I do not own The Selection.

reviews:

Lady Annabeth of Illea:

Please write a book! I love ur writing style! Also great chapter! Have an amazing day!

livewithbooks:

ah, thank you! have an amazing day as well

i'm gonna put a tw here even though there's only one or two sentences mentioning these topics

TW: death threat

ayo, i'm back! i think my writer's block is mainly gone LMAO - i wrote like 3,000 words today so i'm pretty proud of myself! only a couple more weeks of school until summer, so i'm definitely looking forward to having all of that extra time to do other stuff like write. and i'm still rereading the selection, mainly just to remind myself of all of the smaller details.. and i just read lucy's backstory!? omg i love her so much she's such a strong little badass.

- just a reminder : criticism is welcome if you have any to give! or suggestions, or just comments in general! -

hoping you all enjoy this chapter! love you guys so much

Another year older.

Another year as a husband, a friend, a father.

My birthday was slowly becoming less of something I absolutely hated and more of something I looked forward to each year. On this day exactly a year ago, I'd found out that I was going to be a father which had rocked my world. In a good way, of course.

There was one thing that I did hate about it and always would.

My birthday was basically a national holiday. According to everyone I knew, parties were thrown annually. Workplaces would give their employees a paid leave. Younger people used it as an excuse to drink.

I was not very comfortable with the fact that my citizens loved my birthday more than I did, though in a way, it was a bit ironic.

Justin caught the small grin on my face. "Good day, sir?"

"Not half as good as last year, but it's not horrible. So far."

"Sir, you sound like you're waiting for something to ruin it."

I enjoyed the way Justin teased me; it was like my relationship with Aspen, but more professional. As he pinned on my last badge, I moved and my entire chest rattled. He laughed at my audible groan. We fixed the problem by tightening the sash around me.

My crown was the last item to be placed and then, I was done and ready to go meet America and the twins.

"Happy Birthday, Your Majesty." he bowed, still smiling.

"Thank you, Justin."

The stairs that we'd always entered with looked unusually steep, and I felt an abnormal spike in my heart rate. I kissed Avery's cheek as reassurance to myself. I was going to be fine. Just a staircase.

And luckily, we made it down alive.

We handed the twins off and had the first dance, just like always. And then, I had to greet the dozens and dozens of guests that had come. Daphne wasn't among them.

I sat down at the table with my family and was almost immediately engaged in conversation by a Vietnamese leader. Though I was nowhere near fluent in the language, I was able to understand him. Yes, my words were slow and probably completely botched, but he seemed to understand me as well.

When he walked away to go get his wife, I facepalmed and sent the table into a fit of laughter.

"Does anyone know Vietnamese?" I asked, defeated.

"What do you think?" Kenna snorted. "I strictly speak one language."

"Sorry, I only know French." America snorted. "And Spanish, but those are pretty simple."

"I'm probably going to embarrass myself. Great."

When the two returned, I realized that this was a lost cause. They were speaking so quickly that I was only getting a word or two. The king realized this and they switched to Chinese, which I did speak very well. I had even picked up an accent somewhere.

They left, and I sat back down.

"I seriously thought you had translators for that," Peyton said.

"I do, and I do use them, but anything could be lost in the translation. And quite frankly, I'd rather be able to talk to them myself." I explained.

It was the entire truth.

Speaking to someone yourself instead of having another human translate every word was so much easier in every way. Not only did you not risk losing a word or two, but you also got to learn more about them. A lot could be learned about someone from just the way they speak.

The rest of the ball wasn't very eventful, and eventually, America and I went ahead and ended it.

Though, I did get to fall asleep in my wife's arms.

That made the entire day better.

Our plane left early the next day, leaving for the Grand Cayman.

Avery and Roman slept in my arms, while America was slumped over against the window. I almost laughed as she snored lightly, but then again, she deserved every peaceful moment she could get.

As for getting this vacation planned, it took a lot of convincing.

Stavros, Aspen, Carter, and August had been against it from the very moment I had proposed the idea. I knew they were truly just worried about our safety, but seriously? Grand Cayman was extraordinarily safe; violence was a very rare thing. And if anything, I was able to use the point that we hadn't had a real vacation since our honeymoon four years ago.

They had finally agreed, but they had rules. Aspen, August, and Carter would be coming with us, along with their wives.

And suddenly, it had turned into a group vacation, which didn't sound so bad.

We were all going to be staying in separate but neighboring beach houses. We'd picked for the twins to come along, just like they had picked to bring their own kids along.

Missing a week of their lives would be torture, and honestly, them coming along was ten times safer than it would be to leave them by themselves. I would end up canceling the trip to stay with them, if anything.

Hours later, we arrived at the homes.

They were actually very, very nice. The outside was a light yellow that matched the whole theme of the beach, with large, open windows that could be hidden by thick, white curtains. Honestly, I fell in love with the place.

The inside was my favorite part.

Our house was a two story, four bedroom, two bathroom house with an entire, functional kitchen and pool. Only the best for royalty, am I right? I snickered at my own thoughts.

"Oh, wow," America gasped. "It's so beautiful."

She was right once again.

After checking out the twin's bedroom, we went to look at ours.

It was on the second floor… large, open, and somewhat modern. The bed was humongous and sat directly across from the largest windows in the room. Light from the sun shone onto it, giving it almost a yellow tint. I could only imagine how beautiful America would look in the morning.

Along the walls were paintings of the city. There was a piano and a violin, most likely provided by Silvia. The walk-in closet was filled with things that we'd probably need. And the bathroom… wow.

It had the largest walk-in shower I'd ever seen, along with a tub large enough to fit both of us and the twins all at the same time. And it also had a double vanity, and everything else that I couldn't really name but looked expensive. I could tell we were going to have a good week, though.

Within the first hour, Marlee messaged us and demanded we come out to the beach.

I chose to wear black swimming trunks and a gray t-shirt, which I could dispose of if I really was going to swim. America huffed when I'd recommended she wear sunscreen, but she did it. Her bathing suit was a two piece, blue bikini. Her beauty overwhelmed me.

We even got the twins dressed, making sure to put sunscreen on both. I was the only one that didn't really need the protection from the sun.

I was left with the babies as America barreled toward the ocean, tripping over air and landing butt-first on the sand. In defeat, she simply scooted into the water, laughing.

"Good going, Ames!" Marlee called, running towards her best friend.

Carter jogged over to me, Kile waddling behind him. "Y'know, this place is gorgeous."

"Daddy!" Kile whined, and Carter picked him up. "Avie!"

Avery squirmed and grabbed at my nose. She made a noise that sounded a lot more like 'goo-goo gaga' than what she had just weeks before. And then, her and Roman both began clawing at my face.

August and Aspen approached us; both of them laughing.

"Guys!" Lucy called. "C'mere!"

The girls appeared to have set up an entire little.. picnic? I wasn't sure how to describe it.

There was a very large blanket, which we sat the kids on so they could stay out of the sand. Roman and Avery laid on their stomachs while they could. Both of them were already beginning to raise their own heads up and I knew Roman was close to being able to roll over. They were a little over four months old, so it was about time.

While everyone was talking, I did happen to notice Kile running into the ocean on his own.

Just before he managed to reach it, I reached him and hoisted him into my arms. He kicked, reaching desperately for the water. I handed him over to Carter, who was shaking his head.

"Mackin grab me." Kile pouted.

America snorted. "Maxon, we may have to start calling you Mackin."

Everyone laughed, including me.

"Maxon did grab you," Carter said. "You can't go swimming without one of us there with you, okay? You'll get hurt, kiddo."

He nodded. "Okie, Daddy."

I took Roman back into my arms and let him sit up in my lap, positioned as if he was sitting on his own. We were trying to let them strengthen their muscles, which would allow them to do more sooner.

Both twins now looked a lot like me. Roman's resemblance was less noticeable other than the blond hair because his eyes were definitely blue, whereas Avery was like an identical twin of mine, other than the red hair.

Though, they both did share my darker skin tone. I mean, honestly, they were a perfect mixture of America and I.

I lowered Roman into the water feet first.

My hands held him by the armpits, allowing him to kick and splash the water around like he seemed to enjoy doing. America, who was sitting in the shallowest end of the ocean with Avery in her arms, took another picture. I pulled Roman up to my bare chest and let her get another. I wanted every moment of this day documented.

We set both twins back onto the blanket, leaving them with Lucy and Marlee, heading back to the water.

America tried her luck with jumping into her arms, trying to wrap her legs around me, but instead knocked us both backwards into the water. I laughed so much that I thought my chest was aching. And when I thought it couldn't get funnier, a wave hit us, affecting me the most.

Since she'd knocked me over, I was on the bottom, and she was kind of hovering awkwardly above me. The water had almost completely submerged my head.

"Are you trying to drown Maxon, Ames?" Aspen asked.

I coughed. "Definitely."

"It's not my fault you couldn't hold me," she pouted. "Weakling."

"You knocked me over, America!"

"I was joking, babe."

I gaped at her a moment before she leaned forward, kissing me softly at first and then harder. Her lips were warm.. they were only slightly chapped, and felt a little wet, like she had licked them previously. Later—I couldn't tell if a minute or an hour had passed—a shell of some sort was thrown at us.

"Do that somewhere else," Lucy demanded. "There are children here."

"We're the almighty rulers here." America said.

Carter snorted. "No, you're the almighty rulers of Illéa."

America grinned at me.

I shrugged. "We own the island. I've been here with my parents before."

"You own an island? And a country?" Marlee asked. "All by being born? Damn, I was born into the wrong family."

Only if she knew how unfair my own childhood had been.

Just minutes later, we were all sitting in the water, talking about our own childhoods. So far, I hadn't told them anything. And honestly, I wasn't sure if I wanted to, because what if it led to me revealing something meant to be private?

"Okay! Maxon, you have to answer this. What was the strictest rule your parents had?" Georgia asked.

"I wasn't allowed to eat any kind of junk food," I admitted. "I think it was because my mother struggled with her health, and my father was… overbearing."

"Your mom was sick?" Lucy asked, before looking as if she regretted asking.

I nodded. "She lived in Honduragua, and the conditions there permanently damaged her health. That's also why I have no siblings—well, legitimate siblings. I was technically their third child."

I admit; that was a lot to drop on such a happy moment. Though I didn't mourn my unborn brothers and sisters, I definitely would've loved to meet them. And in a way, I felt guilty that I had survived and they hadn't.

"Kile!" Marlee gasped as the boy jumped into the ocean.

She grabbed him before he could get too deep, and held him as he flailed around in her arms, begging for her to let go. Carter laughed, taking him from her. He set him down in the water carefully. Never once did he let the water go above the boy's chest.

"I swear, three year olds are little demons." Marlee groaned.

America laughed. "I can't wait until the twins are three. Chaos."

"Utter chaos," Aspen said. "They'll be destroying everything they can reach."

"Like dogs?" I asked, remembering Ozzy's chaotic puppyhood. He had been an absolute pain to deal with. Luckily, he was now much more mature and calm.

Everyone laughed.

As the sunset arrived, the sky began to turn different shades of oranges, alerting us that it was going to be dark soon. America sighed and helped me get the twins up from the blanket without waking them.

"Night, everyone!" Marlee said, cheerfully.

"Night."

I was the first one up in the morning.

My imagination had been spot on.

America literally glowed in the sunlight from our window, limbs sprawled and sticking out from under the thin, white sheet. I glanced at the clock and saw that it was almost twelve. America shifted so that she was now sleeping on my very bare chest. Instinctively, I laced my hand around hers.

When looking at my sleeping wife, I could only see the woman I'd fallen in love with years ago.

She was nothing short of an angel.

I closed my eyes and let myself enjoy the moment.

The twins weren't crying, but instead napping peacefully. I wasn't being dragged off to a meeting or daily briefing. America was in my arms. And we were on one of the best vacations ever.

"Maxon.." America sighed. I froze; was she awake? "I… love… you… more than strawberry tarts… "

I couldn't help the laughter that escaped my mouth at that. My chest vibrated as I laughed and she just clung tighter to me. There was no way that she was awake. Never would my love admit that out loud unless not conscious.

"Mhm," America groaned, yawning. "Morning."

She sat up, the sheet falling from her body, revealing the matching, blue underwear and bra she wore. Hell, I'd never loved a color more. As she stretched, raising her arms above her head and twisting her torso, I watched, completely speechless.

"What's wrong?" she asked, frowning.

I was snapped out of my daze instantly. "You're gorgeous, and it's becoming a real problem for me. I can hardly think straight around you, my love."

"What a lovesick fool."

America captured my laughter with a kiss.

I pinned her to the bed, kissing her neck softly in return. She and I both groaned at the sound of the twins crying out. I sat up and released my hold on her; our morning had ended.

"That sinks that ship. We need to get up anyways," she sighed. "Marlee will have a fit if we stay inside all day."

When I stood from the bed, it took a minute for me to steady myself. I hated the feeling when all of the blood rushed from your head. It left me dizzy and feeling like I'd faint. Once recovered, I didn't bother changing into more decent clothes. Pajama pants were fine. I left, leaving America behind to go check on the twins.

Avery had her fingers in her mouth and I guessed she was hungry.

I was apparently right. She drained the bottle quickly and then I fed Roman too. We tried to feed them on a schedule, but sometimes they couldn't wait much longer. Now was one of those times. When they were both fed and dressed appropriately for the weather, I carried them back into the living room, where America was cooking something.

"That smells wonderful, love."

She turned. "I'm making lunch. It's a surprise."

Turning back to continue creating our food, I noticed that she now wore a baggy shirt and plaid boxers of mine. I grinned. We may as well share a wardrobe at this point. In the front, the shirt was tucked in and her hair was in a very messy braid.

With no warning at all, the front door opened and in came Marlee and Georgia.

"Glad to see you're awake," Georgia said. "Okay. We're going horseback riding on the beach. Mars and I just got it planned. We even got babysitters!"

"I don't know—" America said.

Marlee snorted. "Are you wearing Maxon's clothes again? Don't answer that, actually." she sighed. "We came here to have fun, so that's what we're doing."

I shrugged. "I think it sounds fun."

"Good. Meet us outside in an hour." Georgia said

In an hour, we'd showered, dressed, and ate. We left the twins with a much trusted babysitter and met the others out on the beach.

It took some convincing but I actually got to drive the big, black SUV we were taking.

I knew Stavros would kill me for breaking protocol, but really? I'd never been able to do anything myself. His wrath would only faze me for a few days. And Silvia! Only if she knew what I was doing. This would probably be on the news.. The King Can Drive!.. so they'd see it anyways.

"Are you sure you can drive?" Marlee asked.

"I have a license and everything," I assured her. "Give me a chance."

And sure enough, we got to the stables in one piece. I couldn't help but be a little smug.

The stable hands rushed to open the side doors, which revealed neither America nor myself, but Lucy and Aspen. When we stepped out of the driver and passenger sides, pure shock crossed their faces. I heard giggles and snickers from our friends.

Reporters were already flashing cameras.

"Your Majesty," a man much shorter than me bowed. "Right this way."

We were led into the stables, which were absolutely beautiful. Each stall held a horse, and I had to fight the urge to pet them all. They each had expensive looking air conditioning units, most likely to protect the animals from the heat.

With brick flooring, grand light fixtures, stalls with both intricate and fabulous designs, horses that looked like they'd been bred from only the most amazing horses… The Grand Cayman Stables were easily the second best I'd ever seen. Pulling me from my thoughts, four stable hands brought us eight horses.

I was handed the lead of a silky black horse. He was male, and had a tiny little name tag. Siren.

As everyone was being helped onto their horses, I gladly mounted Siren without a second thought. While I preferred to ride bareback, as it felt more natural, but I could get over it. Besides, riding with a saddle was safer. Better for my public image.

America had been put on a white horse that looked rather harmless. I hoped that my observation was accurate.

Outside, I was beginning to notice how smooth of a horse Siren was.

It took very little effort on my part to get him to obey. Though, I was nowhere near as comfortable on him as I was on Captain, but I suppose that was normal.

America and I stayed next to each other. Our feet almost brushed against the others, if you'd like to know how close we were. The guide was talking about sea turtles and how the island had wild chickens, which was rather humorous for some reason.

We stopped at an absolutely breathtaking part of the beach.

The water was so clear you could see the sand and fish swimming beneath it. And the actual land.. wow, if I hadn't known better, I would've thought it was endless and stretched on 'till the end of time. America took my hand.

"Now, who would like to swim first?" the guide asked.

"Horses can swim?" Aspen asked, looking a bit nervous. "Won't they drown?"

"They're actually great swimmers," I answered.

"His Majesty is correct, General Leger," the guide said. "And these horses have been specially trained just for this. Can any of you ride bareback?"

"Maxon can," America piped in, and the guide glanced at me politely.

I suppose he was beginning to get an idea of my experience with riding now. Not many riders did try doing it bareback, mainly due to the possible injuries and added risks. Sure, I'd been thrown and fallen from Captain many times and had even broken bones, but bareback riding was one of the greatest feelings to me.

"Okay, me and Maxon will swim," Marlee announced.

Once I'd pulled both Siren's and Marlee's horses saddle off, I helped her back on and then mounted my horse again. We were led to the edge of the ocean, where we slowly began to wade into the water. Both of our horses were perfectly fine being in the water.

When the water was up to the horses chests, we moved a couple feet and, bam!

I could feel Siren kicking beneath me. Marlee shrieked as she was splashed with water and we both started laughing. This was so amazing! Why the hell hadn't I come here before?

Marlee was hugging her horse's chest, obviously a little frightened. I was too shocked to be scared.

"Come on, guys!" Marlee called. "It feels like you're floating!"

America was the first to join us.

When she reached me, she was beaming so brightly that I thought my heart had melted inside of my chest. America on a horse was something I could never get tired of. I mean, come on! She was the definition of breathtaking.

"Fine, fine!" August huffed, directing his own horse into the water.

Georgia sped into the water behind him, reaching us seconds after he did.

That left Aspen, Carter, and Lucy.

Marlee laughed. "C'mon, babe. It's actually really fun."

He shrugged and slowly waded into the water. When he reached us, he was grinning and I knew that all fear was now gone. Yes, it looked scary, but it truly wasn't. It was like flying in an airplane.

Aspen and Lucy entered the water together, taking their time. I could tell Lucy was more than nervous. America had told me she'd had quite the past at the palace, yet I wasn't sure what she'd really meant by that statement.

Once we were all here, the tour continued.

"Your Majesty, Generals Leger and Woodwork are to be driving!" Stavros scolded. "You know it's dangerous, sir."

We'd just gotten back to the houses, to which I'd driven again. Everyone was in the living room of our house, watching a movie about pirates that I was looking forward to seeing. I didn't really want a lecture right now.

"Driving is no more dangerous than my job, Stavros."

He had no response for that one but, "You need to be more careful, sir."

"I am! But if I'm going to die anyway, then I'd like to live my life while I can. I think driving is the least of my worries."

"Sir," he began, but stopped.

I gave him his time.

"We've received another death threat for your wife, and it's mentioning beaches. There's enough evidence to point to the fact that she could be targeted while you're there in Grand Cayman."

"When?"

"Two hours ago, sir."

"And you didn't tell me then?"

"Sir—"

"America's life is at risk yet again and no one thought to tell me? She could've died today!"

When the call ended, I sat down on the couch and wrapped an arm around America, who was cradling the twins in her arms. Avery gurgled when she saw me and I pulled her into my arms.

"Was that Stavros?" America asked quietly.

I nodded. "I'll explain later."

Hours later, we said goodnight to everyone and put the twins to bed, ensuring that there were trustworthy guards both inside and outside of the room. I was hesitant to even leave them, but sleeping on the floor would be difficult.

America changed into her underwear and sat on the bed, waiting for my explanation.

"Maxon, what did Stavros say?" she asked, taking my hand.

I avoided her gaze as I spoke. "Ames, you got another death threat."

"Do we have to leave?"

I shook my head. "Not right now."

"Well, then. Are you going to stand there and let me freeze?"

At her goofy expression, I grinned and stripped down to my boxers, happily climbing in beside her. She sighed and laid her head in the crook of my neck. I gently traced a line down her back with my finger, repeating it every so often.

"I love you, Maxon."

"I love you too, America."

The next evening, America and I were going on a date.

Marlee and Lucy had the twins in their supervision, which gave us the night to ourselves.

While my date got dressed, I'd gotten the entire dinner set up in our living room, which had become one of our favorite spots. It was simple, yet flawless. I'd found a small, round table on which I had put two candles in the middle, giving it all a romantic glow, and two chairs from the closet. And for our food itself.. Well, I'd gone so far as to cook us spaghetti.

What shocked me wasn't that I had cooked it but that it actually looked both delicious and edible.

Perhaps my cooking skills really were advancing.

The door creaked open, and when I looked up, I felt my entire body go numb.

"Like it?"

I tried to speak, but my words weren't even close to coherent. She let out the laugh of an angel. I forced myself to look up at her face.

Her—She was wearing the dress from the Selection.

The red dress. Yeah, the one she tried to seduce me with. And I'll be perfectly honest, her little plan had almost worked, yet I'd been too stupid to realize what she'd really meant to me then. I wasn't going to laugh at her ever again.

The neckline dipped down in a deep v, revealing a lot of her cleavage. And the skirt! Oh God, I could see her long, glowing leg perfectly. There was a slit in the side that ran from her upper thigh to her ankle. Something about it gave me chills. Good chills.

"Maxon?" she whispered, wrapping her arms around my neck.

Her hair was in a braid, draped professionally over her shoulder. There was only the faintest hint of makeup on her face. Oh how did I love her without makeup!

"You, my love, take my breath away," I whispered against her lips. "Four years ago, I was an idiot. Forgive me?"

"You're forgiven."

And I kissed her.

Her lips were much softer than usual, but I wasn't complaining. And warm! Oh were they warm. The pit in my stomach had instantly turned into a billion butterflies, now making my heart skip every other beat. Only America had ever had this kind of power over me. Her hands snaked up my neck and into my hair, pulling me down towards her.

She kissed my neck before nipping at my earlobe.

And in an attempt of doing hell knows what, she tried to wrap her revealed leg around my waist, but successfully sent us to the ground, our laughter echoing off the walls.

"That doesn't work in high heels." she grunted, massaging her now bare feet. I shooed her hand away. "Max—"

"Let me,"

As I skillfully massaged her foot, she sighed softly and closed her eyes. She pulled both shoes off and settled on staying barefoot after I'd finished my little massage. This time, we sat at the table, digging into our food.

"I can't believe you put up with my clumsiness," she sighed, trying to get the spaghetti into her mouth.

I smiled. "I believe it's one of your best qualities."

"No way."

"Yes way."

She watched me carefully as she slurped up a noodle. And she repeated this action several times. I watched, mostly curious of why she was doing this. There was a perfectly good fork next to her hand.

Throwing her hands up in defeat, she huffed, "I can't believe it! You don't even care that I ate like that."

"Are you worried I don't love you, America?"

"No, not really, but it took a lot of adjustments to this dress so I could even fit in it! And you always look at my stretch marks, and ugh! And my belly is all fat.. All I do is eat.. I'm not as pretty as I was when we met, and I'm just.. I don't want to lose you…"

I got up and knelt before her, taking her hands in mine. "America, look here."

Tears ran down her cheeks. I wiped them away with my thumb and kissed each of her knuckles.

"America," I said. "I didn't fall in love with your body. I didn't fall in love with any of that. I fell in love with you. I love you. I could care less about how clumsy you are, or if you love to eat. I could care less about scars, stretch marks, or any weight you've gained."

She sniffled.

I placed a hand on her stomach. "Without this belly right here, I wouldn't have become a father. And those two little creations of ours mean the world to me, love. This belly is perfect. It's beautiful."

Her tears fell faster now.

"And as for you being clumsy, just… wow." I chuckled. "You are the clumsiest person I met, yet you're the only person who can make me laugh as hard as I do. And in a way, it's adorable."

I sighed.

"America, someday, we aren't going to look like we do now."

"We're going to be so wrinkly," she teased, wiping her eyes.

I laughed. "I hope so. And our hair will have turned colors, and we'll regret wasting time worrying about how we look. That's what time does to a body. It's natural. And America, nothing could erase my love for you. You are the most gorgeous woman I've ever known. And this dress? You could take down the world in it. If you don't remember, you've stopped my heart twice with it."

She threw herself into my arms so that we now sat on the floor, her in my lap.

"You've gotten better with crying women," she croaked.

"I know."

She shoved me playfully.

Over the next week, we'd done everything from playing in the ocean to touring museums with the entire group. But, even so, the week had come to an end.

As the plane landed and we climbed into the car that would escort us back to the palace, I realized just how much I'd loved that. I mean, how often did we, the King and Queen, get to run away from our duties and enjoy life?

Not very often.

The palace looked just as it had last week.

Outside was most of the staff. It was traditional that they were to welcome us back into our home, though it was odd.

Yet, I couldn't have cared.

We were home.