by Naomi Penn
“If your family were to agree to the courtship, do you think that you would also agree?”
“Yes, but…”
“But nothing. I will come and meet your family and win them over with my charms.”
Victoria went home after her date and was so excited to show her father all the money she had made from her day. She didn’t want to tell him about meeting Robert, but she surely couldn’t lie to him. Plus, Robert had made plans to come to their home in two nights time. She had to tell her family so they could prepare for the visit.
“Father, you will not believe how wonderful my day was. I sold every piece of fruit!”
“What? How is that possible?”
Victoria’s father stood before her with tears in his eyes as she handing him the money from that day. He was so happy and it made Victoria so overjoyed to see that happiness. Her father and mother worked so hard every single day. It made her feel wonderful to see them have a moment of happiness.
Victoria had grown up on a small farm with just her mother and father running it. They could not afford help so they all three worked tirelessly to get all the jobs done around the land every single day. As Victoria got older and was able to help with the chores, they were making more money from their produce and finally added a couple farm hands to help out.
“Mother and Father, I have some other news also.”
“Yes darling,” Victoria’s mother said.
“I met a man and he would like to court me. He will be coming in two night’s time to ask you for permission.”
“A man? Who is this man?” Her father said disapprovingly.
“His name is Robert.”
“How does Robert make a living?” her mother asked.
Victoria paused; she had no idea what Robert did for his employment. In fact, she knew very little about him. He seemed to be successful, considering he had been the one to purchase all the produce from their stand. Victoria knew it had been him who had given those people the money to buy her produce.
“I’m not sure,” Victoria said with a hesitant smile.
“What is his family name, perhaps we will know of him,” her father asked.
“I’m not sure,” Victoria answered again.
Now realizing she really knew nothing about the man at all, except his name was Robert.
“For goodness sake child, do you know anything about the man?” Her mother said with a laugh.
Victoria laughed also; no she didn’t know anything about him. Except that he was handsome and kind. She knew he made her heart flutter and she wanted to see him every day when the market opened. Victoria knew he was a giving man by the way he had given money to those people to buy her produce. But above all, Victoria knew deep in her heart that Robert was the man she wanted to marry.
“Mother I don’t know the specifics about his life, but I know that he comes to the market every morning and buys a single plum just so he can talk to me. Today when I said I could not sit and talk with him after the market closed because I had to get the produce home. Robert secretly sent dozens of people to come purchase all of the produce. He is handsome and kind and I would really like to court him.”
Victoria spoke so quickly that her mother and father were both leaning in close to try and understand what she was saying. It was obvious she liked this man and above that, her mother could see the joy in her daughter’s eyes.
If her father was going to object, her mother would get him to agree. Victoria knew this by looking at her mother. Victoria’s father had been outnumbered by the women of the household for many years. Although he was a strong man and very much in charge when it came to running the land. Victoria knew her mother would be in charge when it came to her love life, so she continued to talk directly at her mother.
“He makes my stomach have butterflies and my heart skip a beat,” Victoria smiled at her mother.
The look in her eye begged her mother to agree with this plan. Victoria had never shown an interest in courting with a man so it was hard for her mother and father to agree to. But their daughter was an adult now and they did want her to be happy. So if courting this man named Robert would make Victoria happy; her mother had no other choice but to agree.
“Alright child, we will meet him. We are not agreeing to the courtship until we meet him though.”
Victoria danced all the way to her room, she felt like a princess going to the ball as she started looking through her things for just the right dress. She didn’t have many dresses, but she did have one that she thought would be absolutely perfect for meeting Robert again and starting their courtship.
***
Robert did not come and visit Victoria at the market over the next two days. She was sad and began to worry that he would not show up at her house to meet her family. Victoria did not tell her family about her concerns though; it was the first visitors, outside of their friends, who have come to their home only on a very special occasion.
Victoria’s mother had spent the last two days cleaning every corner of the home and preparing for her guest. She didn’t know anything about Robert’s profession, so Victoria’s mother wanted to make sure she prepared the home for even the pickiest of men. If this Robert was a good suitor for her daughter, she did not want to turn him away because of her poor housekeeping.
There was a loud noise that sounded like several horses coming over the ridge. Victoria went to her window to look out. It looked like the Kings men were on their way to the house. Victoria could see the royal color guard leading about a dozen horses through the meadow.
“Victoria!” Her father yelled from downstairs.
“Yes father,” Victoria came running down to him.
“Why is the King and his people coming to our house.”
Victoria just looked at him; she had no idea why they would be coming to their house. She certainly had not done anything wrong to bring them there.
Victoria’s mother and father hurried up and went out into the yard to greet the King. Victoria was shortly behind them. They didn’t know why the King and Queen were coming to their home, but they certainly knew the protocol when the King visited any commoners. Victoria looked over at her mother who was looking back at her, neither of the women seemed to know what was going on.
As the King and Queen arrived Victoria looked behind them and saw Robert on a horse. He was dressed in royal garments and smiled from ear to ear at Victoria. She could not believe her eyes. Robert was seriously riding with the King and Queen.
Victoria assessed the situation and looked at all the guards in their uniforms. Robert’s uniform did not look like that of the guards, which was baffling to Victoria. She thought for sure he must be a guard if he was coming to her home with the King and Queen.
Slowly the reality of the situation started to come to her. Robert didn’t have the same uniform on as the guards because Robert was not a guard. Instead, Robert was wearing a uniform that was the same style as the King. Victoria looked at the King and then back at Robert. It couldn’t be true, could it? Was Robert the Prince?
Her mouth opened and she couldn’t believe her eyes. She stood there with a gapping mouth as she looked from the King and Queen to Robert. This was unreal. Robert was the Prince? Yes, indeed. Victoria had been flirting and talking to the prince for the last few weeks.
Victoria had kissed the prince!
She got weak in the knees.
“Your highness,” Victoria’s mother and father bowed.
Victoria continued to stand there with her mouth open. She couldn’t move, the shock of what was going on was too much for her.
Robert got down from his horse and came over to her. He bowed in front of her and grabbed her hand. As he brought it up to his lips he whispered to her.
“Sorry for not telling you.”
Victoria just looked at him. This was a pretty big thing to not tell someone. But she couldn’t be mad at Robert. It would be hard to tell someone his secret until he trusted them. Victoria felt goo
d that Robert liked her and trusted her enough to let his secret out.
As the two families introduced each other, Robert and Victoria held hands and made their way into the house. Victoria loved the feeling of Robert’s hands. His soft, but firm touch was exactly what she needed in order to calm her shaking nerves.
The dinner was uncomfortable for everyone. Victoria’s parents kept looking at her and she didn’t know what to do. Robert’s parents, the King and Queen were very kind. But Victoria had a feeling they did not fully agree with Robert’s choice in Victoria. She certainly didn’t come from royalty and she was just a commoner.
“Mister and Misses Wentworth, it is my intention to marry your daughter. Would you give me permission to take her hand in marriage?” Robert blurted out about halfway through dinner.
The parents at the table all looked shocked. They had all agreed to this meeting under the pretense that it was to start a courting relationship. None of them were ready for the idea of marriage. It was not something to undergo quickly and they all wanted time to absorb the situation.
Robert’s mother, the Queen, was the first to protest.
“Robert, it is common practice to court first and then propose marriage.”
“I don’t need to court first. I know what I want.”
“Robert, we can discuss this at home. If you two would like to court, we will allow that for now,” the King added.
At his father’s words, Robert could not protest. He regretfully agreed to court Victoria first, but he knew she was the woman he wanted to marry. Just being near her made his whole body tingle and he wanted to feel her body next to his desperately. He was a good son though and he knew his place, he accepted their agreement to let him court Victoria.
Victoria could hardly breathe. She didn’t know if it was the corset that her mother had fastened too tightly or if it was Robert wanting to marry her. She stood up and bolted for the door. She just had to get some fresh air, she felt like she couldn’t breathe at all.
Robert took off after her, out the front door and down into the garden.
Victoria kept running, even though she could hear Robert hollering for her. He was catching up to her and she continued to run. She didn’t know what she was running from. She liked Robert and she wanted to court him, but the idea of him proposing marriage so quickly had sent her whole body into a panic.
“Victoria, I’m sorry I did not tell you,” Robert said as he reached out for her arm to stop her from running.
As he pulled on her arm he tripped over a mound in the grass and both he and Victoria went falling to the ground. Robert pulled her in close to prevent her from hitting the ground, but she instead landed right on top of him. They both lay there in shock that neither of them were hurt.
Victoria started to hit him in the chest as the moment in the house came back to her. She didn’t want Robert ruining everything by forcing a relationship. Victoria was much more comfortable courting for a little bit first. She was also extremely irritated that Robert had not even given her a slight clue that he was the Prince.
“You are the Prince! You don’t think you should tell a girl that when you meet her?”
Victoria continued to hit at him and ramble on and on. Robert wanted to explain, but Victoria wouldn’t stop talking long enough for him to get a work in.
He wrapped her up in his arms and rolled over on top of her. She instantly became silent. The position they were in was intimate and nothing like anything Victoria had ever experienced with a man. She flushed with excitement.
Robert covered her mouth with his, at first in an attempt to keep her quiet, but then purely out of lust. He wanted her desperately. Robert wanted to touch every inch of her porcelain skin. If he had been allowed to, he would have taken her right there in that field; although, he respected Victoria too much to do such a thing.
Victoria melted into Robert’s kiss. She had never felt that level of excitement and longing for a man. Her body moistened with desire and she couldn’t imagine ever kissing another man.
When they stopped kissing, Robert stayed there on top of Victory. He loved feeling her body against his and the grass from the meadow sheltered them from being seen by anyone else. He wanted to continue to kiss Victoria for the rest of the day.
“You want to marry me?” Victoria said with a smile.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Robert didn’t have to think about that very long.
“I’ve wanted to marry you since I first saw you in the market. A young boy came up to your cart and tried to steal and apple. You caught him, but then after talking to him, you gave him the apple anyways.”
Victoria smiled, she remembered that little boy. He had been hungry and she couldn’t tolerate the thought that he would go hungry, so she let him have the apple.
Robert stood up and pulled Victoria up with him.
“Yes, I’ll marry you,” Victoria said. “If, we can convince our parents to let us.”
***
It took Robert’s parents about a month before they finally agreed to allow the marriage. Robert would not stop talking about it and pestered them nightly. It was clear he was not going to change his mind. Finally his mother decided they should allow it. She wanted her son to be happy, but she really wanted him to marry someone with status. It was devastating to her that he chose Victoria, but she succumb to the fact that Robert was going to choose whom he wanted to marry.
Victoria and her mother did not get to plan much of the wedding. Robert’s staff and family had protocols that they needed to follow and Victoria just had to go along with it. Her mother was very sad about his. For her entire life, Victoria’s mother had dreamed about helping her daughter plan her big wedding day. She took solace in the fact that her daughter was marrying a prince.
When the day finally came, Victoria was dressed brilliantly in a lace gown and her father walked her down the aisle. Kings, Queens, Lords, Dukes and Duchesses all attended the wedding. It was by far the most impressive event in the recent times of London. Anyone who truly mattered was at the event.
Robert and Victoria could not have asked for a more perfect wedding and they laughed and joked with all the guests until the wee hours of the morning. It was by far the happiest day of both of their lives.
As they retired to their honeymoon suit, Robert could not contain his excitement to touch and hold Victoria. He had wanted her in his bed from the moment he had first kissed her. Beyond her delicious taste, Victoria was giving, caring and sweet, he knew she would make a wonderful princess for him. She was well mannered and followed the rules and order of the house; which Robert thought would make his mother happy.
Although Robert’s mother did not look very happy throughout their wedding. His father seemed more agreeable to the union and had even asked Victoria for a dance at the reception.
Robert stood motionless as Victoria came around the corner in her lace nightdress. His body was on fire with desire that he couldn’t control for another second. Her hard nipples pressed up against the thin fabric and Robert wanted nothing else in this world but to have his wife and consummate their marriage.
He went to Victoria and took her in his arms, kissing her passionately. With her young age, he knew she had never been with a man. As much as he wanted to enter her quickly and feel her naked body on his; he held back and tried to be as gentle as possible.
Grabbing Victoria’s hand he led her over to the bed. She sat down and Robert stood next to the bed. Victoria leaned her head onto his stomach. She was shaking.
“Robert, I love you.”
“I love you too sweetheart.”
Victoria lay back in the bed and moved up to the pillows. The silk linens felt divine on her hands. They were cool on her skin and made Victoria shiver.
The room was dark, with only one oil lamp lit right near the bed. The deep red velvet drapes were still opened and a hint of the nightly stars soaked into the room. Victoria wanted to blow the oil lamp out, she wa
s embarrassed to let Robert see her naked body.
Robert got on his knees on the bed and pulled off his night shirt to expose his erect body. He wanted to feel Victoria all around him. He wanted to thrust inside of her until she couldn’t take another second of him. But again, he decided to move slowly. This was his wife; this was the woman he would love forever. He wanted to savor every moment of this.
Victoria lay on the bed with her breasts heaving up and down as she breathed heavily. The anticipation of this moment had her breath moving quickly and her hands shaking. She wanted to feel Roberts body, but it also scared her very much.
“The light, blow it out,” Victoria said softly.
Robert did as she asked and the room became dark. Only the slight light of the moon drizzled on Victoria’s body.