11. Xander

CHAPTER 11

XANDER

Amy paces back and forth in the hallway, fanning herself with the list of approved questions for the television interview. “I don’t know if I can do this. I’ve never done an interview before.”

I grab her by the shoulders, stopping her. “You’ve read the questions they’re going to ask. We went over everything together. You can do this.”

The color drains from her face as she peeks out at the set and the massive cameras pointed at it. “I think you’re vastly overestimating what I can do.”

“You’ve got this, and if there’s anything that comes up that you don’t know how to answer even after looking over the questions, I’ll be there to save you.”

I let go of her, feeling like I’ve been electrocuted.

A week ago, we took things a little too far. The bottle of champagne got to both of our heads.

And since then, she’s been busy with lessons, but forty-eight hours isn’t near enough to have her ready to talk to an interviewer on live television.

“You two have to see this.” Daphne hurries over with her phone out, handing it to me.

AMERICAN WOMAN MARRYING KING FOR MONEY AND FAME. WILL DRIVE CROWN TO RUIN.

To my horror, the article goes on to list everything from Amy’s dead parents to comments from a “source” I’m guessing is her former boss. Nothing about the article paints her in a good light.

“We have to get this taken down.” I hand the phone back to Daphne, deciding not to show Amy. She doesn’t need more worry piled on her shoulders. She already looks like she’s going to be sick with the thought of going out there and trying to charm people.

Amy arches an eyebrow. “Do I want to see that?”

“It’s nothing good.” I clear my throat as one of the assistants comes out and waves us forward. “We don’t have time to worry about it either. We’re on.”

People are cheering as we’re guided over to the edge of the set.

“Good evening. I’m Taryn Doukas, and this is Katastinia Tonight. Today, we’re going to be talking with King Xander Ariti and his fiancée, Amy Harlowe.”

The audience claps as I reach down and take Amy’s shaking hand in mine. She wipes her other palm on her black skirt before we step onto the set.

I smile to the crowd, waving as we head to the white couch to the side of Taryn. “It’s great to be here with all of you again. It seems like just yesterday we were doing an interview about my coronation.”

“Yes, well, we’re glad to have you back and with your stunning American fiancée in tow.” Taryn’s eyes sparkle with something I don’t like.

She looks like a shark circling the water on the hunt for her next kill.

“It’s a pleasure,” Amy says, her voice soft as she sits down on the couch and crosses her legs at the ankles. She folds her hands in her lap, but the posture looks so stiff and unnatural that it’s obvious it’s not her.

I recline in the seat, stretching my legs out in front of me and doing my best to get comfortable.

Taryn shuffles the cards in her lap. “I’d like to talk about what the entire country is wondering right now.”

“Well, we’d be more than happy to answer any questions,” I say, reaching over and taking Amy’s hand, lacing our fingers together. When I smile at her, the crowd starts whispering to each other.

“I think we should start with the allegations that Amy is only marrying you for your money and the power that comes along with being queen. Amy, what do you have to say to this?”

Amy pales, looking to me, her mouth opening and closing a couple times. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Leaning over, I press my lips to her temple. “There was an article put out about you.”

Amy forces a smile onto her face as she looks at Taryn and then the audience. “I don’t know what this article says about me, but I’m here because I love Xander, and we decided that it was time to take our relationship public.”

I grin and lift her hand to my mouth, kissing her knuckles. “If anything, it took too much time to get her to accept the ring.”

Taryn claps her hands, a fake smile on her face. “The two of you are cute together, but the country is wondering if this is really love or if there’s a scheme in the works. It wouldn’t be the first time a woman came abroad to marry a king. Now, I must wonder if the death of her parents and her grandmother play into this, or if it’s a scheme she came up with before they died.”

I whip around, glaring at Taryn. “I love my fiancée. I don’t know what the hell you think you’re doing making these accusations, but this is the last time I’ll be making an appearance on this show.”

Amy is frozen as I get to my feet. I tug her hand lightly and she snaps out of it, getting to her feet and following me off the set.

The crowd starts booing, but whether it’s for us or Taryn, I don’t know or care.

Jorge steps in front of us. “What do you think you’re doing? Get back out there and salvage this.”

I drop Amy’s hand, stepping between her and Jorge. “None of that was on the approved list.”

“You had to see this coming. If the two of you can’t take it, then clearly you both need a thicker skin. This is what the media does.” Jorge crosses his arms, glaring around me at Amy. “If she can’t handle this, then that’s her problem.”

“Maybe her media training should’ve been more extensive than two days,” I say, looming over him until he takes a step back. “Or maybe we should’ve known that Taryn saw the article and was going to ask questions that weren’t on the list.”

Jorge glowers at me. “You should’ve been prepared for these questions. You know what journalists do when they get information that could give them a career bump.”

“No!” My voice cracks through the backstage area. “We’re not going to blame me or Amy for this. You were supposed to have this under control. You were the one who assured me that Taryn was a good interviewer and would stick to the list. She made this mess, so I suggest you speak with her about how to clean it up.”

Amy steps around both of us, running for Daphne when she appears at the end of the hallway. Daphne hugs her tight, whispering something to her and guiding her down the hall.

I take a step back as people start to gather around. “Fix this.”

“I’ll fix this one, but I suggest you do something about Amy,” Jorge growls. “One wrong move from her, and this entire situation is going to blow up in your face.”