Jasper nodded mock seriously, “Naturally.”
“But I don’t mean just ordinary beauty. I mean a beauty that collects everything there is to love about our island nation and puts it into the form of a woman.”
An instant of silence greeted Zayn’s statement, wherein not even Jasper Caspian could think of something clever to say.
The words sank into all of Mina’s soft tissues, anchoring themselves in a way that she knew would make every other compliment pale in comparison for the rest of her life.
The audience recovered first, responding with a loud sigh of longing.
Looking at Mina, Zayn began to speak again. “But that is the mere surface. The kind of sparkling tinsel that catches the eye of every foolish man. In order to truly capture a king, you must first make a habit of squaring your shoulders and facing every challenge head-on.”
The tenor of his voice had changed, and despite the fact that he spoke for the all the world to know, in truth it was as if he spoke to his Queen alone.
“You must be cool-headed and controlled when your dreams are crushed. You must be earnest. You must meet every curve ball thrown at you.”
Mina’s mind was filled with their hasty chapel wedding with the Archbishop, its details becoming even more surreal in memory.
“You must be willing to walk miles when you have just fallen from the sky, finding beauty along the way. You must know how to cook a mean tagine.”
Here Jasper broke in with, “A queen that cooks? Now, there’s a keeper, folks!”
The audience took the break as an opportunity to let out the collective breath they were holding on a laugh, before leaning closer for more.
Zayn continued, his attention still focused on Mina. “It takes more than a surprising talent to steal a king’s heart, of course. You must offer true partnership, a safe haven, and a place to be an ordinary man.”
Mina’s eyes pricked with the tears, but she would be caught dead before she’d let herself shed them during her first television appearance.
“You must also be willing to stand up against the opinion of a king. You must be indomitable. You must accept what you cannot change, but demand change when you know you can. Most of all, you must never accept less than you deserve.”
Mina swallowed again, the knot in her throat bearing a suspicious similarity in thickness to barely restrained emotion.
Letting Zayn’s words rest in the air for a moment, Jasper was less irreverent when he next spoke. “Well, my dears. There you have it. What it took to woo the King. Sounds easy enough—am I right?”
The audience chuckled appreciatively.
Eyes still on Mina, Zayn said, “She certainly makes it look so.”
More of that internal knot loosened, even as a part of her grabbed at its strands, trying to keep it together, a tight ball of resentment to block him from digging in any deeper.
Jasper fanned himself. “Folks, it is just as hot sitting here by these two lovebirds as it seems. I admit I didn’t expect the change in you, Your Majesty. It seems like it was only a few months ago you were here on this show, a completely different man.”
“That’s the impact of a good woman.”
“I can see why you were so quick to scoop her up into matrimony. Though you denied us all the pomp and fun of a royal wedding!” Jasper’s pout was a consummate expert’s.
A mischievous glint lit in Zayn’s eyes. “You know, Jasper. You’re right. I acted quickly when the opportunity presented itself. But you, and certainly my lovely bride, deserve something better than that.”
And then he got down on one knee in front of her. Jasper and the audience gasped, and a sheen of tears came to Jasper’s eyes that Mina knew had nothing to do with romance and everything to do with ratings.
The audience erupted into applause.
Zayn smiled. “I would marry you every day, Mina. Over and over again.”
She wanted to believe him. She did. But they were in front of a live studio audience and he had a scandal he wanted people to forget about. Even though he was asking, he wasn’t really.
She had a clear line in this drama and she did her part, nodding, and the cheering went up another few notches before it began to calm down to a reasonable level.
When the moment came, Jasper said, “Well, you saw and heard it on theJasper Caspian Show, folks. We’re going to get a royal wedding after all!”