Page 32 of A Royal Promise
Once all the other guests had entered the sitting room, Drew walked with his parents and the visiting royalty to a large meeting room used for various conferences and occasions like this. Even though the room was vast, it felt full with everyone’s individual bodyguards and other palace guards standing watch around the perimeter of it.
His father, Max, started off the meeting once everyone was seated. “Thank you, everyone, for attending. As discussed at our last Fenimore Kingdoms Alliance meeting, we unanimously decided to have both ruling monarchs—king and queen—present for our annual meeting moving forward.”
Drew’s eyes roamed to all the queens at the table. It made his heart swell seeing them all there. Over the last few decades, the ruling monarchs across Fenimore had been men who had first-born sons rather than daughters, and the absence of a female presence at their table was apparent. The vote the kings had made at the prior year’s meeting conveyed their wish to further unify their countries and to show the strength of the crown with a couple ruling together.
Max motioned to the king of Edgemont. “And, Colin, it’s wonderful to have you back with us.”
He noticed Colin only offered a curt nod in response, always a man of few words. Rosalie smiled brightly beside him, looking the epitome of pure sunshine—a stark contrast to her husband.
This was Colin’s first time attending the yearly meeting in over five years—since the death of his first wife. In the time he hadn’t attended, he’d sent his most trusted advisor, Duke Wesley Hughes, in his place. Colin had changed considerably since he’d married Rosalie last year, and Drew was glad he was starting to attend events and resume his royal duties.
“As you all have likely noticed, I have invited my son, Andrew, to attend today’s meeting.” His father steepled his hands and released a long breath before continuing. “He is going to be taking over for me soon, so I thought it prudent for him to attend a Fenimore Kingdoms Alliance meeting to get the lay of the land.”
“If our rulers keep getting younger and younger, everyone is going to start thinking the rest of us are old and senile,” King Nicholas of Rothwell joked, making the other more senior kings and queens chuckle.
“Aside from Liam and Colin, we’re all…what? In our fifties and sixties? That’s hardly old, just middle-aged.” King Frederick of Findorra gave a decisive nod.
His father took control of the conversation with a single clearing of his throat. “Now that we’ve clarified we’re not yet elderly, let’s go around and share updates.”
Nicholas spoke first with his wife sitting proudly at his side. “We’ve made efforts to preserve our forests and the ocean. The next step in our plan is to focus on decreasing pollution, specifically from plastic. I’ll have my secretary compile some of our documents and findings and send them to everyone if you’d like to implement more preservation efforts in your countries.”
“I’m happy to hear Rothwell is pursuing such sustainable endeavors. I’m sure we’d all appreciate the information being passed along.” With Nicholas’s update done, his father turned to address the King of Meldovia. “How about you, Michael?”
“Everything is well.” He smiled at his wife, Alexandra. “Our daughter, Josephine, is finishing up her last semester of school and is preparing to work on some new initiatives for the crown.”
Alexandra turned to the queen of Rothwell. “Victoria, is Nathaniel almost finished at the university as well?”
“Yes, he’s in his final courses now. He’s hoping to take on some charitable projects of his own to serve Rothwell when he returns home. I’m glad to see this next generation is invested in bettering their countries.”
“Hear, hear.” Edgar raised his glass into the air.
“Do you have any updates for Bristol, Edgar?” his father asked.
Edgar motioned to his wife, Lena. “Our son, Sullivan, is currently stationed at a military post in western Bristol. We expect he’ll remain on active duty for a few more years. Our daughter, Annalise, is focusing on her passion project: increasing accessibility to mental health services and resources.”
“That’s a very admirable endeavor. We all look forward to seeing her results and following her lead in our own kingdoms.”
Edgar nodded before continuing his update. “Our new shipping port on the southeastern coast has also been operational for three months. As you may know, in Bristol we’ve been increasing yields for our citrus crops through hybridization, resulting in a surplus beyond what we need for our own citizenry. This port establishes infrastructure we need to further trade relationships with other nations both in Fenimore and beyond.”
“We’re happy to welcome any guests who would like to observe our new techniques,” Lena added.
“Excellent. Keeping a project of that scale on schedule is quite a feat. I’m sure some countries will take you up on that offer.” His father turned to his best friend, King Edward, gesturing for him to go next.
“I’m sure everyone is already aware of Westridge’s most recent announcement—my daughter, Brielle, is engaged to Andrew.”
All eyes in the room turned to Drew, and he did his best to maintain a neutral expression as a round of congratulations was offered—though most of them had attended the ball when the engagement had first been announced. He felt awkward, being congratulated repeatedly for something that wasn’t real—something he hadn’t thought about before suggesting he and Bri enact their marriage pact.
“Thank you, everyone. We are thrilled and look forward to having you all attend our wedding in the future.” The words tasted like a bitter pill in Drew’s mouth. It was hard enough feeling like they were lying to their families and the citizens of their nations, but carrying on the ruse to a room full of kings and queens from all across Fenimore felt downright dangerous.
All Drew wanted was for this to be real. Not only so he could spend forever with the woman he loved but also so they wouldn’t have to announce to the entire world they weren’t getting married after all.
He was so caught up in his own thoughts that Drew missed the rest of Edward’s update for Westridge. When he tuned in once again, King Frederick of Findorra was speaking.
“Thanks to the assistance from Edgemont, Findorra is in a much better financial position than we were a year ago. Using our revenue from our new tax structure, we are improving transportation infrastructure and have opened a second children’s resource center, thanks to Grace’s efforts.” He placed his hand atop his wife’s, who flushed at the compliment.
“Congratulations to you both. That’s quite the turnaround,” Michael said with an easy smile.
When no one else spoke for a few moments, his father moved on. “Colin, how are things in Edgemont?”
