Page 57 of Royally Matched

That’s right, my theory is that Amelia sent this riddle to me to solve so that she could throw me and her sister together.

It’s pretty clever.

The big wrench in Amelia’s plan is that I’m Enzo’s brother, which makes it all a little close to home—but what’s a little family connection when you’re Amelia and you’ve got a grand plan to come between her sister and the man she thinks is all kinds of wrong for her?

“The phrases could be a metaphor for something,” she says.

“I think they’re more literal than that. Is there a library in the palace?”

“Of course there is. You’ve been in it.”

“And is there a throne room?”

She gives me a look that questions my intelligence. “You’ve been in that room, too.”

“Hence your involvement.”

“You’re a veritable Einstein, Marco,” she says on a light laugh.

“One of my many talents.”

That definitely sounded a little flirty.

“Look, I’m good at puzzles, and this looks like fun to me. Who knows? We might learn something interesting about a righteous heir.”

That’s another clue as to who sent this riddle to me. Amelia mentioned that if Sofia got what she wanted, aka being named as their father’s heir, she would drop the whole arranged marriage idea.

Really, Amelia couldn’t have been more transparent if she tried.

“Tell me you’re not curious. Tell me you don’t want to know what this is all about.”

“I suppose.”

She’s trying to downplay it.

I fold the paper up again and slot it back into my top pocket. “We don’t have to go on an Indiana Jones stylequest to solve this riddle. You’ve got other things to do with your time.”

“No!” she says hastily, and I can’t help but smile. “What I mean to say is that perhaps it might be interesting to find out what this riddle is all about. A diversion.”

“You mean it’ll be fun.”

“I mean we might learn something,” she replies firmly.

“Sure.” I grin at her. As much as I know my feelings for this beautiful, intriguing woman can never see the light of day, and as much as I know Amelia is trying to throw us together, I need to know what this ancient scroll is all about. Once we’ve solved the riddle, we can get back to being a princess and assistant, neither of us the worse for it.

And that’s the story I’m choosing to tell myself.

Chapter 15

Sofia

What am I doing? Not only should I not be alone with the one man I shouldn’t be alone with, but the very last thing I ought to be doing is trying to solve some riddle that may be from a crazy person, intent on doing me or my family harm.

Yet still here I am in the palace library with none other than Marco Revera, a guy who smells like a strong, burly man in touch with nature, of sweat and earth, and something indefinable that can only bedescribed ashim.

Let’s face it, I’m having serious Indiana Jones fantasies about the man who called mePrincipessain the car on Sunday, making the patter of my heart hitch as he stands too close to me for me to do anything but concentrate on breathing.

See? I shouldnotbe doing this with Marco.