Chapter 59

MILA

I had only been at my parents’ house for a week and I already wanted to leave.

I was responsible for all of the cleaning, yardwork, grocery shopping, and general errands, while Nadine insisted on ordering food every night instead of letting me cook. I was constantly sore, sweaty, and tired, and answered to my sister’s beck and call every waking moment. She took some sort of sadistic pleasure in bossing me around, never missing an opportunity to remind me of my failures in life.

My family did not allow me to sit at the dinner table with them, rather, I had to sit in the kitchen by myself while I ate. Nadine found this endlessly funny, and would constantly mock my state of perpetual aloneness.

The attic I was sleeping in was small and cramped, and I woke up every morning with a stuffy nose from all the dust that had formed over the years. My bed was not, actually, a real bed, rather, it was a chaise lounge from the pool that had a few cushions on it.

To call this a place to stay was generous, but it was a roof over my head and a quiet place for me to be alone with my thoughts. And I had a lot of thoughts.

Truth be told, I missed Fresonia. Not just Felix–although my heart ached every time I thought of him, which was about once every five seconds. I missed the fruit vendors and the seaside and the way the castle softly glowed at sunrise.

I also missed my restaurant, and felt a little foolish for abandoning it so quickly.

I’d had a life in Fresonia, a real life, and something that was leagues better than whatever I had going for me in America. Here, no one wanted me, and I was jobless and fiancé-less. At least in Europe I always had work, even if it was threatening my sanity.

My morning routine here was the same: wake up, try to shake out the stiffness in my bones, and tumble downstairs to the judgment of my family. Ironically, Nadine seemed to love having me home, as it marked the return of her verbal punching bag.

My father was no better, and my mother was no help. Every day served as a not-so-gentle reminder of why I left.

On the morning of my one-week mark, I made my way downstairs to find my family talking excitedly about something around the table.

“I can’t believe he’s coming here!” Nadine exclaimed.

“You should try to meet him, Nadine,” my mother suggested. “I bet he’d really like you.”

“What’s going on?” I asked.

My family all turned to me in excitement, and for the first time in a long time, they did not have a snarky comment to greet me with.

“There’s a prince visiting America this weekend! He’s going to the diplomatic convention just up the road!” Nadine was practically bouncing with glee.

“A prince?!” My jaw dropped. Royalty visiting America? Now that was something exciting.

“Yes!” Nadine squealed. “Prince Felix of Fresonia!”

I felt my face drain of color. Nadine was continuing to yap away, but she sounded underwater. There was a roaring in my ears, something that sounded not unlike the roar of a dragon.

If my family noticed my stunned reaction, they did not comment on it.

“Isn’t he the future king of Fresonia?” My father asked.

“He is!” Nadine was already looking up Felix on the Internet. I could only pray any images of me had been scrubbed from the paparazzi websites.

“He’s 30, and he’ll take over the throne in a few years,” Nadine loudly explained, clearly reading from one of the gossip websites I myself had once scoured for information about Felix. “They say he’s very handsome and quite the rake.”

“He’s only 29,” I whispered. No one could hear me. “His birthday isn’t for a few more weeks.”

And he’s not a rake, I thought to myself. But there was no use in saying any of it out loud. I could only hope that my family never learned of my connection to the prince.

“I should go shopping today and find a nice dress,” Nadine mused. “I could head down to the convention center and try to meet the prince.”

“It would certainly be very impressive if you managed to find the prince,” my father said, staring at Nadine proudly. “Imagine, my daughter, a princess!”

“I wonder what he’s like,” Nadine said dreamily. “I bet he’s a true gentleman. Very romantic. A man like that is surely the kind of husband any woman would want…”

I turned my head to the window, fighting back a wave of nausea. There was no way I could ever tell my family about my connection to Felix. If Nadine wanted to daydream about marrying him, there was nothing I could do about it.

I couldn’t believe that he was coming to America. Some stupid, small part of me wondered if he had traveled all this way to see me, to mend our broken relationship. But that was impossible. Felix hadn’t even tried to reach out since I left. Clearly, he was focusing his attentions elsewhere.

There was no point in feeling distressed over Felix’s visit to America. He was there for a conference, not to see me, and therefore I would not have to worry about confronting him.

Truthfully, I was afraid that being Felix’s Destined Bride meant that I would never love again, that there was no one else for me out there. If it was written into my destiny somehow that I would be with Felix forever, a man who just… didn’t want me.

Girls like Nadine had plenty of options. Someone like me, on the other hand, only had an innate sense of loneliness that would never go away.

“Mila?” My mother asked. She studied my face. “Are you feeling alright? You look ill.”

My father and Nadine turned to me.

“You look horrible,” my father said simply. Nadine smirked.

“Are you sad because a prince will never fall in love with you?” Nadine teased. “I would be sick, too, if I looked like you, Mila.”

“I think I might be coming down with something,” I lied. “I can go lay down so I don’t spread it to any of you.”

Nadine shrieked dramatically and pushed her chair away from me. My mother frowned and nodded her head.

“That sounds like a good idea,” she said softly. “Take the day off from cleaning and make sure you’re all rested up.”

Nadine started complaining about having to load the dishwasher by herself and I seized the moment for a quick escape.

I shoved thoughts of Felix out of my head as I headed back upstairs. I was glad for the day off. I needed some space away from my family to think.

Would I forgive Felix if he apologized?

Was Felix even interested in apologizing?

As I sank down into my sad little bed, I made a split-second decision. I needed to get over Felix. What better way than to find someone else?

And so, before my courage could fail me, I downloaded a dating app.