Page 11 of Royally Matched

“Do I have a choice?” Max asked with frustration, hating being forced into a situation he didn’t like.

“You don’t. So, go now,” his father commanded.

Begrudgingly, Max moved towards Lily, but before he could arrive at his destination, Lady Matilda and Lady Alexa appeared in front of him, stopping him.

“Good evening, your Royal Highness,” Alexa stated with a flirtatious smile. “It’s so good to see you again.”

“It’s a pleasure to see you as well,” Max returned, grateful for the interruption and welcomed distraction. He would rather focus on any other woman present then spend any more time with Lily than needed.

“We’ve noticed the seating arrangements,” Matilda said with a pout, “and you’re seated all the way on the other side of the room from us.”

“I’m sorry, ladies, for the inconvenience. It’s beyond my control, but it doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy ourselves for the time being.”

“I like the sound of that,” Alexa said, letting out a small laugh that drew the attention from other guests around them, including Lily, who seemed put off by it.

Good, that was exactly what he wanted. If he could keep her cold towards him, it would make it much easier to keep affection out of the situation. She had already broken his heart once; he didn’t need a repeat performance.

Three more unmarried noblewomen came to stand in the group around Max, adding to his own flock of admirers. With all the attention, perhaps tonight wouldn’t be as bad as Max first anticipated.

* * *

The group of women around Max had grown to a half a dozen, all of them flirting and fawning all over him. Lily knew she shouldn’t care, but every time a new woman joined, her jealousy grew a tiny bit, causing her to be angry with herself over her unwanted reaction.

Lily had been justified in ending things back when they were at boarding school. Max was just the same as he was when they were young. He continued to behave abhorrently, flirting with anything that had an ample chest and long legs. What was wrong with him?

“Did you hear my question, Lady Liliana?”

Shaking her head, she glanced over at the black-haired man standing next to her, who had pulled her away from the other men to a more remote part of the room. “I’m sorry, Lord Michael. I was distracted. What were you saying?”

Michael’s focus turned towards where Lily had been looking. A wry grin formed on his face. “I see the Crown Prince has garnered your attention like every other eligible woman in the room.”

“It’s not what you think,” Lily stated adamantly. “He just has a way of making a spectacle of himself.” Then remembering who she was talking about, she quickly apologized, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that about the Crown Prince.”

“On the contrary, it’s rare to have a woman at the royal court whoisn’tobsessed with his Royal Highness,” Michael said with approval. “It’s rather refreshing and makes my chances of keeping your attention much more possible.”

Little did he know, his chances—along with every other man—ended the previous day when she agreed to marry Max. A decision she was regretting more and more as she continued to watch Max’s behavior with the other women. Perhaps she should have asked for time to pray about the decision before agreeing, considering what she had gotten herself into.

Would he continue to behave this way after their engagement was announced publicly? Or even worse after they were married? They hadn’t talked about their expectations, but respect was paramount in any functional marriage as far as Lily was concerned. She didn’t want to be married to a man who would brazenly flirt with other women.

“There you are, Lady Liliana,” Lord Joseph Rogers’ familiar voice greeted. “I’m sorry I’m late, but my flight from China was delayed.”

“I didn’t know you were coming back to Triola,” Lily said with a welcoming smile. “It’s good to see you.” Turning her attention to Michael, she politely dismissed him. “Excuse me, Lord Michael, but I need to speak with Lord Joseph about a work matter.”

A look of disappointment crossed the other man’s face as he nodded, then gave a leery look to Joseph before scurrying off to find another woman to chat with.

“I figured you could use all the support you could get being back here. I know you try to avoid it as much as possible.”

Lily nodded her head, glad to have a friend by her side. “It’s been difficult, to say the least.”

“You must tell me all about it when we don’t have prying ears,” Joseph stated in a hushed voice, gesturingwith his head to all the surrounding people.

Their conversation was interrupted by the announcement for everyone to take their seats for dinner. Joseph escorted Lily to her seat. Glancing at the other names, Joseph observed with surprise, “You’ve been assigned to sit next to the Crown Prince. That should be rather amusing from the rumors I’ve heard.”

“They aren’talltrue you know,” Lily heard Max state from behind them. “Though I’m sure it’s easier to believe them than to think highly of your prince.”

Joseph whipped around, an expression of astonishment mixed with embarrassment clearly on his face. “I’m sorry, your Royal Highness. It was wrong of me to speak of such a matter.”

“Lucky for you, I’m much more relaxed than my father,” Max said with a shrug. “I don’t ruin people’s lives simply because they don’t approve of me. Of course, I’m not kingyet, but that will change in the future,” he added, making the warning in his statement clear.

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