Henry had an amused expression on his face and Charlotte lifted a hand to her mouth as though to hide a smile. Stefan's expression remained stiff and impassive, and Libby couldn't quite get a read on the cousins, Oliver and Emma. But she had a feeling she'd just made an incredibly stupid suggestion.
Alex picked up Libby's hand and squeezed it. She glanced over at him for the first time and saw eyes dark with something she couldn't quite identify. Concern, maybe? For himself, or for her? "That'll just make the royal family look weak and indecisive to the press."
Well, that answered that question. She swallowed hard. Of course he was worried about the royal family's reputation. That's what she'd been hired to fix.
"Telling everyone the engagement was a mistake is the absolute worst thing we could do right now," Nicolette said, her tone clearly saying that Libby was an idiot for even suggesting the idea. "We'll have to see it through."
"To what, the altar?" Alex said. His hand suddenly felt cold in Libby's and she gently pulled away.
"Of course not," Nicolette snapped. "Eventually we'll concoct some sort of scandal on Libby's end to get us out of this."
Libby's mouth dropped open. "Excuse me?"
Nicolette folded her arms and leaned against the fireplace mantle, her red dress glinting against the white herringbone tile. "This little accident is your fault, dear. Seems only fair that you clean up the mess."
"Oh, you mean like Alex cleaned up his mess with Isla?" Libby shot back hotly. "Or have you forgotten that you hired me to fix that one?"
"Hey now," Alex said.
Libby couldn't look at him, humiliation making her cheeks warm. That was a low blow and she knew it.
"And a fine job you've done," Nicolette said, raising an eyebrow. "I suppose that ring flew off your finger and clattered to the floor? And Alexander just happened to pick it up in a room of crowded guests and cameras? And it just happened to look like a proposal?"
"Yes." Libby felt the queen's displeasure like a physical weight, but fought to keep her shoulders straight and head held high. She'd done nothing wrong. "That's exactly what I'm saying."
"I'm not sure a scandal is the right way out of this," Maggie said tentatively. "We can run all possible scenarios before picking the one that'll result in the least amount of damage to all involved parties. Perhaps if we go with a different worlds spin-"
"Well, that won't be hard to sell to the public," Nicolette cut in.
Geoffrey placed a calming hand on his wife's shoulder. "What's done is done. Maggie is right-we can figure out our exit strategy later. What we need right now is a plan to deal with the press over the next few weeks. This will be front page news across the world. We have to handle the situation delicately."
Libby had only agreed to this charade for four months, and one of those had already passed. But she had a feeling that timeline was now out the window. She leaned back against the couch, resigning herself to the fact that her quick four-month job had just been indefinitely extended. Maybe if she cooperated with the royal family, they'd forget about the ten million dollars Libby could be sued for if this secret got out.
Charlotte ran a hand lazily across the cover of the book she held, looking every bit the regal princess who wasn't overly bothered by anything. "You know, Mother, there is another way out of this mess."
Nicolette straightened. "And what exactly is that?"
Charlotte smiled, looking very much like a cat who had just swallowed a canary. "They could get married."
Libby swayed, her shoulder knocking into Alex's. It was a good thing she was sitting, because seriously, that wasn't even funny to joke about. It was official-the entire royal family of Durham was crazy.
"Don't be absurd," Alex said, his tone sharp.
Okay, so maybe he did still hate her a teeny bit. He sounded horrified by the very idea of marrying her.
"Of course we won't get married," Libby said. "I have a life in the States. No offense, but I'm not about to leave it for the insanity I've been thrown into."
The queen's eyes spit fire. "This is all your fault, Miss Claybourne. The proper thing to do would be to help us fix things."
Libby held up her hands, anger coursing through her. "Now wait a minute. All I did was hand Alex a crying baby. How was I supposed to know we'd end up a national headline? I'm only here tonight because you practically begged me to date His Royal Highness."
"And now you're engaged to a prince," Nicolette said. "How coincidental."
Rage made Libby's entire body feel on fire. Tonight she had been belittled, insulted, humiliated, and basically treated like crap. That's what trying to help someone got her. She couldn't even look at Alex. Tears burned at her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. Instead she yanked the ring off her left hand and shoved it back on her right. "That's it-I'm out of here. No amount of money is worth this kind of stress. Believe me when I say that I have no desire to be the next queen of Durham."
Nicolette clenched her fists, her face turning red. "You are contractually obligated to see this through to the end."
"I don't remember marriage being part of the deal."
"If you tell anyone what's really happened, you'll be fined ten million dollars," Nicolette shrieked.
Libby forced a laugh through her fear. "Good luck getting your money. I've got less than a hundred dollars in the bank right now."
The room exploded. Everyone jumped to their feet and started talking at once. Libby strode from the room, struggling to keep her head held high and her knees from collapsing. Her composure lasted until the door closed behind her. She pressed a hand against the wall to steady herself as tears clawed for release. A guard stood a few paces down the hallway, but politely ignored her minor meltdown just like he had the last time she'd stood outside this room.
She'd just told off a room full of royals. That probably hadn't been her smartest idea ever. And now, what-she owed the crown ten million dollars?
Panic burned in her throat and her shoulders began to tremble.
Engaged to a prince. If she'd known this is what her stay in Durham would be like, she would've stayed in Oregon. Her parents' fighting wasn't nearly as stressful as this.
The door clicked open and closed, and a hand rested lightly on her shoulder. "Please don't go, Libby."
Alex's voice washed over her like a caress. She clenched her fists and turned, unleashing her fury on him. "And why not? You just sat there and let me be flailed alive by a bunch of piranhas!"
He blinked, eyebrows arching in surprise. "This whole thing is a pretty big shock. I'll admit, my mother wasn't on her best behavior back there-"
"She called me a gold digger."
"And that was wrong of her," Alex said quickly. "She'll apologize when she calms down, I'm sure of it. She's quite traditional. This isn't how she imagined an engagement happening for her eldest son."
Libby folded her arms, refusing to be drawn in by those eyes that grabbed hold of her soul and wouldn't let go. "This isn't how I imagined my time in Durham going, either. I'm here to help Connie, and so far all I've managed to do is end up in the newspapers."
"I understand. But please, Libby. I need your help to make this work." He swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down. "I can't go back to being ridiculed daily in the press. I can't have another relationship fail so publicly."
She laughed, running a hand through her hair. "This isn't a relationship, Alex. We can barely stand to be in the same room as each other. We're always arguing."
He took a step closer, his eyes darkening. "Not all fighting is bad."
No. She wasn't about to get drawn in again. She kept her expression cold and calculating-at least, she hoped that's how she appeared. "Why do you need this so badly? If I don't date you, sure, the Durhams might not fall at your feet. But nothing will really change. You'll still be king one day."
"True. But I can do a lot more good if I'm liked than if everyone is constantly working against me." He reached out and gently took her hand into his. Her breathing hitched and she tried not to stare at him. "Please, Liberty. Stay and be my fake fiancée."
She gulped. Her entire head felt as though it were filled with cotton.
"I won't be treated like one of the servants," she said.
Alex nodded quickly. "Of course. I'll speak to the entire family. I promise you that from this point forward, you will only be treated with the utmost respect."
"And Connie and Kenzie are still my first priorities. An engagement doesn't change that."
"I understand. We'll continue to work around your schedule."