The Rejected True Heiress (Liora and Callum) novel Chapter 547

“What did your father want?” he asked after a while.

I watched the rose go around between his fingers. “To tell me he’s abdicating.”

The rose stopped moving.

“After my mother’s funeral,” I said. “Once the kingdom’s stable. He said the throne was always mine, and he wants to make it official.”

Callum let out a slow breath. “Queen Liora.”

“That’s the idea,” I murmured.

“Are you going to do it?”

“Yes.” The word came out firm and certain. I lifted my head so I could look at him. “I’ve spent my whole life training for that throne. It’s not just my duty, but my destiny. I hope you know that.”

He nodded slowly, eyes guttering briefly at the not-so-subtle reminder of the moments when he’d asked me to leave it all behind. To run into the sunset like we were in the final climax of some kind of teen coming of age movie.

“But,” I said, “I’d need a King.”

His fingers went still around the stem. He turned his head, and the corner of his mouth pulled up.

“Are you proposing to me?”

My face went hot.

“Maybe,” I said. “That depends on your answer.” I made myself hold his eyes even though my ears were burning. “Is it something you’d actually want? You told me once that you wished we could run away from all of this. And now I’m asking you to marry into it instead. All of it, for the rest of your life. That’s a lot to ask of anyone.”

Callum looked down at the rose for a long moment, thinking, before he huffed out a small laugh and set the flower down in my lap.

“It’s terrifying,” he admitted. “I won’t pretend it isn’t. A crown. A court. Everyone in the kingdom watching the guy who backed the wrong princess, waiting for me to screw up.” His throat bobbed. “Two months ago, I would’ve taken your hand and run for the hills without a second thought.”

And then, like someone had suddenly hit play on time, I was moving all at once, throwing my arms around his neck so fast that I nearly knocked us both off of the bench and into the water. And then my mouth was on his, and his was on mine, and everything else fell away.

When we finally broke apart, we were both breathless, and Callum was grinning, and my heart exploded.

But there was still one thing left to do. One thing that we should have done ages ago. Better late than never, I supposed.

I stood and held out my hand.

“Come with me,” I said.

He took it.

I laced my fingers through his and pulled him toward my room.