The Rock Star's Prince (The Royal Wedding Book 2) Read online

  “So I bet this wasn’t what you were expecting tonight,” she said, walking slowly from one end of the stage to the other so that as many people as possible could hear her. The stage hands with flashlights kept them trained on her. “It wasn’t what I was expecting either.”

  She paused while the audience reacted with low chuckles. They seemed to understand that they needed to stay quiet for Emma to be heard.

  “I just don’t feel like myself today,” she went on, pausing and striking a Fuchsia pose, even though she wasn’t in costume. Beth had done the best she could, but it wasn’t enough to hide the truth. Emma dropped the pose and turned to the audience with an earnest expression. “Actually, I feel more like myself right now than I have in a long time. But you all knew there was a real person under the costume, didn’t you?”

  The audience responded with yeses and light laughter.

  Emma started across the stage in the other direction. “You wanna know how this happened?” The audience said yes, so she went on. “You’ve heard the story of the Princess and the Frog, right?” More response. “Well, what happened to me is the story of the Prince and the Rock Star.”

  Her glance flickered up to the royal box, but it was impossible to see if Arne was listening.

  She took a deep breath, knowing her entire career and life as she knew it was on the line. “This is the story of a Rock Star who came from a far-off, strange land called Hollywood.”

  The audience laughed.

  Emma smiled. “The Rock Star was very good at croaking…I mean singing—” More laughter. “—so the magical land of Hollywood sent her on tour. But as beautiful as the Rock Star’s songs were, her heart was sad.” She waited for the audience to respond before going on. “Even though the Rock Star made many, many friends in her travels—” She opened her arms to the audience. “—she never found love.”

  The audience made a sympathetic sound.

  “Until one day, the Rock Star traveled to the amazing kingdom of Aegiria.”

  Emma had to wait for an outburst of cheering to crest and die down before going on.

  “And in this magical land, she met a handsome prince.”

  Again, she had to wait for oohs and aahs to quiet before continuing.

  “But the Rock Star had a problem. She was charmed by the handsome prince and fell in love with him.” Her heart quivered with nerves at the admission, but she figured she might as well go for broke. At least that way, Arne might believe everything she said next. “Only, because of the spell put on her back in the land of Hollywood, she had to keep who she was a secret. Until one day, the handsome prince discovered the truth.”

  The audience reacted, and Emma glanced up to the royal box.

  “The prince was hurt, and the Rock Star felt so sad. The spell put on her had always felt wonderful and exciting, but suddenly it felt like a curse. And more than anything, the Rock Star wished for the curse to be lifted. Because the handsome prince made her happy, for the first time in a long time, and she was so sorry to have wrecked that. She wanted him to know it, and she wanted everyone else in the kingdom of Aegiria to see her for who she really was, even if it meant she had a difficult road ahead of her.” And heaven knew how Hoss would react to her whole story. She had a bad feeling she was in serious trouble, but she wasn’t about to stop.

  “But there was hope,” she went on, fishing for a way to bring her rambling story back to a point. “Because very happy things were about to happen in the kingdom of Aegiria. The queen had a great and glorious announcement to make. And the Rock Star hoped that by helping the queen to make that announcement, the handsome prince might see that the Rock Star really did care for him and that she wanted to make up for all the things that were beyond her control. So what do you say, friends? Should we hear what Queen Viktoria has to announce to all of us?”

  The audience burst into applause and enthusiastic support. Emma gestured for the stage hands to shine the lights away from her and up to the royal box. They moved quickly, pointing their light up. A few other staff members managed to get to the boxes on either side of the royal box. They shone their lights on the queen and Dr. Hayes, who stepped front and center, waving to the crowd. The rest of the royal family stepped up with him, showing their support for the announcement about to be made.

  At least, most of them stepped up. Emma searched the rest of the box for Arne, but he wasn’t there.

  Arne bumped his way through the darkness of corridors without power on his way to the stage. All he had to illuminate the way were the emergency lights running along the edges of the hall and his cell phone. It wasn’t much, but it didn’t matter. He had to get to the stage, get to Emma as soon as possible.

  He was an idiot to hold her secret against her. Of course she was under a spell cast by Hollywood. If he’d been more concerned about her and less about his wounded pride for not knowing everything all the time, he would have seen that. People who performed wearing costumes like Fuchsia’s, with so much make-up that it was hard to tell who they really were had to be more of a creation than not. It wasn’t Emma’s fault.

  There was more and more light as he reached the backstage area. The power still wasn’t on, but Sven’s staff must have found generators and lanterns to keep people from breaking their necks as they rushed around trying to figure out why the power was out. The area directly behind the stage almost felt bright in comparison to the hallways. Arne could just barely hear Emma talking on the stage and the audience responding. He didn’t care if it made him look foolish and needy, he had to get to her.

  He made it to the wings on stage left before Hoss stepped into his path, thrusting out a hand. Arne walked right into it. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

  “I need to reach Emma,” Arne said staring daggers back at the man.

  “No one talks to her before I talk to her,” Hoss growled. “And when I’m through with her, I don’t think she’ll be in a position to talk to anybody.”

  Arne burned hot with rage at the threat. “If you hurt her in any way, you’ll have me to deal with.”

  “Hurt her?” Hoss humphed. “That stupid girl’s hurt herself. Standing out there without her costume, telling the whole world who she is.” He made an angry sound. “She’s in violation of her contract in so many ways that my lawyers will bleed her dry and take the skin off her back while they’re at it.”

  Obviously, the man didn’t know how dangerous his words were. Arne stepped right up to him, grabbing a handful of his shirt. “You may have a contract, but in case you hadn’t noticed, the power is out. There are no cameras broadcasting. Emma is out there doing the best she can under the circumstances. And even though word of this will get out in no time, you can’t blame Emma for that.”

  “She violated her contract the second she told you who she was,” Hoss said, clearly intimidated, but trying to hold his own.

  “She didn’t tell me who she was,” Arne said, shaking Hoss then letting him go. “You did.”

  “It’s a lie.” Hoss took a large step back, straightening his shirt.

  “Emma didn’t tell me anything. I didn’t know she was Fuchsia until you barged in on us this morning and revealed everything. How do you think your lawyers will feel when I testify that you were the one who broke the contract?”

  Hoss gaped and shook his head. “She’s the one out there spilling all to a thousand people.”

  “Has she said her real name yet?” Arne challenged him. “Has she done anything more than go out there without make-up?”

  “Any fool can match her image from tonight with anything on the internet saying who she is.”

  “But Emma won’t be the one revealing her secret. Not any more than she would be if someone snuck a pic of her out of costume when she didn’t know she was being watched.”

  “But…I won’t…she’s responsible….” Hoss flailed.

  Arne was through listening to him. The audience had just burst into some sort of expectant murmur. The flashli
ghts that had been pointing to Emma had focused somewhere else. He used that as his opportunity to stride onto the stage, ignoring everything else, just to reach her.

  “Emma,” he said when he was close to her.

  She was watching the royal balcony, along with everyone else in the audience, but turned to him. “Arne?” Even in the near blackness, he could see the surprise on her face, and the affection. “Arne, I’m so sorry,” she said, taking a few steps toward him.

  “I know.” He closed the space between them, taking her into his arms. “I’m sorry too. I was a total idiot.”

  “No more than I was.” She accepted his embrace, resting her arms around him. “I should have told you everything from the start.”

  He shook his head. “You couldn’t have. I get that now.” He paused. “I just ran into Hoss, and let’s just say that he made it clear what you had to lose by telling me.”

  “Still, I should have said something.”

  “Ladies and gentlemen,” his mother called from the box above the arena floor. The queen had been addressing the crowd through the whole exchange, but he’d hardly noticed. With Emma still in his arms, Arne turned to watch. “It is with great pleasure that I would like to announce my engagement to Dr. William Hayes.”

  The audience gasped, then burst into applause. Dr. Hayes stepped to the edge of the box and waved to the cheering crowd. His mother took his hand, then moved close to kiss him. The crowd’s enthusiasm for the kiss was deafening, their approval overwhelming.

  For the first time in weeks, Arne let go of the tension that had held him in an iron grip. The wedding was announced and people approved. Everything was going to be all right.

  He turned to Emma and shouted, “That looks like a good idea,” over the roar of the audience.

  “What does?” Emma shouted back.

  Arne drew her into his arms, kissing her soundly. She responded with complete acceptance, molding her body against his and kissing him back with all the passion she’d shown the night before. Happiness burst through Arne’s entire body. Emma was what he’d waited his whole life for.

  All at once, the power came on with a blinding flash of light and a deafening screech as the sound equipment roared back to life. The audience turned from the royal box to find Arne and Emma clasped in a passionate embrace, lips locked. A whole new round of shouted approval rose up through the arena.

  Arne gasped and broke the kiss, but kept Emma in his arms. They laughed, then both turned to the audience. With absolute poise, Emma waved to the audience. She still held the microphone in her hand and raised it to say, “Well, this feels like a fairy tale ending, doesn’t it?”

  Her words reverberated through the arena. The television camera lights were back on, so there was a chance her words echoed through all of Aegiria and the world. She turned to him with a smile of such pure happiness that Arne couldn’t help but kiss her again.

  The crowd went wild.

  “Ladies and gentlemen,” Emma laughed as soon as Arne let her go. “Let’s hear it for Queen Viktoria and her husband-to-be, Dr. William Hayes!”

  The cheering was so loud that Arne could barely hear himself think. But he didn’t need to think, he only needed to feel. He squeezed Emma’s hand as he backed farther away from her. She turned to her band and indicated that they should be ready to go on with the concert. Arne was fine with taking a backseat and letting her sing. He had the solid, confident feeling that he wasn’t about to lose her. On the contrary. One look at her dazzling smile, and he knew they had a whole lifetime of happiness ahead of them.

  Epilogue

  Excitement swirled in the pit of Emma’s stomach as the plane made its final descent into Solrighavn’s airport. She all but pressed her nose against the window to get a look at the deep, blue waters of the Baltic Sea and the green of Aegiria. She’d missed the place terribly in the four weeks that she’d been gone.

  The intensity of her longing made her laugh and face forward as the plane touched down. It seemed almost ridiculous that she could miss a place she’d only spent one week in, but it had been an eventful week. Really, the way she felt about Aegiria boiled down to that one, stunning moment, when the power came back on in the arena and everyone saw her and Arne kissing. Those people had been so supportive, so happy for the two of them. That one outpouring of emotion had meant more to her than anything in her life.

  “Ladies and gentlemen,” the captain’s voice came over the plane’s intercom. “You are now free to move about the cabin and to deplane.”

  Emma jumped up as soon as she was able. She’d protested when Arne said he would pay for her to fly first class on her return trip, but in the end, she’d given in. First class meant she was one of the first people off the plane.

  “Excuse me,” she said, trying not to bump into the businessman who had been seated next to her. He gave her a bland smile, but that was it. The rest of the passengers had been the same way. They’d more or less ignored her, having no idea who she was. The news of Fuchsia’s true identity had broken worldwide after the concert, but the face of Emma Sands was so normal compared to Fuchsia’s wild make-up that the world had quickly forgotten.

  Emma’s heart danced a jig as she slung her carryon over her shoulder and hurried up the skywalk to the VIP waiting area. This was the moment she’d dreamed about for the whole long, arduous month since she’d left after the concert. She turned a corner, and there was Arne, standing there waiting for her. He burst into a smile at the sight of her, and she picked up her pace to run into his arms.

  “I’ve missed you so much,” she said hugging him tight, then kissing him.

  The few other passengers who were permitted to deplane into the VIP area sent them smiles or approving nods. Emma barely noticed any of them. She kissed Arne for all he was worth until he let her go.

  “So?” he asked. “How did it go?”

  Emma made an impatient sound and rolled her eyes. “Hoss started out trying to fight it. He wanted to run me through the wringer, but my lawyers argued the case, just like you suggested they should.” She turned and started walking through the lounge toward the special area for first-class immigration and customs.

  “Did it work?” Arne asked, taking her hand.

  “It did,” she announced with a happy squeal. “They let me out of the contract with only minimal penalties.”

  He frowned. “What kind of penalties?”

  “My share of Fuchsia’s royalties going forward has been cut, and I’m not allowed to appear as Fuchsia, sign autographs, or give interviews in character.”

  “How about money?”

  Emma smiled. “They didn’t pursue damages.”

  Part of her couldn’t believe how happy she was to have her music career utterly destroyed. Overnight, Fuchsia had disappeared. Fans were outraged. The industry was curious. But Dazzle Productions was being incredibly close-lipped about it. It was no secret that Fuchsia’s true identity had been exposed, but because Emma had turned down every interview and talk-show opportunity that came hurling at her head, the story had died faster than she would have thought possible. It could have been because Hoss was already promoting a new, flashy singer to take Fuchsia’s place.

  But the lack of publicity wouldn’t last long. In no time, Emma was sure her celebrity status would return. Her new job would turn heads internationally.

  “So are you ready to start making public appearances as a representative for Enriching Children?” Arne asked as they finished going through immigration and headed out to the limo that waited to take them to the palace.

  “I’m so ready,” Emma sighed. She nodded to the bodyguards who were tucking her luggage into the limo’s trunk. “And I’m ready to be involved in your mom’s wedding in any way I can.”

  “Good.” Arne kissed her hand before letting it go so she could slide into the limo. Once they were both settled, he went on. “She’s excited about you coming back.”

  “Really? We hardly spent any time together before.”<
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  “She’s hoping to make up for that this time. She really likes you.”

  Emma laughed. Never in her wildest imagination would she have imagined a queen liking her. “I just hope I don’t disappoint her.”

  “I’m sure you won’t. I don’t think you could be a disappointment to anybody.”

  She arched an eyebrow at him, thinking of Hoss.

  “Well, anybody that matters,” Arne corrected, sliding closer to her and looping an arm around her back. “I’m just so glad you’re here at last.”

  She leaned close to kiss him, beyond grateful that he would be there for her in what could have been a stressful time.

  “Oh!” She leaned back. “Did I tell you that Tracy is coming back to Aegiria too?”

  “She is?” Arne smiled.

  “Yes. Since she doesn’t have her job as my assistant to get her into the inside world of the music industry, she’d decided to throw her energy back into journalism full-time. She said she found a lot of leads for stories she’d like to pursue here in Aegiria.”

  “Aegiria is the last place I’d think of for excitement of a newsworthy nature,” Arne laughed. He stopped and tilted his head to the side with a frown. “Although, on second thought, weird stuff does keep happening around here.”

  “Like the concert,” Emma said.

  “And my brother’s kidnapping.” He paused, rubbing his chin. “There has to be more of an explanation about the ordeal with Alek than meets the eye. No one kidnaps someone simply to stop them from supporting a marriage.”

  “Just like no one turns the world upside down to stop a concert at which the queen announces her impending nuptials?” Emma sent him a wry look. Although they still didn’t know exactly how it was done, the conclusion that the entire royal family had come to was that the difficulties with the concert had been for the sole purpose of stopping the wedding announcement from happening. But why was still a mystery.