BABY ROYAL

by Bella Grant

  Her eyes were hopeful, and despite being annoyed, he felt bad letting her down. “I don’t know yet.”

  “Well, I’ll remind you,” she said as a bright smile illuminated her face.

  He didn’t have the guts to answer her. He simply nodded and walked away. She skipped off.

  Jason thought Elena might have seen him, dodged him, and found a way to get back to the farm. He hurried along, almost sure he would see her. They couldn’t tell him she was still sick. He had seen differently.

  He was almost at the farm gate when he ran into her father. “Hello, sir,” he said nervously.

  “Oh, Prince Jason,” Gregory answered and looked around uncomfortably. “How is the morning?”

  “It’s been okay,” he answered. “Listen, is there any chance I could see Elena today?” Gregory was about to answer when Jason held his hand out. “And don’t tell me she’s still sick. I saw her just now in the street.”

  Gregory’s mouth remained open, but nothing came out. Jason cocked his head to the side and waited. Eventually, the old man sighed and wiped his hand over his mouth. “She’s running an errand.”

  Jason felt like a weight had been lifted off his chest and he could breathe again. “Okay. When she gets back?”

  Gregory looked at the house with uncertainty, and it was as if the heaviness that had just left Jason’s chest took residence in his. “Prince Jason, I mean no disrespect, but why can’t you leave her alone? She doesn’t want to see you.”

  “She does want me,” Jason interjected, his mind going back to the night in the barn. “And I’m going to remind her of it.”

  “What do you mean, remind her?” Gregory wanted to know. “What am I missing?”

  A whole lot. But Jason didn’t say that. He knew she had feelings for him that she was running from, and he couldn’t say he blamed her. He had thought that by getting close to her he would unlock her feelings and she would gladly agree to marry him. Instead, he had given her wings and she had flown into hiding. At first, it was sexy when she played hard to get. Except she wasn’t playing. She was hard to get.

  The challenge was no longer fun but had become tedious as the days rolled by. He had made a mistake. He should have let things develop at her pace. Now he had pushed her away, and he had to make things right. His mother’s words came to him again, and he knew what he had to do. No matter who she was, diamonds were a girl’s best friend.

  “Nothing, sir. But Elena won’t get rid of me that easily.” He nodded and returned to his cottage.

  He didn’t see Elena for the rest of the day, but he called his mother and asked her advice on what to buy for a farm girl who claimed she wanted nothing.

  “What about dresses?” she asked excitedly.

  “No, she won’t go for that.”

  “Come on,” the queen insisted. “No matter how much she loves the farm, every woman should have dresses. Or shoes. Or fancy things. You know what?” she continued before he could get a word in. “I’ll send some things. What size is she?”

  Jason hadn’t thought about that before. “I don’t know.” He paced the floor as he tried to make an intelligent guess.

  “Well, she can’t be fat if she works on a farm,” his mother suggested.

  “No, she is slim. As a matter of fact, do you remember Ally? Justin’s sister.”

  “Yes, I remember her.”

  “I’d say they were about the same size.”

  “Good. I can use that. I’ll send some stuff over right away.”

  Jason stood at the window afterwards, watching and waiting to see if she would pass by again. She didn’t. He thought about going over to her house, but he knew her father would block him. He could always force his way in, but that was no way to impress anyone and he needed to. The next time he visited, he would bear her gifts, whether she saw him or not. She would know he wasn’t going anywhere, and soon, he hoped, she would stop fighting him.

  The following day the packages arrived—silk scarves, lace-edged dresses, perfume, make-up, jewelry, everything feminine. Jason was a little doubtful about some of the gifts, but he thought, What the heck? Nothing else had worked. Maybe something in the batch would warm her heart. At the very least, she would storm over to the cottage, mad that he had given her things she didn’t ask for—again—and he would grab her and remind her what they had.

  The thought provoked a smile from him, and he picked up one of the parcels, a small box with a pearl necklace and a matching pair of earrings. She would be a fool to resist those.

  Elena

  Elena must have been a fool, because she turned a bright shade of red when the third gift arrived in three days.

  “Elena, these are beautiful,” her mother exclaimed as she looked at the pearl set.

  Elena grabbed them from her. “It doesn’t matter. I don’t want them!”

  She stormed to her room and pulled out the box under the bed. It already housed a strapless satin dress and an antique perfume bottle with the puffer ball attached. She knew the gifts must have cost a fortune, but she didn’t want them. And it wasn’t as if Jason didn’t know she wasn’t that type of girl. She wore overalls! Not these. She threw in the small rectangular container and shoved the box back in place.

  Elena went to the window as she did every time she wanted to go outdoors, just to check for any sign of Jason. She hadn’t been near him since that night in the barn over a week ago. She had almost forgotten what having sex with him had been like and how she had felt in the moment. She thought about it, but the memory didn’t feel like her own. It was as if she was spying on someone else’s experience and living through them. She welcomed that surreal feeling that made her feel less like an idiot.

  When she saw no sign of him, she stole out to the back and went about her business feeding the pigs and cleaning out the watering trough. She stood outside the barn, reluctant to go in, fearful of the memories that would greet her. It was the one place she went where she couldn’t fool herself. She was always reminded that the memories were in fact hers and that she had done the unthinkable.

  She inhaled deeply, the bucket swinging in her hand, and walked slowly to the barn. She half expected to find him there and was slightly disappointed when she didn’t. She couldn’t get a handle on the emotions connected to switches inside her head. In one moment, she was angry at him for taking advantage of her. In another, she was angry at herself for letting him get close to her. And in yet another, she wanted to see him. Elena wanted to go to his cottage and enjoy his company.

  So many times, while she camped out in her room, she wanted to run to him. She stole moments by the door, listening to his voice when he came looking for her. Elena remembered how his lips had felt as they slowly caressed hers. She had never been kissed like that, never been held, never been made love to. She hadn’t imagined how it would be the first time, but she was sure what she got was far better than anything she could have thought about.

  She let out the breath and made her rounds, cleaning the stalls and feeding and playing with the horses before going to the pig sty. As she tended to the animals, she was jumpy—she expected to turn and find him standing outside the pen. But he was never there, and she only got angrier at herself. By the time she finished with her chores, she was fuming.

  “Elena, what’s wrong?” her mother called as her daughter stomped through the kitchen.

  “Nothing,” she mumbled.

  “Nathan was looking for you,” she called after her as she disappeared down the hall.

  “I’ll see him in a minute,” she told her and slammed her door.

  She lay on the bed, feeling like a replica of herself. She felt like she was in a small room with no windows and the walls were beginning to cave in. She started to hyperventilate, and she closed her eyes and tried to think calming thoughts. All that came to mind was Jason.

  “Aah!” she cried and grabbed the pillow. She placed it over her head as she released all her frustrations. She had no idea what to do—even s
taying away no longer gave her pleasure. She had given him her body, and her soul went with it—like she was now his and ultimately fighting a losing battle.

  Her chest was still heaving when she heard a knock on the door. “Elena?”

  She tossed the pillow aside and sat upright. “Yeah, Nate, come in.” She expected him to burst in and dive on top of her like he used to. She was surprised when she saw what he bore.

  “You got flowers,” he grinned. “They’re pretty.”

  Elena could hardly believe it. It was evident she would have to stop this nonsense. Didn’t he understand she could not be bought? That these gifts weren’t helping?

  “Yes, they are,” she said through gritted teeth. “Give them to me.” She took them from him. She pulled out the box and stuffed them in like she did the others.

  “Why’d you put it there?” Nathan asked with his childlike innocence.

  “It’s where I put the special things,” she said with a plastic smile. She reached out and grabbed him and tickled him. “Now, what do you want?”

  “Nothing. Nothing.” He laughed hysterically as she tickled him until his body grew limp and he slithered to the floor. “Stop, Elena. Mom!”

  She was laughing by this time. “That will teach you to bring me flowers.”

  He stopped laughing. “But I thought flowers were a good thing. It would be bad if I brought you a frog. Does this mean you’re going to marry the prince?”

  His question took her off-guard. “No, it doesn’t mean that.” She pulled him to her and hugged him. “I’m not going to leave you.”

  “That’s okay,” Nathan whispered against her hair. “I think the prince is nice.”

  That was definitely not what she had hoped to hear from him, and it took her by surprise. “Have you been talking to Prince Jason?”

  “Not really. But he comes here a lot. And he brings nice things. One time, he gave me a whistle. It’s in my room. You wanna see it?” His eyes lit up, like the prince had given him an island and not simply a whistle.

  “Maybe another time. I think I want to lie down now,” she told him and ruffled his hair.

  “Okay,” he said sadly as his face dropped.

  “Oh, come on. I’ll play parcheesi with you later. Deal?”

  His eyes shone again. “Deal.”

  Elena watched as he left the room before closing the door after him. She didn’t want to be disturbed again—not when she wasn’t sure which way was up. She fell asleep, and when she got up, it was dark. She joined her family for dinner and a game of parcheesi afterwards, much to Nathan’s delight. No one said anything about Prince Jason, but the question was clearly at the forefront of everyone’s mind—what was Elena going to do about him?

  No one dared ask, and she was glad they didn’t. She had hoped her father would protect her from him, but she could easily see that was not possible. Not after she had given him the key to her heart without even knowing it.

  Jason didn’t come by the following morning, or the next, but that didn’t stop his gifts from coming. By day five, Elena had had enough. She grabbed the box filled with all sorts of gifts from him and went outside. Her parents peered at her through the kitchen window, but they didn’t need to ask what she was going to do.

  She was enraged as she made one angry step after another, each one bringing her closer to the source of her anguish. Her breathing got shallower the closer she got to the cottage. She passed Charlotte along the way, who stepped right in front of her. She had been so distracted she almost ran into her. The girl put her hand on the box Elena carried and flashed her a curious glance.

  “What’s all this?” she asked as she grabbed one of the smaller boxes inside.

  “None of your business,” Elena spat. They had never gotten along before, and she wasn’t in the mood for small talk.

  “Yes, it is!” She grabbed Elena’s arm, pinching it in the process. Elena pulled back, and the box was dislodged from her grip and threatened to fall. She balanced it on her right knee and started walking again. “Where are you going?”

  “Charlotte, get out of my face!” She glared at the stubborn woman, the anger boiling to a critical point inside her.

  Charlotte grew red in the face as she stepped aside. “You’d better stay away from him. I don’t even know what he sees in you. Look at you. Full of mud and shit.”

  Elena paused in her steps and a tiny gurgling laughter escaped her. “How sad for you, that he prefers shit over you.”

  “You…” she began and lunged at Elena, who sidestepped her. She charged so hard that, missing Elena, she lost her balance and fell. Someone started laughing in the yard to Elena’s right. Charlotte, completely embarrassed, stomped off, brushing the dirt from her pretty dress.

  “Don’t mind her,” Mrs. Rogers, the woman who had witnessed the brawl, called. “Charlotte has always been a mean one.”

  “I remember,” Elena replied and continued on her way.

  She hoped she wouldn’t run into any more disgruntled women. She had enough on her plate to deal with. Being in close proximity to Jason was taking a toll on her. Her legs wobbled as she reached the gate, and she was slightly grateful she didn’t see him. She wanted to give him a piece of her mind but didn’t feel like it was time for it. He wasn’t out of her system just yet.

  She hurried up the steps and placed the box at the top. She stood, ready to go, when she heard the door open. Her heartbeats echoed in her ears when she saw him standing in front of her—only an arm’s length away.

  Before she could run, he grabbed her arm and pulled her inside. “What the hell are you doing? You can’t—”

  The next thing she felt was his lips on hers. Her eyes remained wide open and her body seemed paralyzed, sufficient to provoke memories she had been trying so hard to disown.

  He touched her waist, and as his lips slid gently over hers, she felt her lips begin to move as well. She knew she wanted him, and she was almost relieved he still wanted her. Her body unfroze, and her hands moved to grip his hips. She felt him get hard against her, and the moans escaped her before she had a chance to rein them in. The phrase what are you doing echoed in her head, but she didn’t want to stop. She had run for so long, and now the emotions had caught up with her.

  He pulled her closer to him, crushing her to his hardened chest as his hand dipped lower and squeezed her ass. His breathing came out in ragged gasps, and she clung to him as her tongue darted inside his mouth. She wanted him to fill her, ready to make love to him again. Her body screamed for him, just before she felt a chill on her lips as he pulled away from her.

  Jason

  “What…what…”

  She couldn’t find the words to ask, but he knew exactly what she was trying to say. What the hell was he doing? He had pursued her relentlessly. He watched as her face changed from a passionate glow to an angry red.

  “I’m sorry,” was all he could manage to say. “I didn’t mean to…kiss you.”

  “You didn’t mean to kiss me? So that was an accident?” She folded her arms in front of her, and he saw her cheeks flush with embarrassment.

  “No, that’s not what I’m saying.” He walked around the room and placed his hands on his hips, closed his eyes, and held his head up to the ceiling. Why couldn’t he do or say the right things?

  “I know what this is,” she replied, and he could hear the bitterness in her voice.

  He could assume what was coming next, and he wasn’t prepared to hear it. “You do? Is that why you hid in your house for a week? Elena, we made love and then you disappeared.”

  “Well, you disappeared first, so I simply returned the favor,” she said and pouted like a child.

  “I disappeared? Oh, no, not really,” he insisted. “I went to visit my mother. I came to see you the minute I returned. Did I hurt you? I mean, because it was your first time…”

  His voice trailed off when she turned away from him. “No,” she whispered. “But you know this isn’t what I wanted. And now I�
�m here, and just when I think I’ve completely gotten you out of my head, you kiss me, right before backing off.”

  He made two strides to reach her, and he gripped her arms from behind. “I didn’t stop because I didn’t want to. Elena, you have no idea how much I want to. But…I remember the last time didn’t work out so well, and I don’t want to rush you anymore. I want you to get there in your own time.”

  Her shoulders moved as she sighed deeply. “I don’t know what to do.”

  He turned her around to face him. Her gaze was averted. “Will you give me another chance?”

  Her head whipped up now, and she looked at him with uncertainty. “Another chance. I didn’t give you one before.”

  “Yes! Yes, you know what I mean,” he said impatiently. “Why are you making this so hard?”

  “I’m not making this hard. Do you think I was sitting on the farm waiting for Prince Jason, or any other prince, to sweep me off my feet? I have a life here—one I’m not willing to give up. I bet you don’t even know what that feels like—to be forced to give up something and accept something else you didn’t want in the first place.”

  Jason looked at her incredulously, let her go, and started laughing boisterously and in a quite unprincely fashion. He walked away from her and stood with his fingers sinking into the back of the sofa. “Are you kidding me? Have I ever given up something I actually wanted for something I would have preferred not to have? Gee, let me think. Hmm,” he mused sarcastically. “Oh, right, how about living in this village? Do you think I want to be here? Right now, I could be on a yacht having a good old time with my friends. Instead, I’m here out of a sense of duty.”

  “Is that what I am to you?” she asked stubbornly.

  Jason ground his teeth and grunted. “God, you’re impossible. You are not my duty. My duty is to find a wife in the village. That’s my duty. For the sake of this village and for my kingdom.”

  “You didn’t have to come here. We would have been just fine without a royal family that never cared about us.”