by Lauren Runow
The video cuts, I see Everly’s gorgeous face staring back at me. She smiles so sweetly, and I fall in love all over again.
“Hello, Canterbury. I think we got off on the wrong foot”—she laughs nervously—“My name is Everly Stanley, well now Everly Stevinson. My entire life I hated the fact that I was in the running to marry the Prince of Canterbury because I didn’t know who he was. Prince or not, I wanted to marry for love and nothing else. That is until I got to know the real Sage. This, what you see now, is who he really is. He took me to Malawi where we helped build a maternity ward.
“While I was here, I learned of a project that I would love to get our country involved in. You see, the women here don’t have feminine products. Instead, their entire lives are put on hold while their cycle progresses, and they sit in a corner waiting it out. An organization has created these reusable products,”—she holds one up demonstrating how they work—“and I’ve made it my goal to help these women not only get the products they need but also create jobs where people here can make these. I hope the women—and even men—of Canterbury can assist me in my mission and change the lives of women thousands of miles away.”
I wrap my arm around Everly, bringing her to me and kiss the top of her head. The video continues, with Madame Callista talking about the maternity ward and showing its progress. At the time of filming, it wasn’t quite finished so we stayed an extra day to help them as much as we could.
All that’s needed is the finishing touches, which I know they can handle. I laughed out loud when I was told the village had already agreed that the first born would be named either Everly or Sage. The look on Everly’s face was priceless.
She’s priceless.
The documentary goes on to other countries I’ve visited and people I’ve helped, but all I can focus on is the woman sitting beside me. In this short amount of time, she’s given me so much hope.
Hope for me.
Hope for my position as king one day.
I know since the people of Canterbury just saw what I’ve seen in her this past month or so, they will love her, too.
She glances up into my eyes. “Are you okay?” she asks, concerned.
“I’m more than okay.” I lean down to kiss her softly and hold her in my arms, exactly where she was meant to be.
I turn my attention back to the screen, and I’m back at the well, where the video first started.
“I know you all have been told I was away so I could become more suitable for a king, but in my opinion, there is nothing about who I am that I want to change. You see, I have been traveling the world between my studies, helping people just like this. I would love to bring my knowledge and experience back to Canterbury. We don’t need wells dug or maternity clinics built, but there are plenty of things I could do to make our country better.
“I want to work on a better school system that’s free to everyone, and I have ideas of ways to create jobs and start making things in Canterbury again to export to other countries. I plan on doing anything I can if you allow me to stay and represent our country as your king.
“Thank you all for your time and until I see you again, much love Canterbury.”
Images of the kids from each village we visited grace the screen, all waving and saying goodbye to the camera before fading to black.
I click the screen off and turn to Everly. “You did an amazing job.” I kiss her sweetly.
“I had an easy subject to cover.” She smiles so brightly that my heart melts. “So what now?”
“Now we wait and pray people see it my way.”
We stand to gather our things when my phone dings with a text message from Logan.
Shit is getting real. Check it out.
He sends me a link to a trending hashtag on social media called #ImWithSage. I scroll through to see people posting about the video, how they support me, and how they want me to be their king.
“Oh my God!” Everly screams while jumping and holding onto my arm. “Is this really happening?”
I wrap my arms around her, picking her up and swinging her around. “It is. All because of you.”
We kiss just as we hear, “Um, you guys better come down here.” I turn to see Judy standing at the bottom of the hill. “Someone saw you sneak back here and as soon as the video started the word got out. The place is swarmed with news crews.”
I hold Everly’s head in my hands. “Are you ready for this?”
She holds on to me. “I’m ready.”
We kiss before I lead her down the hill.
“What a great story, Sage,” Judy says after giving me a hug.
“It was all Everly,” I reply.
“I love you both, so much.” Judy hugs Everly, and we all walk toward the chaos I hear brewing.
She wasn’t kidding. At the gate of The Ridge, people swarm, all trying to get a peek at us.
As we approach I hear people yell, “I’m with you, Sage.”
“You’re my King Sage.”
“I want to help Everly.”
I stand in front of them, asking them to quiet down so I can speak. “Thank you so much for your support. Really. From the bottom of my heart, thank you. We still have our work cut out for us but know that we will fight this battle”—I glance to Everly—“together. Thank you.”
We work our way to a car where our driver, Sam, is standing, waiting to open the door. When he does, I see my mom and Mya sitting inside.
“Sage.” Mom holds me close to her as soon as we sit in the back of the limo. “I’m so sorry. You know I tried.”
“I know, Mom. I’m sorry to put you through that.”
“Don’t be sorry. I’m so proud of you for standing up for yourself.” She turns to Everly. “And sweetheart, you have no idea how happy I am that Sage found you. I know you haven’t had the best introduction to our family, but we are very happy that you joined us.”
“What about Dad?” I ask.
“He stormed off as soon as he found out about the broadcast,” Mya says. “Mom came to get me when we heard where you were. Welcome home, big brother.” She hugs Everly and then me. “I always wanted a sister to get into trouble with,” she teases, like my sister would ever do anything wrong.
We head back to the palace, ready to face the wrath of my father. I have no idea how he’s going to react, but with the support we’ve received already, he might not have much of a say about it.
Everly and I head straight to his study, in this fight together.
When I open the door, he turns in his chair to face me. “How dare you make a liar out of me,” he spits out.
“I did no such thing,” I growl, not holding anything back. “You made a liar of yourself. I set the record straight and told the people the truth.”
He stands and struts over to me. “Get out of my house. You are not welcome here anymore.”
“If that’s what you want, I’m prepared. But you better be prepared yourself. The people of Canterbury know now. Don’t think you’ll have an easy time getting rid of me.”
“Get out!” he shouts into my face.
I turn to leave when surprise smacks me in the face in the form of my mother. “No, William. I will have no more of this. You will welcome our son and his wife into our home and into your country as the next king, or I will make a true mockery of this family and leave. I have put up with a lot of things from you, but you’ve gone too far.”
She pauses, waiting for his reply but to my surprise, he’s completely silent.
She walks to be by my side. “I should have stood up when you spread lies about Sage, but I’m doing it now. So hear me and hear me good. I will not allow you to disown our son. Now straighten up, welcome your new daughter-in-law into our family or I swear you’ll never see me again.”
She turns to storm out of the room, and when my eyes meet with Everly’s, both of us are stunned into silence. As is my father.
After moments of awkwardness, I reach for Everly’s hand and say, “I’ll leave you
to your thoughts. I hope you make the right choice.”
My mom and sister are nowhere to be found, so I send a quick text to Mya, making sure she’s with Mom. We leave the palace, knowing all that was needed to be said has been. Now we pray he stops this bullshit and lets us live our lives.
26
Everly
Sage has been in contact with his sister and Mom for the past few days. From what we can tell, things are calming down, but his father is not one to admit defeat. The media was in a frenzy when an official notice came from the palace saying Prince Sage was no longer being banished, but it didn’t say anything more.
Just like everything within the palace walls, King William’s way of dealing with this seems to be just sweep it under the rug. Sage is used to how things run there and kept reassuring me that no news is actually good news.
When we got word that a new family picture was to be taken, he knew the feud was over. This was going to be how King William dealt with it. There would be a new family photo taken with both Sage and me included in it.
Even though we pushed the limits of every royal expectation, even Sage didn’t want to mess with this tradition.
The way he looks—dressed in his official Prince attire—almost brings me to my knees. Handsome doesn’t begin to explain it. A gorgeous king who rules over his country with ease and respect comes closer.
He laughs at my starry-eyed expression as he walks out of the bedroom within the hotel suite we’ve been staying.
I, on the other hand, am nothing short of boring. The pale-pink skirt and fitted jacket had to be worn, but I understand the importance of playing the role on some days, and for Sage, I’d do anything.
“Are you ready?” Sage asks me as we pull up in front of the palace.
I laugh, and he leans over to kiss me, reassuring my nerves for what’s in store.
The door opens as soon as we step out of the car and a butler walks out to greet us. “Prince Sage, Princess Everly, how do you do?”
It’s the first time I’m greeted as such in a formal way, and I have to hold back my laugh. Sage notices and the wink he gives me brings me back to reality. This is my life now, but as long as he’s by my side, I’ll be able to handle every step.
“Oscar, good to see you. How is my father today?” Sage asks as we approach him.
“The family is anxiously awaiting your arrival in the library. May I get you both a drink?”
“You know it,” Sage responds, slapping his shoulder as we walk away.
Sage leads me to the library, and I try not to trip over my own feet while I take in the opulence of the palace. Thankfully, Sage holds my hand as we walk, guiding me through the maze that is the hundred-twenty-thousand-square-foot mansion.
The doors to the library are already open, and his mother stands to greet us before we enter.
“Everly,” she says warmly, holding out her hands to hug me. We embrace, and when she pulls back, she holds me at arm’s length. “Thank you for being you. My heart always ached when I thought of my son not being happy with his wife. Knowing he found exactly what he was looking for brings me peace.”
I smile brightly; her words melt my heart and help to calm my nerves.
His dad clears his throat, and my world stops. His mom backs away, and I’m left standing helplessly like a wide-eyed deer in the headlights of an oncoming car.
“Father,” Sage says, walking up with his hand outstretched.
“Son,” he responds stiffly before turning back at me.
Sage turns to me, motioning me to come forward. “I know you’ve met her once before, but I’d like you to—”
He holds out his hand to stop Sage, and my stomach lurches into my throat. “Please, Sage.” He shakes his head and walks toward me. “When it was my turn to find a wife, I had five women to pick from, but for me, there was no question. The second I saw my Katheryn, I knew she was the one. It took her reminding me of those times to put myself in Sage’s shoes. I may not agree with everything the two of you have done, but I too, am happy Sage has chosen a wife, and that you’re exactly who he wanted.”
He holds out his hand to me, and I offer him mine which he grips with both of his, covering one with the other. Sage steps up beside me, brimming with pride as he wraps his arm around me.
“Everly, my dear, welcome to our family.” He smiles genuinely, finally putting all my unease to rest. Officially making me a princess.
Epilogue
Everly
One Year Later
Life in the royal family has been nothing like I expected. It took a few months to get everything figured out and our home in place. King William set up a place for us to stay; making sure our marriage was seen in the utmost light when it came to everything, including our lodging.
Thankfully, he had nothing to do with our permanent home. Sage didn’t want to live in the palace, and since his father is still fairly young, we were able to build a place not far from theirs that’s more to our liking.
It’s perfect actually.
The palace is absurd in terms of size so we were able to scale ours down, stating we didn’t need all the elegance because events would always be held at the palace. We didn’t want to take away from the historical aspect of the royal family, but still add our own stamp to the kingdom.
Sage has stuck to his word about becoming a king for the people. Even though his father isn’t happy about it, he’s starting to come around to the ideas Sage puts forward.
My favorite one was a campaign he started called Be the Change.
He wants to be the inspiration for everyone in Canterbury and personify Gandhi’s words: “Be the change that you wish to see in the world.”
Hashtags, Facebook groups, and even a weekly television show have led the campaign.
To start it, he invited people to submit their wish for what they wanted to be changed in Canterbury. He challenged people to think deeper, to send us ideas that weren’t just superficial.
I think even King William was surprised by some of the submissions. The entire program was anonymous, so after a few weeks of suggestions that tested the water, things started to get more meaningful, more significant to the everyday life for the people of Canterbury.
Within the year we have created over one thousand jobs, which in turn has boosted the economy and wellbeing of people tremendously. Everything from restaurants to contractors have seen better income and Canterbury is once again a bustling community where people have money to go out and enjoy life.
Today we make the biggest impact we’ve been able to accomplish. When someone submitted an idea for a place where kids could learn outside the box, where they could play and explore the world around them, Sage took the notion and ran with it.
As a young boy growing up in the palace, he always loved things he read about science and experiments he could do, but his tutors kept him to the standard tests of learning and never veered.
Now, he wants to veer in the best way.
He wants to give kids a place where they can learn outside of books and classrooms. His goal is to show them learning can be fun, and I think he hit this one out of the park.
His first order as king-in-training was to rearrange some funds to get the project off the ground. Once we had the council’s approval, Sage started to raise funds by asking the community to contribute while he applied for grants.
Of course, the money could have come directly from the government, but Sage has more ideas he wants to make happen, and he couldn’t put all of his eggs in one basket. But he also wanted the people of Canterbury to feel like this was their place.
He invited the Boys and Girls Club to help paint the walls, and schools to take on a project, building a display as a team, showing pride in what they could accomplish together.
It’s taken a ton of work on his part, coordinating every piece, but today is the day. Canterbury’s Science Center will finally open, and even his father said he’d be there for the unveiling.
He came by a few days ago, and I saw the smile he couldn’t hide on his face when Sage explained one of the exhibits. He’s proud of his son and even told him so.
This was also our way of making good about the fire. Taking the torched land and building the center there was actually King William’s idea. He didn’t like the design of the logo containing fireworks, but Sage and I wouldn’t budge.
That’s how we started, and this will be our legacy together.
We take the final walkthrough, making sure every piece is set up and all the employees are in place before we open the doors.
Sage stands at the door, knowing hundreds of people are on the opposite end of the twenty thousand square foot building. “Thank you,” he says to me before opening them.
“For what?”
“For this. For allowing me to fulfill my dreams and what I wanted for this country.”
I lean over to kiss him. “I should be thanking you for choosing me to be by your side.”
He chuckles and opens the doors to cheers all around. The executive director we hired to run the center, as well as his parents and sister, all exit behind us, standing on the threshold to the place we built.
Sage walks up to a microphone. “I want to thank everyone for joining us today.” He reaches for my hand, bringing me to his side. “Everly and I have worked very hard to make this happen, but it wasn’t just us. It was you. All of you. We had over three hundred volunteers come together to make this happen. We can’t thank everyone enough. This place is yours. And one day, we hope all you kids out there will bring your kids here. We hope you enjoy everything it has to offer, and always remember to be the change,” he yells into the microphone and everyone cheers along with him.
I wrap my arms around his waist as he holds me close to him, taking in our amazing accomplishment.
The day couldn’t have gone better. Seeing both parents and kids alike enjoying the museum was the best feeling. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen Sage and as I walk the hallway heading toward the office, my text dings an incoming message:
