Paulo slid his hand into Eva's and led the way out the door and down the hall to the front door of the castle where a white vintage Rolls Royce was waiting for them.
They rode across town to the Parliament building in silence, holding hands while he stared out the window. There were a couple photographers that had followed along to take official photos and they rode in the car with them, which made it a little more awkward. She rubbed her fingers lightly over the back of Paulo's hand to calm her nerves and his.
As they neared the house of Parliament she saw that there was a really large crowd gathered outside and she looked over into Paulo's eyes and without saying a word out loud she told him he could do this with her eyes.
The car came to a stop in front of the building and she asked, "Are you ready?" holding out her hand.
"Ready as I'll ever be," he sighed, slipping his hand into hers as his security team opened his door. As soon as the door opened, the roar of the massive crowd was deafening. They were screaming their names and waving little Spanish flags and cheering. Some were singing the national anthem and some were sobbing uncontrollably.
Their security team escorted them into the building and Paulo kept a grip on her arm and didn't let her out of his sight. They were led to a room where Queen Victoria was waiting. She looked at her son with tears in her eyes and stepped forward, cupping his face and kissing his cheek.
"Paulo," she sniffled. "You look so handsome. You're going to be such an amazing King. I know you will," she cried, wiping her tears.
"You think so?" he asked.
"No I don't think so. I know you will," she said, laying a hand on his cheek. "Even when you were just a young boy I noticed what a natural leader you were. People gravitate to you and they listen when you talk," she smiled, taking both his hands in hers. "They value what you have to say because you have the courage to speak the truth, even if it's not popular and because of that people respect and trust you. They follow you with loyalty. You're strong and smart and care so much about your people and your country, and that's why I know you're going to make a great King Paulo, one that your father would be very proud of," she said, getting choked up and wiping away a tear.
He took a deep breath and let it out, pulling her into a hug and saying, "Thank you Mom. I'll try to be a King you can be proud of too."
She looked up at him and said, "You already are," before giving him another hug.
There was a knock at the door and a security guard came in and said, "It's time."
Paulo walked over and took Eva's hand and then the three of them were led down a hallway and two armed guards opened the large wooden doors for them that lead into the House of Parliament. The Queen walked in first by herself and then Paulo and Eva walked in side by side still holding hands.
The large room was brightly lit and it was a half-circle shape with tiered-levels of seats surrounding a large podium at the center of the room up front. Every head turned and looked in their direction.
A choir was singing the National Anthem of Spain as they walked down the steps towards the front of the room, passing long aisles of wooden benches that were completely full of men and a few women in business suits. It didn't look like there was a single empty seat in the entire place.
When they reached the front, the Queen took a seat on the stage off to the side and Paulo and Eva walked up and stopped in front of the podium the archbishop was standing behind, right as the choir finished the anthem. The archbishop was wearing a long golden robe and a pointed golden hat on top of his head that had an ornate design on it.
The archbishop said, "Thank you for gathering with us to bear witness on this historical day of the crowning of a new King and Queen of Spain. This is a day of celebration but also one of reverence as we honor the fond memories of those that have gone before and paved the way. The Aragon lineage has ruled Spain since the early 16th century and today we carry on that sacred tradition."
The archbishop continued on, discussing the constitution of Spain and the importance and traditions of the monarchy. Eva was so nervous, she felt like she could faint but from the outside she looked calm and steady.
"Please kneel," the archbishop said and Eva and Paulo both knelt on the wooden platform covered with a fancy decorative cushion in front of them. He anointed Paulo's head with oil while reciting a prayer. Then he took the royal sword and tapped it on each of Paulo's shoulders before handing it to him and he sheethed it in the sword holder attached to his belt. In one of his hands the archbishop placed the royal scepter and in the other, an apple of solid gold.
The archbishop then placed a sash around his waist and tied it, saying, "I hereby present you with the sash of the commander-in chief of the armed forces of Spain, a position held by the head of state per the Spanish Constitution."
Then the archbishop reached over and picked up the gold jeweled crown off of a red velvet pillow and hovered it over Paulo's head as he said, "With the placement of this crown upon your head I hereby dub thee, Paulo Santiago Aragon, as the rightful King of Spain. Long may you reign."
He lowered the crown and placed it on his head and the crowd cheered and shouted, "Long live the King!"
Eva got goosebumps hearing them say that as she watched her husband becoming a King. The emotions she felt were so overwhelming but she didn't want to cry so she held her tears inside.
The archbishop then moved over and stood in front of Eva and anointed her forehead with oil and said a short prayer and she could feel herself visibly shaking now so she took a deep breath in and let it out, trying to calm her nerves.
The archbishop picked up a smaller gold jeweled crown and as he hovered it over her head he said, "With the placement of this crown upon your head I hereby dub thee, Eva Elise Aragon, as the rightful Queen of Spain. Long may you reign."
The crowd cheered and shouted, " Long live the Queen!"
As she felt the crown being placed onto her head she got chills and her eyes started burning with tears but she blinked them away.
"Rise," the Archbishop said, motioning up with this arms.
Eva and Paulo both stood and the archbishop motioned for the royal robes of the king and Queen to be brought out and they were draped over their shoulders. They were a very deep dark purple, outlined in white spotted fur.
The archbishop said, "Now it's time for the King and Queen to be seated upon their thrones."
He motioned to the two ornately carved wooden thrones, with dark red velvet seat cushions and Paulo and Eva walked over and stood in front of them. Paulo took his seat first and then Eva sat down in hers, holding his hand.
Paulo looked over and gave her a smile. She smiled back at him and seeing him with that crown on his head, wearing the King's robe, sitting on his throne gave her chills. She knew she would remember this moment for the rest of her life and look back on it with fond memories. She couldn't believe he was the King now and she was the Queen. Just the thought of it made a shiver run down her spine.
She looked over and his mother Victoria was crying with tears rolling down her cheeks so she gave her a sympathetic smile. She knew all of this must be so hard on her.
The archbishop lead a prayer before saying, "At this time I'm going to ask the newly crowned King Aragon to come forward and address your people."
He got up and walked up to the podium, placing his hands on the sides of it as he waited for the noise level to quiet down so he could be heard.
Eva looked around at the enormous room filled with the people of Parliament with so many cameras and eyes on him and she wondered what he was going to say. She didn't know he was going to have to give a speech and she was almost sure he hadn't prepared anything. He probably didn't know he would have to give a speech either.
Paulo stood at the podium, waiting for the crowd to quiet down before he cleared his throat, gripping both sides of the podium before he began, "Thank you so much for your warm reception. It's unfortunate that I find myself standing in front of you today as your new King because that means that my father, whom I've looked up to my entire life, is no longer with us. I knew this day would come eventually and I've been preparing for it my whole life but I didn't expect it so soon as I'm sure you didn't either," he said, pausing as he looked down.
He raised his head, looking out at the crowd and said, "At only twenty two this has caused me to have to grow up overnight to become the man that Spain needs me to be. I want you to know that I take the responsibility of being your King very seriously and starting today I put away any thoughts of my own selfish needs and focus instead on the needs of Spain and my people. My father was a great King that was very loved and respected and his legacy has left some large shoes to fill."
He paused as the crowd got loud again with applause, waiting for them to quiet down so he could continue. "I could never take his place. He was one of a kind, but what I can do is champion in a new era of leadership, advancing Spain into the future while still carrying on and respecting the traditions of the past. My father was a King of the people and he loved all of you as much as he loved his own family and I will do the same."
The crowd screamed and cheered loudly for him and he hung his head and she saw his Adam's apple go up and down as he swallowed hard. He looked over at Victoria.
"I was having a conversation earlier with my Mother and she said that one of the reasons I will make a great King is because I have the courage to speak the truth and because of that I will have the respect, trust and loyalty of my people. I also had a conversation with my wife," he said, looking over at Eva and she gave him a reassuring smile.
"She said that the people of Spain will love me as much as they loved my father if I always put them first and think about how every decision I make will affect them. I promise to the people of Spain, that I will take the advice of these two very wise women in my life, whose opinions I respect very much. I pledge to lead with courage, honesty, integrity and in every decision I make I will think about what's best for my country and my people first and I will never stop fighting for you!" His voice grew louder on that last sentence.
The crowd started cheering and screaming and Paulo waited once again for them to quiet down.
He looked back over at Eva and said, "One of the last things my father did on this earth was choose Eva to be my wife. He told me he took a long time to find the perfect woman that he wanted by my side, helping me lead Spain and raising his grandchildren, the future rulers of this country. He said he chose Eva because she's patient, kind, generous, and she's a strong, intelligent woman. He said that's the kind of Queen he wanted to be by my side when I took over the throne. After getting to know Eva I have no doubt that he made the right choice. If he were here today I'd be thanking him for my marriage, just like he said I would."
Hearing that warmed Eva's heart and made her eyes tear up.
He hung his head and paused for a second, and then looked over at Eva again. Then he looked back out at the crowd and said, "I know most of you haven't had a chance to speak with her yet. I can tell you Spain is very blessed to have her as our Queen and I hope that once you get to know her, you'll feel the same way. She speaks six languages fluently and is very knowledgeable about trade and politics. She's already helping us close deals with Japan and China that will be very beneficial and I'm sure there will be many more like them in the future."
He walked over to Eva and surprised her by taking her hand and leading her back over to the podium, holding her hand.
"I brought Eva up here with me because she will be leading Spain at my side as my true partner. We're a team and I look forward to us starting our family and raising the future leaders of Spain together. I vow to you right now that we will work tirelessly for the prosperity of Spain and the happiness of our people and I hope that in time you will have the same love for myself and Eva that you did for my Father and Mother. We will do everything we can to earn your love and respect as your new King and Queen. LONG LIVE SPAIN!" he shouted, raising their joined hands in the air above their heads.
The crowd got to their feet, clapping and shouting, "Long live Spain! Long Live Spain! Long Live Spain!"
Paulo dropped their hands and looked over at Eva and gave her a smile and she smiled back at him and felt her eyes starting to water and her heart ached.
That moment was the turning point for her. She had been feeling herself starting to fall in love with Paulo but something had been holding her back. She hadn't been able to give her heart to him completely but now he had it. Her heart was his.
She had been so worried about never knowing what true love felt like but now she knew. It felt like your heart was walking around outside of your body because another person had it. You would do anything and everything to make them happy because when they're happy you're happy. You would risk your life to save theirs and you would move mountains to be with them.
She was in love. She loved this man beside her so much it hurt.