A Queen for Christmas Read online

  “Move down one seat, please,” I say remembering my manners.

  Reluctantly, they do so with a clatter of silverware, plates, and glasses. Once everyone is seated again, I notice the glare from Gracie’s travel companion down at the end of the table. Years of palace intrigue tells me she is going to be a problem, but I push that from my mind for now and look over at my future queen.

  Is it crazy that I did not know her this morning, but now she is my everything? It might be, but I am a better man for knowing her.

  Chapter Six

  Gracie

  “Oh no, they don’t have to do that. I can go and sit at the end of the table,” I try telling Holden.

  He shakes his head adamantly. “I will not have you all the way at the other end of the table, Gracie. You are mine and will sit next to me.”

  My cheeks burn in embarrassment. The last thing I want is to be the center of attention and I’ve done well to stay out of it up until today. All of that is going to change now that Holden has claimed me as his. Just thinking of everything that will change in my life makes my head dizzy and I sway on my feet.

  “Angel, please sit,” Holden says, helping me to sit in the chair to his right. Kneeling in front of me, he grabs my hand and kisses my open palm. Why do I feel like I’ve suddenly become his whole world and that he’s quickly becoming mine?

  “Should I get the doctor?”

  “No. Please Holden, I’m fine. I’m sure it’s just because I haven’t eaten since breakfast.”

  Holden stands and kisses me on the cheek before taking his seat at the head of the very long table. None of this is out of the ordinary for me, except that now I’m seated beside the king as his woman, not his child. It’s as if I’ve been preparing to be his my entire life. I know the words to say and how to react because I’ve spent my childhood glued to my mother’s side.

  Someone sets down a plate of prime rib, asparagus, and roasted potatoes. I turn to thank them, but someone else has taken their place to set down a glass of white wine and a glass of ice water. “Thank you.”

  The server bows and gives me a brief smile before someone else is there with a small crystal cup with two white pills. Taking the crystal cup in my hand I look down at it, wondering what they are. “It’s pain reliever, just in case you are feeling achy from before.” Holden leans over and says in a hushed town.

  I don’t know if he means from the car accident or what we were doing before we came down for dinner, but either way, I appreciate his concern. I take the medicine, and someone quickly takes the crystal cup from the table. I’m very impressed. Holden’s staff is well trained and on top of everything.

  Before I take a bite, I look over to make sure that Holden has everything that he needs. He’s got a fresh plate of food being served to him as I look up. Holden takes my hand and brushes his lips against my knuckles before kissing them. “Eat Gracie. You’ll need the energy for later.” He says and winks.

  Placing the cloth napkin in my lap, I cut a piece of the prime rib and put it in my mouth. As soon as the taste hits my tongue I moan audibly. That is the best piece of meat I’ve ever had in my mouth. Holden clears his throat and I look over to find him adjusting himself under the table. His eyes find mine and I give him a wink of my own. A smile pulls at the corner of his mouth.

  It takes another two hours to finish the next four courses. During that time, I get to know Lady Danvie of Degros who is sitting beside me. She’s an older woman, probably my mother’s age, and has nothing but praise for her king. I hear story after story about what the king has done for their country from her and those sitting around us. I had already heard some of these stories through the media, but then there are the stories that don’t make it to the news. He’s done so much for his people in the years he has been their king. Even when he was younger, he always had their best interests at heart.

  By the time the dinner ends, I’m more convinced than ever that Holden is a good man that needs a queen to stand beside him and help shoulder the burden of ruling his country. I know he said that once he claimed me, I was his forever, but I have to wonder if I’m the right woman to help him lead. For my entire life, I’ve longed to stay out of the limelight, but if I become his queen, I’ll be there for good.

  “My honored guests. Thank you for joining me this weekend to celebrate Christmas. I look forward to tomorrow’s festivities. Now if you’ll excuse me.” Holden says and stands, then holds out his hand for me to take.

  “Princess Gracie, let me walk you to your room.”

  Everyone looks at me in shock and waits for me to take the king’s hand. Only a crazy person would deny this man. Taking his hand, I stand, bravely looking at the people who are watching us like a hawk. For the first time, King Montrose is showing a woman favor, and I’m that woman. They know what this means, just like I do. I’m not one of many, I’m the only one.

  As soon as we’re out of the dining hall, Holden cages me in against the nearest wall taking my mouth in a savage kiss. “I need to get you naked and in my bed.”

  “What are you waiting for?”

  Holden pulls me from the wall and rushes us up the stairs and back to his quarters in no time. He has me out of my dress and naked in his bed before we can say two words to each other. Laying against his sheets, I look up at him in awe as he crawls between my spread thighs, just as naked as I am. His hungry look tells me sleep isn’t coming any time soon. If I were to lose sleep, I could think of far worse things to keep me from it.

  Chapter Seven

  Holden

  Christmas Eve

  This morning, the only thing on my mind is marrying my queen as soon as possible. While she is still sleeping, I move to my office. I have a very important phone call to make, possibly the most important phone call of my life.

  I remember her father from when I first ascended to the throne. Bryce Reynolds, king of Morea came to the palace about three weeks after I buried my father. In those three weeks, I had a birthday, but I did not really notice. I was barely twelve and thought I knew everything. I turned him and his help away. I hope he knows my rage and anger was not truly directed at him. Turns out, I knew nothing, and I was more accepting of the next world leaders that offered their assistance.

  I make the call and am surprised to find he answers the phone himself.

  “Your Majesty, I am truly sorry for calling at such an early hour, however, it could not be helped. As I am sure you are aware, your daughter is here and while I realize this is a bit unorthodox, I’d like to marry her. Tonight,” I tell him, but all I can hear is his breathing, but he says nothing.

  “Holden is that you?” he finally asks.

  “Yes, sir.”

  “I thought I told you to call me Bryce?” he asks chuckling.

  “That was many, many years ago, sir.”

  “Indeed, it was.”

  “Back to my original reason for calling,” I hedge.

  “So, you want to marry my Grace?” he asks.

  “I do. I love her but I must have your blessing before I ask her to become my queen.”

  “Then you have it, Holden. I have followed you over the years. Your father would be very proud of you and all you have accomplished,” he says surprising me.

  “You knew my father well?” I ask.

  “I did. We went to the same college, shared the same floor of a dormitory building. Then we realized we would rule within five hours of one another one day and became the best of friends.”

  “That is why you tried to help me before the others came.” It all makes so much sense.

  “It is indeed, however, you figured it all out.”

  “But at what cost, sir?” I ask. I still cannot bring myself to call him Bryce.

  “What do you mean?” he asks.

  “I now understand why my father let himself go. For years, I have held onto anger about something I could not fathom, but one look at your daughter and it is clear.”

  “Love makes us do crazy things, son.
You just have to expect the unexpected.”

  “Thank you, sir,” I say really listening to what he has said.

  “Did you say you wanted to marry her tonight?” he asks.

  “If she will have me, the sooner the better.”

  “Her brother and I will leave now.”

  “Excellent. The ball is tonight.”

  “See you later, Holden.”

  We say our goodbyes and then I make a plan. Somehow, I do not think a public proposal would make Gracie very happy.

  Leaving my office, I walk into the vault, where all of my kingdom’s valuables are safely stored. There is only one key and I wear it around my neck. I am the only one who has access to the crown jewels of Degros and that is the way I prefer it.

  Inside the vault, I pick through the plethora of rings until I find the one I am looking for. My great-great-great-grandmother was a milkmaid in the castle when my great-great-great-grandfather fell in love with her. To say that his parents were less than thrilled with his choice would be an understatement. He proposed which she, of course, accepted. Then his father sent him on a royal tour of India to give him time to change his mind, all the while his love still worked in the castle every day for the year he was away. She loved him for who he was, not because he would one day be king. While in India, he found a jeweler in Jaipur who made him a silver ring with a large ruby in the center of it. Upon his return, he gave her the ring and married her the same day. According to family legend, it took her a long time to break the habits of being a milkmaid, but once her in-laws saw that she really loved him, they let her into their hearts. This ring sat on her finger until she was buried alongside her husband in the family crypt on the grounds.

  With the ring in hand, I walk back to my room. Inside, Gracie is still sleeping, sprawled out in the middle of the bed. I strip back down and climb into bed with her, still holding the ring. She rolls closer to me. Turning to her, I bury my face in her neck. She moans in her sleep when I kiss her there.

  “Wake up, Gracie,” I whisper. I lean up in order to look down at her face.

  “Holden? What’s wrong?” she asks.

  “Nothing, my love.”

  “Love?”

  “Yes, of course. Surely you know that I love you?” I ask her.

  “I had hoped, but you didn’t say it last night.”

  “An oversight. I will say it now. I love you Princess Grace of Morea. Be my queen?”

  She stares at me for a few minutes without saying anything. It feels like an eternity. Finally, she licks her lips and tells me what I need to hear.

  “I love you too, King Holden of Degros. Of course, I’ll be your queen.”

  “My Christmas queen,” I correct.

  “What?”

  “Marry me tonight,” I say sliding the ring onto her finger.

  “Tonight? How can we possibly pull that off?”

  “The ball. It will already be decorated and there will be a ton of guests already in attendance.”

  “That could work, but what about my brother and father?”

  “Already on their way,” I tell her, kissing her neck again. I can feel her shiver under my lips.

  “You’ve thought of everything haven’t you?”

  “Just about,” I say making a trail of kisses down her body.

  “Don’t stop,” she moans.

  “I will never stop, Gracie. You are mine now,” I tell her before placing my tongue on her clit. She bows off of the bed, but I hold her in place. She lets me get my fill before I finally slide into her, sealing our bond in the most primal of ways.

  Later in the evening, we are waiting to be announced for the ball where everyone has already gathered in the ballroom.

  “Are you ready, my love?”

  “Yes,” she says taking my hand.

  We enter the ballroom and instead of using the herald, I grab two glasses of champagne from a waiter and clink them together, gathering the attention of all those who are present.

  “Ladies, gentlemen, honored guests, I am pleased to announce my engagement to Princess Grace of Morea on this very day. You are all invited to our short wedding ceremony in twenty minutes. Thank you all for coming and Merry Christmas,” I say raising my glass to the applause in the room. As soon as it dies, I can hear her cousin, Sarina, loud and clear complaining to anyone who will listen. She let me in on the fact that their mothers were sisters, both women now gone from this world.

  “You have got to be kidding me,” she finally says rather loudly. Just as I am about to say something to her, King Alonzo of Lurei grabs her upper arm and whispers something in her ear. I watch as her eyes widen but she says no more.

  Yet another Christmas Miracle.

  Chapter Eight

  Gracie

  Unsurprisingly, Sarina is causing a scene as soon as my engagement is announced. I shouldn’t be hurt by her behavior, but I am. Can’t she be happy for me, just this once? I’m seconds from having her removed from the ball when I notice a striking man whisper something into her ear. I’ve never seen Sarina stop her shit this quickly. Wait, isn’t that the King of Lurei? I’m tempted to get closer if only to figure out what’s going on.

  “I think he has it handled love,” Holden says from beside me.

  I look up at my handsome king and smile. “You’re right.”

  “Gracie?”

  “Daddy?” I say turning to face my father. I haven’t had the chance to speak to him today, but Holden assured me he would be here. I’ve been worried he and my brother Christian wouldn’t make it, but now that they’re here the rising anxiety I was feeling goes away. When he gives me the look, only a father can, I throw myself into his arms. He holds me tightly and tears well up in my eyes. “I wasn’t sure you were going to make it.”

  He pulls back with his hands clutching my arms. “I’d never miss this Gracie.”

  My lip quivers, so I bite it, hoping to stave off the tears. My life is changing in a matter of minutes and it’s all happening so fast. While the change is something amazing, it’s still fast and a little bit terrifying.

  My brother pulls a lock of my hair. “Hey Goose.”

  I stick my tongue out at him. “Hey Squirrel.”

  Our nicknames for each other are ridiculous, but they’re ours.

  “Princess Grace, would you like to follow me to get ready for your nuptials?” A beautiful young woman who I met earlier today asks. She’s wearing a conservative black evening gown and looks ready to kick ass and take names with the sugary sweetness of a cupcake.

  “Yes, thank you. I’m sorry, what is your name again?”

  “It was so busy this afternoon I don’t even know if I introduced myself. I’m Juliette, the event planner for King Montrose. I have a room set up for you if you’d like to follow me.”

  Christian clears his throat. “I’ll come with you Goose.”

  I nod and look at my father. “I’m going to talk to your fiancé. I’ll find you in a few minutes.” My father says then gestures towards an exit opposite ours.

  “I guess we’re ready then,” I tell Juliette, then follow her out of the ballroom with Christian beside me staring at her ass. She leads us to a large room, what I presume is the great hall. There are hundreds of chairs in two sets of rows. At the front of the room is a platform beautifully decorated where we will say our vows. White and red flowers are arranged around the room and I’m in awe of how beautiful everything looks.

  “We’ve set the great hall up as we discussed earlier with enough seating for the guests of the ball. Once you and the king have said your vows you’ll leave here, and the guests will head to the dining room for the reception.” Juliette tells me.

  “I can’t believe you were able to put this together in a matter of hours.”

  “It is my greatest honor to assist our future queen.” She says and bows.

  While I’ve grown up as royalty, I’ve never gotten used to people bowing to me or putting me on a pedestal so to speak. It never felt right. Pe
ople are people and should all be treated with kindness and dignity. My mother made sure to drill that into my brother and my heads as children. “Juliette, you’ve done a lovely job, really.”

  She blushes and looks around then shrugs. “Most of this was already planned because of the Christmastide Ball. The only thing we really had to do was set up for the actual wedding.”

  “I agree with my sister, the place looks stunning.”

  Juliette’s blush deepens if that were even possible and the tips of her ears turn bright red. “Thank you, Prince Christian.”

  Christian takes her hand and kisses the top of it. “You, my sweet Juliette will call me Christian, just Christian.”

  Juliette’s go wide and her mouth pops open in awe. I walk away giving them the space they need. I walk to the alter and look around. It’s crazy that in a few minutes I will be Queen of Degros, and more importantly, Holden’s wife. Even though this is swift, I know in my heart of hearts that I’ve made the right decision.

  “Would you like to get ready now?” Juliette asks coming towards me.

  I nod following her out a side entrance and into a small room. There’s a beautiful white wedding gown hanging from a garment rack. Running my fingers against the lace and all the details of the dress I’m shocked once again that Juliette was able to find a dress that meets my specifications.

  “Can I help you put on your dress?” Juliette asks. Usually, that would be for my mother and bridesmaids to do, but since I lost my mother last year and I have no friends, Juliette is all I have.

  “Yes, thank you.”

  “I’ll be outside waiting.” Christian offers before stepping out of the door and closing it.

  Juliette steps behind me and unzips the maroon colored lace dress I had picked out for the ball. After I’ve taken it off, she holds the dress out for me to step into, then laces up the back with white satin ribbon. The lace sleeves go to my wrists and the fit of the dress is absolutely perfect.