Page 58 of Gotta Have Mistletoe
I close my eyes. I can’t look at him. What have I done? “I’m sorry.”
“We need to strategize a response.”
“Of course.”
I’ll release the pre-written statements,” Olav says, and I’m grateful that he seems to have some plan. “A grieving man made a poor decision. Glen will be sent home.”
Glen stiffens beside me.
I want to draw him into my arms and tell him that’s not the case... But Glen is supposed to leave Solberg the day after tomorrow anyway.
“Then you’ll announce that you respect your people too much to continue this charade,” Olav says in his customary brisk manner.
“You already wrote the PR?” I ask.
“I am very efficient, Your Majesty. I’ve crafted letters for every conceivable emergency. If Norway invades, if the almond supply dwindles.” Olav hesitates. “What is the nature of your relationship with Mr. Garland?”
I squirm under Olav’s gaze. After Glen and I kissed in public, I told Olav that Glen and I were simply friends. Olav had been disappointed, but he’d believed me.
What are Glen and I now? Is this where I tell my royal advisor, my childhood classmate, that Glen has been sneaking into my bedroom every night? But that we haven’t had a formal discussion?
Shame prickles me.
Solberg is suffering. I caused their confusion. I need to resolve this. Soon.
I close my eyes. “Perhaps you should send the e-mail.”
“Okay,” a bright voice says. “E-mail sent.”
I blink. “Who was that?”
“That, Your Majesty, was the AI Agent I installed to take over duties.” Olav’s face is twisted. “You said ‘you should send the e-mail’.”
“I said ‘perhaps’ first. I said ‘perhaps you should send the e-mail’.”
“The technology is still developing.”
“So it’s sent it? Just like that?”
Olav frowns. “That is how e-mail works. The process is immediate.”
“Perhaps we could explain...” Glen begins, then he halts.
I don’t want Glen to go. I was going to ask Glen to stay. But can I do that now?
“Solberg comes first,” I tell Glen. I don’t look at him. I can’t.
Maybe he was always going to go home. Maybe even if I’d asked him to stay, he would have reminded me that he has a home somewhere else.
He doesn’t even speak the language. Would he have wanted to change his whole life so much for me?
I scrunch my fingers together. This is the end. “Thank you, Glen. For everything. I’ll never forget you.”
“You should leave as soon as possible,” Olav tells Glen. “Your presence will irritate the population.”
Glen’s face whitens, but he gives a curt nod. “I wouldn’t want that...”
“There’s a flight out of the country tomorrow,” Olav says. “We’ll book seats for Max and you.”
