by Suzanna Lynn
The bed was immense! It could have slept six or seven young ladies from her village, let alone herself. It was covered in great pillows and blankets of linen and fur that most certainly would keep the night’s chill at bay.
She walked across the room and out onto the balcony to look down on the villages below the mountain. Many women might take comfort in knowing their child would have the opportunity to become the next in line to rule this great land. However, Luana could only see a cage—a loveless, lifeless existence for herself. Once the Prince was ready, he would take a real wife—a Queen—from one of the other Kingdoms and bear legitimate heirs to his throne.
Luana felt a deep, hollow sadness in her heart. She could not help but long for one of the great loves that she had read about in her books. She was completely lost in thought when she heard the sound of a footstep behind her. She turned to see Prince Baylin standing at the opening of the balcony.
Even in her anxious hatred, she could not help but admit he was still very handsome. He was certainly not the little boy who had fallen from the tree more than ten years ago. His dark raven hair tumbled loose past his bare shoulders and he wore only a pair of black leather trousers and the silver royal medallion around his neck on a black leather cord. The moonlight danced across his skin, painting shadows within the curves of his muscular physique.
“Hello,” he spoke softly, taking a few steps toward her. “It’s me… I mean… I’m Baylin.”
His words snapped Luana out of her admiration for him. Suddenly she only felt anger.
“And I am to be your bed wife,” she spat at him. “Shall we get to it then?”
As he walked toward her, she refused to meet his eyes. She knew she had spoken out of turn and was sure to pay the price for it.
His rough hand cupped her chin, forcing her gaze to fall on him. His eyes were like that of the Crystal Water in Rivermouth, crisp and blue, but so deep you knew you could drown in them. And sad, they had such sadness to them. Had the venom in her words actually wounded him?
“Do you not remember me, Luana?” he asked in a soft tone. “Have you forgotten?”
She felt a pang of guilt for her harsh tone. He does remember. She felt so awkward standing before him in this state. They had not spoken in such familiar tones since they were children. She had watched him grow into a handsome Prince and had secretly hoped he would one day come back for her. But I never wanted this.
“I do, Your Grace,” she spoke with a broken voice. “We are grown now.”
“Yes, we are,” he said as he dropped her chin, stepping back to look at her fully. The moon created a silhouette of her body within the translucent white robe.
He reached out and ran his hand down the curve of her waist then gently pulled the knot of the jeweled sash. Without it to keep the robe taut around her body, the silky sheer material simply slid off and pooled at her feet. She stood before him, frozen in fear at her nakedness as he placed a hand at her hip.
The moon, in its fullness, reflected down on her alabaster skin, allowing Baylin to admire the curves of her figure.
An icy breeze traveled through the air, swirling around Luana’s body. The coolness touched her nipples, setting them hard and tingling.
Baylin pulled her in closer and caressed her breast with his hot, rough hand. The heat of his touch sent goose bumps running all over her body. He leaned in and kissed the curve of her neck lightly, slowly kissing his way down over her shoulder and collarbone.
He allowed his lips to graze the curve of her breast as he slowly knelt down to his knees and gently ran his lips against the soft skin of her thighs and hips. His beard was bristly but only seemed to add to the sensation.
It wasn’t until he began delicately kissing her along her stomach that she realized she was actually feeling aroused.
What are you doing? she thought. You’re nothing more than a slave to him. He takes no value in your pleasure.
Luana stiffened abruptly, allowing her body language to relay her unhappiness.
Baylin looked up at her. “Is something wrong?”
“Can we just get to it already? There is no use in prolonging the inevitable.” Her words were harsh and hot. She kept her eyes fixed ahead of her, attempting a look of indifference while desperately fighting back tears.
He stood up with a grim look as he seemed to ponder her words. “If that is what you wish. Go to the bed.”
She walked into the room and toward the bed, all the while mentally scolding herself for defying him. At least he was being kind; now he will show you no mercy.
She lay back on the bed as he unlaced his trousers and pushed them to the floor. When the moonlight hit him, her own body betrayed her. She began to feel a slight tingling between her thighs at the sight of his erect manhood.
He crawled on top of her, supporting himself with his muscular arms. He spread her legs and pressed himself against the opening to her maiden flower. As he leaned in to kiss her lips, she turned her face away from him.
As hard as Luana had tried, she could not keep all the tears at bay. The few tears that did escape traveled silently down her cheek. Her body began to tremble as she waited for him to penetrate. Her anger defied it while her body yearned for it. She stiffened, preparing for it to begin.
Baylin reached up to wipe the tears from her cheek, but Luana pushed his hand away and quickly wiped them with the back of her hand.
Baylin sat back on his heels. “You defy me?” His words were stern yet almost disappointed.
The tone of his voice caused Luana to turn and meet his stare. The pale moonlight gave his blue eyes a ghostly sheen.
Luana was like a floodgate; she could not hold back the tears anymore.
“Why would I not? Why would any woman rejoice in being reduced to a glorified brood mare?” Even through her tears, Luana could not help her defiant tone, but regretted it when she saw its effect on him.
“Your son,” he began through clenched teeth. “Our son. He will be the next in line for the throne. He will rule this Kingdom one day.”
Why is he trying to justify this? She could not stop her words. “My son? You mean the son I will bear you and will never see again but from a distance? The son who will be taught to avoid me, who will be taught that I am less important than his horse? Or do you mean the children of the actual wife you will take as your Queen someday? This, you feel, I should be honored by?”
She knew she had angered him. His words came out hot as dragon’s fire. “You dare speak to me in such a tone? I took you from your measly existence as a drunken goat herder’s daughter fighting wolves in the field to the bearer of the next Lord of this Kingdom!”
He grasped her by the tops of her arms, pulling her from the bed and lifted her with ease to her feet to stand before him. “Perhaps I should have left you in your fields.”
“I wish you had!” she screamed through streaming tears, struggling against his iron grip. “No child should be born of this. Born into a world where their mother is a prisoner, where their parents hate one another.”
Baylin released his grasp and stared into her eyes. There was a sad realization there. “It is the only world I know.”
As he walked back to the balcony to retrieve the sheer robe she had arrived in, Luana couldn’t help but feel guilty for wounding him. This man, who was once her best friend, was now someone she hated. All because of a King’s decree nearly five hundred years before they had met.
Baylin smoothly slipped the robe back onto her shoulders and secured the jeweled sash around her waist.
“As my bed wife,” he began, “you will have access to these chambers as well as the private bath in the next room. You will have handmaids at your disposal, but you may not leave these chambers. Understood?”
The tone of his voice was indifferent, but his eyes spoke loudly. He was hurt by what had occurred.
She nodded and he walked over, picking up his pants. As he put them on in silence, she wondered what was to happen. It was un
heard of to defy someone of the royal family, especially the Prince.
Baylin made his way to the door and turned to look at Luana. “This is your home now. You may use all within these chambers as you please. The bed is yours to sleep. Do not worry. I will not touch you again.
What have I done? She wanted to apologize. She wanted to fall at his feet and beg for his forgiveness. But her stubbornness got the best of her and she stomped over to the bed and buried herself in the furs.
When Baylin slammed the chamber door closed, tears began rolling down her cheeks until she cried herself to sleep.
Chapter Five
She despises me, Baylin thought as he stood outside the chamber door. Why does she have such anger for me? He didn’t understand her behavior. For months he had admired her, stealing opportunities just to speak with her. She had always been shy but seemed to enjoy his presence. Had she truly forgotten how close they were as children?
Baylin made his way down the winding halls and tall stairwells to the dining hall. He was in desperate need of an ale and some quiet.
When he arrived, half his guards were there. Most were passed out drunk; the few that weren’t were busying themselves with a game of dice.
“Your Grace,” called out one of the guards.
“Enough with the titles, Ferric, please.” Baylin grabbed a horn of ale and sat alone at a far-off table.
Ferric was a war-hardened soldier who had been at Baylin’s side since they were young. Unlike the other true born men who had raven hair, Ferric had a long tangle of chestnut red hair that fell over his shoulders. Ferric was of royal blood. However, his family were descendants of a bed wife. He was, therefore, placed in a high honor as part of Prince Baylin’s guard. Though Ferric may have been considered a low-class true born, Baylin had no truer friend.
Baylin stared into his drink, reliving the words Luana had uttered. She doesn’t see me as her savior; she sees me as her jailer. He cared for Luana and wanted to make her happy. So many years had passed since they had been young friends. She saw him differently now. How can I show her I care when she is so certain I’m a brute?
Ferric rose from his seat and made his way across the hall to his friend. “Baylin, what troubles you? Should you not be with your bed wife relishing in her pleasures?”
If only she’d have me. Baylin was about to reply when a loud group of men came stomping into the hall, led by Baylin’s Uncle Cadman.
Lord Cadman was the younger brother to Baylin’s father, King Ashmur, and tended to be disliked by most in the Kingdom. He was a greasy man who resented his nephew, not only for his seat on the throne, but also for the love the people of Grasmere had for him.
However, King Ashmur had a soft spot for his little brother. Ashmur had been seventeen when Cadman was born. Their mother had died in childbirth. Their father followed their mother just one year later, succumbing to grief at the loss of his wife.
Ashmur was crowned King and made ruler of Grasmere. Many had remarked that the responsibility of ruling a Kingdom was too a heavy burden for an eighteen-year-old boy to bear. However, King Ashmur took on an even greater one.
Though it was completely unheard of, the King chose to father his little brother, putting off finding a Queen for the Kingdom. King Ashmur did not marry Queen Valasca until some fifteen years after being crowned.
One would think that Lord Cadman would be eternally grateful for the sacrifices and love King Ashmur had bestowed upon him. However, it seemed to be the opposite for Cadman. He grew up an entitled, spoiled Lord who acted as though he was next in line for the throne.
Lord Cadman had been one of the ten who had taken part in the harvest moon celebration that night and was awarded a bed wife.
“Dear nephew,” Cadman called out. “Finished already? Do not worry. Stamina improves with practice…for most.”
Cadman and his men attempted to stifle their laughter as they made their way over for ale.
Ferric stood to his feet so quickly he moved the table. “You dare to speak your future King in such a way?”
Cadman got in the face of the young man. “I could have your head for that tone.”
“Nobody is taking anyone’s head,” Baylin interceded. “Ferric, please sit.”
The guard did as he was bid, never taking his eyes from Lord Cadman.
“Uncle, should you not be in your chambers with your own bed wife?” Baylin said before taking a long drink of ale.
Cadman gave a vile laugh. “Oh, I did. I’m surprised you could not hear her screams from your own chamber, nephew.”
The company of men let out a boom of laughter as Baylin sat back down next to his friend. Cadman and his men made their way down the length of the hall as the depraved man retold the rape of his bed wife to every man he could.
Baylin stared down at his horn of ale, lost in thoughts of Luana. He could now understand why she hated him. We’re all monsters to her. She saw all the men of his family as barbaric rapists like his uncle. She’s right. No child should be born into a world like this.
“Baylin,” Ferric whispered. “What is it? Does the woman not remember you?”
“She remembers,” Baylin began. “She simply hates me for what I am.”
Ferric looked confused. “Hates you? Why?”
“She said she wishes I would have left her in the fields,” Baylin admitted, looking down at his drink. “She said she’s now nothing more than a brood mare.”
Ferric looked down at the table, unsure what to say.
Baylin thought to himself. He needed to do something to earn Luana’s trust, maybe even her love as time went on.
The Prince knew that he could trust his friend. “Ferric, I need you to do something for me.”
“Anything,” the guard replied eagerly.
Baylin leaned in and whispered quietly. “I need you to go to Open Shaw for me.”
Chapter Six
The next morning Luana woke to the gleam of warm orange sunbeams falling across the bed and the smell of food. She heard the clink of metal and discovered what she could only assume were her promised handmaids preparing her breakfast.
“The young miss has woken!” one said, quickly moving to Luana’s side as she stepped out of the giant bed.
“Where is Prince Baylin?” Luana asked curiously. She felt truly guilty for her anger toward him the night before, and his absence made her worry that she was to pay for her insolent behavior.
“His Grace said to tell the young miss, should she ask, that he will return shortly. He has chosen to break his fast with the King and Queen this morning,” said another maid who was laying out a tray of bread and cheese.
It was hard for Luana to tell the maids apart. All three wore the same simple brown dress with cream-colored cowls covering their hair completely. They were all so very plain that she could not determine any way to define one from the other.
Luana walked to the small wooden table where a meal of bread, cheese, fruit and a covered tray had been laid out.
She sat down and uncovered the tray to reveal quail eggs. She simply adored quail eggs! Her mother and father would get them for her birthday, but hadn’t been able to afford them the past few years.
Did Prince Baylin do this? She pondered the eggs. No, surely quails eggs aren’t a rarity at all within the castle.
As she finished her meal, the chamber door opened and in walked a hunched-over, wrinkled old man in long blue robes. He had a silver beard, but no hair on his head. He carried a black leather bag and wore a large golden medallion of the healers around his neck.
He’s ancient! He must be nearly ninety years old, Luana thought as she observed the man. He had a kind face, even with his cloudy grey eyes. Luana had heard that physicians were actually born into their profession, passed from father to son. There were certainly no female physicians, save midwives. The knowledge this elderly man possessed had been passed down through the generations for thousands of years, and he appeared to carry the weight of that knowledg
e and he hobbled, stooped over a cane, toward her.
“My dear,” he creaked. “I am Master Keon, the royal physician. I have come to ensure last night’s events were properly consummated.”
A flush of fear took Luana. She had heard rumors that bed wives who were unsuccessful in producing children were forced out of the castle in disgrace. Not even their families would take them then. If that happened, she would have nowhere to go.
“Um, my Lord Keon...” she fumbled.
“He is no Lord, I assure you,” Prince Baylin said as he walked through the door. “Master Keon, my account of the evening should be more than enough to confirm it’s…success.”
Everyone bowed as Baylin crossed the room to Luana. She felt it was only right to display the same courtesies and bow. “Your Grace.”
He cupped her chin, turning her eyes to him. “You need not ever bow to me, my dear,” There was a sad kindness in his eyes and if it were possible, he was even more handsome by the light of the rising sun.
“My Prince,” the physician squeaked as he shuffled toward Luana. “It is customary to examine the bed wife to ensure everything has gone according to order.”
Baylin protectively placed himself between Luana and the old man. “And you are telling me the word of your future King is not as accurate as your confounded instruments?”
The anger in his tone threw off the old man. “At least allow me to examine the bed linens to make sure her maidenhood was properly taken.”
Luana sucked in a breath in fear. She knew the bed had not yet been changed, and it would be obvious that nothing had happened the night before.
“I’m afraid I will have to disappoint you there again, Master Keon,” Baylin said with a slight laugh. “We didn’t exactly make it to the bed.”