AnotidaMandemwa

[This book is complete]
Everyone is playing a regal game. Everyone except Lucia (who probably should).

After her father faced accusations of trying to seize the throne from his father and king, he was exiled along with his family. They were no longer royalty, but his wife would not have it. She was friends with the queen of Vershia and used that to her advantage. Her two older daughters were the right age to marry the two princes, and she would make that happen come what may.

That became a problem when the oldest daughter was ignored by the crown prince, who formed a friendship with the youngest of the girls. There was still hope; Lucia could become the future queen. But Lucia was not groomed for this role. She did not want to live for the type of marriage she could snag. She did not want to take the man who had been planned for her sister.

But that’s the thing with plans, isn’t it? She never planned to fall in love with the man, and there she was: an unwilling participant in the regal games. Would she capture the crown? How would everything affect her relationship with her sister? Was there ever pleasing her mother?

[WSA 2024 Entry]

Regal Games

The bride's feet were on the pavement. She had one hand in the crook of her father's arm and the other holding her bouquet of roses. Her sisters were behind her, fussing over the train of her dress. Her father looked down at her, and she looked up at him.

She looked ahead at the open doors of the chapel at the top of the stairs and then at her father.

He nodded and looked ahead. The King of Rhodes, composed as he should be, was still a father, and a mixture of emotions that did not show on his face fought for acknowledgement within him.

He took a step forward, and Adela easily matched it. He took another, and she did the same. Slowly, they began the march up the stairs. Each step was measured and sure. Adela tightened her hand on her father's arm, and he put a hand over it reassuringly. He was here. He would not let her stumble.

Aisle Be There