Royal Wedding Fiasco

By Renna Peak and Ember Casey

It's the wedding of the century, but fate has other plans for the royals of Montovia.

Royal Wedding Fiasco is a special companion book to the Royal Heartbreaker series, the Royal Mistake series, and the Royal Arrangement series, and chronologically takes place after all three.

New to the Royal Heartbreakers books?
Each series contains a complete romance story and can be read on its own, but the following is the chronological order of our books:

Royal Heartbreaker series (Prince Leopold + Eleanor Parker)
Royal Mistake series (Prince Andrew + Victoria Simpson) 
Royal Arrangement series (Prince William + Princess Justine)
Royal Wedding Fiasco (special release)
Royal Disaster series (coming soon!)
Royal Escape series (coming soon!)

• Language: English
• Publisher: Casey Peak Publishing, LLC
• Release date: Aug 30, 2017
• ISBN: 9781386648352

Book preview

Andrew

TWO WEEKS UNTIL THE WEDDING

---

How did I end up here? Topping off my glass of brandy, I stare out the window of my study, watching the snow flurries fall to the gardens below. How did it come to this? When I asked Victoria to marry me, I never guessed that I would be the one pushing for a large, elaborate event. Aren’t women supposed to love weddings? Isn’t the bride supposed to be the one boring her husband-to-be with questions about color palettes, flower arrangements, and all of that nonsense, instead of the other way around?

With a sigh, I take a long swig of my drink. Behind me, I hear the door to the study open. I turn, expecting Victoria, but instead I see my brother, Leopold.

He’s looking well, considering how little sleep he’s gotten these past couple of weeks. I never would have guessed how attentive he’d be to his newborn son, but he’s taken to the job quite well—joyfully, even. Still, it’s with exhausted eyes that he smiles at me.

Got another glass? he asks, gesturing to the brandy.

Of course, I say, reaching for another. How’s Elle doing?

She’s getting some well-deserved sleep, he says. They really need to put warning labels on babies. They suck the energy right out of you.

I chuckle, but I can’t help but feel a pang of regret deep inside me. Victoria can’t have children, and though I love her and want to be with her anyway, part of me is sad knowing that she and I will never experience what my brother and Elle have.

Still, I don’t want to linger on what I don’t have. Instead, I prefer to focus on what I do—a woman I love more than life itself. In two weeks’ time, we’ll be pledged to each other forever.

What about you? Leopold asks, taking his glass and standing beside me at the window. How are you doing? Are Mother and Victoria driving you crazy with wedding details?

Not exactly. I rub my thumb against the side of the glass. Mother’s doing what she normally does, making sure everything is in order, but Victoria… I shake my head. I know she wants to get married. But she doesn’t seem particularly excited about the wedding. And I know exactly why—she’s not the kind of woman who craves the spotlight, and a huge royal wedding isn’t exactly her style. My thumb pauses. "But it’s what the people expect. What the people need—especially after all this business with Rosvalia and the Amhurst Valley. Montovia needs to celebrate, and the people need to get to know their future queen. Besides, I don’t want to think about what sort of rumors would circulate if we suddenly downsized the entire affair."

Is that what she wants? Leopold asks. To downsize?

She hasn’t said so, but I know Victoria. She’s not the sort of woman who spent her entire childhood dreaming about her fairy tale wedding day. And she’s not used to being the center of attention. It’s a lot of pressure, and though she won’t admit it out loud to me, I can see it’s taking its toll on her.

Understandably, my brother says. But give her some credit—she knew what she was signing up for when she agreed to marry into this family.

I know. And that’s why she hasn’t even uttered a word of complaint. I know she’ll do as expected, but…damn it, it’s our wedding day. I want her to be happy. I want it to be the happiest day of her life, not something she has to endure against her will. I pick up my glass and drain the rest of my drink.

Leopold continues to sip at his. I feel for you—I know this has been a huge adjustment for Elle, too. I have to admit, though, I’m a little jealous.

Jealous?

You get to marry the love of your life in two weeks, he says. Elle and I have been engaged for longer than you and Victoria have, but we still haven’t even started planning the wedding. Obviously, circumstances were slightly different in our case—and I perfectly understand why she didn’t want to get married until after the baby came. But sometimes it feels like the day will never come. Especially now—I think it will be a long, long time before either of us has the energy to even think about a wedding. All that planning… He shrugs. Too bad we can’t just get married at yours.

What?

I’m only joking—don’t look so horrified. But think of the headlines we’d get. He laughs. Truly, Brother—I’m not serious. I’m just looking for a way to have a wedding without doing any of the work.

In spite of myself, I find his idea rather intriguing. "It would take some of the pressure off of Victoria… At least, she wouldn’t be the only object of attention that day, especially if your son is also in attendance…"

Leopold looks over at me in surprised. You’re seriously considering it?

Good God, I actually am. I’m a blasted fool. It would certainly kill two birds with one stone.

More than two. Montovia would get its grand celebration, Elle and I would get our wedding, Victoria would get some of the attention taken off her, Father would stop breathing down all of our necks about living in sin… He grins. I’m a genius, aren’t I?

Only by accident. I rub my chin. I’ll have to run it by Victoria, of course. Her happiness is my priority.

Oh, I understand completely. I’ll have to discuss it with Elle, too. But assuming both of them are open to the idea…

Then I think we’ve found the perfect solution to our respective dilemmas. One I never would have dreamed up on my own.

That’s why you need me, Brother, Leopold says with a laugh. Now if you’ll excuse me, now that I’ve had a much-needed drink, I think I’ll go have a much-needed nap.

After he’s gone, I stay by the window, staring out at the thin layer of snow on the ground outside. One way or another, this wedding is shaping up to be completely unforgettable.

Victoria

Ayoung maid blinks at me a few times, obviously waiting for me to answer her .

I look down at the items she carries in her hands. How is this even a real question?

She looks up at me with a start. My lady?

I mean, look. I take one of the pieces of cloth from her hand. If you turn this one ninety degrees, it’s exactly the same, isn’t it?

She gulps a little. "I’m sorry, but I think Her Majesty is asking which color you like the best? Not which direction the stripes go?"

They’re both the same color.

No, my lady. One is ecru on eggshell. She lifts the napkin still in her hand. And that one is eggshell on ecru. She nods toward the one I’m holding. Her Majesty says it’s critical that we decide if we’re to get enough here for the reception.

My shoulders sag and I hand the cloth back to her. Ecru on eggshell. I guess.

Very good, my lady. A very wise choice. The woman smiles at me as she curtsies, then turns and leaves my room.

I sit down on my sofa and bury my head in my hands. How did my life come to this?

Once, I was a fairly successful tabloid journalist. It may not have been the most enviable of jobs, but there was a time that I liked what I did. I at least felt like I had some purpose in my life.

Now, I’m reduced to choosing between two different shades of beige for a gigantic wedding I don’t want.

I realize that this is a huge affair—that the country of Montovia is suffering from the recent act of war and that everyone could use something to look forward to. And the queen is beside herself with joy—she has a new grandchild and two more on the way.

I try to ignore the little pang of jealousy in my gut. There is nothing I want more than to be able to give Andrew the heir I know he wants. The fact that he’s stood by me and loved me anyway makes me love him all the more.

There’s a soft rapping on my door, and it opens a moment later.

I don’t even look up. I know it’s Andrew, and I’m not sure I can bear to have him see me like this.

It really should be some fairy tale—this enormous wedding. But as each day passes, I feel more and more like it’s a weight on my shoulders. Constantly reminding myself that this wedding isn’t for me—it’s for Montovia—is the only way I’ve been able to keep myself from finding the next train to anywhere but here.

Andrew sits beside me and rubs my back for a moment. Is there anything I can do?

I turn my head, peeking at him from between my fingers. Are you more fond of eggshell on ecru or ecru on eggshell?

He chuckles, rubbing at his jaw for a moment. I suppose I’ve never thought about it. He pauses. Is there a difference?

I can’t help but laugh as I finally lift my head. Not an appreciable one. Honestly, I’m not sure how those became the colors for my wedding at all.

His eyebrow arches for a moment before he nods. It really has spun a little out of control, hasn’t it?

"Three thousand people. Did you