The Billionaire’s Royal Challenge (Devotion and Dynasty Trilogy #2)

Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17

ELENA

E lena’s cheeks burned as she curled her fingers into fists, her glare set on Eric’s chiseled features. He returned her gesture, fire burning in his eyes.

“What is the meaning of this?” her father asked as he strode from his desk to stand between them.

“Eric is causing trouble. Last night, he accosted me in the hallway, insisted he sought my hand in marriage, then kissed me. And this morning, he took it upon himself to go to Nathan’s room and threaten him.”

“Is this true?” King Frederick shifted his gaze to Eric.

“Not the way she is saying it, no. But I did inform Elena last night of my intentions–intentions I have informed you of, as well. And yes, in a misguided attempt to woo her, I kissed her. I also spoke with Mr. Kingsley. I felt it a gentlemanly thing to do. I understand he seeks her hand as well.”

“Where did you hear that?” the king asked .

“It became obvious. One only needed to know of Elena’s trip, Mr. Kingsley’s origins, and see them together.”

“So, it is obvious we are in love, yet you have no respect for it, is that it?” Elena shouted.

Her father shot her a disapproving glance. “Elena, please!”

“Father, if he is to be a candidate to be my husband, I must be allowed to confront him on this.”

Eric arched an eyebrow. “I have every respect for your feelings, Elena, but I disagree with your decision entirely.”

The words sent heat rising into her cheeks as she tightened her jaw. He spoke to her like she was a child. “Really? And because you disagree, I should submit? What century do you live in?”

“That is not what I said at all,” Eric answered before he flicked his gaze to King Frederick. “Your Majesty, would it be possible for Elena and I to speak privately?”

“Yes, it is,” Elena answered. “I do not need my father’s permission to speak to you, obviously.”

“Yes,” King Frederick answered, ignoring her outburst, “we may continue our discussion later. I shall give you the room.”

Annoyance made her flesh crawl as her father kissed her cheek. “Find me when you are finished, darling. There are things I would like to discuss before the parade.”

She did not acknowledge the statement outside a slight nod as she wrinkled her nose, crossing her arms. As the door clicked shut behind her, she arched an eyebrow. “What is it you wanted to speak about privately?”

“Our relationship.”

“Then this should be a brief discussion. We have no relationship. There, it is finished.”

“That is not true,” Eric said as he eyed her. “You have no formal commitments at this time.”

“I certainly will have none with you. ”

“Elena, please,” he said with a shake of his head. “You are doing yourself a disservice.”

“Disservice?” She barked out a laugh as she crossed to stare out the window. “Hardly. The only disservice I can see being done is if I agreed to marry you.”

Warm hands wrapped around her shoulders, giving them a gentle massage. She stiffened instinctively.

“I think we’ve gotten off on the wrong foot,” he purred in her ear.

With a shrug, she slid from under his grasp and stalked across the room, putting the desk between them. “I do not. I’m sorry, Eric, but I do not love you.”

“Yet,” he answered.

“Never,” she shot back. “I am in love with Nathan Kingsley. He is the man I have chosen. I am sorry. I do realize this may not be what you hoped for, but it was unavoidable. And truthfully, is it so bad? Surely, you would prefer to find your own spouse.”

He clasped his hands behind his back, reminding her of her father when he prepared to give her a lecture. “No, it is not at all what I hoped for. As I understood it, we were to announce our engagement at the end of this visit. I arrived with what I hoped would be a lovely gesture for my soon-to-be bride, only to have the rug pulled out from under me.”

Elena heaved a sigh, trying to keep her patience and understand his point of view. But each word felt like a weight, dragging the conversation longer than she could bear. “I am very sorry for you, Eric. I do feel quite badly. I had suggested we inform you before your arrival, but my father did not agree.”

“With good reason, Elena,” he answered, his voice even.

She screwed up her face. “What does that mean?”

“Because you are not engaged to that other man yet. And you should not be.”

Elena flexed her jaw as she blew out a long breath through her flared nostrils. “You may not dictate my life.”

“But your father may. And I have expressed my interest in having your hand.”

Elena slid her eyes closed. “Eric, my patience is wearing thin.”

“I believe your patience to be nonexistent the way you stormed in here. Though, I do not mind. I quite admire your feistiness.”

“I do not admire the way you speak down to me as though I am a child,” she said as she gritted her teeth.

He glanced at his feet with a shake of his head. “It seems I can do no right. Perhaps we ought to break from this conversation and reconvene when we have both had some time to allow our tempers to cool.”

“There is no need to continue the conversation, Eric. I have already told you. You are not my choice.”

“But why?” he demanded, heat entering his voice. “Why am I not your choice, Elena? Give me good reasons beyond the ridiculous ones.”

“Ridiculous ones? Love is not a ridiculous reason to choose someone.”

“Love changes, Elena. What you feel for Mr. Kingsley may be enchanting now, but what if it fades? What then? Will he still stand by your side as you attend to all the duties required of you as Queen? It is my understanding that your relationship developed under his assumption that you were a normal woman, not one bound by duty.”

Elena swallowed hard as Nate’s request of her to abdicate snaked through her mind. She shoved it aside, intent on staying true to him. “But we have nothing–“

“Yet,” he interrupted. “Nothing yet, Elena. Have you no concerns whatsoever about your relationship with him moving forward? Has he integrated that seamlessly into royal life?”

“Royal life is not that difficult to integrate into,” she challenged, “and given his work at GenoTech, he is quite used to social engagements being part of life.” She shook her head, waving her hands in the air. “Wait, stop. I will not defend my choices to you, there is no need.”

He crossed to her, pulling her into his arms. “There is every need. I could be the man for you. You feel the need to defend them because you are unsure yourself. Admit it. Admit that you have reservations. That’s all I need to hear.”

She pushed away from him with a shake of her head. “But I don’t.”

He heaved a sigh. “Elena, I do wish you would see reason here. We are well-matched. And if you’d let me, I would very much like to show you that I can light your heart on fire as much as he can. I’m really not so bad, am I?”

“I am not certain marriage should be based on reason and ticked boxes as much as it should be based on love and commitment to the other person.”

“I can provide you both if you’ll let me. Give me the chance.”

She let her gaze fall to the thick rug beneath her feet. “But I would only be setting you up for failure. Toying with you, stringing you along when I have no intention–“

“Yet,” he said again.

“Please stop saying that.”

“I will not. I am asking for a chance. No more, no less. A chance. If you are so firmly set in accepting Mr. Kingsley, this should not matter at all, should it? You will consider me and simply move on.”

“But I have already done that.”

He approached her, gently setting his hands on her shoulders. “Have you? Or have you dismissed me even before giving me a chance? I feel it is the latter. You fled from Eldoria to the States to escape me. You had made a call even before we were reacquainted.”

Elena stared at her father’s desk, her eyebrows knitting as he spoke. Doubt gnawed at her insides, twisting her in knots. She loved Nate Kingsley, but what if he couldn’t handle the demands of royal life?

“Elena, please. All I am asking for is a chance. Let me prove to you that I can be the partner you need.”

Elena slid her eyes closed for a moment before she opened them and focused on Eric. His eyes pleaded, desperation clear in his glance. “I am sorry, but I cannot force myself to feel something that isn’t there. My heart belongs to Nate, and I won’t betray my own feelings nor ignore them.”

She pulled away from him and crossed to the door. “I must prepare for the parade. Please try to understand my decision.”

With a deep sigh, she stepped into the hall and hurried away from the room, finding Caroline as she climbed the stairs.

“Your Highness, there you are.”

Elena pressed a hand to her forehead, her features pinched. “Do you know where my father is?”

“His private study. Is everything all right?”

“No, it is not,” Elena said with a shake of her head.

“What is it?”

Elena sucked in a deep breath. “Oh, Caroline. Eric has just made it clear he hopes to win my hand. He begged me for a chance.”

Caroline’s eyebrows shot up as she leaned closer to whisper her response. “And what are your thoughts?”

“I love Nathan. Why can it not be as simple as that?”

Caroline patted her shoulder as she offered Elena a consoling smile. “Perhaps it will be, Your Highness. I hope it is sorted soon.”

“Thank you. I’m going to find my father. I’ll see you soon to dress for the parade.”

“Yes, I’ll be waiting for you in your room.”

Elena nodded before she climbed the remaining stairs and navigated the halls to her father’s private study. She hesitated, her fist raised in the air, ready to knock.

She hated to have this conversation after the one she’d just endured. But it was best to have it and know what she faced.

She let her knuckles wrap against the wood, and a second passed before her father called for her to come in.

With a deep breath, she pushed into the room. “Hello, Father.”

He snapped his gaze from the window. “Elena. Come in. Sit.”

She shuffled into the room and collapsed into an armchair.

He eased into the chair across from her, his features softer than normal. “How was the conversation with Eric.”

“Tedious,” she answered with a sigh.

“Oh? Care to discuss it?”

“I don’t.” She raised her eyes to him, her features pleading. “Must I?”

“No. It was a private discussion between the two of you. Have you come to any…decisions?”

She clenched her teeth as she realized she’d have to rehash some of it. “I told him in no uncertain terms that my choice was Nathan. I love him, Father, and I cannot set aside my feelings.”

He pressed his lips into a thin line as he offered a nod.

“You do not agree.”

“I…wish you would at least consider Eric. He is very keen on you, and hopes to have the chance to show you what sort of husband he may be.”

“Yes, he told me that. He said you had discussed it.”

“We have. And I must say, I am most impressed by him.”

Elena rubbed her forehead, exhausted by the morning. “I am not.”

“Are you not impressed by him or are you not even considering that you could be?”

She snapped her gaze to him, searching his eyes. “Have you two discussed this? Have you agreed what to say?”

“No, Elena, we have not. We have only discussed that he very much would like my approval.”

“Which he already has.” Elena slouched in the chair, crossing her arms. “And Nathan?”

“I am reserving my judgment. As I wish you would.”

“It’s rather unfair, though, isn’t it? Reserving judgment on Nathan, but freely giving it to Eric. Father, he has proven himself aggressive, overbearing, and generally a nuisance. He makes no attempt to take my emotions into account.”

“I am sorry you feel that way.”

Elena waved a hand in the air. “And you wish I would reconsider. I know. Well, I wish you would reconsider on Nathan, too, but here we are.”

“I have not…” King Frederick heaved a sigh. “Nathan Kingsley seems to be a fine young man. Eager to please, making every attempt to ensure that he presents himself well to us. And I think that is very promising.”

“But?” Elena asked.

The king sucked in a deep breath before he raised his eyes to her. “But that does not mean I think he is the best man to see you through the hardest times that you will endure. Royal life can be demanding. And as nice a young man as Nathan Kingsley is, I remain concerned that he will not take to the lifestyle. ”

“It is not so different from his.”

“But it is. He may be used to frequent social engagements and the like, but as far as the duty of them, it is quite a different thing.” Frederick took her hand in his. “Elena, I do not say this to hurt you. I say it because I wish the best for you.”

Elena frowned though the words rang true. “I understand. Let us see what you think after tonight’s engagement, shall we?”

King Frederick bobbed his head and smiled at her. “Yes. I will not be too quick to judge, I promise.”

“Thank you, Father. And now I must go prepare for the parade.”

“I am looking forward to it. See you there.” He rose, grinning at her.

She forced a smile on her face before she left his office behind, the grin quickly fading away. Every step through the halls to her bedroom felt like another step toward an impossible decision. Her father’s reluctance gave her enough pause to question her own decision. And as she pushed into her room to dress for the parade, she wondered if Nate Kingsley was truly the best man for her.