by Bella Grant
With the stubbornness that was practically his trademark, he bent and slipped through the ropes and entered the field. The people remained, muttering amongst themselves loud enough for him to hear, undoubtedly wondering what was happening.
Jason ignored them as he walked through the grass and to the wooden pen. He looked around but didn’t see anything or anyone else. She was hidden from his view, and he moved more cautiously the closer he got to the place where she had disappeared. He spotted movement, and he saw her bent over as she shoveled what appeared to be filth from a cemented trough. He stood just outside and folded his arms as he watched her working meticulously at a task he wouldn’t ever have dreamed of doing. The smell was rancid, and his nose twitched as his senses were overwhelmed by it. He stepped back and pinched his nose, just as she turned and noticed him. The shovel fell from her hand when she saw him, and she stood sharply.
“You scared me half to death,” she said, flattening her hand on her chest as her breathing quickened.
“Only half?” he joked. “I meant to go all the way.”
She rolled her eyes and looked past him to the throng still gathered at her fence. “Your people await, Your Majesty,” she said grudgingly.
He looked back and grinned. “Yeah. They’ll wait. I wanted to see—”
“How gross hog shit is?” she asked quickly. “Not so sexy, is it?”
Jason was laughing now, and the sound traveled across the grassy field. “No, it isn’t. But it is admirable,” he complimented her. “Not everyone will do work like this. I sure couldn’t.”
“Maybe not,” Elena replied, wiping her hand across her forehead. “But this is the kind of thing I like…this and farming the land, growing my own food, taking care of the animals…”
Jason listened to her, and even while she stood in the pen, surrounded by filth, he knew he liked her. She was different than the rest, and obviously not as easy. She presented him with a challenge without knowing it, and he welcomed it. He would have her groveling in no time, and he would take great pleasure in it.
“What?” she asked, obviously reading the thoughts displayed on his face.
“Nothing,” he told her, waving her off. “You go back to your…farming,” he said, and walked away quickly before he gave himself away.
He didn’t want her to be the one to walk out on him this time, and he thought that maybe if he left first, it would leave an impression on her. When he looked back, she was busy shoveling filth again, and the image knifed him through the heart. As he walked away, he realized she would be a tough nut to crack.
The throng was more than happy to see him return, and a woman he hadn’t noticed before that morning immediately handed him a plate of goodies. Jason’s brow raised at the gesture, but he accepted her offer. He handed the platter quickly to another eager young girl who begged to carry it for him – he would eat it when he got back to the cottage. The woman, who gave him the goodies, eyed the girl holding the platter with annoyance and flung daggers at her with her eyes.
They arrived at the man’s house, and he discovered the daughter he wanted him to meet. “This is Candace,” the proud father told him of the freckle-faced girl who stood midway between the gate and the door. She wore a plain white dress with a red ribbon around the middle, and her black hair was braided across the front and fell to her breast in a thick knot. She blushed as the prince neared her, but there was nothing striking about her that would keep her planted in Jason’s mind.
He took the girl’s hand in his, feeling how coarse it was against his palm. She clung to him, like she wanted to encase the memory of touching him, but he slipped his hand away before she took it as a souvenir. She giggled as she hurried behind him to the door, the rest of the group forced to remain outside the gate.
His wife had apparently been cooking up a storm in anticipation of his coming, and the smell of meat and freshly baked bread reminded him of his hunger. The dad—Bruce, as he later found out—ushered him to the dining table, right next to a smiling Candace. Before he could take a bite of the meal, her mother sat down hurriedly and beamed at him across the table.
“So, how do you like our Candace?” she asked pointedly.
Jason was put on the spot, but he didn’t have anything to lose really. He stuffed some of the venison into his mouth and chewed while he spoke. Bad manners, he knew, but for some strange reason he believed it was acceptable among less than noble people.
“She’s all right,” he mumbled between bites, his concentration fully taken with filling his stomach. The food tasted good, that he couldn’t deny. But as for everything else, he doubted he would be back. Not much was said throughout the meal, and he was ready to leave at the end of it, much to their dismay.
Jason walked back to the other side of the town, feeling odd as he did so. He was used to being chauffeur driven, but he found the walk pleasant. Soon enough, he was met by other villagers, and he spent the rest of the morning and most of the afternoon meeting all the women who lived there who were vying for his hand in marriage.
By the time he returned to the cottage he was dog tired, and he collapsed onto the bed and fell into a deep sleep. The cold air that seeped in through the windows later that night awakened him, and he arose, conscious of the music and loud talking coming from the square. He didn’t believe much in socializing with the people. He simply wanted to do what he came for and be gone in a month. He didn’t need to remember their names or faces, and he certainly didn’t need to mingle.
He hadn’t been awake long when he remembered Elena. He turned onto his side and flicked on the bedside lamp. The time read half past eight, and he wondered if she would be by the tree. He rushed to the shower, almost tripping over himself, and burst out laughing at his stupidity.
“Get a grip,” he advised himself. “You are the prince. Of course she would want you.”
He checked himself in the mirror, turning his head this way and that, admiring his features and his physique. He was a catch, and any woman would be lucky to have him. She wanted him, he could tell. He merely had to convince her of it.
He remembered the path he had taken before, and he followed it. Sure enough, she was sitting under the same tree with her lantern, doodling in the dirt. Before he got to her she saw him and groaned.
“Oh, God, now you’ve messed up my spot,” she complained.
“Messed up? I was out walking…”
She gave him a look that suggested she wasn’t an idiot. “Yeah, right.”
“I’m not kidding. I was walking by here and there you were, right in my path, like you knew I was going to come this way.”
“I what?” she asked with a puzzled look and took up her lantern.
“No, no, don’t leave,” he hurried to tell her. “You can have the tree.”
She started for a moment. “I can what? Have the tree?”
“Yes,” he said with certainty.
“I didn’t realize it was yours to give.”
She was beginning to get upset, and Jason smiled at the fact that he was able, after all, to stir her emotions, even if it wasn’t the exact one he was going after. “Well, this is my kingdom, so…”
She stared at him like he was the most impossible person in the world. “You can have your tree,” she told him calmly and stood.
“No, wait, don’t leave. That came out wrong,” he apologized and attempted to touch her.
“Look, Prince Jason, I don’t know what you’re doing here, but I’m sure you realize I am not the princess type. I don’t dress up, I don’t wear make-up. As a matter of fact,” she said, sweeping her hand along the length of her body, drawing his attention to the oversized jeans and tee she wore, “this is what you would get. Not fitting for a prince. I suggest you spend your time elsewhere.”
Jason was not moved by her words. If anything, his stubborn determination was strengthened. “I spend my time where I want to, Elena,” he replied, and let her name roll off his tongue seductively.
He
r eyes bulged when he spoke her name, and he saw her shiver, though slight, and it only encouraged him more. “Who told you my name?”
He chuckled. “I am the prince. Why wouldn’t I know?”
“Hmm,” was all she uttered. “That might be all you wind up knowing. Now, if you would just get out of the way…”
“Let me walk with you,” he offered, not wanting to be left alone again.
“No. You wanted to spend time with your tree,” she said feistily.
Jason laughed and, without hesitation, walked after her. “Nah, I don’t think it will miss me. Besides, I think it likes you.”
She stopped abruptly, and he almost ran into her. She wheeled around and held the lantern up to his face. “What are you doing?”
“Standing very close to a lantern…that has fire…that can burn me…”
She caught the gist eventually. “Oh,” she said and lowered her hand. “You know what I mean. I’m not joking. What do you want? You keep following me.”
“I want a wife,” he told her matter-of-factly, and whatever she was going to say died on her lips. He stared into her eyes, made even more beautiful under the soft glow of the light from the lantern.
“I’m not that woman,” she insisted, and before he could stop her, she hurried off.
But he had seen enough. A smile crossed his features slowly and warmed him inside. He had seen that he was getting through to her. Maybe he would wear her down just to prove a point. But even as he walked a little longer in the cool night air, he suspected it might not end with only that.
Elena
Elena jumped out of bed and ran to the window. She pulled the curtain aside gently, peering out to the gate and along the fencing for any sign of him. It had been near impossible to escape Jason over the last week—everywhere she went, he was there, like he was stalking her. She had grown uncomfortable even venturing onto her own farm, and she hadn’t gone back to the oak tree since the last time she’d seen him there.
“Why can’t he find someone else to bother?” she asked herself as she craned her neck to see.
When she saw no one around, she grabbed her overalls, hopped into them, and dashed out into the hallway. She skidded to a stop when she heard voices. She slinked against the wall as she crept closer to the kitchen where the sounds were coming from. When she was close enough, she pressed her face against the wall and poked her head slowly around the corner. Her heart did a somersault when she saw Jason sitting at the table, sipping a cup of what she assumed to be tea and chatting with her parents like he was an old friend.
She felt the rage swell in her, and her cheeks got heated. “What the hell are you doing here?” she asked angrily as she stomped into view.
“Elena!” her mother shouted at her. “Watch your mouth.”
Jason didn’t respond, but she could see the laughter in his eyes over the rim of the cup he held at his lips. She folded her arms and waited for him to answer. He simply gulped and rested the cup on the table.
“Prince Jason decided he wanted to come over for breakfast. I told him we would be happy to host,” her father replied calmly.
“I’ve had breakfast, lunch, dinner, tea, supper, drinks, and almost anything you can think of at every other house but here. I think I was due a visit.”
“Well, we don’t want you here,” she muttered under her breath loud enough for her mother to hear.
“Yes, we do,” her mother interjected. “Don’t mind her, Prince Jason. I don’t know what has gotten into her this morning,” her mother said through gritted teeth. “Now, go and wash up and join us for breakfast.”
Elena clenched her fists at her sides and stormed off to the bathroom. The cold water almost turned to mist when she splashed it onto her face, so heated were her cheeks. She pressed down on the edges of the basin, staring at herself in the mirror until her eyes got foggy. She didn’t know what he was doing or why he was at her house. He had met enough women by now to have chosen one for his wife. Why was he still in the village? She could only hope her father would keep his promise should he actually decide he wanted to marry her.
When she returned to the kitchen, the table was set with rolls, boiled eggs, sausages, fruits, butter, cheese, and the fine cutlery they only used at Christmas. He was getting the royal treatment, and she didn’t think, prince or not, he deserved it. This was the same prince who hadn’t cared to visit them at all before he was forced to. What gave him the right to sit at her table and eat her food?
She deliberately scraped the chair out as she prepared to sit. She glowered at him, but he didn’t look at her. He merely smirked over the cup that seemed fastened to his lip.
“Well,” her mother said, smoothing her dress in her lap. “It is very nice to have you here with us this morning, Prince Jason. I hope you like the food.”
Elena jabbed the egg on her plate, stuffing it into her mouth as she made sloppy sounds while chewing. Her parents reddened with embarrassment, but Nathan found it too funny. He giggled and tried to do the same before his mother caught his arm and stopped him.
“No fair,” he wailed. “How come Elena gets to do it?” She stuck her tongue out at him, and he started giggling again.
There was no common ground between the family and the prince, and the conversation that ensued was forced and almost painful.
“So,” Jason finally managed to say in between bites. “Nice farm.”
“It is,” her father answered. “I’ve had it a long time. It is the pride of the family.”
“And one day I will take it over,” Elena added.
“Oh?” Jason asked and looked at her. “I understand it’s the family farm, but wouldn’t you want to do something else? Most of the other women and girls I’ve met want to go to Hollywood, or be in a Broadway musical, or travel the world visiting exotic places—places I’ve often visited.”
“The farm is my life,” Elena defended. “No one is stopping me from doing any of those things. But I want a simple life—the farm, a family, a son or two. I don’t need to travel the world to find what I already have here.”
Jason smiled, seeming almost impressed with her answer. “Still, don’t tell me you wouldn’t want to see the Eiffel Tower.”
“What’s an Ivey Tower?” Nathan asked as he mispronounced the word.
Jason chuckled and touched his hand. “Eiffel Tower,” he corrected him. “It isn’t much. Just one of the most awesome towers you could ever imagine. And at night”—he gawked dramatically— “when the lights come on, it’s the most beautiful thing ever. People come from all over the world to see it.”
Nathan’s eyes widened with wonder. Elena’s slanted with disgust. “I’m sure it isn’t at all like you say,” she said, more to make herself feel better than anything else.
“Maybe. But it sure is better than a lantern.” He grinned at their inside joke.
She jabbed her fork into the meat and stuffed it into her mouth. Her parents looked at each other, evidently wondering what he was talking about and knowing Elena understood.
“What’s that about a lantern?” her mother asked.
“Oh, nothing really,” Jason answered before she could. “It wasn’t an offense.”
“May I be excused?” Elena asked as she wiped the napkin across her mouth. “I think I’m full.”
“Uh, sure,” her father replied with a quizzical look. He knew she was stubborn and hard-headed and that it would do no good to argue with her.
Elena scraped her chair back, and when she stood, she curtsied and held her arm out. “It was a pleasure, Your Grace,” she mocked and stalked through the kitchen, letting the door slam on her way out.
She was hyperventilating by the time she got outside, and she welcomed the morning air and the familiar smells of dirt, hay, and fresh grass. She hurried to the shed and got her bucket, stuffed some oats inside, and went to the barn to check on the horses. Four of them were housed inside the barn, and they got excited when they saw her. They nickered and stomped thei
r feet, and one whinnied and lifted itself onto its hind legs.
“Oh, girl.” Elena laughed. “You are frisky this morning, aren’t you?” The animal thudded its hooves down and came to the front of the stall. The majestic brown horse held her head over the stall door and lowered it in anticipation of Elena’s morning ritual. She smiled as she rubbed the animal’s face and scratched behind her ear.
“Have you been a good girl?” she asked. The horse breathed heavily, snorting into Elena’s palms. “I see. Well, maybe we can go out to the corral today, get those legs stretched.”
It seemed like she understood, for her head came up instantly and she backed away from the stall as her feet came crashing down into the door. She nickered and turned about in the stall, stomping in anticipation.
“Soon,” Elena said as she reached into the feeding trough for the oats. She scooped out a handful and held it out for the animal. It came forward and ate from her hand, and the feeling warmed her entire body and made her forget about the horrible breakfast guest she had left behind.
She finished with the brushing and feeding of the other horses and was about to leave the barn when she almost ran into Jason, no doubt deliberately in search of her.
“What the—” she yelled.
“Whoa!” he cried and held his arms out.
She sucked in a lungful of air. “What is it this time, Jason? Or should I say, Prince Jason?”
“I want to understand what you love about the farm,” he explained and stepped aside so she could pass.
She rolled her eyes at him. “How could you possibly understand? You live in a castle, with maids and butlers and servants taking care of your every need. You wouldn’t have the slightest clue what it’s like to be in a place like this. And why are you still here?”
A puzzled look crossed his face. “Why are you so angry?”
“I’m not angry,” she shot back.
“Hmm, okay. And I’m not a prince.”
She heaved an exasperated sigh and sauntered to the well at the back of the house. She ignored him as she pulled water and prepared to take it to the horses.