’m glad you came to your senses. Today is a big day, and you don’t
LukeA month had passed since accepting the role of the king in my home country of Qatar, but my hands still moved automatically to adjust the phantom tie at my neck. For years working in England at my family’s oil business, it was rare that I went to work without a tie. It was rare that I didn’t go to work in general.With any thoughts of England came the influx of memories of the one woman who I would have stayed there for. I would have given up all of my father’s hopes for me to become king if only she had felt the same for me as I did for her.I shook away all thoughts of Sophia as I tried to do every single morning. Even after some time had passed, she was still lodged firmly in my mind. I wanted to know what she was up to, if she finally wrote the story that she’d come to England and Qatar to write, and most of all, if she was happy.When she left me the first time, I had flipped around and become the stalker that she had been to me when she was hungry for the story. But this ti
LukeWalking into the meeting room was still a new experience for me, even though I’d done it almost every day for the past month. As a child, the room had always been forbidden unless Father requested our presence. Those occasions were few and far between and would usually involve other officials within the kingdom.I was used to meeting with people who didn’t see me on their level. I got used to it years ago when Father first gave me full access to our family company. I would butt heads with many of the older investors, but it never took long for me to prove my worth.The council had been generous the first week of my reign, due to Father’s death, but they stopped holding my hand soon after.I jumped into the job with the enthusiasm I had when I first moved to England and had to claw my way through the trenches until I earned those investors’ respect.All five council members were in attendance when I entered the room. I wasn’t late, but they had made it a point to arrive earlier th