“And I love that about them,” Charlotte said.
Petrus felt a hitch in his chest as he went on. “Not everyone is completely happy, though,” he said, feeling honesty was best. “Aegiria has its share of problems.”
Charlotte’s brow knit in concern, and she said, “Yes, I’ve noticed that Lady Jenny is distressed about something.”
Petrus’s heart skipped a beat. He’d been talking about villagers who weren’t satisfied with their crops or young people who found the tiny kingdom too small for their ambitions and who wished to travel abroad. He hadn’t been aware that Charlotte knew anything about the situation with Lady Jenny.
He was determined to face that situation immediately and to be as honest as possible about it.
“I know that my uncle expects me to marry the woman for the good of both our kingdoms, but you know that I only love you, my dearest Charlotte, and that if anyone could—”
He stopped mid-thought as Charlotte’s mouth dropped open and her eyes went wide in alarm. Far too quickly, all color drained from his dear Charlotte’s face.
“You are supposed to marry Lady Jenny?” Charlotte asked, her voice rising too fast.
Petrus winced, kicking himself for blurting things out like that without checking to see what Charlotte’s understanding of the situation was first. He might have saved them both a bit of trouble, if he hadn’t been so impetuous.
He sighed and took Charlotte’s hand to lead her off to one side of the room, where they could sit by the crackling fire.
“As I understand it, my uncle, the king, does wish for me to marry Lady Jenny, yes,” he confessed, deliberately sitting too close to Charlotte. Their knees touched, and he had yet to let go of her hand. “She was brought here shortly before I departed for England to investigate the Rathborne-Paxton family. But you must know that I have only ever felt friendship for Lady Jenny. I have never even considered marrying her, let alone loving her. My heart belongs to one woman and one woman alone.”
He hoped Charlotte would find that a fanciful enough declaration to soothe her. Instead, Charlotte looked more distressed than ever.
“That is the matter, then,” she said, staring at a spot on the carpet in front of them, caught up in her own thoughts. “Lady Jenny seems so forlorn because the man she was intended to marry has fallen in love with someone else.”
She glanced up at him, as if appealing to Petrus to somehow make the situation right. Only, Petrus didn’t think there was any possible way to make everyone happy. Not as things were.
“I know my uncle wants this, and that he believes strongly in family duty and loyalty,” Petrus began. “But, my darling, you are the only—”
Again, Petrus was interrupted. This time by the sound of low voices and footsteps in the corridor, heading their way.
He didn’t want to be caught alone with Charlotte. It would be bad for her reputation, and she was only just beginning to warm her way into the family. He needed to make Charlotte appear in the very best light so that when the time came to shatter his uncle’s expectations and to go against the word of his king, he would be doing it to marry a woman his family loved and respected anyhow.
“Come,” he whispered tightly, pulling Charlotte to stand, then whisking her around the back of the couch. “We can hide in here.”
He tugged Charlotte over to a narrow door between two bookshelves. It led to a small closet lined with shelves, where the family kept games and puzzles and other things that entertained them through the long winter days. The closet smelled richly of cedar and pine. It was the perfect place to hide, not only because it was pleasant, but because it was narrow enough that he was forced to hold Charlotte pressed tightly against him so that they would fit.
He managed to shut the door just as Oskar and Uncle Milas strode into the room. He and Charlotte were able to observe everything happening in the library through the tiny holes in the pattern carved on the door.
“The family is everything, Oskar, you know that,” Uncle Milas said, apparently frustrated with Oskar for some reason. “We have a duty to the people of this kingdom. You more than most.”
Petrus wasn’t certain what particular duty his uncle was talking about, but the admonishment hit Petrus hard. He had a duty to his family and his kingdom as well, whether he liked it or not.
“I understand, Father,” Oskar said. “But marriage is one of the most powerful tools our kingdom has to secure its future peace and prosperity.”
“Marriage is the cornerstone of family,” Uncle Milas explained. Petrus could see his face through the lattice on the door, see how serious his uncle was. “Our subjects love us as they do not only because we have given them prosperity and freedom. They love us because we reflect the sort of love and family they would wish for themselves. We are a model for our subjects, and as such, it is only right, as you are of a certain age, to marry and continue with the family line.”
“But marry who?” Oskar demanded. “I am not at liberty to make my own choices.”
“Neither are you a slave to the crown,” Uncle Milas argued. “Either way, you have an obligation to wed and be happy.”
“How do I do that while advancing the interests of Aegiria? Do you propose I hold a ball and invite every princess in Europe just so I can make my own choice?”
“If necessary,” Uncle Milas said with a shrug. “I would not object to holding some sort of Cinderella ball, if you wished to emulate the fairy tale as a way to choose your beloved.”
“I do not, Father,” Oskar said with a deep scowl.
He might not have been happy about the prospect, but Petrus heard Charlotte’s excited intake of breath near his ear and felt her body tighten as he held her. She thought that sort of ball was a grand idea.