“Oh, I’ve got moves. I’ve got moves you don’t even know about.”
“I like the sound of that.”
I nodded. “You’ve still got a lot to learn about me, Sebastian,” I said. “It’s only going to get better from here.”
He surprised me by leaning forward, squeezing me tight in a hug. “I don’t know how it could possibly get any better.”
“Because we’re together, it will,” I said softly, close to his ear. I breathed in the scent of his hair, which still smelled like the shampoo from when we’d showered together earlier today.
We danced for hours. It turned out that the villages of Frostmonte Kingdom really knew how to party when you got them all in one castle for a night. They didn’t stop for anything.
I was leaning against the far wall of the ballroom when Sebastian found his way back to my side again. It was nearly midnight, but the party may as well have just been getting started.
“There you are,” he said, grabbing my lapels and pulling me forward into a kiss. “Are you all alone?”
“No. Tracy was just here. Bugging me again about when a proposal was going to happen. She’s as impatient for it as we are, I think.”
Sebastian got a mischievous, twinkling look in his eye. “You’re impatient for it too, huh?”
“I’m not supposed to admit that, am I?” I asked.
“Maybe not, but I’m glad that you did,” he said.
Just outside the windows, a light snow had just begun to fall. It felt like we were in a giant, beautiful snowglobe, warm and happy in here with everyone nearby.
“Well, whenever we do that, I’ll be happy,” I said, smoothing Sebastian’s hair with my palm.
“Whenever we get engaged?”
“Yes,” I said softly. “I know I want you. And I know that’s never going to change. So… a proposal will happen when it happens.”
He bit his lower lip. “What if I’m doing it right now?”
I froze in place. “Huh?”
He reached into his pocket as he slowly bent down on one knee. The band quickly changed into playing a different song. One I recognized immediately as a song we’d both loved so much as kids, even if it was cheesy. It was Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.
My heart started to slam in my chest as I watched Sebastian on the floor beneath me.
“Henry Denton, you’re already my best friend, and I hope you will be forever. Will you do me the honor of being my husband, too?” he asked, opening a box to reveal a silver banded ring.
“Holy fuck,” I said. People in the crowd were starting to take notice, turning toward us and gasping. Multiple people were recording with their phones, now, too.
He smiled at me, his eyes twinkling. I swore I could see the reflection of the snow in them. “That’s a good ‘holy fuck,’ right?”
“That is a hell yes,” I said, grabbing his shoulders and pulling him up into a kiss. “Sebastian—how the hell did you—you got a ring that quick—”
“Being a king has its perks,” he murmured.
The crowd was wild now. Girls were screaming. Sebastian laughed, looking out over the crowd. It was the first time I’d seen him happy to be so on display.
“Everyone’s taking our picture,” he said softly, his eyes dancing around the crowd.
“Yeah,” I said. “And for once, you look like you’re eating it up.”
He turned to me, coming in for another slow, deliberate kiss. He placed his hands on either side of my face, really hamming it up for the cameras. I couldn’t help but smile as his lips pressed against mine.
“Maybe I am,” he said as he pulled away, looking only in my eyes. “Maybe I like being seen, when I’m being seen for who I really am.”
I nodded. “Well, let’s go dance, fiance,” I said. “Give the people what they want.”
“Give me what I want,” he said.
“What I’ve wanted for my whole life,” I agreed.
Epilogue
Sebastian, Nine Months Later
I’d always dreaded having a royal wedding.
For so long, it had been the biggest symbol of my imprisonment in Frostmonte Castle. The idea of marrying someone I didn’t really love was a big anvil hanging over my childhood and teenage years.
Turns out, I just needed to do a royal wedding my way.
Henry and I were married in the main outdoor courtyard gardens of Frostmonte Castle, on a crisp fall day. The ceremony itself was as small as we could possibly keep it—only close family and friends. I’d invited my mother knowing she wouldn’t show up, but having Tracy in the front row, tears streaming down her face the whole ceremony, was more than enough for me.
And then after the ceremony, the real party started.
All of the guests were driven down the mountain to Berrydale, where anyone in Frostmonte Kingdom was invited to the big reception party. Henry and I had decided to hold it in the park across from his childhood home, the same place we’d had our first kiss long ago.
The park had been transformed into a late autumn wonderland. There were canopies, string lights, outdoor seating, a giant dance floor, and plenty of outdoor food stands and little bars. All of it surrounded by pine trees on every side.
As Henry and I approached the park from the street, we both leaned over to look out the window in the black car, holding hands as we marveled at the sights.
“They really outdid themselves on this one,” Henry said. “This was all Genoveve’s doing?”
“I told her I wanted it to be in this park,” I said, watching as the crowd spilled into the park. “She organized all the rest.”
Henry squeezed my hand in his, bringing it up and kissing the back of my palm. He looked at the gold band around my ring finger and sighed.
“You’re my husband,” he said plainly.
“You’re my husband.”
He let out a small laugh, shaking his head. “I wish I could go back and tell fifteen-year-old you and me that we had nothing to be afraid of.”
My heart squeezed in my chest. “I’m sure fifteen-year-old me wouldn’t have believed it, anyway,” I said.
We watched as the car drove around the park, pulling into our designated parking spot.
“Holy shit,” Henry said suddenly. “Sebastian, look.”
He was pointing over toward the far end of the street, a ways away from the actual park. There was a single car parked there.
And standing just outside that car was my mother. Wearing a simple silver dress, watching my car like she had been waiting for it.
My chest tightened instantly. “She’s here.”
“I guess she got the invitation, after all,” Henry said.
I swallowed hard. “I’m going to go talk to her,” I said.
“Are you sure? I don’t want you to get hurt.”
“I’m not going to let my mother ruin my wedding night,” I said. “But I have to talk to her.”
“I understand.” He pulled me into a short kiss. “I’ll meet you in the park, okay?”
I nodded.