“That’s the most important thing. Everything else will fall into place.”
She blinks a few times, and I know she’s hearing me. Nothing has changed. She’ll trust whatever I tell her, and I take that responsibility very seriously.
I watch as she’s pulled away from me, into the crowd of dignitaries and debutants, and warm arms surround me from behind. Cal is at my back, his arms around my waist. I’m not the princess in this story. I’m no Cinderella. The good news is, it doesn’t matter. We’ve both found our happily ever after.
* * *
The end…?
Epilogue
Cal
Zelda’s head is on my shoulder, and our beautiful baby girl is in her arms. Her little head is a halo of blonde hair, and my chest is so fucking full as I hold them both in my arms.
I sit beside Zelda in the hospital bed. Our newborn daughter, Her Royal Highness Princess Isabella Scott Livinia Wilder Tate of Dumaldi, is cleaned, fed, and sleeping, and I’m still trying to get my head around how we started this morning like any other day and ended it as parents.
After the royal wedding, we didn’t waste any time returning to Tortola and our villa. Ximena and Selena were so excited to see Zee. They had a little party with bouquets of hibiscus flowers and the most delicious, savory meal.
Ximena made cornbread cakes and a type of stew with shrimp and peppers, tomatoes and water chestnuts, and what appeared to be okra.
“Callaloo,” she called it.
Zelda had told me about the simple, yet incredibly delicious meals her friend would make for them every night in that wretched camp, but it was my first time experiencing one. Needless to say, she is now our head cook.
The three of them had stayed up chatting late into the night, catching up, while I’d retired early.
These days, I’m Monagasco’s ambassador to the West Indies and pretty much all the Caribbean islands, and as such, my time is spent meeting with local officials. I listen to and observe what is going on around the islands, analyze it, and discuss weekly with my brother.
It would sound like a cushy, made-up job, but after Zelda’s ordeal and the extended search, we decided it doesn’t hurt to have a network of friends in the area. Especially since it appears Totrington is ahead of us in that regard.
Zelda is enrolled in college—when she’s not accompanying me to dinners, charity events, and banquets around the islands. She has always tried to get Ava to get her degree, but I convinced her with her brains and nerves of steel, she should be a CEO somewhere.
She laughed, but I was only half joking.
So our days have fallen into the happy routine of me charming the pants off the dignitaries who’ve been duped into thinking Totrington is the better of our two countries, and Zelda is quietly learning how to conquer the business world.
Naturally, our evenings are spent with loads of hot sex, crack pizza, and our favorite movies. Why, just last night I’d been showing Zee how if she lay on her side and I got behind her at just the right angle, we didn’t even notice how giant our little princess had become as I fucked her sexy mother’s brains out.
Yes, the sex has been a challenge these last few weeks, but now look at us. We’re here in this executive hospital suite with our precious little life-changer in our arms.
“What are you thinking?” Zelda’s voice pulls me from my reflections.
I reach over and touch those pillow lips. “Just wow, look what you did,” I say softly.
She smiles, her blue eyes softening. “You had something to do with it.”
“Hell, I simply laid back and enjoyed the view.” I’m not kidding. Zelda is gorgeous when she’s getting off on me.
“She’s really beautiful, isn’t she?” Zee cuddles our sleeping princess closer against her, and I cover her tiny head with my palm.
“She has your hair. She seems to have your eyes. I can only pray to god she has your sexy lips…” As the words are leaving my mouth, something strange happens in my stomach.
“No,” I say, feeling suddenly angry at the little dick who might dare try to kiss my Belle. “Actually, I hope she looks like my mother. Right now. As in, the way my mother looks today.”
“MacCallum Lockwood Tate!” Zee’s voice is sharp, but when she sees my face she bursts into laughter.
“What?” I say, not finding the humor in this situation.